Pastor's Message, May 24 2015 - Building Praying Loving Waiting

May 24, 2015

 

Building, Praying, Loving, Waiting

(Jude 17-25)

 

(Invite Kids up to the front – sit on the floor.)

Who has lego’s?

What is the coolest thing you’ve ever built? (Let kids answer…)

Do you know what God says about building?

Actually the word “build” is the Bible 236 times…

 

Building… Ourselves Up!  (Have Kids read three verses…)

1 Thessalonians 5:11

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Ephesians 2:21

In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 

Ephesians 4:16

From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

We need each other!  Your part as Children is to learn about God –

• through His Word

• through listening and obeying your parents

• through kidztown as you gather each week to learn about God – so that you can be built up to make a difference for Him with the life He has blessed you with  - You all can go back to your seats while Melissa has a little pack for you…

Today I would like for us to look at the last 9 verses in the book of Jude.

As you can see the title of the message today is: “Building, Praying, Loving, Waiting”

How are we going to reach the lost in around area, at our work-places, and in our neighborhoods with the gospel?  There is a battle going on…

As you can see from the subtitle in this passage which says: a call to persevere – meaning to persist, continue, keep at it, carry on, keep trying, or stick with it.

 Jude 1:17-19 (NIV)

A Call to Persevere

(17) But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. (18) They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.” (19) These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.

These are those who scoff at God’s future plans.  Scoff meaning mock, ridicule, make fun of, laugh at, or poke fun at.

They pretend to know the truth but deny that Jesus is the answer and that judgment will ever come. These characteristics will prevail until Christ returns.   

What characteristics are we talking about?

2 Timothy 3:1-5 (NIV)

(1) But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. (2) People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, (3) without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, (4) treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— (5) having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.

What does having a form or godliness look like?

Ö      Religion void of a relationship will leave you spiritually hungry.  Like drinking saltwater, the more you drink, the thirstier you get.

Ö      Religion devoid of a relationship is like a pacifier that a baby works hard to suck on, but from which no real nutrition flows.

Which one of those sins listed (2Timothy 3:1-5) has captured your heart? 

Romans 16:17-19 (NIV)

(17) I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions (media, false teachings…) and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. (18) For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. (19) Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. 

Ö      The essence of false religion is a Christian being involved in religious activity.  It is exemplified by a person having a ritual of religion without a relationship with God.

So what do we need to do personally and as a church to not become scoffers?

Jude 1:20-21 (NIV)

 (20) But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, (21) keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

True believers have a sure foundation and a cornerstone in Jesus Christ. The truths of the Christian faith have been provided in the teaching of the apostles and prophets so that Christians can build themselves up by the Word of God

Praying…. In the Holy Spirit! 

This is not a call to some ecstatic form of prayer, but simply – It is a call to pray consistently in the will and power of the Spirit, as one would pray in the name of Jesus Christ

Romans 8:26-27 (NIV)

(26) In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. (27) And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

 When you pray this will establish our responsibility (as believers) to be obedient and faithful by living-out our salvation while God works out His will.

It means to remain in the place of obedience where God’s love is poured out on His children, as opposed to being disobedient and incurring His discipline.  Currently in our church - we have been having a small group of individuals praying Sunday mornings from 9-9:30am.  And then Wednesday nights from 6:30-8:00pm.  Our Wednesday nights have just ended for the Summer so I would like to announce today that starting Monday, June 8th, (Monday through Thursday) I will be here at the altar starting at 7:30am for prayer.  Whenever you can make it I would love for you to join me. 

• Please use the green sheets each week to write out your requests.

• Please write down people that you are asking for healing for.

• Asking for those who you want God to penetrate their heart so that they would repent of their sins and surrender their life to Christ!

Keeping… Yourself in God’s Love

We accomplished this by: 1) building one’s self up in the Word of God; 2) praying in the Holy Spirit; and 3) while we wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring believer’s to eternal life. We won’t know how to love others until we learn how to love the Lord with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength! 

Waiting… for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ

Waiting is the hardest thing for me.  I’m trying to wait on the Lord for growth (spiritual & numerical) for miracles, for healings, for salvations, for answered prayers…I want to preserve for His glory, honor, and praise!

Wait appears in the Bible 129 times.

(Let’s read these 6 verses out loud together…)

Psalm 5:3

In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly. 

Psalm 27:14 

Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

Psalm 33:20

We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.

Psalm 37:7

Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Psalm 38:15

Lord, I wait for you; you will answer, Lord my God.

I waited patiently for then Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.

Psalm 130:5

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. 

Jude (continues here by telling us what to do while we are waiting…)

(22) Be merciful to those who doubt; (23) save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

Who are we to be merciful to?  They are:

1)    Sincere doubters who deserve compassion

2)    Those who are deeper in unbelief and urgently need to be pulled from the fire

3)    Those declared disciples of apostasy who still deserve mercy, but are to be handled with much fear, lest the would-be-rescuer also be spiritually violated. 

 When it says: “save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear.”  The third group that I just mentioned needs mercy, even though they are thoroughly polluted by false teaching. These people are to be given the true gospel, but with great fear, lest the deliverer be contaminated also.

The defiled garment (clothing stained) pictures the unbeliever’s corrupt life, which can spread its corruption to the well-meaning believer.

 These victims of the false teachers need mercy and patience because they have not yet reached a firm conclusion about Christ and eternal life, and so remain doubters who could possibly be swayed to the truth

Jude

Doxology (meaning praise, doxa means glory, honor.  A prayer or hymn of praise to God)

(24) To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— (25) to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

In the study that we just finish on Sunday morning “Counter Culture”, David Platt made this statement:

As we live to extend God’s grace among more people, let’s long to exalt God’s glory among all peoples.

This last verse I would like us to look at is the answer to why we do everything here at CCF:

Ö      Bible Studies (G3 nights) , ministries for different ages, camps, retreats, VBS, fellowships, hotdog Sunday’s, etc.

2 Corinthians 4:15

All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.

How are we going to reach the lost?

By Building… ourselves up!

By Praying… in the Holy Spirit, (pray is 367 times, prayer 154 times)

By Loving… as we keep ourselves in God’s love and He will show                                                               to love others

By Waiting… for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ

§  waiting while we cry out to Him to fill this place with those who don’t know Him, those who need hope, who are searching for the meaning of life, those who need to hear the gospel!

§   Waiting while encouraging and loving, and spurring one another on to love and good works…

Vision of the church is on the other side of the flyer talking about our new Life-connection class starting next Sunday morning at 9:30am.  The Mingling of Souls by Matt Chandler