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Undo– Meeting the
God of Infinite Chances
Three Seasons Community
Church– 11-25-07
Mark 12:30-31 (NIV) Love the Lord your God with
all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with
all your strength.' [31] The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as
yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."
3 Categories of People
I've been here before, now here I am again,
Standing at the door, praying You'll let me back in
To label me a prodigal would be, Only scratching the surface of who I've
been known to be
Prodigal = Careless; recklessly extravagant;
wasteful expenditure; one who spends or gives lavishly and foolishly
Luke 15:1-3 (NIV) Now the tax collectors and
"sinners" were all gathering around to hear him. [2] But the Pharisees
and the teachers of the law muttered, "This man welcomes sinners and
eats with them."
[3] Then Jesus told them this parable:
Luke 15:11-24 (NLT) [11] To illustrate the
point further, Jesus told them this story: "A man had two sons. [12] The
younger son told his father, 'I want my share of your estate now,
instead of waiting until you die.' So his father agreed to divide his
wealth between his sons. [13] "A few days later this younger son packed
all his belongings and took a trip to a distant land, and there he
wasted all his money on wild living. [14] About the time his money ran
out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. [15] He
persuaded a local farmer to hire him to feed his pigs. [16] The boy
became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good
to him. But no one gave him anything. [17] "When he finally came to his
senses, he said to himself, 'At home even the hired men have food enough
to spare, and here I am, dying of hunger! [18] I will go home to my
father and say, "Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, [19]
and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as
a hired man." ' [20] "So he returned home to his father. And while he
was still a long distance away, his father saw him coming. Filled with
love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him.
[21] His son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against both heaven and
you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.' [22] "But his
father said to the servants, 'Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house
and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger, and sandals for his feet.
[23] And kill the calf we have been fattening in the pen. We must
celebrate with a feast, [24] for this son of mine was dead and has now
returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.' So the party began.
Don’t ever let anyone make you feel or believe
that you don’t deserve to come to church or to God!
In what ways have you been careless or wasteful
of the blessings God has given you?
I focused on the score, but I could never win,
Trying to ignore, a life of hiding my sin
To label me a hypocrite would be, Only scratching the surface of who
I've been known to be
Hypocrite = play actor; someone who ignores or
tries to hide their sin
How easy is it to point out the faults in
others?
It’s our job to look in the mirror and deal
with our own hypocrisy!
Psalm 32:5 (NLT) Finally, I confessed all my
sins to you and stopped trying to hide them. I said to myself, "I will
confess my rebellion to the Lord." And you forgave me! All my guilt is
gone.
Jeremiah 16:17 (NLT) I am watching them
closely, and I see every sin. They cannot hope to hide from me.
What do we do when we make a mistake?
Psalm 32:5 (NLT) Finally, I confessed all my
sins to you and stopped trying to hide them. I said to myself, "I will
confess my rebellion to the Lord." And you forgave me! All my guilt is
gone.
In what ways are you being a hypocrite by
ignoring or trying to hide your sin?
I am a sinner saved only by the grace of God.
Until I get in touch with my capacity to sin, I will become judgmental,
harsh and unforgiving of others.
Make every step lead me back to, The sovereign
way that You
Turn me around pick me up, Undo what I've become, Bring me back to the
place, Of forgiveness and grace
I need You, need Your help, I can't do this myself, You’re the only one
who can undo, What I've become
The model of Spiritual Formation that we’ve
adopted as a church is simply: Are you pointed and moving toward Christ!
Matthew 16:24 (NLT) Then Jesus said to the
disciples, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must put aside
your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me.
Matthew 16:24 (NCV) Then Jesus said to his
followers, "If people want to follow me, they must give up the things
they want. They must be willing even to give up their lives to follow
me.
Matthew 16:24 (MsgB) Then Jesus went to work on
his disciples. "Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead.
You're not in the driver's seat; I am. Don't run from suffering; embrace
it. Follow me and I'll show you how.
God will help us– IF we ask!
Are you focused on and moving toward Jesus? Are
you willing to admit you can’t do life yourself?
Undo
Are you focused on and moving toward Jesus? Are
you willing to admit you can’t do life yourself? |
