Joke: Mark, a loving husband, was in trouble. He forgot his wedding anniversary and his wife was really ticked off at him. She told him...
"Tomorrow morning, I expect to find a gift in the driveway that goes from 0 to 200 in 6 seconds flat, AND IT BETTER BE THERE."
The next morning, Mark got up really early before work. When his wife woke up a couple of hours later, she looked out the window, and sure enough, there was a small gift-wrapped box sitting in the middle of the driveway. Confused, the wife put on her robe, ran out to the driveway, and took the box into the house.
She opened it, and found a brand new bathroom scale.
Mark is not yet able to have visitors....
Power point (available if you email me I’ll send it free)
TEXT: PROVERBS 16:17-33
17 The highway of the upright is to depart from evil;
He who keeps his way preserves his soul.
18 Pride goes before destruction,
And a haughty spirit before a fall.
19 Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly,
Than to divide the spoil with the proud.
20 He who heeds the word wisely will find good,
And whoever trusts in the LORD, happy is he.
21 The wise in heart will be called prudent,
And sweetness of the lips increases learning.
22 Understanding is a wellspring of life to him who has it.
But the correction of fools is folly.
23 The heart of the wise teaches his mouth,
And adds learning to his lips.
24 Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,
Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.
25 There is a way that seems right to a man,
But its end is the way of death.
26 The person who labors, labors for himself,
For his hungry mouth drives him on.
27 An ungodly man digs up evil,
And it is on his lips like a burning fire.
28 A perverse man sows strife,
And a whisperer separates the best of friends.
29 A violent man entices his neighbor,
And leads him in a way that is not good.
30 He winks his eye to devise perverse things;
He purses his lips and brings about evil.
31 The silver-haired head is a crown of glory,
If it is found in the way of righteousness.
32 He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,
And he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.
33 The lot is cast into the lap,
But its every decision is from the LORD.
Why do we sin?
• There is only one reason!
• We do not see sin as God sees it
• We’ve been preaching about reasons not to sin, but tonight we want to talk about one simple truth that ties them all together.
Proverbs 16:25
25 There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
The world today looks at sin differently than we do.
Today there is a different way that man looks at the things of God. They look at the things of God as foolish and of no account.
But the things of God are as certain as the Sun in the Sky and the moon at night
Where do you stand on the issue of God and Sin?
Men or women think that they can hide their sin or live a life on two sides of the coin and end up being found out or destroying their lives and everyone around them.
Our lives affect not just our selves but also our families and friends and those that we love and we care about.
The problem is that so often we think we can hide our sin. But the bible tells us differently.
Numbers 32:23 (NKJV)
23But if you do not do so, then take note, you have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you out.
We need a new intimacy with God.
We need to get back to the relationship that we had when we first gave our hearts to the Lord.
One requirement to have a intimate relationship with the Lord is PRAYER.
1. This week is National Week of Prayer and Fasting
2. What are the biblical reasons why we should pray?
a. Jesus told His disciples that Mark 9:29 “These only can only come out by prayer. If that was for demonic deliverance than how much more we need to pray for the world and our nation and our community.
b. Jesus told to “ask for the Lord of the harvest, to send out workers into the harvest field”. Matt. 9:38
c. Paul urged the Colossians in 4:3,4 “Pray for us that God may open a door for our message…Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.”
d. The early church understood that a prayerless church was a powerless church. (REPEAT THIS) They learned that John 15:5 was true “Apart from Me you can do nothing.”
3. Prayer brings strength and power in the fight of life.
a. We are told in Eph. 6 to put on the whole armor of God
b. Paul concludes the armor section with “and praying in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. Eph 6:18
c. In the midnight hour as Paul and Silas are doing what?
i. Praying and sing psalms
ii. Through prayer the Holy Spirit breathes confidence into our lives, even in the most difficult times.
4. Without prayer there is no intimacy with God.
a. We are created for a relationship with God
b. With out prayer we cannot have a relationship with Him
c. Look at Jesus
i. Prayed at His Baptism (Luke 3:21)
ii. Prayed in a solitary place (Luke 4:42)
iii. He prayed all night (Luke 6:12)
iv. Prayed privately (Luke 9:18)
v. Prayed before His transfiguration (Luke 9:28-29)
vi. Prayed at the Garden (Luke 22:9-46)
vii. Jesus felt that prayer was so important that He told His disciples to go and tarry after His ascension and hold a prayer meeting
I challenge you this week to pray and fast with us as we pray for our World, Nation and Community
It may seem right to you not to pray but to live your life without prayer is like the snowplow driver we saw on the Power Point. You’re just moving from on problem to another and back again.
Get intimate with God and Have a relationship with him through prayer and conversation with the King Of Kings and the Lord of Lords
Prayer is the key to heaven but faith unlocks the door
Prayer is so easily spoken but prayer without faith
is like a boat without an oar
Have faith when you speak to the Master
That’s all He will ask you for
Prayer is the Key to heaven but Faith unlocks the Door
Invitation:
Notes from George O. Wood
General Secretary
General Council Assemblies of God
Perspective October 2006
