Jesus’ Prayer – John 17:6-26

11 11 2008

Prayer and Action go together. 6

  • Jesus acted in obedience and so he prays. 4, 6, 8,
  • Prayer without action can mean doubt in prayer.
  • There are no people in the the church whose only job is prayer.
  • The more you are apart of something or involved the more you will pray. The less you are involved in something the less you will tend to pray for it.
  • Being involved in the ministry shows us how to pray more specifically for the ministry.
  • Those who are not involved in children’s ministry say, “God bless the children’s ministry.” Those who are involved can pray for the children by name. They know what the children are going through. Those more involved reap the greater blessing.
  • Those least involved in the life of the church will be the ones who pray least for it.

Prayer for both present and future believers

Prayer for God to keep believers 11, 12, 15

  • They must be guarded because they are in the world. 11,
  • They must be guarded because the evil one is active. 15
  • They must be guarded because those who turn back are not fit for the kingdom of God. Lk. 9:62

Prayer for unity 11. 21-23

  • Not unity with world – Set apart – sanctify
  • With the Father
  • With other believers
  • If true believer can not be one then there is a problem with their oneness with the Father.

Prayer for evangelism 21, 23

  • Unity leads to more evangelism.

Prayer for Sanctification 17-18

  • Sanctification is through the word 17
  • Sanctification is possible because Jesus set himself apart. 18
  • The ultimate end of our sanctification is being with Jesus and seeing his glory. 24

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Jesus’ Prayer Part 1 – John 17:1-5

4 11 2008

Pray as you go. 1 – John 1:41

  • Jesus was on the go and praying.
  • b/c you are dependent on God as you go
  • because it’s about relationship
  • How many times have you prayed today? Pray while you’re working, while you are hunting and fishing, while you are in front of the computer, while you painting, while you are driving, while you are watching tv, while you are taking a shower, while you are singing and in the middle of the sermon, all the time.

Pray because you know God’s plan – The plan prompts us to pray.

  • Some people will say since God knows everything and has a plan then why pray at all.
  • Jesus knew what was going to happen yet he prayed. He knew he was going to do the Father’s will, yet he prayed.
  • Everything Jesus prayed for in this chapter were things he already knew God was going to do.
  • Pray for lost people to be saved because you know God is going to save some of them.
  • The purpose of prayer is not just to get what we want, but to give God what he wants. He wants a relationship with us that brings glory to Him.

Pray to the God you know in the Bible. 1 (Father), 3

  • only true God
  • That means you must be saved.
  • It means the God of the Bible is not the same as Allah. Just because your wife has some things in common with another wife does not make her your wife too. If I treated everyone who had some major things in common with my wife like my wife, then my real wife would have a problem with that. God has a problem with people who treat others gods like him.

Pray for God’s glory first. 1-5

  • Jesus wanted the Father’s glory at the cost of his life. Our prayer is “Father bring glory to yourself as long as it does not bring me hurt or heartache or death. Only do what’s good for You if I think it is good for me too.”
  • Is this not the prayer of a lost person. God I want to follow you, but only when what you want lines up with what I want. Good moral people want to do good thing, but not because it is what God wants. They want to do it because it is good for them they don’t give a care if God likes it or not.
  • I will go to church, but if I can get a job making more money on Sunday I’m going for it. I will give you the glory you deserve with my offering as long as I have it when Sunday rolls around, as long as the church needs it (if they have a surplus there is no need for me to give). I will bring you glory as long as it is not going to take any personal sacrifice or effort on my part.

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So I’m a Christian, now what? – Acts various verses

11 08 2008

 Adoption

  • Gal. 4:4-5 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

  • Caney made national news when Golden Retriever adopted and cares for tiger cubs at the Safari Zoological Park.

  • The tiger cubs look nothing like the golden retriever, but she brings them in and cares for them. We don’t look like we belong to God’s family, but he adopts us in at a deepest cost. The longer we are in the family the more we start to look like we belong. We learn to love what the Father loves and hate what the father hates. Once we are a part of the family what’s next. I’m a Christian now what do I do??

1. Be baptized- 2:38-41

  • Baptism needs to occur after you believe.

  • Baptism does not happen at the exact same time as belief.

  • Acts 10:47-48 Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to remain for some days.

  • Baptism is not the same thing as believing. They are not synonyms.

  • If baptism and belief were the same thing you could use them like synonyms. And you would not need to use both of them at the same time.

  • Acts 18:8b And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized. Aslo Acts 8:13;

  • Two different things one before the other.

  • If they are synonyms then this verse is very weird. It would be like me saying, “I got dressed and put my clothes on.” “I washed and cleaned my hands.” “We had supper and ate food.”

  • Baptism shows you are willing to obey the Lord.

  • We don’t include a person into the membership of the church until they get baptized because it they don’t want to get baptized there is a problem.

2. Read your Bible

  • You cannot defend what you don’t personally know.

  • You cannot grow spiritually without the word.

  • I hated reading until I was about 16 when I started consuming the Bible like I wasn’t going to have it tomorrow. I learned there is some good stuff in here. After I started reading it I began to grow. It was less than a year later that God called me to preach it. Just preach it.

  • When you read it he will give and maintain His purpose for you. Knowing the Bible will give you wisdom for marriage, how to handle conflict, and lead to many blessing that don’t come any other way, but by knowing his word.

  • Don’t just read it, study it.

3. Pray

  • Acts 2:42 And they devoted themselves tot he apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and and the prayers.

  • Talk to God

  • pray when you read your Bible

  • Pray for your friends

  • Pray and just be thankful some times

  • Write down your prayers. Find what works for you and do it.

4. Remember you are the church so go be together.

Acts 16:5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.

Be together to learn. (strengthened in the faith)

  • You don’t have to learn something new every time you come.

Be together to worship God.

  • You can and should worship God by yourself everyday, but you should also be part of the group worship. There is a dynamic about being there that cannot be replaced.

  • I sometimes listen to sermons on CD or online, because a friend recommended it. He was on fire about it. Then I listen to it and it’s not the same. I was not there so it didn’t impact me as much.

Be together to serve each other.

  • Acts 13:36 For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers…

Be apart of God’s work in every way you can.

  • Matt. 16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

  • People are the church. The church is everyone who believes.

  • When you believe and then show your belief by getting baptized you are a member of this church. It is my responsibility to help you grow and love, more so than any other church. It is the rest of the churches responsibility to help. If someone stumbles in the faith we should make every effort to help you get back on the right track more so than any other churches responsibility.

  • People are going to get their understanding of what a Christian is by watching you.

  • People are going to get their understanding of what this church is all about by watching and listening to us.

5. Tell others what God as done for you – evangelism

  • The whole book of acts is about saved people telling others how to be saved.

  • Saved people have a desire for others to be saved too.

  • Several people have told me I’m glad so and so got saved at your church I’ve been praying for them for years. It was there prayers that lead to the moment I was able to talk to them.

  • You pass people everyday that somebody has been praying for, for years.

 

Be on guard against people and things that will lead you away from being baptized, praying, the Bible, church, and desiring others to be saved.


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A Mother who Worships God. – 1 Samuel 1:9-20

12 05 2008

Do not…

1. Do not be a bargain worshiper 11

  • When we go shopping we want a bargain. We want to get much and give little as possible for it.
    Hannah’s worship was not conditioned on whether she got what you asked for or not.
    She knew there was a possibility that she would not get what she asked for, but she was still going to worship God regardless.

2. Do not be a demanding worshiper. 11

  • Hannah’s request was not a command. She used the word “if.”
    We are the clay, He is the potter. We do not demand anything from God.
    Doing so is like standing before a judge demanding that he let you go.
    We have already been given way more than we deserve.

3. Do not be a criticizing or questioning worshiper. 11

  • Some in Hannah’s position would have complained to God instead of asking for his grace.
    She could have said, “Why have You not allowed me to have children, I thought you were a good God. I have worshiped you faithfully. Why don’t you bless me. Other people are having many children and they don’t worship you. Why me? Why not them?”

4. Do not be a forgetful worshiper. 11 & 21-28

  • When Hannah did get what she ask for she did what she told God she would do.

5. Do not be a hindrance to you own prayer.

  • Hannah went and slept with her husband. She acted as if God was going to answer her prayer. She believed God could answer her prayer so acted on it.

Do…

1. Know the Lord’s Power. 11

  • He was Lord of hosts.11
  • He could give her children.11

2. Be a passionate worshiper. 14-15

  • When is the last time you prayed so passionately that somebody thought you were drunk?

3. Want what God wants.

  • Ps. 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
  • Hannah didn’t just want a child, she wanted a child to serve God.
  • Be on the same page with God.
  • The more you get to know God the more you learn to be on his page.
  • You cannot be on the same page as God if you don’t dig into his word.
  • You cannot be on the same page as God if you don’t make knowing him you priority.
  • Don’t just want partial serves, but complete.
  • God wants us to want our children to serve Him completely.

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Sermon Summary 12-30-07

31 12 2007

Examine Yourself – 2 Corinthians 13:5-8

Yourself.

  • Not others – “I know someone who could benefit from this sermon”

Examine

  • Assurance doesn’t come from avoiding the test, it comes from taking it and passing.
  • Those that don’t or won’t are the ones that need to the most.
  • This doesn’t deny eternal security.
    • If you pass it’s because He is in you.
    • If you fail that is only natural, without Christ all fail.

What is the exam?

  • If you are in the faith you know the Savior.
  • If you are in the faith you trust him and obey him.
  • If you are in the faith you live by faith in Christ
  • If you are in the faith you grow spiritually.

Don’t say, “look I said a prayer, I have been baptized.”

How do you test Yourself?

  • Ask yourself “Do I have a story to tell of when I came to a knowledge of Jesus and my sin and I repented of my sin and trusted in Jesus to save me.

  • Ask yourself questions that tell you if you are growing spiritually or not.

  • What has God done in you personally over the past year? Have you had a growing desire to read his word, spend time in prayer, and tell other about him?

Why test yourself?

  • Because it is possible that you could be lost and if you are, you need to get saved.

  • Because it will confirm your faith in Christ and give you assurance.

  • If we examine ourselves, then someone else will not have to.

    • If we examine ourselves, then when someone points out our error, they will not have to be severe and we will thank them.

Prayer is necessary in this processes. V.

  • Why is prayer necessary?

  • Because God keeps people from wrong.

    • Paul could have given up on them, but He did not because he had faith in God not them. Because he had faith in God, he knew that God could keep them from wrong. He knew that God was sovereign, even over a persons will, wants, and desires.

  • Prayer from others for you.

  • Prayer for others from you.

Severity is sometimes necessary in this process. V. 10

  • Standing for the truth means being severe sometimes. V. 8

  • The purpose is for building up. V. 10b

    • It is not to say, “I am better than you.”

  • Get severe with yourself – Make war – John Piper

    • If you were losing money, you would fight harder.

    • Use the sword like you are in combat.

    • Fight your sin like you’re fighting the insurance company that will not pay your claim, like someone just hurt your child, because it is worse than that.

    • Fight sin by making plans for the future. Plan for spiritual growth in the new year. 

  1. Make plans to read the Bible.

  2. Don’t just come to church be the church.

  3. Come to Sunday School.

  4. Spend more time in prayer. Join a Wed. night prayer fellowship group.


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Sermon Summary 11-11-07

12 11 2007

 A Church Devoted to Prayer. Acts 2:42

What does devoted to prayer mean?

  • They were in Jerusalem so those three thousand souls that were added to the church in verse 41 were mostly Jews (2:5). Jews prayed ritually. So when it says they devoted themselves to prayer, what does it mean? If they already prayed daily as Jews, did they now pray more? What made it devoted praying? What was different about it now than before?

1. They were now praying to a God they knew and who knew them.

2. They were now praying in obedience.

  • They received word.
  • They were baptized.

These people who were devoted to praying were new believers.  

  • This tells us the every believer whether new or old ought to be devoted to prayer.  If new believers are devoted to prayer how much more ought the seasoned soul to pray. 

Every great awakening began by prayer.

A church devoted to prayer

  • demonstrates their need for God.
  • demonstrates their love for God
  • demonstrates their love for others.
    • Instead of praying we complain
    • Instead of praying we avoid.

A CHURCH THAT PRAYS:

  1. Prays about what it does.
  2. Fits prayer in.
  3. Prays when there are problems.
  4. Announces a special time of prayer—some in the church show up.
  5. Asks God to bless what it is doing.
  6. Is frustrated by financial shortfall—backs down from projects.
  7. Is tired, weary, stressed out.
  8. Does things within its means.
  9. Sees its members as its parish.
  10. Is involved in the work of man.

A CHURCH DEVOTED TO PRAYER:

  1. Does things by prayer.
  2. Gives prayer priority.
  3. Prays when there are opportunities.
  4. Announces a special time of prayer—the church shows up.
  5. Asks God to enable it to do what He is blessing.
  6. Is challenged by financial short-fall—calls for fasting, prayer, and faith.
  7. Mounts up with wings like eagles, runs and doesn’t grow weary, walks and does not faint.
  8. Does things beyond its means.
  9. Sees the world as its parish.
  10. Is involved in the work of God.  by Fred A. Hartley III

When a church is devoted to prayer…

the Lord adds to their number (v. 47)

every church that the Lord builds comes through prayer

Your pastor’s dream for the prayer life of First Southern Baptist Church.

1. Every husband and wife praying together daily

2. Every member spending time in prayer daily.

3. Members meeting for prayer regularly.

4. Members setting aside periodic times of fasting

5. Every member praying before every meal. At home, at work, at the restaurant


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