PowerPoint from Sunday February 26th Message

Here are the PowerPoint slides from Sunday, February 26th. Enjoy!

Revelation 3 feb 26, 2012

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pj

Apply It!

Hearing the Word is a good start ... but then we must work on applying it to the various arenas of our lives. Here are some questions that will help you to do so with Sunday's lessons from the Seven Churches of Revelation.

1. Has your love for Jesus grown cold? Do you find yourself rarely thinking about Jesus throughout your day?  What steps can you begin to take to return to your "first love?"  (hint: read Rev. 2:5).

2. What "drives" your life? Is it money? A desire to be popular? A craving for comfort? Maybe Jesus?

3. When was the last time you practiced biblical repentance (Recognize sin for what it is; Take responsibility for your sin; Rid yourself of the sin of which you are repenting; Request from God a "clean up" and strength to say "no!" the next time temptation comes knocking!)?

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Bonus Lesson!

Due to time constraints ... I had one more lesson to share from the Seven Letters of Revelation 2-3 that I was unable to cover during my message. Since you took the time to visit the blog ... I trust you will be blessed by this bonus lesson:

KNOW THE TRUTH .... STAND FOR THE TRUTH! 

In a number of the letters (Ephesus, Pergamum, Thyratira) ... false teaching is mentioned. The churches are rebuked for tolerating it in their midst. The church in Sardis (a dead church) is told to "wake up" and "remember, then, what you have received and heard." This is an obvious reference to the Truth which they had been taught in earlier years.

Now it should not surprise us that false teaching was in the early church. The Apostle Paul warned the elders of the church in Ephesus that "fierce wolves" would, through their false teaching, seek to lead many astray (Acts 20:29-30).  Peter warns his readers of the infiltration of the church by false teachers (2 Peter 2:1-3). Jude urges his readers to contend for the "faith once delivered to the saints" because the Truth was under attack by false teachers (Jude 1:3-4).

Sixty years after the birth of the Church ... false teachers had crept in and through their influence had begun to destroy some of these churches of Asia. My friend, it is of utmost urgency that we therefore, KNOW THE TRUTH (for if we do not know the Truth we will never be able to spot the false teaching that pervades the church today) ... and then we must STAND FOR THE TRUTH!

This leads me to a couple of critical questions:

1. What are YOU doing to better KNOW the Truth?  How often do you open your Bible? Do you do more than read a verse or two? Do you know the fundamental truths of historic Christianity? (The Apostles Creed is a good place to start!). Do you know how to study your Bible? Click here for some pointers.

2. What are YOU doing to STAND for the Truth? Are we even bothered when we hear someone claim the Bible teaches something that we know the Bible does not? And when we hear false teaching ... do we just shrug it off or do we challenge it?

I hope our studies in the book of Revelation are proving to be as much a challenge to you as they are to me!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Apply for Lifechange!

Here are a couple of questions for you based on the two takeaway's from today's (February 19th) message.

Takeaway #1 - You can hide from others … but you cannot under any circumstance hide from God!  Your heart, your mind, your life – everything about you is an open book before him!  So OWN UP and GET RIGHT!  REPENT and TURN TO CHRIST!


1. Is there something (anything) in your life … unkind words said to another? … spreading gossip about someone?  perhaps a complaining critical spirit?  … perhaps greed? Or maybe impure thoughts? Viewing pornography on the Internet? Perhaps pride?  Self-centeredness? Something else that you must repent of and ask God for forgiveness and cleansing?  Take a few moments to ask the Spirit of God to examine your heart. Remember ... HE KNOWS! 




Takeaway #2 - “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”  (Romans 8:18)  So BE FAITHFUL!


Take a few minutes and read each one of the promises made in Revelation 2-3 to those who conquer. You may even want to write them down and take them with you throughout the week. These promises are downright ... out of this world ... amazing!!! 


Thanks for stopping by . . . 
pj 

PowerPoint Slides for Sunday, February 19th

Revelation 2 feb 19, 2012 message slides

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Dig Deeper!

If you really (and I do mean REALLY) what to get to the heart of the letters of Jesus to the seven churches of Revelation 2-3, then I HIGHLY recommend that you pick up the excellent book, To the One Who Conquers" 50 Daily Meditations on the Seven Letters of Revelation 2-3.  The author, Sam Storms has now authored four such, what I call, "devotional commentaries" on different parts of the Bible. In addition to this one, he has also written on the Psalms, Colossians and 2 Corinthians. All good stuff ... for mind, heart and soul!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Put It into Practice

The end goal of Bible study is not to just hear (i.e. understand) what the Bible is teaching us. We need to take it further. We must apply it to our lives ... put it into practice (see Matthew 7:24-27; James 1:22-25).  To help you do this with our studies in Revelation, I will post a few questions for you each week. My hope is that you will grapple with them and find help to apply what you are learning.  Here are this week's questions:

1. Read through Revelation one. Imagine yourself in the sandals of the apostle John. If you were to have a vision of the glorified Christ as John did, how do you think you would respond?

2. Revelation one speaks of the return of Jesus Christ. If you were to live each day in an awareness of his return, how would that impact how you live each day?

3. Read again the purpose of the book of Revelation. Then answer/reflect on the following:

- How is our faith opposed today?

- How often does the word "overcomes" (NIV) or "conquers" (ESV) appear in chapters 2 and 3? What does this say to you about the trials of this life that you encounter?

- Take a moment and worship this great God who has such a glorious purpose for us and our world.

Revelation was written to give Christians, struggling in this world against those who oppose the Faith, hope that the Christ who died for us will also one day return for us as a conquering King to establish his eternal reign! Because Jesus overcomes, so can we! 

Thanks for stopping by . . . 

pj