BIBLE STUDY 01.09.2014 ALIVE TO GOD: Titus 2:14 He gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people. - God gave His life for us so that we could be free. - Free from sin and the bondage and death that it brings to us. - So dont become ensnared again. - Walk in this freedom and do what honours Him. STREAMS IN THE DESERT: I will lay thy stones with fair colours (Isa. 54:11). The stones from the wall said, We come from the mountains far away, from the sides of the craggy hills. Fire and water have worked on us for ages, but made us only crags. Human hands have made us into a dwelling where the children of your immortal race are born, and suffer, and rejoice, and find rest and shelter, and learn the lessons set them by our Maker and yours. But we have passed through much to fit us for this. Gunpowder has rent our very heart; pickaxes have cleaved and broken us, it seemed to us often with out design or meaning, as we lay misshapen stones in the quarry; but gradually we were cut into blocks, and some of us were chiseled with finer instruments to a sharper edge. But we are complete now, and are in our places, and are of service. You are in the quarry still, and not complete, and therefore to you, as once to us, much is inexplicable. But you are destined for a higher building, and one day you will be placed in it by hands not human, a living stone in a heavenly temple. In the still air the music lies unheard; In the rough marble beauty hides unseen; To make the music and the beauty needs The masters touch, the sculptors chisel keen. Great Master, touch us with Thy skillful hands; Let not the music that is in us die! Great Sculptor, hew and polish us; nor let, Hidden and lost, thy form within us lie! TIME ON THE MOUNTAIN: “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy…” Acts 20|:2-4a-b Jesus isn’t looking for people who start things well. He wants us to be good finishers – overcomers. I know that our lives can often be difficult and it’s exhausting to keep fighting this war we are in. My dear friend, keep on and take courage from Paul, who faced trials and tribulations in every city he went to, but he kept preaching the danger. In Acts 20:22-23 Paul says, “And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me.” How would you cope knowing that your life was in danger, would you keep on? Paul, aware of all that awaited him, kept his focus on Jesus and was therefore able to say, “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24) Paul, because he was a citizen of Rome, was not allowed to be crucified like Jesus or like Peter, so they beheaded him. I have yet to meet a man worth their salt who has not been through tribulation and hardship. Like Paul, make a decision to let nothing move you, don’t let your present difficulties throw you off course. Stay on course and you will have victory and be counted as one who is an overcomer. In Revelation 2 Jesus promises those who overcome that they will eat from the tree of life (Verse 7). They will not be hurt by the second death (v11). They will have hidden manna to eat and a white stone with a new name (v 17) and He will give them the morning star (v 28). God wants you and I to finish our race. Let’s try and be like Paul and not only finish our race, but finish it with joy. Zechariah 6:1-15 I looked up again, and there before me were four chariots coming out from between two mountains—mountains of bronze. The first chariot had red horses, the second black, the third white, and the fourth dappled—all of them powerful. I asked the angel who was speaking to me, “What are these, my lord?” The angel answered me, “These are the four spirits of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world. The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses toward the west, and the one with the dappled horses toward the south.” When the powerful horses went out, they were straining to go throughout the earth. And he said, “Go throughout the earth!” So they went throughout the earth. Then he called to me, “Look, those going toward the north country have given my Spirit rest in the land of the north.” The word of the Lord came to me: “Take silver and gold from the exiles Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon. Go the same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. Take the silver and gold and make a crown, and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua son of Jozadak. Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the Lord. It is he who will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he will be a priest on his throne. And there will be harmony between the two.’ The crown will be given to Heldai, Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord. Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the Lord, and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the Lord your God.” SONGS FOR TODAY: Candi Staton - Hallelujah anyway youtu.be/hvZh6R2md1c Casting Crowns - Praise you in the storm youtu.be/xGPS8sa-bRQ SPEAKER’S NOTE: God wants you to honour Him by taking advantage of the freedom He worked for by letting Jesus die on the cross. He does not want you to be ensnared by debt, by lust (for people and things), bondage by criminal activity or hate. We are to honour Him with our lives. Things are made harder by the fact that we are all a work in progress. My Minister always says there is no such thing as a perfect Christian, we are all growing Christians, and this is true. God is busy working on us all. No one ever said that being a Christian would be easy. But the rewards are insurmountable. The colours are brighter, the fragrances are intense, and the sounds are beautiful. The joy we feel is effervescent. Praise Him anyway.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 09:16:51 +0000
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