Category: Sermon Notes

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Thanks

TITLE: I’m Thankful for His Plan

Scripture: Psalm 37: 23-24; 25:4-5; Hebrews 11:8-12

“When it comes to biblical examples of a pioneer spirit, there is no better place to start than with Abraham. With that indomitable faith of his, no obstacle loomed too large, no situation seemed too threatening. The man, though up in years, struck out on a journey into new frontiers that was so surprising, so extreme, his peers must have shook their heads in disbelief for months after he and his wife left.”  Chuck Swindoll

I.   THE PROMISE OF GUIDANCE                      

II.  THE PRACTICE OF GUIDANCE  

An interview with a modern-day “nomad.”

NEXT WEEK: Series: Familiarity Breeds…

TITLE: Familiarity Breeds Willingness- Phil. 2: 5-11; Heb. 1:1-3

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Thanks

TITLE: I’m Thankful for His Patience

Scripture: Psalm 103:1-18; Acts 17:22-31

I.    HIS PATIENCE TOWARD OUR SIN                     

To be fair and balanced: I really should say, “His patience toward (my sin).”

What blows me away: (God’s patience) for me. God’s patience makes Him a (merciful) God. Life as a follower of Jesus is not a (religion) but a (relationship).

One of the things Psalm 103 shows us is God’s love for His people (knows no limits). His love for His people is (immeasurable).

II.   HIS PATIENCE TOWARD OUR JUDGEMENT                        

If you were asked to list one characteristic of God you don’t like to hear about or think about it, what would it be?  (His wrath) would be at the top of the list.

God is a god of wrath. But he is also a God of (fairness and justice).

Some truths about God from Acts 17: 24-29:

1.      (Creator) Verse 24a.

2.      (Ruler) Verse 24b

3.      (Giver) Verse 25

4.      (Controller) Verse 26

5.      (Revealer) Verses 27-29

6.      (Patient) Verses 30-31

NEXT WEEK: I’m Thankful for His Plan- Psalm 37: 23-24; 25: 4-5; Heb.11: 8-12

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Thanks

TITLE: I’m Thankful for His Provision

Scripture: Luke 17: 11-19

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

I.   THE COMMAND TO BE THANKFUL                    

“You can successfully live life with an open hand.”

(Ingratitude) is one of the (ugliest) attitudes anyone can possess.

“Give thanks in all circumstance; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

I Thessalonians 5:18

Eph. 5:18-20 (Please turn there)

“For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.” 2 Cor. 4:15

II.  OVERCOMING INGRATITUDE  

1.      An absence of gratitude may well mean that you are (not really saved).

2.      Doubts about God’s (sovereign power).

3.      (Selfishness) and (discontent).

4.      (Critical spirit)

5.      (Impatience)

Breaking down Luke 17: 11-19

1)      1 out of 10 (returned).

2)      The one who did return was a (foreigner).

3)      The word for “made you well” is the word (saved).

One last word: the key to defeating ingratitude is (contentment). “My God shall supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” Phil. 4: 19

NEXT WEEK: I’m Thankful for His Patience- Psalm 103: 1-18; Acts 17: 22-31

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Hills

TITLE: The Value of Who You Are

Scripture: Psalm 78:72; Mt. 25:36-46; Mk. 9:35

I.   WHAT YOU SEE      

“Leadership consists of two ingredients: strategy and character. If you must do one without the other, do without the strategy.” Norman Schwarzkopf

“A leader is not just someone who takes charge. A leader is someone who takes charge and does the right thing. It’s not enough to make a decision; it needs to be the right decision resulting from strong character. It is not enough to take action; it needs to be the right action, prompted by strong character.” Pat Williams in Leadership Excellence

Character is the key to (influence) and if you have a (good character), you can’t help but influence people.

Three false/illegitimate sources of influence:

1.      (Position)

2.      (Power)

3.      (Personality)

II.   WHAT YOU GET          

What, to you, is the single most important characteristic of a leader?

“Leadership is (serving), and (serving) is sacrifice.”

There are several motivations for serving:

1)      (Compassion). Needs to go beyond observation.

2)      (Guilt). Guilt-driven service the opposite of Jesus-driven service.

3)      (Force). “Community service hours”

4)      (Pride). Prideful service is never private service; it’s public service.

NEXT WEEK: I’m Thankful for His Provision- Luke 17:11-19

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Hills

TITLE: Focused and Real

Scripture: Acts 6: 1-4; Romans 10: 9-17; 2 Timothy 3:14

I.   WORD-FOCUSED

“To introduce people to a saving knowledge of Christ, you must speak words, and you must speak what are sometimes offensive words.” Jonathan Leeman- “Word-Centered Church”

“Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.” Rom.10:17

Pragmatism: the Bible is used as an (instructional guide).

“You do not really preach the Gospel if you leave Christ out-if He is omitted, it is not the gospel! You may invite them to gaze upon an empty table unless Christ is the very center and substance of all that you set before them”

The Bible is about (Jesus).

II.  AUTHENTICITY-MINDED

“Honesty and transparency make you vulnerable. Be honest and transparent anyway.”  Mother Teresa

Integrity doesn’t come in degrees: low, medium, or high. You either have integrity or you don’t.” Tony Dungy

Authenticity involves our (integrity). Practicing integrity means our (behavior matches our beliefs). But personal integrity is not the same as your reputation. Your reputation is (who other people think you are). Your integrity (or lack of it) is who (who you really are).

“The integrity of the upright guides the, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.” Pr.11:3

I Samuel 12: 3-4

Psalm15: 1-5

NEXT WEEK: The Value of Who You Are- Psalm 78:72

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Hills

TITLE: Call Him Father

Scripture: Isaiah 64:8; Mt.6:9

I.   A PATIENT FATHER                 

Our heavenly Father is extremely (patient), not just because He is a good parent, but because He wants us to (come to our senses). He isn’t waiting for us to mess up so He can (punish us); He waits so we can experience His (forgiveness).

“But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, the foremost of sinners, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.” I Tim.1:16

II.  A FORGIVING FATHER                     

When we talk about God, (patience and forgiveness) go together.

“In Him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight.” Eph.1:7

III. A PROUD FATHER

God isn’t just proud of you! He is (crazy about you)!  He loves you whether you excel or don’t excel. He loves you whether you are the top athlete or not. Top musician or not. His love and pride for you and acceptance for you is not determined by anything you do or don’t do.

NEXT WEEK: It’s All About Him- Col.1:15-23

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Hills

TITLE: The Words of Life

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:16-17

The Words of Life

CS Lewis:

“You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you.”

We believe that the Bible is the divinely inspired, written Word of God, without error in its original language, and sufficient enough for all to know God’s desire. (From the OVCF Statement of Beliefs)

I.         INSPIRATION AND RELIABILITY OF THE BIBLE

The Bible is composed of (66 different books) and was written by (over 40 different authors) spanning across (1600 years.) There are an estimated 5-6 billion copies in existence.

Here’s what we don’t mean when we say that the Bible is the divinely inspired, written Word of God:

1.) God (wrote it for) the authors.

2.) God (dictated it to) the authors word-for-word

Here’s what we do mean: Through His Spirit’s leading and infinite power God used human beings to compose the Word, allowing them to express their own (literary styles) within the context of their own languages and cultures. And yet, His (message and intent) were preserved in the process and outcome.

Reliability – Trustworthy or consistently good in its quality. Is what the Bible contains – from ideas to history to geography and more – trustworthy or not? EX: If the Bible is full of historical and factual errors or blatantly contradicts itself, it’s hard to trust it or view it as reliable IS the Bible Reliable???

II.       THE BIBLE IS THE DRIVING MEANS OF KNOWING GOD AND FOLLOWING HIM

1.)    The Bible is (God’s love) extended to us.

2.)    All of the Bible (points us to Jesus) and the (life he gives).

3.)    The Bible, in tandem with (the Holy Spirit), works to transform us.

The crux of the matter is this: Do you love the Word? Do you love the Author? He loves you. May we become people who delight in the Word of God – who live by it – who memorize it – who can’t get enough of it.

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Hills

TITLE: Jesus, Continued

Scripture: Acts 19:2 and various others

“The Spirit inside you is better than the Jesus beside you.” J.D. Greear

I.    THE DILEMMA WE FACE       

“We all see problems in the church. We don’t need another book to point them out. We need the faith to believe that the solution is really quite simple: the Holy Spirit.” Chan

“Religion is what happens when the Spirit has left the building.” Bono

Several reasons for our dilemma:

1.      A lack of (learning).

2.      A lack of (leaning).

3.      A lack of understanding the mystery of (the Trinity).

II.   THE DETAILS WE NEED TO KNOW           

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.” Is.9:6

The Spirit and the Word are (inseparable). The word of the (gospel) and the power of the (Spirit) always go together. The Word of God is God’s revelation to us; the ministry of the Spirit is to help us understand it.  Here are some practical things to know:

1)      The Holy Spirit is a (person).

2)      The Holy Spirit is (God).

3)      The Holy Spirit is (eternal and holy).

4)      The Holy Spirit was and is never to (draw attention) to Himself.   Turn to John 16:7-18.

NEXT WEEK: Pastor Ryan preaching

https://www.ovcf.org/ovcf_wp/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/HIMH-poster.pdf

THEME: I Am Fifth

Series: Hills

TITLE: The Invasion

Scripture: John 1:1-3, 9-18

I.    THE INCARNATION               

Consider some possible “absurdities”:

1)      The (atonement).

2)      The (resurrection).

3)      The greatest? The (incarnation).  It was essential He do it this way. Jesus could never have been the Savior of humankind if He was born into sin, because then His death would have been for His own sins, not for ours alone.

He became (human) so we could become (holy).

II.   THE CRUCIFIXION                  

“I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord…suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day he arose again from the dead.” Apostle’s Creed

Gnostics of Paul’s day denied the crucifixion by claiming Jesus (never rose from the dead). Muhammed taught Jesus (only appeared to die). Some say God (cast a spell) over His followers. Some say he just (swooned or passed out).

THE CROSS OF JESUS STANDS AS THE CENTRAL TENET OF ALL WE BELIEVE ABOUT SALVATION.  “The word of the cross is foolishness…” I Cor.1:18

III.  THE RESURRECTION

“If I were an enemy of Christianity, I would aim right at the Resurrection, because it is the heart of Christianity.” Billy Graham

NEXT WEEK: Matt & Laurie Krieg from Hole in My Heart Ministries