Rossville Christian Church
Sunday, March 7
- Awakening
- Blessed Assurance
- Intro:What is this? Have a few example for someone to guess about:Now we know these things have confidence in this knowledge because we have proven it to be true. Too often in our faith, we do not test to see if it is true, we do not test to see if God’s promises are true. Now, don’t get me wrong there is a right and wrong way to test the Lord, but when we are testing to remove doubt from our lives I contest that He is faithful to deliver, as he was at the Cross and as the writer of Hebrews tells us in Heb 11:1-3:
Hebrews 11:1–3 NASB95 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.PrayFaith is such an ambiguous thing, even to the Christian. We believe most times faith to be blind, well you just have to believe, but doesn’t Hebrews kinda put that to rest? Sure we may not know everything and our lives are a quest to mature our faith, but our faith was never to be blind. Isn’t our faith build on the fact that Jesus Christ died on a cross, even history doesn’t argue that. Isn’t then our faith build upon His faithfulness? I know that before I accepted Christ, I came to answer the doubts of my heart with Truth and reason that my faith would be on the solid foundation of rock and not the shifting sands of blindness. No! To have faith is to have know, to have confidence and to eliminate doubt. But without faith one must be careful as we see in Matt 11.I. A Great WarningMatthew 11:20–24 NIV Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”A. For Every Encouragement a Warning1. Jesus often warns of the firesa. Hell is a real thingb. There is an eternal punishment for those who choose itMatthew 13:41–43 NIV The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.2. We must have a mind for tomorrow but live for todaya. Remember all we do has eternal consequenceb. Our faith now determines our destination lateri. He says woe to youii. He warns that we have seen, turn to faith and beliefiii. Turn away from evil and destructionB. Faith Can Save or Destroy1. To have is to livea. Faith brings lifeb. Unbelief brings death2. To lack is to be destroyeda. You see and know the Truth, stand by itb. To see the Truth and turn away is deathi. Sodom would be here if they had knownJohn 20:27–29 NIV Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”C. Don’t Turn from Truth1. If you are hear todaya. Hearing the Truthb. Seeing the Truth2. Don’t walk from thatMatthew 10:19–22 NIV But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.a. He could talk but had no faithb. Thought he could work his way inc. Have confidence in itProverbs 14:26 NASB95 In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, And his children will have refuge.II. Have Faith and LiveA. The leperMatthew 8:2–4 NIV A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”1. No doubta. Sure of what he knewb. Understood because of what he knewProverbs 11:9 NASB95 With his mouth the godless man destroys his neighbor, But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.c. To know means that there is no doubt2. If you are willinga. Knew Jesus had the choiceb. Did not demand, but honored God’s will3. Second part of faitha. Doingb. Turning your devotion to GodTold there is million bucks at the bankB. The OfficialMatthew 9:18–19 NIV While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples.Matthew 9:23–25 NIV When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up.1. Again no doubt2. Others might doubta. They laughed at JesusProverbs 14:6 NIV The mocker seeks wisdom and finds none, but knowledge comes easily to the discerning.b. He had them removedi. God doesn’t put up with mockery3. Faith is a powerful weapona. against unbeliefb. Against despairC. Faith is not Blind1. Born of experiencea. First Jesus on the Crossi. seeing his faithfulnessb. Then in the resurrectioni. We have bold examples to believe inc. Take the woman who touched his hemMatthew 9:20–22 NIV Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.” Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment.i. Had seen it was trueii. But we don’t have to be ashamed in our faithiii. Let your faith be courageousc. In my own lifeFaith to heal a marriage and turn depression into hope2. Allow Faith to Builda. No Miraclesb. Don’t let God be smallc. It will grow your experience and your faithIII. Be Diligent in FaithA. The CenturionMatthew 8:5–13 NIV When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?” The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment.1. Practice ita. Prayer, reading, giving or servingb. Sharing it with othersi. Last time you brought Christ to someoneii. Part of someone’s coming to ChristB. Don’t be Surprised1. When other see your faith and believeMatthew 5:16 NIV In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.a. Practice with couragei. be the Super Hero of faith/my favorite is Supermanb. Practice with zeal2. Watch What God can doa. Seen a sinner set freei. Men freed of porn addiction, woman freed of abusive relationshipsb. Seen a person healedi. People were praying and saying goodbyes but He lived onc. Watched the blind, seei. Young man who didn’t believe adamantly sent me a letter later onConclusion:What faith do you want to have today? Are you willing to be courageous in faith? Are you willing to step out in zeal because you KNOW your faith is real? I challenge you to accept these things, to go home and write down all the things God has done for you in life and rest that He has been faithful and that your faith is not blind. If you believe God hasn’t done anything for you, I would love to have that conversation with you. For He has done infinitely more that we can possibly imagine, for starters, he brought you hear today to hear this message of faith and of salvation, let that blow your mind! Hebrews 11:1–3NIV2011
Matthew 11:20–24NIV2011
Matthew 13:41–43NIV2011
John 20:27–29NIV2011
Matthew 10:19–22NIV2011
Proverbs 14:26NIV2011
Matthew 8:2–4NIV2011
Proverbs 11:9NIV2011
Matthew 9:18–19NIV2011
Matthew 9:23–25NIV2011
Proverbs 14:6NIV2011
Matthew 9:20–22NIV2011
Matthew 8:5–13NIV2011
Matthew 5:16NIV2011
- Heart Abandoned
- Holy Holy Holy (Nicaea)
Matthew 28:19–20NLT