November 18, 2018
Evening Service

This morning through the message I threw a whole lot at you.  Tonight I wanted to go back and touch on my main 4 points and reinforce what Peter was telling us.

Leadership-Leadership is influence.  God has placed people around each of us that we are uniquely equipped to influence (or lead).  Peter encouraged us to lead out of eagerness and willingness not out of a sense of obligation or duty.  Leadership is about we have to give not about what we may gain from our investment in others.  He instructed us to lead by example being careful to being walking the talk.  I am going to read what Paul said to his flock from the Ephesian church as he was going to be imprisoned in Jerusalem knowing he would never see them again.  He touches on many of these leadership principles.

Acts 20:18-38

Humility-Peter called us to “humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.”  (I Peter 5:6)  Jesus said this in Matthew 23:

  Matthew 23:11 But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.

·        To become great we must humble ourselves as a servant.  James touched on this point as well in chapter 4 of his letter.

 

James 4:7-10 Therefore submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  (8)  Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners; and purify your hearts, double-minded ones.  (9)  Be afflicted, and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to heaviness.  (10)  Be humbled before the Lord, and He will lift you up.

·        Submission to God is the beginning of our humility.  James still calls us to follow through with that commitment and resist the devil, draw near to God, cleanse and purify our hearts, turn your laughter into serious sobriety and summarizes it all by commanding us to become humbled before God.

 

God loves us- Peter instructed us to “cast all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you.”  The words from the song come to me; “I must tell Jesus, I must tell Jesus I cannot bear these burdens alone.”  We all should be compelled now to unload all of our cares, concerns, worries and anxieties into the hands of our Savior.  Don’t carry your burdens alone; let Him carry them for you.

·        God’s love for us should be one of the foundations we stand upon in our journey of following Jesus.  These scriptures all should be very familiar to you and dear to your heart.

 

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

 

John 14:23  Jesus answered and said to him, If a man loves Me, he will keep My Word. And My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.

 

John 15:12-13  This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.  (13)  No one has greater love than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

 

Romans 5:8  But God commends His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.

 

1 John 4:7-11  Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves has been born of God, and knows God.  (8)  The one who does not love has not known God. For God is love.  (9)  In this the love of God was revealed in us, because God sent His only begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him.  (10)  In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation concerning our sins.  (11)  Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

 

Be ready for attack- Peter warns us to be aware of the enemy, who “walks about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.”  Make no mistake but know that Satan is lurking in the shadows and looking for an opportunity to attack you.  Don’t let down your guard.  I mentioned this morning that when we feel alone, helpless, and cut off from other believers we are extremely vulnerable to his attack.  Don’t allow yourselves to get to that point.  God cares for you, seek Him and He will be found.  You have a church family that loves you and will be there if your need them, but you have to ask.

·        Paul told the Ephesian church to be warriors because we are at war.

 

Ephesians 6:10-18 Finally, my brothers, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.  (11)  Put on the whole armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  (12)  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the world's rulers, of the darkness of this age, against spiritual wickedness in high places.  (13)  Therefore take to yourselves the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  (14)  Therefore stand, having your loins girded about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness  (15)  and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.  (16)  Above all, take the shield of faith, with which you shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.  (17)  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, (18)  praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching to this very thing with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.

·        We need to always stay on guard and be able to realize when we are vulnerable and ask for help.  We are better together.

 

I hope this brings everything a little more into focus for us.  Pursue opportunities to invest in others and lead them.  Humble yourselves and serve God and others with that attitude.   God loves you and has given you the greatest gift ever given.  Don’t ever doubt that because Jesus has the scares to prove His love.  Be sober and vigilant because we are at war.  Watch for your enemy’s attack in your life as well as look out for your brother.

 

Heavenly Father guide us to a deeper and richer relationship with You.