November 29 2015 Realizing The Heart Of Christmas

REALIZING THE HEART OF CHRISTMAS

Matthew 2:1-10

Five Truths To Remember

1. We must move beyond religious practice.

Matthew 2:2 – We saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.

Verse 6 – Who will be the shepherd of my people.

Matthew 3:7-8 – You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.

2. Our faith must move faith to the heart.

Matthew 2:8 – Herod said..go and make careful search for the child. As soon as you find Him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship Him.

Matthew 15:8 – These people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

3. We must understand no one is too far away.

Matthew 2:1 – Wise men from the east came to Jerusalem.

4. We must make our surrender real.

Matthew 2:9 -11 – After they had heard the King, they went their way and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star they were overjoyed.  On coming to the house, they saw the child with His mother Mary and they bowed down and worshiped Him.  Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.

5. We must decide to be obedient.

Matthew 2:12 – They returned to their country by another route. They had diving instruction to go a different route.

October 11 2015 The Prayer Of Dependance

The Prayer Of Dependance

Matthew 6:11 – Give us today our daily bread.

Bread Represents

• The Necessities in Life

Psalm 104:25-28

• The Word of God

Deuteronomy 8:3

• God’s Family and Fellowship

1 Corinthians 1:16

• Represents our Salvation

Luke 22:19

Matthew 6:11 – This is how you should pray: Give us today our daily bread.

I. First of all it means: Trusting Him for today.

• Give us today our daily bread.
• James 4:2 – You do not have, because you do not ask God.

HOW DO WE TRUST GOD FOR TODAY?

1. God’s purpose is to give us what we need.

Matthew 7:11 – If you were asked by your son for bread, would you give him a stone/  How much more likely is it that your heavenly Father will give good things to those who ask Him.

EXAMPLES

• Good Company
• Father & Mother

2. God is always our source.

Numbers 16:32 – God is the source of all life.

3. God is always available.

Psalm 53:17 – I will pray morning, noon, and night, pleading aloud with the Lord.

II. Depending on God means: Seeing Him as my source.

A) Give us today our daily bread.

HERE’S HOW

1. Trust Him with all necessities,

Philippians 4:19 – God will supply all you ever need from His glorious resources in Christ Jesus.

2. Look to the Son Jesus.

Romans 8:31 – Since God didn’t spare even His own Son for us, but gave Him up for us all, won’t He also surely give us everything else?

III. Depending on God means: Trusting God’s timing.

A) Give us today our daily bread.

1. We must have faith.

Matthew 6:34 – Don’t be anxious about tomorrow.  God will take care of your tomorrows too.  Live one day at a time.

2. Let God carry the load.

Psalm 68:19 – Praise the Lord who daily bears our burdens.

IV. Finally, depending on God means: Giving God complete control.

A) Give us today our daily bread.

HOW TO GIVE HIM COMPLETE CONTROL

1. Put Him first in your life.

Matthew 6:32-33 – Don’t worry at all about having enough food and clothing, your heavenly Father already knows perfectly well that you need them and He will give them to you if you give Him first place in your life.

2. Be generous in your giving.

• Bible says – Give and it will be given to you.
• It is more blessed to given than to receive.

October 4 2015 The Prayer Of Surrender

THE PRAYER OF SURRENDER

Matthew 6:10 – Thy Kingdom come.  Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.

SOURCES OF STRESS:

• Uncontrollable circumstances.
• Uncooperative people.
• Unexplainable pain.

God’s Kingdom is Wherever Jesus is King.

Surrendering to Jesus means:

1. Letting go of control.

Psalm 46:10 –Be still and know that I am God.  I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.

The Serenity Prayer: God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.  Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time accepting hardship as a pathway to peace taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that You will make all things right if I surrender to your will so that I may be reasonably happy in this life, and supremely happy with You forever in the next.  Amen. (Reinhold Niebuhr)

Romans 8:6 – The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.

2. Learning to be content.

Philippians 4:11-13 – I have learned to be satisfied with the things I have and with everything that happens.  I know how to live when I am poor, and I know how to live when I have plenty.  I have learned the secret of being happy at any time in everything that happens.  I can do all things through Christ because he gives me strength.

Psalm 37:7a – Surrender yourself to the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.

3. Laying down my plans.

1 John 3:16 – This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

Romans 6:13 – Give yourselves to God.  Surrender your whole being to Him to be used for righteous purposes.

Matthew 6:33 – God will give you all you need from day to day if you live for Him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern.

4. Leave the future to God.

Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths.

Psalm 37:18-19 – The Lord takes care of those who obey Him, and gives them eternal rewards that last forever.  They will survive through hard times and will have more than enough even in a time of famine.

Luke 14:33 – Jesus said, “You must give up everything you have to be My follower”.

Mark 10:29-30 – But let Me assure you that no one has ever given up anything for love of Me and to tell others the Good News, who won’t be given back, a hundred times over, and in the world to come he shall have eternal life.

July 19 2015 The Person God Uses

The Person God Uses

2 Chronicles 7:14

THE PROCESS OF RENEWAL

Christians pray, God cares
Christians repent, God shows us ourselves
Christians minister, God empowers and equips

THE PERSON GOD USES

1. That person has one great purpose.

Philippians 3:7-14

To “know God” there must be:

Evaluation How well do I know God?

Exchange What must I do to know Him better?

Trade off What price will I pay to know Him better?

2. That person has, by God’s grace, removed every known hindrance.  Hebrews 12:1-2

Observations:

1. We can have victory over all sin.

2. If God’s Word says lay it aside, it can be done.

God didn’t say these things to frustrate us, but help us by God’s Grace.

“Whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, or takes off the relish of spiritual things, whatever increases the authority of your body over your mind, that thing for us is sin.” (Susanna Wesley)

3. That person has placed themselves at God’s disposal.

Romans 12:1-2

Observations:

1. For those who have been saved.

2. Sign my name to a blank sheet of paper.

3. Give Him control of your life.

4. That person who has learned to prevail in prayer.

James 5:13-18

Observations:
1. Things beyond my control.

2. Things that are bigger than myself.

3. Things that seem impossible.

5. That person is a student of the Word.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

6. That person has a giving Spirit.

John 3:16

7. That person expects results.

Romans 4:16-21

8. That person lives under the anointing of God the Holy Spirit.

Ephesians 5:18-20

“The renewal we need is simply a return to normal New Testament Christianity, where the Churches are full of prayer, full of power, full of people, full of praise full of divine happenings all the time.  We want something normal, not just ‘special.’  God’s normal, that is.  God’s normal is greater than most of our specials put together. (Dr. Armin Desswein)

June 28 2015 Making Freedom Last

MAKING FREEDOM LAST

Luke 8:39 - Return home and tell how much God has done for you.

FOUR WAYS TO MAKE FREEDOM LAST

I. Stop thinking your present position cannot be changed.                                

A) Verse 27 - For a long time this man had not worn clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in the tomb.

HOW TO CHANGE YOUR THINKING

1.  Stop listening to the voice of the past.

Philippians 3:13 - Forgetting those things which are behind.

2. Decide to break out of the rut.

Philippians 3:13 & 14 - Strain towards what is     ahead and press on toward the goal.

EXAMPLES

Peter - Matthew 26:75

Samson

II. Start to understand your personal value.

A)  Verse 30 - Jesus asked him what is your name?

HOW TO SEE PERSONAL VALUE

1.  Listen to what God says.

Matthew 10:30-31 - The hairs of your head are all numbered.  You are worth more than many sparrows.

2.  Listen to your friends.

Proverbs 17:17 - A friend loves at all times.

III. Step into the power of Christ.

A)  Verse 28 - When he saw Jesus, he cried and fell at His feet.

Verse 30 - My name is Legion.

HOW TO STEP INTO POWER

1.  Confess our need.

1 John 1:9

2. Surrender to the authority of Christ.

Romans 12:1 & 2

IV. Shoulder the price of permanent change.

A)  Verse 39 - Jesus sent him away saying, return home and tell how much God has done for you, so the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.

HOW TO MAINTAIN THE NEW POSITION

1.  Replace old habits with new ones that help.

Romans 12:21 - Overcome evil with good.

2.  Let discomfort become part of your life.

Nehemiah

3. Double up.

Hebrews 10:25 - Let us consider and give attentive courteous care to watching over each other, studying how we may stimulate each other to helpful deed and noble activities.

4. Determination.

5. Depend on God.

2 Timothy 1:7 - For the Spirit that God has given us fills us with power, love and self-control.

Philippians 2:13 - For it is God who is at work within you, giving you the will and the power to achieve His purpose.