Category: Sermons

Are you wearing your big boy/girl pants? Part 2

 

It is interesting in our spiritual lives, growth is somewhat the opposite of our natural growth.

 

Paul wrote this to the church at Ephesus

 

Ephesians 4:15,16

“…we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. 16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.”

 

BTW Ephesians 4:11-16 is part of our Vision statement as a church.

 

The writer of Hebrews challenges us with this

Hebrews 5:11-13

There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don’t seem to listen. 12 You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. 13 For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. 14 Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.

 

So what does it look like to be spiritually mature? What does it mean to be a healthy growing Christian?

 

We are called to grow up together to look more and more like Christ what does that look like?

 

6) You Find Yourself Wanting to Obey God

 

In John 14:15, Jesus says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”

 

One of the natural expectations of a growing Christian is faithfulness and obedience to the commands of God. Not out of duty, but out of love for Him.

Our obedience results from what Jesus has done for us and of our love for Him.

7) You’re Growing as a Person

The apostle Paul, in Colossians 1:10, talks about bearing fruit.

Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.

In Galatians 5:22-23, he lays out the fruit of the Spirit:

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self- control. There is no law against these things

One of the best ways to measure growth is by looking at this fruit in our lives. Jesus put it this way in Matthew 7:16-20

You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. 19 So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. 20 Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions

All of this fruit should be visible not just in our own self-assessment. Impartial outsiders should be able to observe this fruit growing in our lives. If other people don’t see evidence of this fruit in our lives, then perhaps our fruit is not growing as much as we think it is.

8) You’re Less Worried About Personal Preferences and More Concerned about Unity

Paul, in Ephesians 4:11-15, notes that unity of the faith and knowledge of Jesus are measures of fullness in Christ.

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. 13 This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church

The war of personal preferences…. We have to learn to define the difference between personal preference and/or style and what God is doing.

9) You’re Willing to Speak the Truth in Love

Paul teaches us, in Ephesians 4:15-16, to speak the truth in love and to grow in Christ—which makes the whole body grow in love.

“Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. 16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.”

As you grow spiritually, you’ll learn not to avoid hard topics, but to speak into the lives of other believers—always with loving humility and grace.

 

10) You’re Engaged in Community

 

The writer of Hebrews encourages us to continue meeting together. In a culture moving further and further from regular church involvement, the Bible teaches that growing, mature Christians will continually and consistently meet together. We are created for community.

In review today’s ten signs of our maturing faith are

 

• Always learning more about the Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• Going in deeper with the Word
• Not waiting for others to feed you
• Learning and teaching others
• Grow in grace
• You find yourself wanting to obey God
• You are growing as a person
• You are less worried about personal preference and more worried about unity
• You’re willing to speak the truth in love
• You’re engaged in community

 

Where are you today? If you are doing this, rejoice, you are growing! If not take it as a challenge to see these signs of growth in your life.

 

 

 

Are you wearing your big boy/girl pants?

 

In human terms, as we mature we are striving to take what our parents did for us as a launching pad for our lives that we might surpass who they are and what they have accomplished because we started with a leg up because of their growth and sacrifice. We grow to become healthy mature adults by growing in independent.

It is interesting in our spiritual lives, that is somewhat the opposite. We start out in rebellion to God, at war with His plan for our lives and then we spend our lives focusing in on becoming more like Him more and more dependent on Him.

Paul wrote this to the church at Ephesus

 

Ephesians 4:15,16

“…we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. 16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.”

 

The writer of Hebrews challenges us with this

 

Hebrews 5:11-13

There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don’t seem to listen. 12 You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. 13 For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. 14 Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.

 

So what does it look like to be spiritually mature? What does it mean to be a healthy growing Christian?

 

 

• You are learning more about the one you love

 

John 14:23

Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them

 

 

Love is based on relationship and if the relationship is not growing it shows dysfunction

 

• You are digging into the deeper things of God

 

We read earlier in Hebrews 5:13,14

13 For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. 14 Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.

 

 

• You are not waiting for others to feed you

 

Maturity is shown but the disciple of being in the word being hungry for more practical experiences being “Jesus” to the world

 

Philippians 1:9,10

“I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. 10 For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return”

 

Which leads me to our last qualifier of maturity for today

 

• Constantly learning and teaching

 

2 Timothy 2:1

“You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

 

All of us are called to share what we know with others so they might find the hope we have.

 

• You’re Growing in Grace

 

2 Peter 3:18

“…you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, all glory to him, both now and forever! Amen”

 

Our default response should not be anger or bitterness but forgiveness and grace, even when people don’t deserve it. That’s what grace is.

 

 

In review today’s five signs of our maturing faith are

 

• Always learning more about the Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• Going in deeper with the Word
• Not waiting for others to feed you
• Learning and teaching others
• Grow in grace

 

Where are you today? If you are doing this rejoice, you are growing if not take it as a challenge to see these signs of growth in your life.

 

Next week I have five more challenges for you

 

 

Let’s change America today!

 

Matthew 6:33

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

What do we/you need?

I know there are many of you that have needs this morning

Some of you are in need of a physical miracle

Some a relationship miracle

Some a financial miracle

Some an emotional miracle

 

According to this scripture, how do we get our needs met?

 

Let’s read it again

Matthew 6:33

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

 

A few weeks ago we talked about loving God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength

Putting God above all else, our pride, our inadequacies, our fears, our needs and wants, our families, our entertainment, our opinions, our strength and simply everything

 

Let’s look at this scripture

 

2 Chronicles 7:11-16

So Solomon finished the Temple of the Lord, as well as the royal palace. He completed everything he had planned to do in the construction of the Temple and the palace. 12 Then one night the Lord appeared to Solomon and said, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this Temple as the place for making sacrifices. 13 At times I might shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or command grasshoppers to devour your crops, or send plagues among you. 14 Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. 15 My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place. 16 For I have chosen this Temple and set it apart to be holy—a place where my name will be honored forever. I will always watch over it, for it is dear to my heart

God is speaking to Solomon and very well known passage of scripture

 

He says church…

If there is a time when because of sin I stop my blessings

If there is a time that I need to get your attention by attacking your livelihood

If there is a time where the only way I can get your attention is to put you on your back

 

Then because I love you…I will do it

 

BUT

All you have to do is come to me..realize there is nothing you can do about it and you have to trust me, if you recognize that I am all that you need and you repent of your self-reliance, or your fearfulness and woeful inadequacy, or pride, selfishness, and you remember me, THEN I will hear, heal, and restore…As you keep your heart soft I will always keep my heart open to you

For too long the church has not thought right of themselves and the power and authority God has invested in us.

Allow me a little latitude today to make a comparison…the church is a butterfly that lives like a caterpillar.

 

In North America there are at least 8 different types of caterpillars that turn into butterflies the, Papilio glaucus becomes the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail one of the more common butterflies. (I have pictures of both of these)

We are called to be strong, beautiful, and full of life to go beyond the boundaries of earth but we exist day to day as caterpillars. You see an interesting thing about these caterpillars is that they have a butterfly in them from birth. So do you!

We are called to be giant killers, world changers, the only hope for our culture and nation and so much more.

What made Solomon into a man that God could speak to and use to build a great nation?

Solomon had gone to worship, he had given the Lord all of his best

 

– He put God first with his best of what God had given him

 

– He made the effort to seek God and want to know what God wanted he didn’t just rest on his power and position

 

-He humbled himself before God recognizing that everything he had, had become, and his future where all in the hands of an almighty God.

 

– He was not afraid to remind God of His promises which means He knew God’s word.

Let’s look at what had happened earlier in Solomon’s life that makes us aware of all of this.

 

1 Kings 3:4 – 14

The most important of these places of worship was at Gibeon, so the king went there and sacrificed 1,000 burnt offerings. 5 That night the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream, and God said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!” 6 Solomon replied, “You showed faithful love to your servant my father, David, because he was honest and true and faithful to you. And you have continued your faithful love to him today by giving him a son to sit on his throne. 7 “Now, O Lord my God, you have made me king instead of my father, David, but I am like a little child who doesn’t know his way around. 8 And here I am in the midst of your own chosen people, a nation so great and numerous they cannot be counted! 9 Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For who by himself is able to govern this great people of yours?” 10 The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for wisdom. 11 So God replied, “Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people with justice and have not asked for a long life or wealth or the death of your enemies— 12 I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding heart such as no one else has had or ever will have! 13 And I will also give you what you did not ask for—riches and fame! No other king in all the world will be compared to you for the rest of your life! 14 And if you follow me and obey my decrees and my commands as your father, David, did, I will give you a long life

In seeking God first and what God wanted Solomon ended up with every blessing.

This was something that was in Solomon, not a give to get game, he truly wanted what God wanted. He knew God’s word, had God’s heart, pursued Him daily so it was natural for Him to be seeking the Lord for what God wanted.

His heart was right to receive everything, because God knew He could be trusted.

I know every person here loves the Lord dearly but we get confused some times as to what our priorities should be. We get caught in traps of manipulation, fear, and selfishness and in return we end up with the blessings and plans God has for us, stolen.

Solomon set the nation up to succeed and prosper because of his seeking God and wanting God with all of His heart, soul, mind and strength not just for himself but for his nation.

Because of that….God gave Solomon all that he asked for plus brought down his enemies, blessed him with great prosperity, strength and length of days

Once again I ask you “What do you need (want)?”

God has got your back! He has got your needs under control.

Here is my challenge today

America needs to be great again, from God’s eyes stand point. We are the key to that and not only are we key to that, but also key to receiving all of the blessing God has for us.

Remember Matthew 6:33

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

I also want you to remember..

2 Chronicles 7:14,15

Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land. 15 My eyes will be open and my ears attentive to every prayer made in this place.

What do you need????

Let’s take time today, in unity, as a body of believers, to seek Him, to humble ourselves, to repent on behalf of our country.

You are welcome to kneel, to sit, to come to the altar but I want us a body, in each service to truly seek him for a few minutes.

I will lead off, then I am looking for people to pray for our nation, our state, and our communities…we will pray for just a few minutes

The key is there is power in agreement…we have several intercessors groups through our the week and month praying but I think it is important today because I felt this was direct guidance from the Lord that this week we would pray together as family or our nation, state, and communities

At the appropriate time, I will close us in prayer and we will all be dismissed.

Daniel’s Prayer 9:8-19 adapted for our present situation in America

 

O Lord, we and our leaders and all the people are covered with shame because we have sinned against you.  But the Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him. 10 We have not obeyed the Lord our God, for we have not followed the instructions he gave us through his servants the prophets. All of our nation has disobeyed your instruction and turned away, refusing to listen to your voice.  “So now the solemn curses and judgments written in your Word, have been poured down on us because of our sin. You have kept your word and done to us and our rulers exactly as you warned. Never has there been such a disaster as happened  Every curse written against us in your Word has come true. Yet we have refused to seek mercy from the Lord our God by turning from our sins and recognizing his truth. Therefore, the Lord has brought upon us the disaster he prepared. The Lord our God was right to do all of these things, for we did not obey him.  “O Lord our God, you brought lasting honor to your name by rescuing your people from Egypt in a great display of power. But we have sinned and are full of wickedness.  In view of all your faithful mercies, Lord, please turn your furious anger away from your people, your holy mountain. All the neighboring nations mock us, and your people because of our sins and the sins of our ancestors.  “O our God, hear your servant’s prayer! Listen as I plead. For your own sake, Lord, smile again on your people.  “O my God, lean down and listen to me. Open your eyes and see our despair. See how your nation—the nation that is dedicated to you—is broken. We make this plea, not because we deserve help, but because of your mercy.  “O Lord, hear. O Lord, forgive. O Lord, listen and act! For your own sake, do not delay, O my God, for your people and your city bear your name

 

Ezekiel 22:30,31

“I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one. 31 So now I will pour out my fury on them, consuming them with the fire of my anger. I will heap on their heads the full penalty for all their sins. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken.

 

MAY THAT NEVER BE LORD,WE WILL STAND IN THE GAP!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 3:16 connection

Who is Jesus?

Matthew 3:16,17

After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy

He is God’s son and he is one with the Father and Holy Spirit as we see in this scripture

Luke 3:16

John answered their questions by saying, “I baptize you with water; but someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

 

He will pour out a purifying fire and be the baptizer in the Holy Spirit. He makes it possible for us to have the power we need to overcome and be salt and light in the world.

John 3:16,17

“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him

 

He came to take on all of our sin, he is once again, the SON of God and he came not by way of judgment but love. He shows us that god will spare nothing to show us His great love

Acts 3:16

“Through faith in the name of Jesus, this man was healed—and you know how crippled he was before. Faith in Jesus’ name has healed him before your very eyes

Through faith in Jesus all manner of miracles can occur, he is our healer and all that we need.

 

1 Timothy 3:16

16 Without question, this is the great mystery of our faith: Christ was revealed in a human body and vindicated by the Spirit. He was seen by angels and announced to the nations. He was believed in throughout the world and taken to heaven in glory

He is the anointed of God (Christ), the son as we mentioned before who came in human form which means he is more than human. Angels worship him and obey Him. He is still alive (even though He was crucified) and is reigning from heaven

Review who is Christ according to the 3:16 connection

 

• He is God…one with the Father and Holy Spirit
• He is the purifier and the releaser of the Holy Spirit
• He is the Son of God, took on all of our sin not for judgment but for love, showing us God would spare nothing for His love for us
• He is our healer and all we need
• He is the anointed one, came in flesh, angels worship Him, He still lives

Who are we in Christ?

1 Corinthians 3:16

Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you.

God at one time commanded a temple to be built to house His presence while on earth but because of Christ he no longer lives in buildings built but human hands but temples built by God, all of those who have laid down their lives, wills to Him. We are His dwelling place

2 Corinthians 3:16,17

But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom

We are free…from the power of the enemy, the bondage of sin, and the control of our flesh…we are not called to bondage but if we are the temple of the indwelling God then we are free in Him

 

Galatians 3:16,17

God gave the promises to Abraham and his child. And notice that the Scripture doesn’t say “to his children,” as if it meant many descendants. Rather, it says “to his child”—and that, of course, means Christ. 17 This is what I am trying to say: The agreement God made with Abraham could not be canceled 430 years later when God gave the law to Moses. God would be breaking his promise

We are the recipients of the promise through Christ, all of His promises so we don’t need to live as though we have no promise.

Review Who are we in Christ according to the 3:16 connection?

 

• the dwelling place of God’s spirit
• We are free of every bondage
• Recipients of all the promises of God

How should we act as Christians?

Ephesians 3:16,17

I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. 17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong

We should be people of intense love not because of what we see, feel or otherwise experience but because we trust in Him

Colossians 3:16

Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts

We should have in our hearts the message of Christ so full that we easily teach it based on the wisdom He gives us. Living lives full of music and gratitude

2 Thessalonians 3:16

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you his peace at all times and in every situation. The Lord be with you all

WE should be at peace in every situation

James 3:16,17

For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.17 But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere

 

We should be people full of wisdom and the fruit of that wisdom is peace, gentleness, yielding to others, full of mercy and showing this wisdom through our everyday actions

1 Peter 3:16

But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to ChristWe need to be people of clear conscience, not sinning but walking from of sin so no one can accuse us of anything, which shows we truly belong to Christ

1 John 3:16

We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters

We are people driven by love willing as Christ has laid down His life for us being willing to lay down our lives for one another

Philippians 3:16

But we must hold on to the progress we have already made!

We are a people who are always moving forward

Review How should we act as true followers of Christ according to the 3:16 connection?

 

• We act out of love and trust in Him
• We should have hearts full of gratitude able to teach with wisdom
• We should be at peace
• WE should be full of wisdom bearing the fruit of this through mercy, peace and gentleness and our actions reflecting this
• We should live with a clear conscience
• We are people of love laying down our lives for Christ and others
• We are always to move forward

How do we live this way?

2 Timothy 3;16

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right

The only way we can live this way is by having the living word in us. Even the Holy Spirit is limited by our submitting to the Lord and letting His Word live in us. We can not be taught, guided, know what is right apart from His word being alive in us

What should we look out for?

Revelation 3:16

But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth

Be aware of becoming lukewarm not hot and on fire nor cool and refreshing

The 3;16 connection mostly works with the exception of Mark, Romans, 1Thessalonians, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, 2 Peter, 2&3 John, Jude

This is a quick and easy way to tell the Jesus story for our world and our lives.

 

 

It’s in our blood. Part 2

 

Just in review of last week

From the outside, the idea of the blood of Christ is a gory, grotesque principle. Most people become squeamish at the sight of blood. But God established a penalty and a price for sin and mankind’s sinful nature. It was the sacrificial exchange of one life for another.

Leviticus 17:11

“For the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the Lord. It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible.

 

Another way to read this verse is…

God said, “I have given it to you (the creature’s life, which is in its blood) to make atonement for yourselves (covering the offense you have committed against Me).” In other words, those who are covered by the blood sacrifice are set free from the consequences of sin. The last clause of Leviticus 17:11 could be read either “the blood ‘makes atonement’ at the cost of the life” (i.e., the animal’s life) or “makes atonement in the place of the life”

 

Sin has cost the human race…

 

– Real intimate relationship with God.

– It has limited our potential as human beings,

– It has brought us under the bondage and control of the author of lawlessness and sin, Satan.

– It keeps us mentally and emotionally enslaved to guilt and shame.

– It blocks us from peace with God.

 

But none of that is God’s plan for our lives. He created Adam and Eve to live perfect lives in daily relationship with Him. In the beginning He would come and hang out with them each evening just to spend time with them face to face.

The problem with the Levitcal law was it was a temporary fix. Every time there was sin another animal would need to be sacrificed. Think about that in your own life. The Levitcal sacrifice was only ceremonial, in that, it could not completely make one pure enough to stand in the presence of a Holy God.

Last week we talked about the first four points of the blood of Christ

 

• We have a relationship with the Father because of Jesus’ life
• We have been bought back from the enemy by our big brother
• We are no longer under any condemnation
• There has been a line of separation drawn between us and all of our enemies

 

This week we continue on with four more.

 

 

5. Christ’s blood provides for bold access into God’s presence.

 

Hebrews 10:19

“Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus”.

 

Blaise Pascal, the French mathematician, physicist and philosopher, spoke of a “God-shaped vacuum” in every human being that only God Himself can fill.

 

In the Lord’s presence is….

 

– “strength and gladness (joy)” – 1 Chronicles 16:27

– “rest” – Exodus 33:14

– “fullness of joy and pleasures forever more” – Psalm 16:11

– “times of refreshing” – Acts 3:19

 

6. Jesus’ blood brings justification to the guilty.

 

Romans 3:24

 

“Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus”.

 

One of the common tactics of the enemy of man’s soul involves accusation.

 

Scripture actually refers to Satan as the accuser of God’s people (Rev. 12:10). One of his ploys begins with, “And you call yourself a Christian.” The statement hurts, and the enemy knows how to guide it into the human mind with pinpoint accuracy.

The problem with such accusations is that more often than not, they are true.

 

At this point, God’s teaching concerning forgiveness through Jesus’ blood gives a person the ability to resist the enemy’s accusations.

 

Once sin is dealt with through Christ, in a very real sense, it is as if it never happened. It is gone forever, never to be acknowledged again.

 

“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony” Revelation 12:11

 

7. Jesus’ blood takes care of a defiled conscience.

 

Hebrews 9:14

 

“How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”.

 

It is easy to pursue religious activities in order to appease God or our own conscience or to pay Him back for the wrongs we have done—or even to earn the right to enter into His holy heaven.

 

All of this is worthless in light of what the Bible says about justification. Which is are being made right in God’s eyes. Justification is only by faith, not something where we can be good enough we simply have to accept Christ sacrifice rather than thinking our goodness of work can make us right before God. We are already justified by His blood.

 

Acts 13:38,39

 

“Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses”.

 

8. Jesus’ blood brings peace to troubled hearts.

 

At Jesus’s birth, the heavenly host promised peace to men. In one way or another, everyone is looking for peace. The Scriptures declare that genuine and lasting peace is only available through Jesus’ blood.

 

Colossians 1:20

 

“Having made peace through the blood of His cross”.

WE have peace through the blood of Christ because…

 

-we are separated from the world and placed in real relationship with the Father

– We can live in the Father’s presence always

– Our conscience is made clear

– We have forgiveness not because of what we can do but instead what He has done for us.

 

WE have something the children of Israel never had a new covenant with God, not based on our work, goodness, or sacrifice but Christ blood

 

Hebrews 9:11-15

 

So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world. 12 With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.

13 Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. 14 Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. 15 That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant

 

This is what Jesus meant by His dying words on the cross: “It is finished” John 19:30. Never again would the blood of bulls and goats cleanse men from their sin.

 

Only by accepting Jesus’ blood, shed on the cross for the remission of sins, can we stand before God covered in the righteousness of Christ 2 Corinthians 5:21

 

“For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him”.

 

Today we will celebrate communion

 

The cup of the Communion table is also a reminder of blood. Jesus said, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission [forgiveness] of sins” (Matt. 26:28).

 

Share and serve Communion

 

 

 

EXTRA SCRIPTURE REFERENCES FOR THE APP

 

 

 

Here are the 20 Things the Blood of Christ Does

 

1.      It remits sins (Matt. 26:28).
2.      It gives life to those who consume it (John 6:53).
3.      It causes us to dwell in Christ and He in us (John 6:56).
4.      It is the means by which Jesus purchased the church (Acts 20:28).
5.      It is the means by which Jesus becomes our atonement through faith (Rom. 3:25).
6.      It justifies us and saves us from wrath (Rom. 5:9).
7.      It redeems us (Eph. 1:7; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Rev. 5:9).
8.  It draws us nearer to Christ (Ephesians 2:13)
9.      It grants us the forgiveness of sins (Col. 1:14).
10.    It brings peace and reconciliation to God (Col. 1:20).
11.    It has obtained eternal redemption for us (Heb. 9:12).
12.    It cleanses our conscience from dead works to serve the living God (Heb. 9:14).
13.    It is the means by which we enter the most holy place with boldness (Heb. 10:19).
14.    It speaks a better word than the blood of Abel (Heb. 12:24, NIV).
15.    It sanctifies us (Heb. 13:12).
16.    It makes us complete for every good work (Heb. 13:20-21, NKJV).
17.    It cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7).
18.    It bears witness in the earth along with the Spirit and the water (1 John 5:8, KJV).
19.    It is the means by which Jesus washes us (Rev. 1:5; 7:14).
20.    It is the means by which we overcome the accuser of the brethren (Rev. 12:11).

 

 

It’s in our blood!

Throughout the centuries, undoubtedly many have partaken of the Communion elements without understanding what the bread and the cup really represent. An examination of the Scriptures reveals a number of things about Jesus’ blood also…

I am hearing the phrase, “I plead the blood of Jesus” a lot more again in prayer and the way it is used I am not sure we fully understand the meaning of that phrase.

From the outside, the idea of the blood of Christ is a gory, grotesque principle. Most people become squeamish at the sight of blood. But God established a penalty and a price for sin and mankind’s sinful nature. It was the sacrificial exchange of one life for another.

Leviticus 17:11

“For the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the Lord. It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible.

Another way to read this verse is…

God said, “I have given it to you (the creature’s life, which is in its blood) to make atonement for yourselves (covering the offense you have committed against Me).” In other words, those who are covered by the blood sacrifice are set free from the consequences of sin. The last clause of Leviticus 17:11 could be read either “the blood ‘makes atonement’ at the cost of the life” (i.e., the animal’s life) or “makes atonement in the place of the life”

Sin has cost the human race…

– Real intimate relationship with God.

– It has limited our potential as human beings,

– It has brought us under the bondage and control of the author of lawlessness and sin, Satan.

– It keeps us mentally and emotionally enslaved to guilt and shame.

– It blocks us from peace with God.

But none of that is God’s plan for our lives. He created Adam and Eve to live perfect lives in daily relationship with Him. In the beginning He would come and hang out with them each evening just to spend time with them face to face.

The problem with the Levitcal law was it was a temporary fix. Every time there was sin another animal would need to be sacrificed. Think about that in your own life. The Levitcal sacrifice was only ceremonial, in that, it could not completely make one pure enough to stand in the presence of a Holy God.

So the blood of Jesus was necessary to do all the work that sets us free. So when we are praying and someone says, “I plead the blood of Jesus” they are simply bringing to recollection what Christ has done. Today we need to begin our journey of recognizing what Christ has done by His laying down His life for us on the cross pouring out His life in place of ours. Each of these points is worth celebrating!!!!!!!

His blood is necessary for reconciliation with God.

Ephesians 2:13

“But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ”

The Scriptures teach that Jesus’s blood is literally there to re-establish (reconcile) our relationship with God.

– we can’t stand before a Holy God or have relationship with Him in our sin…until we come to Christ we are at war with God, our flesh wants its own way and we are our own gods but when we recognize we are in need of a Savior and our sinful nature then we can because of Christ life being poured out for us, accept that and come to Him

Jesus’ blood compensates for all the wrong a person has ever done.

Ephesians 1:7

“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace”

At first, the cross seemed a tragedy, but in the end it resulted in the ultimate good—the forgiveness of sins, redemption.

Redemption carries the idea of “buying back” humanity, as well as deliverance from enslavement to sin.

This buying back could not be accomplished with money or any other physical thing because the price was higher than anything on earth could buy. Blood was the only price, as is understood in the breaking of any blood covenant.

The “redemption” price, could only be paid by a blood relative as well; that is part of why God came in the form of a human being. We through accepting the sacrifice become family, joint heirs with Jesus.

God plays by His own rules

Jesus’ blood keeps a person free from sin.

1 John 1:7

“But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin”

– Few things in life are as troubling as the constant reminder and condemnation resulting from sin.

– Because of Christ blood we are free of every sin, thus the enemy and our own flesh do not have the right to condemn us

– we are clean and pure not because of our strength our goodness but because of Jesus sacrifice on the cross

Jesus’ blood is for sanctification.

Hebrews 13:12

“Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate”

Sanctification is a big “Christianese” word means “to be set apart,” and the application of Jesus’ blood sets a person apart as God’s very own.

– we are separate from the world

– we are separate from the devil and evil in general

– we are separate from our own flesh

We are called to be God’s own and no one else’s… making us Children of the King! Not by our work but by His love.

This is only the beginning of what Christ blood has done for us. This is what is truly meant when we “plead the blood of Jesus”

 

• We have a relationship with the Father because of Jesus’ life
• We have been bought back from the enemy by our big brother
• We are no longer under any condemnation
• There has been a line of separation drawn between us and all of our enemies

 

Please allow this to sink into you. If you are being beaten and abused by the enemy or your past sins come this morning and allow the blood of Christ to set you free.

To help you understand this let’s look at this last passage.

Ephesians 1:3-5

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

 

 

 

 

 

Real strength changes the world

 

The first week we talked about loving God with all of your heart the seat of our affections, passions, and desires.

Two weeks ago week it was about the soul, to love the Lord with all your soul means to love Him in the way we live, in the choices we make and in the behavior and lifestyle we adopt reflected by those choices.

Last week the mind is the seat of reason, knowledge, imagination, it is the place of thinking and judgment it is where feelings are interpreted, it enables us to comprehend and apply perception. We are to love him with all of that as well

Placing Him first know that as we do that all of those things are fulfilled in a greater manner than we could ever imagine.

So many things demanding our attention but Hebrews says this…

Hebrews 12:1,2

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God

Jesus challenged all people including each of us with this

Mark 12:28- 30

One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” 29 Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: “Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.”

Loving the Lord with all of our strength what does that mean? It is loving God with all of our ability, all of our possessions, all of our skills. Loving Him with all our strength is to love with our resources, our abilities and our time.

To love the Lord with all our strength means to love him “exceedingly” “richly”, “lavishly”, with reckless abandon out of simple devotion.

In more practical terms it means we are to love Him 110%.  To go all-out. To give it your best shot. If we fall down, to pick ourselves back up and keep going forward. To love Him with all our might.

1 John 3:18,19

Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. 19 Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God

To fully love Him with what we find our hands to do, our eyes to see, our ears to hear, our feet to go and our mouths to speak.

1. Love Him with what we find our hands to do.

 We are to serve the Lord diligently being His hands extended in our world.

We love Him by giving a cup of cold water to those in need.

Matthew 10:42

And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward

Feeding the poor. Laying hands on the sick. Lifting our hands in worship. Loving your children, loving your spouse fighting to engage them to grow in Christ.

Playing an instrument. Working with excellence. Whatever it is that you do for a living or as your daily life to produce something, do it as you are for the Lord.

Ecclesiastes 9:10

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going

The list can go on and on. Our hands serve a major purpose in loving God with all our strength.

Practically, it is simply believing that you are a child of God and as you dedicate your work to the Lord you honor Him and thus are loving Him with the work of your hands. Loving God with our skills, our work, our play, all that we have.

2) Love Him with our eyes and what they see.

 The eyes are the gateway to the heart/soul.

“We are to set our eyes on Jesus the author and finisher of our faith”, Hebrews 12:2

Our eyes come in contact with so much during the day yet we love Him well when we see what pleases Him. We become what we behold.

It takes nothing to make quick negative judgments over all that we see but we must see the way that God sees…not simply sinners, addicts, jerks but people that God loves

It takes nothing to see things as problems but God calls us to see things through His eyes as Christians we never have any problems but through His eyes, “opportunities”. We see the way He sees there is only hope, love in the way He sees

3) Love Him with ears to hear.

 Jesus said many times, “if anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” Kind of a funny statement but a powerful one.

What He is saying is listen to be transformed. Listen to be changed. Listen for more than information but to gain revelation.

When we gain access to His voice we are loving Him well. He is always speaking to us we are His children.

 

John 10:27

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me 

When we listen to others share their story, listen to their thoughts and hear their pain, we are using our strength to love

We need to not listen to gossip, slander, backbiting and negative discussions. These are all part of loving Him with all our strength.

4) Love Him with feet to go.

 

Where our feet take us on the journey in life says a lot about how we love the Lord.

Jesus laid it out when he said to “go and make disciples” Matthew 28:19. The great commission is all about going.

When we go and serve, go to church, go to a friend in need, go the extra mile, we are loving Him with all our strength. Be led by the Spirit and let Him lead you into amazing places and divine opportunities.

Where ever we go we are to bring with us Jesus.

 

Matthew 10 :12,13

When you enter the home, give it your peace (blessing). 13 If it turns out to be a worthy home, let your peace (blessing) stand; if it is not, take back the blessing

 

Acts 3: 3-8

When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for some money.4 Peter and John looked at him intently, and Peter said, “Look at us!” 5 The lame man looked at them eagerly, expecting some money. 6 But Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, get up and walk!” 7 Then Peter took the lame man by the right hand and helped him up. And as he did, the man’s feet and ankles were instantly healed and strengthened. 8 He jumped up, stood on his feet, and began to walk! Then, walking, leaping, and praising God, he went into the Temple with them

Wherever we go we are to bring Jesus, both the power and the fruit of the Holy Spirit changing the environment wherever we are.

5 Love Him with our mouth to speak.

 May the words we say bring glory to the Lord. When we edify, encourage, comfort, honor, support and bring life.

Proverbs 18:21

The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences

To others we create access for them to discover God’s kindness. We get to love Him by declaring praise and worship to the Lord. Also, when we boldly share our faith with others.

Ephesians 6:19

And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike

We bring them into a relationship with God and when we instruct, coach and counsel others, it all counts in loving the Lord with all our strength.

 

2 Timothy 3:16

 

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

 

What a privilege we have to love the Lord with all our might, with a reckless abandon expressed in a sold out life.

 

I think of Psalm 84:2 where the writer lays out his hearts cry…”my heart and flesh out for the living God”.

 

My soul longs, yes, even faints for the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God

 

The New Testament equivalent is found here in Mark 12:30 to love Him with all our heart, mind, soul and strength.

 

How do we do it?

 

• Pray and ask the Lord to use your strength by surrendering it all to Him. “Father, I give to you all that I am and all that I do and I ask that you use me as a blessing to you and others”

 

• Remind yourself daily that all that you have and all that you are came from the Lord. You destiny will only be fulfilled as you trust the Lord with all.

 

• Determine to surrender more of your self everyday and watch how the Lord uses your strength and makes you even stronger every day

 

 

We have learned a lot in this series. You will change the world and your world if you practically apply all of this. Today there is an altar call and it is simply this. I want you to consider coming to this altar and simply saying “Father, I surrender myself completely to you heart, soul, mind, and strength again. Guide me, use me, fulfill your purpose and my destiny completely. Allow me to be a world changer and I will change my world!”

A mind is a terrible thing to waste

The first week we talked about loving God with all of your heart the seat of our affections, passions, and desires.

Last week it was about the soul, to love the Lord with all your soul means to love Him in the way we live, in the choices we make and in the behavior and lifestyle we adopt reflected by those choices.

Placing Him first know that as we do that all of those things are fulfilled in a greater manner than we could ever imagine.

So many things demanding our attention but Hebrews says this…

 

Hebrews 12:1,2

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God

 

Jesus challenged all people including each of us with this

Mark 12:28- 30

One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” 29 Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: “Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.”

 

What is the mind? We need to separate the “mind” from the brain. The brain is an organ that functions on the firing of electronic impulses and chemical reactions the mind is so much more than that it is the seat of reason, knowledge, understanding, it is the place of thinking and judgment it is where feelings are interpreted, it enables us to comprehend and apply perception.

 

The renewed mind plays a vital role in loving Jesus. In Romans 12:2 Paul said this

 

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

A major part of being transformed into the image and likeness of Jesus must require our minds being renewed. It’s a big deal.

Let’s look at the mind. The language of the mind is images. Often our mind is an ongoing movie screen that provides pictures and words that are endless.

The renewing must take place for two reasons

1) God’s mercies are new every morning and He wants a fresh encouraging wave of His love, mercy, wisdom, and understanding to flood us every day based on the way He views things.

2) We are bombarded every day, by images and thoughts that give us reasons to doubt, lose hope, and generally destroy who we are created to be.

 

So much of our life is lived in our minds because we can never turn our minds off. We find ourselves constantly seeing images being played for us or holding a conversation in our mind, some times all at the same time.

The Lord created us this way for ceaseless communion with Him. It is the continual reality and stream of our life. When our body sleeps our mind stays active dreaming through the night.

To love God with all our mind is a supernatural possibility. Though the mind is never meant to rule the heart it can be used to affectionately love the Lord. As our mind is renewed the Holy Spirit releases supernatural activity to love Jesus more.

Here are four unique ways to love the Lord with our minds.

 

1. Reason

To reason is to think, understand and form judgments by a process of logic. I believe that part of loving God with all our mind is loving him logically. For guys like me this is a relief. I enjoy strategic thinking and order. God has given this as a gift.

 

Isaiah 1:18-20

“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; 20 but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken”

 

God challenges us to process things, think them through, to grasp the full understanding to receive the blessing or understand the repercussions of our decisions

I must note though, that reason should never trump revelation. The mind is the learner. We however, must choose through have the mind, soul, and heart in tandem, to make Christ our treasure. Then, the heart receives from the Lord first and the mind processes and grasp the full implication of that truth and is able to through reason, knowledge and even imagination put all the pieces together to make the full commitment to Christ.

Without all of these parts working together we can run into trouble. When we prize reason over revelation we have a God made in our own image and likeness. Faith in many ways goes beyond reason. It looks to the impossible and trusts in the All-Knowing God.

Yet reason is powerful. We can systematically and logically look at the ways God has intersected our lives and give Him praise.

With reason we connect all of the dots from time, history, old and new and understand how the form the plan of God.

With reason we are able to make the wise decisions as the sons of Issachar understood the time and the seasons and knew what Israel was meant to do

 

2. Knowledge

To love God with all our mind involves taking time to fill our mind with God’s Word and to rightly agree with who He is. When we grow in truth we gain knowledge.

 

Hebrews 10:16

“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,”

When we come into agreement with God it awakens love in us. Love itself includes great depths of knowledge. Loving God is continually refueled when the mind encounters truth over and over.

Knowing truth and loving God are deeply connected. Jesus is the Truth. As our mind grows in the knowledge of Jesus we are liberated to love Him more.

A.W. Tozer once said, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.

 

3. Memory

 

Psalm 20:7

Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the Lord our God

The Bible is filled with commands to remember. Memories lead to gratefulness and worship. When we use our minds to remember His kindness, faithfulness, patience, peace etc. we build a foundation of faith, hope and love. We are loving God with our remembrance.

For some, we cannot forget the negative events of the past because the past has a voice.

 

Philippians 3:13,14

No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us

 

We must triumph over it with truth. Don’t allow your past to freeze you but rather lead you into the depths of God’s love. Our thinking about the past can affect us positively by remembering the truth about God’s goodness toward us in forgiving, delivering and providing for us.

Isaiah 63:7

I will tell of the Lord ’s unfailing love. I will praise the Lord for all he has done. I will rejoice in his great goodness to us.

 

4. Imagination

 

Psalm 8:3

When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers— the moon and the stars you set in place—

 

God has given the mind the power to imagine. Some call it dreaming big dreams. Some say get a “picture” of your future. While others say if you can see it, you can be it. Imagination sees, creates and thinks outside the box.

 

Isaiah 55:8

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine

 

In our imagination heaven’s thoughts can come to us and be captured. With our imagination we actually can extend our knowledge to explore the possibilities we have in God in all areas of our lives. This releases love which is anchored in faith.

We have the mind of Christ. Let’s love Him with it!

 

How do we make this happen?

 

• Give God control of our thought process. “Pray Father allow me to reason and understand all the ways you love me and to look beyond my own understanding to the ways you think about me and the plans you have for me.”

 

• Make a decision to stop reacting and to start being proactive and thoughtful about everything that crosses your path.

 

 

• Remember that God is the most creative mind in the universe and He can give you the knowledge, imagination and reason to overcome any difficulty

 

• The books of the Bible that will help you start to understand the full use of the ways in which the mind functions for reason and knowledge… Romans and for imagination and knowledge Psalms.

One last scripture Philippians 4:8

 

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things

Getting your soul on fire

Last week we talk about loving God with all of your heart the seat of our affections, passions, and desires.

Placing Him first know that as we do that all of those things are fulfilled in a greater manner than we could ever imagine.

So many things demanding our attention but Hebrews says this…

Hebrews 12:1,2

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God

Jesus challenged all people including each of us with this

Mark 12:28- 30

One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” 29 Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: “Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.”

This week we are going to talk about loving God with all of our soul but we must define what a soul is first in order to know what to do with it. What is interesting is in many verses heart and soul are connected and that is because as we will see they are very closely related.

People often confuse the soul and spirit but the Bible separates the two

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

1 Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So what is our soul?

The best way to describe our soul is it is our personality, the definition of who we are, our identity.

It’s where we make our decisions and choices that ultimately decide our lifestyle and behavior.

To love the Lord with all your soul means to love Him in the way we live, in the choices we make and in the behavior and lifestyle we adopt.

Here are three predominant ways to love God with all our soul.

Love the Lord with all your soul by making Godly choices.

 Our lives are the sum of the choices we make.

Plain and simple. Our choices show what we are committed to and they reflect our core values, defining us and displaying our lifestyle before the world.

We do what we value. Last week we talked about having Christ as our treasure and if we do have Christ as our treasure our choices will mirror that treasure.

Our choices flow from what we treasure most!

Ask yourself: How do I spend my money? What do I do with my time? What kinds of things do I read? What programs do I watch? What do I do for entertainment? Where do I go for relaxation? What things give comfort in difficult times? What kind of friends do I have?

All of these result in choices that demonstrate whether we love God with all our soul.

Love the Lord with all your soul by pursuing obedience to His Word.

Love must be demonstrated. When we keep His commandments, when we live by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God, we are tangibly expressing our love for the Lord.

John 14:15

“If you love me, obey my commandments

I’ve been happily married for over 32 years. In those 32 years I have made decisions based on love that I did not feel like making but I did it anyway. I am obedient to the covenant that I made over 32 years ago to love unconditionally whether I feel like it or not.

That’s why this second part of the First Commandment is vital.

Sometimes we are not going to feel like loving God but we do it out of love for God, nonetheless. In the Kingdom, obedience usually comes first and feelings second.

Our feelings will lie to us and also can even create fear in us. Saul had captured the Amalakites, virtually destroying the entire race (1 Samuel 15). He had the best of intentions in bringing back sheep, goats, cattle and all these things, as an offering to God but he choose instead of being obedient to God’s command to destroy everything he went with his feelings and it cost him the kingdom, not right away mind you. God knew his heart, he brought the animals back not to honor God but to show everyone how great he was, his insecurity was revealed and caused him to make bad choices.

Our choices always impact us but sometimes the real impact is not felt for years. His choice was based on his fear and his devotion was not to God but the way people thought of him, his reputation, his fears

Love the Lord with all your soul by pursuing a life of humility in attitudes and speech.

 Embracing humility is the stage where we can express our love to the Lord. Jesus taught us how to love from a place of meekness, serving us unto death.

Meekness is merely power under control.

A person who is meek understands the authority, privilege, and or power that they walk in but the choose to restrain that power except to promote love. There is both a confidence and security in meekness that enables us to make living choices that bring life to people because we are confident of who we are and whose we are and our lives reflect that through our attitudes and choices. It is always about promoting the Lord’s agenda which ultimately fulfills us because we were created to promote the Lord’s agenda.

This meekness is expressed most dynamically in our attitudes and speech. What we say and how we say it enhances or quenches our ability to love the Lord by the power of the Spirit.

Wrong speech will ultimately affect our spiritual lives and work against our love for the Lord. It also reveals where we are in our walk with Christ. It reveals again, what we treasure

Matthew 12:34,35

For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.

Proverbs 18:21

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit

When Jesus is our Great Treasure then our affections are captured. This is how we love God with all of our heart.

When our affections are captured then choices become God-centered and a lifestyle of humility and godliness is born. This is loving God with all your soul.

So what do we need to do?

 

• We must decide to make choices based on Christ at the center. Pray this simple prayer “Lord help me to make wise choices based on you being the center of my life”

 

• Allow the Lord to show you when you are making choices based on fleshly center ideas rather than “God-centered” ideas

 

 

• Recognize that God’s spirit is in you and with you so the greatest power in the universe is living in you and if you choose will cause you to make choices that will fulfill your destiny and purpose.

 

• Read the books of Acts and Judges in particular to take note of when people where making choices based on the Lord’s leading versus their own desires and the price of blessing of both.

 

Two down and two to go. In the next few weeks we will look at how to love God with all our mind and strength.