Happy Advent! Today we kick off a new message series in preparation for the coming King. the new message series is “He Will Be Called.” We will be looking at the 4 names given to Jesus is Isaiah 9:6. You can see the schedule below:
November 27: Wonderful Counselor December 4: Mighty God December 11: Everlasting Father December 18: Prince of Peace
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Two things to start off today. The first is I want to remind you about a very special time of family worship tonight at Lord of Life at 7pm. It is Thanksgiving Eve and we are gathering as the family of God to give thanks to the one who truly deserves our thanksgiving! Looking forward to seeing you and sharing this opportunity to thank Jesus together.
Second, I want to invite you to join me for a Christmas decorating party on Saturday at 10am. We have a whole bunch of guests who are coming to visit during the Christmas holiday season and it is time to get God’s house ready. We will be putting up the Christmas Trees, hanging the lights, and having some fun while we are at it. It is an easy way to serve and make a difference. If you and/or your family can help out, please let me know.
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. It is difficult to be profound when you talk about being thankful. We have all heard that message before. God has given us so much. We are so blessed. Think of all God has given us compared to others. We are guilted into being thankful. But gratitude that comes out of a sense of obligation is not really gratitude. It is sort of like that kid who is told to say he is sorry, but he is not really sorry. He only says he is sorry because his dad told him to say he is sorry. How many of us during Thanksgiving are saying we are thankful because that is what we are supposed to do at thanksgiving?
I wonder if we miss the place of gratitude in our lives. We often envision gratitude as the result of God’s work in our life. But what would happen if we saw gratitude not as the result of God’s work in our life, but as the work of God itself. Gratitude is not the result of the blessings God pours into our lives. Often times the more a person is blessed, the less grateful they become. There are many who have so much less who are so much more grateful than those who have more. Why is that? The reason is because gratitude is not dependent upon blessings received from God. Gratitude is a matter of the heart. If I am not grateful with what I have I will never be grateful for what I don’t have.
Gratitude starts with a recognition of our sinfulness. It starts by realizing we are only beggars before God. It starts with recognizing that God does not owe me anything. Gratitude is inversely proportional to our sense of entitlement. The greater my sense of entitlement the lower my sense of gratitude. The less my sense of entitlement the greater my sense of gratitude. I can expect great things from God, but I realize I don’t deserve great things from God. If you are feeling ungrateful, maybe it is time to do a heart check and ask, “why is it that I deserve more than what God has already given me?”
The last thing I want to say about gratitude is that gratitude is expressed. There is a saying that “if a tree fell in a forest and no one was there to hear it fall, did it make a noise?” In the same way if I don’t express my gratitude, am I really grateful. Don’t assume others know you are grateful. Tell them. Let them know. Tell Jesus you are grateful. As I shared above there is a great opportunity to do that tonight at 7pm. Then tell others how grateful you are. Tell your spouse. Tell your parents. Tell your children. Tell your friends. Tell your boss. Tell your teacher. Tell that person that goes to of their way to be kind and helpful. You never know how your gratitude will serve as a blessing to someone else. They are working so hard and just one expression can make a world of difference that is beyond words.
Today, is a bitter sweet day. This is the very last day of our study on King David. This Sunday will be the final message! The following Sunday, after Thanksgiving, we will begin a brand new message series with the start of Advent. We will be sticking with the Old Testament and be looking at the Messianic prophecies of Isaiah.
But today our reading is from the last book in the Bible. The reading is Revelation 2:1-7.
What does this text say about what God knows (2:2)? Is there anything we will do in our life that God is not aware of?
God knows everything. He knows your deeds, both good and bad. He sees the faith in your heart. Nothing we do in our life is outside the knowledge of God.
What is the Ephesian church commended for in this letter (2:2-3)? How are false apostles found out? How do we persevere and endure hardship without growing weary?
They are commended for their deeds, their hard work, and their perseverance. The tested those who claimed to be apostles by examining the Scriptures and their deeds. When we go through times of testing and hardship we persevere through seeking God and finding our strength in him. This happens through prayer and the Word.
What is held against the Ephesian church (2:4)? What are they called to do in response (2:5)?
They have forsaken their first love. This is their relationship with the Lord. They have set their eyes on other things. The Lord is no longer the passion of their life.
The calling is for them to return back to that first love and to love the Lord in the way they loved him at first. It is a call to renewal and revival.
Is there ways your love of God has been diminished? How do you return to loving God in the way you loved him in the past?
We are human are our relationship with the Lord ebbs and flows. It is easy to be distracted and to pursue other passions first. Returning to the Lord involves repentance and setting aside those things which distract and cause us to stumble.
What does it mean to overcome (2:7)? What were some of the things David overcame in his lifetime? What do you believe God is calling you to overcome in your lifetime? What is the reward?
To overcome is to let nothing come between us and Jesus. It is to push aside everything that hinders us from living passionately for him. When we think about David and what David overcame, he overcame fear to fight Goliath. He overcame the sin with Bathsheba through confession and repentance. He overcame disappointment in his life through prayer and trusting in the promises of God. He overcame when others stumbled, by living obedient to the Lord.
Maybe one of the most telling statements David ever made was at the beginning of Psalm 22. He asks God, “why have you abandoned me?” Hundreds of years later Jesus would quote these same words on the cross. Can your relate? Have you had times in your life that you may felt as if God abandoned you? Was there a time when you cried out and called out but it seems as if no one was listening?
It is in these moments we learn from Jesus. In Luke 11 he instructs his disciples how to pray and tells the following story starting in verse 5.
Luke 11:5–8 (NLT) 5 Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, 6 ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ 7 And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ 8 But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence.
Jesus tells us to come to God with shameless persistence. I find Jesus’ choice of words to be very curious. Shamelessness often has a negative connotation. but that is exactly how God wants us to come to him. When I make a request and the answer is “no,” I will often give up and throw in the towel. I am not the type of person who will not take “no” for an answer. But Jesus is telling us here not to take “no” for an answer. He goes on further to say:
Luke 11:9-12 (NLT) 9 “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 11 “You fathers—if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? 12 Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not!
When God’s child makes a request, God responds. God is not in the business of giving snakes and scorpions. He gives you what is good for you in the right time and the right place. You have not received a snake from God. You have not received a scorpion from God. It is hard to believe that sometimes. It is by faith we receive that is true. We often think we know what is better than God. But God is the Father and we are his children.
Many times the answer to our prayer is just part of a puzzle. It may feel as if God abandoned you because he is up to a greater work than we can imagine but may not be able to fully see right now. He is putting all the pieces of the puzzle into place. The answer to our prayer is a piece at the very center of the puzzle and before it will fit all the other pieces need to get into place.
So don’t give up hope. Keep praying. Keep listening to him through the Word. God does hear and God is up to something really great.
We have come to the second to last of our studies on the life of David. Our reading is from John 21:15-25. Here Jesus appears to his disciples after his resurrection.
Why does Jesus ask Peter to feed his lambs (21:15-19; see John 18:15-18, 25-27)?
Peter had expressed a devotion to Jesus. In John 13:37 Peter had told Jesus that he would lay down his life for him. Yet, after Jesus is arrested, Peter denies knowing Jesus three times.
Jesus now approaches Peter now to seek reconciliation and restoration. Peter is wounded. He knows he let Jesus down. He had promised to do one thing, but then did another. Now Jesus assures Peter that he still loves him by entrusting him with responsibility. No matter the mistake in the past, Jesus was restoring Peter to a place of trust.
What does Jesus mean when he asks Peter to feed his sheep?
He is putting Peter in a place of leadership. Jesus is giving him responsibility to disciple others to follow Jesus. Now that Jesus is going to be ascending into heaven he is giving asking Peter to continue the work.
Do you think it was significant that David was a shepherd before he became king? Why?
Yes, Jesus was known as the Good Shepherd. Jesus now tells Peter to care for his sheep. Psalm 78:71 says God took David from the tending of sheep and made him the shepherd of God’s own people. David’s times as a shepherd was used by God to prepare David for the greater task he had in store.
What is our role on this earth (15:22)
To follow Jesus.
We read in Acts 13:36 (NLT): “David had done the will of God in his own generation, he died and was buried with his ancestors, and his body decayed.” Now reread this verse and replace David’s name with your name. Will this statement be true or false?
This is for each of us to ask ourselves. Peter’s purpose was to serve by discipling others. Our task is no different. How are you following Jesus today? Who are you being discipled by? Who are you discipling?
Today’s reading is 2 Timothy 3:1-4:8. In this reading, Paul is writing at the end of his life. He gives instructions and encouragement to young Timothy for his ministry. He tells Timothy to learn from his example and keep his focus on what is truly important.
What will happen in the last days (3:1-5)? How do we see this happening today?
People will love themselves and their money. They will not live obedient to God. Consider nothing to be sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving towards others. They will have no-self control. They will be prideful and love pleasure more than God. They will be religious on the surface, but not really have a relationship with God.
What does it say will happen to those who want to live a godly life (3:12)? How was this true in the life of David?
Those who live a godly life will suffer persecution. This happened in the life of David. He suffered for doing what was good and what was right. There are many times he could have compromised his integrity. But he was a man after God’s own heart. When he did stumble, he came back to God.
What is the role of the Scriptures in living a godly life (3:14-16)? If we don’t seek God’s Word, what will we seek instead (4:3-4)?
The Scriptures are written to guide us. They are given so we know what a godly life looks like. The Scriptures are inspired by God, show us what is wrong in our lives and gives us what we need to fix it.
Why is it so important for us to do the work of an evangelist (4:5)?
This is where we start to realize the promises of God and fully carry out the ministry God has given us. If we are not sharing what we have been given we are not fully living out our calling.
What does Paul mean that he has fought the good fight (4:7)? What is his reward?
He kept faith in Jesus as his Savior till his dying day and lived out the implications of that. The reward for him is the crown of righteousness which is eternal life in glory with Jesus.
