Cornerstone Independent Baptist Church
06/29/25 Sunday Worship Service
  • All I Ever Want To Be

  • Introduction

    Turn to 2 Samuel 7.
    Summer is in full swing here in central Pennsylvania! School is out, the kids are excited, and summer activities are in.
    The snowmen and sledding of winter have been replaced with swimming and plenty of other outdoor fun. Or perhaps, you’re busy just trying to dodge the summer heat.
    We’ve entered the season where many families take vacations. Some travel to favorite destinations. Some go visit family.
    The homebody folks don’t do the vacation thing. Instead, they might do a summer “staycation.” They stay at home. It might be that they change up their routine for a few days. Some take day trips and visit the many sights across our region. Others take the extra time to work on projects around the house. And some are happy to just sleep in.
    Like I said, summer is in full swing. Some of you have taken vacations already. Others have trips or staycations planned for later this summer. In either case, I want to take this morning to show you some principles from the Bible on How to Make The Most Of Your Summer.
    Read slowly:
    Summer is a wonderful time to take a break, but as your pastor, I don’t want you to take a break from God or from your local church! You must remain committed to both.
    Turn to and read 2 Samuel 7:1-3
    The Bible records for us that David was a warrior king. He reigned for seven and a half years in Hebron but then he got busy and conquered Jerusalem for Israel. He pushed the boundaries of his kingdom far and wide. He fought many wars.
    In fact, Solomon would later write this about his father.
    1 Kings 5:3 KJV 1900
    Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the name of the Lord his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet.
    2 Samuel chapter seven tells us that a time came in David’s reign where the battles had been fought. The wars had been won. He was able to sit down and rest in the palace that he had built for himself.
    In that moment, when he paused from the busyness of kingdom building, a new purpose or a new objective came to his mind. He would build a house unto the Lord.
    Notice, it was not until David slowed down from his work that he realized the need for a house of God. It was not until David took a break from war that his ears were opened to the voice of God, which would ultimately move him to prepare for the building of the Temple.
    I want to show you two more passages that follow a similar pattern.
    Turn to and read 1 Kings 19:1-8
    In the previous chapter, Elijah lead the great showdown on Mount Carmel between himself and the prophets of Baal. It was a great battle and contest. Elijah walked away from it spiritually, emotionally, and physically exhausted.
    If that weren’t enough, we just read how that afterward he received a little note from the queen that says, “I’m going to make sure that within the next 24 hours you’re a dead man.”
    Elijah flees for the southern end of Israel. He leaves his servant behind, travels an entire day out into the wilderness, and then asks the Lord to take his life.
    What does the Lord do?
    “Get up, Elijah! Get back to your work as my prophet!”
    No, God doesn’t do that.
    God sends an angel to feed Elijah and to let him rest. Later, in verse eight, Elijah goes to Mount Sinai and there he got alone with God.
    One more passage of Scripture:
    Turn to and read Mark 6:30-32
    In the verses leading up to this passage, Jesus had sent His disciples out in teams of two. This was the first time recorded in Mark that Jesus sent them out to preach repentance from sin. They did many miracles. They labored abundantly. They travelled far and wide across Israel. When they returned unto the Lord, they found that many people were with Christ also. There were many people coming and going, no doubt hearing His preaching and receiving His healing. It was so busy serving alongside the Lord, Mark says that “they had no leisure so much as to eat.”
    Notice, they had just returned from a busy season of ministry. They come back to the Lord Jesus and begin serving alongside Him again and there’s so many people wanting help that they don’t even have time to eat. So Jesus commands them to get away and to rest.
    In the passages that we just read, we have three cases where…
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    There was a season of intense work
    The season of work was followed by a season of rest
    The season of rest had a specific purpose or objective
    They each had a season of intense work. David’s was perhaps years in the making as he fought battle after battle. Elijah’s work was a full day on Mount Carmel.
    They each had a season of work followed by a season of rest. Elijah’s rest was alone in the wilderness with God. The disciples’ rest was getting alone and away from the multitudes.
    They each had a season of rest for a specific purpose or objective. David’s was to prepare the temple materials. Elijah’s was a reset so he could get back into the ministry. The disciples’ was supposed to be for the same reason, although they didn’t get to rest as intended.
    Application: This was the pattern of our Savior, of Elijah, and of David. What is your pattern?
    Many of you know how to work hard, but I ask you this morning: do you know how to rest well? Have you learned to set work aside and not allow it to dominate your life? Have you learned that for the child of God, there is more to life than your career? If work dominates your life so much that you don’t have time to enjoy being alone with God, then you have too much work. (That is just as true of your pastor as it is of you.)
    You know what I’ve found after ten years of being married to Jana? The longer I’m married, the more I enjoy just being with her. When we go on dates, what makes the date special for me is not what we do, it is who I’m with. I just enjoy being together with my wife and my best friend.
    Christian, that’s exactly what God wants in your relationship with Him. He just wants you to enjoy and to worship Him in the quietness of His presence. It’s hard to do that if you never pause from your work.
    Martha was busy about many things, but Mary put aside her work to simply enjoying the Savior’s presence.
    By the way, Christian, God did not save you from your sins just so you could enjoy the fringe benefits of salvation.
    What are the fringe benefits? Joy, peace, hope, the blessings and providence of God as you go through life. Those are some of the fringe benefits, but if that’s all you’re after then you have a very shallow understanding of salvation.
    That would be like me being married to Jana just so that I have someone to cook my meals and do my laundry. What kind of relationship is that? A selfish one - but that’s how a lot of people treat their relationship with God.
    God did not save you just to give you fringe benefits. He saved you so that you could enjoy the very best thing that He could offer - Himself. He saved you so that you and He could have a personal, intimate relationship together.
    If you want to make the most of your summer, you’ll have to take time to pause from your work and invest in that relationship.
    Perhaps you do take time to rest, but do you rest on purpose? In other words, why do you rest? Why do you take a vacation or a staycation?
    Is it to fill your life with fun? Having fun is not all bad, but if that’s what you live for, again, you’re missing the point.
    It is just to do whatever you feel like doing?
    If so, you’re missing out on God’s ultimate purpose for rest.
    Rest is a big subject in the Bible - one that would require a series of messages to cover properly. It is first mentioned in Genesis 2:2 when God rested on the seventh day. It is a major theme of the book of Hebrews, where the writer cautioned believers that they could miss God’s greatest blessings on earth and rewards in heaven if they ceased to be faithful to the Lord. In the book of Revelation, rest is the reward of those martyred during the Great Tribulation. Obviously, I can’t cover all of that in one message, but in the time remaining, I want you to consider from our text some principles to help you make the most of your summer.
    When God gives you an opportunity to rest, the first thing you ought to do is…
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    Evaluate - 2 Samuel 7:1-3
    Read 2 Samuel 7:1-3
    After David finished his endless wars, he sat down in his palace and it was then that he got to thinking. It was at that point he noticed something he hadn’t noticed before.
    “Hey Nathan, you know what, here I am sitting in my beautiful palace and the Ark of God sits in a tent. That doesn’t seem right, does it? I’m going to build God a house.”
    When David had a season of rest, he began to evaluate and he saw something that needed to change.
    We Americans are so busy running around from one activity to the next and we are so distracted by TV’s and phones that we hardly ever take time to slow down and actually evaluate our lives and the direction we are going!
    This summer, when you get a time to rest, don’t just slow down to have fun, do some self-evaluation. If you get to go on a vacation, take some time to evaluate your life.
    Here’s some suggestions:
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    Your health
    I understand, your health is not entirely within your control, but it’s not entirely outside of your control either. You should evaluate yourself and what you are doing to maintain your health to the glory of God.
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    Your priorities
    When my family and I go to the Outer Banks, usually there will be a few times where I can get alone with my thoughts and with the Lord. These are the kinds of things that I’ll think about. These are the things that I’ll evaluate about my life.
    You want to make the most of your summer? Then take some time to evaluate your priorities.
    How’s your personal time with the Lord? Are you spending any time alone with God at all? Why not? If you are, is it relational or is it transactional? In other words, do you spend time with God to deepen your relationship with Him or is it just so you can get something out of it for yourself?
    How’s your church attendance? It’s fine to get away on a vacation for a time, but don’t let that time away slip into a habit of being away from church. You show me a Christian that chooses other things over being with their local body of Christ and I’ll show you a Christian that is not walking with their Savior.
    These are the questions you should be asking as you evaluate your life.
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    Your relationships
    If you’re married, how is your relationship with your spouse? What are you doing to actively deepen that relationship?
    How is your relationship with your kids or grandkids? What are you doing to point them to Jesus? We’ll talk about that more later.
    How is your relationship with others? Friends? Are you making any kind of Christian impact on others’ lives, or are you a closet Christian?
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    Your walk with God
    This is a big one. If you never take the time to slow down and analyze your personal relationship with God, it’s like you’re driving while texting. You’ll have little awareness of what’s around you until it hits your bumper.
    Your areas of weakness
    Your goals/your sanctification
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    Your ministry
    If you’re a child of God this morning, then you are called to be serving God. He has a place of ministry for you in His local church. He has called you to live for others. How are you doing that on a practical level?
    As your pastor, when I’m on vacation I’ll sometimes find myself thinking about the health of our church. I’ll think about what direction we’re going and whether we’re doing what God wants us to be doing.
    These are the kinds of things that you should evaluate when you have a season of rest. Don’t let your summer break or your summer vacation be all about fun and games! Have more purpose to it than that. Make the must of your summer!
    Not only should you evaluate, but you should…
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    Invest - 1 Kings 19:5-8; Mark 6:31-32
    Back in 1 Kings 19, Elijah was spiritually, emotionally, and physically worn out. He wasn’t ready to get back into the fight. So the Lord took some time to get him fed, rested, and restored. Then the Lord sent him to Mt Sinai, where Elijah got alone with God.
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    Invest in yourself
    This may sound selfish, but its not intended to be that at all. It means to take care of yourself so that you can serve others.
    Pastor Nathan Deatrick - “sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is take a nap.”
    Some pastors don’t ever invest in their own care and consequently they burn out and quit pastoring altogether. I don’t want to be that kind of pastor. I want longevity in my ministry.
    Application: You want to make the most of your summer? Then you might need to rest and invest in your spiritual, emotional, and physical health. Not for selfish reasons, but so that you can effectively serve the Lord.
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    Invest in those around you
    Remember those relationships we saw earlier? A vacation or a summer get away with those people is a time to deepen those relationships.
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    Invest in your walk with God
    Elijah did this on Mt. Sinai. In Mark 6, Jesus told the disciples to set sail for a private place so that they could rest and be renewed. For whatever reason though, God didn’t allow that to happen. The crowds followed them to where they were going. This is my opinion, but you read the rest of Mark chapter six and I think their exhaustion is exactly the reason why their hearts were hardened like the Bible says in Mark 6:52. That is the danger of no rest. Your love can grow cold toward the Lord and toward people. The primary reason you should get away and rest is to invest in your walk with God.

    Conclusion

    What do you have planned for your summer? A vacation to the beach? A trip to see family? A summer full of activities since school is out?
    Whatever you have planned, don’t let it be merely a summer of fun. Don’t take a vacation from God. King David, Elijah, and our Savior showed us a pattern of how to rest on purpose. Follow their example to Make the Most of Your Summer.

    Invitation

    Three questions:
    Christian, are you on the verge of letting some spiritual discipline slide? Spending time every day alone with the Lord? Church attendance?
    Christian, what is the purpose of your downtime? Is it just to have fun? Or do actively try to invest in someone or something?
    “I want to make the most of my summer, pray for me.”
Cornerstone Independent Baptist Church
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