God fills us and prepares us for service ~ David McGee

1 Corinthians 3:9

“For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.”

Life Lesson:

We will all give an account of what we did or did not do for the Lord.

God blesses our acts of service.

God fills us and prepares us for service.

God doesn’t act for vanity; instead, He is purposeful in everything He does.

You, my friend, are a part of God’s plan and purpose. You are the breathing, walking and talking result of His Word. God’s Word will not return void. This means that when God invests in you, He expects multiplication of return. That’s not self-serving. 

Our salvation is a gift from God. 

What we do with our lives after that is our gift back to God.

Genesis 22:8 “And Abraham said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So, the two of them went together.” NKJV

There are rewards stored up in heaven for your serving. It is by God’s grace, you are allowed into heaven (Ephesians 2:8-9). Once there, you will be rewarded or not rewarded for your serving. Intentions will not be rewarded.

It goes even beyond that. Do you know someone who is not serving?

If so, then you are accountable, in love, to call them on it. Appeal to them. Perhaps due to your boldness to hold them accountable, they will not stand before Jesus with a heart full if intentions and hands full of air.

Dear Father,

Thank You for loving me so much and being so good to me. Lord, I want to give You my life. I want to give back to others because You have blessed me so much. I am sorry I haven’t been as kingdom-minded as I should have been. Help me to store up heavenly rewards. Help me to be a world-changer and to make a difference. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

 
Living to tell what He died to say,
Pastor David McGee

Isolation ~ Mark Balmer

Isolation

Based on “Get Jesus to People” 

by Pastor Mark Balmer;

 “Isolation"

Preparing the Soil (Introduction): 

Throughout history there have been isolationist groups. 

Many monasteries have been built for the sole purpose of isolating people from the world. We can even see it during the time of Jesus. There was a Jewish sect that did not agree with the religious rulers in Jerusalem, so they left and ended up in Qumran, the place where the Dead Sea scrolls were eventually found. 

This group was called the Essenes. 

Now the Essenes believed in many of the same things we believe today. They believed their messiah was coming, and the world would be judged on the last day. 

One of the differences between us and them was the fact that the Essenes were isolationists. 

They thought if someone wanted to know about what they believed, that person would come to them and ask. After a three year probation, then the person could be given the opportunity to join, if they were found worthy.

Planting and Watering the Seed (Growth):  

Today we go out to dinner with our church friends. We go to the mechanic we met at church. We go to the movies with our church friends. We play in the church softball league. We go shopping with the girls we met at church. Game night is also with our church friends. So how does someone get into our group? Well, they come to us, or at least to church. Many times we find ourselves in the same place as the Essenes. 

We think if someone wants to know why we are different, they will ask. 

Or if they see joy in us, they will ask ‘why?’ I recall times in my life when I was hurting and I would see someone with joy, the last thing going through my mind was actually asking them why they were happy. Usually I would just avoid them. If I had asked them, it would have been in a confrontational way, because I was hurting and apparently they were not.

Harvesting the Crop (Action/Response): As the video this weekend emphasized, people all around us are hurting, searching, just looking for that one thing that will give their lives purpose. We, as Christ followers, have exactly what they need. Are we going to be like the Essenes and wait for people to come to us? 

Or are we going to be like Matthew and those in the early church and talk openly about who Jesus is and what He has done for us?

I have often heard people say their testimony was a very private matter. But, what God has done in our lives is something we should proclaim to the world! We have found a living God who cares enough to work personally in our lives today. 

The world we live in would never be the same if Christ followers would start being more open about what God has brought them through in their personal lives. The world is hurting and without answers. Do not forget we were all in the very same place at one time in our lives. 

Who reached out to you and told you there is a God who cares?   

Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, "Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?" They came out of the town and made their way toward him. John 4:28-30

Cultivating (Additional Reading):  John 4:4-42

All of us need to be needed. ~ Charles Swindoll

Living Beyond the Grind of Feeling Overlooked
by Charles R. Swindoll 
Psalm 8

All of us need to be needed. It is satisfying to know that we can make a contribution or assist others in their need.

Being in the swirl of activity, resourceful and responsive, we tend to think it'll never end.

But it does. Sometimes ever so slowly through a chain of events or sometimes abruptly without warning, we find ourselves sidelined and no longer in demand. A tiny blood clot in the brain can seize our usefulness and leave us in its devastating wake. Another factor is age . . . merely growing older can move us away from the fast lane. By being passed over for a promotion or by being benched because a stronger player joins the team, we feel overlooked. 

It hurts. 

The eighth song in God's ancient hymnal is a great one for those times in our lives when we feel bypassed, set aside, overlooked. It highlights the value God places upon His creatures, especially mankind.
There are three introductory observations that leap off the page as I read through the Eighth Psalm:
First, it is a psalm of David, written under the Holy Spirit's direction. 

Second, it was designed to be on the "Gittith" (note the superscription, those words above verse 1). The etymology of this Hebrew term is questionable. Most probably Gittith is derived from Gath, an ancient Philistine city. 

Do you remember David's most famous victory? Goliath, the giant he slew, was from Gath (1 Samuel 17:4, 23). You, too, may have a giant to slay—that personal giant of feeling insignificant. So take heart; this song is for you. 

The Scriptures also tell us that after David's victory over Goliath the people of Israel sang and danced as they celebrated the triumph (1 Samuel 18:6­–7). I suggest—and it is only a suggestion—that this psalm was composed by David as a hymn of praise in honor of God who gave David that epochal triumph over Goliath of Gath. As you read the Eighth Psalm, you'll see that it seems to fit that historical backdrop. 

My third observation is that Psalm 8 begins and ends with identical statements: "O Lord, our Lord, / How majestic is Thy name in all the earth. . . ." 

I find several interesting things about this repeated statement: 

1. The psalmist speaks on behalf of the people of God, not just himself, hence our instead of my. This tells us he represents the people as he composes this song of victory. 

2. The name of Jehovah is identified with majestic. This is from the Hebrew word ah-daar, meaning wide, great, high, noble. David pictures our Lord as One who is gloriously magnificent, absolutely majestic! 

3. The Lord's works and attributes are not limited to Israel or to the Land of Canaan. They are universal in scope. The Lord God is no national or tribal deity secluded from all else. 

David worships the living Lord as the majestic and glorious Lord of all. Take time later tonight to look up at the stars.

As you study the vast stellar spaces, give God praise for His wondrous works in the universe. Though silent, they reflect our God's majesty.

Has God shown you areas of character weakness in your leadership? (97-1) ~ Barry Werner

Has God shown you areas of character weakness in your leadership? (97-1)

All leaders have character flaws; areas of weakness that tend to surface and resurface throughout our career. These negative elements of character, if not dealt with and replaced with God-honoring character traits, will continue to create problem situations, limit a leader’s influence or destroy their career completely. Read 1 Kings 1:1-10 focusing on verse 6.

David was God’s leader for Israel for 40 years. Even today, he is recognized as one of the great leaders of all time in world history. Under David’s leadership 12 independent sovereign tribes that could each trace their family lineage back to the 12 sons of Jacob, united and became a military and political force that changed the entire landscape of the Middle East. Today, thousands of years later, David’s influence can be seen in the nation of Israel and felt in world politics.


Not only does history and the Bible record the greatness of David but it also records the damage of a character weakness that plagued him throughout his leadership life. David did not apply the same leadership and guidance in his family that he applied for the nation. David didn’t deal with an incident of rape and incest which led to the death of two sons and a ruined life for one of his daughters. Even worse, David did not learn from his lack of leadership.

Without strong corrective action to this part of his character it was only a few years until David again faced a family crisis that affected the nation. David was old and his ability to lead the nation was in question. His son Adonijah seized the moment, made key alliances with the commander of the army and an influential priest and without consulting David or asking for his blessing established himself as king of Israel. According to verse 6, this act of rebellion was a direct result of David’s lack of leadership in his home.

Has God shown you areas of character weakness in your leadership?

Has He given you time to make the corrective action and maybe even shown you a course of action that will allow you to correct this area of your character? 

Effective Christian leaders seek God’s wisdom to identify godly character and then do the work to develop and attain that character.

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« Are your projects and pressures more real to you than Jesus? (96-5)

Are your succession plans adequate and communicated? (97-2) »

Jesus giving thanks to God. ~ Joyce Meyer

Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.

— John 11:41

Here we see a good example of Jesus giving thanks to God. 

When you pray, I encourage you to end your prayer, as Jesus did here, by saying, "Father, I thank You that You have heard me." 

One reason I encourage you to do that is because, as John tells us, when we know that God has heard us, we know that He has granted us our requests (See 1 John 5:14-15). 

The devil wants you and me to pray and then go off wondering whether God has heard us and is willing to grant us what we have asked. The way we overcome that doubt is by lifting up the voice of thanksgiving (See Psalm 26:7 and Jonah 2:9).         
 

Whats In Your Hand? ~ Bob Coy

Whats In Your Hand?

So the LORD said to him, "What is that in your hand?" 

Exodus 4:2 (NKJV)

What were you doing forty years ago?

Can you even remember? 

Were you even alive? 

Forty years is a long time! 

And it's the amount of time that God allowed Moses to experience life on the backside of the desert before calling him to deliver His people from their bondage in Egypt.

Forty years of chasing stray sheep and taking care of animals that can't really take care of themselves. And as a shepherd, Moses must have constantly carried around something that was a true tool of his trade...a rod.

One day, the familiar routine was interrupted by a strange sight, a burning bush. God appeared and gave Moses a mission, which he immediately tried to turn down.

"Who am I to do this? 

Who will I say sent me?" 

Moses was not excited about any of this because he was comparing the challenge that lay ahead to his life up to that point.

"I'm just a shepherd, how can I possibly do that?"

So God does something interesting. He asks Moses "What is in your hand?" "A rod," Moses answers. 

The rod represented the simple shepherd's life Moses had led. But God told him to throw it on the ground. And the rod that had been such a predictable fixture in his life suddenly and miraculously became a serpent! 

This signaled the start of something new, a supernatural calling and way of life. The rod would still be there, but its use would be completely different.

"What is in your hand?" 

It was God's way of getting Moses to see that even the most ordinary things in our lives can become extraordinary when used in His service.

Moses was guilty of limiting what God could do with his life, and we can be guilty of doing the same, "But I'm just a ..." 

Don't limit what God can do with your life. 

What is in your hand? 

God can do something extraordinary with it!

Discuss God’s desire to use your talents and gifts.

What is it that belongs to you that you sense God wants to use for His glory?

Dig into Exodus 4:1–5.

1. What challenges did Moses face in this passage? 
2. How did he respond to the assignment he was given?
3. What was the purpose behind God’s display of supernatural power?

Decide to pray for the members of your group. 

Ask God to give all of you a willing heart to use your gifts, talents, and abilities for God’s good purposes.

"Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame." ~ WoW 7 Minute Bible,

Paul's Heart and God's Plan for Israel: Part One

 

Romans 9:1-10:11; Psalm 129:1-4; Proverbs 24:5-6

I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen. 

But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called." That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. For this is the word of promise: "At this time I will come and Sarah shall have a son."

And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), it was said to her, "The older shall serve the younger." As it is written, "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated."
What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! For He says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion."

So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth." Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.

You will say to me then, "Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?" But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, "Why have you made me like this?" Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?

What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles

As He says also in Hosea: 

"I will call them My people, who were not My people,
And her beloved, who was not beloved."
"And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them,
'You are not My people,'
There they shall be called sons of the living God."
Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel:
"Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea,
The remnant will be saved.
For He will finish the work and cut it short in righteousness,
Because the LORD will make a short work upon the earth."
And as Isaiah said before:
"Unless the LORD of Sabaoth had left us a seed,
We would have become like Sodom,
And we would have been made like Gomorrah."

What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone.

As it is written:

"Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense,
And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."

Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.

For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, "The man who does those things shall live by them." But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down from above) or, " 'Who will descend into the abyss?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says,

"Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."

Romans 9:1-10:11

WORSHIP

 

"Many a time they have afflicted me from my youth,"
Let Israel now say-
"Many a time they have afflicted me from my youth;
Yet they have not prevailed against me.
The plowers plowed on my back;
They made their furrows long."
The LORD is righteous;
He has cut in pieces the cords of the wicked.
Psalm 129:1-4 

 

WISDOM

A wise man is strong,
Yes, a man of knowledge increases strength;
For by wise counsel you will wage your own war,
And in a multitude of counselors there is safety.
Proverbs 24:5-6

God have mercy on us. ~Jon Courson

This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 

1 John 1:5

People who are depressed in their spiritual lives because they think being a Christian is so hard don’t match up with true Biblical Christianity because John says there’s no dark side to God; there’s nothing negative about Him; there’s not a mean bone in His body. 

Therefore, a sour, dour, dark, and discouraged Christian is an oxymoron, a contradiction of terms.


‘Wait a minute,’ you say. ‘Wasn’t Jesus the Man of Sorrows?’ (Isaiah 53:3).


Yes. Jesus wept over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41). He wept at the tomb of Lazarus (John 11:35). When Jesus wept, however, it was always for others.

What about when He wept in the Garden of Gethsemane?

The night before He would go to the Cross, Jesus sweat blood because He was terrified not by the pain of the Cross, the spittle that would run down His face, or the flagellum that would rip into His back. 

Jesus was almost literally scared to death by the thought of being temporarily separated from His Father when He would be made sin on our behalf.

‘What if I can’t pay the bills?’ we wonder. ‘What if the car doesn’t work?’ ‘What if I lose a loved one?’ ‘What’s next?’ ‘Who else?’ These are the things which frighten us. 

But separation from the Father? We don’t even give it a second thought. 

God have mercy on us. 

We’re terrified of all the wrong things.

God wants to use you in a mighty way. ~ Mike MacIntosh

For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows. But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them. And the gospel must first be preached to all the nations.
Mark 13:8-10

God wants to use you in a mighty way. 

Whether that is in your family, your city, your nation, or across a border, God has limitless opportunities for you to fulfill the great commission to make disciples.

God loves you so much, and when you're in love with someone, you want to express it.

Well, He wants you to express your love to Him by showing your love and concern for the lost world. I think one of the greatest problems in our nation is that we Christians are experiencing a lopsided love affair; God loves us and He has shown it time and time again in our lives, but we don't receive it or express it back to Him. Jesus is saying here to express your love for Him by sharing the Good News of salvation with others around you.

Now is not the time for cute bumper stickers to express what is in our hearts. Let's not just, "Honk if you're a Christian," or have others interpret "Not of This World" emblems. We need to be a people of action. It's time to verbalize our faith. It's time to walk and live out what Jesus calls us to be. Now is the time to share what Jesus has done for us.

Do you believe that the end is near?

Do you believe the words of Jesus when He says to be ready and to have your house in order?

Do you believe that His return is soon?

If you've answered "yes" to these questions, then let me ask you this: 

Do you love the Lord and do you love your neighbors so much that you will share the love of Jesus with them? 

There should be a resounding "Yes!" coming through the internet right now.

 

Jesus says that bad times are coming, but the Gospel still needs to be given. 

Take personal responsibility to be faithful to Jesus' words; don't leave it up to the preachers and teachers out there to preach the Gospel.

God has called you to do it too, and He has given you His Holy Spirit to help you.

Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. ~ Jack Graham

… whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 

-- 1 Corinthians 10:31

You and I are faced with a tremendous volume of choices every day.

Just stroll down the breakfast cereal or coffee aisles at the grocery store if you think otherwise. Or consider the vast number of songs, videos, and books to choose from online. We are inundated with choices.

But when I talk about choices, of course, I’m not talking about the simple or little things that we choose daily. I’m talking about life’s important choices… the choices that shape your character.

For example, Adam and Eve made the choice to eat from the tree in the Garden of Eden, and it cost them paradise. Judas Iscariot’s choice cost him his soul. The choice of the rich young ruler cost him a relationship with Christ in eternity.

You need to understand that your decisions determine your destiny, which is part of God’s plan. You are not a puppet or an automaton. You are made in his image. Therefore, God has given you the ability to make choices. It is your God-given freedom.

And you get to choose your ultimate destiny. You can say to God, “Yes, I choose to follow you” or “No, I will not follow you.”

This is the most important choice you will make in the course of your life. Nothing will determine your destiny more than this single question.

Will you choose Jesus?

NOTHING WILL DETERMINE YOUR DESTINY MORE THAN WHETHER OR NOT YOU CHOOSE TO FOLLOW CHRIST JESUS.

"Praise the Lord" ~ Greg Laurie

What God Deserves

And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan.

— Luke 17:15–16

I remember the first time I said, "Praise the Lord!" 

It seemed like a very awkward phrase to utter. All of my Christian friends would say it, and I thought, I am going to say that now. I consciously thought about it first. But I had a hard time getting it out. Once I did, it felt kind of good. So I said it again. 

It is a wonderful thing when "Praise the Lord" just flows from your lips.

In fact, that is what you were created to do. You were created to give glory to God. It is the highest use of your vocal chords, your mouth, and your lips. God wants to hear us give Him praise. We need to give God what He deserves, and that is glory. Psalm 29:2 tells us, "Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness."

Yet far too often we are like the 10 men who suffered with leprosy and called out loudly to Jesus for intervention. He graciously heard their prayer and healed all of them of their dreaded disease. But only one returned to thank Him. Jesus said in response, "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?" (Luke 17:17).

Often we are quick to ask God for help during times of crisis, but we are very slow to offer Him thanks after He intervenes on our behalf. In doing so, we are essentially telling Him, "Thanks, God. See you next crisis." When those leprosy-stricken men saw Jesus, they cried out loudly for His touch. But only one came back to loudly thank Him (see Luke 17:15–16).

We should be as devoted in our praise to God as we are in crying out to Him for help.

How Shall The Righteous Live? ~ Kay Arthur

Romans (The Constitution Of Your Faith)

Program 3 – How Shall The Righteous Live?

Are you ready for a change? I mean, have you looked at life and thought, you know, I’m not headed in the right direction? In fact, it’s getting worse and worse and worse. I need a change. Do you know how to change? Can you change? There can be a change. There was a woman that came up to me and began to talk to me and she said, “I, I’m the one that teaches Precept in the prison. And she said, the women want you to come.” She said, “This is the largest prison in world. It’s out in California. And I’m teaching the Bible there and I’m teaching them to study the Word of God inductively.” That’s what I’m teaching you. And she said, “Their lives are absolutely being changed, transformed.” And she said, “They want you to come.” She said, “Would you come?” She said, “How much would you charge?” And I said, “Honey, listen, I never charge for going anyplace for teaching the Word of God. I never charge. It’s against my policy. So money is not an issue. It’s just a matter of whether God wants me to come or not.” And she says, “I just pray that God wants you to come.”

Well I want you know, God wanted me to go. God wanted me to go. And right then and there He laid it on my heart. We sat down; we set the date so that I could go to the largest women’s prison in the world. And do you know what she told me? She says, “Now listen, when you come into the A yard, when they come in and she says, that’s where they come in and for the first time in their life they realize, they realize that they cannot escape. They hear the door closed. There’s no more manipulating. There’s no more conniving. There’s no more hiding. There’s no more escaping. They have been caught and the door has closed on them and all of a sudden they realize where they are. They’re in prison and there’s no escape.”

And she said, “Would you speak in the A yard? It’s really not bad.” I said, “Honey, it doesn’t matter how bad it is, I would love to speak in the A yard.” And she says, “And what about the B yard?” And I said, “Yes I will speak in the B yard. I would love to speak in the B yard.”

And then I said, “Is there any other place, any other time that I could speak?” And she says, “Well I have 150 students and those 150 students are so learning the Word of God and some of them are such exciting teachers, that Kay, I would sit under their teaching. And they’re going throughout the prison and they’re teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ and women are being saved.” She says, “You know, I prayed for two, two lifers, and she says; God has given me five, five lifers. They’re in there for life. But their lives have so changed that they have a ministry.”

As we were talking I said, “I just want you to know, I am so awed with you.” And she says, “Don’t be.” She says, “I can relate to those women because I was a prostitute. I was on drugs.” And I looked this woman and I went “Whoa! You were a prostitute, really?” “Yes, I was a prostitute and I was on drugs.” And she says, “As a matter of fact you know what Kay? When I went to go into that prison, first I checked out the statute of limitations, because she said, I deserve to be in prison and I didn’t want them to find out about me and keep me there.” She says, “But my life has been changed.”

Why has her life changed? Because there is a message, a message of truth that can turn a person inside out. There’s a message of truth that can absolutely transform you. And as we look at Romans, as we look at the gospel of Jesus Christ, because that’s what Romans is all about, in the first 11 chapters of Romans, this epistle to the church at Rome, Paul lays out the gospel. In chapters 1 thru 3:20 he shows them that they’re in sin, and the Bible says in Romans, chapter 5, verse 12, “By one man sin came into the world and death by sin, so then all have sinned and death has passed to all men.” So Romans 1-3:20, he talks about sin. And then in Romans 3:21 through the fifth chapter of Romans, he talks about salvation. So what we have is we have sin and then we have salvation. Salvation that saves me, first of all from the penalty of sin, because the wages of sin is death. The soul that sinneth, it will surely die.

But when you and I believe on Jesus Christ, when we believe the gospel, and we’ve studied what the gospel is. Do you remember what it is? It’s the death of Jesus Christ for our sins, according to the scriptures, according to the Tanak, according to the Old Testament. It is the death of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, Yeshua, all right, so it is the death of Jesus Christ for our sins that saves us from sin, from the penalty of sin and from the power of sin. So where does the power of sin come in? Well, it is not only that I’m not going to go to hell, but it’s also that I don’t have to live like hell in this life. I can live victorious. I can live a life of victory just like my friend in the prison and just like the prisoners that she was telling me about.

So Romans 1-3:20 is about sinners. Chapter 3:21-5 is about salvation. Then in chapters 6, 7, and 8 what we see is we learn about sanctification. Sanctification means this; that you now have been set apart and you have the ability to say no to sin. You have the power to be set free from sin. And then in Romans, chapter 9, 10, and 11, the fourth segment of Romans, what do we see? We see it’s all by God’s sovereignty. So you can imagine God being sovereign. When I’m talking about God being sovereign, I mean God rules over all. So when I talk about His sovereignty I mean this. He’s sitting there on His throne. He’s God and He able to just crook His finger like this and we have to obey. All of heaven, all of earth has to obey because God is God.

You say, well then why doesn’t God tell them to shape up? Listen this is part of the process. Part of the process is you hearing the gospel so that you can shape up and eventually, and you’ll understand it later, eventually the whole world is going to shape up. So Romans 1-3:20, sinners; 3:21-5, saved, chapters 6-8, sanctified, sanctified, set apart, okay, chapters 9-11, by God’s sovereignty. And what is the last segment of Romans, the fifth segment of Romans? It’s chapters 12-16 and the book ends in chapter 16. And it’s this, for God’s service. In other words, God takes you once you know the gospel and He takes you and then He sends you into the world so that you might serve Him. Well when we come to Romans, chapter 1, we see Paul serving God. Let’s go back and pick it up.

And you can pick it up quickly if you’ll look at the booklet that you either ordered from us or if you will look at your Bible. But in Romans, chapter 1, he says that in verse 14, “In order that I might obtain some fruit among you, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.” Now why does he want to obtain fruit among them? He says in verse 9 of chapter 1, “For God whom I serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of God.” In other words, he obtains fruit, lives are changed, lives are transformed. Why? Because he’s serving God in the preaching or the proclamation of the gospel.

Now you think of preaching and you think of somebody that’s standing behind a pulpit and expounding the Word of God. Really what it simply means is that you’re going, wherever you go that when God gives you the opportunity you’re sharing with them, you’re proclaiming. To preach is to proclaim. You’re proclaiming a message that can change a person’s life.

Are you ready for a change? Are you ready for a change? Do you say, you know, I’m headed in the wrong direction I’m just in a state of lethargy, in a state of apathy? I’ve got to get out of this. I’ve got to do something. I’m so glad you’re listening. And it’s not by accident. In God’s sovereignty He’s saying, hey, come here, come on, come on, come here. Listen and learn how to study and I will bring a change in your life.

Okay. So let’s go to Romans, chapter 1 and I want you to see in verse 14, 15, and 16, three things about Paul. Number 1, in verse 14, he says, “I am under obligation. I am a debtor, both to Greeks and barbarians, to both the wise and the foolish.” He says, “Thus for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel. I am a debtor and I am a debtor to mankind. I am eager to preach the gospel.” In verse 16, “I am not ashamed of the gospel.” He says, “I am not ashamed of the gospel.” Why is he not ashamed of the gospel? Well first, you’ve got to mark gospel. All right, because we didn’t read this far before. So I want you to make that megaphone and I want you put it over verse 15. “I am eager to preach the gospel.” So put a megaphone over there. Do it in red. Color it green or whatever color you want to use. And he says, “I’m eager to preach it to you in Rome.” Verse 16, “for I am not ashamed of the gospel.” Put a megaphone there.

All right. “For it is the power of God.” So over the it, which is a pronoun that refers to the gospel, put a megaphone. And know this. That if you want to change, you can change, not in and of yourself, but you can change if you’ll believe the gospel because it will transform you like it transformed me and my friend and those prisoners. Okay, have you got your Bible or have you got your book with Romans in it? Okay, we need to mark the gospel again. Okay, and I don’t want you to miss it. But before we do, I’ve got to tell you something. I am so proud of you for listening and I’m so proud of you for wanting to know the truth. And I want you to know that when you seek for God and you search for Him with all your heart, you’re going to be found by God. He’s not going to leave you out there floundering. He’s not going to see you drowning and not rescue you. Romans, chapter 1, verse 16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel.” You’ve already got your megaphone there. “For it is the power of God.” All right, now I want you to mark the word, “power”, not because it’s mentioned again in this passage. But I want you get this word. Now that word for power in the Greek is “dunamis”, “d-u-n-a-m-i-s” and what word to you hear? That’s right, you hear dynamite. You hear an explosive in there and it is explosive. I mean it just absolutely changes and renovates you. All right, so it is the power of God. So the way I mark it is, I mark it like a firecracker. I mean I outline it in black and put that little fuse, to light, on there and then I color it red, okay, because it’s got power.

Okay, so he says, “I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is, the gospel is the power of God for salvation, now listen, to everyone, to everyone who believes.” Now this word belief and we’re going to go into it more later, but this word belief is not an intellectual assent. You know, when George Barna did all of the research on the beliefs of Americans, most of them said that they believed in God. A great proportion of them said that they believed in Jesus Christ, but they didn’t believe in hell and they didn’t believe people were going there. And they didn’t believe that the Bible was the Word of God. Something is eschew. Something is eschew. And it’s because we think of belief is yeah I believe, I believe, I can see the sun shining. I believe it’s day. You know, it’s not that kind of belief. It’s a belief that actually changes the way that you live. It’s a belief that actually changes the way you’re going to respond. We’ll go into it and I’ll give you all the meanings of belief later, but I just want you to see, “it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes, to the Jew first.”

And see the gospel is for the Jews. God’s favorite nation on the face of this earth is the Jews. Why? Because that is a nation that He created, out of all the Gentile nations on the earth. He chose Abraham and He says, I’m going to make of you a great nation. And then He goes on and He tells him, I’m going to be your God. And you’re going to be My people. So to the Jew first. He wants the Jews to have this message. Jesus was a Jew. The apostles were Jews. And so He wants the Jews to have this message. “It’s the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes, to the Jew first and also then to the Greek.” Now the Greek is another way for Paul to simply say Gentile. All right now watch what he says. “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith in …,” what? You got it! “… In the gospel.” So you’re going to put a megaphone over the “it”.

For in it, for in this gospel, for in this message, this message that is believed, this message that is embraced, this message that you say I’m going to commit myself to, this message that you’re going to live by, that message, when you believe it produces the righteousness of God.

In other words the reason that many of you want to be changed, or the reason you may want to be changed is simply because your life is so messed up, because you have just really really made a tangled web of where you are as a person or the people around you and so you want out of that web. You’ve been caught like a fly or a bug in a spiders web and he’s woven this web and he’s caught you and you’re struggling and the more that you’re struggling the more that sticky stuff is coming around you and the little spider is coming down and that spider comes down and he begins to spin more of this around you until more and more and more you’re caught and you’re just going down and down and down. What sets you free? What sets you free from Satan’s taking you down and down and down and you’ve got to know he’s very very real. The Bible says, “That the whole world lies under the power of the evil one.”

This is why they don’t like the name of Jesus Christ. This is why they don’t want it mentioned on television. This is why they want the Christians to shut up and get back in the walls of their church and be still. They don’t want them in politics. They don’t want them in social affairs. They don’t want them talking about God in school. Just shut them up and get rid of them. But you know what? When you shut them up and you get rid of them, then you’re not hearing the gospel. And when you don’t hear the gospel you become like, or when you turn away from the truth about God you become like what’s described in Romans, chapter 1, which we’re going to study.

All right, so he’s saying that in it, “in the gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed …,” how, “… from faith to faith.” Now “faith” is another key word that you’ll want to mark throughout the book of Romans. When you read it and I hope that what you’re doing is that you’re reading it through. I hope that you sit down and just prayerfully read through Romans and say, God just speak to me. Let me see these truths. Because faith comes by hearing and this is what Romans 10 says. “Because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God,” and because faith is something that you believe and you put your trust in and you act on then I draw a symbol of a Bible.

Is this Book really true? Is Jesus Christ really the Son of God? Whether you’re a Jew or whether you’re a Gentile, whether you’re a wise person or whether you’re a foolish person, whether you are cultured or whether you are just barbarian, it doesn’t matter, wherever you are I want you to know God wants you. God wants you. And all you have to do is come to Him and say, hey God; I want to know what truth is. I don’t want to play the fool. I don’t want to end up in hell when I could have ended up in heaven. He has a message for us and that message is, hey, it is appointed unto man once to die and after that the judgment. And the judgment depends on whether you believe the gospel or not.

Now listen, it’s not just a matter of believing because he says, in it, in verse 17. “In the gospel …,” he says, “… the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith.” Now when he’s talking about that it’s revealed from faith to faith, he’s saying it’s all by faith. In other words, you receive this message by faith. You finally say, okay, I’m going to believe. I’m going to believe what you say. I’m going to believe this Bible. My friends say I’m crazy but I’m going to believe it. So you believe it and then you live like it and you live accordingly, so it’s from faith to faith.

And it goes to say, just as it is written. Now listen to this. You talk about change, man, for the righteous man or woman shall live by faith. “The gospel reveals the righteousness of God and it reveals the righteousness of God from faith, you receive it unto faith because in it, because it is written that the righteous man shall live by faith.”

You say, righteous, what do you mean? You’re talking Bible talk. That’s right, I’m talking Bible talk. But righteous means this, it means that you do what God says is right. Not what you think is right, not according to what society says is right, but you do according to what God says is right. And the righteousness of God is this, that God always acts in a way that is proper, that is fair, that is equitable. He always acts according to His character and one of His attributes is righteousness. And this means that God is always right. He’s never wrong.

Now isn’t that encouraging to know, to understand that there’s someone that is always right and you can know that someone that’s right. And you know what? If you know that someone that’s right you know what? He’ll change your life.

Lives Drawn by the Exceeding Grace of God ~ Bob Hoekstra

They glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men, and by their prayer for you, who long for you because of the exceeding grace of God in you. (2 Corinthians 9:13-14)

The church at Corinth became a vivid illustration of what the grace of God can do in lives. God's grace was so mightily at work among them that believers in other parts of the church world were drawn by the exceeding grace of God: "who long for you because of the exceeding grace of God in you."

Paul's first letter to the Corinthians confronted their various problems. His second letter showed how they were responding to the convicting and transforming work of the Spirit of God. As the church at Corinth was growing in godliness, they were becoming a generous body of believers. They were learning to share with liberality that which the Lord had given to them. Such generosity was being exemplified to them by other churches in the region of Macedonia. "Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia: that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality" (2 Corinthians 8:1-2). While the churches in Macedonia were burdened for the needy churches in Judea, they themselves were very needy ("in a great trial of affliction…their deep poverty"). The explanation for this burden of compassion in Macedonia was the grace of God at work. "We make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia." God's grace was stirring in them a concern for others and a willingness to share their limited material resources.

A similar work of God was occurring in Corinth, and it was impacting the saints in regions beyond. As other Christians looked at God's grace operating in Corinth, they gave glory to God for their generosity. "They glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men." As they prayed for the saints at Corinth, their hearts were drawn after them in great yearning: "by their prayer for you, who long for you." When the grace of God is allowed to work deeply within followers of Jesus Christ, others develop a yearning to pray for them, to be with them, to communicate with them. They want to be impacted by the exceeding grace of God that has changed and enriched their lives.

Dear Lord of exceeding grace, I thank You for generously sharing the riches of Your grace with me. By Your grace, give me a generous heart towards others. Also, please flood my life with such fullness of grace that others will be drawn to learn more of Your exceeding grace, Amen.

A Sacrifice of Thanksgiving ~ Charles Stanley

Psalm 50
 

At first glance, the words sacrifice and thanksgiving have little connection, yet Scripture combines them in one phrase.

 

Sacrifice brings to mind images of painful relinquishment or costly service, whereas thanksgiving conveys a joyous response prompted by overflowing abundance and blessings. 

Generally, thanksgiving can be thought of as a verbal expression of gratitude for something good. In public worship services, we thank the Lord for His blessings with prayers and songs of praise, but these hardly seem like a sacrifice.

To gain understanding of this concept, let’s consider some costly ways of giving thanks to God. Words can be cheap, but a godly life given wholly to the Lord is extremely valuable to Him and sacrificial for us. This is not about perfection but rather a heart that is bent toward obeying the Lord and a life surrendered to His will and purpose. Those living this kind of self-less, Christ-centered life can offer genuine thanks which delights God’s heart.

Giving is another expression of gratitude that is costly. 

Since the Lord is the source of all provision and wealth, our grateful response should be to give Him a portion of all He has given us. Generosity is a good barometer of the authenticity of gratitude. 

Offering thanks to God begins with words, but like children who grow in appreciation as they mature, so we should be growing in expressions of gratitude to the Lord. 

Give Him your whole life as a sacrifice of thanksgiving—you’ll experience amazing benefits because you can never outgive God.

Melt Down the Saints ~ Raul Ries

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you…”

James 4:8

Chuck Swindoll reports that when Oliver Cromwell ruled England, the nation experienced a crisis: they ran out of silver and couldn’t mint any coins. Cromwell sent his soldiers to the cathedral to see if any silver was available. 

They reported back that the only silver was in the statues of the saints, to which Cromwell replied, “Let’s melt down the saints and get them back into circulation.”

Sometimes God must do that with us. 

We must be melted down so that we will get into circulation in the world for Him.

Thought for the Day:

Does your Christian life resemble a lifeless statue —a monument to a time when you were and active saint?

Restoring Relationships: Reconciliation, Not Always Resolution ~ Rick Warren

“Work hard at living in peace with others”

(1 Peter 3:11 NLT).

The seventh biblical step toward restoring a relationship is to emphasize reconciliation, not resolution.

It’s unrealistic to expect everyone to agree about everything. Reconciliation focuses on the relationship, while resolution focuses on the problem. When we focus on reconciliation, the problem loses significance and often becomes irrelevant.

We can re-establish a relationship even when we are unable to resolve our differences. Christians often have legitimate, honest disagreements and differing opinions, but we can disagree without being disagreeable.

The same diamond looks different from different angles. God expects unity, not uniformity, and we can walk arm in arm without seeing eye to eye on every issue.

This doesn't mean you give up on finding a solution. You may need to continue discussing and even debating - but you do it in a spirit of harmony. Reconciliation means you bury the hatchet, not necessarily the issue.

With whom do you need to restore fellowship? Pause right now and talk to God about that person. Then pick up the phone and begin the process. The seven steps toward restoring relationships are simple, but they’re not easy. It takes a lot of effort to restore a relationship, so Peter urged us to work hard at it (1 Peter 3:11 NLT).

When you work for peace, you are doing what God would do. That's why God calls peacemakers his children.