In HIS Steps
Living God’s Way – part 9
1 Peter 5:1-14
1To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ’s sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers--not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; 3not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away. 5Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 6Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 7Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 8Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. 10And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. 12With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. 13She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark. 14Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.
Those are the final words – that Peter wrote in this letter to those beaten up & beaten down believers who lived in the first century. Believers who were undergoing tremendous hardships at the hands of Nero and the Roman empire. Final words in a letter written to both encourage them and empower them to live God’s way.
Final words in a letter where Peter has given them some incredible teachings;
• Remember who you are… you are God’s people
• Choose to be holy; choose to be different then the world
• Think right about who you; look into the divine mirror that says… you are acceptable, valuable, forgivable..lovable
• Somebody is watching… (temptation, authority, marriage, suffering)
• He gave them 7 attitudes that if they put into their lives would diffuse conflict in all of their relationships
• He told them - Build your hope on brick, on the powerful promises of God, on Christ
• He also told them, Arm yourselves with the attitude of Christ; arm yourselves with selflessness
• And in that passage we looked at last week – he told them about the beautiful letdown (you don’t belong here… allow your letdowns to draw closer to God… allow them to take you to the place where His presence is enough, is more than enough.
AS ALWAYS – this journey into God’s word during the last 9 weeks, has been another unbelievable adventure for me. I hate to see it end.
AND – to be honest I really struggled with these last 14 verses all of Monday & Tuesday. I just could not get a handle on them. NOW – I saw all kinds of good stuff - BUT I saw no real connection. THEN – at about 8 pm Tuesday night. I kind of changed the direction of my thoughts and started trying to put myself in Peter’s place. I started;
Asking myself how would Peter want to end this awesome letter…
A letter in which he has already given them so much good stuff
What final; thoughts, ideas, truths, encouragements & challenges did Peter want to leave with them as they folded up his letter… (a letter that could very well be the last words that he would ever share with them).
SO – you see these words were no mere last minute add on.
NOW – it so clear that Peter wants them (and us) to live God’s way… He’s given a lot of practical advice on how to do it… BUT – Peter knows that living God’s way is not easy; he knows that we will have all kinds of obstacles, hindrances, distraction and road blocks along the way.
SO – Peter, as he concludes this letter on living God’s way, fires off a bunch of stuff (as I like to say, ‘rapid fire’)… I MEAN – I can see both his pen and his thoughts flying.
AND UNDERSTAND - the thoughts (or better yet) the person who is inspiring these ideas is Christ. YOU SEE - Peter saw Christ up close and personal – in verse 1 of our text Peter says that he was a witness of Christ . He was there… He had front seats and even a few back stage passes to the life of Christ. LISTEN FOR – 3 years Peter literally saw (with his own eyes) the way God lived.
A LISTEN – for Peter, living God’s way meant only one thing – it meant living a life like Jesus lived. IN FACT, back in 1 Peter 2:21 Peter tells us; “you should follow in his steps.”
The title for today’s message – this concluding message in our series, “Living God’s Way,’ is “In His Steps.” AND - this morning we are going to look at 8 steps that Peter fires off – in these concluding verses, 8 steps that Jesus took as He walk this earth, 8 steps that are necessary for the church & the Christian to take if they are to live God’s way.
FRIENDS – if we really want to live God’s way, we need to;
• Step up
• Step with
• Step down
• Step away
• Step against
• Step towards
• Step together and
• Step on
Prayer…
The first point in your notes is that we need to;
Step Up
To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ’s sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care,
QUESTION – do you remember the scene that John records in the final words of his gospel. Peter and Jesus are walking together after an early morning breakfast (cooked by Jesus) on the beach. Peter no doubt still feels the sting of his denial, and he is no doubt wondering where he fits into this whole thing now.
AND – as they walk Jesus asks Peter a question 3 times… “Peter do you love me?” AND 3 times Peter tells him “yes Lord, you know, I love you” AND – Jesus responds twice with these words, “THEN – feed my sheep” and once with these words “shepherd my sheep” (the same word used here)
To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ’s sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers--not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; 3not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.
FRIENDS – Peter guided by the Holy Spirit wrote those words 2,000 years ago.. They were important then and they are just as important today. AND - let’s make those 2,000 year old Holy Spirit inspired words very personal & very practical this morning)…
IF Central is going to be able to be a church where people are really living God’s way… THEN – Central’s leaders need to step up.
LISTEN - that is exactly what Peter is saying in these 4 verses. “Leaders, elders – you need to step up!”
FRIENDS – leadership is an essential, is a vital ingredient for both the church and the Christian to move forward in living god’s way. In the introduction to his book, “Developing The Leader Within You,” John Maxwell writes;
“Everything rises and falls on leadership…Whenever I make that statement the listeners are tempted to change it to, Almost everything rises and falls on leadership. Most people have a desire to look for the exception, instead of the desire to become exceptional.
Recently I read these words in NEWSWEEK magazine from the president of Hyatt Hotels: ’If there is anything I have learned in my 27 years in the service industry, it is this: 99 percent of all employees want to do a good job. How they perform I simply a reflection of the one for whom they work.’
EVERYTHING – rises and falls on leadership. UNDERSTAND – a church will not be any MORE; spiritual, sold out, committed, radical & loving then her leaders are. THAT is why God’s church and God’s people need good leaders in order to be able to live God’s way. AND – unfortunately they don’t always have them…
NOW – if you were to spend even a little time in the old testament you would see (rather quickly) that God’s people really had a hard time living God’s way. Moses brought down from thundering Mt Sinai (engraved on stone by the finger of God) a list, commands for living God’s way. AND – god’s people did a very poor job of following them.
IN FACT – they did such a poor job, and they turned so far away from God that God allowed the Assyrians and Babylonians to destroy them, their city and God’s temple.
QUESTION - why did God’s people have such a hard time living God’s way? NOW - there were many reasons for this BUT one reason is that Israel’s shepherds did not step up. CHECKOUT – these words from Ezekiel; they describe how these leaders failed in stepping up AND how God feels about that… LEADERS – of Central listen up..
Then this message came to me from the LORD: 2"Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds, the leaders of Israel. Give them this message from the Sovereign LORD: Destruction is certain for you shepherds who feed yourselves instead of your flocks. Shouldn’t shepherds feed their sheep? 3You drink the milk, wear the wool, and butcher the best animals, but you let your flocks starve. 4You have not taken care of the weak. You have not tended the sick or bound up the broken bones. You have not gone looking for those who have wandered away and are lost. Instead, you have ruled them with force and cruelty. 5So my sheep have been scattered without a shepherd. They are easy prey for any wild animal. 6They have wandered through the mountains and hills, across the face of the earth, yet no one has gone to search for them. 7"Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 8As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, you abandoned my flock and left them to be attacked by every wild animal. Though you were my shepherds, you didn’t search for my sheep when they were lost. You took care of yourselves and left the sheep to starve. 9Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD. 10This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I now consider these shepherds my enemies, and I will hold them responsible for what has happened to my flock. I will take away their right to feed the flock, along with their right to feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths; the sheep will no longer be their prey. 11"For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search and find my sheep. 12I will be like a shepherd looking for his scattered flock. I will find my sheep and rescue them from all the places to which they were scattered on that dark and cloudy day. Ezk 34:1-12 (NLT)
NOW – those are some pretty strong words from God to the leaders of His people
• You have not taken care of the weak.
• You have not tended the sick or bound up the broken bones.
• you didn’t search for my sheep when they were lost
• You took care of yourselves and left the sheep to starve
LISTEN – God’s shepherds did such a lousy job THAT God said one day he is coming down to do it right. AND – 2,000 years ago God did come down to shepherd his people. AND – many times when Jesus looked at the people he had compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. IN FACT – in John 10 Jesus talks about how he is the good shepherd… John writes;
“He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they recognize his voice. 5They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t recognize his voice…11"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming. He will leave the sheep because they aren’t his and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock. 13The hired hand runs away because he is merely hired and has no real concern for the sheep.14"I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me,” John 10:2-5, 11-14
NOW – from what Peter said in our text and these words from Jesus let me suggest 5 things that are necessary for a leader to step up…
Lay down his life for those he leads
AND – this word for life is not physical life – Jesus is talking about a shepherd (a leader) laying down themselves (their wants, desires, needs) for their flock. That is exactly Jesus did…
Be known by those he leads
they follow him because they recognize his voice. 5They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t recognize his voice
(one of the core values at Central is… Leaders must be real, relational, and approachable)
Choose desire over duty
Peter says that we are to be a church leader NOT because we must but because we are willing, because we want to.
UNDERSTAND - duty doesn’t work to impact other people, but desire does, a willingness does. If we want to have a significant impact on people we have to change all those "shoulds" we have in our lives into "wants".
LISTEN – there are four words that never will change the church or people: "if I have to". "I’ll do it if I have to". YOU SEE - it takes desire to change the world. Can you imagine Columbus talking to the Queen of Spain who’s saying "I want you to go to the other side of the world and find this new country or a way to China" and Columbus say, "I’ll go, if I have to". Or Neil Armstrong getting ready to step out on the moon and calls back to Mission Control, "Do I have to?" It would have never happened. Or David and Goliath. Imagine David looking at the great Goliath, fighting him and defeating him, if he had gone into it with a "if I have to" attitude. Desire is what makes the difference in life. The ability to say, "I have a willingness to do this. "If I have to" can be a very dangerous way of thinking.
Choose giving over getting
Peter says that we are not to be a church leader for what we can get out of it. UNDERSTAND - God’s kind of leader does not look at people and wonder what they can do for him.. INSTEAD – God’s leaders look at people and wonder what they can do for them.
Choose being an example over being in control..
”not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.
LISTEN – leaders do not make a lasting impact on the lives of people just by TELLING them what to do. NO – they make a lasting impact by showing them what to do.
UNDERSTAND – ‘influence’ which is what leadership really is has nothing to do with position – “I’m the boss, I’m the elder, I’m the pastor” – so you must obey me. God’s kind of leadership has nothing to do with that AND it has everything to do with example… LIKE Jesus said; a good leader walks ahead of them
LEADERS – at Central God has some questions for us;
• Are you laying you life (your self) for the people in this church
• Do the people in this church know your voice (are you real, relational and approachable)
• Is leading God’s people in this place your duty or your desire
• Are leading the people here at Central for what you can give NOT what you can get
• AND – are you an example…
FOR – the church to live God’s way – her leaders must step up…
Bill Hybels writes the following in his book, ‘Courageous Leadership,’
Ten years ago I sat in a little restaurant during my summer study break and wrote these words; The local church is the hope of the world and it’s future rests primarily in the hands of its leaders.
For the first time, I realized that from a human perspective the outcome of the redemptive drama being played out on planet earth will be determined by how well church leaders lead. Many churches are filled with sincere, talented, godly people who would love to leverage their spiritual gifts in order to impact the world for Christ. The question is this: Will the men & women who have been entrusted with leadership gifts take their gifts seriously, develop them fully, and deploy them courageously, so that the willing and gifted believers in their churches can work together to make difference in the world?
Romans 12:8 tells those of us who have the gift of leadership that we better sit up and take notice, we better lead with diligence. Why? Because the church, the bride of Christ, upon which the eternal destiny of the world depends, will flourish or falter largely on the basis of how we lead…. He goes on to say that leaders must;
Yield themselves fully to God. they must cast powerful, biblical, God honoring visions. They must build effective, loving, clearly focused teams. They must fire up Christ followers to give their absolute best for God. And they must insist with pit bull determination, that;
• The gospel be preached
• The lost be found
• The believers equipped
• The poor served
• The lonely enfold into community
• And God gets the credit for it all
Scripture tells us exactly what happens if leaders will do what God has called and gifted them to do. The forces of darkness will be pushed back. The Evil one, who has had his way in the world for far too long, will be forced to give ground. And the church will fulfill the redemptive purposes for which Christ called her into being.
AMEN…
NOW – I know that I’ve spent a lot of time on this first step, “step up”. AND – one of the reason is BECAUSE – it is so essential to the Christian and churches living God’s way.
AND – a second reason is BECAUSE- we are at a defining moment in the history of this church. AND – I am soooo NOT kidding… ( a new building, increased passion for God, new people, 40 days of purpose)…
UNDERSTAND – God is desiring to move this body forward and take her to places we have never been before… TO – a place where;
• The term Acts 2 church is not just a nice idea, BUT is a reality
• Our vision and core values are not just written with ink on pieces of paper BUT are written with passion on each heart.
AND – the bottom line is THIS – if Central is going to go there, if she going to reap the full harvest of what God not only wants to do BUT can do, Central’s needs her current leaders to step up and she needs new leaders (people who for the most part have only used their leadership skill for their kingdom and not for God’s) need to step up to the plate for God and this church.
AND LISTEN – when leaders step up great things happen in and among God’s people. Though there were many bad leaders – there were also many good leaders, who made a huge difference (Moses, David, Nehemiah, Paul, Jesus Christ)
AND – with those kind of leaders; people get delivered, giants fall, walls get rebuilt, the gospel gets preached and men & women are reconciled to God.
The NEXT point in your outline is step with…
Step With
Peter writes;
“And you who are younger must follow your leaders” 1 Peter 5:5 (Msg)
NOW – I am going to me make this point short – BUT sweet. LISTEN – if we have at Central leaders who are really stepping up. Leaders who are…laying their self, choosing desire over duty, leading by example…
THEN – members of Central, you need to step with them, you need to follow their lead. You need to do what they say. Run their plays… YOU – need to trust them to lead you and to lead this church forward…
“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” 1 Cor 11:1
“Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.” Hebrews 11:7
UNDERSTAND – stepping with is a beautiful thing… AND – under stepping with is NOT a sign of weakness, of being a mindless robot, or being someone’s puppet on a string…
QUESTION – did Jesus step with? Did he follow someone elses’ lead? SURE DID! Check this out…
Nehemiah was a great leader…
The next point in your outline is that we need to;
Step Down
“All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.” 1 Peter 5:5,6
FRIENDS – if we are going to live God’s way we need to step down – we need to clothe ourselves with humility.
QUESTION – have you ever had to take a step down in life? A time when you found yourself forced to do something pretty humbling?
2,000 years ago the biggest and most amazing step down of all time took place. God the Son, the alpha & the omega, the beginning & the end, took one HUGE step down; leaving all the glories of heaven, putting on human flesh and living among us.
“Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. 6He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. 7Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! 8Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death--and the worst kind of death at that: a crucifixion. 9Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything,” (Msg)
DO YOU SEE – the full impact of these words. Jesus gave up his honor and glory, he let go of his position, he relinquished all of the riches of heaven, in order to become one of us, in order to save us from our sins. He gave it all up in order to become a human baby. Not even an adult. That would be humility enough, to give up the glory of heaven to become a man. But instead he became a helpless little infant.
Think about it: God the Son - completely at the mercy of Mary and Joseph. Unable to feed himself, unable to move about, to communicate. Unable to do anything except eat, sleep and dirty his diaper. And here’s the irony of it all. God the Son - is now dependent upon the man and woman he made, to take care of him. Those hands which had formed galaxies and set the stars in place, those hands that had spun the earth on its axis, now just waving around, unable to do anything. The mouth that had spoken the universe into existence, now just babbling and cooing. The sovereign Lord of creation, had now become the very picture of weakness – a little baby.
Not even a royal baby, not the son of a king; not a wealthy baby, not the son of money and privilege. But instead, a peasant child born to poverty and want, raised in very humble circumstances. Surrounded not by God’s holy angels and The Father but by sinful men.
AND - on the weekend when He was making a very public entrance into the city of Jerusalem, most of the Bible scholars of that day thought the Messiah would come in triumphantly as a military victor, maybe on the back of a white stallion. The Son of God instead chose to come into the city on the back of donkey. Then He died a criminal’s death. Why? Because in His death, you and I are given the opportunity to have life. Jesus put our preferences ahead of His own.
AGAIN – Peter says that we need to step down… “All of you, clothe yourselves with humility… Humble yourselves…”
CIRCLE - Humble yourselves
UNDERSTAND - humility is something you do. Humility is a way of thinking, it’s a way of acting. AND - it has nothing to do with your feelings. You say, “I don’t feel very humble.” That doesn’t matter. Feelings have nothing to do with humility. In fact, how you feel is quite immaterial. Humility is a way of acting. It is something you do. It is a way of thinking. Because of that – like love, humility is a choice. You choose to be humble. LISTEN – humility It’s not something that’s done to you. Humility is something that you choose to do yourself.
All through scripture the Bible tells us, ”Humble yourself before God.”
Being humble is something that you choose to do - AND LISTEN - that means that you cannot pray and ask God to take away your pride? WHY? BECAUSE - pride is not something God will take away from you. It’s something you’re supposed to give up. It’s a choice. YOU CHOOSE to not be; self-centered, arrogant, prideful or egotistical, AND INSTEAD you choose, to act in humble ways.
What is humility? Humility is thinking of others instead of yourself, humility is acting in their best interest instead of your own. Humility means to be other person-centered. It means to think about others and forget yourself. Therefore humility is basically, self-forgetfulness.
AND SINCE – humility is a choice – humility is something that you can work on. It’s something you can practice. It’s something that you can learn to do… LISTEN - we need to practice humility just like we practice riding a bike, driving a car, swinging a golf club or playing an instrument… AND - when you do something over and over and over, you start getting good at it. At first when you start doing it, it doesn’t seem so natural. It’s usually pretty difficult. But the more you do it, the better you get.
The Bible says that humility is something that you can practice… LET ME – suggest a few things that will help you to cloth yourself with humility…
Practice giving up your rights…
Romans 12:10; “Practice playing second fiddle.”
QUESTION – is that an easy thing for you to do? Is it easy for you to give up your rights, to give preference to another person? To let someone else go first? I thought of a couple scenarios, maybe you can relate to them.
IMAGINE - you are standing in the checkout line at Kroger’s. It’s the longest, slowest line (what’s new right?). DO you have the picture? - you’re waiting there. You’re in a hurry (what’s new?). The guy behind you is hitting you with the cart. A 3 year old is screaming about wanting a piece of candy…. The person in front of you must have a family of 22 and every coupon in the country… I mean you are just having a good old time… Then all of a sudden you hear these words over the intercom, “Lane 4 is now open, with no waiting.”
QUESTION - what are you going to do at that moment?
A - Take the Rambo approach, knock down small children and elderly women, and go right
for lane 4.
B - Take a ham, put it under your shirt and say, ‘Lady with a baby!’ & make your way to line 4
C - Employ the misdirection strategy. Point the wrong way, “Lane 4 is open!” Then make a
mad dash the right way.
Let me give you one more scenario. You’re in the parking lot at the Mall of Georgia. It’s raining, the kids are rowdy, and you see one spot open. But you are just, 1 of 3 cars going for that same spot. What do you do?
A) Hit the gas.
B) Hit the breaks.
C) Let the other guy go in front of you and then you park behind him.
It’s hard to let others go first – to give up our rights…
Leonard Bernstein, the famous orchestra conductor, was once asked what is the most difficult instrument in the orchestra to play? Do you know what he said? - He said, “Second fiddle.”
Practice learning from others
LISTEN - being open to suggestions, being able to take correction, even being open to criticism - is a major component of humility. UNDERSTAND - part of humility is teachability, being willing to listen, willing to learn, willing to grow – being willing to change our course if necessary.
QUESTION – are you open to correction? Can you learn from criticism? Are you able to learn from others? Are you teachable?
Practice admitting your wrong
NOW - this comes a little easier for some of us than it does for others. BUT - the truth of it is, all of us make mistakes. And we do so with great regularity.
AND do you know what else? I have found that I can make a mistake even in admitting I am wrong… Let me explain… YOU SEE – it’s easy for me to say, “I was wrong,” if I only have to own that for a minute and then I can go back into the attack mode. “I was wrong. But you…” or “I’m really sorry, but if only you had…” or “I was wrong but it was because of….”
When in fact what I need is to brutal humble honesty. “I was wrong. I’m sorry.”
I love how Pr 28:13 in worded in the LB, “A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful, but if he confesses and forsakes them he gets another chance.”
Prcatice Depending On God
James 4:6-7 says, “God opposes everyone who’s proud but He gives grace to everyone who is humble.” (CEV)
CIRCLE “opposes.” NOW - I can think of a lot of people I wouldn’t want to have as an opponent, opposing me. I would not want to be in a boxing ring opposed by Evander Holifield. I would not want to be on a basketball court opposed by Michael Jordan. I would not want to be opposed by Bill Gates at an auction. There’s no way I’m going to be winning that one.
But I really don’t want to be opposed by God, because there’s no way I’m going to win that battle. The Bible says that when I am prideful, God is not just mildly irritated at me. He’s in opposition to me - I’m an enemy of God any time I get full of pride. That’s how serious pride is.
Romans 6:13 says, “Give yourselves to God and surrender your whole being to Him to be used for His righteous purpose.” (GN)
CIRCLE – surrender your whole being to Him
Surrendering means, “God, I’m going with your plans for my life, not my own. God, I’ve got plans, I’ve got dreams, I’ve got goals, I’ve got ambitions, but I know that You put me on this earth for a reason, for a purpose, and God, I’m going to intentionally choose Your plan for my life instead of my own. I know You’re not going to reveal it to me all at once. It’s going to come a little bit at a time, so I’m going to take it a step at a time, but I want to go with Your plan, not mine.” That’s called being humble, surrendering your plans to God.
QUESTION - Have you done that? Have you made that decision? Have you come to the point in your life when you have said, “God, I’m not going with my plan any more. I’m going totally with Your plan for my life. I don’t know what it is, but I’m already signing my name on the check saying, ‘Yes, Lord. Whatever You want to fill in is fine with me.’ ”
AND let me tell you there are some awesome benefits that come with surrendering your plans to God…
Step Away
“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you..”
FRIENDS – to live God’s way you must step away from worry. LISTEN – you can not live God’s way and live in worry at the same time. Worry will put you in, chew you up , chew you up some more AND THEN – it will spit you out.
QUESTION – what are you worried & anxious about right now? What wakes you and keeps you up at night?
QUESTION – has worrying ever done you any good?
Did Jesus Christ ever worry? Why not? BECAUSE – He trusted God.
QUESTION – do you trust God? do you step away from worry?
“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you..”
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done…” - Phil 4:6
"So I tell you, don’t worry about everyday life--whether you have enough food, drink, and clothes. Doesn’t life consist of more than food and clothing? 26Look at the birds. They don’t need to plant or harvest or put food in barns because your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than they are. 27Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not. 28"And why worry about your clothes? Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, 29yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. 30And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won’t he more surely care for you? You have so little faith! 31"So don’t worry about having enough food or drink or clothing. 32Why be like the pagans who are so deeply concerned about these things? Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, 33and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern. 34"So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. Mt 6:25-33
Step Against
Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the Devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. 9Take a firm stand against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.
LISTEN – whether you want to believe it or not. YOU – have an enemy. A great enemy. UNDERSTAND – Peter says that your enemy is like a lion, a roaring lion looking for some victim to devour. FRIENDS – your enemy does not just want to hurt you OR cause you to have a bad day – NO your enemy wants to destroy you.
Be careful! Watch out! Don’t blow this off, don’t fool yourself into think that this enemy is no big deal. BECAUSE – if you do, one day you will wake up and find yourself caught between his powerful jaws.
QUESTION – has that ever happened to you? It happened to; Samson, David, Solomon & Peter to name a few.
YOU SEE – Peter has been there, done that AND he didn’t like it very much. SO – as he concludes this letter about living God’s way he says step against this enemy. NOTICE – that Peter says that we are not to ignore, hide or run from this enemy… INSTEAD – we are to take a firm stand against him…
QUESTION – how can you stand up against an enemy that is more powerful than you are. ANSWER – by having a greater power with you. AND – guess what? You do. “the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” – 1 John 4:4
FRIENDS – you can step against this enemy..
“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.”
QUESTION – what are these divine weapons?
AS – Peter closes out this letter; He challenges us to step against our enemy.
Step Towards
And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen
CIRCLE - called you to his eternal glory
LISTEN – as we saw last week in our message, “The Beautiful Letdown” – we don’t belong here.
LISTEN – YOU don’t belong here. YOU - are headed some place else. YOU - are headed to a far better country. YOU - are headed to your true home. YOU - are headed to heaven. YOU - are headed to a perfect world.
YOU – are headed to a world w/o and a world with… a world w/o; bitter pain and bitter doubt, a world without hurt, sorrow, death, disease, fear, failure, AND YOU – are headed to a world with – the presence of God as an every moment reality… BUT – we are not there yet… Someday but not now…
BUT UNTIL THEN – we need to step toward that future
Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. 2Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. 3For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory Col 3:1-3
“Each one of these people of faith died not yet having in hand what was promised, but still believing. How did they do it? They saw it way off in the distance, waved their greeting, and accepted the fact that they were transients in this world. 14People who live this way make it plain that they are looking for their true home. 15If they were homesick for the old country, they could have gone back any time they wanted. 16But they were after a far better country than that--heaven country. You can see why God is so proud of them, and has a City waiting for them. Hebrews 11:13-16 (msg)
IF – we want to live God’s way we need to step towards where we are going…
LIKE – I said Peter as he wraps up this letter is just firing off a bunch of stuff. BECAUSE Peter knows that to live God’s way…
• Step up
• Step with
• Step down
• Step away
• Step against
• Step towards
Step Together
With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it. 13She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark. 14Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.
CIRCLE - faithful brother, chosen together with you, one another
UNDERSTAND – we are in this thing together. This week as I studied these 14 verses I started noticing all the words that were plural… elders, flock, shepherds, young men… and almost every time you see the word ‘you’ it’s plural. I counted about 30 plural words in these 14 verses.
FRIENDS – Christianity is a life that is meant to be lived together. IN FACT – I am pretty confident that you will NEVER live God’s way IF you are trying to do it on your own. We were created by God to live in community. We all need a place where we can love and be loved… know and be known..
QUESTION – do you want to live God’s way? THEN – you need to step together.
AND LISTEN – you have an unbelievable opportunity to do just that in just 2 weeks. IN – 2 weeks we kick of our 40 days of purpose… AND – the heart of this campaign is our small groups.
Step On
“I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it.”
