Our Great Commission
The Love of God
Part 2: Loving your Neighbor
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith – www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
ANNOUNCEMENTS
6:00PM Evening Service at the church –
“Seminary Students will be preaching”
WHERE WE ARE AT
† Maturing in Christ
† Understanding in Christ
This Series: The Love of God
Previously:
Part 1: The Love of God
TODAY’S SERMON: Our Great Commission
The Love of God
Part 2: Loving your Neighbor
OPEN IN PRAYER
Loving your Neighbor
• Jesus said, “If you love me, you will obey my commands.”
• The Great Commission, Jesus said “Teach them to obey all that I have commanded you.”
Jesus was asked by a Pharisee what the greatest commandment in the Law was.
This test was given to try and prove Jesus was a false prophet.
Jesus had just silenced the Sadducees a moment earlier when they tried making Him look like a fool.
This is where we pick up in today’s Scripture Reading.
Matthew 22:
34Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:
36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'[b] 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[c] 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
Last week we talked about loving God with all of your heart, soul and mind.
This week we will speak on the second part of what Jesus calls the Greatest Commandment from the Law.
“Love your neighbor as yourself.”
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commands.
I. Who is my neighbor?
Luke 10:25-37
25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
26"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"
27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"
28"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."
29But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
30In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'
36"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"
37The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him."
Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."
• The expert in the Law quoted Deuteronomy 6:5 & Leviticus 19:18 … love the Lord your God…and your neighbor as yourself.
• 28"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." Which means the expert was NOT doing this!
• This shows that he KNEW what to do, but was not doing it.
• We see in the following verse the expert wanting to justify himself…he was self-righteous
• He was determined to win heaven by religious self-efforts…which is impossible.
Jesus paints a picture of our neighbor…
In the parable he was a man who was stripped and beaten, and left for dead.
A priest passed him by…
A Levite passed him by…
But Jesus uses a Samaritan (who was detested by most Jews) as the one who stopped and helped the man who was in need.
Do we, help those we see in need?
Or do we spend more time judging them?
In the parable, Jesus shows us the right response we are to have for our neighbors, or those who are in need.
He didn’t ask whether or not the beaten man was a believer.
He didn’t ask for anything in return for his help.
He didn’t look at the man and say, “Well you must have done something wrong to deserve this”
He didn’t say to himself, “Well I would help you, but you don’t go to church like you should.”
He didn’t run around telling everyone he knew about this man who was attacked…probably because he lives in the world.
This story is about loving those in need…not judging them.
The Lord is the Judge, not us.
Yet we judge all the time with the words of our mouths…usually in gossip masked as concern.
II. How do I love them?
How do we love our neighbors?
Jesus said the greatest command was to love God with all your heart, mind and soul and the second was like the first…
Do we love our neighbors with ANY of our heart, mind or soul?
Or do we constantly stand in judgment over anyone who doesn’t measure up to our standards?
Every time we open our mouths and set a standard for someone, we are raising the standard of judgment on ourselves…the scriptures tell us that.
We can learn a lot from the parable Jesus taught here.
III. Why do we love them?
a. Because the Lord Commands us to
b. Because the Lord does
I come not to judge, but to save…
If we are to continue our Masters work as we are instructed to, then shouldn’t we be doing what He was doing?
Not to judge, but to save…
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
The Love of God - Part 1 "Love of God"
Our Great Commission
The Love of God
Part 1: The Love of God
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith – www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
ANNOUNCEMENTS
6:00PM Evening Service at the church –
“Seminary Students will be preaching”
WHERE WE ARE AT
† Maturing in Christ
† Understanding in Christ
This Series: The Love of God
Previously:
Part 1: The Personality of God
Part 2: Signs of the End
Part 3: Turn, Receive & Be the Light
Part 4: How to Recover Spiritually
TODAY’S SERMON: Our Great Commission
The Love of God
Part 1: The Love of God
OPEN IN PRAYER
I. TO LOVE GOD
† Deuteronomy 6:5-9 (Repeated in Matthew & Mark as well)
5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.
Loving God with all your heart…(filling your heart to overflowing with His Word)
Loving God with all your soul…(forgiveness comes from Christ when you confess and repent)
Loving God with all your strength…as long as you breath, love God.
These commands upon your heart (remember them!)
Impress the importance to your children.
Sitting at home, or walking around, talk about it.
When you lie down and get up, be meditating on this Word.
Tie them to your hands…(show God’s love in your deeds, what you “DO”)
Bind them on your forehead…(keep all your thoughts into submission of Love)
Write them on the doorframes of your houses and gates…(make it known to guests and visitors that you love the Lord your God)
God wants you to let the world know that He is loved by you.
And He wants you to show that love to others.
† Proverbs 17:17
17 A friend loves at all times,
There is a song that states, “I am a friend of God”
And another, “What a friend we have in Jesus…”
Love is not a feeling or emotion…although it can cause feelings and emotions.
Love is an action…
And it is these “actions” that make one a friend.
† I John 4:7-12
7Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
When we love one another, God lives in us…
When God lives in us, His love is made complete…in us (through us)
It is OUR loving one another that allows God to dwell within us, and when God is in us (in the form of the Holy Spirit), His love is made complete, BECAUSE He works through us in this world.
If we do not love one another, the Spirit can not dwell within us, and if God can not dwell within His people, we can not “BE” the Body of Christ here on earth.
If there is no Body of Christ on earth, God’s love is not complete, because no one will experience God’s Love.
He loves us as sons and daughters.
† Revelation 3:19
19Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.
True love is not saying “yes” to everything, regardless of if it is good for us or not…but true love protects.
Rebuke and discipline are evidences of love.
† Mark 12:28-31
28One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
29"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. 'There is no commandment greater than these."
II. TO LOVE JESUS
† John 14:15
15"If you love me, you will obey what I command.
† John 14:21
21Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."
† John 15:9-11
9"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
† John 15:12-13
12My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
† John 15:17
17This is my command: Love each other.
III. SHOWING THAT LOVE TO OTHERS
Jesus said if we are to show love to Him, we do so by obeying His commands.
He said the greatest command is to love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength.
The second is to love your neighbor (unsaved) as yourself.
Jesus said there is no command greater than these.
We need to ask ourselves if we truly love God with all of our hearts, souls, minds and strength.
And we need to ask ourselves if we are loving the unsaved as we do ourselves?
They are the reason God wants to dwell within us, so that we may “BE” the Body of Christ and show God’s love to the world.
Over the next few weeks, we will talk about loving your neighbor (unsaved), your brother (other believers), your enemies, and yourself. For the only way to love Jesus is to obey His commands, and He commands us to love.
The Love of God
Part 1: The Love of God
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith – www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
ANNOUNCEMENTS
6:00PM Evening Service at the church –
“Seminary Students will be preaching”
WHERE WE ARE AT
† Maturing in Christ
† Understanding in Christ
This Series: The Love of God
Previously:
Part 1: The Personality of God
Part 2: Signs of the End
Part 3: Turn, Receive & Be the Light
Part 4: How to Recover Spiritually
TODAY’S SERMON: Our Great Commission
The Love of God
Part 1: The Love of God
OPEN IN PRAYER
I. TO LOVE GOD
† Deuteronomy 6:5-9 (Repeated in Matthew & Mark as well)
5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.
Loving God with all your heart…(filling your heart to overflowing with His Word)
Loving God with all your soul…(forgiveness comes from Christ when you confess and repent)
Loving God with all your strength…as long as you breath, love God.
These commands upon your heart (remember them!)
Impress the importance to your children.
Sitting at home, or walking around, talk about it.
When you lie down and get up, be meditating on this Word.
Tie them to your hands…(show God’s love in your deeds, what you “DO”)
Bind them on your forehead…(keep all your thoughts into submission of Love)
Write them on the doorframes of your houses and gates…(make it known to guests and visitors that you love the Lord your God)
God wants you to let the world know that He is loved by you.
And He wants you to show that love to others.
† Proverbs 17:17
17 A friend loves at all times,
There is a song that states, “I am a friend of God”
And another, “What a friend we have in Jesus…”
Love is not a feeling or emotion…although it can cause feelings and emotions.
Love is an action…
And it is these “actions” that make one a friend.
† I John 4:7-12
7Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
When we love one another, God lives in us…
When God lives in us, His love is made complete…in us (through us)
It is OUR loving one another that allows God to dwell within us, and when God is in us (in the form of the Holy Spirit), His love is made complete, BECAUSE He works through us in this world.
If we do not love one another, the Spirit can not dwell within us, and if God can not dwell within His people, we can not “BE” the Body of Christ here on earth.
If there is no Body of Christ on earth, God’s love is not complete, because no one will experience God’s Love.
He loves us as sons and daughters.
† Revelation 3:19
19Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.
True love is not saying “yes” to everything, regardless of if it is good for us or not…but true love protects.
Rebuke and discipline are evidences of love.
† Mark 12:28-31
28One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
29"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. 'There is no commandment greater than these."
II. TO LOVE JESUS
† John 14:15
15"If you love me, you will obey what I command.
† John 14:21
21Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."
† John 15:9-11
9"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
† John 15:12-13
12My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
† John 15:17
17This is my command: Love each other.
III. SHOWING THAT LOVE TO OTHERS
Jesus said if we are to show love to Him, we do so by obeying His commands.
He said the greatest command is to love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength.
The second is to love your neighbor (unsaved) as yourself.
Jesus said there is no command greater than these.
We need to ask ourselves if we truly love God with all of our hearts, souls, minds and strength.
And we need to ask ourselves if we are loving the unsaved as we do ourselves?
They are the reason God wants to dwell within us, so that we may “BE” the Body of Christ and show God’s love to the world.
Over the next few weeks, we will talk about loving your neighbor (unsaved), your brother (other believers), your enemies, and yourself. For the only way to love Jesus is to obey His commands, and He commands us to love.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Understanding in Christ Part 4 "How to recover spiritually"
The Great Commission
UNDERSTANDING IN CHRIST
Part 4: How to Recover Spiritually
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith – www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
ANNOUNCEMENTS
6:00PM Evening Service at the church –
“Seminary Students will be preaching”
WHERE WE ARE AT
† Maturing in Christ
This Series: Understanding in Christ
Previously:
Part 1: The Personality of God
Part 2: Signs of the End
Part 3: Turn, Receive & Be the Light
TODAY’S SERMON: The Great Commission
UNDERSTANDING IN CHRIST
Part 4: How to Recover Spiritually
OPEN IN PRAYER
Today is Resurrection Sunday.
Today is the day that Jesus Christ arose from the dead as the first fruits, just as prophesied about Him in nearly a thousand separate scriptures spanning thousands of years before His arrival.
Easter, on the other hand, is a Pagan day of worship of the goddess estier, who was the goddess of fertility.
If you have ever wondered why eggs and rabbits equal Easter…the symbols for this pagan holiday of eggs, and rabbits, because eggs represent reproduction, and rabbits are known for their reproductive abilities.
But today is not Easter, the pagan holiday that millions will celebrate without complaining they are being forced into believing about someone else’s God…
But it is the Day our Lord made good His promise.
The day that begins the New Covenant which we are a part of, in His blood.
And by His sacrifice for the sins of all men, any who will drink of the cup with Him, and accept the promise, will be saved from the coming wrath, and judgment of the sin of mankind.
Today we are going to look at what the scriptures have to say about those who have made this commitment, but may have grown weary, or feel weak in their spirit, and need to recover.
Jesus will mend you, and move you forward, and you will receive mercy.
I. JESUS WILL MEND YOU
† Ezekiel 34:16
16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.
God is searching for those who have gone astray, wanting to mend them and strengthen them.
This scripture shows that when we are weakened in spirit, that is when we stray.
Our spirit becomes weakened when we live outside of God’s Character, seeking our will as opposed to His, and living like the world.
Behaving as the world does, in selfishness.
When we act like the world, in anger and selfishness, we weaken our own spirit.
And we set ourselves up for fall.
† Ezekiel 34:30-31
30 Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Sovereign LORD. 31 You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are my people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "
Even when we stray, He is working with us, trying to mend us.
† Psalm 92:12-15
12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
13 planted in the house of the LORD,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,
15 proclaiming, "The LORD is upright;
he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him."
II. YOU MUST MOVE FORWARD
† Philippians 3:13-14
13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
The devil as well as other people will try to keep you from moving forward by reminding you of what is passed.
We are told to forget that, and move on.
Don’t let the traps of yesterday keep you from the promises of tomorrow.
† Hebrews 12:11-14
11No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
12Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13"Make level paths for your feet,"[b] so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.
Warning Against Refusing God
14Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.
III. YOU WILL RECEIVE MERCY
† Proverbs 28:13 – Mercy for Confession
13 He who conceals his sins does not prosper,
but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
† Hosea 14:4 – Mercy for Repentance
4 "I will heal their waywardness
and love them freely,
for my anger has turned away from them.
JESUS IS WAITING TO MEND YOUR SPIRIT, GIVE YOU STRENGTH TO MOVE FORWARD IN YOUR SPIRITUAL GROWTH, AND GIVE YOU THE MERCY THAT ONLY HE CAN GIVE.
UNDERSTANDING IN CHRIST
Part 4: How to Recover Spiritually
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith – www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
ANNOUNCEMENTS
6:00PM Evening Service at the church –
“Seminary Students will be preaching”
WHERE WE ARE AT
† Maturing in Christ
This Series: Understanding in Christ
Previously:
Part 1: The Personality of God
Part 2: Signs of the End
Part 3: Turn, Receive & Be the Light
TODAY’S SERMON: The Great Commission
UNDERSTANDING IN CHRIST
Part 4: How to Recover Spiritually
OPEN IN PRAYER
Today is Resurrection Sunday.
Today is the day that Jesus Christ arose from the dead as the first fruits, just as prophesied about Him in nearly a thousand separate scriptures spanning thousands of years before His arrival.
Easter, on the other hand, is a Pagan day of worship of the goddess estier, who was the goddess of fertility.
If you have ever wondered why eggs and rabbits equal Easter…the symbols for this pagan holiday of eggs, and rabbits, because eggs represent reproduction, and rabbits are known for their reproductive abilities.
But today is not Easter, the pagan holiday that millions will celebrate without complaining they are being forced into believing about someone else’s God…
But it is the Day our Lord made good His promise.
The day that begins the New Covenant which we are a part of, in His blood.
And by His sacrifice for the sins of all men, any who will drink of the cup with Him, and accept the promise, will be saved from the coming wrath, and judgment of the sin of mankind.
Today we are going to look at what the scriptures have to say about those who have made this commitment, but may have grown weary, or feel weak in their spirit, and need to recover.
Jesus will mend you, and move you forward, and you will receive mercy.
I. JESUS WILL MEND YOU
† Ezekiel 34:16
16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.
God is searching for those who have gone astray, wanting to mend them and strengthen them.
This scripture shows that when we are weakened in spirit, that is when we stray.
Our spirit becomes weakened when we live outside of God’s Character, seeking our will as opposed to His, and living like the world.
Behaving as the world does, in selfishness.
When we act like the world, in anger and selfishness, we weaken our own spirit.
And we set ourselves up for fall.
† Ezekiel 34:30-31
30 Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Sovereign LORD. 31 You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are my people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "
Even when we stray, He is working with us, trying to mend us.
† Psalm 92:12-15
12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
13 planted in the house of the LORD,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,
15 proclaiming, "The LORD is upright;
he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him."
II. YOU MUST MOVE FORWARD
† Philippians 3:13-14
13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
The devil as well as other people will try to keep you from moving forward by reminding you of what is passed.
We are told to forget that, and move on.
Don’t let the traps of yesterday keep you from the promises of tomorrow.
† Hebrews 12:11-14
11No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
12Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13"Make level paths for your feet,"[b] so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.
Warning Against Refusing God
14Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.
III. YOU WILL RECEIVE MERCY
† Proverbs 28:13 – Mercy for Confession
13 He who conceals his sins does not prosper,
but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
† Hosea 14:4 – Mercy for Repentance
4 "I will heal their waywardness
and love them freely,
for my anger has turned away from them.
JESUS IS WAITING TO MEND YOUR SPIRIT, GIVE YOU STRENGTH TO MOVE FORWARD IN YOUR SPIRITUAL GROWTH, AND GIVE YOU THE MERCY THAT ONLY HE CAN GIVE.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Understanding in Christ Part 3 "Turn, Receive and be the Light"
The Great Commission
UNDERSTANDING IN CHRIST
Part 3: Turn, Receive & Be the Light
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith – www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
ANNOUNCEMENTS
6:00PM Evening Service at the church –
“Seminary Students will be preaching”
WHERE WE ARE AT
† Maturing in Christ
This Series: Understanding in Christ
Previously:
Part 1: The Personality of God
Part 2: Signs of the End
TODAY’S SERMON: The Great Commission
UNDERSTANDING IN CHRIST
Part 3: Turn, Receive & Be the Light
OPEN IN PRAYER
WHAT IS REVIVAL?
Turn to God, Receive Salvation and Be the Light
I. TURN TO GOD
† Psalm 22:27-31
27 All the ends of the earth
will remember and turn to the LORD,
and all the families of the nations
will bow down before him,
28 for dominion belongs to the LORD
and he rules over the nations.
29 All the rich of the earth will feast and worship;
all who go down to the dust will kneel before him—
those who cannot keep themselves alive.
30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
31 They will proclaim his righteousness
to a people yet unborn—
for he has done it.
Revival is Not
A good music service
Great worship
Singing, dancing, praying in tongues…
A great sermon
A good turn-out
A large meeting
Revival is
True revival is the salvation of many people.
In the scriptures we read of 1,000’s turning to Christ at one time…today, we are lucky to see a handful a year.
† Matthew 24:12-14 In the last days…revival
12Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
To being revivals, the Gospel must be preached.
As the scriptures say…”How are they to be saved if they do not know what name to be saved by? How will they know that name unless they hear? How will they hear unless someone bring it to them? How will someone bring it, if no one goes? Blessed are the feet of the one who brings the good news.”
II. RECEIVE SALVATION
† II Peter 3:9
9The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
God’s first will for you is SALVATION!
† James 5:7-12
7Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. 8You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.
9Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
10Brothers, be an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
12Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned.
We are ambassadors who represent Christ.
Does God waver?
Does He not say yes and mean it, or say no and mean it?
Is your Salvation and the promise of the New Heaven and New Earth a “maybe”?
Do not give people the impression that God says one thing and does another.
Keep your commitments, whether yes or no, as if condemnation awaits you if you do not…because it does.
† Ezekiel 34:16-22
16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.
17 " 'As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. 18 Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? 19 Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?
20 " 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 21 Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, 22 I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another.
The judgment, the last day, the final and great day, is not just for those who have not accepted the Lord as their savior.
It is for all of us.
We will first be sorted out (the sheep and the goats),
And then judged for our behavior to each other!
If you are one who pushes the weaker sheep around, I warn you.
If you are one who is selfish and getting fat with your greed, I warn you.
If you are one who’s arrogance and pride causes you to make the truth of the Lord’s Holy Spirit which is clear and perfect as water to appear as mud to the weaker sheep, I warn you.
Our judge is watching, and we will have to give an account for every idle word on that day.
Bind your tongues, lay hold your feelings, and take every thought into captivity in the name of Jesus Christ, so on that day, you will only be held accountable for a little, as opposed to much.
III. BE THE LIGHT
† Isaiah 60:1-3
1 "Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.
2 See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the LORD rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
3 Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
Don’t forget who is watching, not just our judge, but the world…this is why He judges us.
We sing praises with our lips, but our hearts are far from Him, as Isaiah and Jesus say in the Word.
He does not hear our prayers, because we do not honor our wives.
Our healings go unanswered because we are unworthy of redemption, and have not repented of our sins.
We are a weak and watered down, mere shadow of the Truth, yet claim victory over the evil one.
REPENT
† Isaiah 43:19
19 See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert
and streams in the wasteland.
Do not miss God’s spirit and work.
Do not miss what He is doing, even now.
Repent, submit to the Lord and His Holy Spirit.
Turn to the Lord, receive your salvation, and be the Light of this dark world.
CLOSE WITH PRAYER
UNDERSTANDING IN CHRIST
Part 3: Turn, Receive & Be the Light
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House of Faith – www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
ANNOUNCEMENTS
6:00PM Evening Service at the church –
“Seminary Students will be preaching”
WHERE WE ARE AT
† Maturing in Christ
This Series: Understanding in Christ
Previously:
Part 1: The Personality of God
Part 2: Signs of the End
TODAY’S SERMON: The Great Commission
UNDERSTANDING IN CHRIST
Part 3: Turn, Receive & Be the Light
OPEN IN PRAYER
WHAT IS REVIVAL?
Turn to God, Receive Salvation and Be the Light
I. TURN TO GOD
† Psalm 22:27-31
27 All the ends of the earth
will remember and turn to the LORD,
and all the families of the nations
will bow down before him,
28 for dominion belongs to the LORD
and he rules over the nations.
29 All the rich of the earth will feast and worship;
all who go down to the dust will kneel before him—
those who cannot keep themselves alive.
30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
31 They will proclaim his righteousness
to a people yet unborn—
for he has done it.
Revival is Not
A good music service
Great worship
Singing, dancing, praying in tongues…
A great sermon
A good turn-out
A large meeting
Revival is
True revival is the salvation of many people.
In the scriptures we read of 1,000’s turning to Christ at one time…today, we are lucky to see a handful a year.
† Matthew 24:12-14 In the last days…revival
12Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
To being revivals, the Gospel must be preached.
As the scriptures say…”How are they to be saved if they do not know what name to be saved by? How will they know that name unless they hear? How will they hear unless someone bring it to them? How will someone bring it, if no one goes? Blessed are the feet of the one who brings the good news.”
II. RECEIVE SALVATION
† II Peter 3:9
9The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
God’s first will for you is SALVATION!
† James 5:7-12
7Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. 8You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.
9Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
10Brothers, be an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
12Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned.
We are ambassadors who represent Christ.
Does God waver?
Does He not say yes and mean it, or say no and mean it?
Is your Salvation and the promise of the New Heaven and New Earth a “maybe”?
Do not give people the impression that God says one thing and does another.
Keep your commitments, whether yes or no, as if condemnation awaits you if you do not…because it does.
† Ezekiel 34:16-22
16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.
17 " 'As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. 18 Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? 19 Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?
20 " 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 21 Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, 22 I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another.
The judgment, the last day, the final and great day, is not just for those who have not accepted the Lord as their savior.
It is for all of us.
We will first be sorted out (the sheep and the goats),
And then judged for our behavior to each other!
If you are one who pushes the weaker sheep around, I warn you.
If you are one who is selfish and getting fat with your greed, I warn you.
If you are one who’s arrogance and pride causes you to make the truth of the Lord’s Holy Spirit which is clear and perfect as water to appear as mud to the weaker sheep, I warn you.
Our judge is watching, and we will have to give an account for every idle word on that day.
Bind your tongues, lay hold your feelings, and take every thought into captivity in the name of Jesus Christ, so on that day, you will only be held accountable for a little, as opposed to much.
III. BE THE LIGHT
† Isaiah 60:1-3
1 "Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.
2 See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the LORD rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
3 Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
Don’t forget who is watching, not just our judge, but the world…this is why He judges us.
We sing praises with our lips, but our hearts are far from Him, as Isaiah and Jesus say in the Word.
He does not hear our prayers, because we do not honor our wives.
Our healings go unanswered because we are unworthy of redemption, and have not repented of our sins.
We are a weak and watered down, mere shadow of the Truth, yet claim victory over the evil one.
REPENT
† Isaiah 43:19
19 See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert
and streams in the wasteland.
Do not miss God’s spirit and work.
Do not miss what He is doing, even now.
Repent, submit to the Lord and His Holy Spirit.
Turn to the Lord, receive your salvation, and be the Light of this dark world.
CLOSE WITH PRAYER
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