An Audience With The King (Part 3)

Pastor Rocklyn Clarke - Sunday May 10, 2009

© 2009 Life Church Ministries, Inc.

http://www.LifeChurchMinistries.org/

* Notes
V Introduction
* Bible Reading 5/3 - 5/9: Judges 17 - 1Sam 17; John 3:1 - 6:21; Psalm 104:1 - 106:31; Prov 14:20-33
> Review
V New Material
> Preparation
V An Audience With The King (Part 3)
> Preparation - Hebrews 4:14-16
V Standing Issues
V Make it plain
* Use accessible language and modern parables.
* Make sure people do something with God's message.
* Keep it simple.
* Use illustrations of truth out of my own experience.
* Impart faith to obey the Word and receive God's promises.
V Introduction
V Ancient Questions
* Developing a coherent sense of an external world.
* Interpreting sounds as language.
* Other minds
V Personality Detection
* You are designed to detect personalities.
* You detect personalities in other human beings.
* You can detect God's personality if you earnestly seek him.
V Walk closely and confidently with God
V Read Passage - Hebrews 10:19-25
Because Jesus has opened a door for us, we should confidently move in close to God and keep encouraging one another.
* Enter by the blood
* Enter through his broken body
* Sincere heart
* Assured faith
* Hearts sprinkled and bodies washed (i.e. guilt free and baptized)
* God's faithfulness is the basis for our unswerving hope.
* Stay actively committed to fellowship and encouraging others.
V Conventional Wisdom:
* Play it safe - don’t rush in and get carried away.
V Kingdom Wisdom:
* Earnestly seek God.
* Rush in and find out what God’s Word says.
* Don’t rush into a ministry career however.
V Walk by faith - Hebrews 10:35 - 11:12
* Don't throw away your confidence.
* The righteous live by faith rather than shrinking back. - Hab 2:3-4
V Be certain of what you hope for and confident of what you don't see.
V God
* God spoke the universe into existence by faith.
* Abel
* Enoch
* Noah
V Abraham
* Left his home and people to go where God sent him.
* Became a Father miraculously.
V Without faith we can't please God.
* Faith must be a characteristic of our relationship with him.
* Believe that he wants to speak with you.
* Commit your time to talking to God and listening.
* Act as if he said something back to you - write it down and share it with a brother or sister you trust.
V Start with baby steps (or baby talk).
* Parents use baby talk to teach their children simple concepts and eventually those same children master regular adult speech.
* Expect to hear simple things from God first. Act on them faithfully and you will eventually be able to hear him say more complex things to you.
V Learn to hear God's voice - 1Samuel 3:1-21
* Don't throw away your confidence.
V Samuel had been dedicated to the Lord by his mother.
* Mother's Day
* She dedicated him to the Lord.
* She kept the boy until he was weaned (3 - 4 years by custom) and then left him with Eli.
* There is a time for mothering to end and for fathering to begin.
* Eli was not a great father, but God used him in Samuel's life.
* God initiated the conversation.
* Samuel heard God call his name but thought it was Eli (the only father figure he knew) calling him.
V This was Samuel's initial experience with the Lord.
* Samuel did not know the Lord.
* The Word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.
* God is known through his Word.
V Samuel needed Eli's help to recognize that God was calling him.
* Eli told him how to respond so as to receive what God wanted to say.
* Samuel had to run to Eli - the slept in separate beds.
* God waited patiently for Samuel to figure it out.
* God gave Samuel bad news for Eli.
* God revealed himself to Samuel through his Word.
V The Holy Spirit helps us - John 16:12-25
* I don't have to know how God is guiding me.
* I need to trust God's Word which says that he is guiding me.
V Develop a confession of faith regarding talking to God
* I can talk to God and he talks to me.
* Read passages like this over and over until you start to believe it.
* Get help like Samuel did!
V Conclusion
* God wants us to draw near to him. This isn't optional.
* It's up to us to listen to what he's saying and take the risk of acting on it.
> Altar Call / Response Cards?
V Discussion Questions / Topics (based on the indicated scriptures)
1Samuel 3:1-21
The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions.
One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was. Then the LORD called Samuel.
Samuel answered, “Here I am.” And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down.
Again the LORD called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
“My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.”
Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD: The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.
The LORD called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
Then Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”
Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
And the LORD said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle. At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family — from beginning to end. For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons made themselves contemptible, and he failed to restrain them. Therefore, I swore to the house of Eli, ‘The guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.’”
Samuel lay down until morning and then opened the doors of the house of the LORD. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, but Eli called him and said, “Samuel, my son.”
Samuel answered, “Here I am.”
“What was it he said to you?” Eli asked. “Do not hide it from me. May God deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything he told you.” So Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing from him. Then Eli said, “He is the LORD; let him do what is good in his eyes.”
The LORD was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the LORD. The LORD continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.
* Samuel didn't know God's voice at first. Has this ever happened to you?
* Can you think of a time when you might not have recognized God's voice?
* Do you ever tell God: "Speak, for your servant is listening"? Discuss.
* The LORD revealed himself to Samuel through his Word. How do you expect him to reveal himself to you? What are you doing to cooperate?
John 16:12-15
“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
* Do you believe this passage? Do you expect the Holy Spirit to speak to you? Do you expect him to speak to you when you pray?
* Do you behave like someone who expects to hear from God? How so?
V Witnessing Activities
V Discuss with your life group and pray for the following people:
* Guests of yours who have already visited Life Church and how they felt about the experience.
* People you plan to invite to church for Father's Day (6/21/2009).
V Scriptures For 05/10/2009 Life Church Sermon
Hebrews 10:35 - 11:12
So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, “He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.” But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.
By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.
By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.
By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
By faith Abraham, even though he was past age — and Sarah herself was barren — was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
1Samuel 3:1-21
The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions.
One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was. Then the LORD called Samuel.
Samuel answered, “Here I am.” And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down.
Again the LORD called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
“My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.”
Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD: The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.
The LORD called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
Then Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”
Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
And the LORD said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle. At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family — from beginning to end. For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons made themselves contemptible, and he failed to restrain them. Therefore, I swore to the house of Eli, ‘The guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.’”
Samuel lay down until morning and then opened the doors of the house of the LORD. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, but Eli called him and said, “Samuel, my son.”
Samuel answered, “Here I am.”
“What was it he said to you?” Eli asked. “Do not hide it from me. May God deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything he told you.” So Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing from him. Then Eli said, “He is the LORD; let him do what is good in his eyes.”
The LORD was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the LORD. The LORD continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.
John 16:12-15
“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
Understanding The Bible

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.

Here, for your convenience, are the Bible passages that we will be using in today's sermon at Life Church. We use the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible so that you can read it in modern English. You may have been accustomed to reading or hearing the King James Version of the Bible, which uses older English (with words like "thee" , "thou", "thine", "believeth", etc.). If so, don't be alarmed - the passages below are really from the Bible even though they are in modern English.

The Bible was originally written in three ancient languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. None of the people in the Bible, and none of the people who God used to write it spoke English. In fact, English did not even exist as a language when the Bible was written. The King James Version, first published in 1611, was a translation of the Bible from it's original languages into the every day English that people used back then - almost 400 years ago! They didn't just speak that way in church - they spoke that way with everyone. English has certainly changed a lot since then! Since you probably don't speak Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek, you're going to have to read the Bible in translated form. At Life Church we believe that since you're going to read an English translation of the Bible you might as well use an up to date one - written in the English you speak every day. God wants you to understand his Word so that you can put it into practice!
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God Bless You!!!