NEW COMMITMENT FOR THE NEW YEAR

PHILIPPIANS 3:13-14

INTRODUCTION

It is that time of the year when in a fit of optimism many of us make great promises to ourselves about what we are going to do in the New Year. Many resolutions we make for the New Year actually never work, but this morning I want us to talk about some resolutions or commitments which I guarantee you will make a radical difference in our lives if we will just follow through on them. Let us look at four commitments for this New Year:-

I.  COMMIT YOURSELF TO FORGET YOUR FAILURE (Phil.3:13-14)

• This advice from God’s word has stood the test of time.
• We don’t have to live our lives imprisoned by our past. Never give your past a future.
• All of us have failed in one way or another over this year 2018.
• Probably we won’t see our failures recorded for history on TV’s, but we usually write our failures in our hearts and minds.
• For some of us our failures are painful memories.
• We have probably failed in relationships.
• Or you made a wrong decision.
• May be you said and did the wrong thing and the relationship ended.
• Parents- may be you failed your children, wife you failed your husband, husband you failed your wife or child you failed your parents.
• When you dwell on your past, you stop moving forward into the future that God has for you.
• You must come to a position in your life where you say to yourself “I am going to, with the help of God, forget my past, I am not going to torture myself about what I did or didn’t do.

II.  COMMIT YOURSELF TO GIVE UP YOUR GRUDGES (Col.3:13)

• Forgive each other whatever quarrels you may have against one another.
• A grudge is a deep ongoing resentment that cultivate in our hearts against someone else.
• A grudge is an unforgiving spirit that leads to unforgiving attitude and unforgiving actions.
• Harboring a grudge is about nursing a dislike for someone.
• Grudges destroy marriages, families, friendship and churches.
• One of the biggest problem of churches in general is the grudges that Christians hold against each other.
• The story that Jesus gave about the unforgiving servant who was forgiven a huge debt by the King, but he refused to forgive someone else a tiny amount.
• The unforgiving servant landed in prison, prison of anger, guilt and depression.
• Don’t commit yourself into prison.

III. COMMIT YOURSELF TO RESTORE RELATIONSHIPS (Roman 12:18)

• “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men”
• Do everything you can to restore any relationships that may have gone wrong during the year.
• Some relationships have gone wrong because of what we have done.
• If you have caused a rift in a relationship then you have a responsibility to do everything you can to restore it.

IV. COMMIT YOURSELF TO TURN YOUR BACK ON YOUR TRANSGRESSIONS.

• After the American civil war, which was basically the end of slavery, many slaves decided to stay with their former masters and continue to do what they were told.
• They were set free but they chose to live as slaves.
• Christ died to set us free, the Holy Spirit has given us power to be free, but many choose to obey the old master-sin.

CONCLUSION

• This coming year 2019, is it going to be just another calendar year, for you or you will make life changing commitments?
• Will you commit to forget your failures, give up your grudges, restore relationships and turn your back on your transgressions, the sin that besets you?

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019