Embracing God's Love: Readiness and Stewardship in Faith
Devotional
Sermon Summary
Sermon Clips
Heavenly Father, we thank you for the gift of this day just as snow covers and makes everything seem new. We thank you for your Holy Spirit that covers us and fills us. Giving us strength and courage, light and love, wisdom, comfort. Reminding us that we are yours, sons and daughters adopted through faith in Christ. That nothing can separate us from your love, not even the coldness of a world. Your love can penetrate deep, reminding us that we are yours today and forever. Father, we pray that your Holy Spirit would come and work through this service, and fill us afresh. [00:11:06] (48 seconds)
Please join with me as we confess our sins together. Merciful God, you call us to the fullness of life, but we confess our shortcomings. We have wandered from your ways and wasted your gifts. We have ignored your grace at work among us. And focused on loss and complaints. We have been suspicious of the motives of others, too quick to judge, and too slow to forgive. Give us the courage to see clearly who and what we are. forgiveness, cleanse us from all our faults and failings, and inspire us to walk a new way. Amen. [00:11:59] (48 seconds)
I love praying the prayer of confession. It's like for me going into a shower after a long workout, and you can feel the refreshment of God's grace. And that's the promise that if we are faithful, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us and to make us right again. And so may he do that for you. May his Holy Spirit wash over you, cleansing you, and then within your soul, helping you to walk down the right path. Amen. [00:12:48] (33 seconds)
There was no execution. There's none of that happened, but what happened, and he was not happy, but Jesus was saying, listen, he told the story, he said, listen, you want to be like a wise master and make sure that not your room, I don't think he was really talking about your room, but he was talking about like inside our hearts, like that we're to kind of make sure that we love people, that we forgive people, that we're kind to people, because sometimes, because he wants, when he comes back, he wants to be able to give us a good reward, and so he's saying that what we do now matters and that we try and keep things good, so when he comes back, everything's going to be right. [00:17:49] (49 seconds)
And yet, through it all, the scripture says that God did not give up, that God pursued us. God was looking for a way to bring us back into partnership, looking for a way so that things could be made very good again. But it was just God's will helped him. He showed up in a man named John. find ourselves back in the garden. Sin could be dealt with. Our death could be swallowed up. Our hearts could be made good. And yet, how could this ever be? [00:22:30] (33 seconds)
In fact, Jesus would raise from the dead as a mark that the deal had been ratified, that our sin debt had been covered, and Jesus began to display this new body, this body. This body that could walk through walls, this body that could eat fish. He began to show us that he is the new Adam, the new creation, the first Adam, the firstborn, and that all that would put their faith in him could be saved. [00:27:26] (34 seconds)
And the ones that did put their trust in Jesus, this king of kings, the one who would have the forever throne, would be forgiven and be part of their family. And as a sign of that, they're to be baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. They're to get Jesus' jersey upon them and part of Jesus' team. And as they joined the family, then Jesus' team was to teach them to obey all that Jesus commanded, the principles of this new kingdom, forgiveness, love, compassion, overcoming evil with good. [00:28:53] (34 seconds)
And Jesus is trying to say that while we're waiting, that we have to make sure that we're full of his spirit, that the Holy Spirit is our oil. And the way... He gives us a clue on how to be full of the Holy Spirit. He says that when we... When we know him, we will be full of his spirit. And you know that to be true, don't you? That when you know Jesus, when you come to your quiet place, or maybe even your very dark place, the places where you come and you really need Jesus in your life, and you long for him, and there's something that happens. His very presence comes. [00:35:39] (47 seconds)
So he says, while you're waiting, be a good steward. Be wise, put all of the assignments that you have, but also be in relationship with me. Fill your heart up with me, so full of me and my love for you that you're light in a world that's dark and you're salt in a world that's decaying. Third thing he says as we wait for his return is to be about his agenda. He shares a story about some men, three servants, and he's going away, this very wealthy man's going away, and he says, okay, you three guys, I got a little job for you. [00:37:08] (51 seconds)
And he's saying, I have an agenda for you. And if you can just be about my agenda, things will go well for you while you're waiting. So, that's what Jesus is wanting his church to do while we're waiting for his return. He's wanting us to be like the one who's stewarding well. He's wise and he's looking over all the responsibilities he has. So when the Lord comes back, he'll be pleased. He's full of, he knows the Lord, that we know the Lord. That we're having time with him. Real time. Intimate time. Like a good friend. [00:41:00] (54 seconds)
And that there's an agenda. An agenda, his agenda. It may not be our agenda, but it's his. He wants us to be about advancing his kingdom while we're on earth. This church would function and thrive as best as we can. As we proclaim the gospel. As we baptize and as we help people grow. We're waiting. We're waiting for him to come back. And one day he will come back. [00:42:25] (36 seconds)
And so he's warning us, because there's going to be a day when we stand before him, and I want to say, I want your reward to be great. I want you to get the very best condo, so when I visit you, I can say, whoa, I wish I was, Bev knows everyone in the whole of Caledonia. And I know, Bev, your reward is going to be just tremendous. You love people. You care for people. You do it when no one's looking. You're always kind. [00:46:25] (28 seconds)
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Please join with me as we confess our sins together. Merciful God, you call us to the fullness of life, but we confess our shortcomings. We have wandered from your ways and wasted your gifts. We have ignored your grace at work among us. And focused on loss and complaints. We have been suspicious of the motives of others, too quick to judge, and too slow to forgive. Give us the courage to see clearly who and what we are. forgiveness, cleanse us from all our faults and failings, and inspire us to walk a new way. Amen. [00:11:59] (48 seconds)
I love praying the prayer of confession. It's like for me going into a shower after a long workout, and you can feel the refreshment of God's grace. And that's the promise that if we are faithful, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us and to make us right again. And so may he do that for you. May his Holy Spirit wash over you, cleansing you, and then within your soul, helping you to walk down the right path. Amen. [00:12:48] (33 seconds)
There was no execution. There's none of that happened, but what happened, and he was not happy, but Jesus was saying, listen, he told the story, he said, listen, you want to be like a wise master and make sure that not your room, I don't think he was really talking about your room, but he was talking about like inside our hearts, like that we're to kind of make sure that we love people, that we forgive people, that we're kind to people, because sometimes, because he wants, when he comes back, he wants to be able to give us a good reward, and so he's saying that what we do now matters and that we try and keep things good, so when he comes back, everything's going to be right. [00:17:49] (49 seconds)
And yet, through it all, the scripture says that God did not give up, that God pursued us. God was looking for a way to bring us back into partnership, looking for a way so that things could be made very good again. But it was just God's will helped him. He showed up in a man named John. find ourselves back in the garden. Sin could be dealt with. Our death could be swallowed up. Our hearts could be made good. And yet, how could this ever be? [00:22:30] (33 seconds)
In fact, Jesus would raise from the dead as a mark that the deal had been ratified, that our sin debt had been covered, and Jesus began to display this new body, this body. This body that could walk through walls, this body that could eat fish. He began to show us that he is the new Adam, the new creation, the first Adam, the firstborn, and that all that would put their faith in him could be saved. [00:27:26] (34 seconds)
And the ones that did put their trust in Jesus, this king of kings, the one who would have the forever throne, would be forgiven and be part of their family. And as a sign of that, they're to be baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. They're to get Jesus' jersey upon them and part of Jesus' team. And as they joined the family, then Jesus' team was to teach them to obey all that Jesus commanded, the principles of this new kingdom, forgiveness, love, compassion, overcoming evil with good. [00:28:53] (34 seconds)
And Jesus is trying to say that while we're waiting, that we have to make sure that we're full of his spirit, that the Holy Spirit is our oil. And the way... He gives us a clue on how to be full of the Holy Spirit. He says that when we... When we know him, we will be full of his spirit. And you know that to be true, don't you? That when you know Jesus, when you come to your quiet place, or maybe even your very dark place, the places where you come and you really need Jesus in your life, and you long for him, and there's something that happens. His very presence comes. [00:35:39] (47 seconds)
So he says, while you're waiting, be a good steward. Be wise, put all of the assignments that you have, but also be in relationship with me. Fill your heart up with me, so full of me and my love for you that you're light in a world that's dark and you're salt in a world that's decaying. Third thing he says as we wait for his return is to be about his agenda. He shares a story about some men, three servants, and he's going away, this very wealthy man's going away, and he says, okay, you three guys, I got a little job for you. [00:37:08] (51 seconds)
And he's saying, I have an agenda for you. And if you can just be about my agenda, things will go well for you while you're waiting. So, that's what Jesus is wanting his church to do while we're waiting for his return. He's wanting us to be like the one who's stewarding well. He's wise and he's looking over all the responsibilities he has. So when the Lord comes back, he'll be pleased. He's full of, he knows the Lord, that we know the Lord. That we're having time with him. Real time. Intimate time. Like a good friend. [00:41:00] (54 seconds)
And that there's an agenda. An agenda, his agenda. It may not be our agenda, but it's his. He wants us to be about advancing his kingdom while we're on earth. This church would function and thrive as best as we can. As we proclaim the gospel. As we baptize and as we help people grow. We're waiting. We're waiting for him to come back. And one day he will come back. [00:42:25] (36 seconds)
And so he's warning us, because there's going to be a day when we stand before him, and I want to say, I want your reward to be great. I want you to get the very best condo, so when I visit you, I can say, whoa, I wish I was, Bev knows everyone in the whole of Caledonia. And I know, Bev, your reward is going to be just tremendous. You love people. You care for people. You do it when no one's looking. You're always kind. [00:46:25] (28 seconds)
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