(#035) 1 Corinthians 7 - Hey Virgins…What are You Waiting For?

Class Outline:

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We deprive ourselves and others when we let our passions spoil.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome To 

BARAH MINISTRIES

a Christian Church

 

Rory Clark

Pastor-Teacher

 

Good Morning!

 

Welcome to Barah Ministries…an intimate, local Christian Church with worldwide impact.  My name is Pastor Rory Clark.  At Barah Ministries we know this truth…that Jesus Christ is God.  As the Lord He is 100% Deity… a member of the Triune Godhead…He is God the Son.  He is also 100% human just like you and me, and His name is Jesus Christ.  The Lord…God the Son…became flesh…Jesus Christ...and lived among us.  He is the uniquely born One…the God-Man… 100% God and 100% man in one Person forever…He is the Sovereign God of the Universe…He is the Savior of the whole world…and He is the Jewish Messiah.  

 

Those who make Barah Ministries their spiritual home are Christians.  We are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and we have a deep, intimate, and personal relationship with the Lord.  Christianity is a relationship, not a religion.  The Lord Jesus Christ is a Person.  The Lord is not a “thing,” and He is not a concept.  Just as we do with anyone whom we love, we spend time getting to know the Lord by knowing His mind, and the Bible is His exact thinking.

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Hey Virgins…What are You Waiting For?

 

LESSON INTRODUCTION

 

One of my favorite poems from high school English was Robert Herrick’s poem, TO THE VIRGINS…TO MAKE MUCH OF TIME.  Let’s review it…

 

TO THE VIRGINS…TO MAKE MUCH OF TIME

By Robert Herrick

 

Gather ye rose-buds while ye may… 

Old Time is still a-flying 

And this same flower that smiles today 

Tomorrow will be dying.

 

TO THE VIRGINS…TO MAKE MUCH OF TIME

By Robert Herrick

 

That glorious lamp of heaven, the sun… 

The higher he’s a-getting 

The sooner will his race be run…

And nearer he’s to setting.

 

TO THE VIRGINS…TO MAKE MUCH OF TIME

By Robert Herrick

 

Now that age is best which is the first… 

When youth and blood are warmer 

But being spent, the worse, and worst 

Times still succeed the former. 

 

TO THE VIRGINS…TO MAKE MUCH OF TIME

By Robert Herrick

 

So be not coy, but use your time… 

And while ye may, go marry!

For having lost but once your prime…

You may forever tarry.

 

A high school boy’s dream…talk about virgins!  Robert Herrick suggests that the virgins get on with it!  Well in the next passage of First Corinthians, Chapter 7…the apostle Paul has some spiritual advice for the virgins of the world.  Also, as we do every month, we’ll remember our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ by celebrating The Lord’s Supper, and we’ll learn that His work at the Cross is the picture of grace.

 

SONG INTRODUCTION

 

We worship an omnipresent God who is everywhere at the same time, as King David correctly states in Psalm 139, Verses 7 and 8…

 

PSALM 139:7

(Lord)…Where can I go (to hide) from Your Spirit?  Or where can I flee from Your presence?

 

PSALM 139:8 

If I ascend to heaven…You are there…if I make my bed in Sheol (the Lake of Fire)…behold, You are there as well.

 

Our omnipresent God is an ever-present help in times of trouble.  Here is the group Unspoken to sing about the Lord in their song…REASON…the Lord is the reason!

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ

Enjoy the Singing of His Praises

 

REASON

Unspoken

 

OPENING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

We’re grateful, Heavenly Father, for the privilege of studying Your absolute truth...the Word of God…

 

Father…You are the One from whom all blessings flow…the blessings of abundance and the blessings of scarcity…the blessings of prosperity and the blessings of adversity…the blessings of rest and the blessing of trials…

 

Teach us to be content regardless of circumstances…help us to know You and Your Word and Your goodness…teach us to expect victory in every circumstance because we have victory through the work of Your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ at the Cross…and because we have guidance from our sanctifying Mentor and Teacher, God the Holy Spirit…let us hear what is being said to the churches around the world today…

 

…we ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ’s

name...Amen.

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Hey Virgins…What are You Waiting For?

 

Rivalries and divisions were alive and well in the church at first-century Corinth as believers in Christ in the church kept on looking for reasons to be divided…Paul begs them to think differently…First Corinthians, Chapter 1, Verses 10 and 11…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 1:10 

Now I (Paul) exhort you fellow believers in Christ, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree…and that there be no rivalries among you…instead that you be made complete …in the same mind and in the same purpose.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 1:11 

For I (Paul) have been informed concerning you, my brethren (in the church at Corinth) … by Chloe’s people…that there are rivalries among you.

 

The old saying goes, “The more things change the more they stay the same.”  We’re still dealing with divisions and rivalries in the world today twenty centuries later.

 

As we transition to Paul’s answering of the concerns of Chloe’s people in First Corinthians, Chapter 7, we see the continuation of the believers who look for new ways to be divided …married and single…rich and poor…slave and free…ascetic and lascivious…circumcised and uncircumcised…any excuse for disunity.  So, what do we learn from Paul as he dispenses advice and perspective in the first twenty-four verses in First Corinthians, Chapter 7?   We learn at least ten things.

 

No…being in a marriage and being celibate does not make us more noble.  God accepts us just the way we are…we don’t have to work to impress Him.

 

In fact, husbands and wives must make themselves available to each other for sexual intercourse.  Said in the strength of the Lord’s might. STOP DEPRIVING ONE ANOTHER of sex, married couples!

 

We learn to stay together!  Don’t initiate divorce.  Stay married no matter what…and one thing is sure…there will be a lot of “whats” that will matter so much that you’ll want to leave.

 

If you are a Christian, and you marry an unbeliever…to the degree the

unbeliever wants to stay with you in a committed marriage…stay with them.  Do not divorce.  If an unbeliever leaves a marriage with a Christian, the Christian is free to remarry.

 

Paul thinks it is better to be single and celibate.  

 

Yet Paul acquiesces that it is just as noble a calling to be married, especially if you are one who is regularly aflame with passion.

 

Paul encourages us to create the lifestyle we want to create, yet in line with God’s mandates.

 

The “no matter what” philosophy emanates from the source of God…He loves us just the way we are, no matter what.

 

The Lord, at the Cross, broke down the barrier between Jews and Gentiles.  Therefore, circumcision or uncircumcision are not relevant…only God’s commands are relevant.  These are not things to use to divide us.

 

God is for us whether slave or free, whether rich or poor, whether male or female, whether ascetic or lascivious, whether circumcised or not.  Social or economic status, gender, and race are not part of God’s view for us.  WE must avoid making them relevant as well.

 

The next passage we’ll study is a long one…First Corinthians, Chapter 7, Verses 25 to 40.  We won’t begin our study of it today, but at least we’ll get a preview of the passage.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:25 

Now concerning virgins, I have no command of the Lord, but I give an

opinion as one who by the mercy of the Lord is trustworthy.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:26 

I think then that this is good in view of the present distress, that it is good for a man to remain as he is. 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:27 

Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be released. Are you released from a wife? Do not seek a wife. 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:28 

But if you marry, you have not sinned…and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Yet such will have trouble in this life, and I am trying to spare you.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:29 

But this I say, brethren, the time has been shortened, so that from now on those who have wives should be as though they had none…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:30 

…and those who weep, as though they did not weep…and those who rejoice, as though they did not rejoice…and those who buy, as though they did not possess…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:31 

…and those who use the world, as though they did not make full use of it… for the form of this world is passing away.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:32 

But I want you to be free from concern. One who is unmarried is concerned about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:33 

…but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how he may please his wife… 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:34 

…and his interests are divided. The woman who is unmarried, and the virgin, is concerned about the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and spirit…but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how she may please her husband.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:35 

This I say for your own benefit…not to put a restraint upon you, but to promote what is appropriate and to secure undistracted devotion to the Lord.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:36 

But if any man thinks that he is acting unbecomingly toward his virgin 

daughter, if she is past her youth, and if it must be so, let him do what he wishes, he does not sin…let her marry. 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:37 

But he who stands firm in his heart, being under no constraint, but has authority over his own will, and has decided this in his own heart, to keep his own virgin daughter, he will do well. 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:38 

So then both he who gives his own virgin daughter in marriage does well, and he who does not give her in marriage will do better.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:39 

A wife is bound as long as her husband lives…but if her husband is dead, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:40 

But in my opinion, she is happier if she remains as she is…and I think that I also have the Spirit of God.

 

We’ll look forward to beginning our study of this passage next week.  When we return from our five-minute break, we’ll take the offering and then we’ll celebrate The Lord’s Supper.  

 

FIVE MINUTE BREAK

NOBODY

Casting Crowns

 

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Hey Virgins…What are You Waiting For?

 

King David asks an interesting question in Psalm 116, Verse 12…

 

PSALM 116:12

What shall I give to the Lord in repayment for all His goodness toward me?

 

What can we, mere men, give to the Almighty, All-Powerful, All-Sufficient God?  The Lord wants us to give of those things with which He has gifted us…our time…our talent…and our treasure.  The offering is the treasure part…it’s your chance to redirect the funds God has given to you for the benefit of others.  We give with confidence knowing that what we give, God will replace…and he ALWAYS does…not equally, but in abundance in your favor.  So, as believers in Christ, we do not have a scarcity mentality when we give, because that does not reflect our Lord’s mind.  Let’s welcome up Deacon Denny Goodall with the offering message.

 

THE OFFERING

Deacon Denny Goodall

 

OFFERING VERSE

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 7:23 

You were bought with a price by the Lord…do not become slaves of (religious) men. 

 

OFFERING SONG

THERE IS NONE LIKE YOU

David Bauer, Instrumental

 

THE LORD’S SUPPER CELEBRATION

At the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ Became the Picture of Grace

 

Welcome to The Lord’s Supper Celebration, the most intimate expression of our love for the Lord Jesus Christ in The Christian Way of Living.  The Lord demonstrates His desire for a deep, intimate, and personal relationship with His believers by creating a way to keep on sharing His body and His blood with us, just as He did with His apostles on the night before His death.  Luke, Chapter 22, Verses 14 to 16… 

 

LUKE 22:14

When the hour had come (and His crucifixion was near) … the Lord Jesus Christ reclined at the Passover table…and the apostles reclined with Him.

 

LUKE 22:15 

And the Lord said to the apostles, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover meal with you before I suffer … ”

 

LUKE 22:16 

“…for I (the Lord Jesus Christ) say to you that I shall never again eat this

Passover meal until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God the Father.”

In First Corinthians, Chapter 11, Verse 26, the apostle Paul says, on behalf of the Lord…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 11:26

…as often as you eat this bread (representing His body)…and as often as you drink this cup (representing His blood)…as part of the Lord’s Supper Celebration…you proclaim as a reality and you announce the significance of the Lord Jesus Christ’s death on the Cross…and His resurrection from the dead…until He comes again at the second coming.

 

The Lord’s Supper Celebration is a time when the resident members of this congregation join hands through the miles with our non-resident members, and we demonstrate our unity by remembering our Lord together.  This is a celebration for which we set aside time.  We don’t do it on the move.  

 

During the Lord’s Supper Celebration, Jesus wants His believers to look

back to the Cross for a moment.  He wants us to REMEMBER how He rescued us from the kingdom of darkness.  He wants us to REMEMBER the sacrifice of shedding His blood to cover our sins.  He wants us to REMEMBER the deliverance to the resurrection life He orchestrated, bringing us into His kingdom of light.  Most of all, the Lord wants His believers to look forward with ANTICIPATION that He is coming again.   

 

As believers in Christ, when we celebrate The Lord’s Supper, we ask ourselves in reflection, “What did the Lord Jesus Christ do for us at the Cross?”   This month we acknowledge that at the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ became the picture of grace.

 

The Lord, God the Son, is spiritual royalty.  He is a member of the Triune Godhead.  He is the Sovereign God of the Universe.  Nothing EVER happens in this world without His permission.  He is the Creator of the Universe…both the heavens…and the earth…and he created all that is in the universe according to John, Chapter 1, Verse 3…

 

JOHN 1:3

All things came into being through the Lord, God the Son…and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

 

The Lord voluntarily chose to humiliate Himself by taking on the form of true humanity in the flesh…and He became the God-Man…100% God and 100% man in one Person forever…John, Chapter 1, Verse 14…

 

JOHN 1:14

And the Word (the Lord…God the Son) became flesh (Jesus Christ)…and He lived among us…and we beheld His glory…glory as of the uniquely born One from the Source of God the Father…full of grace and full of truth.

 

Matthew, Chapter 1, Verses 1 to 6 describes the ancestry from which Jesus’ true humanity descended…

 

MATTHEW 1:1

This is the record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham…

 

MATTHEW 1:2 

…Abraham was the father of Isaac…Isaac was the father of Jacob…and Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers.

 

Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Judah were all regenerate Jews…Jews who believed in Jehovah Elohim…God the Son…the Lord who is the Christ…the Messiah…and believing in Him was credited to their account as absolute righteousness…the admission ticket to heaven.

 

 

MATTHEW 1:3 

Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by TAMAR…Perez was the father of Hezron…and Hezron was the father of Ram.

 

MATTHEW 1:4 

Ram was the father of Aminadab…Aminadab was the father of Nahshon… and Nahshon was the father of Salmon.

 

MATTHEW 1:5 

Salmon was the father of Boaz by RAHAB…Boaz was the father of Obed by RUTH…and Obed was the father of Jesse.

 

MATTHEW 1:6 

Jesse was the father of David the king.  David was the father of Solomon by BATHSHEBA who had been the wife of Uriah.

 

This is a part of the Lord’s family tree.  No…we have not turned into Latter-day Saints…no we are not a cult who is suddenly into genealogies…and Yes…family trees in and of themselves are pretty boring unless you look deeper than the surface.  

 

If you noticed, there were four names capitalized in those six verses.  They are the first women the New Testament mentions.  They are Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba.  Have you heard of them?  Do you know anything about them?  When you know their stories, perhaps you will get a glimpse of God’s amazing grace.  What you’ll learn as their stories unfold is that there is not a redeeming thing about any of these women according to the viewpoint of the world.

 

TAMAR’S story is told in the thirty verses of Genesis, Chapter 38.  She deceived her father-in-law, Judah, by pretending to be a temple prostitute. She had sex with him, and she had twins by him so that she could ensure the continuation of Judah’s family after her husband had died.  She was a deceiver.

 

In the twenty-four verses of Joshua, Chapter 2, we meet RAHAB, a Canaanite woman and a prostitute disobedient to her King…the King of Jericho.  During a siege against Jericho, Rahab hid two Israeli spies, and as a result, her life was spared when the city was captured.  She was disloyal.

Ruth was a Moabite woman.  The Moabites had mistreated the Jews during their wilderness period; thus, they were forbidden to attend Israel’s worship services.  They were also thought to be descended, as a people, from an incestuous relationship between Lot and his daughters.  Despite her cursed background, Ruth declared to the Jewish people in Ruth, Chapter 1, Verse 16…

 

RUTH 1:16

“Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you…for where you go, I will go…and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God shall be my God.”

 

Cursed or not, Ruth believed in the Lord, yet she was an outcast from a tribe of outcasts.

 

You have likely heard of Bathsheba because the story of David and Bathsheba is infamous.  Yet seldom is Bathsheba’s role in the incident ever mentioned.  After all, she committed adultery with David while her husband Uriah was out at war and she gave birth to a bastard child by David that later died.  David gets all the blame, but she participated as well.  Jesus Christ came from the line of David and Bathsheba even though she was an adulteress.

 

All of these women are like us…they failed in some way.  All of these were women of disfavor in some way.  Yet the God of all grace provided a way for them to escape their circumstances.  The Lord was so graceful to them that He came from their lineage.

 

What is grace?

 

Grace is part of the Lord’s being…grace is part of the Lord’s purpose… grace comes from WHO the Lord is…it is not just something He does.  The Lord is the Source of grace, and we are the objects of His grace.  Grace constitutes all God has always been pleased to do for His creatures to demonstrate a willingness to give us the space to grow, as we wish, on our own time frame.

 

Grace is a manifestation of the Lord’s unconditional love for us.  The Lord’s graciousness does not take into account the worthiness of the object of His grace.  The Lord’s grace cannot be earned, or deserved or worked for… it is simply a free gift that we can accept if we so choose.  

 

The Cross always was, is now, and always will be a picture of the Lord’s GRACE.

 

God the Father started the chain of grace…Ephesians, Chapter 2, Verses 4 to 7…

 

EPHESIANS 2:4

But God the Father, being rich in mercy, because of His great unconditional love with which the Father loved us…

 

EPHESIANS 2:5 

…even when we were dead in our transgressions…made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved) …

 

EPHESIANS 2:6 

…and raised us up (in resurrection from the dead) with Christ…and seated us with Jesus in the heavenly places…in union with Christ Jesus…

 

EPHESIANS 2:7 

…so that in the ages to come God the Father might demonstrate the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward all of us who are in union with Christ Jesus.

 

What is it that made us the object of the Lord’s grace?  It is not our goodness.  It is our sin.  You don’t really become a person until you know how sinful you are…so now I see why people are so obsessed with telling their sin story…at least when this is the reason they tell it.  It is our sinfulness that makes us require Christ.  In sinfulness, we come to Christ.  And, of course, the Lord’s grace comes through for us…Second Corinthians, Chapter 5, Verse 21 says…

 

SECOND CORINTHIANS 5:21

God the Father made Jesus Christ who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf so that we might become the righteousness of God in union with Him.

 

Yes…we have sinned…but God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ have

rescued us in grace.  Like the first four women mentioned in the Bible, there is no soundness in us.  The Lord reminds us of who we are in Romans, Chapter 3, an absolutely scathing indictment of us when we are spiritually dead…let’s look at verses 10 to 12…

 

ROMANS 3:10 

…as it is written, “There is NO CREATURE who is righteous before God, NOT EVEN ONE…”

 

ROMANS 3:11 

“There is NO CREATURE who understands God…or any divine thing… there is NO CREATURE who seeks a relationship with God…”

 

ROMANS 3:12 

“All creatures turned aside from God…together they have become useless… there is no creature who does good…there is not even one.” 

 

Yet the Lord reminds us, and a woman caught in the act of adultery, who we are to Him in John, Chapter 8.  First, the sin…Verses 3 to 5…

 

JOHN 8:3

The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court….

 

JOHN 8:4 

…they said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery…in the very act!”

 

JOHN 8:5 

“Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women to death… what then do You say?”

 

The Lord said, “Punks…I dictated the Mosaic Law to Moses because I wrote it!”  He said that to Himself.  J  But what He said to the Pharisees in John, Chapter 8, Verse 7…

 

JOHN 8:7

“He who is without sin among you…let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” 

Who is the Lord?  He is a picture of grace. The Lord Jesus Christ doesn’t throw stones at us because of our sin.  He throws His grace at us.  When we look back to the Cross in the Lord’s Supper celebration today, we see a demonstration of the Lord’s grace and we are grateful.  Like the first four women mentioned in the New Testament, we are the worst.  God’s grace is the best!  God’s grace turns our sinfulness into victory.  Our God is the PICTURE of grace.

 

THE LORD’S SUPPER CELEBRATION

Enjoying the Lord’s Supper Elements

 

Let’s remember Jesus in the way He told us to remember Him.  Obeying our Lord’s command, we keep on celebrating the Christ and His Cross regularly.  We eat to remember who He is as a PERSON.  We drink to remember His WORK on the Cross…the voluntary sacrifice He made to deliver us.  We remember with gratitude what God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ have done to save us.  Matthew, Chapter 26, Verses 26 to 28…

 

MATTHEW 26:26

While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take…eat…this is My body (which is being broken for you).”

 

MATTHEW 26:27

And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, Jesus gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you…”

 

MATTHEW 26:28 

"…for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”

 

Let’s listen to the Lord.  Let’s keep on eating this bread…let’s keep on drinking this cup…let’s do both to remember Him.  Let’s keep on being transformed by His life…His death… His burial…His resurrection from the dead…and His Word.  

 

SONG INTRO

 

James, Chapter 1, Verse 17 says…

 

JAMES 1:17

Every good thing is given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from God the Father…the One in control of the heavenly lights…with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

 

Let’s enjoy the elements as we listen to the Lord’s Supper song…ALL GOOD GIFTS.

 

LORD’S SUPPER SONG

ALL GOOD GIFTS

Godspell

 

GOD WANTS YOU!

Make the Most Important Decision of Your Life

 

The closing moments of our study are for the benefit of anyone who does not have a personal relationship with the Sovereign God of the Universe, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  We want you to know that GOD WANTS YOU. 

 

When a person evangelizes to you, they are presenting a gospel message for your consideration. They know they cannot “convert” you, although the pressure you experience from some of them might feel like that’s what they want to do.  Most are simply giving you facts to consider…facts that you may or may not know.

 

For example, if you've ever had Jehovah's Witnesses come to your door, they are evangelizing to you.  If you've ever had members of the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter-day Saints come to your door, they are evangelizing to you.  Unfortunately, both of those groups are inviting you to share eternity with them in the Lake of Fire, because neither of these groups believes that Jesus Christ is God.  I have family members who are part of one of these religions, and despite my best evangelism efforts, my family members don't want to hear anything that God has to say to them through me.

 

Many parents are leading their children to a destiny in the Lake of Fire.  If you want to assess whether or not you’re a good parent, just ask yourself a simple question…are you influencing your children to have a relationship with the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Sovereign God of the Universe? He is the ONLY WAY to get to heaven according to John, Chapter 14, Verse 6…

 

JOHN 14:6

Jesus said to the doubting apostle, Thomas, “I am the way (to salvation), and I am the truth (through the gospel message…the Word of God), and I am the resurrection life…and no one comes to God the Father (in heaven) but through believing in Me.”

 

If a gospel message makes it sound like you have to work to get to heaven,

it’s a false gospel message.  Second Peter, Chapter 2, Verse 1 warns…

 

SECOND PETER 2:1

…false prophets also arose among the people…just as there will also be false teachers among you…who will secretly introduce destructive heresies…even denying the Master (the Lord Jesus Christ) who bought them (to earth) … bringing swift destruction upon themselves.

 

Romans, Chapter 11, Verse 6 says we don’t have to work to be saved…

 

ROMANS 11:6

…if salvation is by grace (a free gift from God) … and of course it is…it is no longer on the basis of works…otherwise, grace (as a free gift) is no longer grace (it is not free).

 

Romans, Chapter 4, Verse 4 says you CAN’T work for salvation…

 

ROMANS 4:4

Now to the one who works (for salvation), his wage (for his work) is not credited (to his account) as a favor (from the grace of God), but (his wage is credited) as what is due for the work.

 

Unfortunately, your hardest work is not perfect enough to earn you a spot in heaven.  Do you want to get to heaven free of charge?  Acts, Chapter 16, Verse 31 says…

 

ACTS 16:31 

“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and everyone in your household who also believes.”

 

John, Chapter 3, Verse 36 warns…

 

JOHN 3:36

“He who believes in the Son has the resurrection life right at that moment… but he who does not obey the command to believe in the Son will not see the resurrection life…instead the wrath of God (the Lake of Fire) abides on him.”

 

John, Chapter 3, Verse 17 highlights Jesus’ mission…

 

JOHN 3:17

For God the Father did not send God the Son (the Lord Jesus Christ) into the world to judge the world…but the Father sent the Son into the world that the world might be saved through Him.

 

Who is this God who saves you?  The apostle Paul describes the Lord Jesus Christ…in First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verses 3 and 4… 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:3

For I (Paul) delivered to you as of first importance the gospel message I also received…that it was Jesus Christ who died for our sins according to the Scriptures…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:4 

…and that He was buried…and that He was raised from the dead on the third day…according to the Scriptures…

 

Take the free gift of eternal life right now!  There’s no time to waste!  God wants you.  If you want to go to heaven when you close your eyes in this life, simply believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.  

 

SONG INTRODUCTION

 

The Lord keeps it simple in John, Chapter 14, Verse 23…

 

JOHN 14:23

“If (3) anyone loves Me (maybe you will and maybe you won’t…you have a choice)…he will keep My word…”

Here’s June Murphy to sing a simple love song to the Lord…JESUS, I LOVE YOU.

 

CLOSING SONG

JESUS, I LOVE YOU

June Murphy

 

PROVERBS 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. //In all your ways acknowledge Jesus, and He will make your paths straight.

 

DEUTERONOMY 31:8

“For the Lord is the one who goes ahead of you…He will be with you…He will not fail you or forsake you…so not fear or be dismayed.”

 

ISAIAH 30:18

The Lord longs to be gracious to you…He waits on high to have compassion on you…for the Lord is a God of justice…blessed are all those who wait for Him.

 

FIRST PETER 5:6-7

Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time…//…slamming all your cares on His back, because He cares for you (God considers your problems to be His responsibility).

 

CLOSING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

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