(This sermon and sermon notes are from Sunday, October 6th. I wasn't able to post it until today, Saturday, October 12th. I'll post tomorrow's sermon tomorrow. The following sermon was a really good sermon. I hope you get a chance to listen to it.)

"The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake." Psalm 23:1-3

God is constantly trying to restore us. Always. He's the God of restoration.

The whole world awaits restoration.

"For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that[a] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. 22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time." Romans 8:19-22

Why do we need restoring?

1. Willful neglect. It will fall apart. Our souls get the same way. If we don't do the regular maintenance our souls need they will fall apart. Do we expose it to the world?
        Temptation -- the devil and his demons constantly looking to tear us down. Can steal our fruit and testimony.

"We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
    each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:6

Sheep are the most frustrating animals. They will stray. They fight their own best interests.We humans do the same thing. We will do things we know will damage us. God knows this. He knows sin would pull us from Him. David kept coming back to God (that is what we need to do). He accepted his sin and repented and came back to God. Surrender to temptation is a choice. 

2. Restoration from Complacency.  Complacent until loss occurs (physical, emotional or spiritual).  Shock of loss will do great damage to us if we aren't close to God.

"Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy." John 16:20

The world will go on partying even when you have great loss. The difference is coping or hoping.

No one can restore something better than the original creator. Going back to the Creator for our restoration makes sense. There is no restoration without God.

The world tells us to cope. God tells us to hope. 

Everyday we are one day closer to death.  

Don't hold onto decay.

"What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?" Mark 8:36

You can't buy salvation. God didn't heal Jesus on the cross. He resurrected Him. 

You can't fake the work.

3. Restoration from ourselves.

"The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing." Psalm 23:1

We take God's beauty and destroy it. We are taking blessings from God and distort them. A constant walking away from God when we insist, "Me, me, me!"

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here!"
2 Corinthians 5:17

Restoration is a process. We will always need His grace.

Be a mirror for God's joy. The world neeeds to see God's joy. Pleasure fades. It never lasts. Without God we have no security in the future. We were created for unification with God.

Joy comes from God. If we don't share our joy why would the world want what we have?

Every single promise from the world has a bill in the end.

"Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me." Psalm 51:12

We are all bound in some ways, but we don't need to be.

"Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
    and he saved them from their distress.
14 He brought them out of darkness, the utter darkness,
    and broke away their chains.
15 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
    and his wonderful deeds for mankind,
16 for he breaks down gates of bronze
    and cuts through bars of iron." Psalm 107:13-16

We all are meant to be free!

"See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him." 1 John 3:1

This love is a strange, foreign love to anyone who doesn't know Jesus. We have no way to comprehend it without the Spirit.

5 Steps to Breaking the Chains:

1. Remember who you are. You don't have to give in.

"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm,then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." Galatians 5:1

2. Rely on God's strength, not your own.

"I can do all this through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:13

3. Fight the lies. Focus on the Truth. Don't deceive yourself. Don't justify sin.

"Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32

4. Be willing to be set free.

Jesus asked the man at the pool of Bethsaida: "Are you willing to be healed?"

Do you want to lose your chains?

5. Leave the chains at the altar. Don't pick them up again.

"For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin-- 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin." Romans 6:6-7

If we grab that sin willingly that is disobedience. Don't let sin become your normal. The norms of the world aren't the norms of God's way of life.

God handles it for me. Walk away from the chains.

If you have a habit that is sin, you need to lose it.

God wants us to be free.

Take your chains to God.
Pray often.
Pray specifically.
Pray for others.

You don't have to do anything alone.  Bring sin to the light. Then, it will lose its power.

"So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.
6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists." Acts 12:5-7

God is the same always! What He did for Peter He can do for you, for me. 

God wants us to come to Him, pray and believe.

"You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them,because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world." 1 John 4:4

There is no problem, no chain that God can't overcome for you.

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith;" 2 Timothy 4:7

This (the above verse) is where we want to be in the end.

How do we get there?

Isaiah said Yes.

"In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. 2 Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called out to another and said,
“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts,
The [a]whole earth is full of His glory.”
4 And the [b]foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the [c]temple was filling with smoke." Isaiah 6:1-4

God's faithful servant has encounter with God. Seeing Jesus for who He is.

Have you experienced Jesus as God?

How rare do we see Jesus on the throne?

We try to fit God into our image. And then we hold God accountable to what we want rather than holding ourselves accountable to God.

Uzziah was a faithful king for 52 years.

He dies. The people are probably panicking. They lost a great king. What's going to happen?

Our Savior is active in the world today.

Seraphim....seraph means fire.

"Who say to the seers, “You must not see visions”;
And to the prophets, “You must not prophesy to us what is right,
Speak to us [a]pleasant words,
Prophesy illusions." Isaiah 30:10

"Then I said,
'Woe is me, for I am ruined!
Because I am a man of unclean lips,
And I live among a people of unclean lips;
For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.'"Isaiah 6:5

"Woe is me" is a conviction we all need to have.

"Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. 7 He touched my mouth with it and said, 'Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away and your sin is [a]forgiven.'" Isaiah 6:6-7

Isaiah experiences God's grace.

Jesus -- where forgiveness is found for us.

"Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?' Then I said, 'Here am I. Send me!'" Isaiah 6:8

When we are forgiven God will ask. He asks us to volunteer.

Experience God, Recognize Him and you; Confess, Forgiveness.

Jesus wants willing servants not forced slaves.

"Here I am. I'm yours."

Mary said this:

 And Mary said, “Behold, the [a]bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. Luke 1:38

Paul said this:

"And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” And He said, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, 6 but get up and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do.” 7 The men who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the [a]voice but seeing no one. 8 Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he [b]could see nothing; and leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank." Acts 9:5-9

They didn't ask for specifics of the mission. They just accepted it.

They aren't mindlessly following.

The servant doesn't choose his/her work.

"He said, 'Go, and tell this people:
‘Keep on listening, but do not perceive;
Keep on looking, but do not understand.’
10 “Render the hearts of this people [a]insensitive,
Their ears [b]dull,
And their eyes [c]dim,
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
Hear with their ears,
Understand with their hearts,
And return and be healed.'" Isaiah 6:9-10

It's not about us. It's about Him.

Not fairy tale endings on this earth. That's not why we're serving. We don't serve Him to get stuff from Him. We serve Him because He is God and we love Him.

The more we serve God the worse we will look to the world.

You're a servant of God's for life. There is no retirement until we get to heaven.

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. 15 For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; 16 to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life. And who is adequate for these things?" 2 Corinthians 2:14-16

“Yet there will be a tenth portion in it,
And it will again be subject to burning,
Like a terebinth or an oak
Whose stump remains when it is felled.
The holy seed is its stump.” Isaiah 6:13

Keep going.

What about you?

God is still on the throne.
Are you reading to see Him for Who He is?
Are you ready to serve Him whatever He asks?
Can you say, "Here I am. Send me"?

He gave all so all could be His (if they choose).
Will I give Him my all?
Are you ready to serve Him?

46% of children with live both married parents
34% live with one unmarried parent
Children of Broken Homes:
70% become juvenile deliquents
57% become prison inmates
63% Teen suicides
75% drug users

(Pew Research Center)

48 But [a]Jesus answered the one who was telling Him and said, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” 49 And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Behold My mother and My brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother.”
Matthew 12:48-50

Who is our family?

Jesus loved his biological family. He even took care of his mother when he was hanging on the cross. But then scripture above is when he stated that his family is Believers.

There are expectations we should meet in the Family of God.

1. God given talents are to be put to use.

5 And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6 There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons.' 1 Corinthians 12:5-6

2. There should be growth.

"but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen." 2 Peter 3:18

3. There should be maturity.

"When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I [a]became a man, I did away with childish things." 1 Corinthians 13:11

4. There should be forgiveness.

Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus *said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." Matthew 18:21-22

"For if you forgive [a]others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive [b]others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions." Matthew 6:14-15

Our lack of forgiveness will hurt us. You need to let it go.

5. There should be encouragement.

Build each other up.

"Therefore [a]encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing."
1 Thessalonians 5:11

Encourage through spoken word.

"Let no [a]unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification [b]according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear."
Ephesians 4:29

Togetherness

"and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." Hebrews 10:24-25

6. There should be discipline when necessary.

Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent." Revelation 3:19

Discipline with a reason.

 "For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." Hebrews 12:10-11

Discipline with love.

"My son, do not reject the [a]discipline of the Lord
Or loathe His reproof,
12 For whom the Lord loves He reproves,
Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights." Proverbs 3:11-12

7. It should be a support group.

Share joy and pain.

26 "And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if onemember is [a]honored, all the members rejoice with it." 1 Corinthians 12:26

Get together.

"not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near."
​
You should feel the loss of the family of God if you don't have one.

Fellowship.

7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin." 1 John 1:7

8. It should be a place of love.

Love is the fulfillment of the law.

Identified as members by visible love.

 "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:35

Devoted.

"Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; [a]give preference to one another in honor; 11 not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, 13 contributing to the needs of the [b]saints, [c]practicing hospitality." Romans 12:10-13

26"While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.”
27 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the[a] covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.” Matthew 26:26-29

Jesus's death was necessary.

"In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." Hebrews 9:22

"God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,[a] through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished" Romans 3:25

Jesus's sacrifice means we can have a personal relationship with God. Also means we can one day walk with Him in heaven.

"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit." 1 Peter 3:18

Jesus died for this opportunity.

1 Cross + 3 nails = 4Given!

Our faith has to be based on the right thing -- Jesus.

"Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day." John 6:54

When your faith is based on Jesus you will be raised in the end.

Jesus provides salvation only if it is a faith we can't do without.

'For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you." Romans 12:3

The 2nd "last supper" is called The Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

"Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing watersand like loud peals of thunder, shouting:
“Hallelujah!
    For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and be glad
    and give him glory!
For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
    and his bride has made herself ready.
8 Fine linen, bright and clean,
    was given her to wear.”
(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)
9 Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.” Revelation 19:6-9

The disciples understood what Jesus was doing when He offered them the cup. It was the picture of what happens between a young couple getting engaged. When the man of the couple offers the woman the cup of wine it means he is offering her himself, his entire life, his all. She has the choice of whether or not to accept the  cup even though negotiations and contracts have been drawn up. She has freewill. When she accepts the cup she is saying my life is yours. I am dedicated to you. You are my future. 

When we accept  Christ's cup, his blood, we are saying we are His. We are dedicated to Him. 

Do we accept the cup?

When Jesus handed them the bread and the cup He was offering everything.

1. Have you asked for forgiveness? 

2.  Are you living your life in a way that honors Jesus's sacrifice?

3. When Christ returns and we're at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb will we see people there we've shared the good news with?

I don't want anyone to be missing.

We live with the consequences of our decision.

​

The uncomfortable truth of the world and the message of grace and salvation.

Hell is a reality -- always has been (before and after Jesus's time on earth).

The Gospel is Good news.

"For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse." Romans 1:20

Everyone has seen God's handiwork.

21 "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles." Romans 1:21-23

"Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done." Romans 1:28

"Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them." Romans 1:32

God says okay, I'll step out of your life and you can have what you want.

Usually, the worst of the worst are the celebrities.

I want to be famous. I don't care why (so many people say).

"You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things." Romans 2:1

We are also accountable.

Are you judging someone for something you yourself do? We cannot take our grace for granted.

"All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law." Romans 2:12

You'll get what you gave.

There is no one without sin.

There is no one who can follow the Law perfectly.

We all want to be graded in a curve.

That's not how it is.

Pass or fail.

You're with me or against me (Jesus says).

"No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God." Romans 2:29

People like to make rules.  That isn't worship.

3"What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar.As it is written:
“So that you may be proved right when you speak
    and prevail when you judge.”[a]  Romans 3:3-4

God's faithfulness is constant.

God never changes.

He doesn't have to change for us.

God didn't change with the gospel.

God is a just God.

We are His or we aren't.

Are you His?


10 "As it is written:
“There is no one righteous, not even one;
11     there is no one who understands;
    there is no one who seeks God.
12 All have turned away,
    they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
    not even one.”[a]
13 “Their throats are open graves;
    their tongues practice deceit.”[b]
“The poison of vipers is on their lips.”[c]
14     “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”[d]
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16     ruin and misery mark their ways,
17 and the way of peace they do not know.”[e]
18     “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”[f]  Romans 3:10-18

There is no one who is sinless (except Jesus Christ).

None of us are equal to God.

We cannot survive without Him.

The law doesn't save. It condemns.

"But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousnessis given through faith in[a] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," Romans 3:21-23

Here's the other side of it.

We can overcome who we are through Jesus Christ.  You have to accept Christ to get there.

He didn't create it to be a fallen world.

We've trashed His creation.

Perfect justice, perfect Love.

"and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,[a] through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—" Romans 3:24-25

This is wonderfful news if you accept it.

It is heartbreaking if people reject it.

"Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law." Romans 3:31

Jesus helps us to uphold the law.

 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them."  Matthew 5:17

​Paul gets to the good news in chapter 3!