Living Righteously: The Power of Prayer and Community
Summary
The sermon begins with the pastor emphasizing the importance of living righteously and spreading the gospel as a means to guard against spiritual lukewarmness. The pastor encourages the congregation to be ready to share their testimony and live as examples of the transformation that Jesus has brought into their lives. The pastor also highlights the importance of understanding salvation as not just being saved, but living with the awareness of eternal life and the eternal consequences of our actions.
The pastor then transitions to the importance of creating an atmosphere of praise and worship, and the role of spiritual warfare in the life of believers. The congregation is encouraged to stir themselves up by prophesying, confessing, and proclaiming, and to prioritize God above all else. The pastor also emphasizes the importance of being a good steward of one's money and aligning financial decisions with one's heart's intentions.
The sermon then focuses on the importance of putting on the armor of God as described in Ephesians, and living a righteous life as a powerful weapon against the enemy. The pastor warns against the devil's tactics of using parts of the word of God taken out of context and encourages the congregation to live righteously, knowing that they are made righteous through the blood of Jesus Christ.
The pastor also emphasizes the importance of prayer in bringing revival into one's life and the role of prayer in stirring oneself up. The congregation is encouraged to surrender to God through prayer, allowing themselves to become vessels that God can work through. The pastor also highlights the importance of surrounding oneself with sharp and influential people who can stir them up and correct them when necessary.
The sermon concludes with the pastor emphasizing the importance of giving God our time through prayer and being connected to the body of Christ. The pastor warns against getting too busy with life's troubles and losing the favor of the Lord. The congregation is encouraged to prioritize prayer by sacrificing time spent on other activities. The pastor also emphasizes the importance of being connected to the body of Christ and having the right companions to stir and renew our faith.
Key Takeaways:
- Living righteously and spreading the gospel are not just tasks to be done, but are beneficial to the individual. By sharing the gospel, believers can guard against becoming lukewarm and maintain their spiritual fervor. ([12:45])
- The armor of God as described in Ephesians is essential for believers to stand against the enemy. The pastor emphasizes the need to stand fast in the truth of God's word and to live a righteous life, knowing that they are made righteous through the blood of Jesus Christ. ([28:30])
- Prayer is a powerful tool in bringing revival into one's life. By surrendering to God through prayer, individuals can become vessels that God can work through. The pastor also emphasizes the importance of praying in tongues, stating that it stirs up the spirit within. ([35:20])
- The importance of surrounding oneself with sharp and influential people who can stir them up and correct them when necessary is emphasized. The pastor warns against being uncorrectable and stubborn, urging the listeners to listen to the warnings and advice of others. ([42:10])
- Giving God our time through prayer is essential for our spiritual well-being. The pastor warns against cutting time from prayer, as it is our connection with God. The congregation is encouraged to prioritize prayer by sacrificing time spent on other activities. ([50:15])
Study Guide
Bible Reading:
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1. Acts 4:23 - "On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them."
2. Proverbs 27:17 - "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another."
3. Ephesians 6:10-17 - "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."
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Observation Questions:
1. What was the reaction of Peter and John after their release as described in Acts 4:23?
2. What does Proverbs 27:17 suggest about the influence of people on each other?
3. In Ephesians 6:10-17, what are the components of the armor of God and what are they used for?
Interpretation Questions:
1. How does the interaction of Peter and John with their people in Acts 4:23 relate to the importance of sharing testimonies and living as examples of transformation?
2. How does the metaphor in Proverbs 27:17 apply to the importance of surrounding oneself with sharp and influential people?
3. How does the description of the armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-17 provide guidance for living a righteous life and standing against the enemy?
Application Questions:
1. Can you recall a recent situation where you had the opportunity to share your testimony or live as an example of transformation, like Peter and John did in Acts 4:23? How did you respond?
2. Who are the people in your life that sharpen you, as described in Proverbs 27:17? How can you spend more time with them this week?
3. Reflecting on Ephesians 6:10-17, which piece of the armor of God do you need to focus on this week? What is one specific action you can take to do this?
4. Can you identify a situation in the coming week where you will need to stand firm in your faith, as described in Ephesians 6:10-17? How can you prepare for this?
5. How can you prioritize prayer in your daily routine, as a way of putting on the armor of God and standing against the enemy?
Devotional
Day 1: Guarding Against Spiritual Lukewarmness
Living righteously and spreading the gospel are not just tasks to be done, but are beneficial to the individual. By sharing the gospel, believers can guard against becoming lukewarm and maintain their spiritual fervor. [12:45]
Revelation 3:15-16 - "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth."
Reflection: Reflect on your spiritual temperature. Are you hot, cold, or lukewarm in your faith? What steps can you take today to guard against spiritual lukewarmness?
Day 2: Standing Firm in God's Truth
The armor of God as described in Ephesians is essential for believers to stand against the enemy. The need to stand fast in the truth of God's word and to live a righteous life, knowing that they are made righteous through the blood of Jesus Christ is emphasized. [28:30]
Ephesians 6:14 - "Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place."
Reflection: What part of the armor of God do you need to strengthen today? How can you apply God's truth in your life to stand firm against the enemy?
Day 3: Surrendering to God Through Prayer
Prayer is a powerful tool in bringing revival into one's life. By surrendering to God through prayer, individuals can become vessels that God can work through. [35:20]
James 4:7 - "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."
Reflection: What area of your life do you need to surrender to God today? How can you use prayer as a tool to submit to God and resist the devil?
Day 4: Surrounding Yourself with Wise Counsel
The importance of surrounding oneself with sharp and influential people who can stir them up and correct them when necessary is emphasized. [42:10]
Proverbs 13:20 - "Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm."
Reflection: Who are the influential people in your life that stir you up and correct you when necessary? How can you seek their counsel today?
Day 5: Prioritizing Prayer and Connection with God
Giving God our time through prayer is essential for our spiritual well-being. The congregation is encouraged to prioritize prayer by sacrificing time spent on other activities. [50:15]
Matthew 6:33 - "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
Reflection: How can you prioritize prayer in your daily routine? What activities can you sacrifice to make more time for prayer and connection with God?
Quotes
1. "Isn't it interesting that in this armor preaching the gospel straight over it's about bringing the gospel bringing the gospel is a weapon not just something that you should do no it is beneficial to you talking to your neighbor about Jesus Christ is a weapon it is it is a weapon against lukewarmness it helps you it helps you to never become lukewarm." ([02:03:56])
2. "In this armor we need to understand the helmet of salvation is more than knowing that you are saved it means that you understand that you have an eternal life so we don't live just for this moment for this moment I don't live to please myself so I enjoy this moment whatever I do or do not do my Allah I put in light that it has Eternal consequences so they're going to lift us consequences I want to do the things that get rewarded the below because some of the things that I do get rewarded in heaven put up alone I'm not talking about you losing your salvation but the Bible says we will also give an account of every word that we speak." ([02:05:21])
3. "We need to stand fast in the truth of God's word...what does the word say? What spread the word because it's with the words the weekend can tell the devil to go...we need to stand in the truth of the word of God." #!!02:00:59!!#
4. "The reason why some of you are overcome is because you don't live righteously...you cannot live righteous if you don't know that Jesus made you right...knowing that you are righteous should change your lifestyle...it becomes a weapon against the enemies." #!!02:02:28!!#
5. "I want to be on God's clock...the only way to get on God's clock is to give him my time...if there's any time that you need, don't cut it from your prayers." #!!01:36:47!!#
6. "The main reason why we don't [give our time to God] is not because we don't have the time, but because we don't want to do it...because your flesh is dying in prayer but your own self is dying in prayer...the flesh wants to keep whining and screaming in our lives." #!!01:38:11!!#
7. "If you don't give time to the Potter, you will just remain a hump of clay with Clay believer. No, you don't want to be a hump of clay. Maybe you want to be a vessel that God can work through, but if you need to be a vessel, you need a Potter." #!!01:39:55!!#
8. "Prayer in the spirit is so vitally important, and that's why it gets so much attacked in the church. Now, there's many things that the world will say about the church, but one thing more than anything One Church says about another church is praying in tongues when there's other people." #!!01:40:33!!#
9. "When we pray in tongues, we edify our spirit. It is important to Him, so it should be important to you. You can never pray in tongues too much; your spirit will become stronger and stronger." #!!01:42:35!!#
10. "Sometimes when my attitude is not right, it's not enough to praise the Lord for 15 minutes or 30 minutes. Sometimes I need to go way more than that to forget about myself and to push through. My mind should be focused on how great God is." #!!01:46:30!!#
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