A CHOSEN GENERATION #1: WORD WARRIORS
OPENING TEXT:
“1 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. 4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, "Behold, I lay in Zion A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame." 7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, "The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone," 8 and "A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense." They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. 9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:1-9).
• You are a chosen generation! What does it mean to be chosen by God?
• ILLUSTRATION: Do you remember on the playground when two team captains would choose teams? Were you one of the captains, or were you one of the ones picked last? I was often picked last. But God has chosen YOU – and He picked you FIRST! You are chosen by God!
• God has called us to the kingdom for such a time as this! We are going to look at this Scripture for the next 3 weeks. This week, we are going to focus on the first three verses.
• “1 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.”
• This morning I want to talk to you about the Word of God – and how He wants us to become Word Warriors!
TEXT: “How sweet are Your words to my taste, Sweeter than honey to my mouth.” (Psalm 119:103).
“Therefore I love Your commandments More than gold, yes, than fine gold.” (Psalm 119:127).
STORY: The new pastor was asked to teach a boys’ Sunday school class in the absence of the regular teacher. He decided to see what they knew, so he asked who knocked down the walls of Jericho. All the boys denied having done it, and the preacher was appalled by their ignorance. At the next elders’ meeting he told about the experience. "Not one of them knows who knocked down the walls of Jericho," he lamented. The group was silent until finally one seasoned veteran spoke up. "Preacher, this appears to be bothering you a lot. But I’ve known all those boys since they were born and they’re good boys. If they said they didn’t know, I believe them. Let’s just take some money out of the maintenance fund, fix the walls, and let it go at that."
BIBLE STORY: Let’s look at someone who was radically changed by the Word:
• Josiah was an 8 year old boy whose grandpa Manasseh was the most wicked King in Judah; who led the nation into idolatry and even sacrificed children.
• He was a boy whose dad Amon became king when Josiah was 6, but Amon was so wicked he was assassinated two years later by his own servants.
• Josiah was raised in hell and didn’t have good examples in his life, but he didn’t have a victim mentality, and refused to become just like his biological dad.
“Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem… And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in all the ways of his father David… (notice that David wasn’t his biological dad – David was his great, great, great, great grandfather, and Josiah chose him for a role-model). Now it came to pass, in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan the scribe, to the house of the Lord.” (2 Kings 22:1-3a).
- paraphrase v. 4-7: Josiah told Shaphan to help rebuild the house of the Lord.
“Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, "I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord." And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. So Shaphan the scribe went to the king, bringing the king word, saying, "Your servants have gathered the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of those who do the work, who oversee the house of the Lord." Then Shaphan the scribe showed the king, saying, "Hilkiah the priest has given me a book." And Shaphan read it before the king.” (2 Kings 22:8-10).
- when Josiah got a hold of the Word of God, it changed Josiah’s life!
- QUOTE: “One Word from God can change YOUR life forever!”
- You don’t have to be just like your dad, or be bound by anything in your past – you can break free!
8 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD READ THE BIBLE:
1. You will be blessed! “Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are the undefiled who walk (order their conduct and conversation) in the law of the Lord.” (Psalm 119:1, Amplified).
Quote Psalm 1 & Joshua 1:8.
2. God’s Word will make you pure! “How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word… Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” (Psalm 119:9,11).
God’s Word gives us power to resist temptation. That’s how Jesus defeated the devil’s temptations – by quoting the Word!
3. You will see amazing and miraculous things! “Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from Your law.” (Psalm 119:18).
The Bible is full of miracles, but remember Hebrews 13:8 – “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever” and He still does miracles today!”
4. God’s Word will revive you. “My soul clings to the dust; revive me according to Your word” (Psalm 119:25).
You want revival? It will never happen apart from God’s Word getting into your heart!
5. God’s Word reveals His love to us. “The earth, O Lord, is full of your mercy and lovingkindness; teach me your statutes.” (Psalm 119:64).
God’s Word reveals His LOVE to us.
6. God’s Word reveals His faithfulness. “Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven. Your faithfulness endures to all generations; You established the earth, and it abides.” (Psalm 119:89-90).
The more we know God’s Word, the more we know and trust His faithfulness.
7. God’s Word gives wisdom and direction. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (Psalm 119:104-105).
God’s Word shows us the path for living life on Planet Earth.
8. God’s Word will give you great peace. “Great peace have they who love your law, nothing shall offend them or make them stumble.” (Psalm 119:165).
CLOSING CHALLENGE:
“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9).
• God wants us to be Word Warriors so we can proclaim His praises!
• We are a chosen generation – He has called us out of darkness, into His light!
• Now He wants us – as individuals, and as a church – to be the light of the world, a city set on a hill!
• Jesus is calling all of us to go into our world – our circle of influence – and share the Good News about God’s love (Matthew 28:19).
Chris Jordan is the lead pastor of Beausejour Community Church in Beausejour, Manitoba, Canada.
For more sermon outlines, and online audio sermons, go to www.beausejourchurch.ca.
