Sermon-on-a-Stick

(Sunday's notes, if you trust my note taking. From Dr. Chris at FBC Ruston...)


GET HERE AND STAY HERE
Proverbs 3:5-6

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."

1. Get To The Fundamental Place, (the place of leaning completely on Jesus and trusting completely in Jesus)
* We all lean into SOMEthing: intellect, talent, money, education. Eventually, every one of those things will fail us.
* It is impossible to please God without trusting in him totally
* A lot of life won't make sense. (the death of an infant, large-scale disasters, etc.)
* We don't HAVE to figure EVERYthing out

2. Live Intimately With Jesus
* Acknowledge: to understand and know intimately

3. He Will Take Care of You
* "He will make your paths straight..." your LIFE straight
* God might not tell us how 'it will turn out,' but he has promised to take care of me.

* Rest in God's faithfullness and goodness
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POWERFUL THEOLOGY
Titus 3:3-8

"3At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone."

* (One of the greatest passages about saving grace and what God has done on humanity's behalf.)

* Read all you can about God's work on behalf of man; we can never fully understand or appreciate his saving grace.

1. It Changes People (v. 3-4)
* Patience with others: Don't forget what you were before Christ saved you.

2. It's A Miracle of God (v. 4-5)
* Saved by kindness, love, mercy.

3. It Implants God In Us (v. 6)
* 1 Cornithians 6:19 "your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit." God lives in me.

4. It Gives us Eternal Hope (v. 7)
* Hope in the Greek is a stronger word than 'hope' as we know it in English. In the Greek, it means 'assurance,' a certainty...

5. It Will Cause Us To Be Good 'Doers' (v. 8)
* The world needs encouragers, not critics
* Can I say, "Because of what God has done for me, I'm going to do what's beneficial, profitable and excellent for my family, church, community and world"?, OR, Is it still all about me?
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