THE DEFILEMENT OF BITTERNESS (1 OF 4)
by Jeff Strite
Scripture: Hebrews 12:9-15
This content is part of a series.
The Defilement of Bitterness (1 of 4)
Series: Insomniacs - Things That Keep Us Up At Night
Jeff Strite
Hebrews 12:9-15
Our Sermon Series this month is entitled: ‘‘Insomniacs: Things That Keep Us Up At Night.’’
I read that some of the Polynesian natives spend a great deal of time fighting. When people offend them, they steal something that belonged to offender and hang it from the ceiling of their hut. Then they lie awake at night, look at the items hanging from the ceiling and remember that person had done... and try to decide how to get even.
You know they’re not all that different from a lot of other people in this world. There are many people who spend their nights thinking about those who’ve hurt them, wronged them, and mistreated them.
ILLUS: Researchers interviewed over 1,400 American adults asking them to rate how likely they were to forgive others for hurting them. The participants also answered questions about how well they’d slept in the past 30 days, how they would rate their health, and how satisfied they were with their life. The results suggested - those who forgave others slept better than those who didn’t. (https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/is_a_grudge_keeping_you_up_at_night Sophie McMullen | October 14, 2019)
You see, bitterness can rob you of sleep (keep you up at night).
But our text today says it can do more than that rob us of the grace of God. ‘‘See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no ‘root of bitterness’ springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled.’’ Hebrews 12:15
Now, everybody gets mad once in a while. But when we tame down, everything’s ok. However, people who are bitter aren’t like that. Bitter people don’t tame down. Bitter people hold grudges like their life depended on it. Because somebody has slighted them. Somebody has rejected them. Somebody has hurt them. Somebody has deprived them of something precious or valuable.
ILLUS: I once read about a woman ...
Series: Insomniacs - Things That Keep Us Up At Night
Jeff Strite
Hebrews 12:9-15
Our Sermon Series this month is entitled: ‘‘Insomniacs: Things That Keep Us Up At Night.’’
I read that some of the Polynesian natives spend a great deal of time fighting. When people offend them, they steal something that belonged to offender and hang it from the ceiling of their hut. Then they lie awake at night, look at the items hanging from the ceiling and remember that person had done... and try to decide how to get even.
You know they’re not all that different from a lot of other people in this world. There are many people who spend their nights thinking about those who’ve hurt them, wronged them, and mistreated them.
ILLUS: Researchers interviewed over 1,400 American adults asking them to rate how likely they were to forgive others for hurting them. The participants also answered questions about how well they’d slept in the past 30 days, how they would rate their health, and how satisfied they were with their life. The results suggested - those who forgave others slept better than those who didn’t. (https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/is_a_grudge_keeping_you_up_at_night Sophie McMullen | October 14, 2019)
You see, bitterness can rob you of sleep (keep you up at night).
But our text today says it can do more than that rob us of the grace of God. ‘‘See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no ‘root of bitterness’ springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled.’’ Hebrews 12:15
Now, everybody gets mad once in a while. But when we tame down, everything’s ok. However, people who are bitter aren’t like that. Bitter people don’t tame down. Bitter people hold grudges like their life depended on it. Because somebody has slighted them. Somebody has rejected them. Somebody has hurt them. Somebody has deprived them of something precious or valuable.
ILLUS: I once read about a woman ...
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