Knowing God more initmately

Today’s readings are 1 Chronicles 28:1-29:30, Romans5:6-21, Psalm 15:1-5, and Proverbs 19:18-19

1 Chronicles 28:9

⁹ “And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.

Today I would like to talk briefly about learning to know God intimately.  What does that look like?  For me knowing God intimately is ongoing.  Daily seeking him and learning what he wants from me and for me.  Just like my relationship with my husband.  I know what he wants and expects of me just like he knows I want and expect form him.  Umm most of the time.  

Here are some simple ways to learn to know God intimately.

1. Seek him early in the morning when it is quiet. Get alone with God.

2. Worship him.  Tell him how much you love him.

3. Ask him to direct you.  Let him lead you.

4. Serve him.

5. Give him your whole heart.

This list is not exhaustive but just a few practical ways to start to get to know God more intimately.

Kelly Schlotter

NEVER DISAPPOINTED

Today’s Bible reading are 1 Chronicles 26:12-27:34, Romans 4:13-5:5, Psalm 14:1-7, & Proverbs 19:17

Romans 5:3-5

³ We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. ⁴ And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. ⁵ And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

God is not going to disappoint you! That is the word for today. He has made many promises to you & He is going to come through on each of them. Knowing this is what keeps our hope strong.

2 things that I want to remind you about God:

1.      God is faithful.

This means that God can be trusted. He does exactly what He says He is going to do.

1.      If He says He is going to heal your body, then count on it.

2.      If He says He is going to revive our country, then bank on it.

3.      If He says He is going to prosper you, the get ready.

4.      If says He is going to save your family, rest in that Word.

       2. God can not lie.

This is something that is hard for us to even comprehend. We just struggle with the idea that it is impossible for God to lie, BUT IT IS!

1.      He can’t turn back on His Word.

2.      He can’t ignore what He has said.

3.      He can’t go back on His promise.

4.      He never changes.           

These 2 things will help your hope stay alive. Hope in the Lord is the sure way to never being disappointed.

Pastor Richard Schlotter

WELL EQUIPPED & CAPABLE

Today’s Bible readings are 1 Chronicles 24:1-26:11, Romans 4:1-12, Psalm 13:1-6, & Proverbs 19:15-16

1 Chronicles 26:6-9

⁶ Obed-edom’s son Shemaiah had sons with great ability who earned positions of great authority in the clan. ⁷ Their names were Othni, Rephael, Obed, and Elzabad. Their relatives, Elihu and Semakiah, were also very capable men.

⁸ All of these descendants of Obed-edom, including their sons and grandsons—sixty-two of them in all—were very capable men, well qualified for their work.

⁹ Meshelemiah’s eighteen sons and relatives were also very capable men.

It is interesting to me how many people struggle with a poor self-image of who they are in Christ. As a pastor, I often hear people talk about how they can’t do certain things. They say things like:

1.     I’m not smart enough.

2.     I have no real talents.

3.     I’m not able to do ministry.

4.     I couldn’t ever share my faith.

5.     I am too afraid to pray for people.

6.     I don’t understand the Bible when I read it.

7.     I don’t have anything to offer God.

These are all the things that people have wrestled with from the moment the fall occurred. I believe that is the main reason why God stresses in this text that these men where well equipped & capable to fulfill the task in front of them.

I want to say something that I hope you will accept:  “God never calls you to do something that He fails to equip you to do.” The fact that God has called you to do it means that you can! God doesn’t ever send us on “mission impossible” tasks until He empowers us with everything we need to succeed.

Think about it, why would God set you up for failure? It would only make Him look bad & incompetent as a leader. That is not the case. He sets you up to succeed in things that you would never have been able to do BEFORE YOU MET HIM!  This is what causes Him to receive glory. It also makes you shine the light of Jesus.

Here are 5 things that you MUST believe that God has equipped you to do:

1.     You can reach the lost of your generation for Christ.

2.     You can lay hands & the sick & see them recover.

3.     You can do the works of Jesus.

4.     You can pray & be heard in heaven.

5.     You can speak to mountains & they must move.

Next time that you are being tempted to think that you can’t do any of the  above—REBUKE THAT WAY OF THINKING IN JESUS NAME & DO IT ANY WAY!!!  You are equipped & capable to do all these & MANY MORE!!!

Philippians 4:13

¹³ For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.

Pastor Richard Schlotter

YOUR NEW STANDING

Today’s Bible readings are 1 Chronicles 22:1-23:32, Romans 3:9-31, Psalm 12:1-8, & Proverbs 19:13-14

 

Romans 3:21-26

²¹ But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. ²² We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

²³ For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. ²⁴ Yet God freely and graciously declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. ²⁵ For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, ²⁶ for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.

It is said that the book of Romans is the book that nearly every Christian doctrine is found. It is such an in depth book for us to learn & meditate on. Today, we will look at the doctrine that is found in this text above.

God has saved us through His Son, Jesus. It has always been His plan since the fall in the garden. At just the right time, God sent His Son to do the impossible—FREE US FRON SIN!

There was a time when the only way that we could have right standing with God was to obey the Law to a T. The only problem was that it was impossible to do! The burden of trying to keep the Law was such a heavy weight that it would crush people. Yet, people desired to have right standing with God so they worked themselves to weariness trying to please God by the actions.

No matter how well one did, at the end of the day they were still trapped by the weight of sin. What a hopeless situation.

Then God did the most amazing thing, He sent His Son to pay the penalty for sin once & for all. Jesus died & shed His perfect blood so that we could have perfect fellowship with Him & our new Father. His blood takes away our sin consciousness & gives us a new righteousness consciousness. We are no longer obsessive about sin. We can now focus of righteousness! The weight is lifted forever!

Do your best to remind yourself that you are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. When you begin to remember your past start to think & meditate on your present state as a redeemed, blood-washed , born again, CHILD OF GOD!!! God had a plan for us from the beginning & Jesus made it happen. You are not just an ordinary person. You are a child of GOD!!!

Pastor Richard Schlotter