Tightening Our Grip On God’s Word Series

INTRODUCTION

• SLIDE #1

• I believe one of the biggest frustrations that many Christians endure is feeling like they are not growing spiritually. They do not seem to FEEL God working in their lives.

• They always feel that something is missing. This is one of the reasons we have started the Equip series. The Equip series is designed to help give you the essential tools you need for living a spiritual life, to be able to grow in Christ.

• I want everyone to be able to enjoy growing in Christ, I want to see everyone feel and KNOW that God is working in their lives!

• In our time together today, we are going to examine the issue of tightening our grip on God’s Word.

• Many if not most of our faith struggles come because we do not have a tight grip n God’s Word. The Word of God is something we need to know, love and apply in our lives. I do not believe many of us understand just how important it is for us to know God’s Word.

• As we examine the concept of holding strong during the storms of life last week, we need to know that have a good grip on God’s word and allowing God’s word to have a tight grip on you will help you to be able to achieve the message from last week.

• We will be in the Old Testament book of Joshua today.

• SET UP- Moses died, Joshua getting ready to take folks into the Promised Land. God tells Joshua it is time to man up and get ready to lead the people.

• SLIDE #2

• Joshua 1:6-7(ESV) 6Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 7Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success£ wherever you go.

• The Israelites were no easy group to deal with. In verse 17 after Joshua told the people to prepare to go, they told him as we obeyed Moses we will obey you. OH BOY! Encouragement?? Of course they did say they would execute whoever disobeyed Joshua.

• Joshua is going to have a BIG job ahead of Him. God is giving Joshua insight as to how he will be able to accomplish the job in verse 8.

• Let us look at verse 8 together.

• SLIDE #3

• Joshua 1:8(ESV) 8This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.

• SLIDE 4

SERMON

In order to tighten our grip on God’s Word we need to:

I. Allow God’s Word to become the central part of what we are.

• We are going to break verse eight into four phrases so that we can get an in depth look at what God was telling Joshua, and what He is still telling us today.

• The first phrase of verse is is…

• SLIDE #5

• This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth…

• This statement was a command given from God to Joshua who in turn was to share it with the people.

• This statement simply means that the Book of the Law is to be constantly in our mouth, not only when we are preaching it to others, but also when we study it intelligently for ourselves.

• In order for this to happen, we need to allow God’s word to become the central part of what we are.

• We need to allow God’s word to transform us.

• I know we talk a lot about Romans 12:2.

• SLIDE #6

• Romans 12:1-2(ESV) 1I appeal to you therefore, brothers,£ by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.£ 2Do not be conformed to this world,£ but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.£

• How are we to have that renewed mind? What are we to use to “retrain” our minds, our patterns of life and thought?

• This comes down to what we feed our minds. We cannot get a grip on what we do not put into or minds.

• Have you noticed that what you have in your mouth (the words) come from what is in your mind?