December 7 2015 God's Christmas Gift To You

God's Christmas Gift To You

1. God’s first Christmas gift is celebration.

Luke 2:8-10 – There were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.’

WHY DO WE CELEBRATE?

• GOD LOVES US!

John 3:16 – God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

• GOD IS WITH US!

Hebrews 13:5 – God says, ‘I will never leave you; I will never abandon you.’

• GOD IS FOR US!

John 3:17 – God didn’t send His Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.

2. God’s second Christmas gift is salvation.

WHAT IS SALVATION?

• SAVED FROM MY SIN

Matthew 1:21 – Give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.

Romans 7:24-25 – I’ve tried everything and nothing helps.  I’m at the end of my rope.  Is there no one who can do anything for me?  The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does.

• SAVED FOR A PURPOSE

II Timothy 1:9 – He saved us and called us to be His own people, not because of what we have done, but because of His own purpose and grace.

3. God’s third Christmas gift is reconciliation.

Luke 2:13-14 – Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men.

WHAT KIND OF PEACE DOES JESUS GIVE?

• PEACE WITH GOD

Romans 5:1 – Now that we have been put right with God through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

• PEACE OF GOD

Philippians 4:6-7 – Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need and thank Him for all He has done.  If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

• PEACE WITH EACH OTHER

Matthew 5:9 – Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God.

Acts 10:35 – It makes no difference who you are or where you’re from, if you want God and are ready to as He says, the door is open.

November 30 2014 The Good News of Christmas

The Good News of Christmas

Matthew 1:23 – The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a Son and they will call Him Immanuel, which means God with us.

Why God Sent Jesus At Christmas

I. To reveal God’s identity.

John 1:18 – No one has ever seen God.  The only one, who is the same as God has made Him known.

John 1:14 – The Word became flesh and lived among us.  We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only Son who came from the Father.

John 14:8-9 – Philip said, “Lord show us the Father”, Jesus answered, “Don’t you know Me Philip”?  “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father.”

II. To relate God’s Word to us.

John 18:37 – Jesus said, “In fact for this reason I was born, and for this reason I came into the world, to testify to the truth”.

Jesus said, “When you know the truth, the truth will set you free.”

John 12:46 – Jesus said, “I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in Me should stay in darkness.

III. To recover God’s creation.

Luke 19:10 – Jesus said, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

Matthew 20:28 – I did not come into the world to be served, but to serve and give My life as a ransom for many.

John 12:47 – I did not come to judge the world, but to save it.

IV. To reproduce God’s life in you.

John 10:10 – Jesus said, “I have come that you might have life and have it to the fullest.”

2 Corinthians 9:15 – Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift.

John 6:47 – I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life.

November 23 2014 Building A Life Of Purpose

Building A Life Of Purpose

IF I DON’T UNDERSTAND THE PURPOSE OF LIFE

• Life Seems useless.

Ecclesiastes 1:2-4 – Life is useless, all useless.  You spend your life working, but what do you have to show for it?  The world just stays the same.

• Life Seems tiresome.

Ecclesiastes 1:4-8 – The sun rises and goes down, the wind blows round and round and back again.  Every river flows into the sea, then the water returns to where the river began and starts all over again.  Everything leads to weariness.

• Life Seems unfulfilling.

Ecclesiastes 1:8-10 – No matter how much we see, we’re never satisfied; no matter how much we hear, we’re not content.  History merely repeats itself.

• Life Seems insignificant.

Ecclesiastes 1:11 – No one remembers what has happened in the past, and no one in days to come will remember what happens between now and then.

• Life Seems uncontrollable.

Ecclesiastes 1:15 – You can’t straighten out what is crooked; you can’t count things that aren’t there!

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF LIFE?

• Life is a preparation for eternity.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 – He has planted eternity in the human heart.

WHAT IS GOD’S PURPOSE?

I. First God made you to know Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 1:4-5 – Before the world was made, God had already decided that through Jesus Christ, He would bring us to Himself as His children that was His pleasure and purpose.

HOW TO KNOW GOD

1. Remember God first reached out to you.

1 John 4:10 – This is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

2. Respond to His love.

John 5:24 – I tell you the truth, whoever hears My Word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life.

II. Secondly, God made you to be like Him.

Romans 8:28-29 – We know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into His plans. For from the beginning God decided that those who come to Him should be like His Son.

HOW TO BE LIKE HIM

1. Make Christ your very life.

John 12:34 – I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat fall to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed, but if it dies it produces seed.

2. Allow every circumstance to mold you.

Romans 8:28 – We know that in all thing God works for the good of those who love Him.

III. Thirdly, God made us to serve Him.

Acts 13:36 – For David served God’s purpose in his generation and then he died.

HOW DO I SERVE?

1. It’s a choice.

Romans 12:1-2 – Offer yourselves to God, dedicated to His service, then you will be able to know the will of God, what is good, pleasing and perfect.

2. Serve God where you’re at.

1 Corinthians 15:58 – Nothing you do in the Lord’s service is ever useless.

IV. God made us to use our treasure in view of eternity.

1 Timothy 6:18-19 – Use your money to do good, always being ready to share whatever God has given you.  By doing this you will be storing up real treasure for yourself in heaven.

Luke 16:9 – Use worldly wealth to make friends who will welcome you into eternal dwellings.

November 16 2014 Releasing Inner Hurts

Releasing Inner Hurts

Jehovah Raphe – I Am The God Who Heals

Psalm 147 – God heals the broken hearted and bandages their wounds.

1. Reveal my hurt.

Psalm 39:2-3 – I kept very quiet, but I became even more upset.  I became very angry inside and as I thought about it my anger burned.

Job 18:4 – You who tear yourself to pieces in your anger.

2. Release those who have hurt me.

Romans 12:17-19 – Never pay back evil for evil.  Never avenge yourself, leave that to God.  For He has said that He will repay those that deserve it.

Psalm 56:8 – You God have kept a record of all my tears.

Hebrews 12:5 – A bitter spirit is not only bad in itself, but can also poison the life of many others.

3. Replace old memories with God’s truth.

Romans 12:2 – Do not conform any longer to the pattern of the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Ephesians 1:4 – Through what Christ would do for us, God decided to make us holy in His eves without a single fault we stand before Him covered with His love.

4. Refocus on the future.

Job 11:13-16 – Yet if you devote your heart to Him and stretch out your hands to Him, then you will lift up your face without shame, you will surely forget your trouble, recalling it only as waters gone by.

Proverbs 4:25 – Look straight ahead with honest confidence, don’t hang your head in shame.

5. Reach out to help others.

2 Corinthians 1:4 – God comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble we can comfort them with the same comfort that God has given to us.

2 Corinthians 5:17 – When someone becomes a Christian, he is a brand new person inside, he is not the same anymore, a new life has begun.

November 9 2014 Building Peace Into Our Lives

Building Peace Into Our Lives

John 20 – Peace be with you.

John 14:27 – Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

How To Build Peace Into Our Lives

1. Accept what cannot be changed.

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’m poor and I know how to live when I have plenty. I have learned the secret of being happy at any time in everything. I can do all things through Christ because He gives me strength.

• Stop demanding an explanation from God for the bad things that happen.
• When God is silent you need acceptance.
  (Job, our example)

2. Trust in God’s loving care.

Isaiah 26:3 – You, Lord, give true peace to those who depend on You because they trust You.

Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust in the Lord with all your heart and don’t lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.

Why Does Life Happen?

• Adam & Eve gave into temptation.
• Satan is still our enemy
• We make our own mistakes.

John 9:3 – This happened so the work of God may be displayed in his life.

Philippians 4:6-7 – Don’t worry about anything. Tell God your needs and don’t forget to thank Him for answers. If you do this, you will experience God’s wonderful peace which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand.

3 Surrender to God’s loving control.

Romans 8:6 – If a person’s thinking is controlled by his sinful self, then there is death, but if his thinking is controlled by the Spirit, then there’s life and peace.

Psalm 119 – Those who love Your teaching will find true peace and nothing will defeat them.

Romans 5:1 – Since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God, because of what Jesus Christ our Lord had done for us.