April 24 2016 Your Inadequacy And God's Advice

YOUR INADEQUACY AND GOD’S ADVICE

1 Corinthians 2:3 - I came to you in weakness, timid and trembling.

2 Timothy 1:7 - For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

1.  Decide to be a good example.

1 Timothy 4:12 - Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, in purity.

Your words: The way you talk.

Your life: The way you act.

Your love: The way you run your relationships.

Your faith: You keep believing.

Your example: You lead a pure life.

2 Corinthians 11:1 - And you should follow my example, just as I follow Christ’s.

2.  Depend on God.

2 Corinthians 3:5 - Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God.

Philippians 4:13 - I can do all things through Christ, because He gives me strength.

3.  Use God’s gifts.

2 Timothy 1:6 - I remind you to keep using the gift that God gave you when I laid my hands on you, now let it grow, as a small flame grows into a fire.

1 Timothy 4:14 - Do not neglect your gift.

1 Peter 4:10 - Each one would use whatever gift he has received to serve others.

4.  Decide to grow.

2 Peter 3:18 - Grow in spiritual strength and become better acquainted with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

1 Timothy 4:15 - Cultivate these things.  Immerse yourself in them.  The people will see you mature right before their eyes.

Ephesians 3:20 - With God’s power working in us, God can do much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine.

March 9 2014 How To Increase Your Patience

How To Increase Your Patience 

Galatians 5:22 – The fruit of the spirit is patience.

Proverbs 16:32 – Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper, than one who takes a city.

Four Ways To Test Your Patience

1. Interruption

Matthew 19:13-14 – Then little children were brought to Jesus for Him to place His hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them.

2. Inconvenience

Luke 10:40 – Lord don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!

3. Irritations

Some Irritations

• Long lines.
• Misplaced items.
• Cold food at a restaurant.

Numbers 20:10-11 – Moses was irritated.

The Oyster: Turn irritations into pearls.

4. Inactivity

Job 14:14 – All the days of my hard service, I will wait for my reward to come.

Proverbs 19:2 – It is not good to be hasty and miss the way.

The cause of impatience is a lack of peace.

Four Steps To Increase Your Patience

Step one Develop a new perspective.

Proverbs 19:11 – A man’s wisdom gives him patience. It is his glory to over-look an offence.

Proverbs 20:24 – A man’s steps are directed by the Lord.

Proverbs 14:29 – A patient man has great understanding, but a quick tempered man displays folly.

Step two Develop a sense of humor.

Proverbs 14:3 – A relaxed attitude lengthens a man’s life.

Psalm 2:4 – The one enthroned in heaven laughs.

Proverbs 17:22 – A cheerful heart does good like medicine.

Step three deepen your love.

1 Corinthians 13:4 – Love is patient.

Ephesians 2:4 – Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.

Step four depend on God.

Bible Characters of Patience:

• Noah waited 120 years.
• Moses waited 80 years.
• Abraham waited 100 years.
• God’s Old Testament folks waited for Jesus.
• Disciples waited in the upper room.

Psalm 37:7 – Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him.

2 Peter 3:15 – Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation.

January 12 2014 The Great Invitation

The Great Invitation 

Matthew 4:18-22

To experience real fellowship with Christ, we must leave our position of distance and come into the circle of intimacy and service with the Master.

Four Lessons to Learn

1. Invitation To Intimacy.

Matthew 4:19 – Come, follow Me.

Matthew 4:18 – Jesus saw two brothers.

Genesis 2:20 – I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.

2. Invitation To Intervention.

Matthew 4:19 – I will make you.

Matthew 16:18 – I will build My church and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

Philippians 1:6 – He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion.

2 Peter 3:18 – Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 10:25 – Let us not give up meeting together as some in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another.

3. Invitation To Investment

Matthew 4:20 & 22 – At once they left their nets. They left their boat and their father and followed Him.

Moses: He counted it greater honor to follow God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season and to enrich himself with all the riches of Egypt.

4. Invitation To Increase.

Verse 19 – I will make you fishers of men.

August 18 2013 Trusting God With Our Defeats

Trusting God With Our Defeats

Verse 4 - Put out into the deep water and let down the nets for a catch.

Lessons From This Story

1.  You can give thing your best shot and still come up short.

2.  We must realize that God is interested in your success.

3 Principles To Help Us Trust God

I.  First principle apply God’s presence in your life.
Verse 3 - He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon.

Questions:  Does God have access to your job?

Is he able to minister to others through your job?

The sequence Peter used his boat for Christ’s purposes. Then God met his need.
Matthew 6:33 - Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness….all these things shall be added unto us.

II.  The second principle cooperate with God’s presence.
Verse 4 - Put out into the deep water and let down the nets for a catch….because you say so, I will let down the nets.

Peter’s reaction:  he didn’t argue, he didn’t hesitate.
Psalm 37:34 - Wait for the Lord and keep His way.  He will exalt you to posses the land.

III.  The third principle is expect God to act.
Verse 5 - Peter said……because You say so.

II Peter 3:9 -The Lord is not slow in keeping His promises.

Verse 6 - They caught such a large number of fish, that their nets began to break.

Verse 7 - So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them and they came and filled both boats so full, they began to sink.

Try again, this time withJesus in the boat.

August 4 2013 Trusting God With Our Uncertainty

TRUSTING GOD WITH OUR UNCERTAINTY
1 Corinthians 2:3 & 2 Timothy 1:7

1 Corinthians 2:3 - I came to you in weakness, timid and trembling.

2 Timothy 1:7 - For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

Four TRUTHS TO ACT ON

1.  Decide to be an example.

1 Timothy 4:12 - Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young.

2 Corinthians 11:1 - And you should follow my example, just as I follow Christ’s.

2.  Depend on God.

2 Corinthians 3:5 - Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God.

Philippians 4:13 - I can do all things through Christ, because He gives me strength.

3.  Use God’s gifts.

2 Timothy 1:6 - I remind you to keep using the gift that God gave you when I laid my hands on you, now let it grow, as a small flame grows into a fire.

1 Timothy 4:14 - Do not neglect your gift.

1 Peter 4:10 - Each one would use whatever gift he has received to serve others.

4.  Decide to grow.

2 Peter 3:18 - Grow in spiritual strength and become better acquainted with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

1 Timothy 4:15 - Cultivate these things.  Immerse yourself in them.  The people will see you mature right before their eyes.

Ephesians 3:20 - With God’s power working in us, God can do much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine.