#1: The Wall of Righteousness
Ezekiel 22:23-31
1. The Wall of Righteousness
Proverbs 13:6
Ephesians 6:14
Psalm 37:39-40
How Righteousness Protects:
a. Shield Against Evil
b. Protection of the Heart
c. God's Approval
d. Spirtual Warfare
2. Someone to Stand in the Gap
Ezekiel 22:30
Exodus 32:9-14
Ephesians 6:10-18
Forgiveness Isn't Always Enough
When people wound you, just like a physical wound if not tended to it can become infected, which leaves you bitter and hateful.
So how do we tend to ourselves when others wound us?
Well forgiveness obviously. Forgiveness is a healing agent to a wounded soul.
And this is where I started to realize, maybe forgiveness isn't always enough. I forgave those who wounded me but I was still hurting.
I was wounded by someone and this wound was deeper than forgiveness could heal.
So if forgiveness isn't enough then what is? What am I missing? What did God need me to do?
Psalms 35:11-14:
11 Malicious witnesses testify against me. They accuse me of crimes I know nothing about. 12 They repay me evil for good. I am sick with despair. 13 Yet when they were ill, I grieved for them. I denied myself by fasting for them, but my prayers returned unanswered. 14 I was sad, as though they were my friends or family, as if I were grieving for my own mother.
Matthew 5:44 sums this Psalm up beautifully:
44 But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!
Prayer Heals Wounds Forgiveness Cant
But in order for prayer to be effective in healing us we have to forgive first.
Read verse 14 in Psalms 35:
14 I was sad, as though they were my friends or family, as if I were grieving for my own mother.
You have to pray for them as if they were your friends, as if they’re your family. I would challenge you and say pray for them as if you're praying for yourself!
And the only way you're gonna be able to do that is if you've forgiven them first.
Prayer heals deep wounds. If you've worked through forgiveness, but you're still struggling to move on from something that was done to you, you need to spend time in prayer for the one that wounded you.
Pray for them as if you were praying for yourself! With genuine prayers. And God will begin to heal you.
Now will you be healed in that moment? In that first prayer? I can't guarantee that. But I can guarantee if you’re obedient to what God asks you to do, praying for your enemies. He will begin to stitch you up. He will heal you and replace the hurt with a love for that person you wouldnt of thought possible.
If only it were that easy though. Pray for your enemies. No, you see the 6th session of the Bait of Satan isn't called, healing from wounds, pray for your enemies or anything like that. It's called reconciliation.
Reconciliation means: the restoration of friendly relations.
The Restoration of Friendly Relations
Romans 12:18 NIV
18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
Forgiveness isn't reconciliation. And neither is prayer.
Matthew 18:15
15 “If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offense. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back.
Verse 15 tells us GO! Go IN PERSON (when possible) to those who have wounded us and be reconciled.
When not possible a phone call isa better than nothing!
Pride keeps us from doing this at times.
We must humble ourselves and apologize!
You cannot reconcile a relationship without repentance. That's why we have to repent of our sins in order to be in right relationship with God even though forgiveness was settled at the cross.
Reconciliation isn’t going to happen if you go with a list of the things you’re sorry for while being defensive about what you’re not sorry for.
Humble yourself for the sake of peace!
2 Corinthians gives us a more complete understanding of the necessity of reconciliation in the life of a believer.
2 Corinthians 5:17-21
17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. 20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”
God the father gave Jesus Christ his son the task of reconciling the world to himself! A task that we as Christians, little Christ’s, Christ's Ambassadors continue to this day through the message of the Gospel.
God has given us the task of continuing Jesus’ ministry to reconcile people back to himself.
So how can we claim to be christians whose task is to reconcile the world back to God when we aren't even willing to reconcile the relationships in our own lives?
You can't!
It is the deepest hypocrisy to claim to be in Christ while simultaneously denying his work of reconciliation to those around us.
If you’re a christian and you are not living in peace with everyone, where possible, as much as it depends on you, you are living a lie.
If you have an enemy in your life and I ask you “what have you done to live in peace with that person” and your answer isn't “I've done everything I possibly can” then you are living a lie. You're a hypocrite. Claiming to represent something you don't..
Now I want to put an asterisk here. The verse says “If Possible” meaning it isn't always possible. We will have enemies, people who refuse to be reconciled despite all our efforts.
But I would argue that this isn't a majority of the time. And I find that we far more often spend time rationalizing to ourselves that they're unwilling to reconcile with us because we're too proud, or too afraid to have an uncomfortable conversation.
Do not rationalize your way out of doing what God has called you to do.
Live at peace and Reconcile with people. As much as it depends on YOU.
This Week’s Challenge!
Those who made a forgiveness list week 3 of this series: I know Candace had you destroy them as a way to show symbolically that you’ve forgiven them.
But what is the thesis of this message? Forgiveness isn't always enough!
So this week recreate that list. But now that's your prayer and reconciliation list.
Begin praying for those on your list throughout the week and AS MUCH AS IT DEPENDS ON YOU Reconcile with them. If possible IN PERSON.
Told you this was gonna be challenging.
And for the rest of you, make a list of your enemies. Those you aren't living in peace with. And do the same thing. That's your prayer and reconciliation list.
Anger is an emotion. Bitterness is a choice.
Hebrews 12:15b
Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.
Ephesians 4:26-27
26 And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.
Foothold: “a secure position that can be used to advance, or a small area of control that can be expanded”
So how do we not let the sun go down on our anger? We deal with it quickly. Don’t allow it to fester. Don’t allow it to sink in. Deal with it quickly, either using Matthew 18 to hold people accountable, or get back on the same page with them, or FORGIVE THEM.
Matthew 18:21-35
21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”
22 “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!
23 “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. 25 He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.
26 “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27 Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.
28 “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.
29 “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. 30 But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.
31 “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.
35 “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”
Any amount of sin comes between you and God.
Unforgiveness will torture you.
Mark 11:25-26
25 But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.”
Matthew 6:14
14 “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Luke 6:37
37 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.
Matthew 6:12 - the Lord’s prayer
and forgive us our sins,
as we have forgiven those who sin against us.
Radical forgiveness is impossible without Jesus.
An offended Christian is a Christian who has forgotten what they’ve been forgiven of!
Sometimes people will say, “I’ll forgive them when they apologize” ….. If Jesus would have waited until we said sorry to forgive us, he never would’ve gotten on that cross.
Hebrews 12:5b
How do I know if I’ve become bitter? Here are some things to think about:
Is your baseline mood often angry, disappointed, or irritable?
Think about the last 7 days…Have you…
Sent an angry or frustrated email or left a similar voicemail?
Got into a verbal conflict of any kind with anyone in your personal or professional life?
Had a negative emotional reaction to a stranger you encountered while driving, at work, or running errands?
Snapped at anyone in response to something they said or asked?
Think about your closest relationships. Do you generally feel that others don’t fully understand you or appreciate all the things you do?
Okay, now think about the concept of happiness…have you come to believe that it’s possible you may never feel truly happy?
When you hear about that person being blessed, do you wonder how God could possibly bless them when they did such an ugly thing to you?
Romans 12:17-19
Proverbs 20:22
Deuteronomy 32:34-35
Proverbs 24:29
Vengeance is none of my business.
1 Peter 2:18-21
Mark 15:3-5
1 Peter 2:22-23
1 Peter 3:9
We return blessings for curses.
CHALLENGE: Gather some worship inspiration. A song, scripture, Bible hero, etc that inspires you to worship God and adjust your perspective, so you can more easily give over vengeance to Him.
1 Samuel 24:1-11
1 Samuel 24:17-21
1 Samuel 26:9-11
Leviticus 19:18
Psalm 94:1
The leader's behavior may not be from God...but the authority is.
1 Peter 2:13-15
Psalm 51:3
God's way is that HE wants to defend you.
1 Peter 2:16-17
Exodus 20:12
Ephesians 6:1-3
Make a list. Forgive it.
Genesis 37:18-20
18 When Joseph’s brothers saw him coming, they recognized him in the distance. As he approached, they made plans to kill him. 19 “Here comes the dreamer!” they said. 20 “Come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns. We can tell our father, ‘A wild animal has eaten him.’ Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!”
2 Peter 3:3
3 Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires.
Jude 1:18-19
18 They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. 19 These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them.
Psalm 1:1-3
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the advice of the wicked,
or stand around with sinners,
or join in with mockers.
2 But they delight in the law of the Lord,
meditating on it day and night.
3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither,
and they prosper in all they do.
No one, but you, can knock you off course.
Genesis 37:20
20 “Come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns. We can tell our father, ‘A wild animal has eaten him.’ Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!”
Genesis 45:5-8
5 But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. 6 This famine that has ravaged the land for two years will last five more years, and there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. 7 God has sent me ahead of you to keep you and your families alive and to preserve many survivors.[a] 8 So it was God who sent me here, not you! And he is the one who made me an adviser[b] to Pharaoh—the manager of his entire palace and the governor of all Egypt.
Genesis 50:19-21
19 But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. 21 No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care of you and your children.” So he reassured them by speaking kindly to them.
Psalm 37:23
The Lord directs the steps of the godly.
He delights in every detail of their lives.
1 Peter 1:6-7
6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. 7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
Isaiah 48:10
I have refined you, but not as silver is refined.
Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.
“Often the thing that looks like an abortion of God’s plan actually ends up being the road to its fulfillment…if we stay in OBEDIENCE and FREE FROM OFFENSE.” - John Bevere
Luke 17:3-4
3 So watch yourselves!
“If another believer sins, rebuke that person; then if there is repentance, forgive. 4 Even if that person wrongs you seven times a day and each time turns again and asks forgiveness, you must forgive.”
Matthew 24:1-10
Jesus Speaks about the Future
24 As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to him the various Temple buildings. 2 But he responded, “Do you see all these buildings? I tell you the truth, they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”
3 Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will signal your return and the end of the world?”
4 Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, 5 for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. 7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. 8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.
9 “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers. 10 And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other.
Proverbs 18:19
19 An offended friend is harder to win back than a fortified city.
Arguments separate friends like a gate locked with bars.Proverbs 18:19
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
3 We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. 4 [a]We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. 5 We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.
Strongholds = set patterns of reasoning through which we process information
Betrayal = the ultimate abandonment of relationship
Hate = void of love
Matthew 24:11
11 And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people.
Matthew 7:15-16
The Tree and Its Fruit
15 “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. 16 You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Matthew 24:12-13
12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
Psalm 55:12-14
12 It is not an enemy who taunts me—
I could bear that.
It is not my foes who so arrogantly insult me—
I could have hidden from them.
13 Instead, it is you—my equal,
my companion and close friend.
14 What good fellowship we once enjoyed
as we walked together to the house of God.
2 Timothy 2:24-26
24 A servant of the Lord must not quarrel but must be kind to everyone, be able to teach, and be patient with difficult people. 25 Gently instruct those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change those people’s hearts, and they will learn the truth. 26 Then they will come to their senses and escape from the devil’s trap. For they have been held captive by him to do whatever he wants.
Matthew 18:15-17
Correcting Another Believer
15 “If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the offense. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. 16 But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses. 17 If the person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. Then if he or she won’t accept the church’s decision, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector.
1 Corinthians 11:23-30
23 For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread 24 and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.
27 So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against[b] the body and blood of the Lord. 28 That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. 29 For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ,[c] you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died.
Matthew 5:23-24
23 “So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, 24 leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.
Acts 2:42-47
“Vibrant disciples are single-minded in their dynamic life-worship of God.”
Vibrant = colorful, dynamic, passionate, full of life! Opposite of dull, colorless, tasteless. We are to be the SALT and LIGHT of the world! Matthew 5:13-16
disciples = following JESUS
single-minded = NOTHING can get us off track. NOTHING can separate us from the love of the Father. NOTHING can distract us, or confuse us. We have JESUS. “To whom would we go, YOU have the words of life!” John 6:68-69
dynamic = adjective
1. (of a process or system) characterized by constant change, activity, or progress.
"a dynamic economy"
2. (of a person) positive in attitude and full of energy and new ideas.
"she's dynamic and determined"
life-worship = it’s EVERYTHING we do, not just one thing. It’s centering yourself and everything you do around HIM and HIS will for your life. Romans 12:1-2
of God = obviously, HE is the most important part of this equation. And where we place our worship is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL to life itself.
VIBRANT, PASSIONATE, SELFLESS
VIBRANT disciples are single-minded in their dynamic life-worship of God.
Renew vibrancy. (our responsibility is to renew vibrancy. Just meaning we stay connected to the source. We can walk away at any time…we can disconnect from the source for all kinds of things…that’s what Satan WANTS, don’t let him do it! Don’t blame it on him either. He’s a liar, but he’s not that creative in his lies. They’re only easy to believe when we WANT to believe them. The second we don’t want to anymore, it’s very easy to see that they’re lies)
PASSIONATE disciples obediently pursue Jesus.
Feed your passion. (we do that by being obedient. Obedience produces passion, passion produces obedience.)
SELFLESS disciples are willing to sacrifice comfort to demonstrate love.
Practice selflessness. (we practice…because it’s hard. But practice makes perfect…we flex the selflessness muscle, and it becomes stronger. We have to practice to expose more selfishness honestly, because it’s a deep well of selfishness in our souls. We don’t always recognize when we’re being selfish. So we practice. And correct as we go. The best example of this is like with toddlers…babies are the most selfish creatures on the planet! They’re also innocent of course, because they don’t know any better yet. They just know what THEY need, and don’t care what anyone else needs. We, as parents, have to TRAIN them how to not be selfish. It takes YEARS and lots of practice, right? Same is true for us as adults, and as disciples. We practice.
We CHANGE THE WORLD with the message of the Gospel.
(by the power of the Holy Spirit) There is nothing else that WILL change the world, first of all. The Gospel is THE most powerful thing on this planet! It’s the most world-changing, life-changing thing that there is! And we NEED the Holy Spirit at work within us to accomplish this. Because WITH God anything is possible, without Him, nothing is possible.
We have been over:
Fellowship - the idea that we are all connected, on mission together
Ministry - the idea that we serve one another, selflessly, on behalf of God
Discipleship - we follow in Jesus’ footsteps, learning and growing as we follow humbly
Evangelism is today’s focus!
Acts 2:42-47
Matthew 16:18
Matthew 28:16-20
Mark 6:6-13
Jesus was teaching them:
To get up close & personal with people.
How to be provided for.
How to shake the dust off.
Acts 4:13 - they were recognized to be ordinary men, with no special training in the scriptures, but who had BEEN WITH Jesus!
Stages of spiritual growth we often see:
FIND JESUS (an UNlearning phase where we actually discover God, and His love for us expressed through Jesus)
MOVE FORWARD (with our faith, flexing our faith muscles and learning how to walk it out)
DO SOMETHING (for God, God will call us to use everything we’ve learned, to serve others)
RESPONSES TO THIS SERMON:
Guess Who’s Coming For Dinner
March 8th we will visit with new people, have a meal together, and BE the church together! Sign up to be a host or a guest here!
We have been over:
Fellowship - the idea that we are all connected, on mission together
Ministry - the idea that we serve one another, selflessly
Discipleship
Acts 2:42-47
Matthew 4:18-22
Following Jesus requires humility
Luke 9:23-26
John 6:60-71
Disciples are teachable.
Spiritual Growth Questions:
Are you growing in your relationship with God?
Are you growing in your relationship with others?
Are you growing in your influence with outsiders?
Are you growing in your ability to handle your resources?
Guess Who’s Coming For Dinner
March 8th we will visit with new people, have a meal together, and BE the church together! Sign up to be a host or a guest here!
Guess Who’s Coming For Dinner
March 8th we will visit with new people, have a meal together, and BE the church together! Sign up to be a host or a guest here!
Acts 2:42-47
Ministry - serving on behalf of God
Matthew 6:19-21
Storing our treasures in heaven is selfless.
Matthew 23:23
Acts 6:1-7
When ministry is organized, it can be effective.
Philippians 2:1-11
CHURCH: A Community That Grows Together
John 10:10, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”
Matthew 16:18, “Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.”
1 Peter 5:2-3 instructs elders to shepherd and guard the flock of God, not for personal gain, but with enthusiasm and as an example to the flock.
In Acts 20:28-31, Paul warns the church to be on guard against savage wolves and those who will distort the truth to draw away disciples.
Ephesians 6:18 suggests that prayer is a spiritual weapon that can protect the flock from spiritual attack.
Hebrews 3:13 tells the church to encourage each other every day so that they are not led into sin.
Acts 2:42-47
1. They devoted themselves to the apostle’s teaching
2. To fellowship
3. To sharing in meals together.
3. To prayer
Prov. 3:5-6. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.”
Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”
Reasons people stray form the path:
We’re not IN the Word. How can the Word keep us straight, when we’re not IN it? We think one time a week at church is enough..but that’s like saying one meal is enough for the week. Someone else cooked it…and I’m too lazy to cook for myself, so I’ll just eat once a week when Candace cooks it…
We’re arrogant. We believe we know better than the Word. Or we believe we don’t need other people. That’s a big one.
We don’t repent quickly enough. There is SO much to be said about checking yourself QUICKLY. Stop making excuses and digging in when you
We don’t hold ourselves accountable. We don’t build systems into our lives to keep us straight. We’re not reading our Bibles. We’re not engaged in SOUL friendship, we’re not honest with anyone. We put ourselves in situations where we’re likely to sin…
You’re one decision away from a completely different life.
Exodus- AFTER the Red Sea…so the 10 plagues and the whole walking on dry ground through the Red Sea thing wasn’t enough…
Ch. 15
They need clean water. God gave clean water
Ch. 16
They needed food. God gave them food.
Ch. 17
They needed water again. God gave it.
They needed victory. God gave it. (the Moses holding his hands up high thing…Israel needed to trust in their leader! God was teaching them something through that)
Ch. 18
Moses needed help. God allowed it.
Ch. 19
God anticipated them needing protection. God gave it. They agreed to His terms.
They needed clarity. God gave His voice.
Ch. 20-23
They needed governance, God provided rules.
They needed justice systems. God provided it.
They needed laws. God provided them.
Ch. 24
They promise to obey. Twice.
At this point...3 months have passed...and Moses gets called up to hear the rest of the instructions.
74 people get to SEE God!!! They ate and drank in his presence! And God didn't’ smite them.
Ch. 25-31
They needed knowledge. God gave it--very specifically.
They needed God’s presence. God provided a way.
Which brings us to Chapter 32! So God HAD proved Himself by this point. OVER and over and over!
Exodus 32:1-5
Aaron gobbled up the praise.
Aaron compromised.
Exodus 32:21-29
Aaron lied.
Series for year: -
Dear Church
Winter 2024 series about the seven letters to the seven churches in the book of Revelation, and what they mean for us today.
Your Will Be Done
Spring series about the passion and submission of Jesus, to His Father’s Will, even unto death.
Fear Not
Spring 2024 series about how to handle fear.
Gospel Boot Camp
Summer Series about how to share and spread the Gospel message.
3 Circles
DiscipleMakers Team
As For Me And My House
Summer 2024 series about how to lead our households toward Jesus in a world full of idolatry.
Book of Joshua, promised land!
Children of the Light
Fall 2024 series about how to lead ourselves toward maturity in Jesus Christ.
The Perfect Gift
Christmas sermon series about the gift God gave us, in Jesus, and what our response should be to Him.
ReWind Numbers
NUMBERS at the opener of the sermon
Christmas Sponsorship:
51 kids
19 families
Gettysburg CARES: TWO weeks! 27ish people a day
Volunteers: 26
Johnny & Wesley honorable mentions
Clothing Closet:
Kids: 186
Families: 79 families
2 clothing swaps!
28? suitcases for the Tanzania Team!
Sent 14 people to Tanzania!
Sent 19 people to LA!
Kids
Breakaway: 14 kids, 3 counselors
Summer Camp: 21 kids, 2 counselors
Youth -
Winter Retreat: 13
Camp: 19
Youth Convention: 15
Had a Bible Quiz team this year, and started Collision
Baptism: 33
New Partners: 15
Deliverance team estimates 13 deliverances!
Salvation and “I’m in” responses: 162
Started a new Spanish translation service this year!
SERVIE SUNDAY:
Awards:
The “More-Hours-Logged-In-This-Building-Than-Probably-Anyone-Ever” Award: Joel Markle
The “Media Moguls” Award:
Mr. Dependable, Gabe Monfort.
Mr. Helpful: Crew Pringle
The “Saw a Need, Met a Need” Award:
Met a TON of needs: Fred Hockenberry, Lori Doudrick, Katie Bragg
Met a stretching need: Susann Simon
Met a consistent need: Kayla Dubois, Diana Lewis, Tim Wantz
The “Baby Whisperer” Award: Chris Livelsberger
The “Gettysburg CARERS”: Johnny Steiner, Wesley Parker
THANK YOU JODY! (The “Coordinator of Chaos” Award)
ReWind 2024: Beware of the Yeast
Matthew 16:5-12
Arguing among each other usually means someone (or everyone) is focused on the wrong thing.
Beware of deceptive teaching (like that of the Pharisees & Sadducees) that puffs you up, without any REAL sustenance.
Sadduccees = deism, agnosticism. God does not intervene in people’s lives. They also believed that the soul was not immortal, no afterlife, no angels or demons, heaven or hell, and definitely no resurrection. They did believe in the Torah, law of Moses, and temple worship & sacrifices.
Pharisees = religion, rank, reward and punishment, the law. They believed in a coming messiah would who set up his kingdom and destroy the Roman empire. They focused on all the wrong things. LOOKING good, but no heart change. “Leafing” but producing no fruit. Spiritually abusing people.
As I look back over the year, I am SO proud of those who have resisted both of these temptations. There were MANY temptations along the way this year, to fall into that trap. Some did, but I see WAY MORE OF YOU who didn’t.
Way more of you who maintained a healthy culture, when there was heavy temptation not to.
Way more of you who saw through deceptive religion trying to creep in, because you KNOW the Word…
WAY more of you who kept the heart of Jesus as the most important thing. I’m so proud of you for that!
And I want to make sure that we hold onto it in 2025.
(The Old Testament prophets foretold the Messiah hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth. Here are a few)
Micah 5:2
But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
are only a small village among all the people of Judah.
Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past,
will come from you on my behalf.
Isaiah 11:1-2
Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot—
yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root.
2 And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
Isaiah 7:14
14 All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).
The Gospels tell the story of the Messiah’s birth. Tonight, we’ll read it in chronological order.
Luke 1:26-44
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!”
29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. 30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 37 For the word of God will never fail.”
38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.
39 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. 41 At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. 43 Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy.
Luke 1:56
56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.
Matthew 1:19-24
19 Now Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.
20 As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
22 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:
23 “Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,
which means ‘God is with us.’”
24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife.
Luke 2:1-7
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. 4 And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. 5 He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child.
6 And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born.
7 She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.
(Isaiah prophecied this in)
Isaiah 9:6
For a child is born to us,
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Luke 2:8-20
8 That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 12 And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in highest heaven,
and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”
15 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. 17 After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18 All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, 19 but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. 20 The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.
Matthew 2:1-23
Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, 2 “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”
3 King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. 4 He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?”
5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote:
6 ‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah,
are not least among the ruling cities of Judah,
for a ruler will come from you
who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. 8 Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!”
9 After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! 11 They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.
13 After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”
14 That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, 15 and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.”
16 Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance. 17 Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:
18 “A cry was heard in Ramah—
weeping and great mourning.
Rachel weeps for her children,
refusing to be comforted,
for they are dead.”
19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. 20 “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.”
21 So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother. 22 But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee. 23 So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
Luke 1:5-25
Luke 1:29-34, 38
Zechariah vs Mary..
BOTH Godly people.
Both shaken and confused and a little scared.
Both had questions.
Zech’s example: faithless and selfish
Mary’s example: faithFUL and selfless
Who Mary Is
She is the greatest woman who ever lived. Maybe that's divisive? But no other woman was trusted by God himself to bear his one and only son, God in human form, Jesus Christ and raise him into adulthood. And then follow him and support him in his ministry.
Mary is the mother of God. No matter how you feel about that statement, It's literally true.
Mary is not just one of the greatest women to ever live, she’s one of the greatest people to ever live. Up there with the rest of our Biblical heroes. Names like Abraham, Moses, David, Peter, Paul. Mary is up there with them.
Mary is blessed, over and above all women for all time. She represents the pinnacle of feminine accomplishment.
Bearing, birthing and raising the savior of mankind. God himself.
Now the feminists in our culture might find that statement belittling, The ability to bring new life into existence isn’t something to negate or belittle.
The ability to bring forth new life is a quality of God not given to man. Men obviously play a part. But it's the woman's body that undergoes the changes, endures the strain of childbirth and whose body sustains the baby after its birth.
Bringing forth new life is one of, if not the greatest thing a human being is capable of.
All of society rests upon it. The continuation of humanity itself is impossible without it.
Mary should be an example for all women, especially mothers!
Study what we have of Mary's life in the Bible. See what we can learn from her example. How to be a better woman, better mothers. And something all of us can learn from her is how to be more faithful servants to God.
This is who Mary is.
Mary’s Story
Now Mary’s story reaches its climax in the Christmas story which we’ll obviously get to. But I want to start at the beginning of her story all the way back in the book of Genesis!
Some of you might be surprised by that but Mary’s introduction in the bible comes in Genesis chapter 3. But it does! Starting in verse 14.
Genesis 3:14-15 (NLT)
14 Then the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all animals, domestic and wild. You will crawl on your belly, groveling in the dust as long as you live. 15 And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Here God is laying out the punishment for Satan after he deceives Adam and Eve. Cursing the snake to crawl on its belly, but in verse 15 we see the mention of a woman and her offspring.
“And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Immediately someone reading this for the first time might assume this to be talking about Eve. Her being the only woman present during this conversation. But this is actually the first Messianic Prophecy about Jesus. This verse is called The Protoevangelium, which means First Gospel.
Jesus is the offspring of the woman, Jesus will destroy the Devil, strike his head. But the Devil will get a bite in there, talking about Jesus’ death on the cross.
And understanding the offspring spoken of here is Jesus means that the woman has to be referring to Mary!
All the way back in the beginning of the Bible. God is making his plans known!
Which means this has always been his plan! From the very moment mankind sinned God had a plan in place to redeem us and was beginning to reveal it.
So time continued on. And God continued to reveal more details of his plan of redemption involving his son as well as Mary.
The next Messianic Prophecy that mentions Mary brings us to the book of Isaiah.
Isaiah 7:13-14 (NLT)
13 Then Isaiah said, “Listen well, you royal family of David! Isn’t it enough to exhaust human patience? Must you exhaust the patience of my God as well? 14 All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).
Here Isaiah is speaking to the King of Judah Ahaz regarding the alliance between Syria and Israel.
King Ahaz was in great distress of their alliance because the two nations allied themselves against Judah and were planning to attack and take over the nation.
So the Bible says Ahaz was overcome with worry, but God sent Isaiah to tell him to stop worrying because God has spoken and this invasion will never take place. God even offers Ahaz a sign to prove that what he said was true.
But Ahaz was an evil king with no faith in God so he rejected God’s offer of a sign. So instead of giving Ahaz a sign for his salvation God gives the entire line of David a sign of their salvation.
That a virgin will conceive a child! What? What a sign for God to give! I can only imagine the reaction of those hearing this from Isaiah’s mouth.
“That would definitely be quite the sign, obviously from God”
I’d be a miracle! And the son she’ll give birth to will be called Immanuel ‘God is with us’.
More details about God’s plan revealed. About Mary and her son Jesus.
The last prophecy that gives mention to Mary is found in Micah 5
Micah 5:2-3 (NLT)
2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf. 3 The people of Israel will be abandoned to their enemies until the woman in labor gives birth. Then at last his fellow countrymen will return from exile to their own land.
Here the prophet Micah is prophecying to Israel and is giving them a real mixed bag.
He’s giving them good news, a ruler of Israel, their messiah is coming and will be born out of Bethlehem.
But he’s giving them bad news as well. That until the a woman in labor gives birth to this ruler (talking about Mary) God will abandon Israel to their enemies.
This time of abandonment mirrors the labor pain of Mary but once that period of labor is over for Israel then at last his fellow countrymen will return from exile to their own land.
A more direct translation from the Hebrew says it like this: The remainder of his brothers will return to the sons of Israel.
“His” refering to Christ. But who are the brothers talked about here?
All believers. Jews and gentiles alike. Christ’s brothers, those he considers his family. The Jewish believers will return to covenant relationship with God becoming genuine sons of Israel again. And the gentiles will be grafted in with the sons of Israel.
This is the last old testament prophecy that mentions Mary.
And all of these prophecies being me to awe of the Omnipotence and Omniscience of God. I hope it does for you too.
God’s plans can be trusted. God can be trusted, place your faith in him! He knows his plans for history, into eternity. He knew Mary thousands of years before her birth. He knew the plans he had for her since the beginning of time.
And he knew you too! All the way back in Genesis. From the beginning of time he knew you and he knew the plans he made for you.
And the free will God has given mankind cannot bring his plans to ruin. He’s bigger than that. Everything is accounted for.
700 years after this prophecy in Micah we begin to see the fullfillment of all these prophecies in Luke with the introduction of Mary.
Mary’s Faithfulness
Luke 1:26-38
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!”
29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. 30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 37 For the word of God will never fail.”
38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.
Here in Luke the Virgin prophecied about throughout history is finally revealed.
A young woman living in Nazareth named Mary, who’s engaged to be married to a decendent of David named Joseph.
Given what we know about this time period and the culture most historians believe Mary to be somewhere between the ages of 14-16 at this point.
These are all the details we learn about her this passage. But we can learn alot about who she is from how she responds to Gabriel here.
Earlier I said that we can all learn from Mary how to be more faithful servants to God. We can start learning here.
Gabriel appears to her and breaks the ice by telling her she has found favor with God and that she is going to become pregant with the Son of God. That her son will become King of Israel and reign forever.
That seems alot to take in.
Apparently I cant speak for Mary but Id think if I was her in that situation Id might have a hard time believing what is being said. At the very least I think I’d have a number of questions Id like answered. Am I alone in this?
But here Mary shows no sign of disbelief. She only asks the angel one question!
She knows how baby’s work and she knows she’s a virgin so she asks him one question, but not out of disbelief just for clarification.
To sum it up this is essentially how this conversation goes:
Hey Mary, God has found favor with you, so youre gonna be pregnant with the Son of God who will rule over Israel forever.
But Im a virgin?
Gods got it covered.
Okay.
Umm… Mary are you sure there isn’t anything else you think you should ask him before he leaves? Anything at all?
No, she takes him at his word, and believes it. No additional questions necessary.
At such a young age, no signs of fear, no disbelief.
The level of trust and faith in God on display by Mary…
If only we had an ounce of her faithfulness… But we can learn from her!
Mary is blessed because of her faith in God’s word. We’ll read that in the next passage. And in the next passage we can further examine the level of faithfulness Mary shows thats even beyond what we see in this passage.
Luke 1:39-55
39 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. 41 At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. 43 Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”
46 Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. 47 How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior! 48 For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed. 49 For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me. 50 He shows mercy from generation to generation to all who fear him. 51 His mighty arm has done tremendous things! He has scattered the proud and haughty ones. 52 He has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the humble. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands. 54 He has helped his servant Israel and remembered to be merciful. 55 For he made this promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever.”
In this passage we have Mary visiting her relative Elizabeth. And the thing that really stuck out to me regarding Mary is that we see her singing a song of praise to God.
This really shows the depth of Mary’s trust and faithfulness to God. Even more so than her response to Gabriel!
One could make the argument that Mary’s response to Gabriel, the lack of fear, and questioning. The quick acceptance could be a result of shock. Youre seeing an angel, he gives you supernatural news about a child youre going to have. Thats alot to process in the course of one conversation right?
She hasnt had time to process the effects of the news she was just given. The effect it will have on her life.
But at this point its been around a week since her meeting with Gabriel.
The walk from Nazareth to Judah is 4-5 days. And thats if she left immediately, the passage says a few days later so its been at least a week.
A 4-5 day walk is alot of time to process.
And in this passage we still see no hesitance, no fear from Mary. Not a hint of regret for accepting what Gabriel told her.
Shes just… praising God for it.
Verse 49 sticks out to me the most in her song.
For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me
Has he?
Because the only thing I can think when im reading her song is MARY DID YOU KNOW!?
I know its the Christmas song but genuinely! Mary, did you know, really, what you said yes to?
How much hardship and suffering you just brought on yourself. How much uncertainty?
Youre bethrowthed to Joseph! A betrowthal isnt the same thing as being engaged in our culture. Theyre legally married! They just havent had the ceremony yet.
Mary the punishment for infeidelity under Jewish law is death! Joseph knows he’s not the father. Your life is in danger!
And if Joseph dosen’t have you executed he’ll most certainly divorce you! And no one is going to marry a divorced woman with an illegitamite child. Mary not only is your marrage ruined, your chances of ever being remarried is ruined!
Your family will likely cast you out in shame! And youll be without a man to provide for you!
Their culture isnt like today. In that day a woman without a husband or father to care for them is destined to live on the streets, begging for money for the rest of their life. That or prostitution.
And with a child on the way. Mary I know you know this!
And here she is singing… Giving praise to God.
Mary did you know!?
Joseph he’s going to stay with you, but he is going to die and youre going to be left to raise your children as a widdow.
Did you know!? That after your son is born youll be forced to flee your home, and live as a refugee because Herod will try to kill him?
Mary, did you know, that you will watch your son die? You’ll watch as he’s brutally beaten and nailed to a cross?
How could you have? Mary didn’t know these things.
But the thing that tears me up.. I can’t prove this, but I believe it.
Is that even if she wouldve known all these things. I think she’d be here, singing her praises to God.
Why cant we trust God like Mary?
We spend our days worrying, what will we eat, what will we drink, what will we wear? We worry about money, our time our finances. Everything. Yet God knows we need it and tells us he will provide for us. But we continue worrying.
If only we had an ounce of the faithfulness Mary had…
How much different would our lives look?
God can be trusted! We can take him at his word. He has good plans for us. His word is reliable, just look how it has stood the test of time.
Prophecy after prophecy after prophecy fulfilled without fail. Plans spoken of eons in advance coming to pass precisely as he said.
This season and into next year, let’s all take a lesson from Mary and give the best of our faithfulness. Because if we can trust God, we can place our faith in him!
Matthew 2:13-23
Joseph:
Had faith in God's guidance.
Joseph trusted the angel, even though it meant leaving his home and facing an uncertain future.
we don’t have any recorded WORDS from Joseph. We have no idea what he SAID during this time…we only know what he DID.
If we didn’t have any of your WORDS written down, and had to take a look at your life, just actions…what would we see?
Prioritized God's will.
By choosing to flee to Egypt, Joseph demonstrated his commitment to following God's instructions, even when it meant personal hardship.
He was a simple carpenter, but it wasn’t about his job. It was about his attitude, his faith.
If we truly put GOD’s will for our lives, FIRST.... If we truly served HIS Kingdom, not our own…If we truly sought His heart on people, and His heart for our decisions…imagine how different a lot of our lives would be.
Knew that protection from God comes through obedience.
Joseph's obedience to God’s warning ultimately protected Jesus from harm.
**Umbrella illustration - Come back under the umbrella. Come back under the protection of God.
Joseph obviously chose to stay in the umbrella. For him, for his family, for His God, for Jesus! And ultimately his sacrifice served ALL of us. His protection came through obedience. And so ours.
Bravery runs in my family.
The flight to Egypt was a challenging situation, but Joseph demonstrated courage and perseverance.
So when we’re called to hard things, instead of complaining and belly aching, maybe we just shift into looking for the PURPOSE in it!
There’s this chapter of the Bible that lists out some of our great heroes! “Great Heroes of the Faith”
Hebrews 11
Luke 2:1-20
Jacob’s prophecy to his sons, in Genesis 49:10, “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor.”
Daniel 2:44 says (in the 500’s BC), ““During the reigns of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed or conquered. It will crush all these kingdoms into nothingness, and it will stand forever.”
Romans 12:7-8 says, “If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously.”
Simple faith gets up and goes. No questioning: did that really happen?! Did we eat the wrong kind of herb out there in the wilderness today?!
Immediate acceptance. Immediate involvement.
They were available & receptive, responsive & involved.
FAITH AND FEAR are constantly at war. Worship is a discipline. Correcting your thoughts AND actions to line up with WHO HE IS. It takes discipline to keep faith simple. We want to over complicate it all the time. To understand WHY way too much...
The antidote to fear is worship. “God you are so good. You are so big. So much bigger than my situation. Just tell me what to do. I’m yours.”
When we understand that salvation has always been the plan...that’s when we can bring him our best worship.
The shepherds were:
available & receptive
responsive & involved
simple & worshipful
Worship keeps our faith simple.
1 John 4:19 says, “we love because HE first loved US.”
What we DO know about the wise men...
They were probably rulers of some sort.
They were devout followers of God, even if they weren’t Jews.
They were called wise men because of how they studied the stars.
They came to bless the Messiah. Not to be blessed by Him.
Their gifts:
GOLD
Gold may have been the first metal that human beings encountered, because it can often be found in its pure natural state (for instance, nuggets in streams) rather than mixed in ore, which requires smelting. People have always valued gold for its luster, beauty, malleability, and resistance to corrosion and tarnish. These attributes also led ancient civilizations throughout the world to associate gold with royalty, immortality, and deity. It was first used in minted currency in the seventh century B.C.
Gold from the Wise Men has frequently been mentioned as possibly being very useful in helping Joseph and Mary pay for their flight to Egypt to escape Herod. (The other gifts could have been sold for a very good price as well.)
FRANKINCENSE
Originating in Arabia and northern Africa, frankincense is a dried resin (from trees of the genus Boswellia) used in perfumes and incense for thousands of years. Historically, frankincense was a highly valued commodity. When burned as incense, it was often valued for its aroma as well as for its reputed ability to disinfect and repel insects and other pests.
Frankincense was used in ancient Israelite temple worship as:
An ingredient in the perfume of the sanctuary (see Exodus 30:34).
An accompaniment to the meat offering, which was part of all burnt and peace offerings (see Leviticus 2:1, 16).
An accompaniment to the shewbread in the outer compartment of the tabernacle (or holy place) and burned as a memorial before the presence of the Lord (see Leviticus 24:7). Burning incense in the temple represented prayer (see Psalm 141:2).
MYRHH
Myrrh is also a dried resin from Arabia and northern Africa (from thorny shrubs and trees of the genus Commiphora) used in perfumes, incense, and medicines for thousands of years. The word comes from an Arabic word meaning “bitter.” It has been valued for its aroma as well as for its use as an antiseptic, analgesic (topical painkiller), and other medicinal qualities.
Myrrh was used in ancient Israelite temple worship as an ingredient in the holy anointing oil for consecrating priests, the tabernacle, and kings (see Exodus 30:23–25). It was used in the purification of Queen Esther (see Esther 2:12), and it was also used in embalming (see John 19:39).
The Wise Men’s gifts were:
Useful & Generous
Precious & Valuable
Respectful & Worshipful
HE DESERVES OUR BEST!
