Matthew 13:10-17
Can You See It?: Seeing What God is Doing
I. Introduction
-Have you heard from God lately?
-Have you seen his fingerprints in your life?
-Have you witnessed His handiwork?
-God is hard to understand!
II. Scripture
III. I See Something...
-Jesus is in the middle of a number of parables.
-The problem is people have ears, but do not hear.
1. They have eyes but do not see.
2. They're missing it.
-Jesus walked among the people and they missed Him!
1. They missed the Messiah.
2. They missed the Savior.
-We do that today.
-Jesus spent all His earthly ministry trying to get people to see something!
-Do you see something?
IV. Pastoral Pause
-Do you see something around here?
-Ministry is hard to measure.
1. We try to measure it in human ways.
2. Numbers, attendance, averages, line graphs, programs, participation.
3. Only God knows the heart.
-When ppl lay out of church they are moving in the wrong direction!
1. Not coming like they use to... wrong direction.
2. Detached, uncaring... wrong direction.
-Right now, in our church you can see visible signs of God's work.
1. Increased church attendance.
2. Sunday Night, SS, Wednesday night.
-Financial situation.
1. We are about to be out of debt!
2. No more mortgage payment.
3. Nursery.
-There is a sense of burning in my heart that God is about to do something we aren't ready for.
1. Visions & Dreams when the Spirit comes upon them.
2. Expectancy.
V. I See Something!
-Elijah & Ahab
1. "No rain until I say so."
2. Mt. Carmel Baal challenge.
3. Elijah prayed, servant looked seven times.
4. I see a cloud the size of man's hand.
5. Go tell Ahab rain is coming!
6. Doubt the cloud?
7. It may be a little cloud, but rain is coming!
8. Proactive! Pre-emptive praise.
-Acts 2... Pentecost
1. "The Sound of a mighty rushing wind."
2. See: "Tongues of fire above their heads."
3. Equipped with power!
-Elisha
1. 2 Kings 6
2. Assyrians surround the city.
3. Servant panics to Elisha.
4. Elisha's prayer: "Open his eyes Lord!"
5. "Those that are for us are greater than those against us!"
6. Sometimes we only see the Devil's work... open our eyes to see God's.
-Jacob "lost" his son Joseph
1. Years later his sons go to Egypt for food and find him.
2. Joseph sends a caravan full of food & many blessings.
3. Jacob's sons try to explain that Joseph is still alive.
4. He doesn't want to have a false hope.
5. But... Genesis 45:27 "But when they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said to them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived."
6. Don't focus on God's blessings and miss Him!
7. Jacob was more interested in Joseph than the caravan!
8. I'm not nearly as concerned w/ the earthly blessings as being in His presence one day!
a. Missionary spent over 50 years in mission field on a boat back to the states.
b. On the same boat was a movie star.
c. As the pulled into port a great crowd of ppl cheered the movie star.
d. No one there for the missionary.
e. He said: "I've been saving souls, what has the movie star ever done. Why don't I get a big reception when I get home."
f. God tapped him on the shoulder and said: "You aren't home yet."
g. I'm not looking for human acclamation, just God's Words: "Well done thy good and faithful servant."
-Ill. Rolls Royce
1. Owner wrote company.
2. Good car, smooth car, comfortable car.
3. But how much horse power does it have?
4. Enough.
-Ill. God owns the cattle on a thousand hills.
1. Uncle Bud Robinson: "He owns the taters too!"
2. Nothing is impossible with God!
3. Do we believe that yet?
-Saul/Paul saw Jesus on the road to Damascus
1. It changed his life.
2. You'll never be the same.
-Elijah & Elisha
1. Elisha, I want a double portion of your Spirit.
2. If you see me when I am taken away, you will have what you ask.
3. The fiery chariot separated them and then a whirlwind took Elijah into heaven.
4. Elisha picked up the mantle of Elijah.
5. "Let they mantle fall on me."
-Isaiah
1. Isaiah 6:1 "In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple."
2. Needing another touch.
-John the Baptist sees Jesus.
1. Look the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the World!
2. He saw his salvation!
VI. What About Me?
-Now, I want you to look not at others, but at yourself.
1. Introspection.
2. Am I growing?
3. Can I see God working in my life?
-Can you see what God has done?
1. Is it the same old thing?
2. Do you even desire it?
-Let God work.
VII. Conclusion
-Jesus healing a blind man.
1. Mark 8:22-25 "And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him. [23] And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, "Do you see anything?" [24] And he looked up and said, "I see men, but they look like trees, walking." [25] Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly."
2. Do you need a second touch from Him?
-In a little town called Greensburg.
1. Some are skeptical. Tolerating the ravings of a young preacher.
2. I've never seen anything like it in my life!
-I'm waiting... with expectancy.
Response
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Relevant?
Ezekiel 1:1-5a, 15-16a, 22, 26-28; 2:1-2
Relevant?: Ezekiel #1
I. Introduction
-Why are you here this morning? (Israel History)
-Does what happens here make a difference in your life?
-If you had to tell about one thing God did in your life, or how being a Christian made a difference, could you?
-We would like to believe we are more technologically advanced than ever before, more civil, more wealth, more secure, etc.
1. So how does this book [Bible] have any bearing on our lives?
2. Why & How can it tell us how to live?
3. Or a man [Jesus] who lived 2000 years ago.
-How can these things be relevant?
-Relevant is a buzz word in the church today.
-What is relevant to your life?
II. Scripture
III. Relevant
-Relevant means: having significant bearing on the matter at hand
-You might hear:
1. "That's not relevant to this discussion."
2. "Ask only relevant questions to the topic at hand."
3. Presidential debates: their answers aren't relevant to the questions.
-If you go into a Christian bookstore & into the ministry section you will see the word ‘relevant' in a lot of book titles.
-"Relevant" is a buzz word.
-They say: "The church has to make its ministry relevant to the world."
-In other words: "Ministry must be done in such a way that it has significant bearing on the matter at hand."
IV. Problem 1
-Ministry is geared toward ppl loving the church rather than God.
-If you participate in that kind of ministry you will begin to believe that if ppl like you, your ministry is successful.
-Ministry success is not based on whether ppl like you.
1. It's not based on whether everyone thinks you're cool.
2. It's not based on whether you are best buddies w/ someone.
3. Just b/c you are friends w/ a Christian, doesn't mean you'll make it to heaven.
4. You must be friends w/ Christ.
-Therein lies the problem: We sometimes seek for ppl to like the pastor more than the Savior.
1. The church, pastor, ppl, eclipse the Messiah.
-Then, I leave the church b/c I do not like the pastor.
1. I leave the church if I do not like a member.
2. I leave the church if my feelings get hurt.
-God calls ppl to churches just like He does pastors.
-You can make it to heaven w/out being best friend w/ everyone!
1. Some ppl just meld better than others.
2. I just get along better w/ some ppl than others.
V. Problem 2
-Ministry looks more like the world.
-Ministry is based on disguising the Gospel.
1. Repentance is tucked away.
2. "We look like you!"
-Ministry is not based on whether ppl think you are like them.
1. Point: It's really hinged on whether you are different than them.
2. What do you have to offer if you are the same.
-Some "relevance" based ministry seeks to convince you that it is alright if you stay the same as long as you like what is happening.
-Real ministry says, you cannot remain the same.
1. Truth changes your life... & the way you go about it.
2. Interacting w/ God is a change of heart, a renewing of the mind, a washing of your actions, & a cleansing of pride & motives!
-Sometimes we ask for the preacher's messages to be relevant.
1. Wouldn't we like more self-help kind of sermons.
2. They are all the craze.
-Some pastors preach on nothing but your finances, your human relationships, how to get a good job, how to have your best life now, how to...
1. That seems more relevant.
-But is that more relevant than a message on the Holiness of God?
1. Is that relevant in light of eternity?
2. Is that relevant in light of the glory of God?
VI. What is Relevant?
-You don't really decide what is relevant, you prioritize your life.
1. Truth is truth. It is never irrelevant.
2. Truth is always relevant!
-Ill. Gravity, you cannot really ignore it.
1. You can fight it...parachutes
2. But it doesn't become obsolete, or irrelevant.
-Ill. "This is a youth service, you don't have to wear a tie."
1. I didn't come to fit-in, but to proclaim the Gospel.
2. I didn't come to be cool, I came to lift up Jesus!
3. I didn't come to entertain, I came to preach Christ crucified... a stumbling block for Jews and foolishness to Gentiles!
-Query: To minister to...
1. ...teens do I have to wear frayed jeans, grow a goatee, & fix my hair like I've not combed it?
2. ...those in the nursing home do I have to get a hearing aid, use a walker, and wear glasses?
3. Is my ministry [and yours] limited by our age, our dress, our income, our racial background?
4. Do you have to be black to minister to blacks?
5. Do you have to be rich to minister to the rich?
6. Do you have to be a doctor to minister to a doctor?
7. Do you have to be from KY to minister to those from KY?
8. Do you have to be 20 something to minister to 20 something's?
-O what limitations we have placed on God!
1. What boundaries we have placed around His power.
2. What restrictions we have placed on salvation!
-Lie (Satan): you can minister only to ppl just like you.
-Definition: having significant bearing on the matter at hand
1. So what is the matter at hand?
2. Is it how much money you make?
3. Is it what job you have?
-What about in raising your children? Is the real issue...
1. ...how smart your kids are?
2. ...whether they are popular or not?
3. ...whether they are successful?
4. ...whether they are a sports star?
5. ...whether they are homecoming queen?
6. What has significance/ bearing to the issue at hand? Are they holy/godly?
-What issue trumps all others?
-The world is screaming that God is irrelevant!
1. He has no bearing on anything.
2. Can you see past that?
3. Have you been bogged down in that?
-What about eternity?
-Point: We need a new vision of His glory!
-A desire for "relevance" leads to sin.
1. Learn to be okay w/ being different.
2. "Fitting in" drives/moves toward sin.
-If kids cannot deal w/ being different when it comes to style (adults too) how can they resist the temptation to conform to this world!?
1. I don't want my kids dressing like ball stars b/c they may also conform to their sins!!
2. I want them to be different!
VII. Hard to See How Relevant.
-Even for Christians it is hard to see how relevant God is to us.
-Ill. Time magazine said $20 billion in US for porn movies
1. estimated $57 billion worldwide
2. Is God that relevant or not?
-The world is screaming that God is irrelevant.
-Do you believe that?
-What about when...
1. ...you go to work on Monday, and listen to the profane, vulgar conversations.
2. ...you hear about the immorality running rampant among your co-workers.
3. ...you go on vacation see the loose & lurid behavior of the wicked.
4. ...you walk through your neighborhood and see the hurting families destroyed by divorce, abuse, affairs, & alcohol.
5. ...your kids come home from school talking about what they learned at school, playing vulgar & sinful music, flippantly talking about sex.
6. ...you turn on the TV and watch holly wood blaspheme all that is holy, idolize the wicked & immoral behavior, and dismiss biblical conscience.
7. ...loneliness is oppressive, hopelessness ushers in despair, and the chaos pushes us to the limit...
8. Then the temptation is to think that this [church, Bible, faith, God] is irrelevant.
-And ppl ask:
1. At the point I am dealing w/ a death in the family, why would a man named Jesus dying 2000 years ago have any bearing on my situation?
2. At the point I have lost my job and am unable to pay my bills, what difference does it make that God made a covenant with Abraham?
-The Israelite in captivity w/ Ezekiel asked: What difference does God make now?
VIII. The Real Problem
-This problem is old as time.
1. We are trying to make God relevant to us (bring Him to our level).
2. Rather than trying to be relevant to God.
-Ill. On Judgement day
1. He won't ask us: "Do you know me?"
2. He will say: "Depart from me, for I do not know you."
-The problem is we've diminished His glory.
1. We've rejected it for materialism, lusts of the flesh, and rusted things of this world.
2. The church has accepted a counterfeit!
-Ill. Famous Atheist Richard Dawkins, author of ‘The God Delusion,'
1. ...about his visit to a 12,000 strong evangelical church here in America:
2. "I worry that these ‘born-agains' are being persuaded to return to childish certainties. That the only truth they need is God..."
3. That's it... the atheist got it!
-We all affirm that God is the most important thing in life, but do you live it?
1. Would your calendar be different if you lived that way?
2. ...check book... family... church... be different?
-Ill. It will take more than an hour on Sunday.
1. Commercial: 20 min/day for 3 wks for killer abs.
2. We apply that to spiritual matters
3. To be Christian will take more than 20/min a day 3 days a week!!
IX. God is Relevant
-Ezekiel got a vision of the Glory of God.
1. That vision of glory gave him something worth saying.
2. It gave him a life worth living.
3. ...a purpose worth fulfilling.
4. ...a mission worth accomplishing.
-How relevant is your life?
-To SS teachers: "Point to Jesus!"
-To song leaders: "What is relevant, is not what we sing, what notes we hit, or what style it is; but who we sing to!"
-To preachers: "What is relevant is not the latest fad or popular thing in the church, but Christ and Him crucified. Preach that!"
-To parents: "Christ is the most important thing in your child's life."
-To couples: "Christ is the most important thing in your marriage."
-To teens: "Christ is the most important thing in your life!"
-To children: "Christ is the most important thing in your life!"
-Don't say it, Live it!
X. Conclusion
-Do you see the glory of God?
-Does God eclipse everything else in your life?
-So many ppl are investing their lives in good things, but irrelevant things.
1. They are missing the glory of God!
2. They are missing the most important thing.
-Why are all these other things not relevant?
1. Why is God/ the Gospel so relevant?
2. B/c the most fundamental need of humanity is still a spiritual need.
-Ezekiel fell on his face when he saw the glory of God.
-But the Spirit picked Him up and set him on his feet... and he heard God.
-You can ignore it, or you can live with new relevance.
1. God is relevant.
2. Do you see that?
Response
Relevant?: Ezekiel #1
I. Introduction
-Why are you here this morning? (Israel History)
-Does what happens here make a difference in your life?
-If you had to tell about one thing God did in your life, or how being a Christian made a difference, could you?
-We would like to believe we are more technologically advanced than ever before, more civil, more wealth, more secure, etc.
1. So how does this book [Bible] have any bearing on our lives?
2. Why & How can it tell us how to live?
3. Or a man [Jesus] who lived 2000 years ago.
-How can these things be relevant?
-Relevant is a buzz word in the church today.
-What is relevant to your life?
II. Scripture
III. Relevant
-Relevant means: having significant bearing on the matter at hand
-You might hear:
1. "That's not relevant to this discussion."
2. "Ask only relevant questions to the topic at hand."
3. Presidential debates: their answers aren't relevant to the questions.
-If you go into a Christian bookstore & into the ministry section you will see the word ‘relevant' in a lot of book titles.
-"Relevant" is a buzz word.
-They say: "The church has to make its ministry relevant to the world."
-In other words: "Ministry must be done in such a way that it has significant bearing on the matter at hand."
IV. Problem 1
-Ministry is geared toward ppl loving the church rather than God.
-If you participate in that kind of ministry you will begin to believe that if ppl like you, your ministry is successful.
-Ministry success is not based on whether ppl like you.
1. It's not based on whether everyone thinks you're cool.
2. It's not based on whether you are best buddies w/ someone.
3. Just b/c you are friends w/ a Christian, doesn't mean you'll make it to heaven.
4. You must be friends w/ Christ.
-Therein lies the problem: We sometimes seek for ppl to like the pastor more than the Savior.
1. The church, pastor, ppl, eclipse the Messiah.
-Then, I leave the church b/c I do not like the pastor.
1. I leave the church if I do not like a member.
2. I leave the church if my feelings get hurt.
-God calls ppl to churches just like He does pastors.
-You can make it to heaven w/out being best friend w/ everyone!
1. Some ppl just meld better than others.
2. I just get along better w/ some ppl than others.
V. Problem 2
-Ministry looks more like the world.
-Ministry is based on disguising the Gospel.
1. Repentance is tucked away.
2. "We look like you!"
-Ministry is not based on whether ppl think you are like them.
1. Point: It's really hinged on whether you are different than them.
2. What do you have to offer if you are the same.
-Some "relevance" based ministry seeks to convince you that it is alright if you stay the same as long as you like what is happening.
-Real ministry says, you cannot remain the same.
1. Truth changes your life... & the way you go about it.
2. Interacting w/ God is a change of heart, a renewing of the mind, a washing of your actions, & a cleansing of pride & motives!
-Sometimes we ask for the preacher's messages to be relevant.
1. Wouldn't we like more self-help kind of sermons.
2. They are all the craze.
-Some pastors preach on nothing but your finances, your human relationships, how to get a good job, how to have your best life now, how to...
1. That seems more relevant.
-But is that more relevant than a message on the Holiness of God?
1. Is that relevant in light of eternity?
2. Is that relevant in light of the glory of God?
VI. What is Relevant?
-You don't really decide what is relevant, you prioritize your life.
1. Truth is truth. It is never irrelevant.
2. Truth is always relevant!
-Ill. Gravity, you cannot really ignore it.
1. You can fight it...parachutes
2. But it doesn't become obsolete, or irrelevant.
-Ill. "This is a youth service, you don't have to wear a tie."
1. I didn't come to fit-in, but to proclaim the Gospel.
2. I didn't come to be cool, I came to lift up Jesus!
3. I didn't come to entertain, I came to preach Christ crucified... a stumbling block for Jews and foolishness to Gentiles!
-Query: To minister to...
1. ...teens do I have to wear frayed jeans, grow a goatee, & fix my hair like I've not combed it?
2. ...those in the nursing home do I have to get a hearing aid, use a walker, and wear glasses?
3. Is my ministry [and yours] limited by our age, our dress, our income, our racial background?
4. Do you have to be black to minister to blacks?
5. Do you have to be rich to minister to the rich?
6. Do you have to be a doctor to minister to a doctor?
7. Do you have to be from KY to minister to those from KY?
8. Do you have to be 20 something to minister to 20 something's?
-O what limitations we have placed on God!
1. What boundaries we have placed around His power.
2. What restrictions we have placed on salvation!
-Lie (Satan): you can minister only to ppl just like you.
-Definition: having significant bearing on the matter at hand
1. So what is the matter at hand?
2. Is it how much money you make?
3. Is it what job you have?
-What about in raising your children? Is the real issue...
1. ...how smart your kids are?
2. ...whether they are popular or not?
3. ...whether they are successful?
4. ...whether they are a sports star?
5. ...whether they are homecoming queen?
6. What has significance/ bearing to the issue at hand? Are they holy/godly?
-What issue trumps all others?
-The world is screaming that God is irrelevant!
1. He has no bearing on anything.
2. Can you see past that?
3. Have you been bogged down in that?
-What about eternity?
-Point: We need a new vision of His glory!
-A desire for "relevance" leads to sin.
1. Learn to be okay w/ being different.
2. "Fitting in" drives/moves toward sin.
-If kids cannot deal w/ being different when it comes to style (adults too) how can they resist the temptation to conform to this world!?
1. I don't want my kids dressing like ball stars b/c they may also conform to their sins!!
2. I want them to be different!
VII. Hard to See How Relevant.
-Even for Christians it is hard to see how relevant God is to us.
-Ill. Time magazine said $20 billion in US for porn movies
1. estimated $57 billion worldwide
2. Is God that relevant or not?
-The world is screaming that God is irrelevant.
-Do you believe that?
-What about when...
1. ...you go to work on Monday, and listen to the profane, vulgar conversations.
2. ...you hear about the immorality running rampant among your co-workers.
3. ...you go on vacation see the loose & lurid behavior of the wicked.
4. ...you walk through your neighborhood and see the hurting families destroyed by divorce, abuse, affairs, & alcohol.
5. ...your kids come home from school talking about what they learned at school, playing vulgar & sinful music, flippantly talking about sex.
6. ...you turn on the TV and watch holly wood blaspheme all that is holy, idolize the wicked & immoral behavior, and dismiss biblical conscience.
7. ...loneliness is oppressive, hopelessness ushers in despair, and the chaos pushes us to the limit...
8. Then the temptation is to think that this [church, Bible, faith, God] is irrelevant.
-And ppl ask:
1. At the point I am dealing w/ a death in the family, why would a man named Jesus dying 2000 years ago have any bearing on my situation?
2. At the point I have lost my job and am unable to pay my bills, what difference does it make that God made a covenant with Abraham?
-The Israelite in captivity w/ Ezekiel asked: What difference does God make now?
VIII. The Real Problem
-This problem is old as time.
1. We are trying to make God relevant to us (bring Him to our level).
2. Rather than trying to be relevant to God.
-Ill. On Judgement day
1. He won't ask us: "Do you know me?"
2. He will say: "Depart from me, for I do not know you."
-The problem is we've diminished His glory.
1. We've rejected it for materialism, lusts of the flesh, and rusted things of this world.
2. The church has accepted a counterfeit!
-Ill. Famous Atheist Richard Dawkins, author of ‘The God Delusion,'
1. ...about his visit to a 12,000 strong evangelical church here in America:
2. "I worry that these ‘born-agains' are being persuaded to return to childish certainties. That the only truth they need is God..."
3. That's it... the atheist got it!
-We all affirm that God is the most important thing in life, but do you live it?
1. Would your calendar be different if you lived that way?
2. ...check book... family... church... be different?
-Ill. It will take more than an hour on Sunday.
1. Commercial: 20 min/day for 3 wks for killer abs.
2. We apply that to spiritual matters
3. To be Christian will take more than 20/min a day 3 days a week!!
IX. God is Relevant
-Ezekiel got a vision of the Glory of God.
1. That vision of glory gave him something worth saying.
2. It gave him a life worth living.
3. ...a purpose worth fulfilling.
4. ...a mission worth accomplishing.
-How relevant is your life?
-To SS teachers: "Point to Jesus!"
-To song leaders: "What is relevant, is not what we sing, what notes we hit, or what style it is; but who we sing to!"
-To preachers: "What is relevant is not the latest fad or popular thing in the church, but Christ and Him crucified. Preach that!"
-To parents: "Christ is the most important thing in your child's life."
-To couples: "Christ is the most important thing in your marriage."
-To teens: "Christ is the most important thing in your life!"
-To children: "Christ is the most important thing in your life!"
-Don't say it, Live it!
X. Conclusion
-Do you see the glory of God?
-Does God eclipse everything else in your life?
-So many ppl are investing their lives in good things, but irrelevant things.
1. They are missing the glory of God!
2. They are missing the most important thing.
-Why are all these other things not relevant?
1. Why is God/ the Gospel so relevant?
2. B/c the most fundamental need of humanity is still a spiritual need.
-Ezekiel fell on his face when he saw the glory of God.
-But the Spirit picked Him up and set him on his feet... and he heard God.
-You can ignore it, or you can live with new relevance.
1. God is relevant.
2. Do you see that?
Response
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
What Believers Need...
Acts 15:4-9
What Believers Need: Holy Spirit Purity
I. Introduction
-What more do you need?
-...as a Christian?
II. Scripture
III. Background
-Peter's vision
1. Sheet w/ unclean animals comes down from heaven.
2. Kill & eat.
3. It's unclean, I've never done that, I will never do that.
4. God said: "What God has made clean do not call common."
5. This happened three times.
-As Peter was trying to figure it out, a knock on the door.
1. Cornelius, a centurian, had also had a vision from God.
2. Note: God will bring true seekers to our church if we will truly seek God.
3. He sent three men to find Peter.
4. The Spirit told Peter to go w/ the men.
-These were Gentiles! (Non-Jews)
-You see how God works things out?
-Can you see God's fingerprints in your life?
-I want to point out a few things about the passage we read in Acts 15 referring to 10.
IV. A Specific People
-The Holy Spirit doesn't just fall on anybody.
-This wasn't just a group of ppl pulled in off the street.
-Cornelius "pastor"
1. Acts 10: he brought his relatives & friends together.
2. They were having church.
-Who is He?
-Acts 10:1-2 "At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, [2] a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God."
-Note a few things about him:
-First, He was a devout man.
1. Definition of devout: devoted to God.
2. He worshiped the true God.
3. He did not worship all the Roman gods.
4. Lived for the Lord.
5. He was an earnest seeker.
-Second, He feared God.
1. We don't have any fear of God.
2. We treat Him like a Teddy Bear.
3. No awe, reverence, or fear of the Lord anymore.
4. Always remember you are unworthy for everything God has done in your life.
5. You don't deserve someone dying for you, you haven't earned heaven, you're not good enough for God.
6. Fear Him!
7. Fear of God reduces fear of other things. (Death, humanity, poverty, etc.)
-Third, that fear was in his whole house.
1. Cornelius was a spiritual leader in his home.
2. Men, you have a responsibility!
3. This is the most effective preaching that can take place: your family says you live out your faith in Christ.
4. That is a testimony!
-Fourth, he gave alms.
1. He gave from a large heart, liberally.
2. Stingy, self-centered spending rules today.
3. Debt, economic crisis, all spending on self.
4. Giving is an act of worship.
5. Not only to God/church, but to other ppl.
6. Be a spender on other people.
7. Give stuff away to others. (Not junk, but valuable stuff to you.)
-Finally, he prayed continually.
1. Ppl would find him on his knees in prayer.
2. At lunch hour, on breaks, in the morn, in the evening, before meals, in the midst of decisions.
3. He was continually in the "spirit of prayer."
4. Times I'm w/ Sarah, but not talking to Sarah, but we are still constantly communicating & enjoying the bond we have.
-These were ppl, though lacking much knowledge about Christ, were Christian.
-Only Christians receive the Holy Spirit, not sinners.
V. How They Received the Spirit
-First, it was instantaneous.
1. It was not something they grew into.
2. The Spirit fell on them.
3. This is not a spiritual discipline or an issue of maturity.
4. It is an issue of purity.
5. This is not something worked for, it is something sought for.
6. It is not something earned, it is something received.
-There are no degrees of Spirit baptism; you either have received or haven't.
-Second, God knew their hearts. (15:8)
1. When the heart is ready, the Spirit is given.
2. You will never be on a waiting list.
3. You will never be stalled or delayed.
4. God knows your heart & knows when it is ready!
5. Genesis 6:5 "The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."
6. 1 Samuel 16:7 "But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.""
7. Matthew 15:19 "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander."
-Your heart is either a catalyst or a road block for God's work in your life.
1. Hearts are hard to judge.
2. "Is your heart in it?"
3. "Close to my heart."
4. "What does your heart tell you?"
-Apply the perception of the heart to spiritual matters.
1. Your heart might tell you that things aren't right.
2. Listen to it.
VI. The Effects of the Spirit
-Hebrews 10:14-16 "For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. [15] And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, [16] "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,"
1. Law on hearts is in Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Romans, & Hebrews.
2. There is something about your heart that God wants.
3. Hosea 6:6 "For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings."
-Acts 15:9b "...having cleansed their hearts by faith."
1. God wants your heart.
2. If He has that, He has all of you.
-We would rather give God things...
1. Time, money, work in the church.
2. But heart is different.
-Even if we give our heart, God cannot accept it like it is.
1. It loves you.
2. We are our own greatest lovers.
3. Me, my way, what I want, vying for power, demanding our own way, insisting on my preferences, fighting for my reputation/ rights.
4. All that must be cleansed.
-Point: I find that among Nazarene, a "holiness" people, we have failed to allow God to cleanse our hearts.
1. "Preacher, I don't believe that's possible."
2. ...cleansed their hearts by faith...
3. You don't believe, it will never happen (just like justification).
VII. Conclusion
-In the last few years we have had a number of new ppl begin attending our church.
1. For the first time, in a long time, we have began baptizing ppl who have been born-again.
2. It's time for us to be a holiness church.
3. To you new Christians... seek a pure heart.
-After becoming a Christian you will feel the pull.
1. The love of self/world.
2. Conflict spiritually.
3. "I need something more."
-You need to be forgiven, and then to have a heart cleansing.
1. It comes in what Jesus promised as the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
2. Nazarenes sometimes call it what Paul does in the epistles to the Thessalonians... entire sanctification.
-1 Peter 1:16 "You shall be holy, for I am holy."
1. God does not say we are to be holy as He is.
2. God says we are to be holy b/c He is.
-Ill. Witnessing models...
1. Often ask: "Have you been forgiven?"
2. That's a good question for someone who has not been born-again to think about.
-Ill. Holiness question...
1. Let me ask you a question.
2. Has your heart been purified by the Holy Spirit?
Response
What Believers Need: Holy Spirit Purity
I. Introduction
-What more do you need?
-...as a Christian?
II. Scripture
III. Background
-Peter's vision
1. Sheet w/ unclean animals comes down from heaven.
2. Kill & eat.
3. It's unclean, I've never done that, I will never do that.
4. God said: "What God has made clean do not call common."
5. This happened three times.
-As Peter was trying to figure it out, a knock on the door.
1. Cornelius, a centurian, had also had a vision from God.
2. Note: God will bring true seekers to our church if we will truly seek God.
3. He sent three men to find Peter.
4. The Spirit told Peter to go w/ the men.
-These were Gentiles! (Non-Jews)
-You see how God works things out?
-Can you see God's fingerprints in your life?
-I want to point out a few things about the passage we read in Acts 15 referring to 10.
IV. A Specific People
-The Holy Spirit doesn't just fall on anybody.
-This wasn't just a group of ppl pulled in off the street.
-Cornelius "pastor"
1. Acts 10: he brought his relatives & friends together.
2. They were having church.
-Who is He?
-Acts 10:1-2 "At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, [2] a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God."
-Note a few things about him:
-First, He was a devout man.
1. Definition of devout: devoted to God.
2. He worshiped the true God.
3. He did not worship all the Roman gods.
4. Lived for the Lord.
5. He was an earnest seeker.
-Second, He feared God.
1. We don't have any fear of God.
2. We treat Him like a Teddy Bear.
3. No awe, reverence, or fear of the Lord anymore.
4. Always remember you are unworthy for everything God has done in your life.
5. You don't deserve someone dying for you, you haven't earned heaven, you're not good enough for God.
6. Fear Him!
7. Fear of God reduces fear of other things. (Death, humanity, poverty, etc.)
-Third, that fear was in his whole house.
1. Cornelius was a spiritual leader in his home.
2. Men, you have a responsibility!
3. This is the most effective preaching that can take place: your family says you live out your faith in Christ.
4. That is a testimony!
-Fourth, he gave alms.
1. He gave from a large heart, liberally.
2. Stingy, self-centered spending rules today.
3. Debt, economic crisis, all spending on self.
4. Giving is an act of worship.
5. Not only to God/church, but to other ppl.
6. Be a spender on other people.
7. Give stuff away to others. (Not junk, but valuable stuff to you.)
-Finally, he prayed continually.
1. Ppl would find him on his knees in prayer.
2. At lunch hour, on breaks, in the morn, in the evening, before meals, in the midst of decisions.
3. He was continually in the "spirit of prayer."
4. Times I'm w/ Sarah, but not talking to Sarah, but we are still constantly communicating & enjoying the bond we have.
-These were ppl, though lacking much knowledge about Christ, were Christian.
-Only Christians receive the Holy Spirit, not sinners.
V. How They Received the Spirit
-First, it was instantaneous.
1. It was not something they grew into.
2. The Spirit fell on them.
3. This is not a spiritual discipline or an issue of maturity.
4. It is an issue of purity.
5. This is not something worked for, it is something sought for.
6. It is not something earned, it is something received.
-There are no degrees of Spirit baptism; you either have received or haven't.
-Second, God knew their hearts. (15:8)
1. When the heart is ready, the Spirit is given.
2. You will never be on a waiting list.
3. You will never be stalled or delayed.
4. God knows your heart & knows when it is ready!
5. Genesis 6:5 "The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."
6. 1 Samuel 16:7 "But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.""
7. Matthew 15:19 "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander."
-Your heart is either a catalyst or a road block for God's work in your life.
1. Hearts are hard to judge.
2. "Is your heart in it?"
3. "Close to my heart."
4. "What does your heart tell you?"
-Apply the perception of the heart to spiritual matters.
1. Your heart might tell you that things aren't right.
2. Listen to it.
VI. The Effects of the Spirit
-Hebrews 10:14-16 "For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. [15] And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, [16] "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,"
1. Law on hearts is in Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Romans, & Hebrews.
2. There is something about your heart that God wants.
3. Hosea 6:6 "For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings."
-Acts 15:9b "...having cleansed their hearts by faith."
1. God wants your heart.
2. If He has that, He has all of you.
-We would rather give God things...
1. Time, money, work in the church.
2. But heart is different.
-Even if we give our heart, God cannot accept it like it is.
1. It loves you.
2. We are our own greatest lovers.
3. Me, my way, what I want, vying for power, demanding our own way, insisting on my preferences, fighting for my reputation/ rights.
4. All that must be cleansed.
-Point: I find that among Nazarene, a "holiness" people, we have failed to allow God to cleanse our hearts.
1. "Preacher, I don't believe that's possible."
2. ...cleansed their hearts by faith...
3. You don't believe, it will never happen (just like justification).
VII. Conclusion
-In the last few years we have had a number of new ppl begin attending our church.
1. For the first time, in a long time, we have began baptizing ppl who have been born-again.
2. It's time for us to be a holiness church.
3. To you new Christians... seek a pure heart.
-After becoming a Christian you will feel the pull.
1. The love of self/world.
2. Conflict spiritually.
3. "I need something more."
-You need to be forgiven, and then to have a heart cleansing.
1. It comes in what Jesus promised as the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
2. Nazarenes sometimes call it what Paul does in the epistles to the Thessalonians... entire sanctification.
-1 Peter 1:16 "You shall be holy, for I am holy."
1. God does not say we are to be holy as He is.
2. God says we are to be holy b/c He is.
-Ill. Witnessing models...
1. Often ask: "Have you been forgiven?"
2. That's a good question for someone who has not been born-again to think about.
-Ill. Holiness question...
1. Let me ask you a question.
2. Has your heart been purified by the Holy Spirit?
Response
Monday, November 3, 2008
The King is Coming #2
Revelation 19:11-21
The King is Coming #2: Are You Ready?
I. Introduction
-We are troubled by how big God is.
1. Maybe I should just say ‘I.'
2. He is too big to comprehend.
-We cannot understand His vastness.
1. His glory is too immeasurable.
2. His holiness is too far removed from our existence.
3. His righteousness is too right when we have been bent, influenced & warped.
4. His narrow path is too straight for our crookedness & perversion.
-God is complex.
1. "How can a loving God send ppl to Hell?"
2. How can he be merciful & yet just?
3. ...love yet hate?
4. ...holy vs. vengeful?
5. ...glorious vs. jealous?
6. ...vulnerable (Jesus wept) vs. omnipotent?
-Like salvation or sanctification, God is more complex than the often simplistic descriptions of Him (though they have a place).
II. Scripture
III. Christ's Description
-v. 11 "called Faithful & True"
1. Won't let you down.
2. Ppl yes, God no!
3. "Great is Thy Faithfulness"
4. What He says He will accomplish!
-Faithful and True
1. The only thing you can bank on.
2. Truth pierces circumstances.
3. "That might be true for you, but not for me."
4. Not The Truth!
5. Everybody needs the True one!
-v. 12 "...eyes are like a flame of fire..."
1. Conviction.
2. Christ can see through all the fluff!
3. Rich young ruler.
4. Who do men... you say that I am?
5. You cannot hide in a crowd.
-v. 12 "on His head are many crowns"
1. He rules.
2. He has complete authority.
3. He only allows things to happen.
4. He is sovereign King of all.
5. Some serve a weak God!
-v. 12 "a name written that no one knows but himself"
1. Ill Jesus Seminar
2. Everyone wants to tell you about God.
3. Few really know Him.
4. His name, his identity, to most are lost.
5. Politicians talking about God.
6. "God bless you."
7. Do you really know Him?
8. Is it just hear-say?
-v. 16 "On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, "King of kings and Lord of lords."
IV. On That Day...
-He has come in the past... He is here now... He is coming again.
-He will reveal Himself as He has never revealed Himself to Humans before.
-It will be unmistakable who He is.
1. It will be undeniable.
2. It will not be able to misinterpreted!
-He will be King of kings and Lord of lords.
-Who will He be?
1. To atheists he will be the King they have denied.
2. To humanists he will be the King they have ignored.
3. To the agnostic we will be the King they have doubted.
4. To the sinner he will be the Lord rejected.
5. To the lost he will be the Lord to be feared.
6. To the earthly power he will be King of kings and Lord of lords!
-To Christians he will the King we have heralded!
1. He will be the Lord we have already bowed/submitted to.
2. He will be the Savior we have adored & worshiped.
V. The Great Struggle
-And while He will be revealed in all his glory & power there will still be some that rebel.
-v. 19 "And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army."
1. the beast- Devil or anti-Christ?
2. Deceiver (even some of you)
-Query: Why would they still wage war against God?
1. He is God?
2. He cannot be defeated!
3. Why did the Devil?
-Point: Because they presuppose on only one aspect of who God is... His mercy.
1. But in so doing, they ignore his justice, his holiness, & his righteousness.
2. God cannot allow sin to dwell with him throughout eternity... b/c he is holy.
-But they will believe that God, out of mercy & love, would not destroy them.
-Point: People today are presupposing on the grace of God.
-Some of the people w/in ear shot of me today believe that.
VI. Nothing Else Matters!
-When He comes everything will be known for what it's value really is.
-Nothing else matters!
1. What you wear to prom!
2. Who your girlfriend/boyfriend is.
3. Your bills. Your home/car.
4. Football game.
5. Job requirements.
6. Insignificant things we argue about.
7. How big your pension check is.
8. How long your resume is.
9. How many outfits you have in your closet.
10. What the community thinks about you.
-When the White Rider comes...
1. Wall street will freeze (& crash instantly).
2. The factory where you work will become silent except for the automated machines.
3. The restaurant food will grow cold.
4. Traffic will stop.
5. "Live" tv will go dead.
6. Concerts will be interrupted.
7. Ball games will cancelled.
8. Political campaigns will be suspended.
9. Paparazzi will cease to look for celebrities and eye the sky.
10. Every eye will be to the sky.
-Oh that the church could see it!... no LIVE IT!
-Ill. Pastor's meeting.
1. Lamenting low salaries, carnal Christians, retirment packages, moral, etc..
2. Church owes me...!?
3. I wonder if even preachers could see beyond the temporal?
VII. The Real Problem
-The problem for Christians is not knowledge... it is obedience.
-I know it, but don't want to live it.
1. I know what I should be doing Sunday night.
2. ...doing at work.
3. ....doing in my neighborhood
4. ...doing on Sunday during the altar call.
5. ...saying in my family
6. ...doing at school.
-But I don't want to live that way!
-Query: What will happen when the one called Faithful & True comes riding on a White Horse?
1. What are you going to do?
2. What excuse will you have?
-Query: What will you do when He comes and battles all that you have lived for?
1. All the world holds dear?
2. All that you believe so strongly in?
3. All that you have sworn allegiance to?
4. All that we believe is unshakeable/unstoppable?
-Ill. Spiritual Russian Roulette!
1. We play this with our soul?
2. An eternal soul.
-Ill. Shot gun chair art.
1. ppl want to sit in the chair w/ the gun pointed at their head & a timer that says the gun will fire sometime in the next 100 years
2. The thrill of the risk.
-Would you gamble with your eternal soul?
-Do you believe that you can continue to sin w/out consequence?
-1 Corinthians 6:9-10 "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, [10] nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."
-Galatians 5:19-21 "Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, [20] idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, [21] envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."
VIII. Conclusion
-There is a moment in every day when it's just you and God.
1. My prayer is that it would be right now.
2. No more putting it off.
3. No more delaying the inevitable.
4. No more close calls.
-Today is the day of salvation.
-I'm not asking you to make a decision between being a good person and a great person.
-I'm asking you to make a decision between being a good person (worldly defined) and a person set apart for God's work!
-Ill. Elementary school field day
1. Last week of school every year
2. Relay races, etc.
3. Parents would come.
4. Kid had fallen and was crying.
5. His knee was skinned and he was hurt.
6. Then his mom stepped out of the crowd of parents and said: "You can make it!"
7. "You can make it!"
-Can I tell you as your pastor this morning: "You can make it!"
-It's not that you don't want to be a Christian... it's just that it is so hard.
-"You can make it!"
-Revelation 22:20 "He who testifies to these things [Jesus] says, ‘Surely I am coming soon.' Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!"
The King is Coming #2: Are You Ready?
I. Introduction
-We are troubled by how big God is.
1. Maybe I should just say ‘I.'
2. He is too big to comprehend.
-We cannot understand His vastness.
1. His glory is too immeasurable.
2. His holiness is too far removed from our existence.
3. His righteousness is too right when we have been bent, influenced & warped.
4. His narrow path is too straight for our crookedness & perversion.
-God is complex.
1. "How can a loving God send ppl to Hell?"
2. How can he be merciful & yet just?
3. ...love yet hate?
4. ...holy vs. vengeful?
5. ...glorious vs. jealous?
6. ...vulnerable (Jesus wept) vs. omnipotent?
-Like salvation or sanctification, God is more complex than the often simplistic descriptions of Him (though they have a place).
II. Scripture
III. Christ's Description
-v. 11 "called Faithful & True"
1. Won't let you down.
2. Ppl yes, God no!
3. "Great is Thy Faithfulness"
4. What He says He will accomplish!
-Faithful and True
1. The only thing you can bank on.
2. Truth pierces circumstances.
3. "That might be true for you, but not for me."
4. Not The Truth!
5. Everybody needs the True one!
-v. 12 "...eyes are like a flame of fire..."
1. Conviction.
2. Christ can see through all the fluff!
3. Rich young ruler.
4. Who do men... you say that I am?
5. You cannot hide in a crowd.
-v. 12 "on His head are many crowns"
1. He rules.
2. He has complete authority.
3. He only allows things to happen.
4. He is sovereign King of all.
5. Some serve a weak God!
-v. 12 "a name written that no one knows but himself"
1. Ill Jesus Seminar
2. Everyone wants to tell you about God.
3. Few really know Him.
4. His name, his identity, to most are lost.
5. Politicians talking about God.
6. "God bless you."
7. Do you really know Him?
8. Is it just hear-say?
-v. 16 "On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, "King of kings and Lord of lords."
IV. On That Day...
-He has come in the past... He is here now... He is coming again.
-He will reveal Himself as He has never revealed Himself to Humans before.
-It will be unmistakable who He is.
1. It will be undeniable.
2. It will not be able to misinterpreted!
-He will be King of kings and Lord of lords.
-Who will He be?
1. To atheists he will be the King they have denied.
2. To humanists he will be the King they have ignored.
3. To the agnostic we will be the King they have doubted.
4. To the sinner he will be the Lord rejected.
5. To the lost he will be the Lord to be feared.
6. To the earthly power he will be King of kings and Lord of lords!
-To Christians he will the King we have heralded!
1. He will be the Lord we have already bowed/submitted to.
2. He will be the Savior we have adored & worshiped.
V. The Great Struggle
-And while He will be revealed in all his glory & power there will still be some that rebel.
-v. 19 "And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army."
1. the beast- Devil or anti-Christ?
2. Deceiver (even some of you)
-Query: Why would they still wage war against God?
1. He is God?
2. He cannot be defeated!
3. Why did the Devil?
-Point: Because they presuppose on only one aspect of who God is... His mercy.
1. But in so doing, they ignore his justice, his holiness, & his righteousness.
2. God cannot allow sin to dwell with him throughout eternity... b/c he is holy.
-But they will believe that God, out of mercy & love, would not destroy them.
-Point: People today are presupposing on the grace of God.
-Some of the people w/in ear shot of me today believe that.
VI. Nothing Else Matters!
-When He comes everything will be known for what it's value really is.
-Nothing else matters!
1. What you wear to prom!
2. Who your girlfriend/boyfriend is.
3. Your bills. Your home/car.
4. Football game.
5. Job requirements.
6. Insignificant things we argue about.
7. How big your pension check is.
8. How long your resume is.
9. How many outfits you have in your closet.
10. What the community thinks about you.
-When the White Rider comes...
1. Wall street will freeze (& crash instantly).
2. The factory where you work will become silent except for the automated machines.
3. The restaurant food will grow cold.
4. Traffic will stop.
5. "Live" tv will go dead.
6. Concerts will be interrupted.
7. Ball games will cancelled.
8. Political campaigns will be suspended.
9. Paparazzi will cease to look for celebrities and eye the sky.
10. Every eye will be to the sky.
-Oh that the church could see it!... no LIVE IT!
-Ill. Pastor's meeting.
1. Lamenting low salaries, carnal Christians, retirment packages, moral, etc..
2. Church owes me...!?
3. I wonder if even preachers could see beyond the temporal?
VII. The Real Problem
-The problem for Christians is not knowledge... it is obedience.
-I know it, but don't want to live it.
1. I know what I should be doing Sunday night.
2. ...doing at work.
3. ....doing in my neighborhood
4. ...doing on Sunday during the altar call.
5. ...saying in my family
6. ...doing at school.
-But I don't want to live that way!
-Query: What will happen when the one called Faithful & True comes riding on a White Horse?
1. What are you going to do?
2. What excuse will you have?
-Query: What will you do when He comes and battles all that you have lived for?
1. All the world holds dear?
2. All that you believe so strongly in?
3. All that you have sworn allegiance to?
4. All that we believe is unshakeable/unstoppable?
-Ill. Spiritual Russian Roulette!
1. We play this with our soul?
2. An eternal soul.
-Ill. Shot gun chair art.
1. ppl want to sit in the chair w/ the gun pointed at their head & a timer that says the gun will fire sometime in the next 100 years
2. The thrill of the risk.
-Would you gamble with your eternal soul?
-Do you believe that you can continue to sin w/out consequence?
-1 Corinthians 6:9-10 "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, [10] nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."
-Galatians 5:19-21 "Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, [20] idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, [21] envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."
VIII. Conclusion
-There is a moment in every day when it's just you and God.
1. My prayer is that it would be right now.
2. No more putting it off.
3. No more delaying the inevitable.
4. No more close calls.
-Today is the day of salvation.
-I'm not asking you to make a decision between being a good person and a great person.
-I'm asking you to make a decision between being a good person (worldly defined) and a person set apart for God's work!
-Ill. Elementary school field day
1. Last week of school every year
2. Relay races, etc.
3. Parents would come.
4. Kid had fallen and was crying.
5. His knee was skinned and he was hurt.
6. Then his mom stepped out of the crowd of parents and said: "You can make it!"
7. "You can make it!"
-Can I tell you as your pastor this morning: "You can make it!"
-It's not that you don't want to be a Christian... it's just that it is so hard.
-"You can make it!"
-Revelation 22:20 "He who testifies to these things [Jesus] says, ‘Surely I am coming soon.' Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!"
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