God’s Promises

2010-11-24T11:15:00.000-08:00

Going After God’s Promises
by Steve Sudworth

Liberty Church (Ottawa, ON)

What has God promised you?
• Do you know the GENERAL PROMISES of God?

• And the SPECIFIC PROMISES?
o Check/test these = make sure they are from Him
o Be careful of RELATIONSHIPS, STATUS & MONEY

• In BIG & SMALL ways what has God taken hold of you for?
o He shows Himself faithful in SMALL THINGS to help us go after BIG THINGS
 EXAMPLE? David – shepherd

What do we do with these promises?

(1) Turn God’s promises into PRAYER
EXAMPLE?
• GENERAL = “Lord, you said you would give me the desires of my heart.”
• SPECIFIC = “Lord, you’ve called me to Chicago…”

Persistence in prayer is what God wants – we demand in a HUMBLE way…
• Ps89 O Lord, where is your former great love which in your faithfulness you swore to David…Praise be to the Lord forever!
• Lk18:1 Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.

(2) Avoid UNBELIEF
Hold on with FAITH thru DELAY…OPPOSITION…WEAKNESS
• EXAMPLE? Zechariah

(3) Remember Jesus is working WITH US and FOR US
We’ll stumble along the way but we have a SYMPATHETIC HIGH PRIEST who is ministering MERCY & GRACE as He brings us TO GLORY (Heb4)

(4) Press on until God says YES
Until God says “not my will” or “YES”, press on to ENTER REST…
• DL Moody: “Tarry at a promise and God will meet you there.”

1Jn5:14-15
Prayer is…
• Relational: confidence = freedom of speech
• Exploratory: according to the will of God
• Submissive: ask for courage to obey
• Persistent yet Patient: Isa64

WHAT IS OUR SPRING BOARD/MOTIVATION TO GO AFTER THE PROMISES OF GOD?
• RADICAL FORGIVENESS
• ASSURANCE OF OUR SALVATION

Heb8:10-12
1. I will put my law into their minds and write them on their hearts
2. I will be their God
3. They will be my people
4. A community of believers
5. BECAUSE of radical forgiveness

(1) I will put my laws into their minds and write them on their hearts
Not external (stone tablets) but written by the Holy Spirit on our hearts = a new heart & capacity to know and love God
• Eze37 – starts with being born again but grows from there
• Rom8 – A heart sensitive to the Holy Spirit, sons led by the Spirit
• Gal5 – we live by the Spirit so walk/keep in step with the Spirit

It’s like hearing God twice…by the SPIRIT & confirmed by the WORD
• Bible = life by the Spirit put into words, confirming that what we hear is God
• Gal5 – the acts of the sinful nature are obvious
o EXAMPLE? Joseph
o Do you need the Bible to tell you not to lie?
• Deut8 – man lives on the word that proceed from the mouth of the Lord

What are His Laws that He puts on our heart?
• NOT OT Law = shadow pointing to something much greater…
o Not just “don’t commit adultery”, don’t have a lustful thought
o Not just “don’t murder”, don’t be angry with your brother
o Not just “don’t steal”, work with your hands so that you can give to others in need
• Essentially boils down to LOVE = for God & your neighbor…
o Greatest Commandment: Matt22
o Rom13/Gal5 – the law is summed up by “Love your neighbor as yourself”
o Do to others as you would have them do to you
o Bearing with each other’s shortcomings

(2) I will be their God
God is our Father…by the HOLY SPIRIT we cry Abba Father
• Deal with a false fear of the Father = if you’ve seen Jesus you’ve seen the Father

As our Father…
• …He makes His PURPOSE known = ambassadors that rule/govern, represent Jesus

• …He PROVIDES our needs according to His call for our lives
o Ask God boldly, lean on heaven
o He often meets abundantly

• …He reveals His PROMISES and helps us fulfill them
o Even rewards are gifts of grace we lay at His feet

• …He PROTECTS us, we’ll never be forsaken, Satan will not get to us.

• …we have His PRESENCE = His ways are “My Presence will go with you and I will give you rest.”

(3) They will be my people
His ambassadors, his representatives, people of influence and impact
• Matt5 – people will see our good works and praise God
• If they see us, they’ve seen the Father

(4) A Covenant Community
Contrasted to the Old Covenant…
• Could be in ISRAEL without ever knowing God
• But in Christ we will KNOW God

A picture of the church in it’s finest hour…
• “they will all know me” = Matt28
• “from the least of them to the greatest” = all used by God
o Eph4…works of service lead to maturity
o The most effective church is on where the priesthood are equipped, united and released

(5) All based on the radical forgiveness of God
• Micah7 hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea
• Ps103 as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us
• Isa43 He remembers our sin no more (!!)
o Why do we remind God?

The LAW dealt with sins of ignorance & waywardness (Heb5:2) but not BIG sin…
• David abandoned the LAW and went straight to God when he murdered
Jesus deals with “big” sin!

What do we do when we mess up?
• Approach the throne of grace (Heb4:16)
• Confess your sin and receive His radical forgiveness
• Compensate/make right (where necessary)
• Ask God to turn it to good (Rom8)
• Move on

THE PURPOSES OF GOD IN OUR LIVES ADVANCE RADICALLY ON THE BASIS OF…
• RADICAL FORGIVENESS

• ASSURANCE OF OUR SALVATION
o Rom5:1-5
 Peace with God (v1)
 Access into grace (v2a)
 Rejoice in the hope of glory (v2b)
 Perseverance in trials (v3-4)
 The outpouring of God’s love (v5)

o Rom6:1-11
 The Gospel is not soft on holiness but it comes from a REVELATION OF POSITION (Eph4 & Rom12)

 baptized = placed into/fused to Christ (v3)
EXAMPLE? Finger is fused to the body

 What happened to Him happened to me (v4)
He and I DIED…BURIED…GIVEN LIFE…RAISED…ASCENDED…SEATED

 Rom6:5-10 expounds on Rom6:3-4
 v6-7 amplified DEATH
 v8-10 amplifies RESURRECTION

 reckon = based on fact, devoid of emotion/experience (v11)
NOT “What do I do?” but

Statement of Faith

2010-11-12T14:40:00.000-08:00

We believe in the fundamental truths of Christianity as revealed in the Scriptures including the following:

The Unity of the Godhead - Father, Son and Holy Spirit. (Deut 6:4,Mat 28:19, 2 Cor 13:14)
a. God eternally exists in three persons - Father, Son and the Holy Spirit.
b. The Lord Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God. Begotten by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, and is true God and true Man.

The Sovereignty of God in creation, revelation, redemption and final judgment. (Gen 1:1, Heb 1:1-2, Titus 3:4-5, Acts 17:31)

The Complete Inspiration of the Old and New Testaments in their original form and their entire trustworthiness and supreme authority in all matters of life, faith and conduct. (2 Tim 3:16, 2 Pet 1:21, 1 Cor 2:13)

Mans Fallen Condition through Adams transgression, rendering him subject to Gods wrath and condemnation. (Rom 5:12, 2 Thes 1:7-9)

The Justification of the Sinner by the Grace of God through Faith alone. (Gal 2:16, Eph 2:8-9)

Redemption from Sin solely through the sacrificial and propitiating death of our Lord Jesus. (Rom 3:25-26, 5:15-21, 2 Cor 5:19, Mk 10:45)
a. We believe that Jesus Christ came to set all people free from sin & death. (John 8:34-36)
b. We believe that there is saving power in no other name, but the name of Jesus. It is only in & by His power that we are able to live a life that is pleasing to God. (John 14:6)

The Bodily Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and His Ascension to the right hand of the Father in glory. (1 Cor 15:4, Heb 8:1)

The One Universal Church is the body of Christ to which all true believers in Him belong. (Eph 1:22-23, 1 Cor 12:12-13, Acts 2:41-47)

The Priesthood of all Believers where everyone who is a Christian stands as a priest before God.(1 Peter 2:5,9; Rev 1:6;5:10; 20:6)

The Return of Jesus Christ to Earth in power and glory. (Acts 1:11,Heb 9:28, 2 Pet 3:10)

The Final Judgment where God will Judge the Living & the Dead through Jesus Christ, some to eternal life & others to eternal destruction.(Acts 17:31; Rom 2:16; 2Tim 4:1; Matt 13:49-50)

Context

2010-11-12T14:31:00.000-08:00

Liberty Church began in late August 2009. Kirk and Jan Slow and their son Nathanael responded to God’s call to start the church while visiting Canada in 2006. Kirk & Jan lead a church in Johannesburg, South Africa for 16 years. Subsequently they served on the fulltime eldership team of Cornerstone Church for a year and half. This is the church from which they were sent and remains at present the primary place of relational accountability.

Liberty Church is part of a relational network of independent churches worldwide called New Covenant Ministries International (NCMI). NCMI is not a denomination and is simply held together by a desire to work together with friends & be accountable in extending God’s Kingdom. ( http://www.ncmi.net/ for more info on NCMI)