4/28/2011 Good Days are ComingScriptures: Romans 8:28
Hope is a powerful attribute and the loss of hope is a powerful weapon. What does it mean to have hope: to desire something with expectation, to look forward to with confidence of fulfillment, to trust, and to be confident. When hope is taken we lose our confidence and our ability to trust. Our faith is challenged, but God wants you to have hope! Hope is a Biblical concept and our hope must be centered on the Lord: "For thou art my hope, O Lord God..." says Psalm 71. God helps us constantly and He is the central reason for our success. Sometimes our hope is affected by false hope. What is false hope? Its having hope in anyone or anything other than God, which only leads to chaos and disaster. Lets look at some examples of false hope from the Bible: 1) From Hosea 10:13: "Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men." This describes when we place our hope in the multitude, or majority rule. We have all be effected by the effective lie, which says "make it big, keep it simple and repeat if often." 2) Psalm 49:5-10: "Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about? They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him..." This shows us about hope in wealth and no matter of money can redeem one's soul. Only God can work out all things for good. Not all things that heppen to you will be good, because we live in a fallen world, but God has a plan for our long-range good. Let the power of hope in God work in your spirit. Hold on to your dreams and desires, and see y9urself walking into your promise. Remain confident, trust God and keep anticipating for good days are coming. 4/19/2011 Personal EvangelismScriptures: Mark 16: 15-20
In these verses, we see that Jesus has given us specific instructions: "go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to everyone." We do not need a sign to know what His will is: His will is for us to reach the world! The Bible tells us that signs follow them that believe, but too many people have a misunderstanding of how Jesus reveals His will to us. They ask Jesus for a sign and then they evangelize. But the Word says that miracles, signs and wonders follow action! Moses put his rod over the waters, then they divided. David collected stones, and ran at the giant, then God smote the giant. Peter climbed out of the boat and then he walked on water. Noah built an ark before he even knew what rain was and his family was saved. The Bible tells us that the disciples went forth and followed Jesus' direction: preaching the gospel, baptizing new believers, and the Lord was working with them. You might wonder how could the writer know that the Lord was working with them? Jesus confirmed the words they spoke with signs following. Devils were cast out and people spoke with new tongues. God intervened miraculously to protect them. They prayed for the sick and they recovered. Its time to resurrect your personal evangelism. Share the gospel: teach, preach, witness, testify, and share your personal testimony. The Lord will work with you and He will confirm His Word with signs following you! 4/16/2011 What does Jesus see?Scriptures: Matthew 9:35-38, Matthew 10:1, Matthew 10:5-8
The Bible tells us that Jesus went about the cities and villages: teaching, preaching the gospel and healing every sickness and every disease. But when Jesus saw the multitudes, what did He see? Jesus saw: faces, lives, situations, struggles and hurts. He sees all types of people: the proud and the broken. Jesus sees our entire lives; He sees all. He sees our dreams and struggles. He sees our hopes and heartaches. He sees are failures and our successes. What does Jesus do with what He sees? He has compassion. The Bible says the people in Matthew chapter 9 fainted because they lacked spiritual nourishment. They were scattered abroad and they lacked fellowship, unity and community. They were as sheep without a shepherd, without leadership, direction, guidance, security or protection. He sends forth labourers into His harvest. He sends labourers to go to the lost sheep and preach. To heal, to cleanse, and to raise the dead. To cast out devils and to freely give what they have received from Him. Ask Jesus now to help you see what He sees. Ask Him to give you His compassion. Now ask yourself the question: are you ready to go forth as a labourer in a field ready for harvest? 4/7/2011 When Your Brook Dries Up- Week TwoScriptures: 1 Kings 17:1-7
This week's lesson is a continuation of last's week study when we read how Elijah was sent to the brook Cherith by God and after a time his brook dried up. This week we will study some of the reasons the brooks in our lives dry up. 1) To deepen our understanding of those who are hurting- what others suffer, we must suffer. Elijah had to face the drought to understand how to minister to the people. Noah was ridiculed, Joseph was rejected, Moses faced rebellion, David had to flee, Jeremiah wept, Paul endured and Jesus suffered. 2) To prove that God makes no exceptions-God is a just God and His word says: "The rain will fall on the just and the unjust." The difficulties we face our faith increasers. We will face obstacles when we try to become more than ordinary, but God uses those experiences to grow our faith. 3) For God to give us new vision- We can not just look at the effects of the drought: "we walk by faith, not by sight." No one else can see what God can see. When brooks fail many times we discover our true purpose in life. God has a purpose for every brook that dries up. |
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