Sermon from The Story Chapter 14 (1 Kings 12-16)

Text: 2 Chronicles 15

Link to the sermon: The Story Pt. 14

Discussion Question: Is God true to His word?

Many of us quickly answer "Yes", but do we truly live like we believe it?

In 2 Chronicles 15:2 God promises that "if we seek Him, He will be found by us, but if we forsake Him, He will forsake us"  We like to claim the first half of that and ignore the second, but God is true to His word.  For those who seek Him we will find Him, but if we turn our backs on Him, He will let us go...but in forsaking us He doesn't beat us up rather He allows us to reap what our hearts desire in hopes that we will turn back (seek) to Him and find that He is right there waiting with open arms (Luke 15:11-32).

Main Point: God calls us to live lives trusting in His word.

If you read through 1 Kings 12-16 one can quickly become confused by all the king changes, which kingdom is being talked about (Northern or Southern) and what is going on.  But the main focus is to compare and contrast whether or not the king and/or nation is seeking the Lord and the results.  This can be seen if you take a map of the kingdom under David and Solomon and compare that to the size of the divided kingdoms.  Please do not take me to be saying that if you just accept Jesus everything will go well and you will have everything you want, but rather if you trust in Him and His word you will have peace. In 2 Chronicles 15 King Asa is promised that if he seeks the Lord it will go well with him and the nation...he did and it did, but at the end of his life he stumbled...do not forget to press on for the long haul...

Application:

- God's word is trustworthy because......?

In the end God's word is trustworthy, because of who God is...He is the guarantor behind it.  If we understand that we will live lives dependent on God's word and that will be demonstrated in our thoughts and deeds.

The following is a process to help us live transformed lives.  I am indebted to Jeff Vanderstelt for the following questions.

Four Key Questions:
- Who is God?
- What has He done? (especially in the person and work of Jesus)
- Who are you?
- What are we to do?

In light of:
- Who God is
- What He has done
- Who you are in Him
How will your thoughts, actions, words be transformed?

Drilling back to God to transform your life:

- What are you feeling/doing?
- What do you believe about yourself?
- What do you believe about what God has done?
- What do you believe about God?

I, my wife and another member walked a lady who was struggling through this.  This lady was feeling condemned.  Now it would be easy to say go read Romans 8:1 and live it...but instead we drilled back.

 - What are you feeling/doing?
Condemned

- What do you believe about yourself?
That I don't measure up

- What do you believe about what God has done?
That Jesus death was sufficient for everyone but me

- What do you believe about God?
I see an image of my day and that God is standing there recording all of my mistakes

So I said let me understand this correctly you think God is like Santa Claus on steroids and you are on the naughty list...once we drilled back to that misunderstanding of God it would be real tempting to just say well correct your view, but I challenged her that she had made an idol out of her earthly father and was worshiping him and not the Lord.  I challenged her to be like David and repent and correct her view of God, so that she could live her life dependent upon Him and His word and preach the Gospel to herself.  If she does that she will not feel/live like she is condemned...she quickly repented...

Is the Gospel good news just for eternity?  No, but most of us live like it is.  Part of the good news is that you can experience eternal life now and as you do you will live a transformed life based on His word.

Sermon from The Story Chap 13 (2 Chronicles 7)

Text: 2 Chronicles 7

Link to sermon: The Story Pt. 13

Main Point: God calls us to live lives dependent on Him.

Solomon dedicates the Temple, God shows up in a mighty way, promises that He will heal the land if the people humble themselves and cry out to Him in dependence and lastly He warns Solomon to live dependent on Him and if he does it will go well with him.

Discussion Questions:

- Is affluence a blessing or a curse?
(Depends on how you use it...could be both/and)

- Did Solomon finish well?
(No)

- What was Solomon's mistake?

He took his eyes off of God.  He had a life of affluence, all of his needs were met...he took his eyes off of God and put them on idols...it was the same mistake David made with Bathsheba.

I Am Second Video Clip: http://www.iamsecond.com/seconds/wayne-huizenga/

Application Questions:

How do you enjoy God's blessings without getting lost in them?

Guard against:

- Pride
- Busyness
- Don't forget whose you are
- Don't forget the source of your blessings
- Do not demand blessing
- Maintain a servants heart
- Live for eternity

Sermon from The Story Chapter 12 (1 Chronicles 22:1-5)

Text: 1 Chronicles 22:1-5

Link to sermon:
http://www.buzzsprout.com/15930/146522-the-story-pt-12

Main Point:  Christians are to be living legacies

That doesn't say Christians ought to be leaving a legacy behind but rather that they are to be living their legacies now, so that when they step into eternal life they leave a legacy behind.  The reality is that we are doing that, but the question is are we living a God glorifying one?  King David's life gives us an example of someone who lived out a legacy.

What do you think King David's tombstone would say?

If you are familiar with Scripture the natural answer to that question would be: A man after God's own heart.  One could try to make the case that it should be: Adulterer, Murder...but that isn't the case, because when ever his heart strayed from God he was quick to fall on his face, repent and plead to God to have mercy on him.  Contrast that with King Saul who claimed to be obedient and pointed his finger at others saying they were the ones at fault...part of King David's legacy was living as someone experiencing God's grace and pursuing Him.  At the end of his life we also see him not sitting back but continuing to pursue God and setting things in order for the temple to be built and the nation placed in order.  He recognized the season he was in and lived in obedience in the season he was in, doing what he was called to do and not going any farther.

Contrast that with us always going, going, going...are we waiting upon the Lord or charging forward?  Are we living legacies of obedience?

Application:

Developing an individual legacy
  - Come up with a personal mission statement  (It needs to be in line with the 2 Great Commandments and the Great Commission, but it will be uniquely you)

       - Answer the following tow questions: How old are you?  How long do you have to live?  It is ok to review your life so that you know where you have come from, but don't sit back and go I haven't accomplished anything rather use that reflection to say what am I going to do in the next 20, 30, 40+ years for God's glory...

       - Select life verses.  Key verses for me are Isaiah 43:1-3, 2 Corinthians 4:7, Romans 6:23 and my theme verse for this year is Romans 12:12

 - Who are you discipling?  This is a trick question, because you are making disciples the real question is are you making disciples of Jesus?

Illustration of someone living a legacy is our friend Ken Korkow.  Here is the link to Ken's testimony:
http://vimeo.com/49320900

Listen to Ken's testimony and ask yourself:
- What legacy was he living before Jesus and what legacy is he living now?

Legacy of Faith Baptist Church

- Mission statement: Transforming lives for the glory of God...that means those outside and inside our 4 walls

- People of prayer
   Bob Bakke shared in an article the following:
   Members of praying churches are used to hearing questions or statements like: 

·       How did Christ confirm that to you?

·       How did he lead you to do this?

·       Tell me about how you sought the wisdom of the Lord in this?

·       Did you fast about this issue?

·       What other people confirmed to you that, as they sought the Lord on this

                  matter, it is "good to them and the Holy Spirit"?

·       Let's stop right now and seek God.

·       Let's set aside a day (a week, a month, etc.) to seek God on this issue. . We need to alert intercessors.

·       Before you did x, did you mobilize a prayer-covering?

- Gospel Centered people
- People on mission

David gives us an example of someone living a legacy...the challenge for us is what legacies are we living?  May God be glorified on our lives.

Blessings,
PT

Sermon from The Story Chapter 11 (1 Samuel 16:1-13)

Text: 1 Samuel 16:1-13

Link to the sermon:

http://www.buzzsprout.com/15930/145051-the-story-pt-11

Main Point: The most important thing about is the condition of your heart

What is your heart?  It is the core essence of who you are...

Why is it important?

   - The condition of your heart determines whether you are dead or alive spiritually.  Are you separated from God (dead) or are you connected to Jesus and therefore alive? (Romans 6:23)

   - Proverbs 4:23
   - Matthew 7:21-23
   - Luke 6:43-45

   - The battle of David and Goliath what did the Israelites look at?  What was the Israelites mistake when they looked upon Goliath?  They looked at the external whereas David looked at his heart...

Does it mean you are perfect?  No...David wasn't, but when confronted with his sin he had a heart that turned back to and pursued God.  Contrast that with Saul when he his heart was out of line with God...he claimed his innocence and blamed those around him...

Psalm 63: A picture of David's heart.

Application:

- If our hearts beat after God then:

    - we will love the Lord our God
    - we will love our neighbors as ourselves (note: if you are a follower of Christ you will have concern for those around you and social causes.  Isaiah 58:5-11)
    - we will strive to fulfill the Great Commission
    - we will surround ourselves with people who will speak into our hearts

We at FBC are working our way through The Story, which is really a 31 week look at the Bible of God's Story.  This past week we looked at 1 Samuel and King Saul.  I focused in on 1 Samuel 15.

Here is the note sheet answers:

Main Point:  A life of faith is a life of obedience.

Note: I do not mean living a life of perfection, but rather a gospel/Jesus centered life where your love for Jesus drives you and his grace motivates you to live in line with Him.

Application Questions:

How do you know when you are being disobedient?

- When you are out of line with Scripture
- When no fruit is present (Spiritual, personal & harvest).  If there is no love, joy, peace, patience, kindness...then your life isn't in line with the Gospel/Jesus
- When there are control issues

How Community Groups/ Missional Communities and Life Transformation Groups help with application

Short and sweet you need individuals in your life who can speak Jesus into it.

Special thanks to Austin Stone for letting us use their video to illustrate this.  Here is a link to this video:
http://vimeo.com/38998440

A brief word on stewardship:

The typical stewardship campaign is about Time, Talent, Treasure...you need to be giving more of all 3 to the church.  That is not my view or understanding of stewardship.  No I want individuals to manage their time, so that they are taking their Sabbath rest, so that they are spending time with their family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and discipling them to Jesus.  Not so they are at the church 24/7.  I want them using their talents in such a way that they are rubbing shoulders with non-Jesus followers and discipling them and one another.  Not so we are creating a bunch of programs and building bigger buildings...I want them to manage their finacnes in such a way that Jesus is at the center...if there are issues with their finances there is a good chance that they have a problem with an idol...if Jesus is at the center they will know how to give and bless others so disciples are reproduced...

Here is a link to the sermon:
http://www.buzzsprout.com/15930/143087-the-story-pt-10

Blessings,
Todd

Parental Blessings

Heidi and I strive to keep the Gospel at the center of parenting, strive to disciple our kids desiring to ultimately see them passionately following after Jesus and making disciples themselves.  But as a parent some days you think I am really messing up this parenting thing. And then God drops encouragement in your lap and reminds you that He hasn't dropped you and he isn't going to drop your children either.  Yesterday I had one of those blessed parental moments when our 12 year old daughter asked me to read something she had been working on.

This is what it said:

You can't replace....
By A. Harder

You can't replace family with cell phones and Twitter.
You can't replace the love of your mother with technology.
You can't replace your dad's lessons - big & small with an app.
You can't replace Grandma's stories with Facebook.
You can't replace your brothers & sisters with the Internet.
You can't replace the loyalty of your pets with TV.

You cannot replace God's grace with entertainment.
You cannot replace your freedom in Christ with money.
You cannot replace the support of your spiritual family with solitude.
You cannot replace eternal life with now & today.
You cannot replace your relationship with God with religion.

You can become a new creation by accepting Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).
You can move a mountain with just faith in Christ (Matthew 17:20).
You can have nothing to fear - not even death - in Christ (Isaiah 41:10).
You can find rest in Christ Jesus (Matthew 11:28).

You are worth more than the sparrows to God (Matthew 10:29)!
You are much loved by God, so much that He died for you (John 3:16).
You are a child of God (John 1:12).
You are reborn in Christ (John 3:3-8).

Now you know the choice.  What will you choose?

After reading it I said: "Sweetie...I love this where did you get it? Did you write this on your own?"  And she said "Yes."  I said I want a copy of this and when she gave it to me today I again said "Where did this come from?" And she said: "It just dropped out of my head."

Thank you Jesus for the blessed moment and the reminder that you are always at work not only in our lives, but our children's as well.

Thanks for letting me share my proud daddy moment with you....Have a blessed day, PT

Sermon Notes: Gospel Centered Living Part 2 (Marriage)

My text for my June 9th sermon was John 13:12-15.

Opening/interactive questions:

- What did Peter get in trouble for in last week's text (Galatians 2:11-14)?

- T or F: Men & Women are the same?

- Finish the verse:

   - "Wives ________ __ _____ ______ .......? (Ephesians 5:22)

   - "Husbands _______ _______ _______ ......? (Ephesians 5:25)

- What is Christian marriage supposed to represent?

Answers:

- Peter got in trouble for failing to live in line with the Gospel.

- Everybody shouted "False" but my challenge then is "Why then do we try to treat each other as if we were the same?

- Typically men are quick to throw the "submit" word around but do not finish the verse while women desire love and resent their husbands when they do not feel loved...or do not respect him...

- Marriage is to be a representation of the church's relationship with Jesus...hmmmm how is the church doing? How are marriages doing?  I wonder if there is a direct correlation...

So back to our text.  What in the world does John 13:12-15 have to do with marriage?  I propose that if more couples memorized this text and applied it to their marriages they would be more Gospel centered.  If spouses stepped down and took on the role of servant it would be easier for our marriages to become what they are supposed to be.

My first illustration came from several weeks ago when my oldest son said to one of our members "You should listen to your wife."  To which the  husband quickly responded "I do not know what your dad is teaching in your house, but that isn't how it works in mine." Or something to that effect.  Now I wasn't privy to the entire conversation, but I quickly responded that I agreed with my son. I say that from the perspective of how are you going to know how to love, serve, wash your wife in the Word if you are not listening to her. My wife will gladly tell anyone who asks that she has no problem submitting to me, because I listen to her, have demonstrated that I have her best interest in mind and I am ultimately responsible to God. She will also say that she is more than happy that I am the one accountable to God for our family and not her.

If Jesus is at the center I will strive to serve my spouse, if self is at the center I will do things like demand my rights, argue, treat my spouse as I want to be treated and withhold things like affection, sex, etc.

Having a great, Christ centered marriage isn't rock science. In fact, I sum up books like For Couples Only, His Needs, Her Needs, and 5 Love Languages by offering the following advice in all of my premarital/marriage counseling:

- Die to self live to Jesus serve your spouse
- Be a student of your spouse
- Never let the sun go down on your anger
- Love is a choice

If I have a Christ centered marriage these are the natural out flow.  You will implement the "Platinum Rule" which says: "Treat others as they want to be treated, not how you want to be treated."  If I am going to serve my wife then I must seek to understand her (Be a student of her) and minister to her in ways that she sees as a blessing.  One of the ways my wife is wired is to make lists and for her to relax or go to bed she wants/needs her list checked off.  Now one thing that is on her list is dishes...now let's say it is 8:30PM, she is getting the kids ready for bed and the dishwasher needs to be loaded and other dishes that are too big for the dishwasher need to be washed...I have a choice...I can do whatever I want to do and gripe/complain wondering why she hasn't gotten the dishes taken care of or I can say "I am going to apply John 13:12-15 to my marriage and do the dishes for her."  It isn't rock science to know which one is Christ centered and deepen our marriage and which choice isn't/won't.

When couples come in for marriage counseling I always look at him and say finish the sentence: "My wife needs me to......"  Generally he starts to squirm a little and says "love her."  I smile and say: "OK, but what does that mean...typically he stares at me or fumbles through some answer.  Then I look at her and say you can correct me if I am wrong but I think the answer is "My wife needs me to cherish her...delight in her...treat her like she is the center piece on the table that when you walk in you can't take your eye off of..."  I have never had a woman tell me I am wrong, in fact one said "Your a man...how did you know that?"  Simple I am a student of my spouse, I have read Scripture and books like Wild At Heart/Captivating...I next ask her to finish the sentence: "My husband needs me to ....."  Fifty percent of the time they say "respect him," but the challenge is are they?  One day several of us where standing around talking and one wife started tearing her husband down (he wasn't around) and sharing how she wasn't going to do anything for him...to which I said "Where is the Gospel in that?"  She was silent for a moment, someone else said it isn't, she agreed and then picked up where she left off...if they applied John 13:12-15/the Gospel their marriage would be radically different.

My wife and I before we said "I do" committed to never let the sun go down on our anger...which means we are committed to always working through things and not letting things stew and fester...that has severed us well and is in line with the Gospel.

Lastly, love is a choice.  I have chosen to place my wife above all other women...most days that is really easy and once in a great while it isn't...she has chosen to place me above all other men...some days that is easy for her and some days it isn't.  The days when it isn't are most likely days when one or both of us is placing self at the center rather than Jesus.

I "wash my wife's feet" not to get what I want, but because Jesus loved me and gave His life for me...my prayer and challenge for you is that you will take John 13:12-15/the Gospel and put/keep it at the center.

Blessings,
T