Last week's lesson below this week: (check for the voice message on Sermons on our home page)
25 Jan:
Christians “CAN” vs. “Cannot”
Last week I brought a lesson sharing some things that Christians cannot do -
Christians CANNOT:
- CONTROL ALL THINGS – THEY MUST ACCEPT GOD’S WILL
- SERVE TWO MASTERS – THEY MUST DECIDE WHICH ONE TO SERVE
- PRODUCE DIFFERENT FRUIT – WE MUST BE PART OF THE VINE of CHRIST
- BE HIDDEN – WE BRING THE LOVE OF GOD INTO THIS WORLD
In order for us to do each of these things – to accept God’s will, to serve the Lord instead of our own passions, to be a part of the vine of Christ, to be that guiding light to the lost -
WE MUST HAVE THE HOLY SPIRIT WITHIN US!
John 15:4,5 “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abide in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine – you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”
Being a religious person does not necessarily connect a person to the Lord and allow the Holy Spirit to grow within. In Mat 7:21 Jesus tells us that not everyone who crises “Lord, Lord” or even does religious things like casting out demons and prophesying will enter into heaven. Jesus tells us their rejection is because He does not know them.
So, the question may arise as to how are we going to be connected to Jesus as our vine?
The answer is: WE MUST MAKE AN INTENTIONAL EFFORT TO HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LORD!!!
HOW can this be accomplished – by a variety of different ways:
HOW to abide and stay connected: 1) intentional prayer (set aside time specifically for prayer; include prayer thoughts throughout the day Col 3:1-3 “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth – for you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
2) Develop a habit of reading Scripture 2 Tim 2:15 “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who doe not need to be ashamed, rightly handling the Word of Truth.” Acts 17:11 “Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.” Psalms 1:1,2 “How blessed is the man who … delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night.”
3) Worship God (praises, thanksgiving) Mtt 15:8,9 “This people honor Me with their lips,
but their heart is far from Me; in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.” Jer 29:13 “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart” Mtt 22:37 “And He said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and with all your mind.”
4) involve God in everything (include in your life Christian songs, Christian literature, Christian t.v. & internet) Gal 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; the life which I now live in the flesh – I live by faith. I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” Phil 3:8 “More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of know Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ”.
5) Serve God (Jesus said if you love Me, you will keep My commandments) James 2:18 “But someone may well say, ‘You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.”
Jesus shows in Mt 25 the reward which awaits those who show the love of God in the Parable of the Sheep/Goats and His condemnation in those who do not live a “Good Samaritan” lifestyle.
6) Spend time with nature (conduct some of the previous suggestions OUT of your normal environment) Mat 14:23 “After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. Luke 6:12 “It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.” Mark 1:35 “In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.” Luke 5:16 “But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.”
7) Express gratitude to God and others; use the internet to find Scriptures of gratitude and thanksgiving and share with others. Psalm 100 tells us to give praise and thanks to the Lord. 1 Thess 5:18 “In every thing give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Eph 5:18-20 “Be filled with the Spirit; speaking one to another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father.”
8) Do Godly activities (accomplish random acts of kindness, purchase or make Christian decorations/crafts to give to others, phone call, text or facebook wishes of blessings and share how God has or is blessing your life!).
a) The parable of the Good Samaritan was told to show us WHO our neighbor is and to illustrate HOW to show love to our neighbor.
b) The rich man was in Hades because of how he treated Lazarus.
c) In the parable of the “Talents” one is condemned because he did not use what he was gifted. And in Math 11 Jesus curses the barren fig tree
c) Heb 10:24,25 tells us not to forsake the assembly but instead, consider ways to stimulate one another to love and good deeds.
Consider implementing these 8 ways or ideas to stay connected to the Lord and notice that they are Scripturally supported: STAYING CONNECTED: prayer, reading Scripture, worshiping God during our day, conducting Godly activities, helping other people, communing with God in nature, practice Godly outreach.
These are intentional practices with the desire to fulfill the teaching in
Rom 12:1,2 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is you spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
God desires to change us, grow us and make us impervious to this world’s sins and passions so that we will become people filled with the Holy Spirit and all that It does for us – see the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22)
18 Jan: Some Things That Christians Cannot Do
There are many things that Christians SHOULD NOT do. However, the Bible also says that there are some things that Christians CANNOT do. In this lesson, we will focus on the points mentioned by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount.
- We Cannot Change Things Out of Our Control
Matthew 5:36; “Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.”
Mtt 6:25,27,34 “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or drink – is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” “And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough troubles of it's own.”
Mtt 6:33 “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to your.”
Jesus is telling us here that there are many things beyond our control. What is important is that we have our priorities and our focus on God’s will. James tells us in 4:13 that all of our plans are to reflect obedience to God’s will in all that we say and do. Jesus gives us the perfect example of that in His prayer in the Garden when He wraps up His time with the Father by declaring – ‘Yet not my will, but thine be done!’
- We Cannot Serve Two Masters
Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. We cannot serve God and wealth.”
1 Cor 1:12,13 “Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, ‘I am of Paul,’ and ‘I am of Apollos,’ ‘I am of Cephas,’ and ‘I of Christ.’ Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?’ 1 John 5:18,19,21 “We know that no one who is born of God sins; but he who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him. We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. . . . . Little children, guard yourselves from idols.” Gal 1:10 “For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.” Exodus 20:5,6 “You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting iniquity on … those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and Keep My commandments.” Phil 3:7-9 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him”.
In the parable of the Sower the seeds landing in the thorns accepted Christ but were unfaithful because of their concerns about the things of this world. Like Jesus told us in the Sermon on the Mount – we must FIRST seek His kingdom and His righteousness.
- We Cannot Produce Different Fruit
Matthew 7:17 – 20 “So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits.”
John 15:1-8 (paraphrased) “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes aways; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abide in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.. . . My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.”
- Christians Cannot Be Hidden:
Matt 5;13-16 “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; not does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”
Matt 5;13-16 “You are the salt of the earth”. Salt serves to improve flavor and to preserve what it is added to. If we are the salt of the earth – what would we improve and preserve? I believe the answer to that is that we are to preserve the message of salvation and the love of God in this lost and dying world. John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Rom 10:17, 14 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” “How then will they call on Him in whom they have believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not hear? And how will they hear without a preacher?” This is why the apostles, and I believe you and I, received the Great Commission to go out and bring the gospel to the lost.
Matt 5:14 “You are the light of the world”. In the same way 2 Cor 5:20 says that as ambassadors of God we become the righteousness of God – so we represent God in this world. 2 Peter 2:12 “Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, . . . . that they may, because of your good deeds, observe them and glorify God”. Titus 2:7 “in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds . . .” 1 John 3:18 “Let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.”
As God’s light bulbs in this world – they need to see the love which God has for all mankind and His desire to save them and bring them life, as Jesus promised in John 10:10.
CHRISTIANS CANNOT:
- CONTROL ALL THINGS – THEY MUST ACCEPT GOD’S WILL
- SERVE TWO MASTERS – THEY MUST DECIDE WHICH ONE TO SERVE
- PRODUCE DIFFERENT FRUIT – WE MUST BE PART OF THE VINE (Christ)
- BE HIDDEN – WE BRING THE LOVE OF GOD INTO THIS WORLD
CHRISTIANS CAN BRING GLORY AND HONOR TO God
AND
THE MESSAGE OF SALVATION TO THE LOST!