SERMON SUMMARY
Sunday, September
16,
2007
The Year of the Invitation : The Sight Preparations
Sermon given by Senior Pastor, Dan Tabolt
Jer 1:9- Then the
LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me:
"Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. 10 See, I have this day set
you over the nations and over the kingdoms, To root out and to pull down,
To destroy and to throw down, To build and to plant." NKJV
Last week, together, we looked at two dynamics of the effects of the Word
of God. Receiving Jesus the Savior into our lives gives us power to become
the children of God. Power to Become. It is in that becoming that is the
real difficulty for most believers. I believe that most difficulties are
because of a lack of seeking and understanding of what our Father really
expects from us.
In the past year or so, many of us have rededicated ourselves or given our
lives over to the Lord. The big question for each one of us is, “has
anything really changed?” Are we still living the same way, doing the same
things, saying the same things, thinking the same things? Remember that
the above scripture tells us that the word comes into our lives to …
“To root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and
to plant."
If you think of your life as a construction sight and the Father, Son and
Holy Spirit as the work crew, I ask you, is there a lot of God activity
going on? In this “power of becoming”, we will find ourselves in
destruction, building, and planting in our becoming children of God.
Last week we looked at Zacchaeus…
Luke 19:1-10 Jesus Comes to Zacchaeus' House
We saw in this becoming, son, the power of the
1. Destruction of Jericho, a system that should not have been built.
2. Building of a relationship with Jesus.
3. Planting of the response that this life had brought.
8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord, I give half of
my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false
accusation, I restore four times as much."
I. Foundations of the World:
Matt13:35; Heb. 1:10; 4:3; Rev. 13:8
Even in the creation of the world, we see God speaking to us about a
foundation. Before anything was ever spoken into existence, God speaks of
things being put into place.
A. God’s Foundational Thoughts:
1. Thoughts toward You and I, and they are without number.
2. Thoughts of saving you. Jhn 3:16
3. Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Salvation!
4. Thoughts of the Church and the people of God.
II. Solid Foundation:
1. Built of the Corner Stone: JESUS!
Isa 28:16-17 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I lay in Zion a
stone for a foundation, A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure
foundation; Whoever believes will never have to run away again”
A tried stone,
a precious cornerstone,
a sure foundation;
Whoever believes will never have to run away again”.
This is the stone rejected by the builder. We must be careful not to walk
in the things of the Lord and reject the very person and Lordship of the
Lord.
2. Powerful Agreements and Promises given to us by the Lord our God.
1 Kings 5:16-17 17 And the king commanded them to quarry large stones,
costly stones, and hewn stones, to lay the foundation of the temple. NKJV
2 Peter 1:3-4 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and
precious promises , that through these you may be partakers of the divine
nature, NKJV
3. Everlasting Foundation. [more than a lifetime warranty]
Prov 10:25-2625 When the whirlwind passes by, the wicked is no more,
But the righteous has an everlasting foundation. NKJV
III. Digging Deep Foundations: MAIN POINT
1. So how do we dig deep foundations?
Luke 6:48- He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the
foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat
vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded
on the rock. 49 But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a
house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat
vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was
great."
a. What does digging deep mean? First, it shows effort on our part.
Seeking, asking and knocking. Getting below the frost line. Do not let
your faith be based on emotion, for emotions change from day to day. There
is deepness in you that connects with the deepness of God.
b. Building a house on the earth without a foundation. Emotions might have
brought you to the altar, but they are a poor way to be lead into the
depths of God.
2. Building Carefully:
Luke 14:28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down
first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it — 29 lest,
after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see
it begin to mock him, 30 saying, 'This man began to build and was not able
to finish.'
a. Sitting Down: We all need to take a very close look at our building
sight. By that I mean, our lives. Every part of us that fights against the
call of God must be dealt with. We can not remain the same if we are to be
transformed by the, “Power to Become”, the sons of God.
BB Illustrations: Always dribbling the ball when you get it, looking down
and not up, speaking before thinking, being offended at everything and
speaking offensively. Never finishing things…
3. Restoring the Image of God.
Gen 1:26-28 ,"Let Us make man in Our image
26 Then God said,"Let Us make man in Our image , according to Our
likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds
of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every
creeping thing that creeps on the earth." 27 So God created man in His own
image ; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created
them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them,"Be fruitful and
multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion NKJV
2Cor 3:17-18 being transformed into the same image
18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of
the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory,
just as by the Spirit of the Lord. NKJV
4. Make NO Provisions for the Flesh [the old nature]
Rom 13:14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the
flesh, to fulfill its lusts. NKJV
God does not want us to co-exist with the old man. He expects us to
confront our falling man and recognize what is the old DNA and “To root
out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down.”
We all have a natural look that is the image of our parents. When people
who know the family see us, they say we are part of the so and so family.
We may look the same on the outside, but there should be such a
transformation on the inside that people can tell that we belong to the
family of God. The image of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit becomes deeply
imbedded into our character and spirit. This is done by, “ building and
planting."
Conclusion: So to all of you that have rededicated yourselves to the Lord,
and those who have just given their lives to him, is there activity at
your work sight? Is there the sounds of old building, lifestyles and sins
being“ rooted out and pulled down, are old DNA’s being destroyed and
thrown down?”
“To build and to plant." Is God’s work sight prepared for the new? Is your
faith proactive and bringing the promises to bear on this new commitment
you have made. Let us rise and build, says the Lord!
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