January 8 2017 Getting A Grip On Faith

GETTING A GRIP ON FAITH

Matthew 9:29 – According to your faith will it be done to you.

Hebrews 11:6 – Without faith it is impossible to please God.

Luke 17:5 – The apostles said, Lord, increase our faith.

I. How does God strengthen my faith? By testing it.

James 1:3 – The testing of your faith develops perseverance so that you may be mature and complete.

Job 7:17-18 – What is man that you make so much of him, and that you give him so much attention that you examine him every morning and test him every moment.

II. How does God test our faith?

1. God tests our faith through difficulties.

1 Peter 1:6-7 – For a little while you have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Isaiah 48:10 – I have refined you, though not as silver, I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.

James 1:2-3 – Consider it pure joy whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

LESSON: To live by faith, I learn to: To live by faith.

2. God tests our faith through demands.

Exodus 16:4 – The people are to go out each day and gather enough manna for that day. In that way I will test them and see whether they will follow instructions.

Hebrews 11:8 – By faith Abraham obeyed and went.

Hebrews 11:7 – By faith Noah built an ark.

LESSON: To live by faith I must learn to: Obey God quickly.

3. God tests our faith through delays.

Deuteronomy 8:2 – God led you all the way in the desert these 40 years to test you in order to know what was in your heart.

Isaiah 64:4 – God acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.

LESSON: To live by faith, I must learn to: Wait patiently.

November 1 2015 The Prayer Of Deliverance

THE PRAYER OF DELIVERANCE

Matthew 6:13 – And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

THREE OBSERVATIONS ABOUT TEMPTATION

1. First, remember that temptation is normal.

1 Corinthians 10:13 – Every temptation that comes your way is the kind that normally comes to people.  But, God keeps His promise, and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond your power to resist.  At the time you are tempted He will give you the strength to endure it and so provide you with a way out.

Example:  Joseph

2. Temptation is common.

Hebrews 4:15 – For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way just as we are, yet without sin.

3. Temptation improves our life.

James 1:2-4 – Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

John 4:4 – Greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world.

SIX STEPS TOWARD DELIVERANCE

1.    Identify my vulnerability. 

Matthew 26:41 – Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.  The Spirit is willing, but the body is weak.

*When am I most tempted?
*Where am I most tempted?
*Who is with me when I’m most tempted?
*What temporary benefit do I get if I give in?
*How do I feel before I’m tempted?

2. Refuse to let fear take over.

Three ways He works

Ephesians 6:10-11 – Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power, put on the full armor of God so you can take your stand against the devil’s scheme.

3. Quickly turn to God.

Psalm 50:15 – Call to Me when trouble comes, I will save you and you will praise Me.

Daniel

Joseph

Hebrews 4:15-16 – (Jesus) had the same temptations we do, though He never once gave way to them and sinned, so let us come boldly to God and find grace to help us in our time of need.

4. Intentionally refocus your mind.

James 1:14-15 – Temptation is the pull of your own evil thoughts and wishes.  These evil thoughts lead to evil actions.

Be careful how you think, your life is shaped by your thoughts.

5. Enlist a partner.

Ecclesiastes 5:9-10 – Two are better than one, because together if one falls down, the other can help him up.  But if someone is alone and falls, there’s no one to help him.

James 5:16 – Admit your faults to one another and pray for each other, so that you may be healed.

6. Turn from the devil.

Ephesians 5:17 – Accept salvation from God to be your helmet and receive the Word of God to use as a sword.

Example of Jesus

YOU CAN HANDLE TEMPTATION

February 23 2014 The Choice To Rejoice

The Choice To Rejoice 

Galatians 5:22 – The fruit of the Spirit is joy.

Philippians 4:4 – Rejoice always in the Lord. I will say it again rejoice.

Three Reasons to Rejoice

1. We have hope.

Romans 5:1-2 – Therefore since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom we have gained access, by faith into this grace in which we now stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Romans 12:12 – Be joyful in hope.

2. God has a purpose.

Romans 5:3 – We rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance.

Verse 4 – And perseverance character, and character, hope.

James 1:2-3 – Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

Verse 4 – Perseverance must finish its work, making you mature and complete, not lacking anything.

3. Understand God is with us.

Romans 5:11 - We all rejoice because of what God has done through our Lord Jesus Christ who has made us good friends.

Isaiah 43:2 – When you pass through deep waters, I will be with you, your troubles will not overwhelm you. When you pass through fire you will not be burned.

Four Steps to Inner Joy

1. Develop the attitude of gratitude.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 – Give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ.

Psalm 28:7 – My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song.

2. Strengthen joy by giving.

Acts 20:35 – It is more blessed to give than to receive.

2 Corinthians 9:7 – God loves a cheerful giver.

3. Increase joy through service.

Mark 8:35 – For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the Gospels will save it.

Ephesians 6:7-8 – Serve whole heartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not man, because you know the Lord will reward everyone whatever good he does.

4. Learn to share Christ with others.

Luke 15:10 – There is rejoicing in heaven when a person comes to faith in Christ.

Romans 10:1 – How I wish with all my heart that my own people might be saved how I pray to God for them.

Jesus said – I will not abandon you or leave you as orphans in the storm, I will come to you.

May 19 2013 The Giant Of Illness

FIVE KEYS TO CONQUERING THE GIANT OF ILLNESS

1. L ______________ GOD'S ____________ WHEN I AM WEAK.

Psalm 69:29“I am suffering and in pain. Rescue me, O God, by your saving power.”

2 Corinthians 12:8-10 “Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.  Each time he said, ‘My grace is all you need. My power  works best in weakness.’ So now I am glad to boast  about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can  work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my  weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

2. L _____________ GOD’S ___________________ IN MY ILLNESS

James 1:2-4“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.”

3. L ____________ TO GOD FOR ______________.

James 5:14-15 “Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.”

3 Ways God Heals:

__________________________

ANSWERED PRAYERS

__________________________

1 Timothy 5:23“Don’t drink only water. You ought to drink a little wine for the sake of your stomach because you are sick so often.”

Memory Verse: “The Lord nurses them when they are sick and restores them to health.”- Psalm 41:3

4. L _____________ FOR MY __________________.

2 Corinthians 4:17-18“For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”

April 28 2013 How To Bring Change Into Your Life

HOW TO BRING CHANGE INTO YOUR LIFE
Philippians 2:12-13
Continue to work out your Salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose.

* Work out: This is our part.

* Your Salvation: It’s our responsibility.

* God works in you: This is God’s part.

I. God’s part in changing me.

3 TOOLS HE USES
1.) God uses the Bible.
II Timothy 3:16-17 - The whole Bible was given to us by inspiration from God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives, it straightens us out and helps us to do what is right. It is God’s way of making us well prepared at every point.

2.) The Holy Spirit.
Romans 8:11 - Once the Spirit lives within you, He will bring to your whole being new strength and vitality.
I Corinthians 3:18 - As the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like Him.

3.) Circumstances.
Romans 8:28-29 - To those who love God and are called according to His plans, everything that happens fits into a pattern for good. For God chose us to bear the family likeness of His son.
Proverbs 20:30 - Sometimes it takes a painful situation to make us change our ways.



My part in changing me.

3 CHOICES
1.) I can choose what I think about.
Proverbs 4:23 - Be careful how you think. Your life is shaped by your thoughts.
Ephesians 4:23-25 - Your mind must be renewed by a spiritual revolution so that you can put on the new self that has been created in God’s way.

2.) I can choose to depend on God’s Spirit.
John 15:4-5 - Take care to live in Me and let Me live in you. For a branch can’t produce fruit when severed from the vine. Nor can you be fruitful apart from me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever lives in me and I in him shall produce a large crop of fruit.

3.) I can choose to respond correctly to my circumstances.
James 1:2-4 - When all kinds of trials crowd into your lives, don’t resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends. Realize that they come to test your faith and produce in you the quality of endurance. But let the process go on until that endurance is fully developed and you become people of mature character, people of integrity, with no weak spots.
Romans 5:3-4 - We can be full of joy right here and now, even in our trials and troubles. These very things will give us patient endurance. This in turn will develop a mature character.

YOU CAN BRING CHANBE INTO YOUR LIFE