Stopping to Think

Preface: This is the manuscript for a sermon I preached at Plummer Bible Church on 7/1/12. We had several people not at church that day who requested I get them CD's...and well, I haven't done that. Until that can happen, here is the manuscript. Faith in the Rock or faith in the sand? 7/1/12 Plummer Bible Church Prayer: Father God, I pray for this sermon. I pray that as Your word is opened that your Holy Spirit would open our eyes to see, our ears to hear, and soften our hearts to respond. I pray that we would seek to know you, Father. That we would long for the reconciliation you offer through Jesus, and the transformation done by the Holy Spirit. I pray that you would do these things in us for the praise of Your glorious grace. We pray in the holy name of Jesus. Amen. Intro: *Matthew 7:13-29 (ESV) “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and ...

This is a series of snippets from previous posts.  I have a tendency to clutter pages with many words, so I tried to sift through and pick out a few that I thought might be helpful. The first thing we need to know…is that ultimately, the glory of God is the primary reason our focus is to be on the Gospel. We see this in verses 5 and 6[of Romans 1]. We have received grace and apostleship to bring about obedience through faith for the sake of His name among the nations. Nations including us, right here, right now. All ministry, all personal growth, all faith, obedience, and work are meant not to somehow earn God’s favor, which Ephesians 2 makes very clear is a gift that we cannot earn. It is meant to display the glory, the weightiness, the importance, and the worthiness of Almighty God to the nations. -The Import of the Gospel in Youth Ministry God's glory is the Big Deal. I am saved, the Gospel exists, and God redeems sinners for the sake of His name among all the nations. ...

Worship, it has been said, is a continuous outpouring of ourselves.  An overflow of my heart, a pursuit and exultation of that which I desire, in essence, a reflection of my affections.  If this is the case, then how often can I honestly say that my worship speaks to a desire for God?  How often am I living in such a way as to exemplify to others the greatness, majesty, and beauty of His character and being?  Is this the story of my life, or am I more often caught up in the "stuff of life," that which the Bible would call worldly desires, or lusts of the flesh?  I have been studying Amos the last couple of months, which has been interesting, and convicting.  In this book, God is speaking through His prophet Amos to the people of Israel.  Israel; the people He has called to be holy, to be set apart, to be different than the world around them.  And this same people whom God had called and who had seen Him work in mighty ways time after time had...