Good morning on this Fall morning and welcome to the Berean Break.  My name is George Sinkie and I am so glad you have joined me.  You made a decision to tune in to today’s program.  And that is what we are going to look at this morning – decisions.  Before we go into that though let’s go to God in prayer,

Dear God in heaven.  We thank You for this day in our lives and for the beauty of this time of year.  As we see the signs of harvest all around us – help us to remember that we need to bear fruit.  Help us also to remember the farmer who plants his seed in hope and harvests in faith.  We thank You for Jesus and may each of us decide to serve You more with our lives.  In Jesus’ name we pray,  AMEN!!

     Decisions, decisions.  We make them everyday!  Many of the decisions we make are very minor.  For example, what will I eat for breakfast?  What kind of toothpaste will I use?  What kind of car will I drive?  Will I part my hair on the left or the right?  Or perhaps, no part at all?  Will I drink my coffee with cream, or without?  What kind of shoes will I wear, lace-ups, or slip-ons?  I could go on and on.  I’m sure you could make a list of your own similar decisions.  These decisions are, at least in view of eternity, of no importance.
     But other decisions we make are of greater significance.  Where will I work?  Will I be married?  If so, whom will I marry?  Will I have children?  If so, how will I provide for my family?  Will I be a Christian?  Not just a Christian, but a faithful Christian.  Will I study the Bible?  Or will I look upon God’s word as a trivial matter?  These decisions have far more lasting consequences.  Some of these decisions, literally, have eternal consequences.
     How should we arrive at the decisions we make?  While a “flip of the coin” may be a satisfactory method of making some decisions, no reasonable person would want to make a major life-changing decision in such a haphazard manner.  Decisions of any real significance involve serious thought and deliberation.  Obviously, it’s possible for a person to make not only wise choices, but unwise choices as well.  How can a person know he has made a wise decision?  Let’s consider a few tips that should be helpful in the decision making process.  What I would like to call, “the ABC’s of decision making.”

     First, ALWAYS be AWARE of others.  Consider the tragic decision of Achan, recorded for us in Joshua 7:1-26.  In Joshua chapter six, God had given the Israelites instructions as to how they were to be victorious in capturing the city of Jericho.  Notice God’s instructions to Joshua in Joshua 6:2-5:

   2 And the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and the valiant warriors.
   3 “And you shall march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once.  You shall do so for six days.
   4 “Also seven priests shall carry seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark; then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets.
   5 “And it shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout;  and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people will go up every man straight ahead.”

     Joshua also reminds them that the spoils of Jericho belong to God in Joshua 6:17- 19,

   17 “And the city shall be under the ban, it and all that is in it belongs to the Lord;  only Rahab the harlot and all who are with her in the house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.
   18 “But as for you, only keep yourselves from the things under the ban, lest you covet them and take some of the things under the ban, so you would make the camp of Israel accursed and bring trouble on it.
   19 “But all the silver and gold and articles of bronze and iron are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord.”

     After taking Jericho, the Israelites next step was to take the city of Ai.  However, the Israelites met with unexpected resistance.  Thirty-six Israelites died in the battle.  Joshua mourned over the Israelites’ defeat.  Listen to Joshua’s words of despair, recorded in Joshua 7:7-9:

   7 And Joshua said, “Alas, O Lord God, why didst Thou ever bring this people over the Jordan, only to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us?  If only we had been willing to dwell beyond the Jordan!
   8 “O Lord, what can I say since Israel has turned their back before their enemies?
   9 “For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it, and they will surround us and cut off our name from the earth.  And what wilt Thou do for Thy great name?”

     God explained to Joshua that the Israelites’ loss was due to their sin in the camp.  Joshua began an inquiry in order to find out whose sin had caused the defeat before the city of Ai.  Joshua began with the heads of the tribes, then with the heads of the families, then the heads of the households in succession to one family, then to individual persons within that family.  It wasn’t long before Joshua found the guilty party.  As it turned out, Achan had let his greed get the best of him.  Achan confessed that he took a garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight.  Achan buried them in the earth in the midst of his tent.  When Joshua sent messengers to Achan’s tent, they found the spoils buried right where Achan said they were.  After the messengers took these things to Joshua, Joshua took Achan, along with his sons and daughters, to the valley of Achor.  The children of Israel then stoned Achan along with his sons and his daughters and afterward burned them as God had commanded (Joshua 7).
     Notice especially Joshua 7:1

1 But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully in regard to the things under the ban, for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the things under the ban, therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel.

     It was Achan who had sinned.  But Achan’s sin had brought disgrace upon the whole nation.
     The decisions we make affect far more than just ourselves.  The choices we make often affect our parents, our spouses, our children, our coworkers, our friends, and our neighbors.

     Second, when making decisions, always BASE your decisions on your BELIEFS.  Consider the cowardly decision of Pilate, recorded in Matthew 27:1-26.  We do not have the time to read this long section, but I think we are familiar with it.  When the chief priests desired to have Jesus killed, they brought him before Pilate.  It was customary to release one prisoner of the people’s choosing.  When Pilate asked the people who they wanted to be released, Jesus or Barabbas, the people responded, “Barabbas!”
     Pilate then asked, “What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ?”  They all demanded, “Let him be crucified!”  After having Jesus scourged, Pilate delivered him over to the people to be crucified.  Before doing so, Pilate took water and washed his hands, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just person:  see ye to it.”  Pilate was fooling himself if he thought he could clear himself of guilt so easily!
     What was Pilate’s downfall?  He believed Jesus was a just and innocent man, and rightfully so.  But, lacking any real convictions, Pilate chose to give in to the demands of the majority.  Again that reference for you to check out is Matthew 27:1-26.
     Unfortunately, there are still many today who base their decisions upon the latest polls, never committing themselves without first holding their finger in the air to see which way the wind is blowing.  We ought to make our decisions according to what we know to be right, even when it means going against the crowd.

     Third, when making decisions, always CONSIDER the CONSEQUENCES.  Think for a moment of David and his rash decision to commit adultery with Bathsheba.  This is found in 2 Samuel 11:1-12:23, again this is a long section and I encourage you to read it following today’s program – that reference again is 2 Samuel 11:1 - 12:23.  A summary of that story would be:  One evening, David arose from his bed and went out on the roof of his house.  While there, he saw Bathsheba, a very beautiful woman, bathing.  When David sent for Bathsheba and committed adultery with her, Bathsheba became pregnant.  David then devised a plan whereby he would try to conceal his sin.  David sent for Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband, and told him to go to his house.  But Uriah refused to do so saying, in 2 Samuel 11:11

   11 And Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in temporary shelters, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field.  Shall I then go to my house to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife?  By your life and the life of your soul, I will not do this thing.”

David then wrote a letter to Joab, instructing him to place Uriah in the heat of the battle.  Joab and his men were then to retreat from Uriah, allowing him to be killed.  Joab and his men did so and, after Uriah’s death, David took Bathsheba to his house and took her for his wife.
     But God was displeased with what David had done.  When God sent Nathan to David, Nathan told David a story of two men in one city, one rich and one poor.  The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds.  But the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter.  When a traveler came to see the rich man, the rich man did not take from his own flock and his own herd to prepare a meal for the traveler.  Instead, the rich man took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it as a meal for the traveler.  When Nathan relayed this story to David, David became greatly angered.  Listen to David’s reply in 2 Samuel 12:5-6

   5 Then David’s anger burned greatly against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, surely the man who has done this deserves to die.
   6 “And he must make restitution for the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and had no compassion.”

While David understood the lesson, he didn’t get the point, so keep reading to see Nathan’s reply, 2 Samuel 12:7

   7 Nathan then said to David, “You are the man!  Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul.’”

Because David repented and confessed his sin before God, he was forgiven as we read in 2 Samuel 12:13

   13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”  And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has taken away your sin; you shall not die.”

But God’s forgiveness did not eliminate the consequences of David’s sin.  Listen to the words of 2 Samuel 12:14

   14 “However, because by this deed you have given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born to you shall surely die.”

     Friends, David’s decision to commit adultery with Bathsheba had tragic consequences, just as our sins have grave consequences today.  The apostle Paul wrote, in Galatians 6:7

   7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked;  for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.

     Men not only reap the consequences of their sins while they are yet on this earth, but for all eternity as well.

     Our time is about up for this morning, but we have seen three important points in decision making.  We must be aware of others, we need to have beliefs and stick to them, and we need to remember there are consequences for our decisions.
     This Berean Break is brought to you by the church of Christ meeting at 1600 East First Ave, in Mitchell SD.  Remember to choose wisely because your soul’s eternal home depends on it.  If you have any questions or comments please contact us.