SERMON SEEDS G17 FOR JULY 7, 2003
Posted by: jpeters <jpeters@...>
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1 Samuel 28
VISIT TO ENDOR
ABSENCE OF GOD'S MESSAGE - Vss. 1-6
Saul was in trouble.
Samuel, the prophet who gave God's word to Saul, was dead.
God was not answering Saul's requests for guidance.
ALTERNATIVE SOUGHT - Vss. 7-10
Saul had rightfully outlawed witchcraft, but because he got no help elsewhere, he sought the help of the Witch of Endor. At first the witch did not know that she was dealing with Saul. However, she was cautious, because she was afraid that she might be walking into a trap.
APPEARANCE OF SAMUEL - Vss. 11-14
This lady was shocked and frightened when Samuel actually did appear.
God was allowing Samuel to give one last message to Saul from the grave.
ANNOUNCEMENT OF GOD'S WILL - Vss. 15-19
Saul was told that the Kingdom would be taken out of his hand and that David would be king.
He was also told that he and his sons would die the next day.
ACCEPTANCE OF A MEAL - Vss. 20 - 25
Saul was rightfully afraid.
He had not eaten.
The woman and Saul's servants encouraged him to eat.
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Proverbs 15:1-4
SPEECH CLINIC
We live in an age when there is a clinic for just about every problem men and women have.
There are cancer clinics, cancer clinics, wound clinics, sleep clinics and a host of others.
In our text God holds a "speech clinic". He tells us about one of the smallest, yet most deadly body parts, the tongue (James 3:1-13). God tells us what we need to know about the tongue so that we will use speech that is pleasing to Him!
A TENDER TONGUE - Vs. 1
The best way to diffuse a volatile situation is with quiet comments. The best way to stir up a volatile situation is with "grievous" words.
A THOUGHTFUL TONGUE - Vs. 2
A wise man is one who thinks before he speaks. He uses knowledge correctly. A fool doesn't think, but keeps talking! He pours out foolishness.
A TESTED TONGUE - Vs. 3
No matter what we say, the Lord hears us! God is always listening and evaluating our words.
A TRUE TONGUE - Vs. 4
A wholesome tongue is full of life. A perverse tongue breaks the spirit.
Sermon Seeds D20
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Luke 16:19-31
THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS
DIVERSE ROLES ON EARTH - Vss. 19-21
DIFFERENT RESULTS FOR ETERNITY - Vss. 22-26
DISTINCT REQUEST OF THE UNSAVED - Vss. 27-31
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John 3:13-16
GOD'S PLAN FOR LIFE
GOD'S MESSENGER - Vs. 13
The Lord Jesus is God's messenger who came from Heaven.
GOD'S METHOD - Vss. 14-15
God allowed Jesus to be lifted up on the cross to die for our sins, so that those that believe in Him might have eternal.
GOD'S MESSAGE - Vss. 16-17
If you believe on the Lord Jesus as Savior you will have eternal life.
God's purpose in sending Jesus was not to condemn, but to save.
GOD'S MANDATE - Vs. 18
He that believes in Christ is not condemned.
He that fails to believe in Christ is condemned.
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Acts 16:16-34
CONTENTS UNDER PRESSURE
Sometimes you will see this sign on a container: "Caution, contents under pressure".
There are times when there is pressure in our lives, and we feel that we could almost burst!
Paul and Silas found themselves under pressure, but with God's help, they were able to withstand the pressure.
A PEST WHO WAS POSSESSED – Vss. 16-17
A demon possessed girl gave Paul and Silas unwanted publicity.
A PROCLAMATION THAT BROUGHT DELIVERANCE – Vs. 18
Paul cast out the demon. The girl was no longer possessed and Paul was no longer oppressed! J
A PROBLEM CAUSED BY PERSECUTION – Vss. 19-24
The owners of the slave girl were not happy with the loss of income.
As a result Paul and Silas were beaten and thrown in jail.
A POWER DISPLAYED DURING PRAISE – Vss. 25-26
Paul and Silas sang in spite of their problems, and God sent a mighty earthquake.
A PRONOUNCEMENT THAT LEAD TO SALVATION – Vss. 27-34
Paul and Silas rescued the jailer from a potential suicide.
In Acts 16:31 they told him to believe on the Lord Jesus to be saved.
The jailer trusted Christ as his Savior.
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Romans 13:11-14
KNOWING THE TIME
There was a Sunday Morning several years ago when one of our people at our church came to services. She walked in, and sat down. Imagine her surprise, when just after she sat down, the whole congregation got up and left! What had happened? It was the Sunday to change the clocks and she forgot to change her's. She didn't know what time it was.
One time I was scheduled for a stress test. My family doctor's office had given me a time of 1:00 to be at Amsterdam Memorial hospital. The day before the test the cardiologist's office called and told Dottie that I should be there at 11:00. I was suspicious, and called the cardiologist's office back. The girl I needed to talk to was out to lunch, but I was assured that appointments are changed all the time. Dottie and I showed up at Amsterdam Memorial at 11:00, registered, and went down to the out patient waiting room where we sat for a few minutes. The receptionist then came over and told me that my appointment wasn't until 1:15. Talk about stress. All because, through no fault of ours, we did not know the time of the appointment.
We've all had trouble knowing exactly what time it is. Watches stop, or lose or gain time. We misread clocks. Sometimes we are told the wrong time. But to fulfill all our obligations we need to know the time!
Our Scripture text begins with the phrase "knowing the time".
We tend to forget that God is keeping time. He is working up to a time when He will end this age in which we live, and move on to another one. We, who are Christians need to be aware of this and to know that it is time for us to do certain things. According to the passage before us this morning, we must realize that it is:
TIME TO WAKE - Vs. 11
When Paul talks about "knowing the time" here he is not talking about a chronological time like five o'clock on July 6, 2003. Instead he is talking about an epoch, an era, or the age in which we live. We are actually living in the last times before Jesus comes to get his church. We'll say more about that in a few moments.
Because this age is almost over, and because Jesus could come at any time, we are told here to "Wake Up!"
When someone is not "with it" mentally or Spiritually, we often wonder when the person will "wake up" and face reality, and do what is necessary. We talk about getting a "wake up" call.
Sometimes when we have a health problem we "wake up" and start doing something about our eating habits or exercising.
Paul tells us here that it is "high time to awake from sleep".
When Paul talks about awakening from sleep here, he is talking about spiritual sleep. Paul is calling us to awake from spiritual "unconsciousness, unresponsiveness, and inactivity concerning the things of God."
We as Christians can very easily be unconscious to the things of God. We just more or less ignore them. We're saved, but it doesn't sink in as to what we should be doing.
We as Christians are often unresponsive to the Word of God.
The preacher gives a message, and we know he's right.
He then gives an invitation for us to fix what's wrong, to make a commitment, or to do what we know the Bible tells us to do. We just sit there, unresponsive!
Sometimes we wonder why God doesn't give us all that we want. Perhaps, it's because we are not ambitious enough to pursue what we say we want. Ephesians 5:14-18
When we wake up, we show Godly ambition, and we seek to do God's will, and we don't waste time.
Most of all, when we wake up we examine our lives and confess sin, so nothing hinders the filling of the Holy Spirit, and we ask God to fill us with His Spirit.
Why should we wake up?
Because our salvation is nearer than when we believed.
Wait a minute. Weren't we saved the moment we believed?
Yes we were.
Acts 16:31 says in part Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved...
So, if we were saved when we believed in Christ, Then how can our salvation be closer?
That's because your salvation is in 3 tenses, past, present and future.
past - JUSTIFICATION - At a specific moment in time, I believed on the finished work of Christ, His death, burial, resurrection for my sins. I trusted him as my Savior. Romans 5:1
present - SANCTIFICATION - We are growing in Christ, becoming more like Him, knowing Him better, and living a holy life. 2 Peter 3:18
ver. Amen.
future - GLORIFICATION - This is when the Lord Jesus comes back for his church in the air.
1 Corinthians 15:51-52
So Paul is talking about our final salvation here.
And of course, it is nearer than when we first believed.
Because of this, we are to awake from our sleep and live Godly lives, because Jesus could come at any time.
The soon, or imminent return of Christ is a Biblical Doctrine.
We are taught in this passage that in light of His imminent return, we are to be awake, alert, and living Godly lives. Titus 2:11-13, 1 John 3:1-3
Jesus could come at any moment.
Will you be delighted to see Him and unashamed?
Or will you be delighted to see Him, but ashamed of the condition in which He's found you?
And one more thought. When Christ comes, it will be too late to pray for, live a Godly life in front of, or witness to your unsaved family and friends. It must be done now. It's time for us to WAKE UP!
TIME TO WALK Vs. 13
In the Scriptures, our walk refers to our conduct.
There is a positive conduct in this verse in which we should walk. There is also a negative conduct in this verse in which we should not walk!
First, we are to "walk honestly, as in the day;"
To walk honestly, is to behave properly.
It is to behave in the way children of God should behave.
There were times when growing up, that I did not behave in a way a member of the Peters family should behave. And, my father let me know it.
On the job, if you do not behave the way a member of your company should behave, you are told about it.
Even in sports, there is a code of behavior. Several years ago Sandy Alamor spit in the face of an umpire. That was not the right kind of behavior for a baseball player.
Proper behavior for a Christian is clearly spelled out in the Scriptures. 1 Peter 1:15-16
As Christians, we are children of the day, not the night.
We are children of light, not of darkness.
We are to walk as children of the day, not of the night! 1 Thessalonians 5:5-8
This leads to how we should not walk, if we avoid the deeds of darkness, these things will be on our lists.
NOT IN RIOTING - Rioting here can be partying of the worst kind, an orgy, if you will! It's been translated elsewhere as "carousing".
NOT IN DRUNKENNESS - Proverbs 20:1 says Wine [is] a mocker, strong drink [is] raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
NOT IN CHAMBERING - Not in "going to bed", that is sexual promiscuity. Hebrews 13:4
NOT IN WANTONNESS - We might say sensuality. There is to be no public display of sexual immorality. We are never to show "shameless excess or absence of restraint."
NOT IN STRIFE - There is not to be petty bickering and fighting among us. We are to be known by our love, not our disagreements.
NOT IN ENVYING - We are not to be jealous of what someone else has. Jealousy is what often leads to the strife which we just mentioned!
TIME TO WEAR Vss. 12, 14
Vs. 12 - I wear different clothes for different occasions.
I wear old jeans and an old shirt when I work in the garden.
As you can see, I didn't wear those for this morning's service.
Before you and I became Christians, we thought certain things to be acceptable behavior.
But these things turned out to be sinful, and now that we are saved, we need to get changed.
We need to take off our "night clothes" of sin, and put on our day clothes of righteousness.
We need to undress by taking off the works of darkness.
We must decide to remove those things which do not please God, that are still left from our old lives.
Instead, because we are children of the day, children of light, we are to put on the "armor of light". The armor of light is described in Ephesians 6:13-18.
Vs. 14 - It is one thing to put on a team uniform, like say the Pirates. It is quite another thing to act like one of the star players, like say Willie Stargall
I think it would have been neat if I could have put on a Pirate Uniform, and had Willie Stargall play through my body. I'd be quite a star! That of course is impossible.
We have, in a sense the team uniform. We are the Christians.
We are to live like the star of the team - Our Lord Jesus Christ.
We have an advantage over my trying to be Willie Stargall.
The Lord Jesus does live inside of me, and I can put Him "on" by faith, and He will live His righteous life through me. Galatians 2:20
However, I can not serve the Lord Jesus and live my old, sinful life as well. I need to be continually putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, and taking off the flesh at the same time. I denounce the old, sinful habits, and take them off. I put Christ on, and imitate Him!
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Philippians 4:23 etc.
BEST WISHES
Most of the epistles end with a benediction of some sort.
I see these benedictions as sending someone best wishes.
In Paul's epistles I discovered that Paul gives for basic wishes in his benedictions.
Paul wishes us the blessings of:
GRACE – Philippians 4:23, Romans 16:3, Colossians 4:18 etc.
PEACE – 2 Thessalonians 3:16
LOVE – Of God: 2 Corinthians 13:14, Of Paul, 1 Corinthians 16:24
COMMUNION (FELLOWSHIP) – 2 Corinthians 13:14, 2 Timothy 4:22
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