We Resume meeting in the New Year

January 9, 2013

Harvest of righteousness

12 December 2012

Opening Prayer/Worship

Song: Praising the Lord always

Theme: Behold, Jesus is coming again

Topic: Harvest of righteousness

Reading: Philippians 1:3-11

Introduction

Last week, our discussion was on how Christ is our righteousness; that the righteousness God seeks in us can only come through our commitment and faith in His Son Jesus Christ.  In today’s study, we will be discussing the nature and attributes of our need for the righteousness of Christ.  Our text from Philippians 1:10-11 put it this way: ‘so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, - having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God’.  The basis or foundation for producing the harvest of righteousness comes through first, knowing and believing in Christ; then secondly, allowing the Spirit of Christ to control our thoughts, words and deeds.  Then the love of Christ will be flowing through us to everyone we meet.  However, the transformation is not instant, but rather gradual; with each passing day we get closer to Jesus, becoming more and more like Him. 

Questions/Discussion

1. How is that we need the nature Christ in our lives to be considered righteous by God?  Romans 3:21-26.

2. What are the things we can do to keep living in the righteousness of Christ? 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; Hebrews 11:6-16; James 2:14-26.

3. What happens then, if we fall into temptation?  Do we lose the righteousness from God?  Romans 6:1-4, 8-18; 1 John 1:5-10, 2:1-2.

Intercession/Worship

Conclusion

Through the grace of God, we are made righteous, and through His grace, we are kept righteous.  May we continue to seek the righteousness of Christ, that He may fill us with His Holy Spirit and keep us holy and blameless until His coming again.

Closing Prayer (Collect for Second Sunday of Advent)

Almighty God, who sent Your servant John the Baptist to prepare Your people to welcome the Messiah, inspire us, the ministers and stewards of Your truth, to turn our disobedient hearts to You, that when the Christ shall come again to be our Judge, we may stand with confidence before His Glory; who is alive and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever. Amen.

 

The Lord is our righteousness

5 December 2012

Opening Prayer/Worship

Hymn:  Rock of Ages

Theme: Behold, Jesus is coming again

Topic: The Lord is our righteousness

Reading: Jeremiah 33:14-16

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfil the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. ¹⁵In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.¹⁶In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

Introduction

Righteousness, in terms of Scriptural implication, is a state of being right with God.  The Scripture described some individuals as righteous; individuals like Abraham, Job and Cornelius.  The hallmark of the righteous is their strong desire to seek and please God.  They may have had some faults or setbacks, yet it pleased God to call them righteous.  This is because these individuals sought and lived in obedience to the Lord.  It is God who knows and declares any righteous, and according to Scripture, this will be His basis for determining those that will reign with Christ eternally.  Also, the righteousness that God desires does not come from good works.  According to Scripture, our righteous acts are like filthy rags.  The righteousness that God desires can only exist in us through our commitment, faith, love and relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ.  When we have Christ in our lives, we are counted as righteous by God.  Then, acts of true love and righteousness come from us, and not the other way round.  Christ is our peace and righteousness, and our prayer as we celebrate His birth and second coming, is that God will find in us the righteousness of Christ.

Questions/Discussion

1. What is your understanding of righteousness? 

Psalm 143:1-2

¹ Hear my prayer, O Lord;
   give ear to my supplications in your faithfulness;
   answer me in your righteousness.
² Do not enter into judgement with your servant,
   for no one living is righteous before you. 

Isaiah 64:1-9

O that you would tear open the heavens and come down,
   so that the mountains would quake at your presence—
² as when fire kindles brushwood
   and the fire causes water to boil—
to make your name known to your adversaries,
   so that the nations might tremble at your presence!
³ When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect,
   you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.
⁴ From ages past no one has heard,
   no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,
   who works for those who wait for him.
⁵ You meet those who gladly do right,
   those who remember you in your ways.
But you were angry, and we sinned;
   because you hid yourself we transgressed.
⁶ We have all become like one who is unclean,
   and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth.
We all fade like a leaf,
   and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
⁷ There is no one who calls on your name,
   or attempts to take hold of you;
for you have hidden your face from us,
   and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
⁸ Yet, O Lord, you are our Father;
   we are the clay, and you are our potter;
   we are all the work of your hand.
⁹ Do not be exceedingly angry, O Lord,
   and do not remember iniquity for ever.
   Now consider, we are all your people.

Ezekiel 33:10-20

Now you, mortal, say to the house of Israel, Thus you have said: ‘Our transgressions and our sins weigh upon us, and we waste away because of them; how then can we live?’ ¹¹Say to them, As I live, says the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from their ways and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel? ¹²And you, mortal, say to your people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not save them when they transgress; and as for the wickedness of the wicked, it shall not make them stumble when they turn from their wickedness; and the righteous shall not be able to live by their righteousness when they sin. ¹³Though I say to the righteous that they shall surely live, yet if they trust in their righteousness and commit iniquity, none of their righteous deeds shall be remembered; but in the iniquity that they have committed they shall die. ¹⁴Again, though I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die’, yet if they turn from their sin and do what is lawful and right— ¹⁵if the wicked restore the pledge, give back what they have taken by robbery, and walk in the statutes of life, committing no iniquity—they shall surely live, they shall not die. ¹⁶None of the sins that they have committed shall be remembered against them; they have done what is lawful and right, they shall surely live. ¹⁷ Yet your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just’, when it is their own way that is not just. ¹⁸When the righteous turn from their righteousness, and commit iniquity, they shall die for it. ¹⁹And when the wicked turn from their wickedness, and do what is lawful and right, they shall live by it. ²⁰Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of Israel, I will judge all of you according to your ways!

2. What is the place of righteousness in the second coming of Christ? 

Zephaniah 2:1-3

Gather together, gather,
   O shameless nation,
² before you are driven away
   like the drifting chaff,
before there comes upon you
   the fierce anger of the Lord,
before there comes upon you
   the day of the Lord’s wrath.
³ Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land,
   who do his commands;
seek righteousness, seek humility;
   perhaps you may be hidden
   on the day of the Lord’s wrath.

Romans 3:21-26

But now, irrespective of law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, ²²the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, ²³since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; ²⁴they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; ²⁶it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus.

Philippians 3:7-14

Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. ⁸More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ ⁹and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. ¹⁰I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, ¹¹if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. ¹² Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. ¹³Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

3.   If God desires us to be righteous, why does it appear to be difficult? 

      List some of the benefits of having the righteousness of Christ. 

Psalm 37:23-26, 55:22

²³ Our steps are made firm by the Lord,
   when he delights in our way;
²⁴ though we stumble, we shall not fall headlong,
   for the Lord holds us by the hand. 

²⁵ I have been young, and now am old,
   yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
   or their children begging bread.
²⁶ They are ever giving liberally and lending,
   and their children become a blessing. 

Psalm 55:22

²² Cast your burden on the Lord,
   and he will sustain you;
he will never permit
   the righteous to be moved. 

Psalm 89:14-18

¹⁴ Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
   steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.
¹⁵ Happy are the people who know the festal shout,
   who walk, O Lord, in the light of your countenance;
¹⁶ they exult in your name all day long,
   and extol your righteousness.
¹⁷ For you are the glory of their strength;
   by your favour our horn is exalted.
¹⁸ For our shield belongs to the Lord,
   our king to the Holy One of Israel.

Isaiah 32:1-2, 16-20

¹ See, a king will reign in righteousness,
   and princes will rule with justice. 
² Each will be like a hiding-place from the wind,
   a covert from the tempest,
like streams of water in a dry place,
   like the shade of a great rock in a weary land.

¹⁶ Then justice will dwell in the wilderness,
   and righteousness abide in the fruitful field. 
¹⁷ The effect of righteousness will be peace,
   and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust for ever. 
¹⁸ My people will abide in a peaceful habitation,
   in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting-places. 
¹⁹ The forest will disappear completely,
   and the city will be utterly laid low. 
²⁰ Happy will you be who sow beside every stream,
   who let the ox and the donkey range freely.

Galatians 2:11-21

But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood self-condemned; ¹²for until certain people came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But after they came, he drew back and kept himself separate for fear of the circumcision faction.¹³And the other Jews joined him in this hypocrisy, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. ¹⁴But when I saw that they were not acting consistently with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, ‘If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?’ ¹⁵ We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; ¹⁶yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified by faith in Christ, and not by doing the works of the law, because no one will be justified by the works of the law.¹⁷But if, in our effort to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have been found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! ¹⁸But if I build up again the very things that I once tore down, then I demonstrate that I am a transgressor. ¹⁹For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ;²⁰and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. ²¹I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.

Intercession/Worship

Conclusion

God calls us to be like Him- holy and righteous.  He knows that we can only attain this through our faith in His Son, Jesus Christ; hence He gave Him up for us.  May we continue to grow and mature in our love, faith and knowledge of Christ, that when He appears, we shall reign with Him eternally.

Closing Prayer (Collect for First Sunday of Advent)

Almighty God,

give us grace to cast away the works of darkness

and put on the armour of light,

now in the time of this mortal life

in which Your Son Jesus Christ

came to us in great humility,

that on the last day,

when He shall come again in His glorious majesty

to judge both the living and the dead,

we may rise to the life immortal;

through Him who lives and reigns

with You and the Holy Spirit,

One God, now and forever. Amen.

Him who loves us

28 November 2012

Opening Prayer/Worship

Hymn:  Abide With Me

Theme: Behold, Jesus is coming again

Topic: Him who loves us

Reading: Revelation 1:4b-8

Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, ⁵and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, ⁶and madeus to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. ⁷ Look! He is coming with the clouds; every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wail. So it is to be. Amen. ⁸ ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega’, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.

Introduction

We just begun the season of Advent- a time we remember the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  It is also a season of preparation for the most celebrated period of the year- Christmas.  In the next few weeks, our discussion will be mainly on the second coming of Jesus Christ.  The suffering, death and resurrection of the Son of God were the Creator’s demonstration of His immense love for us.  According to Scripture, while we were yet sinners, Christ came and died for us, paying the price for the sin of the whole world once and for all.  This was not an after-thought but a deliberate act of sacrifice built upon love.  God, who made us, humbled Himself, becoming one of us but yet was without sin; and died that we may live.  In today’s study, our focus will be on how God loves us so much that He gave up His only begotten Son, reconciling us to Himself.  God’s love for us is incomparable; He loves the rich and poor, ‘good’ and ‘bad’, regardless of where you belong or did in the past.  The One who is, who was and who is to come loves us all, and is coming back to reign with those that believe in Him.

Questions/Discussion

1. Why does God love us so much? 

John 3:16-21

‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. ¹⁷ ‘Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. ¹⁸Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. ¹⁹And this is the judgement, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. ²⁰For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. ²¹But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.’ 

Revelation 1:4b-6, 20:1-15

Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, ⁵and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, ⁶and madeus to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

(20:1-15) Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. ²He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, ³and threw him into the pit, and locked and sealed it over him, so that he would deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be let out for a little while. ⁴ Then I saw thrones, and those seated on them were given authority to judge. I also saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony to Jesus and for the word of God. They had not worshipped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. ⁵(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. ⁶Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. Over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years. ⁷ When the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison ⁸and will come out to deceive the nations at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, in order to gather them for battle; they are as numerous as the sands of the sea. ⁹They marched up over the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from heaven and consumed them.¹⁰And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur, where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. ¹¹ Then I saw a great white throne and the one who sat on it; the earth and the heaven fled from his presence, and no place was found for them. ¹²And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, the book of life. And the dead were judged according to their works, as recorded in the books. ¹³And the sea gave up the dead that were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and all were judged according to what they had done. ¹⁴Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire;¹⁵and anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

2. What should be our response to the love of God in our lives?  

Isaiah 44:1-11, 21-23

But now hear, O Jacob my servant,
   Israel whom I have chosen! 
² Thus says the Lord who made you,
   who formed you in the womb and will help you:
Do not fear, O Jacob my servant,
   Jeshurun whom I have chosen. 
³ For I will pour water on the thirsty land,
   and streams on the dry ground;
I will pour my spirit upon your descendants,
   and my blessing on your offspring. 
⁴ They shall spring up like a green tamarisk,
   like willows by flowing streams. 
⁵ This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’,
   another will be called by the name of Jacob,
yet another will write on the hand, ‘The Lord’s’,
   and adopt the name of Israel. 

⁶ Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel
   and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts:
I am the first and I am the last;
   besides me there is no god. 
⁷ Who is like me? Let them proclaim it,
   let them declare and set it forth before me.
Who has announced from of old the things to come?
   Let them tell us what is yet to be. 
⁸ Do not fear, or be afraid;
   have I not told you from of old and declared it?
   You are my witnesses!
Is there any god besides me?
   There is no other rock; I know not one. 

9 All who make idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit; their witnesses neither see nor know. And so they will be put to shame. ¹⁰Who would fashion a god or cast an image that can do no good? ¹¹Look, all its devotees shall be put to shame; the artisans too are merely human. Let them all assemble, let them stand up; they shall be terrified, they shall all be put to shame.

²¹ Remember these things, O Jacob,
   and Israel, for you are my servant;
I formed you, you are my servant;
   O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me. 
²² I have swept away your transgressions like a cloud,
   and your sins like mist;
return to me, for I have redeemed you. 

²³ Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it;
   shout, O depths of the earth;
break forth into singing, O mountains,
   O forest, and every tree in it!
For the Lord has redeemed Jacob,
   and will be glorified in Israel.

Matthew 24:36-51

‘But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³⁷For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ³⁸For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, ³⁹and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man. ⁴⁰Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. ⁴¹Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. ⁴²Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. ⁴³But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour. ⁴⁵ ‘Who then is the faithful and wise slave, whom his master has put in charge of his household, to give the other slaves their allowance of food at the proper time? ⁴⁶Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives. ⁴⁷Truly I tell you, he will put that one in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁸But if that wicked slave says to himself, “My master is delayed”, ⁴⁹and he begins to beat his fellow-slaves, and eats and drinks with drunkards, ⁵⁰the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know. ⁵¹He will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

3. Contrast the first and second coming of Christ, in the light of God’s love for us?  

Matthew 24:3-14, 23-35

When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’ ⁴Jesus answered them, ‘Beware that no one leads you astray. ⁵For many will come in my name, saying, “I am the Messiah!” and they will lead many astray. ⁶And you will hear of wars and rumours of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. ⁷For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: ⁸all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs. ⁹ ‘Then they will hand you over to be tortured and will put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of my name. ¹⁰Then many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another.¹¹And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. ¹²And because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold.¹³But anyone who endures to the end will be saved. ¹⁴And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come. ²³Then if anyone says to you, “Look! Here is the Messiah!” or “There he is!”—do not believe it. ²⁴For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. ²⁵Take note, I have told you beforehand. ²⁶So, if they say to you, “Look! He is in the wilderness”, do not go out. If they say, “Look! He is in the inner rooms”, do not believe it. ²⁷For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ²⁸Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

²⁹ ‘Immediately after the suffering of those days
the sun will be darkened,
   and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from heaven,
   and the powers of heaven will be shaken. 
³⁰Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see “the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven” with power and great glory. ³¹And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

³² ‘From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. ³³So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. ³⁴Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. ³⁵Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

1 Thessalonians 4:14-18, 5:1-11

For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. ¹⁵For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died. ¹⁶For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call and with the sound of God’s trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord for ever. ¹⁸Therefore encourage one another with these words.

(5:1-11) Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. ²For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. ³When they say, ‘There is peace and security’, then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labour pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape! ⁴But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; ⁵for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. ⁶So then, let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober; ⁷for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. ⁸But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. ⁹For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁰who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him.¹¹Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.

Intercession/Worship

Conclusion

God, who made us, loves us beyond our imaginations, and calls us daily to fellowship with Him- loving and serving Him.  Let us remember as we prepare to celebrate Christ’s first coming, that He is coming again to receive all who believe in Him. Let us remember, and live for Him always.

Closing Prayer

Thank You Father for all you have done, and continue to do for us in Your Son, Jesus Christ.  As we fellowship with You in our daily lives, keep us ready for the second coming of Your Son, Jesus Christ.  We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.  Amen.

The Holy Spirit testifies to us

21 November 2012

 

Opening Prayer/Worship

 

Song: I love the Man from Galilee

 

Theme: Be filled with the Holy Spirit

 

Topic: The Holy Spirit testifies to us

 

Reading: Hebrews 10:11-25

And every priest stands day after day at his service, offering again and again the same sacrifices that can never take away sins.¹²But when Christ^* had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, ‘he sat down at the right hand of God’,¹³and since then has been waiting ‘until his enemies would be made a footstool for his feet.’¹⁴For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.¹⁵And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us, for after saying,
¹⁶ ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them
after those days, says the Lord:
I will put my laws in their hearts,
and I will write them on their minds’,
¹⁷he also adds,
‘I will remember^* their sins and their lawless deeds no more.’
¹⁸Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

 

¹⁹ Therefore, my friends,^* since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus,²⁰by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh),²¹and since we have a great priest over the house of God,²²let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.²³Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful.²⁴And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds,²⁵not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

 

Introduction

Continuing on the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, today we will be discussing on how the Spirit of Christ constantly brings to our remembrance what God did for us on the cross of Calvary.  How He loves us so much that He will never allow anyone to perish, who confesses and believes that Jesus is Lord; that Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life and that no one comes to the Father except through Him.  It is through the testimony and work of the Holy Spirit in our lives that we have the confidence to approach God boldly just as the Scripture declares that we should.  It is through the voice of the Holy Spirit that we are constantly reminded that we are sons and daughters of the Most High God.  Through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, our faith is continually built up and made perfect.  The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives ensures we have uninterrupted fellowship with our Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.  He reminds us daily that the price for our sins has been paid in full; that we are forgiven and redeemed, and that we are co-heirs with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour.

 

Questions/Discussion

1. What does the Holy Spirit testify to us about, and how does He do it? 

Jeremiah 31:31-37

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.³²It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband,^* says the Lord.³³But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.³⁴No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, ‘Know the Lord’, for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

³⁵ Thus says the Lord,
who gives the sun for light by day
and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the Lord of hosts is his name:
³⁶ If this fixed order were ever to cease
from my presence, says the Lord,
then also the offspring of Israel would cease
to be a nation before me for ever.

³⁷ Thus says the Lord:
If the heavens above can be measured,
and the foundations of the earth below can be explored,
then I will reject all the offspring of Israel
because of all they have done,

says the Lord.

 

Hebrews 9:11-28

But when Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come,^* then through the greater and perfect^* tent^* (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation),¹²he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption.¹³For if the blood of goats and bulls, with the sprinkling of the ashes of a heifer, sanctifies those who have been defiled so that their flesh is purified,¹⁴how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit^* offered himself without blemish to God, purify our^* conscience from dead works to worship the living God! ¹⁵ For this reason he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, because a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenant.^*16Where a will^* is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established.¹⁷For a will^* takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive.¹⁸Hence not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood.¹⁹For when every commandment had been told to all the people by Moses in accordance with the law, he took the blood of calves and goats,^* with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the scroll itself and all the people,²⁰saying, ‘This is the blood of the covenant that God has ordained for you.’²¹And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent^* and all the vessels used in worship.²²Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. ²³ Thus it was necessary for the sketches of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves need better sacrifices than these.²⁴For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made by human hands, a mere copy of the true one, but he entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.²⁵Nor was it to offer himself again and again, as the high priest enters the Holy Place year after year with blood that is not his own;²⁶for then he would have had to suffer again and again since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself.²⁷And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once, and after that the judgement,²⁸so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

 

John 15:26-27

‘When the Advocate^* comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf.²⁷You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning.

 

2. Why do we need to be reminded continually of what the Lord has done for us in Christ?  

Hebrews 10:19-25

Therefore, my friends,^* since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus,²⁰by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh),²¹and since we have a great priest over the house of God,²²let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.²³Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful.²⁴And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds,²⁵not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

 

John 1:1-4, 10-18

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.²He was in the beginning with God.³All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being⁴in him was life,^* and the life was the light of all people. ¹⁰ He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him.¹¹He came to what was his own,^* and his own people did not accept him.¹²But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God,¹³who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God. ¹⁴ And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son,^* full of grace and truth.¹⁵(John testified to him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” ’)¹⁶From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.¹⁷The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.¹⁸No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son,^* who is close to the Father’s heart,^* who has made him known.

 

1 John 2:20-29

But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and all of you have knowledge.^*21I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and you know that no lie comes from the truth.²²Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ?^* This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.²³No one who denies the Son has the Father; everyone who confesses the Son has the Father also.²⁴Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you will abide in the Son and in the Father.²⁵And this is what he has promised us,^* eternal life. ²⁶ I write these things to you concerning those who would deceive you.²⁷As for you, the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and so you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, abide in him. ^*28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he is revealed we may have confidence and not be put to shame before him at his coming. ²⁹ If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who does right has been born of him.

 

3. How do we apply in our lives this Ministry of the Holy Spirit?  

1 Samuel 2:1-10

¹ Hannah prayed and said,
‘My heart exults in the Lord;
my strength is exalted in my God.^*
My mouth derides my enemies,
because I rejoice in my^* victory.

² ‘There is no Holy One like the Lord,
no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God.
³ Talk no more so very proudly,
let not arrogance come from your mouth;
for the Lord is a God of knowledge,
and by him actions are weighed.
⁴ The bows of the mighty are broken,
but the feeble gird on strength.
⁵ Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread,
but those who were hungry are fat with spoil.
The barren has borne seven,
but she who has many children is forlorn.
⁶ The Lord kills and brings to life;
he brings down to Sheol and raises up.
⁷ The Lord makes poor and makes rich;
he brings low, he also exalts.
⁸ He raises up the poor from the dust;
he lifts the needy from the ash heap,
to make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honour.^*
For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
and on them he has set the world.

⁹ ‘He will guard the feet of his faithful ones,
but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness;
for not by might does one prevail.
¹⁰ The Lord! His adversaries shall be shattered;
the Most High^* will thunder in heaven.
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth;
he will give strength to his king,
and exalt the power of his anointed.’

 

Jeremiah 29:11-14

For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.¹²Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you.¹³When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart,¹⁴I will let you find me, says the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

 

1 Corinthians 15:1-8, 12-28

Now I should remind you, brothers and sisters,^* of the good news^* that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand,²through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you—unless you have come to believe in vain.³ For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures,⁴and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures,⁵and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.⁶Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters^* at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died.^*7Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.⁸Last of all, as to someone untimely born, he appeared also to me. ¹² Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead?¹³If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised;¹⁴and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain.¹⁵We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ—whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised.¹⁶For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised.¹⁷If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.¹⁸Then those also who have died^* in Christ have perished.¹⁹If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. ²⁰ But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died.^*21For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human being;²²for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ.²³But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.²⁴Then comes the end,^* when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after he has destroyed every ruler and every authority and power.²⁵For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.²⁶The last enemy to be destroyed is death.²⁷For ‘God^* has put all things in subjection under his feet.’ But when it says, ‘All things are put in subjection’, it is plain that this does not include the one who put all things in subjection under him.²⁸When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to the one who put all things in subjection under him, so that God may be all in all.

 

Intercession/Worship

 

Conclusion

The Holy Spirit reminds us daily that we are the children of the Most High God.  Let us then approach Him through our prayers, praises and worship, confident that the Lord Who called us has made a way for us to fellowship with Him through Christ and in Christ, now and always. Amen.

 

Closing Prayer

Father we are so grateful to You for constantly reminding us of Your great deed of mercy and love towards us.  Enable us to listen and hear with gratitude to You, the voice of Your Holy Spirit within us at all times. This we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.  Amen.