June 30, 2013 One Thing

May 12, 2013  A Mother’s Love

April 14, 2013  Come to Jesus

March 10, 2013  The Armor of God

March 3, 2013  Got Hope?

February 10, 2013 Getting Rest

January 13, 2013  Are You Confused?

January 6, 2013  Is God Your Friend?

December 30, 2012  Resolve to Walk with God in 2013!

November 25, 2012  Stopping the Thief

November 4, 2012 Can You Hear Him Now?

October 28, 2012  Coming Clean

October 7, 2012 Being a Wise Builder

September 23, 2012 Keeping Joy

September 2, 2012 Do You Know Your Light?

August 26, 2012 You are Your Heart

June 30, 2013  One Thing

 

What is the one thing you have to do today?  You know the one thing that leads to another thing that leads to another?  We all have those things and we all know that it isn’t just one thing.  There are some people in the bible who talk about “one things” too and they are pretty important, so let’s try to give them some attention.

1.  One thing I do  –  Forgetting the past

Paul states one thing too.  In Philippians 3:13 Paul says, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,”

The One Thing Paul was talking about here was letting go of the past.  That is one hard thing to do, wouldn’t you say? Some people want their past back.  Others, well, they’re still living in the past and refuse to look at the present, let alone the future. The one thing that leads to another is that Paul says we should be reaching forward.  Paul knew it wasn’t even enough for us to look at the present. He knew we have to keep reaching forward to the things ahead of us.  We can’t be stagnant Christians, we are supposed to be a “river of life, with living water flowing out from us”.  We sure can’t be that if we are holding on to the past or even just worried about today.

2.  One thing I know  –  Overcoming doubt

The blind man who can now see tells us in John 9:25,  He answered and said, “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.”

Amazing isn’t it?  Jesus Christ is in the synagogue, preaching and teaching, loving the people, and he heals a blind man.  Then the Pharisees question the blind man and ask if he is a disciple of Jesus.  They claim Jesus’ healing is not of God because he has healed the man on the Sabbath, and they ask the man’s parents as well.  All this because they refused to believe that Jesus was sent from God.

The best part of this story is that a few verses down on the second questioning of the man, they tell him Jesus is not of God, and the man teaches the Pharisees. He stuck to his guns.  He believed.  He had no doubt that Jesus healing him was from God. That is how we need to be, brothers and sisters, convinced that God moves in our lives; we have to know that we know that we know God loves us and that Jesus is always working on us and through us.

3.  One thing you lack  –  Overcoming the world

What about the young rich man who wanted to follow the Lord?  In Mark 10:20-22 we hear their conversation, ²⁰ And he answered and said to Him, “Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth.”²¹ Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.”  ²² But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Wow, try reading this whole story. This young man has lived a good life, done the right things, kept the commandments, and he tells Jesus, or rather asks him, “What else can I do?”  Jesus says, you still lack ONE THING, and it’s his riches, his material things, the things he covets.  Sound familiar?  It should, peeps, because we all have those things. Things we’ve worked hard to attain, things we love more than life, things, things, and more things. 

It’s not good enough to be good.  If it was, we wouldn’t have needed Jesus to die on that cross for our sins.  He wants all of our hearts.  He wants to be first in our lives, He wants all of me and all of you.  Jesus walked the earth and was the servant, the last; and now He is the first and wants us to love Him first. We have to know that we can’t have things or put things before Him and that is one real important thing.

4.  One thing is needful – overcoming monotony

In Luke 10 we find the story of Martha and Mary and in verse 42 Jesus tells us the one thing, But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

Well what is it? The one thing Jesus needed – if we back up to verse 38, we learn that Martha and Mary invited Jesus in to supper and to visit and hear Him teach. All goes well until Martha realizes she is the only one busy trying to get things done. Mary is sitting by Jesus and enjoying the evening and Martha is running ragged serving and doing things to make sure all is well.  When Martha has had enough, she points it out and says hey why is Mary just sitting and I’m working like a fool.

Jesus answers and tells her that pretty much no one including himself has asked her to do all those things. He goes on to tell her that if Mary wants to sit that that is a good thing. Please tell me that I am not the only one who gets stuck working for God because I’ve forgotten to work with God.

People, Jesus walks alongside of us, not in front and certainly not behind. It is up to us to make time for Jesus and to do the things He wants us to do.  We can’t fill our days with so much busy work for Jesus that we spend no time with Him.  It doesn’t make sense, and yet we all do it all the time.  Then we complain and want to know where our joy has gone, why everything we are doing for the Lord has become so boring, so time consuming, so lots of things.  The reality is that we’ve done that to ourselves and we allow other people to do it to us as well.

I don’t know about you, but I need to start working on some ONE THING’s in my life.  It’s not easy, we all know. Jesus never said it would be, but He definitely said it would be rewarded and promises we will spend eternity in heaven. That has to be reason enough to work on one thing at a time, don’t you think?

 

May 12, 2013  A Mother’s Love

 

Happy Mother’s Day to all the people who play the role of mom. That might sound different than the usual “Give your mom a hug and a card, and take her to dinner.”  But if you stop and think about it, things are different now. We have kids who have lost their moms to death or drugs or being abandoned. We have kids who have never known a mom and have a dad who plays the role of mom and dad both. We have kids who have two or three moms and no dad. We have kids who have two dads, so one of them has to fill the role of mom. There are even kids who have mom after mom after mom because they are in foster care.

These are all reasons to say “to all the people who play the role of mom”.  We are going to talk about some different moms from the Bible and try to narrow down the character of motherhood.  What is the character of a mother?

2 Timothy 1-5  Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ^[a] by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, ² To Timothy, a beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. ³ I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, ⁴ greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, ⁵ when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also.

The character of a mother comes from the character of God.  Paul showed it to Timothy while remembering Timothy’s mother and grandmother.  Paul sounds like a mom when he opens his letter to Timothy.  Let’s see how that character manifests:

I  Protector – Jochebed in Exodus 2:1-4

And a man of the house of Levi went and took as wife a daughter of Levi. ² So the woman conceived and bore a son. And when she saw that he was a beautiful child, she hid him three months. ³ But when she could no longer hide him, she took an ark of bulrushes for him, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, put the child in it, and laid it in the reeds by the river’s bank. ⁴ And his sister stood afar off, to know what would be done to him.

  a.  Shows us the right way – Leviticus 25:18 So you shall observe My statutes and keep My judgments, and perform them; and you will dwell in the land in safety.

  b.  Protects us awake and even asleep – Psalm 4:8 I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.

  c.  Gives us someone to run to when in trouble – Proverbs 18:10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe.

That sounds a lot like the mom in your life, doesn’t it? Perhaps not the mom you were born to, or the mom you’d like, but if you think about the character of a mom, will know who that person is, I’m sure of it!

II  Supporter – Hannah in 1 Samuel 1:24-28

    ²⁴ Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bulls,^[g] one ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh. And the child was young. ²⁵ Then they slaughtered a bull, and brought the child to Eli. ²⁶ And she said, “O my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the Lord. ²⁷ For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. ²⁸ Therefore I also have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the Lord.” So they worshiped the Lord there.

a.  Stands by us no matter what we face – Psalm 18:18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity, But the Lord was my support.

b.  Supports when you can’t even support yourself – Acts 20:35  I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.

c.  A foundation of support – Romans 11:18  do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.

III  Loyalty – Mary in John 19:16-25

     ¹⁶ Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus and led Him away.  ¹⁷ And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, ¹⁸ where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center. ¹⁹ Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was:  JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.  ²⁰ Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.  ²¹ Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘He said, “I am the King of the Jews.”  ²² Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”  ²³ Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece. ²⁴ They said therefore among themselves, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be,” that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says:  “They divided My garments among them,  And for My clothing they cast lots.”  Therefore the soldiers did these things.  ²⁵ Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. ²⁶ When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” ²⁷ Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.

a.  Gives their loyalty beyond what we could ever expect – Psalm 36:5  Your mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

b.  Unconditional love – 2 Timothy 2:13  If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

c.  Never waivers in believing in us –  Hebrews 10:13  Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

Conclusion:  Go with me now to Psalm 27:10 When my father and my mother forsake me, Then the Lord will take care of me.  This is a promise that the Lord will take care of you.  He will put laborers in your path: a woman, a man, a grandparent, an aunt or uncle, a sibling, etc.  Whoever it is that plays that role in your life is there because the Lord has kept His promise.  So today if there is hurt, bitterness, unforgiveness or any doubt whatsoever that you were left without a mother, then let it go.  Look at the person or people who have played that role in your life and thank God for them and try thanking them too!

 

April 14, 2013  Come to Jesus

 

Today we are going to talk about coming to God.  You’ve probably heard that expression before:  “That person needs a come to Jesus meeting!”  Well, at some point in our lives we have all needed a come to Jesus meeting.  So let’s talk about the ways we come to Jesus for whatever we need, whatever we want, and even whatever we would like to do in His name, or do to honor and glorify Him.  I think if we all really look at the way we come to Jesus we might be a little disappointed or maybe even ashamed.

Let’s grab our Bibles and go to Luke 9:57   ⁵⁷ Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.”  ⁵⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”  ⁵⁹ Then He said to another, “Follow Me.”  But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”  ⁶⁰ Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”  ⁶¹ And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.”  ⁶² But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Three different people came up to Christ, wanting to follow him.  Let’s stop and think about that. Here’s Jesus and He’s got all kinds of things going on. He’s got a plan, He’s busy and He can use all the people He can get.  Up to this point He only has twelve people willing to do His work, yet He challenged each person who came.

We come to Jesus in similar ways, and it’s important that we understand how we come and what it means to Him. Three different people in that scripture heard three different challenges.

I  He challenges our comfort zone.  

Let’s read that again, :  ⁵⁷ Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.”  ⁵⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

He was telling this guy, “Hey dude we won’t be staying at the Marriot or the Hilton. You know, I’m not even sure if we will find a Motel 6.”  If we look through the gospels and read about the life of Jesus, there was never a comfort zone for Him. He tells us, “You know you want to come follow me, but are you ready to get out of that comfort zone?”  We all have a comfort zone.  It could be our possessions, our security of a job with stock options or health insurance. Our comfort zone might be in the family, friends and people around us.  Whatever it is, when we come to Him and come to do His will, those things can’t come before He does.

Our comfort must come from Him and is found in Him, so yes He will challenge the comfort we find in everything else so that we can turn to the true comfort we can only find in Jesus!

  a  Comfort in the Word – Romans 15:4 ⁴ For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.  

  b  Comfort in each other – 1 Thessalonians 5:11 ¹¹ Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.

  c  He comforts our hearts – 2 Thessalonians 2:17 ¹⁶ Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, ¹⁷ comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work.

II  He challenges our commitments.

⁵⁹ Then He said to another, “Follow Me.”  But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”  ⁶⁰ Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”

We all know how that works right?  Hey Lord, yes I will get to that but first I really need to take care of this.  I want to do this for the Lord, but I’ll have to get to that tomorrow.  My kids have practice; my mom and dad need my help; I really want to get this work done, and so on and so forth. We could think of hundreds of things we need to get done before we can do anything for the Lord. So Jesus tells him, “You know what?  Let the dead bury their own dead.”  In essence, He was saying, “You know there are others who can take care of that, or maybe you can take care of this later, but right now I want you to follow Me.”

He wants us to commit ourselves to Him and everything we do to Him

  a  Commit our ways to Him – Psalm 37:5 Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.

  b  Commit to doing good – 1 Peter 4:19 Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator.

  c  Commit ourselves to His word – 2 Timothy 13-14 ¹³ Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. ¹⁴ That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. 

III  He challenges our conditions.

⁶¹ And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.”  ⁶² But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

We all do this too. “Sure, but first I really need to say bye. I need to finish this, I need to…”   We are always trying to reach back into the past, or we try to fix things, or want to finish things and would like Jesus to stop for a second so that we can finish up before we come to Him. Sometimes it’s even, “Go on ahead Lord, I’ll catch up to you.”

Jesus wants all of us. He wants us to look at ourselves and put ourselves in check and put HIM first. He wants us to come with a right heart.

  a  Come to Him with a pure heart – Hebrews 10:22 ²² let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

  b  Come to Him boldly – Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

  c  Come to Him with all your love – Mark 12:30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.

Conclusion:  Peeps, we need to understand that He wants us to come to Him with every part of our being. He wants us to come 100%, none of the “hold on, yes sure, but what about?”  He wants us to say “yes of course” and move. Move for him as quickly as we would move for our children, our bosses and our family – all those things that we will jump in 100%.

We must step out of our comfort zones, make Him our first commitment, and make sure our hearts are in the right place when we say, “Here I am Lord.”  We can do this.  We just need to pay attention and not let what’s going on around us keep us from Him.

March 10, 2013  The Armor of God

 

We have been talking about not losing heart and about hope:  What it is and how we get it. Today we are going to talk about standing. The Bible says we are to stand when things get tough, when we feel like giving up, and when it looks darkest. But how are we supposed to do that? Well, today we are going to talk about the armor of God and how it helps us to stand up against what the enemy brings.  Amazing, isn’t it? That God gives us not just His son, the Holy Spirit, peace, faith, love, and so much more –  on top of all those things, He gives us an armor. An armor that protects us from whatever the enemy might do to discourage us.  Let’s break it down and answer some questions about this armor.  

In our Bibles, Ephesians 6:10-18 reads:  ¹⁰ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,^[c] against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

¹⁴ Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶ above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. ¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; ¹⁸ praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—

First of all, we are told that we are to be strong.  Not just regular strong and not our own strong, but strong in the LORD and in His mighty power.  So that we means we aren’t supposed to rely on our own strength but in His mighty power.  I don’t know about you but I think I’d like to know I have the Lord’s mighty power to put my strength in.  But why do we have to be strong?

I  Why do we need His mighty power?

  a  To stand against the wiles of the devil – 1 Corinthians 16:13 Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.

  b  To wrestle principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this age – Colossians 1:13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,

  c  To wrestle against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places – Zechariah 4:6 “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’

II  What is the nature of His strength?

  a  The whole armor of God – Psalm 119:2 Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, Who seek Him with the whole heart!

  b  Praying always – 1 Thessalonians 5:17 ¹⁷ pray without ceasing,

  c  Supplication and prayer in the Spirit – Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

III  What is the armor?

  a  Belt of truth – Ephesians 4:25 Therefore, putting away lying, “Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,”^] for we are members of one another.

  b  Breastplate of righteousness – Philippians 3:9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;

  c  Sandals of gospel of peace – Romans 10:15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!”

  d  Shield of faith – 1 John 5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

  e  Helmet of salvation – 1 Thessalonians 5:8  But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.

  f  Sword of the spirit (Word of God) – Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Conclusion:  Peeps, we get up in the morning and depending what we are going to do that day, we get ready. If it’s an executive meeting, we iron, do make-up, dress professionally, made sure our hair is good, and we walk out of the house prepared. Perhaps it’s a day of hiking, but same thing applies.  We have bug spray, sunscreen, a cap, hiking boots or comfortable shoes.  Whatever it is, we are ready when we walk out the door.  We have to realize that every day we have to get ready for battle and be ready to stand strong in the Lord and the power of His might. So, just like getting ready for our physical day, we must get ready for our spiritual day as well. Let’s get into the habit of putting on that spiritual armor every day. Like work or play, things happen that aren’t always expected and the same goes for our spiritual life as well.  We must be prepared for anything and everything.

Psalms 144:1 says, Blessed be the Lord my Rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers for battle—

He gives us the armor we need. He trains us with His word, and He is our Rock that makes sure we are standing in the end!

 

March 3, 2013  Got Hope?

 

Good morning, peeps!  Last week we talked about not losing heart.  One of the things mentioned was how important it is to keep our hope.  This week, and actually the last few weeks, we received many prayer requests and ministered to people who have nothing to hold on to.  They are in a place or situation where they feel there is no hope.  I have and still sometimes find myself in that place.  So today, we are going to talk about that hope we see in the Bible. What is hope? How do we get it, and more importantly where do we find it?

Let’s grab our Bibles:  Romans 15:4 For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.

This tells us that through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures, we might find hope.  So we find it in the Word of God.  Not only do we find hope, but that the Scriptures give us patience and comfort.

We are going to stop right there for a minute because I’d like us all to think about where it is we found hope before today. Perhaps we found it in our families, our husbands or wives, or maybe not a person – we found hope in our money or careers.  Wherever we found it, I would be willing to bet we’ve been disappointed, let down or even devastated sometimes. Let’s see if we can get some more information on this whole hope thing.  We know where to find it so let’s see what hope is.

Webster’s Dictionary defines hope as:  desire accompanied by expectation of or belief in fulfillment.  Let’s see what Biblical hope is defined as:  confident expectation or assurance based upon a sure foundation for which we wait with joy and full confidence.  In other words, there is no doubt about it!

Hope is part of a circle, let’s see how:

Hebrews 11:1  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

1 Corinthians 13:13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

When we read both those scriptures we see that all three – faith, hope, and love – abide together. When we read Hebrews, faith seems to be made up of things we hope for.  Hope is linked with faith because faith is the ground of our hope and hope is the object of our faith; a circle.

I  It is hope of:

  a  A hope of eternal life – Titus 1:2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began

  b  A hope of salvation – 1 Thessalonians 5:8 But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.

  c  The hope laid up in heaven – Colossians 1:5 because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel,

  d  The hope of the gospel – Colossians 1:23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard . . .

These are just a few of the things we have hope of, and there are many more in the Bible. Read your Bible and find them.

II  What kind of hope?

  a  Good – 2 Thessalonians 2:16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace,

  b  Blessed – Titus 2:13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,

  c  Living – 1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

  d  Glorious – Colossians 1:27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which^[d] is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

  e  Sure and steadfast – Hebrews 6:19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil,

  f  The anchor of the soul – Hebrews 6:19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil,

III  Why do we hope?

  a  God, who cannot lie, promised it – Titus 1:2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began

  b  He is the God of hope – Romans 15:13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

  c  Jesus is our hope – 1 Timothy 1:1  Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope,

IV  How do we hope?

  a  Rejoice in hope – Romans 12:12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;

  b  Remain steadfast – Hebrews 6:18,19 that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might^[e] have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us.

  c  Wait – Galatians 5:5 For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

Conclusion:  Peeps, it’s all laid out for us in the Scripture.  We need to find and put our hope in God and God alone, so that we do not fall and end up in that place where we are left to feel  alone, lost, and defeated.  “God is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore” We need to put our hope in something that does not fail, that does not change.

Romans 5:5 tells us Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.  Hope DOES NOT disappoint.  If you’ve been disappointed, your hope was in the wrong place.  It says it doesn’t disappoint because we have the love of God in our hearts. We have to hold on to that and get into that perfect circle where FAITH, HOPE, and LOVE abide.

Peeps I pray that each one of us will search our hearts and allow God to bring out any hope that is not Him, so that we might have hope again without fear of ever losing it.

February 10, 2013  Getting Rest

 

Good morning, peeps!  I pray you have had a good week and that we are gathered here to share many praise reports. Today we are going to talk about rest – you know, that thing we so seldom do these days. Oh, we talk about vacations, or Friday happy hour, or Saturday pajama days, but the truth is we very seldom get to rest. Most of us, even when we are trying to rest, are busy thinking of To-Do Lists and appointments and kids and parents and jobs – always something. Our minds are always going and usually are bodies follow closely. So let’s see if we can figure out how to truly rest.

Let’s grab our bibles:  Hebrews 4:9,10 – ⁹ There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. ¹⁰ For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. 

WOW, are we reading that right? We are in fact people of God. So there is rest for us, but let’s concentrate on verse 10.  If we enter HIS rest, then we cease from our works like God did. In Genesis 2:2 the Bible says, ² And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.

He ceased.  He stopped His work. ALL OF IT! That is truly rest.  Let’s get to that kind of rest.

Let’s grab our bibles:  Psalm 91 –

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
² I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”

³ Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler^[a]
And from the perilous pestilence.
⁴ He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
⁵ You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.
⁸ Only with your eyes shall you look,
And see the reward of the wicked.

⁹ Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
¹⁰ No evil shall befall you,
Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
¹¹ For He shall give His angels charge over you,
To keep you in all your ways.
¹² In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
¹³ You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.

¹⁴ “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him;
I will set him on high, because he has known My name.
¹⁵ He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will deliver him and honor him.
¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him,
And show him My salvation.”

This particular chapter in Psalms is considered, among other things, to be the chapter of protection. It truly shows us how we can rest in Him. Let’s break it down.

I   We have to dwell in Him and with Him

  a  Under the shadow of the Almighty – Psalm 36:7 How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings.

  b  Covered with His feathers – Psalm 17:8, 9 Keep your eye on me; hide me under your cool wing feathers From the wicked who are out to get me, from mortal enemies closing in.

  c  Under His wings – Isaiah 40:31 But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.

Folks, it isn’t enough that we just want Him around sometimes. We have to dwell with Him to get that rest that is ours. Once dwelling with Him we get to know Him and know His love, mercy, forgiveness.  It is very important that we want Him with us always.

II  We have to accept His truth

  a  No evil shall befall us – Psalm 121:7 The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.

  b  We shall not be afraid – Proverbs 3:25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror, Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes;

  c  He shall give His angels charge over us – Luke 4:10 For it is written:  He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you.

When we make the effort to have a relationship with Him, a personal relationship, we will believe and accept His truth for us and about us. We always we have rest when there is trust.

III  We have to call upon Him

  a  And He will answer – Jeremiah 33:3 ³ ‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’

  b  And He will be with us in trouble – Nahum 1:7 The Lord is good, A stronghold in the day of trouble; And He knows those who trust in Him.

  c  And He will deliver us and honor us – 2 Corinthians 1:10 who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us,

We have to ask folks. We have to call on Him all the time for all things: little, big, sad or happy – in any situation.

Conclusion:  I encourage you to read this chapter every day. Read it and meditate on it until it becomes real in your hearts.  Know that He is where we find refuge, redemption, reliance, retribution, resort, reinforcement, rescue, resilience, and REST!  The Bible says, Matthew 11:28,29 – ²⁸ Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  It’s time for us to rest people; to truly rest our minds, our heart, our souls, and our bodies. We can turn to so many different things today, or we can hold it all ourselves. I think we need to go to Him and trust Him and find the rest we need to continue walking in Him.

January 13, 2013  Are You Confused?

 

We’re living in a time where we’re racing to get things done, and we usually have more than enough people close by telling us exactly how to get those things done.  The trouble is that each one of them is usually telling us something different.  Well, we are going to talk about confusion today, a common thing for each one of us, I would guess.  The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints. People, if God is not the author of confusion, then confusion comes from the enemy.  Any type of confusion:  work, church, family, friends, etc.  Whatever is going on if you are confused it is not from God.  So let’s see how we can stay away from confusion.

Galatians 5:1-15

5 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. ² Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. ³ And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. ⁴ You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. ⁵ For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. ⁶ For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.

⁷ You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? ⁸ This persuasion does not come from Him who calls you. ⁹ A little leaven leavens the whole lump. ¹⁰ I have confidence in you, in the Lord, that you will have no other mind; but he who troubles you shall bear his judgment, whoever he is.

¹¹ And I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why do I still suffer persecution? Then the offense of the cross has ceased. ¹² I could wish that those who trouble you would even cut themselves off!

¹³ For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. ¹⁴ For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁵ But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!

Paul was talking to the Galatians here, who were bickering and undecided on what was right or wrong.  They were having problems in the church, and Paul gets upset. The church was bickering about circumcision and who was and wasn’t and should they be or not.  It was a complete waste of time, and that is what Paul tells them in verse 1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.  They were being entangled up again with the law instead of holding fast to the freedom Christ had given them when He died on the cross. 

In verse 4, Paul tells them that they have fallen from grace and are back under the law.  That was a powerful statement from Paul because they hated being under the law.  But in their attempt to do the right thing, to follow the rule, to do what was expected, they fell away from everything that Jesus did for them.  So in verse 6 he tells them none of those things matter and the only thing that does matter is “faith working through love” 

How do we stop confusion in our lives?

I  Remember what matters:  faith working through love

a  Expressing our faith outwardly NOT symbolically – James 2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

b  Knowing what God and Jesus did for us – John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

c  We can’t earn or pay back grace – Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.

It’s kind of silly that we get going so fast in our daily lives that we lose sight of the basic things.  We need to hold on and to remember what matters.

In verse 7, 8, and 9: You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? ⁸ This persuasion does not come from Him who calls you. ⁹ A little leaven leavens the whole lump.  Paul is saying, “Who are you listening to and why?”  When he speaks about the leaven, he is saying that it is spreading through the church and that is what is causing the confusion.  In order to end confusion, we need to remember “Him who calls you”

II  Know who is teaching: Him who calls you

a  We have to recognize Jesus’ voice – John 10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

b  We have to know the Word of God – Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

c  We have to pray and acknowledge Him – Proverbs 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

If we know Him in our hearts; if we ask Him for guidance; if we study the word and let His spirit bear witness with our spirit, we will not be confused.

In verses 13 and 14 Paul tells the Galatians: For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. ¹⁴ For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Perhaps if we focus on serving one another the confusion goes away.  He reminds them of the other thing that will surely make confusion die – love your neighbor as yourself.

III  Know which command to listen to: love your neighbor as yourself

a  God IS love – 1 John 4:7,8 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. ⁸ He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

b  Jesus loved through service – Mark 10:45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

c  He will not fail us – 2 Timothy 2:13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

Conclusion:  We can’t let ourselves be pulled away from what we know.  Life is fast and everyone has an opinion about what they believe is the right thing to do and how to do it.  We have to hold on and let His peace hold us and let Him guide us.  Only then will we be far away from the confusion that holds so many people.

January 6, 2013  Is  God Your Friend?

 

2013!  It’s hard to believe, but 2013 is here.  It’s the first Sunday of the year.  We talked last week about resolutions and being prepared, not just for the new year but for every day of our lives.  We ended last Sunday talking about going into the new year “with God” and in Matthew 19:26 we learned ²⁶ But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”  With God all things are possible:  joy, peace, love, abundance; all those things the Bible tells us.  However, today I’d like to back up a bit.  You see, how will you do anything “with God” if you don’t have a relationship with God?

Sounds funny, huh?  I’d like you to think about your best friend for a minute.  You know, the one you want to go to first when things fall apart, or when something great happens.  The person you know will stand beside you through anything and everything.  Your relationship with that person that didn’t just happen, it was built.  So just like that best friend, we also have to build a relationship with God.

Let’s get our Bibles:  John 15:15  ¹⁵ No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.

Friends, that’s what Jesus calls us.  Let’s see about God, what does He call us? 

John 1:12 ¹² But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: ¹³ who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Wow, sounds like it might not be that hard to have a relationship with God, right?  So let’s think about who your best friend is and how that relationship works.

I  Trust

  a  When afraid or scared – Psalm 56:3 Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.

  b  When things are good and bad – Psalm 62:8 Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us.

  c  When things don’t make sense – Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;

It is very important that we learn to trust God; not just with a few things, but trust Him with every part of lives.  That isn’t always easy, but trust is built and we need to start building our trust in Him.

II  Share

  a  The good; the things you have and you yourself – Hebrews 16:13 – But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. 

  b  Your hopes and dreams – Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

  c  Your gratitude and thanks – Colossians 4:2 Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving;

Share everything, just like a friend.  Little things, big things, all things – laugh, cry, talk, and most importantly, listen.

III  Love

  a  Stand beside Him – John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.  

  b  Stick close to Him – Proverbs 18:24 A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

  c  Love Him with your whole heart – 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; ⁵ does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;

As we begin to share our lives and build trust in Him, we begin to know the unconditional love He has toward us.  We begin to love Him as well.

Conclusion:  Any relationship takes work.  God has done and continues to do His part in wanting to have a relationship with us.  We need to begin to work toward building that relationship with Him as well.  Let’s start moving forward and taking steps to know the God who loves us all as His children.

 

December 30, 2012  Resolve to Walk with God in 2013!

Today we are going to talk about the end of one year and the beginning of a new year.  Hard to believe that we are at the end of 2012, but we are; seems as though these years keep coming faster and faster and that we are living faster and faster, too.  So what is the custom or the tradition as we come to the end of 2012?  Let’s see… Oh yes, it’s the resolutions.  Can any one of you remember all last year’s resolutions?  Probably not!  So let’s talk a little bit about what we want for this next year, and more importantly what God wants for you.

Lose weight, start working out, stop smoking, exercise more, pray more, go to church more, and on and on and on.  These are just a few things people might put on their list of New Year’s resolutions.  But let’s see what God wants.

Let’s get our Bibles:  Ephesians 5:15-17 “¹⁵ See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, ¹⁶ redeeming the time, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” 

The NIV says, “¹⁵ Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶ making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”

I  Walk circumspectly or be careful how you live

In 2013, let’s try to walk carefully; to walk wise.  How do we do this?  Well let’s see what the Word tells us:

  a  Walk properly – Romans 13:13 ¹³ Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.

  b  Walk in faith – 2 Corinthians 5:7 ¹⁷ But as God has distributed to each one, as the Lord has called each one, so let him walk.

  c  Walk in truth – 3 John 1:4 ⁴ I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

  d  Walk in His light – Ephesians 5:8 ⁸ For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light

  e  Walk like Jesus walked – 1 John 2:6 ⁶ He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

II  Not as fools but as wise

  a  Proverbs 3:35 The wise shall inherit glory, But shame shall be the legacy of fools.

  b  Proverbs 29:11 A fool vents all his feelings,But a wise man holds them back.

  c  Proverbs 24:5 A wise man is strong, Yes, a man of knowledge increases strength;

III  Make the most of every opportunity

  a  Deal with today – Matthew 6:34 ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

  b  Do everything you can today – James 4:13-14 ¹³ Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; ¹⁴ whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

  c  Do good and help others today  – Proverbs 27:1 Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.

Conclusion:  Folks, let us look forward to 2013 with resolutions to draw close to God and go through each day with Him rather than alone.  Whatever we look forward to, plan, try to achieve; let’s do each thing with Him as the center of it all. Matthew 19:26  ²⁶ But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”  Invite God to go into 2013 and let’s all open up the POSSIBILITIES!

 

November 25, 2012  Stopping the Thief

 

What do we do about thieves?  Let’s look at how it works:  We drive home, walk in, throw our keys on the table, turn on the light and –  WOW!  The TV is missing; the iPad^® is gone; more valuables – all gone!  Whatt would we do?  We’d call the police!  We’d want an investigation!  We’d want our stuff back – PERIOD!

Let’s look in our Bibles:  John 10:10 ¹⁰ The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

Let’s look in our Bibles again: Proverbs 6:30-31 ³⁰ People do not despise a thief. If he steals to  satisfy himself when he is starving. ³¹ Yet when he is found, he must restore sevenfold; He may have to give up all the substance of his house.

Think about that – if someone steals for the purpose of feeding their kids or steals because they are just hungry, people show mercy and they are more willing to forgive.  But verse 31 still says they must restore sevenfold.  They still have to pay it back.  Satan is alive and well and isn’t starving and deserves no mercy.  We need to recognize what he is trying to do and take back what he has taken from us.  He is the thief and has a purpose to:

  Steal  –  God’s joy and peace in your life; God’s blessings, God’s promises,

  Kill  –  your calling, your visions, you dreams, your hopes, your soul 

  Destroy  –  your finances, your marriages, your families, your health

So what are we going to do about it?  Are we going to continue taking it or continue blaming others?  NO WAY! Let’s figure out what we can do together.

I  We have to know who the thief is.  We need to find the thief. 

In Proverbs 6:31 it says, “Yet when he is FOUND”. We have to FIND the thief.  SATAN IS THE THIEF!

  a  NOT your wife or husband or ex or families

  b  NOT your job or boss or co-workers

  c  NOT  your bad situation or addictions

SATAN is the THIEF and he will use people and situations and your weaknesses to steal, kill, and destroy.  We have to recognize that Satan is behind it.

II  We need to get mad.

In Ephesians 4:26-27 the Bible says,  ²⁶ “Be angry, and do not sin”:^[f] do not let the sun go down on your wrath, ²⁷ nor give place to the devil.  Peeps, we need to get mad at the thief – Satan.  We need to use Holy anger, not my anger or yours, but Holy anger.  Ephesians 4:29 says, “²⁹ Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers”.  Holy anger is just what this scripture says, when you open your mouth you don’t have to scream, use  cuss words or ugly words.  Holy anger is using what you know to be true: the word of God to correct someone, set someone straight, and yes to speak the truth of Jesus to the thief, enemy – Satan.  How do we do that?

  a  Use authority – Titus 2:15 ¹⁵ Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.

  b  Come against and resist – James 4:7 ⁷ Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

  c  Use the name of Jesus – Mark 16:17-18 ¹⁷ And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; ¹⁸ they^[b] will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

III  We need to use resources available to us

  a  Prayer – Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; James 5:16 ¹⁶ Confess your trespasses^[e] to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

  b  Word of God (Holy Bible) – Romans 10:17 ¹⁷ So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. The more Word we get (scripture, teachings, preachings), the stronger our faith becomes.

  c  Armor of God – Ephesians 6:13-18  ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶ above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. ¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; ¹⁸ praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.

Conclusion:  Peeps it is time to get back what Satan has taken from us.  It is time to start living in the blessings and promises God gave us.  It is time to stop letting Satan STEAL, KILL AND DESTROY!!  It’s over!  Stand up and fight back with GOD.  The greatest part of that is that we win.  WE WIN! WE WIN! WE WIN!

The second part of John 10:10 says, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”  Peeps we have life MORE ABUNDANTLY!  More than just enough – more than this is how it is.  Ephesians 3:20-21 says, “²⁰ Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, ²¹ to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Peeps “exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think”  We need to start trusting him and quit giving place to the devil.  We are supposed to be whole and complete:  mind, heart, spirit, and body!  Lets get back into this life and fight for what is ours.

 

November 4, 2012  Can You Hear Him Now?

 

Today we are going to talk about our hearing.  Each one of us has the ability to hear from God and we do hear from Him.  However, there are many times we hear from Him and don’t even realize that it is Him.  Folks, it is very important that we are able to hear His voice in any way that He chooses to manifest it so that we can continue to do good and be blessed.

Go with me now to John 10:22-30  – “²² Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. ²³ And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon’s porch. ²⁴ Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, “How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.”

²⁵ Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me. ²⁶ But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. ²⁷ My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. ²⁸ And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. ²⁹ My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. ³⁰ I and My Father are one.”

The Jews have been following Jesus.  They have heard Him teach and have seen the miracles, but still they ask Jesus to tell them if He is the Christ or not.  This seems normal because I am sure they have been wondering; what isn’t normal is His response,  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  This is what we will be talking about today, because it is important that we know Him and how to hear from Him.

I  We have to know His voice  –  We have to know His voice like a child knows a parents voice.

  a  We can’t hear Him if we don’t recognize His voice  –  Matt 10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

  b  We won’t recognize His voice if we don’t know who He is  –  Matt 4:4  But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

  c  We won’t know Him if we don’t look for Him  –  Jeremiah 29:13  And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart

II  We have to choose to listen to His voice and follow Him –  Just like we choose to listen to people

  a  We make the choice to listen – Matt 13:9  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

  b  We make the choice to follow Him – Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

III We have to listen with Faith – we have to believe what He says

  a  faith in His Word – Romans 10:17  So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

  b  faith that His Word is true  – 2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness

  c  faith in Him  –  1 Thessalonians 5:24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.

Conclusion:  Peeps the bible tells us ⁶ But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.  Hebrews 11:6  It is time that we know Him, believe in Him, and seek Him.  So that we have no doubts whatsoever when we HEAR HIM.

 

October 28, 2012 Coming Clean

 

Today  we are going to clean.  We clean our houses or apartments; we clean our vehicles; we clean our bodies too.  It is time now to realize that we need to clean our spirits.  Yes you heard me – our spirits.  We wash our hands and brush our teeth every day, many times a day, yet we don’t see the need to cleanse our spirits or our hearts. 

Let’s turn in our bibles:  1 John 1:5-9  This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. ⁶ If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. ⁷ But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.⁸ If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

He cleanses us and washes us spiritually in our hearts and in our minds and we need to make sure that we cleanse ourselves every day.  Let’s talk about a few ways we can make that happen.  So that we can walk upright, we can continue to do good.

I  We examine ourselves

a  We keep ourselves in check, we stay close to the Lord – Lamentations 3:40 Let us search out and examine our ways, And turn back to the Lord;

b  We are able to see our faith – 2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.

c  Cleansing ourselves leads us to holiness – 2 Corinthians 7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

II  We ask the Lord to examine us through prayer

a  Ask Him to show you – Psalm 139:23-24 ²³ Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; ²⁴ And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.

b  Ask Him to prove you – Psalm 26:2 Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; Try my mind and my heart.

c  Ask Him to create newness – Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

III  We confess our shortcomings to God and others

a When we confess He cleanses us – 1 John 1:9 ⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

b  Confession brings forgiveness – 2 Chronicles 7:14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

c  Confession brings healing – James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

Conclusion:  Peeps we need to come clean and stay clean.  We clean ourselves every day from the things that surround us at work or school or even at home sometimes.  This doesn’t mean that we are horrible ugly people, NOT AT ALL.  But it is important that we wash off the cares of this world, the doubts, the fears, etc.  We clean ourselves daily from anything and everything that might keep us from doing the good we were created to do.

 

October 7, 2012 Being a Wise Builder

 

Today we are going to talk about two different types of people:  The wise and the foolish.  As we walk daily with the Lord, we have to learn to be wise in all we do and say.  Jesus talks to us about that very thing.

Let’s go in our Bible to Matthew 7:24-32  –  ²⁴ “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: ²⁵ and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

²⁶ “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: ²⁷ and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”

²⁸ And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, ²⁹ for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

Jesus is talking to the people here in what most people refer to as the Sermon on the Mount.  He says some very important things that we should know and understand.  As we know, Jesus used stories or parables to teach people and it still teaches us today.  Before we go on to the sermon let’s talk about what we already know, the Bible says:

We are the temple of God  – 1 Corinthians 6:19 ¹⁹ Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?

We are supposed to build the kingdom of God  –  1 Corinthians 3:9  For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.

We are the building and we are the builders, too.  We have to be sure where we build and what it is we are building.  They have to line up with the Word of God.  So let’s see where we should start:

I  Foundation

We can’t build on sand:  other people’s thoughts or beliefs, on our careers, on people or on wealth.  We have to build on the Rock.

  a.  The Rock  – Psalm 18:2 The LORD is my Rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

  b.  Faith  –  Romans 1:17  ¹⁷ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

  c.  Grace  –  Ephesians 4:7  But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

II  Rains will come upon us all at times

Matthew 5:45  –  ⁴⁵ that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

  a.  Trials  –  1 Peter 1:6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 

  b.  Troubles  –  Mark 13:8 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows.

  c.  Temptations – James 1:2 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

III  We must be able to stand

Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

  a.  Armor of God – Ephesians 6:13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

  b.  In faith  –  1 Corinthians 16:13 Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.

  c.  Prayer  –  Luke 21:36  Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Conclusion:  Peeps, we have to be wise builders.  It is time for us to check our foundations and make sure that everything we are building is built on the Rock.

September 23, 2012 Keeping Joy

 

Joy! Maybe you’ve heard the song, “I got the joy, joy, joy, joy; down in my heart”? Well, even though it’s a children’s song, it’s time we get to thinking about our joy. It is important that we keep our joy.

Let’s get our Bibles and go to Galatians 4:15. The Word says, “What then was the blessing you enjoyed?” Paul is talking to the church in chapter 4:12-17 They have lost their joy and they have forgotten the blessings and the goodness of God. That is where we find ourselves sometimes even today and it is not a good place to be. We need to understand first what joy is and then how to keep it

I Joy vs Happiness – It is important that we understand that Happiness and Joy are two different things.

a. Happiness comes from the world around us; what is happening to us – Luke 12:15 And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”

b. Joy comes from within us; a fruit of the Spirit – Galatians 5:22-23 ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

c. Fight between the flesh and the Spirit – Galatians 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.

II How we lose our joy

a. Unmet expectations; we lose hope – Jeremiah 18:12 And they said, “That is hopeless! So we will walk according to our own plans, and we will every one obey the dictates of his evil heart.

b. Can’t let go; we can’t forgive – Mark 11:26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses

c. We condemn others and ourselves – James 5:9 Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!

These are just a few of the ways the enemy tries to steal our joy! He tries every day!

III How we keep our joy

a. God is joyful over you – Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save;He will rejoice over you with gladness,He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.”

b. Praise God – Psalm 66:1-3 Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth!² Sing out the honor of His name;Make His praise glorious.³ Say to God,“How awesome are Your works!Through the greatness of Your powerYour enemies shall submit themselves to You.

c. Share with others – Philippians 1:25-26 And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith, ²⁶ that your rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to you again.

Conclusion – What we have to understand is that Joy has to be learned. It takes time, hard work and patience. It isn’t natural like everything physical – we must DECIDE to get and keep our joy. In Nehemiah 8:10, the Word says, “Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Read that last part again: for the joy of the Lord is your strength! It is time to find the Joy and to have the strength we need; the strength we are given from God Himself!

 

September 2, 2012 Do You Know Your Light?

 

Intro: We all know the little song “This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine.” But do we know what that really means? The bible says in John 8:12, “Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” So we are supposed to have Jesus’ light in us.

However, in Luke 11:33 the Word says, “Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.” So wow, our light could be darkness!! That doesn’t make a lot of sense, does it?

Well, let’s go to 2 Corinthians 11:14-15 where the Word tells us, “And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. ¹⁵ Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works. So Satan can transform himself into an angel of light: Darkness. Today, let’s talk about the light and see if we can figure it out together.

Please open your bible to Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

I When does your light shine?

Close your eyes for a minute and think about when His light shines in:

a. Flashlight – When things go wrong and you have nowhere else to turn

b. Spot Light – Just to point out everyone else’s faults or to condemn others

c. Strobe Light – You turn on and off depending on who you are with or where you are

d. Carnival Light – turns on every Sunday morning and it lasts 12 hours and then it’s off

II Jesus’ light and Satan’s light

We are talking about the difference between Spirit and flesh. Jesus light is Spirit and Satan’s light is flesh.

a. The Spirit is always warring against the flesh – Galatians 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.

b. The light or works of the flesh – Galatians 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, ²¹ envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

c. Jesus light or the fruit of the Spirit – Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

III Our Light

It is important that we “take heed” and make sure that the light that shines in us is Jesus and not darkness (Satan).

a. We find it in the Word – Psalm 119:105; 130 Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path. The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.

b. We are supposed to be a light – Romans 2:19 and are confident that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness; Acts 13:47 For so the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.”

c. We are to walk in His light – Philippians 2:15 that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, Ephesians 5:8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 2 Corinthians 4:6 For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Conclusion: Folks, I encourage you to pick up your bibles, to study LIGHT so that you are sure of the light that shines in you. As you go out this week look at the light within you. Ask the Lord to help you to be that light that shines in the world.

 

August 26, 2012 You are Your Heart

 

What is the leading cause of death today? Heart attack! We hear about heart health all the time. It can be heard or seen just about every day on TV and radio, at your doctor’s office and grocery stores. There is a good reason for this, of course! If you have no heart, there is no life. The same holds true in the spiritual sense. Today we are going to talk about how important it is to guard our hearts.

Proverbs 4:23 – “Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.” The NIV version says – “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.^”

I. Why is it important?

a. God doesn’t look at your physical, He looks at the heart. – 1 Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.

b. Only God knows the heart. – Jeremiah 17:9,10 The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? ¹⁰ I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.

c. God wants us to believe with the heart. – Romans 10:10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

II. You are your heart

a. What you think in your heart is who you are – Proverbs 23:7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.

b. What and who you are on the outside is a reflection of your heart – Proverbs 27:19 As in water face reflects face, so a man’s heart reveals the man.

III. How do we guard our hearts?

a. Keep your heart fixed on God – Psalm 112:7 He will not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.

b. Hide the Word in your heart – Psalm 119:11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.

c. Trust in your heart – Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.

Conclusion: There are so many verses in the Bible about loving, forgiving, trusting and doing everything we do with all our hearts. It is time for us to take just as much care of our spiritual heart as our physical one. These notes are only a few of the reasons and ways to guard or keep our hearts. I encourage everyone to pick up their Bibles and open their hearts. Ask God to search your heart and start taking care of it.