LITTLE BOXES

Gen 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (KJV)

Gen 1:1 In the beginning God created little boxes. (The Nortonian Translation)

1          A “beginning” demands an “ending.”  That is a

box.

2          Every box has dimensions.  With heaven and earth time is the measure of those dimensions, those limitations - those little boxes.

            A            Eternity – no limitation; no box of time.

            B            Aion – an age; often translated world (Matt 24); largest box of time.

C            Kairos – a set or proper time; experienced when an event in heaven, earth and eternity are synchronized (Jesus’ whole life – “I only do what I see my father do.”); a smaller box of time than aion.

D            Chronos – a space of time; because of physical death a measure of our lifetime on earth; the smallest box of time.   

2          Nice!  But we live in the earth.  Make it practical!

A            When was the last time you did something for the first time?  When was the last time you got out of your box?

3          In our earth box all that is here was always here; all that will ever be here is already here.

            A            Your physical body was always here and will remain here when you leave here.  It remains in this earth box when you leave it.

            B            A telephone would have worked as well in Joseph’s day for calling his family from Egypt as it does today for you to call your cousin in another state.  If Bell had not thought outside the box of his day, we would still have the pony express.

            C            Everything was here and available for the children of Israel to have taken a 747 to Canaan, but no one had broken from their box and thought it into being yet.

            D         If a sailor had not thought beyond the limit of his “flat earth box” we would still inhabit only connected land.

3          We need to think outside our box. 

            1            Carpenter, would you like to still be using a handsaw?  Preacher, would you like to have prepared this lesson by lamplight using a pencil and parchment.

            2            There are innovations waiting to be discovered by every one of us if we will think outside our box.

4          What of our spiritual boxes?

            A            Sunday worship is this way.  Wednesday night is that way.  Monday night prayer is another way.  Well, I praise and worship this way.  I preach that way.

            B            If we will pray and think beyond our chronos box, we can experience some kairos liberty; If we will, we can think beyond kairos limitation and see into the aion.  But available to us who will get out of our little boxes is the unlimited vastness and knowledge of eternity – life outside the little boxes.

Pastor Bobby Norton

06/11/05