The House of Faith Series
Part 1 – Introduction
† SCRIPTURE READING
I Samuel 2:35
“I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his house, and he will minister before my anointed one always.”
† PRAYER
The Prophet Samuel, which means ‘heard by God’, was not just a Prophet of God, but a Priest and Judge over Israel. He anointed both Saul and David as Israel’s 1st and 2nd kings.
This scripture was given to Saul who had departed from God’s will in his life. God had placed him as the King of His people, and if Saul would not live within God’s will, then God could not operate in the peoples lives that Saul lead. (Saul’s house – or kingdom in this case.)
So when God removed Saul from power, He had told Saul what he was going to do.
He was going to raise up a FAITHFUL priest who would DO what is in God’s heart and mind. Or, what we would call God’s will. And God would firmly establish his house.
So God places someone as the head of a house that HE builds. And when the one He places at the head of that house is faithful in following God’s will, then God is enabled to build a firmly established house.
This is the House of Faith. This represents a person, family or church.
When we live outside of God’s will, we tie His hands and prevent Him from working in our lives.
So many people will live willingly and knowingly outside of God’s will, yet continue to pray for God to work in their lives. Then wonder why God doesn’t seem to be helping them in their situation.
The oldest institution known to man is the home, or family.
We see this in Genesis Chapters 1 & 2.
God is the Author of the home.
And God tells us how the home is to be.
And through His word He regulates, mold and forms the home until it is an ideal place for the legitimate fulfillment of the physical, social and emotional needs of the men, women and children in that home.
We see that God understood that we as humans have needs. After all He created us. And God supplied these needs, including Eve for Adam in Genesis 2:18.
God laid out some of His intentions for the home in Ephesians 5:22 – 6:9
Ephesians 5:22-24 Wives (3 verses) Instruction
“22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.”
Ephesians 5:25-33 Husbands (9 verses) Instruction
“25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26to make her holy, cleansing[2] her by the washing with water through the word, 27and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church-- 30for we are members of his body. 31"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh."[3] 32This is a profound mystery--but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.”
Ephesians 6:1-4 Children (4 verses) Instruction
“1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2"Honor your father and mother"--which is the first commandment with a promise-- 3"that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."[1] 4Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.”
Ephesians 6:5-9 Slaves & Masters (5 verses)
But we see so many problems in the families of today. Why?
God gives us the outline for a household, instructions for our family, so what’s the problem?
The problem is selfishness. Everyone wants the other to do what they are supposed to, but don’t do it themselves.
I counseled a couple about 3 years ago who were married at the time. He wouldn’t listen.
How can a wife submit to her husband if he doesn’t love her the way Christ loves the church? But that’s what men are instructed to do!
How can a husband love their wife like Christ loves the church if he isn’t founded in the word of God to know and understand how Christ loves the church?
How can children obey their parents in the Lord, and honor their father and mother, if their parents are not in the Lord?
I had a very difficult time as a kid honoring my stepfather who liked getting drunk and beating me. He wasn’t in the Lord, or living God’s will as the man of the house. And everyone in our house suffered for it in many ungodly ways.
The family today is falling apart because those involved are not fulfilling God’s will. They are not living the word of God in their life.
A government Census in 2000 revealed that the number of single women raising children in the U.S. has grown 5 times faster that the number of married couples raising children.
This is not God’s plan for a home. Ask anyone who has done it – 2 parents are better than 1.
I was raised in a single parent home, and the lack of a godly man leading my family effected me negatively in many ways in my life because our house was not God’s idea of a home.
Then my stepfather showed up on the scene.
I’m not blaming anything on my mother or father because the choices I made were MY choices. But because of the missing pieces in my life growing up, I couldn’t make INFORMED decisions based on God’s standards.
Instead, my decisions were based on my limited selfish, fatherless, godless upbringing.
God designed the home to be a training ground for our children.
This is why it was so important of a role for the church to be instructed on taking care of the widows and fatherless children. Because God KNOWS what happens to children who do not have the proper, godly role model in their lives.
So it is important that the man, the leader of the house, is a godly man. This is God’s will for men.
Our homes and families are being attacked by the devil. This is obvious in the behavior of men in our society today. Remember, like a sniper, the devil tries to take out the leader of a home, or church.
Some of you may be saying “We already studied spiritual warfare and the whole armor of God though.”
That’s true, but one of the awesome things about the word of God is that each lesson in the Bible is a piece to a mysterious puzzle.
All of the lessons are good, but when they are put together in context with each other as a whole lesson, all of the lessons in this book work together with each other and often refer to each other, so that when they are all put together you see “The whole picture God is trying to show you.”
We read in I Samuel that God is going to build the house.
† Psalm 92:12-15
“12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
13 planted in the house of the LORD ,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,
15 proclaiming, "The LORD is upright;
he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him."
When God builds the house, and those in it are faithful to the Lord, they flourish, even in the desert!
† EPHESIANS 6:16 Flaming Arrows
Sin, Pain, Poverty, Backbiting, Sickness.
† EPHESIANS 6:11 Wiles of the Devil
Envy, Strife, Bitterness. Hatred, Gossip.
We cannot build ourselves. God must build us.
We cannot protect ourselves, God’s armor must protect us.
Psalm 127:1
“1 Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over (or protects) the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.”
Unless God builds us, our homes, this church, we are wasting our time.
† He has given us His protection in our house, just as a roof protects a house from the rain and storms, He protects our house from spiritual attacks.
Mark 3:25
“25If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.”
This is why we must work together.
Although we didn’t all get what we voted for last week, we are still one body in Christ. We need to be strong as a whole family and stick together, looking out for one another in constant prayer.
We do not want to become the very thing we are trying to protect ourselves from.
We do not want to become the devils tools in this church.
This is done through envy, strife, bitterness, hatred, gossip, backbiting.
These tools of the devil can sneak into your lives and literally destroy lives.
But if we stick together as one body, looking out for and praying for each other we can withstand the devils attacks.
If we divide as a church, God’s word says that this house can not stand.
This armor, protection & benefits go beyond our initial salvation.
You can have your name in the Lambs book of life and have a seat reserved with your name on it in heaven, and still live a sad, miserable, unhappy, unfruitful life full of brokenness.
Why?
Perhaps you never looked for the answers God has provided us in His word.
Perhaps you read the Bible but never applied it to your life.
Having something and using it are 2 different things.
I have a lawnmower, but if I don’t use it…
Faith without works is dead. (James 2:20-26)
Having something (faith) without using it (works) is dead!
Works do not save us, we are saved by the free gift of salvation, ours to claim.
But we have a responsibility to DO once we are saved.
How can you say you serve God if you do nothing for God but come to church once a week?
Church is for worshiping and educating ourselves in the word, and Christian fellowship. Not to be counted as serving, unless, that is, you are involved in the leadership or committees or actually serve or help in the church in some function, whether it be running the sound booth, joining the choir, or fixing a broken door hinge, or being there for someone in need.
In seeking God’s will, we can live it (this is our works) which will make our faith ALIVE! And it will allow God to work in our lives.
Our house is built by God, and we live God’s will which allows Him to work in our lives, families and church.
Just like a roof protects our house, this is how the armor of God works.
† But our house cannot have a roof without the rest of the house underneath to support it.
And like every construction, we must start with the foundation.
The basic foundation for us and our house to be built by God is we must be born again, baptized in water and spirit.
† Matthew 7:24-27 “Jesus Says”
24"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
We need to hear God’s word AND put it to practice. We need to hear AND DO.
† Ephesians 2:20, 21
“20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.”
The foundation of the apostles and prophets is the written word of God. Jesus Christ is the cornerstone.
† The cornerstone is a perfect block that’s cut so everything that is built off of it will be straight and in line with it.
This is Jesus, the perfect cornerstone, and the foundation which is the word that we have in writing from the apostles and prophets.
† 2 Timothy 2:19
“19Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The Lord knows those who are his,"[1] and, "Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."
† PRAYER
Lord, we pray that you be the cornerstone of our lives, our families and this church.
We pray that our foundation be built upon the teachings in your Holy Word , written by the apostles and prophets.
We pray that we are faithful, and continue to do good works in your name Lord.
And through our obedience to you, we show ourselves to be yours.
For Jesus said, “If you love me, you will obey my commands.”
Be with us Holy Spirit.
