AUTO LESSONS

1. It was not uncommon for Jesus to use “object lessons” when taught.

2. Tonight we want to do a similar thing by using a common sight: the automobile.

3. Basic parts of cars as well as basic driving principles will serve as our object lesson.

WE BEGIN WITH THE STEERING WHEEL.

a) From about as far back as I can remember, I have always been fond of video games.

b) I would be given money for food, but I would spend it on a video game instead.

c) When I was about 12, I promised myself I would have my own pinball machine later in life.

d) One of the games I used to enjoy was car racing.

2) When sitting in front of most video games, you can really make the game’s steering wheel spin.

3) Wildly spinning those wheels had some bearing on the first time I tried to drive.

a) My parents used to have a large garden about a half-mile from their house.

b) One-day mom asked me to drive the half mile to the garden.

c) I drove just like I had driven in the games.

d) Hit the gas hard and give the steering wheel a good twist.

e) We almost ended up in a ravine.

f) I quickly learned the importance of straight and or accurate steering

4) When we think about traveling the road to eternity, we need to do some steering.

5) Jesus said the road to eternal life is “straight and narrow.”

6) If we are going to be in heaven, we cannot live a life that weaves and swerves.

7) A steady hand and concentration are required.

8) When we look at our world, we find a lot of people who are not steering straight.

a) Several objects interfere with the ability to steer correctly.

b) John said we cannot “love the world” (1 Jn. 2:15).

c) If we love the world, we will be steered from the way of God to the devil’s house.

d) Paul stated it a little differently in Rom. 12:2; we cannot be “conformed to the world.”

e) Even in the Old Testament (and certainly before cars), people were told to steer straight.

f) Joshua was told to go straight; he could not turn to the right or left (Josh. 1:7).

9) If we are going to truly steer a car, the vehicle must be running (operating).

10) Most vehicles require a battery.

11) For batteries to work, they must be charged.

a) A passage which relates to this thought is Isa. 40:31.

b) I once heard a man preach on this text and he said he knew what it meant.

c) After a 30 minute explanation, I had no idea what the passage said.

d) I was a new Christian and the passage seemed interesting but somewhat difficult.

e) Isaiah looked forward to the time we live in – the New Testament era.

f) He predicted (in a figurative way) all the spiritual blessings in Christ.

g) Here is the exact wording – READ.

12) Most people need to be “recharged” at times, and this is a blessing found in the New Testament era.

13) Even people in the world recognize this need and try to meet it by giving workers some time off.

14) It may be a weekend off, a vacation, personal days, holidays, or something else.

15) As a battery needs charged to make a car run, so Christians need to be charged up from time to time.

a) How do we as Christians get charged up when that need arises?

b) First, it is good not to let a battery go completely dead.

c) A battery that has absolutely no power is harder to charge than a partially drained one.

d) We may have some highs and lows in the Christian life, but we want to avoid being dead.

e) Too, we can help keep our batteries in top condition by regular maintenance.

f) Bible class attendance is important. Participation in classes is also good.

g) If we attend a Bible class, when was the last time we participated?

h) There should be mental participation our part and hopefully verbal input too.

i) Worship should be a time we charge our spiritual batteries.

j) I am not speaking of here, but in other places I have seen people bolt for the door asap.

k) Before people raise their head from the closing prayer, a person is halfway to their car.

l) Such an action short-circuits the charging process.

16) Along with a good and charged battery, our analogy suggests we need plenty of fuel.

a) No matter how nice a car is, it will not operate without fuel.

b) At the present time most consider our gas prices to be high.

c) There are businesses that are struggling to stay in business due to fuel costs.

d) Fuel puts a dent in the pocketbook.

e) If we have a large vehicle, we may have paid a bill of $50.00 or more.

f) Being a Christian also costs and it also means we need fuel.

g) Because the cost is high, we need a special source of energy to keep us going.

h) One of the great points from Samson’s life was his reliance upon God.

i) Samson’s source of strength and help were from God.

j) Judg. 16:20 says Samson was awakened and told the Philistines were there to take him.

k) He thought to himself, “I will arise and get free.”

l) At the end of the verse we find a sad statement; he didn’t realize the Lord had left him.

m) When God leaves people or people do not truly have God, they lose their needed source of fuel.

n) God should be our rock, strength, and source of power.

17) As we look at vehicles we come to another part: the horn.

a) Some of us have had neighbors who loved their horns.

b) When they come home, they couldn’t help but signal their arrival.

c) If they need someone to come outside, they laid on the horn.

d) When they left the house, they reminded others of their departure by honking the horn.

18) In the spiritual realm we all have a horn.

a) God doesn’t call it that, but this is an illustration of what He meant.

b) Jesus spoke of this subject in the Sermon on the Mount.

c) He referred to “hypocrites” who did good deeds.

d) These men announced their kind acts to others.

e) They “blew their own horns” if you will.

f) They showed off all their good works and Jesus said, “they have their reward.

19) It is in Mt. 6 that Jesus said, “do not let the right hand know what the left hand does.”

20) This cannot be literally true for our hands work in conjunction with one another.

21) Our Lord gave a figurative saying.

22) If we are going to be in heaven, there must be humility and a willingness to serve.

23) We do not do good works to be praised by others or to show off how good we are.

24) Jesus said good works are to honor the Father, not us.

25) As we look at cars, we find some other helpful items with spiritual lessons.

26) There is, for example, the turn signal.

27) This little device is helpful in a number of ways.

28) It, for example, is a means of being courteous.

a) It lets people know another driver is trying to make a turn.

b) A turn signal reminds us of verses like Eph. 4:32 – be ye kind one to another.

c) A lot of drivers are not kind. We live in a time of road rage.

d) As we journey the path through life, we want to be kind and thoughtful towards others.

29) Part of being a good neighbor and drive involves having a good braking system.

a) If a car does not have good brakes, it is dangerous.

b) We need brakes in our daily lives, and this is expressed as “self control” in the Scriptures.

c) Many in the world do not have much self control.

d) This is wrong.

e) When Paul preached to Felix (Acts 24:25), a non-Christian, he spoke of self control.

f) If we wish to go to heaven, self control is not just important; it is essential.

g) We will watch what we say, what we do, and even what we think.

h) Temptations may come our way (attractive temptations), but self control says “no.”

30) As we drive vehicles, it is necessary to obey the laws.

31) Not obeying laws is dangerous.

32) Running red lights, stop signs, or something else hurts and kills people.

33) Someone once gave this definition for “stop”: Slightly tap on pedal (the brake pedal).

34) Successful driving in the world means adhering to the rules.

a) We have a similar obligation in the spiritual realm.

b) If we do not obey the laws, we will crash.

c) We will likely suffer difficulty in this life and certainly much in the next.

d) We find God’s rules for driving in His word, and we obey them to the letter.

35) Most who take a trip outside their local area consult a map.

a) Just a few days ago there was a big scare in Washington.

b) A small place got off course and fighter jets were scrambled to guide it to an airport.

c) The men in that plane surely thought everything was okay when their trip began. They were wrong.

d) Prov. 14:12 says there is a way that seems right to people, but that way is destruction.

e) A lot of people are not willing to look at or follow a map.

f) Sometimes this matters when driving and flying, sometimes not.

g) God has told us there is a map to heaven, and we need to follow it.

h) Unless we do the Lord’s will (Mt. 7:21)—follow the man—we will go to the wrong place.

36) If we drive home tonight, we will likely use a “rearview mirror” or an “outside mirror.”

37) Mirrors allow us to see other vehicles and to inspect things.

38) As Christians, we do some inspecting.

39) Many want to inspect the lives of others.

40) God tells us to begin with self. 2 Cor. 13:5 tell us to “try our own selves” to see if we are in the faith.

41) When parking of the Lord's Supper we “examine ourselves” (1 Cor. 11:28, KJV).

42) Throughout our vehicles we have devices and parts that provide spiritual lessons.

a) Consider the tires. When they are installed, they are new, fresh, and full of tread.

b) They are a lot like a small child just born into the world.

c) As time passages, the tread on tires wears; one day the tires are old and no longer serviceable.

d) A similar thing is true with life. We age and age, and then age more.

e) Our physical body is in a state of decay (2 Cor. 4:16), just like tires.

43) We can illustrate Christianity in dozens or hundreds of ways.

44) In the end, all illustrations come out to the same place.

45) God has given a system to save man from sin.

46) Only one system exists, and we must follow it or be saved.

47) If we compare our life to a car and a map, we are we driving to: heaven or hell?

48) Our spiritual car may be old, have some dents, and go slowly.

49) Is it moving in the right direction?