New Year’s Resolutions
Happy New Year to you. So glad to be with you all in this setting. Little fun fact about
the New Year you may not have known. Did you know that the concept of making a resolution
in the New Year actually dates back a few thousand years to, we believe, historians
believe, the ancient Babylonians who whenever they had their New Year, wasn’t necessarily
in January, it was a little bit later on in what we consider the calendar year, they would
have this multi-day big blowout religious festival and the ancient Babylonians would
reaffirm their loyalty to the king, among other things. They would make vows to repay
debts that they owed and to return objects that they had borrowed from others. So there
you go, there’s a little fun fact for you in the New Year. Now the concept of resolutions
is something that people think about nowadays every time there’s a New Year and there does
seem to be something about the New Year that makes people think about a fresh start, even
though technically if you think about it, is really December 31st any different from
January 1st? We know that it’s not, but there is something about this new beginning, this
fresh start. So how should we think about the New Year and specifically about resolutions?
Now the Bible doesn’t ever specifically speak for the concept of resolutions, New Year’s
resolutions, but it doesn’t speak against it either. So we have some freedom with regards
to our decisions when it comes to New Year’s resolutions, but let me just give you some
thoughts here as we begin the New Year and as you sort of look to the year ahead. Whatever
our goals are for any New Year or at any time during a year, ultimately as Christ followers,
the main goal and the aim that we should have is to glorify God in all that we do. In 1
Corinthians 10 31, Paul is saying, whether you eat or you drink or whatever you do, do
it all for the glory of God. So whatever goals or resolutions you feel compelled to make
as a Christ follower, do it all for God’s glory. And if what you were aspiring to do
is not honoring to God or it is not in agreement with God’s word, you need to rethink those
commitments along the way. Now, a number of the resolutions that people make or goals
that people set in the New Year are naturally physical or non spiritual in nature, losing
weight or eating better or saving more money or reading more books or whatever those things
are. And those are fine. But when it comes to spiritual matters and spiritual resolutions,
motivations in those things matter as well, not simply to do something for the glory of
God. But think about it when you were trying to think, OK, I’d like to read my Bible more.
I’d like to pray more. I’d like to give more. I want to go on such and such a mission trip
or whatever those spiritual resolutions might be, typically in connection with a spiritual
discipline. Motivations matter there, too, because we want to make sure and I can speak
from experience on this. We want to make sure that our motivations are, again, to please
God and not to be legalistic in any way or to feel guilted into a decision. OK, I want
to read the Bible more so that God will love me more or accept me more. That’s not how
that works. We are saved by grace through faith alone and through Jesus finished work
on the cross. So any resolution that we make should be to glorify God first and foremost
above all things. Some other thoughts you should pray for wisdom anytime you are making
a decision. James 1 5 encourages us to turn to God anytime we need wisdom about anything.
But we also need wisdom not only for the goals to set, but also how we should go about fulfilling
the goals and the resolutions that God puts before us or that God lays upon our hearts.
Ask God for wisdom. We need to rely upon God’s strength. I can do all things through Christ
who strengthens me. We are to abide in Jesus. Apart from him, we can do nothing. So we are
to rely upon God’s strength. We are to also recognize that we are not to make hasty commitments
before the Lord. We looked at this a few weeks ago when our message is on the Sermon on the
Mount where Jesus is saying, let your yes be yes and your no be no. You don’t have to
add other things to add credence to your statements. We should be people who make careful, well
thought out, well planned commitments and then holding those as sacred before the Lord.
And when we do fall short, we need to confess that to God and we need to not be condemned
because there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. But we also should
not allow those things that we do better in when we are accomplishing our goals to allow
us to become puffed up or vain in any way. One of the beautiful things about the church
is also the ability to be able to find people who are like-minded, who can help hold you
accountable if you’re making a commitment or a resolution in some way. Share that with
somebody. Share that with another believer so that they can help pray for you and encourage
you and provide some accountability for you. But above all, above all, let’s commit our
ways to the Lord, as Psalm 37 encourages us to do. We commit everything we do as unto
the Lord and accepting and receiving the invitation that God gives to us and that we looked at
this past Sunday in my message, the invitation in the new year to pray and to listen to God
and to obey. Above all, let’s commit our ways to the Lord as we begin this new year.
