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Going Farming – Planting a church part 2 August 28, 2016

Church Planting Bulletin 2 digi-01

2 Thessalonians chapter 1

“Healthy churches plant other churches”, is an often repeated statement, but the question must be asked; why do we plant churches?

Last week as we looked at Ephesians 3:10 we began to understand that the church is more significant than we can ever imagine.

2 Thessalonians is a brief letter that is closely linked to Paul’s first Epistle to the early church in Thessalonica. It was written within three or four months after the first letter, and intended to clear up confusion about the future. In the first letter and chapter 5, Paul wrote about the Day of the Lord – the day when Jesus will come again. The persecution that the early church was going through led some in the city to believe that the “Day of the Lord” had arrived. The early church was struggling under persecution and naturally concluded that Jesus was coming and the Day of the Lord was imminent.  Paul’s focus of the second letter was to teach the young church that trials are a part of the Christian life.

Paul commends them that their faith is growing in verse 3, but then he addresses the trials they are going through in verse 4. Paul tells them that he is proud of them for persevering and not giving in. Paul understood the secret that James wrote about in James 1:2-4.

God’s wisdom is that we go through trials not as punishment, but rather to cause us to lean into God and trust in His grace. Trials deepen our faith and through trials we grow in our Christian walk.

Not only that, trials and hardships are one of the most powerful tools to show unbelievers that your faith is real. It is really easy to say that Jesus is my all and sing; “all I need is you Lord!” when things are going well. But when the challenges mount up, people are watching to see if you really live what you say you believe.

The reality is that church planting is hard and there is a lot of sacrifice and trials along the way. It requires perseverance.

So why do we plant churches?

Firstly, plant churches not because the city needs a church like another convenience store or a bowling alley. No, the city needs a church because Jesus is coming back.

If the first century church in Thessalonica were awaiting the imminent return of Christ, how much more can we see the Day and the hour approaching. All we have to do is read Matthew 24, where Jesus explains the signs of the end times, where he talks about nations fighting against nation, famine, earthquakes, terrible global events and then He will come again in glory (See Matthew 24:19-20).

Jesus is coming back soon and we plant churches in dark places because it is the most effective way to reach the lost and disciple them, drawing people out of darkness into the family of God. I really believe that there is not much time. We need to be reaching the lost.

And then secondly, we plant churches for His Glory. Look at 2 Thessalonians 1:2. Remember that God is revealing his wisdom, his grace, and his glory to the universe through the church. Are we revealing the Glory of God here at Grace Point? Does your church reflect the glory of God?  Look at the powerful benediction that Paul penned in Ephesians 3:20-21; “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”

We plant churches, for the Glory of God.

We need to be a church that displays the glory of God, not because of anything special that we have or do, absolutely not. We reveal the Glory of God when we lift the name of Jesus high. When we are known for being followers of the King of Kings and not merely a gathering of the community.

So what is our expectation in planting a church? For some it is simply a financial decision of sending a family with money to support them, and all we see is the drop in our bank balance.

But my prayer is that we could have a bigger vision. Are we planting with the dream of a harvest? Are we planting for the glory of God, for the name of Jesus?

My prayer is that by planting a seed in the city of Cincinnati, we could stand before Jesus on judgment day and say; “Lord, this is what we did with the talent you gave us.”

It is all about the glory of God and that Jesus is coming again soon. Let us pray for our city and the city of Cincinnati as we pray for our nation.

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Going Farming – Planting a church part 1 August 21, 2016

Church Planting Bulletin digi-01

Ephesians 3:1-12

What is the church?

We have already determined that the church is not the building, rather it is the gathered believers in Jesus Christ who are the church. But is the church simply a gathering of believers? Or is it more?

The world sees the church as an institution, a definer of moral laws and ethics, a place of tradition, a place where you go to for Christmas or Easter maybe a location to get married or to hold a memorial service.

However, I am not sure that we really understand the significance of the church.

I believe that the church is more significant than we can ever imagine. The church is the most important institution in the world. The church is more powerful and important than any organization or even nation on the planet. John Piper once said; “the drama of international relations compares to the mission of the church like a kindergarten riddle compares to hamlet or king Lear”.

Remember what Jesus said to Peter in Matthew 16:18; “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” The gates of hades, the power of death to destroy every man made institution cannot defeat the church. Because it is being built and sustained by the King of kings himself.

Paul writing to the church in Ephesus gives us another perspective into the church that is stunning and actually quite hard to even comprehend with our earth centered minds.

Paul writing to the young church in Ephesus in the first chapters of Ephesians explains how through the Gospel was not just for the Jews, it was for all. In fact, the Gentiles were invited in by the Gospel and even more– the Gentiles were now going to receive an inheritance alongside the Jews when Jesus comes again. The Jews and gentiles are brought into one family. In fact, the Gospel breaks down all cultural, national and racial barriers. Because of two simple words, IN CHRIST (See Ephesians 3:6). This is truly a mystery and a message that we need to declare to the World.

But as we look further down in Ephesians 3, we see something that is even harder for us to understand. Verse 10 says; “10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,” What does this mean? Who are these rulers and authorities? And what is God revealing to them?

These principalities and powers are what Paul refers to in Ephesians 6:12. In Ephesians 3:10 he is writing about, angels, demons, evil forces, both good and evil. In our 21st century post-modern educated minds, we are told to dismiss these beings as myths and superstition. However, if we don’t pay attention and realize as Paul states that we are in a fight against forces we cannot see, we are already giving in to the enemy. It is to these supernatural beings that God is making his wisdom known. Satan and his demons, thought that by killing the Son of God, they could once and for all destroy God’s creation, but the wisdom of God was that by Jesus’ death, Satan was defeated.

Satan creates strife and disunity, but Christ in his Church, through the Gospel, creates a supernatural unity that makes no sense in the natural.

God is using the Church to reveal his wisdom and plans to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms. The church made up of broken and frail people, is the vehicle God is using to reveal his wisdom and grace to the supernatural beings of the universe. Do you realize that angels are learning about God’s grace through the church!

God is using our weakness to reveal his grace and glory to the entire universe. Each of us has a part to play, each of us has spiritual gifts from the Holy Spirit to be used by God in order for God to reveal his cosmic mission to the universe. The church is so much bigger and more significant than we can ever imagine.

We are not living for ourselves, our mission is so much bigger than just trying to get a group of people to heaven. If this text is to be truly grasped – we need to live with a much bigger vision. Our mission as the church is to demonstrate to the powers and principalities that God was wise in sending his son to die for us, in order for us to be unified in one body with one aim and ambition.

However, everytime we fail, we give the enemy a foothold. Everytime we gossip and create disunity, we give the enemy hope that God made a mistake with us. Every time we tear someone down with our words, we are giving Satan some ammunition to go to our Heavenly Father and point out that we are not worthy of his grace and love.

If we understood this we would see that, gossip, slander and disunity are so much more dangerous than we can ever imagine. Piper went on to say; “The church is the cosmic showcase of God’s mercy, and if we fail to live as joyful beneficiaries of his mercy and fail to maintain the unity of the Spirit, we bring a cosmic reproach upon the wisdom of God.”

Jesus prayed that you and I and all believers would be united. Let us make sure we don’t do anything to disrupt that unity (John 17:22-23).

As a church this week we sent out a young family to plant a church. They are not simply going to start a gathering of believers or build a building. This has been a difficult decision for us as a church, there have been concerns.

But what if this is way bigger than we could ever imagine. What if we took what Paul wrote to heart and really understood the role of the church as part of God’s universal plan.

What if God is going to use our brokenness and struggles to reveal his grace and glory on a cosmic stage. The universe is watching. Can you imagine God pointing to Grace Point Baptist Church and inviting the supernatural beings of the universe to watch what He is about to do.

My prayer is that as we watch the next year and years to come unfold, we will see a glimpse into God’s eternal plan for the Church.

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Compassion – Caring for Someones eternal destiny – July 31, 2016

Compassion pt 1 Title.2

Isaiah 58:6-12

Compassion is what we are called to as a church. It is a mark of the Body of Christ, to be outward focused looking to help those in need. But why do we act in compassion? You may say that it’s the right thing to do, but the reality is that by doing kind things and acting compassionately, does not earn salvation. We know that the Bible says in Isaiah 64 that our righteous acts are like filthy rags. You cannot secure eternal life by doing good things for people, so why do we care? Why do we show compassion to the poor and the hurting?

The Bible has a lot to say to us about compassion. The Children of Israel were instructed in the Law of Moses in Deuteronomy 15 to be openhanded in caring for the poor and the needy. Jesus in his time here on earth was moved with compassion and healed many people.

One of the most outstanding portions of Scripture relating to compassion, is found in Isaiah 58.

The bible is full of conditional statements, if-then statements. If we are obedient to God, then there is a promise from Him. If you include the first line of verse 6, we have 3 “IF” statements and 3 “THEN” statements.

God’s people are chosen to “loose the chains of injustice,” and to, “Untie the chords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free” The children of Israel knew slavery, they would have remembered that they were once slaves at the hands of the Egyptians. Now they were living in the promised land and they had taken the people of the land and turned them into their slaves. Today slavery is all around us, moral injustice, oppression, sex-trafficking, and the ultimate injustice, the killing of the unborn.

Not only are we to speak up and act against injustice, but as verse 7 continues, we are to be generous in our compassion. “Share your food”, Provide shelter, Clothe the naked.”

Compassion involves giving; giving of our time and money and energy.

In verse 8 we see the first “Then” statement, a beautiful word picture of the ending of the night, a new day, new blessings. The second line of verse 8 says; “your healing will quickly appear.” Some people ask why we don’t we see healing today. The truth is that healing takes place all over the world, as God’s people pray. Sometimes we don’t see healing because we are too inward focused. God looks to see the motives of our heart, as we give of ourselves to others we will see healing taking place.

The next line reads; “your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard”. Again this is a beautiful word picture that the children of Israel would have understood as being a reference to the pillar of cloud and fire that moved to the back of Israel to protect them against the attacking Egyptians in the Exodus. What a promise! If you are doing what God has called you to, he will protect you and be your rear guard.

Moving to verse 9, we see the second “Then” promise; “Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.”

God looks at the heart, if we pray with the right motives God moves on our behalf. (see James 4:3)

Looking further we have two “if” statements – the first is inward focused; “do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,” Gossip and pointing fingers are malicious and are rooted in pride. (See Matthew 7).

The second IF statement reads; “If you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed.” Instead of focusing on my little world, what about spending myself for the hungry and the oppressed.

Then what follows are the wonderful blessings in verses 10-12.

As a church that is going through a revitalization, we are seeing God answer our prayers and I believe if we keep our focus on the world around us and not on our own desires, these promises are for us.

In fact, these 6 verses are the prescription for church revitalization.

If we do what God calls us to do, he will ensure that we will stay strong. One of the promises I always cling to is at the end of verse 11; “You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.” If we as a church continue to seek the Lord and do what he has called us to do, he will always provide for our needs.

 As we look at compassion it is easy to care for someone when we can see they are oppressed and maybe in bondage because they were victims of abuse. But what about the unlovely? What about the drug addict who keeps making the same mistake? Do we pick and choose who to help? We need to learn how to act in obedience to God, daily ask God to give us wisdom and discernment to be doing His will on the earth.

The ultimate purpose of compassion is leading people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Point them to Jesus using words, otherwise we are simply alleviating a temporary need. True compassion is caring for someone’s eternal destination. Do you see the poor and the needy as someone Jesus died for?

The Gospel message is the ultimate display of compassion, John 3:16, For God so loved…..that He gave” Jesus gave up his position of glory in heaven so that you and I might have eternal life. Jesus set aside his glory in heaven, but sometimes we find it difficult to set aside the remote control to help someone he died for.

How will we respond today? Let us be a people of compassion, in order to see the lost saved, the church revived and our lives blessed.

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Samson part 3 God gives Second Chances July 24 2016

Samson pt 3 Title.2-01 Judges 16

We serve a God who gives second chances.

Maybe you know some of the pain of living with your mistakes. The truth is that we have all made painful mistakes and we live to regret them. The most painful regret is the regret of knowing that you are not living to the fullest potential of what God has called you to.

The good news is that no sin is beyond the grace of God, you may live with the consequences of your sin, but in the midst of the consequences and the pain, God can use your life for His glory and purposes.

 Samson was a man who sinned willfully and frequently, living an immoral life. As we look at the final chapter of his life in Judges 16 we read the familiar of his fatal relationship with Delilah. When Samson finally gave in and told Delilah the secret of his strength, he was well aware of what he was doing. In verse 17 we read; “he told her everything”, he told her that he was a Nazarite and that he was specially called by God. Samson was tired of her nagging, but sadly he was also tired of the calling of God on his life. He was fighting against God’s will for his life and just wanted to be free to be like any other man. Sadly, in his attempt to be free from the calling of God on his life, he suffered a far worse imprisonment.

The same happens to us when we know the will of God for our lives, but decide to do our own thing, resulting in pain, suffering and imprisonment.

The Philistines began to celebrate and all their rulers gathered to offer a sacrifice to their pagan god Dagon.

All the while though, Samson’s hair began to grow. The Philistines were not concerned because they knew that Samson’s power was gone, they knew that Samson’s God had rejected him and left him.

They could not possibly fathom a God who would give a second or third or fourth chance. What kind of god forgives? Only the one true God full of grace and love.

Samson realizes how he has neglected to use the gift God had given him for the Lord’s purposes. Every turn of the grinding wheel must have been painful for Samson as he had time to think of his squandered life.

Samson prays in verse 28 and asks God for one more chance, one more time to have his strength back.

Sadly, even in this prayer, Samson’s motives are impure, he doesn’t ask God for strength to give glory to the one true God, he asks for strength for revenge. Revenge is a terrible thing and it is the one characteristic of Samson’s life that had plagued him. In spite of Samson’s motive, God hears his prayer and gives him back his strength.

Samson-web

In his death Samson deals a devastating blow to the Philistines, all their rulers were killed, the nation was thrown into disarray.

God heard Samson’s prayer and reinstated his power, today God still hears the prayers of the backslidden

Samson made a mess of his life and this would be a hopelessly tragic story if it just ended there – but it doesn’t. We find that over in the New Testament that Samson’s name is mentioned in Hebrews 11 verse 32 among the heroes of the faith. That’s a surprise! Samson was a man of faith and in spite of all his mistakes and the chaos of his life, he pleased God by his faith in his final hour.

This is a comforting fact, because God can take a person who made mistake after mistake and still use him or her.

If God only used people who were perfect, nothing would ever get done.

God uses ordinary people; those who have weaknesses and have failed in life. There are no perfect Christians, only broken and humble followers of Jesus.

Maybe you feel that you’ve messed up your life so badly that God will never use you again.

God never gave up on Samson and He has not given up on you. God sees your potential and He remembers why He made you, you were created for great things.

What should you do if you have made some major mistakes in life? Exactly what Samson finally did, turn your life over to the Lord. Give Him all the pieces of your brokenness and allow him to rebuild your life to be something that will be to his Glory.

Only God knows the greatness and potential in your life, but you’ll never bring it out on your own, He must do it in His strength. Allow him to have full control over your life today.

But before you think that this is a teaching on cheap grace, that you can live however you like and God will always forgive you and reinstate you to his calling on your life, Samson is a warning to us of the consequences of living a foolish life of selfishness and pride outside of God’s will. Although God gave Samson his strength back, he was still blind. The consequences of sin in our lives will remain. We suffer the effects of our past sins. Our sins are forgiven, but by God’s grace he allows the consequences to remain in order to remind us of our poor choices and our need for a Savior. (see Galatians 6:7-8)

What about God’s call on your life? Is it being fulfilled, or is it sidetracked by some sin or distraction?

Are you living with the regret of missing the mark, living in sin and avoiding the calling of God on your life?

If this is you, you need to take that first step in acknowledging that you have been trying to do things your own way, repent of your sin and commit your life completely to the perfect will of God. Ultimately this leads to a life of peace and fruitfulness.

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Playing our Part “How we share the Gospel” June 5, 2016

Evangelism 3 Title.2

Mark 1:16-20

We all know that we live in a world that is motivated by fear, but there is a deep seated fear that drives the current generation. It is the fear that motivates social media, the reason why so many people post selfies on facebook and Instagram. It is the fear that drives people to climb high mountains, or write books.

What I am referring to is the fear of insignificance, the fear of living a life that doesn’t make an impact. Everyone wants to live a life that makes a difference in the world. This generation is driven by the fear of insignificance.

But the truth is that everyone has the potential to live a life of immeasurable significance, everyone can leave an eternal legacy.

We have a privilege, as followers of Jesus Christ, we have the greatest story ever told. This Gospel message is powerful and life changing. It is the only message that we have that can have an eternal impact on the people around us. By keeping this message to ourselves, we are withholding the news of eternal salvation.

In the first chapter of the Gospel of Mark we read how Jesus began his ministry. Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, but he was not simply strolling on the beach.

Jesus was about to set in motion a ministry that would ultimately lead to his crucifixion, and change the entire world. He was selecting his disciples. God the Father led Jesus in this process, Jesus was not randomly calling people, he was not looking for a crowd, he was looking for the select few. Those who would follow him, ultimately paying with their lives for the Gospel message.

Jesus is still calling people today to follow him, to leave all behind and follow him to make a difference in the world.

Mark records that Jesus says three simple words; “Come, follow me” Jesus took the initiative as he called his disciples. This is the truth of the Gospel message. In our own fallen sinful nature, we do not seek God out, he seeks and calls us. Jesus was demonstrating the way of the Kingdom even as he called his disciples.

Jesus goes on to declare a promise over their lives. A promise that still stands for all the people that God calls. “I will make you fishers of men”. Jesus had “caught” them, now he was beginning the process of equipping them to carry the message of salvation. They did not know what they were being called to, but they followed in faith.

When we say yes to Jesus, we don’t know what that will lead to. For all of us, who know Jesus as our Lord and savior, we say yes, because we are called. Called to be people who leave an eternal legacy.

esus went on, and saw James and John, the sons of Zebedee, calling them they left everything without delay. They left everything, turned 180’ and followed him. Today Jesus calls us, and asks us to do the same, change the direction of your life. This is the essence of being born again, it is not a mere addition to your life. Being born again is a complete shift; a change of perspective, priorities and life goals.

Below are five practical applications that we all need to bear in mind as we seek to lead lives of eternal significance and be fishers of men.

1: You cannot share what you do not have; In order to lead others into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, we need to know Jesus as Lord for our own life. This is not simply attending church or attending a life group, rather asking Jesus Christ to become Lord of your life, and growing in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

2: Know your story; Every one of us has a story, but the most important story we can share is how Jesus saved us and our lives were transformed by the Gospel. We need to be able to share our story in three minutes or less in a way that clearly demonstrates the saving power of Jesus Christ.

3: Know the gospel; The central point of who we are as a church is the Gospel message, and we need to be able to clearly articulate this Gospel message. (See 1 Corinthians 15:2-5)

4: Jesus calls us to an exchange not an addition; Unfortunately modern television evangelists and many others are preaching a message that teaches how you will have a better life if you “accept” Jesus, how you will be blessed if you “add” Jesus to your life. A little addition of some Jesus to your life and you will experience blessings, you will have the husband or wife you dreamed of, you will be able to claim wealth and health. That is not the truth. In fact Jesus clearly explained that when you become a follower of his there is a cost involved (see Luke 9:23-25).

5: let the Holy Spirit lead; This is the crucial part of evangelism that we must understand. We don’t convert anyone, we don’t have the ability to bring conviction of sins. We can make people aware of their need of a savior, but we cannot do the work of changing the very soul of a person, that is the work of the Holy Spirit. As D.L. Moody once wrote; “There is not a better evangelist in the world than the Holy Spirit”.

So where do you start?

You start at home. Sometimes the most difficult mission field. Very few of us can say that everyone in our extended family has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. And in this challenging mission field is where we are called to start.

You can live a life of significance, you can make an eternal difference, but the only way to make an eternal difference is by telling others about your personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

Charles Spurgeon once wrote; “Only by coming after Jesus can we obtain our heart’s desire and be really useful to our fellow men.”

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Revival Part 13 – Repentance

tounge-of-fire-32

Last time we looked at the phrase, “turn from their wicked ways” and we saw that we all are confronted daily by evil desires and wicked ways.

God says we must turn from these ways. The Biblical word for turn is repent. Some Christians feel that it is good enough to decide to stop doing the wrong sinful activity.

But the reality is that this is not enough. There needs to be a time of deep repentance. We have three “R’s” in correcting sinful behavior. We firstly need to remember what we have done, the Holy Spirit helps us by convicting us of our sin. Secondly, we have to repent of that sin, and finally we need to return to God with humility of heart.

There are many portions of the Bible that speak to this process, for example;

Jeremiah 15:19a; “If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me….”

Mark 6:12; “They went out and preached that people should repent.”

Acts 2:38; “Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

Repentance is one of the most misunderstood words in the Christian terminology. Most people think it is a feeling of sorry for the wrong things we have done. But the Greek word for repentance is “metanoia”, which means a complete change of mind. It is good to feel regret and sorry for our sins, but that is the result and outcome of repentance and not the source of it.

Repentance is best described as turning in the opposite direction, a complete change in behavior and speech.

We must not wait to feel sorry for our wrong actions in order to repent. Sometimes we are simply sorry we got caught!

Rather, repentance must come first and then our emotions and feelings are impacted.

Our emotions are not to be our guide. There are many things that affect our emotions and we need to be careful to not let our emotions and feelings drive our decisions.

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Pentecost Title.2

This Past Sunday, we celebrated Pentecost Sunday by praying for 48 hours in the chapel leading up to the Sunday morning service. On Pentecost Sunday, we remember the day when the disciples received the Holy Spirit and how the early church was formed in power. As we look at our own lives today we see that we have two choices, either we live by the Spirit or we live by the flesh. Paul highlights this in the first eight verses of Romans 8.

Our Need

But what does it mean to live according to the flesh? Well it just so happens that Paul gives a list in his letter to the Galatian church (see Galatians 5:19-21). We may look at that list and say, well I am not sexually immoral, I don’t practice witchcraft or I don’t participate in Orgies – but what about impurity (impure thoughts), what about selfish ambition, or dissensions and factions (gossip with the intent to create division). If we are honest, we all struggle with some of these things, we constantly wrestle with the desires of the flesh. The real battle is in the control of our minds. As Christians, we are to be self-disciplined not only in our physical appetites but also in our thoughts.

How often we fail in disciplining that vital part of life. Our thoughts begin to drift from the God centered life into worldly things and thoughts we know we should not dwell on, and we let them go and we become anxious, lustful, hateful, prideful and we give in to self-pity.

Someone might say; “well, I gave my life to Jesus, I received the Holy Spirit, but I still had bad thoughts, God didn’t take them away, I am living a defeated Christian life”. The truth is that we have work to do, don’t blame God for your impure thoughts if you spend hours watching late night cable TV. Daily we need to daily surrender to the Holy Spirit’s will and leadership so that we can live in the power of the Spirit. Paul explains this perfectly in Romans 12:2.

What occupies your mind, will ultimately express itself in your character and lifestyle.

God’s solution

It seems impossible, how can we overcome the problem of our mind? God has provided a solution, we need to appropriate that solution to our lives (See Romans 8:9). This verse begins a series of verses that include the conditional clause; “if” 8 times.  If anyone does not have the indwelling Spirit of God it does not matter their profession of the local church they are a member of, they are not a member of Christ’s eternal body. To belong to Christ, the Holy Spirit of God must indwell your life.

The person who gives no evidence of the presence, power and fruit of God’s Spirit in his life has not authentically claimed Christ as Savior and Lord. The person who demonstrates no desire for the things of God and has no inclination to avoid sin or no passion to please God is not indwelt by the Holy Spirit and thus does not belong to Christ. A sobering truth.

But the person who has the Holy Spirit living in and through them experiences life and life abundantly.
Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”

The Holy Spirit does not only enable us to live in peace and fruitfulness, the Holy Spirit is also a deposit, or a promise of God that we will one day be resurrected from the dead and given new bodies, incredible resurrected bodies (see Ephesians 1:13-14).

The blessing

Finally we come to the results or the blessings that come from living by the Spirit. Reading Romans 8:14-17 we see that, by the Holy Spirit we become sons and daughters of God. Children of the living God, and we get to call the almighty creator of all things Father. It seems impossible, how can we possibly believe that? The God of the universe allows us to call him Father and come into His presence to worship Him and ask Him for our needs, that is too much for us to comprehend. But then we read in verse 16; “the spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s Children”.

One of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to testify, to convince our own spirit that we are God’s children, because God knows we will find that hard to fathom. Allow the Holy Spirit to testify with your Spirit, and begin to meditate and understand what it means to be a child of the living God.

This is a daily battle for the mind, are you going to be controlled by the flesh or are you going to allow the Holy Spirit to lead and direct you?

The mind set dominated by the desires and activities of the sinful nature leads to death.

The mind set dominated by the desires and activities of the will of God leads to life and life eternal.

Each person is responsible for which mind set he or she pursues.

How am I at mental-discipline? When I catch myself thinking wrong thoughts, do I make myself think about something else?     Where are some of the places I go?

What are some of the things I do that feed my mind with the wrong kind of stuff?

Paul writing to the Philippian church sums it up in one verse; Philippians 4:8 – That is living by the Spirit.

Abandon yourself to the will and purposes of God in your life. You will find that as you live by the Holy Spirit, you will experience a life of adventure, peace and fulfillment unlike anything you could ever imagine.

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Revival Part 12

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2 Chronicles 7:14; “ if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

We have seen that revival is God’s sovereignty on display in response to our prayers. He decides when and provides for revival. But, there is a part we have to play, we need to humble ourselves and pray, but we also need to turn from our wicked ways.

We don’t like that word, it seems very harsh in our 21st century politically correct world. Wicked means sinful and ways refers to a behavior that we have settled into and become comfortable with.

So what are these wicked ways? The Bible gives us some clear guidelines.

  • In Revelation 3:15-16 we see that the Laodicean church was wicked because of their spiritual luke-warmness. Are we neither hot nor cold for the things of God?
  • In Matthew 6:14, Jesus makes it clear that we are not to hold unforgiveness against anyone. After all we have been forgiven, it is wicked not to do the same for others.
  • In John 17, Jesus prays for unity. We fall into sin, when we create division and disunity in the church through gossip and slander.
  • By not reading the Word of God and applying it to our lives, that is a wicked way. We are neglecting the Holy Word of God to us.
  • In Malachi 3:8, we see that withholding our tithes and offerings is a wicked way, we are literally guilty of robbing from God, by not giving back to him what he has first given to us.
  • Then we have the list of moral failures, lying, indifference to evangelism, losing our tempers and idolatry (putting something before God).

Looking at this list, it makes us wonder if we will ever see revival.

We need to strive for purity and holiness, not so set anything unholy before our eyes and not to speak any unwholesome words.

The verse says that we are to turn from these wicked ways, and we will look at this in more detail in the next posting. But the key is repentance. We need to repent and ask God to forgive us of all our sin. True revival always starts with repentance.

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Revival Part 11

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Continuing to look at 2 Chronicles 7:14, ; “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray… and seek my face…”

If we were truly honest with ourselves, we are more interested in seeing the hand of God than seeking His face. We want to see miracles, we want people healed, we want God to provide money and we want families reconciled. All these things are not bad if our motives are pure, but when we pray for revival, our priority must change, we need to pray for a new vision of God, a fresh understanding of who He is.

Praying for revival, is really praying for intimacy with God. When last did you get on your knees and agonize before God. Not praying for new people to come into the church or for our finances to be provided, but rather to pray to know God more deeply and to see His face. This is the prayer that brings revival.

Listen to what David writes in Psalm 27; “One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. Psalm 27:4.

Oh that we would learn to pray like that.

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Lessons from the Life of David Part 5 May 01, 2016

King David 5 Title.2-011 Chronicles 28

We as a nation are embroiled in one of the most energetic and passionate political seasons of our history. While the candidates position themselves to become the next resident of the White House, the current President is focused on something else, his legacy. How will history remember President Obama?

We have all been the beneficiaries of a legacy that was handed down to us. For some of us that was a wonderful memory or character instilled by loving parents. But for others that legacy is one of pain and hurt that causes one to walk through life with a limp.

David is older now, his kingdom is well established and he calls all the leaders together. He wants to address the leaders, those who will get the job done those to whom he can entrust his legacy.

David starts by talking about his desire to build the temple. With all that David had accomplished in his life, there was one yearning desire that was unfulfilled, he wanted to build a temple for God in Jerusalem. It was David’s dream, but God said no. This is not a job for a man of war but a man of peace.

The motivational speakers of our day will tell us that we can be whatever we want to be, we must dream big in order to achieve big goals. But sometimes we don’t achieve certain goals in our lifetime.

When we commit our lives to following Jesus, he gives us a new direction for our lives and the plans that he has for us are far higher than any dream we could have.

What dreams have you let go of in your life? Do you still feel the sting of regret?

Allow God to give you a bigger dream a better dream for your life and for those who will come after you.

David makes it clear that Solomon is the future King and that his son Solomon will be the one to fulfill his dream of building the temple.

Moving on to verse 8, we see David now charging the leaders of the nation, he is giving them a responsibility to carefully follow the Law in order to receive the blessing of God. David is challenging them to walk in purity.

But then in verse 9 David turns to Solomon and gives him a powerful word of encouragement. (See 1 Chronicles 28:8-9). This is far more than a word of encouragement. This is a charge, a commissioning a handing over of the responsibility of the nation. David had run as far as he could and now he was charging Solomon to continue on.

David urges Solomon to know God, not merely serving Him out of duty, but to really seek Him and know Him wholeheartedly with all his mind. David using language that the Israelites would have easily recognized as coming from the Law of Moses in Deuteronomy 6:5. David reminds Solomon to be devoted to God, because God knows every intention of the heart of man.

The sad reality is that this is a major problem today. People are being taught that it is your actions that count. Do good things, make sure you are doing enough good things, following the law and helping the downtrodden. While that is all good and we need to do these things, without a knowledge of God and true heart transformation, there is no salvation. God knows the intentions of your heart. Only a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and allowing the Holy Spirit to transform your heart leads to salvation.

Parents, we are often guilty of this, in our homes, we need to enforce rules and teach our children to obey. Pick up your clothes, take out the trash, empty the dishwasher! How often do we encourage them to know God, to seek Him, to Love him with all your heart. I find this deeply convicting as I was preparing this message. I want my children to know God and to serve Him that is the legacy I want to leave them.

Following this charge, David proceeds to give Solomon the blueprints and instructions for building the temple. From verse 11 to 18 are just some of the details that God gave to David. And then in verse 20 David picks up the Commissioning of Solomon (See 1 Chronicles 28:20). If these words sound familiar to you it is because these are almost exactly the same words that Moses said to Joshua as he was preparing to die (See Deuteronomy 31:6).

There are a number of parallels between Moses/ Joshua and David/ Solomon.

In each case both Moses and David received a covenant promise from God that shaped the future of the nation.

In each case Moses and David received a revelation from God that they passed down.

In each case the former did not see the fulfillment of their dreams.

Moses did not enter the Promised Land, but handed that over to Joshua, and David did not see the temple built but he gave that responsibility over to Solomon. And on both occasions we have that charge to be “strong and courageous”, which is echoed in Joshua 1:9 when God commissions Joshua.

David died and left a void that could never be filled, there was never another king like David. But David completed the task that the Lord had for him to do, and Solomon was a different leader that was required for a different era. David left a legacy, he built a foundation for a nation that Solomon could build on. As we have seen from the life of David, the most important value in his life was his worship and love for God.

Every one of us leaves a legacy.

Some people spend their lives trying to amass wealth in order to provide for the next generation. While that is Biblical and a good thing to do, I want to challenge you to invest in the next generation by pointing them to a real relationship with Jesus Christ. Challenging the next generation to be strong and courageous.

No matter our age, we all have someone younger than us who is looking up to us. Who are you investing in?