Rooted in God: Choosing Abundance Over Limitation

 

Summary

In today's message, we explored the profound metaphor of bonsai trees versus redwoods to illustrate the spiritual life God calls us to lead. The bonsai tree, though beautiful, is intentionally stunted, limited by its shallow roots and constant pruning. This represents a life where we settle for less, where we are spiritual consumers, relying on others for our growth without taking personal responsibility. In contrast, the redwood tree, with its deep and expansive root system, symbolizes a life of abundance and strength, deeply rooted in God and interconnected with others.

We delved into Jeremiah 17, where the prophet contrasts two types of people: those who trust in human strength and those who trust in the Lord. The former are like shrubs in the desert, barren and unfulfilled, while the latter are like trees planted by water, flourishing even in adversity. This passage challenges us to examine where we place our trust and to recognize that our spiritual environment significantly impacts our growth.

The principle of the path was introduced, emphasizing that the direction we choose determines our destination. Just as a path leading east will never take us to California, a life not oriented towards God will not lead to spiritual fulfillment. Our daily choices, the environments we cultivate, and the influences we allow into our lives shape our spiritual journey.

We were reminded that healthy roots produce viable fruit. When we intentionally plant ourselves in environments that nurture our faith, we can withstand life's challenges and continue to bear fruit. The story of my grandmother, who despite her physical and mental struggles, remained rooted in God's goodness, exemplifies this truth. Her unwavering faith was a testament to a life deeply rooted in Christ.

Ultimately, God calls us to a life of Redwood living, where we are not only strong and resilient but also interconnected with others, supporting and being supported in our faith journey. This requires intentional choices to trust in God, surround ourselves with the right influences, and pursue Him daily. As we sang our final song, we were challenged to identify areas in our lives that need change and to take steps towards creating an environment that fosters trust in God alone.

Key Takeaways:

1. Bonsai vs. Redwood Living: The bonsai tree, though beautiful, is limited by its shallow roots, symbolizing a life where we settle for less and rely on others for spiritual growth. In contrast, the redwood tree, with its deep roots, represents a life of abundance and strength, deeply rooted in God and interconnected with others. [06:38]

2. Trust in God vs. Trust in Man: Jeremiah 17 contrasts those who trust in human strength with those who trust in the Lord. The former are like shrubs in the desert, barren and unfulfilled, while the latter are like trees planted by water, flourishing even in adversity. This challenges us to examine where we place our trust. [09:48]

3. The Principle of the Path: The direction we choose determines our destination. A life not oriented towards God will not lead to spiritual fulfillment. Our daily choices, environments, and influences shape our spiritual journey, emphasizing the importance of intentionality in our walk with God. [13:03]

4. Healthy Roots Produce Viable Fruit: When we plant ourselves in environments that nurture our faith, we can withstand life's challenges and continue to bear fruit. This requires intentional choices to trust in God, surround ourselves with the right influences, and pursue Him daily. [24:52]

5. God's Goodness in All Circumstances: A life deeply rooted in Christ allows us to understand that God's goodness is not dependent on our circumstances. Even in adversity, we can trust in His unwavering goodness and strength, as exemplified by my grandmother's faith. [26:07]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [01:37] - Staycation and Botanical Gardens
- [03:47] - The Bonsai Experience
- [05:28] - The Art of Bonsai
- [06:38] - Bonsai vs. Redwood Living
- [07:36] - Introduction to Jeremiah 17
- [09:48] - Trust in God vs. Trust in Man
- [11:34] - No Middle Ground
- [13:03] - The Principle of the Path
- [16:05] - As the Roots Go, So Goes the Tree
- [19:00] - Spiritual Ownership and Intentionality
- [21:27] - The Strength of Redwood Roots
- [23:50] - Intentional Daily Choices
- [24:52] - Healthy Roots Produce Viable Fruit
- [26:07] - God's Goodness in All Circumstances
- [31:34] - Final Song and Challenge

Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:
- Jeremiah 17:5-8

Observation Questions:
1. In Jeremiah 17:5-8, what are the two contrasting images used to describe those who trust in man versus those who trust in the Lord? How do these images relate to the bonsai and redwood metaphor? [09:48]
2. What does the sermon suggest about the importance of the root system in both bonsai and redwood trees, and how does this relate to our spiritual lives? [21:27]
3. How does the principle of the path, as explained in the sermon, illustrate the importance of our daily choices in our spiritual journey? [13:03]

Interpretation Questions:
1. What might it mean to live a "bonsai life" spiritually, and how does this contrast with "Redwood living" as described in the sermon? [06:38]
2. How does Jeremiah 17:5-8 challenge us to evaluate where we place our trust, and what are the potential consequences of trusting in human strength versus trusting in God? [09:48]
3. The sermon mentions the importance of intentional choices in our spiritual growth. How can the environments we choose to be in affect our spiritual health and growth? [16:05]

Application Questions:
1. Reflect on your current spiritual life. Are there areas where you feel like you are living a "bonsai life"? What steps can you take to move towards "Redwood living"? [06:38]
2. Consider the environments you are currently planted in. Are they nurturing your faith, or are they stunting your growth? What changes can you make to ensure you are in a healthy spiritual environment? [16:05]
3. The sermon emphasizes the importance of daily choices. What is one intentional choice you can make this week to deepen your trust in God? [23:50]
4. Think about the influences in your life. Are there any that are pulling you away from God? How can you surround yourself with influences that encourage your spiritual growth? [21:27]
5. Reflect on the story of the pastor's grandmother. How can you cultivate a faith that remains strong and vibrant even in the face of adversity? [26:07]
6. Identify one area in your life where you need to trust in God's goodness despite your circumstances. What practical steps can you take to reinforce this trust? [26:07]
7. As you consider the principle of the path, what direction is your life currently heading? Are there any course corrections you need to make to align your path with God's will? [13:03]

Devotional

Day 1: Bonsai vs. Redwood: Choosing Depth Over Surface Beauty
In life, we often face the choice between living like a bonsai tree or a redwood. The bonsai, though aesthetically pleasing, is limited by its shallow roots and constant pruning, symbolizing a life where we settle for less and rely on others for spiritual growth. In contrast, the redwood, with its deep roots, represents a life of abundance and strength, deeply rooted in God and interconnected with others. This metaphor challenges us to examine our spiritual lives and consider whether we are content with surface-level beauty or if we are striving for deep, meaningful growth in our relationship with God and others. [06:38]

Jeremiah 17:7-8 (ESV): "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."

Reflection: In what areas of your life are you settling for surface-level growth? How can you begin to cultivate deeper roots in your relationship with God today?


Day 2: Trust in God vs. Trust in Man: The Source of True Fulfillment
Jeremiah 17 presents a stark contrast between those who trust in human strength and those who trust in the Lord. Those who rely on human strength are likened to shrubs in the desert, barren and unfulfilled, while those who trust in God are like trees planted by water, flourishing even in adversity. This passage challenges us to examine where we place our trust and to recognize that our spiritual environment significantly impacts our growth. Trusting in God leads to a life of fulfillment and resilience, even in the face of challenges. [09:48]

Isaiah 26:3-4 (ESV): "You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock."

Reflection: Identify a situation where you are relying on your own strength. How can you shift your trust to God in this area today?


Day 3: The Principle of the Path: Intentionality in Our Spiritual Journey
The direction we choose determines our destination. Just as a path leading east will never take us to California, a life not oriented towards God will not lead to spiritual fulfillment. Our daily choices, the environments we cultivate, and the influences we allow into our lives shape our spiritual journey. This principle emphasizes the importance of intentionality in our walk with God, urging us to make conscious decisions that align with His will and purpose for our lives. [13:03]

Proverbs 4:25-27 (ESV): "Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil."

Reflection: What daily habits or influences are leading you away from God? What intentional changes can you make to align your path with His?


Day 4: Healthy Roots Produce Viable Fruit: Nurturing Our Faith
When we intentionally plant ourselves in environments that nurture our faith, we can withstand life's challenges and continue to bear fruit. This requires making deliberate choices to trust in God, surround ourselves with the right influences, and pursue Him daily. A life deeply rooted in Christ allows us to produce viable fruit, reflecting His love and grace to those around us. [24:52]

Colossians 2:6-7 (ESV): "Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving."

Reflection: What specific steps can you take to plant yourself in an environment that nurtures your faith? How can you ensure your roots are healthy and strong?


Day 5: God's Goodness in All Circumstances: Trusting His Unwavering Love
A life deeply rooted in Christ allows us to understand that God's goodness is not dependent on our circumstances. Even in adversity, we can trust in His unwavering goodness and strength. The story of a grandmother who remained rooted in God's goodness despite her struggles exemplifies this truth. Her unwavering faith was a testament to a life deeply rooted in Christ, reminding us that God's love and strength are constant, regardless of our situation. [26:07]

Habakkuk 3:17-18 (ESV): "Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation."

Reflection: Reflect on a challenging circumstance in your life. How can you choose to trust in God's goodness and strength despite the situation?

Quotes



But then he kind of changes directions on us really fast. And we're going to pick up in verse five, where he kind of shifts from pointing out their sins to, to reciting this, this poem for four verses. And that's where we're going to pick up right here. Jeremiah 17, five says, thus says the Lord, cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness in an uninhabited salt land. [00:08:51]

Blessed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water that sends out its roots by the stream and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit. [00:09:28]

What it looks like for people who choose to trust in themselves, who choose to trust in the ways of this world, really trusting in anything other than God, and the picture that he paints is bleak, right? It's kind of this picture of something that is constantly yearning for more, that has never satisfied this drive. It's kind of this picture of something that is dry, barren life that is devoid of any and all significant fruit. It doesn't seem like anything that any of us would want to pursue, living alone in an uninhabited salt land. [00:09:59]

That's the first picture that he paints. But then, again, this starkly contrasting reality, he spends some time painting another picture of what it looks like if we strive to put our trust in the Lord. If the Lord becomes our trust, our hope, then it's this picture of being satisfied, having what we could always want, our thirst being quenched by God, the fact that even when hard times come, we will still trust in him. We will still continue to produce fruit. [00:10:31]

So the first thing that he kind of, an observation I guess that I want to make, he has these starkly contrasting realities and he really doesn't paint any sort of picture of a middle ground. There's really no middle ground. We can choose to put our trust in the Lord or we can choose to trust in the things of this world. We can trust in ourselves, our own power. And if we go this direction, man, it's a bleak outcome. It's always going to leave us wanting more. But if we put our trust in God, we will feel this sense of fulfillment in our lives. God will always be there for us. Maybe not in ways that we always want or the ways that we expect, but God will never cease to be present. And there really is no middle ground in that. [00:11:39]

The principle of the path is very easy to understand. If you were here the last time I taught last summer, you may recall that i said that one of my personal dreams is to go to california and go snowboarding in the morning and surfing in the evening that would be like a perfect day to me and so if i woke up one day this winter and i was like okay today's the day i put it off long enough i'm gonna hop in my truck and i'm gonna go to california i'm gonna make this dream come alive and i hop on i -25 north i'm driving north to denver but then when i get to i -70 if i take a right and go east on i -70 that will only ever take me away from california there is no possible way i will ever get to california driving east on i -70 unless i turn around and start going the opposite direction that path will only ever lead me to a different destination if i want to go to california i've got to go west on i -70 that's the principle of the path that the path that we choose is going to determine our destination and so it's the same thing here our spiritual lives are exactly the same way if we choose the path of following after god again that doesn't mean that we're always going to get it right we might kind of accidentally make some wrong turns here or there but generally if the direction we are moving is toward god that's the picture of verses seven and eight that jeremiah paints for us that that we're going to get to this place where god is our our hope that we put our trust in him and it's going to lead to this amazing reality it doesn't mean things are always going to be easy but it does mean that we will always have exactly what we need but if we consistently choose a life of sin and we refuse to turn away from the things [00:13:01]

And we shouldn't be surprised when one day we wake up and we find ourselves in this place where, man, we're in this dry, barren place in life and we feel unfulfilled. And it seems like we're just constantly experiencing this want for more that we can't seem to find. And certainly there are things in this world that bring momentary pleasure, but man, those things never bring lasting fulfillment the way that God can and will in our life. [00:14:53]

In this poem of Jeremiah, the painting that he gives for us, it's very obvious that when our roots are planted, an unhealthy soil in an unhealthy environment that is going to lead to an unhealthy spiritual life. But if we choose and are intentional about planting our roots in a place where it's a healthy environment, healthy soil with living water, then that is going to allow us to have a healthy spiritual life. That's why it is so incredibly important for us to create environments that are going to allow us and in fact challenge us to pursue God and to trust in him more and more every single day. The types of friends that we surround ourselves with, the influences that we allow into our lives, kind of our daily rhythms, our weekly practices, what our lives look like outside of this place, the habits that we have, all of these things will either work together to create this environment in which we can just flourish spiritually and they're helping us along that journey, or those things can work against us and kind of dissonantly create this wasteland in which we're just going to flounder spiritually. [00:16:09]

I think maybe too often we settle for this kind of bonsai life where spiritually we never really take any sort of ownership over our own spiritual development. We become spiritual consumers and we think, okay, I'm going to show up at the weekend services and then I just, I hope that I get fed exactly what I need for this exact moment and season in my life. And it's not exactly, if it's not exactly what I needed for that week, then it's someone else's fault that my spiritual growth is stunted and I can't be held accountable for that because they're clearly not getting it. And so I think that's a really important part of the of what I need. And we never have any sort of like midweek rhythm. We're never pursuing God outside of these walls. We make no intentionality, no intentional choices to try to follow him and create these healthy environments. And we put ourselves in these hostile environments where we are with friends that are constantly pulling us away from Jesus. We allow these influences into our life that are driving a wedge in our relationship with God. Again, we make no intentional choice, no intentional, effort to try to seek after God on our own. [00:19:18]

But antithetically, on the other side of things, in the wild, these that plant themselves in like healthy environments with healthy soil, think about the redwoods of California. I've never seen the redwoods. I want to really badly, maybe on my surfing, snowboarding trip someday. But if you've ever seen the redwoods, I'm sure it's like just even the pictures are mind -blowing to me because not only are they these massive trees that grow well over 300 feet tall, but as I started studying more about them as well, the reason a redwood is so strong is not because of how massive its trunk. Redwood is so strong because of its incredible root system. It goes incredibly deep, but it goes even wider than it does deep. One single redwood can have a root system that takes up about an acre of land. That is a lot. And obviously redwoods are not an acre apart from each other. And so their root systems are very much interrelated. [00:21:26]

That is exactly how God designed us to live. I don't want you to hear when I say we don't want to be like bonsais, that we as a church body don't want to pour into you, because we absolutely do. It's just that what happens outside of these doors needs to match up with the life that you are pursuing inside of these church walls. We would love nothing more than to help you get plugged into a community group, to help you get plugged in and make this your church home in a way that you feel like you've got other root system connected with yours to provide stability in your spiritual life. [00:22:30]

Jeremiah very clearly says that if we are following after God and we are putting our trust solely in him, it does not matter what is happening around us. We are going to produce fruit in our lives. Even when the heat comes, the leaves will stay green. Even when the drought comes, we will continue to produce fruit. When we have a healthy root system in our lives, we've been intentional about creating this amazing environment in which we can flourish, surrounding ourselves with people that are going to be in our lives, and we're going to continue to produce fruit. And we're going to challenge us in our faith, making choices about the types of places we will go, the types of things that we are going to do. [00:24:52]

Those external factors don't matter nearly as much because we can start to understand that God's goodness is not dependent on our circumstances. God's goodness, God is always good no matter what we are going through. And sometimes when we have that bonsai kind of life with really, really shallow root systems, it can be hard to cling to that. It can be really, really hard to think, man, I'm going through so many hard things right now. How can you say that God is good? [00:27:13]

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Transcript
What was the most surprising thing in this sermon?
Were there any personal stories shared?