FCOR-92-210321 - length: 97:25 - taught on Mar, 21 2021
Class Outline:
We were all outsiders once.
Welcome To
BARAH MINISTRIES
a Christian Church
Rory Clark
Pastor-Teacher
Good Morning! Happy first day of spring! Yay! God…turn up the heat!
Welcome to Barah Ministries…an intimate, local Christian Church with worldwide impact. My name is Pastor Rory Clark. Welcome to this Bible lesson!
DON’T FORGET TO LISTEN TO THE ANNOUNCEMENTS
Who is Jesus Christ? At Barah Ministries we know this truth…that Jesus Christ is God. Everywhere you look in the Bible, either Jesus was saying this about Himself, or others were saying it about Him…many accusing Him of blasphemy because “He was making Himself out to be equal with God the Father.” John, Chapter 1, Verse 14 makes it clear that Jesus Christ is Deity…
JOHN 1:14
And the Word (the Lord…God the Son) became flesh (Jesus…the Christ… the Messiah) and He lived among us…and we saw His glory…glory as of the only begotten One from the source of God the Father…full of grace and full of truth.
The Bible refers to Jesus in so many ways…He is the Word…He is The Lord Jesus Christ…He is the Son of God…He is the Son of Man…He is 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…He is the Jewish Messiah…He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world…He is the Light of men, and in Him, there is no darkness at all. It is a pleasure and a blessing to worship the ONE AND ONLY TRUE GOD.
Why does Barah Ministries exist? At Barah Ministries, we make a difference by teaching the Word of God, Verse-by-Verse, from God’s perspective and not from man’s perspective. We are Christians and we have a deep, intimate, and personal relationship with the Lord through the study of His Word. Second Peter, Chapter 1, Verses 20 and 21 exhort us to…
SECOND PETER 1:20
…know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own private interpretation…
SECOND PETER 1:21
…for no prophecy of Scripture was ever made by an act of human will…but men carried along by God the Holy Spirit spoke directly from the exact thinking of THE God, the Lord Jesus Christ.
First Corinthians, Chapter 2, Verse 16 says…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 2:16
…who has come to know the mind of the Lord? And who will instruct the Lord? But we believers in Christ have the mind of Christ (in the Word of God…the Bible).
The Bible is not just a bunch of stories. The Bible has no contradictions. The Bible is the absolute truth. We ask you to always compare what is taught here at Barah Ministries to what the Bible says. That’s not just an invitation, it’s a responsibility!
Who is God’s enemy? It’s Satan, whom God made ‘the ruler of this world.’ In John, Chapter 12, Verse 31, the Lord says…
JOHN 12:31
“Now judgment is upon this world…now the ruler of this world (Satan) will be cast out (he will be dethroned at a future time).”
Satan exists. He is a creature. He is not a “symbol of evil.” He is not a concept. He isn’t a cartoon character with a red epidermis and a pitchfork. He is a perfect, gorgeous, well-dressed, former officer angel, and a brilliant genius. Ezekiel, Chapter 28, Verse 15…
EZIKIEL 28:15
“You (Satan) were the anointed cherub (a four-winged officer angel) who covers (the Lord’s bodyguard) … and I (the Lord…God the Son) placed you there (in that position). You were on the holy mountain of God (in the third heaven) … you walked in the midst of the stones of fire (in the throne room of heaven).”
If not for God’s protective power, we would be defenseless against him. Satan’s purpose is to ruin your life. His strategy against the human race is religion. He deceives people into following false teachers and gets them to worship false gods. The spiritual life is warfare, and your soul is the battleground. First Peter, Chapter 5, Verse 9 says…
SECOND PETER 1:20
…resist Satan…instead, stand firm in your faith (in the Lord) …
TODAY'S BIBLE LESSON
In God’s Plan, How We Treat Unbelievers Matters
LESSON INTRODUCTION
As we continue our study of First Corinthians, Chapter 14, we’ve learned that there were some treatment issues in the first-century church at Corinth. A group of believers in the church who considered themselves as the “spiritual elite” were lording their spiritual gift of tongues over believers who had different spiritual gifts. This mistreatment was showing up during “open to the public” worship services. Paul had been asked by Chloe’s people to address it.
In our last lesson, Paul reminded this group that spiritual gifts are to be used to edify the members of the body of Christ…believers in Christ…gifts that should be used with a foundation of unconditional love. In today’s lesson, Paul reminds the believers at Corinth that God cares how we treat unbelievers as well.
SONG INTRODUCTION
Let’s hear some music! We worship a perfect God who has perfect strength who keeps on pouring His perfect power into us. Philippians, Chapter 4, Verse 13 says…
PHILIPPIANS 4:13
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Steven Curtis Chapman sings HIS STRENGTH IS PERFECT.
MUSIC AND REFLECTION
Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ
Enjoy the Singing of His Praises
HIS STRENGTH IS PERFECT
Steven Curtis Chapman
OPENING PRAYER
Let us pray...
We’re grateful, Heavenly Father, for the privilege of studying Your absolute truth...the Word of God…
Father, thank you for Barah Ministries…thank you for placing people in leadership positions at Barah Ministries who have faith that is smaller than a mustard seed…thank you for allowing us, as leaders, to overwork ourselves, both in the world and within the ministry so we can neglect to plant the seeds of the gospel message of salvation in Satan’s kingdom…thank you for allowing our spirit of limits to distract us from the discomfort and growth You wait patiently to provide for us when our faith is ready to accept it…
…give us a vision as big as You are…awaken the courage You have placed within us…help us to lead our families and our friends to a relationship with You…show us how to take advantage of Your marvelous bigness so that we are shamed into knowing beyond a reasonable doubt that we can do all things through Your Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…who strengthens us…
…we ask this through the enabling power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ’s name...Amen.
TODAY'S BIBLE LESSON
In God’s Plan, How We Treat Unbelievers Matters
We continue our study of First Corinthians with a verse-by-verse look at Chapter 14, Verses 20 to 25. To begin, a reminder about “open to the public” worship services…the Barah Ministries public worship service has three parts…
PART ONE-The Introduction
Who is Jesus Christ?
What makes Barah Ministries different?
Who is God’s enemy?
PART TWO-For Believers in Christ
Study of the Word of God Verse-by-Verse
We are studying Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthian Church
We are learning about a new church with immature believers
We get to compare their conduct to our own
PART THREE- For Unbelievers
The Gospel Message
What does it take to be saved?
The messages at Barah Ministries are easy to understand…organized… recorded in audio and video…readily available on the Barah Ministries website and on the Barah Ministries APP…with written notes that can be examined, reviewed, and discussed. In short, our public service is totally understandable both to believers in Christ and to unbelievers.
In the public worship service of the first-century Corinthian Church, the best way to describe the service is complete chaos. People would get up and make a random display of the spiritual gift of tongues. The tongues were unintelligible, and they were being used to make other believers, with different spiritual gifts, feel inferior. These public worship services had a negative effect on unbelievers as well.
Paul is addressing the problem…and the next passage is the beginning of his concluding argument that has been building in First Corinthians, Chapters 12, 13, and 14. Let's read the next section of this three-chapter passage, and then we’ll study it verse-by-verse. It’s a short section that packs a lot of punch. First Corinthians, Chapter 14, Verses 20 to 25…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:20
Brethren, do not be children in your thinking…in evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:21
In the Mosaic Law it is written, “By men of strange tongues and by the lips of strangers I will speak to this people (the Jews in Israel) … and even so they will not listen to Me,” says the Lord.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:22
So then tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe but to unbelievers… and prophecy is for a sign…not to unbelievers…but to those who believe.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:23
Therefore if the whole church assembles together…and all speak in tongues…and ungifted men or unbelievers enter…will they not say that you are mad (won’t they think you are crazy)?
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:24
But if all prophesy (is spoken in your church) … and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters…he is convicted by all…he is called to account by all…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:25
…the secrets of his heart are disclosed…and so he will fall on his face and worship God…declaring that God is certainly among you.
Let’s take a look at what this passage is teaching verse-by-verse…First Corinthians, Chapter 14, Verse 20…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:20
Brethren (believers in Christ at the church in first-century Corinth) do not be children in your thinking … (but if you want to be children)…in evil be infants (don’t give evil a second thought)…but in your thinking be mature.
An interesting contrast of thought…Paul encourages and admonishes the Corinthians indirectly to not be childish, which is what they were being. He’s telling them to grow up! It’s the same thing he has already told them earlier in this same letter…First Corinthians, Chapter 3, Verse 1…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:1a
I (Paul), brethren (fellow believers in Christ at Corinth), could not speak to you as I would speak to spiritual persons (those with the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit…believers in Christ…even though you are believers) …
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:1b
…but (I have to speak to you) as (if I am speaking) to men of flesh (those without the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit…unbelievers) … as if I am speaking to infants in union with Christ.
Paul is saying they are making him treat them like babies! IN First Corinthians, Chapter 13, Verse 11 he tells them again…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 13:11
When I was a child, I used to speak as a child speaks…think as a child thinks…and reason as a child reasons…but when I became a man, I put an end to childish things.
Paul even had to address the same issue with other churches on his watch…Ephesians, Chapter 4, Verses 14 and 15…
EPHESIANS 4:14
As a result, we are no longer to be children…tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine…by the trickery of men…by craftiness in deceitful scheming…
EPHESIANS 4:15
…but speaking the truth in unconditional love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Christ who is the head…
Paul wants the believers in the Corinthian church to not be flighty like children, but to be mature…seeing the effect their conduct has on others.
Paul does want the Corinthian believers to be like babies in one respect… he wants them to be curious enough to learn…Matthew, Chapter 18, Verses 1 to 3…
MATTHEW 18:1
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
They were being childish…trying to establish a spiritually elite pecking order…
MATTHEW 18:2
And Jesus called a child to Himself and set the child before them…
MATTHEW 18:3
…and Jesus said, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children…you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.’
To the Lord, greatness comes from a child-like humility…not from a self-righteous approach to life and to Christianity. So it is with spiritual gifts… they are used to edify other believers…sealed with unconditional love…and not used to cause divisions and rivalries. The spiritual gifts are also to be used to create an inviting atmosphere for unbelievers in public worship
services.
Paul has been teaching the Corinthian believers that a foundation of unconditional love driving the spiritual gifts is useful because unconditional love is not going away. Paul contends that obsessing over two gifts (tongues and prophecy) that soon will cease is a waste of time, and it’s immature. Paul is telling the Corinthians that there is no value in unintelligible speech in a public assembly, especially because of the effect it has on unbelievers.
When we return from the break, we’ll take the offering, and then we’ll see what Paul recommends in the treatment of unbelievers during public worship.
FIVE MINUTE BREAK
NOBODY
Casting Crowns
TODAY'S BIBLE LESSON
In God’s Plan, How We Treat Unbelievers Matters
God the Father loves all of His creatures unconditionally…and He loves us so much that He gave His Son to save us. Let the thoughts expressed in Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 31 and 32 REALLY sink in…
ROMANS 8:31b
If God the Father is for us believers in Christ, and He is, who is ever going to be successful in opposition against us?
The answer? No one!
ROMANS 8:32
God the Father…who (in the midst of His feelings of WRATH) did not spare His own Son (the Lord Jesus Christ) … but delivered Him over for us all…how will God the Father, now that we are in union with Christ, not also freely give us all things?
If we’re clear how big God is…and if we’re clear what He is willing to give us, let’s not be conflicted about giving. Let’s realize what God is able to do with what we give, both for us and for others. Let’s realize how important giving is to create the possibility of salvation for others...especially the experience of a “so great” salvation. Be generous with the financial gifts your Lord has given you. Let’s welcome up Deacon Denny Goodall with one of his always inspiring offering messages.
THE OFFERING
Deacon Denny Goodall
OFFERING VERSE
ROMANS 12:9
Let unconditional love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil...cling to what is good.
OFFERING SONG
THERE IS NONE LIKE YOU
Don Moen
TODAY'S BIBLE LESSON
In God’s Plan, How We Treat Unbelievers Matters
First Corinthians, Chapter 14, Verse 21…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:21
In the Mosaic Law it is written, "By men of strange tongues and by the lips of strangers I will speak to these people (the Jews) … and even so they will not listen to Me,” says the Lord.
When God talks to us in ways we can understand, it is to edify. When God speaks to us in ways we cannot understand, it is to judge. An analogy is readily available. The Lord, God the Son, became flesh…Jesus…the Christ…the Messiah…and He came to His people…the Jewish race…and to His nation…Israel. He sent them a clear and intelligible message. I AM THE MESSIAH. They rejected Him. When it was apparent that they would not change their minds about Him, they were judged. Acts, Chapter 28, Verses 23 to 28…
ACTS 28:23
When the Jewish leaders had set a day for Paul to speak, they came to him at his lodging in large numbers…and he was explaining to them by solemnly testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both the Law of Moses and from the Prophets (the Old Testament)…from morning until evening.
ACTS 28:24
Some were being persuaded by the things spoken by Paul…but others (the majority) would not believe.
ACTS 28:25
And when they (Paul and the Jewish leaders) did not agree with one another, the Jewish leaders began leaving after Paul had spoken one parting word, “The Holy Spirit rightly spoke through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers…”
ACTS 28:26
“…saying, ‘Go to this people and say, “You will keep on hearing…but will not understand…and you will keep on seeing, but will not perceive…”
ACTS 28:27
“For the heart of this people has become dull (a heart hardened to accepting Jesus as the Messiah) …and with their ears they scarcely hear… and they have closed their eyes…otherwise they might see with their eyes…and hear with their ears…and understand with their heart and return…and I (the Lord) would heal them.”’
ACTS 28:28
“Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles…they WILL listen.”
Then silence. The Lord has not spoken to the Jews since, and will not until the beginning of the next age in divine history…the Tribulation period… thousands of years of silence toward the Lord’s nation and His people. Paul, of course, is the apostle to the Gentiles. That’s you and me! Now Paul makes it clear how the spiritual gifts of tongues and prophecy are useful in the Corinthian Church…and what makes them not so useful…First Corinthians, Chapter 14, Verse 22…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:22
So then tongues are for a sign…not to those who believe but to unbelievers …and prophecy is for a sign…not to unbelievers but to those who believe.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:23
Therefore if the whole church assembles together…and all speak in tongues…and a man unacquainted with Christianity or unbelievers enter the church…will they not say that you are mad (won’t they think you are crazy)?
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:24
But if all prophesy (is spoken in your church) … and an unbeliever or a man unacquainted with Christianity enters the church…he is convicted by all (through prophecy) … he is called to account by all (through prophecy) …
FIRST CORINTHIANS 14:25
…and the secrets of his heart are disclosed…and so he will fall on his face and worship God, declaring that God is certainly among you.
Who is at work at the base of prophecy? God the Holy Spirit, the distributor of the spiritual gifts! When seeds are planted in unbelievers, God the Holy Spirit is producing the increase. John, Chapter 16, Verses 7 to 11…
JOHN 16:7
But I (the Lord Jesus Christ) tell you the truth…it is to your advantage that I go away…for if I do not go away, the Helper (the paraclete…God the Holy Spirit) will not come to you…but if I go away, and I will, I will send God the Holy Spirit to you.
JOHN 16:8
And God the Holy Spirit, when He comes, will convict (convince) the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment…
JOHN 16:9
… (God the Holy Spirit will convict the world) concerning sin (the greatest problem in the world) … because unbelievers do not believe in Me (the Lord Jesus Christ) …
JOHN 16:10
…and (God the Holy Spirit will convict the world) concerning (the) righteousness (of Christ who was falsely accused of unrighteousness and was crucified) … because I (the Lord Jesus Christ) go to God the Father and you no longer see Me (the resurrection from the dead vindicates the Lord as righteous) …
JOHN 16:11
…and (God the Holy Spirit will convict the world) concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged (Satan has lost the Creator-creature conflict and is on death row).
By using the spiritual gift of tongues in a public worship service, without proper interpretation of the tongues for public consumption, the unintelligible gibberish sounds were not edifying to believers. Worse, it turned unbelievers off and made them think Christians are insane (mania).
The Lord used tongues to inform Israel that they were being judged…set aside for a period of time to usher in the Church Age. When Israel and the Jews would not listen to the truth in intelligible speech…that Jesus is the Christ…the Messiah…the Lord sent “stammering lips” to them…the Assyrian army…to occupy Jerusalem.
Paul makes a connection between the hardened heart of the Jews and the childish behavior of the Corinthians believers. Just as tongues hardened the hearts of the Jews even more than they were already hard, the misuse of the spiritual gift tongues in public worship hardened the hearts of unbelievers against Christianity. Paul makes it clear that treating unbelievers like outsiders is NOT the Christian Way of Living.
GOD WANTS YOU!
Make the Most Important Decision of Your Life
You matter to God. Second Peter, Chapter 3, Verse 9 says…
SECOND PETER 3:9
The Lord is not slow about His promise of salvation, as some accuse Him of...instead, He is patient toward unbelievers…not wishing for any to perish (in the Lake of Fire) but for all to come to repentance (a voluntary change of mind about having a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ).
To God’s enemy, Satan…the ruler of this world, you don’t matter at all. First Peter, Chapter 5, Verse 8 says…
FIRST PETER 5:8
Be of sober spirit…be on the alert! Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
You are the “someone” on Satan’s hit list.
The closing moments of our study are for those of you who do not have a personal relationship with the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It’s for those of you who may be wondering what is going to happen to you when you close your eyes in this life.
Satan…the enemy of God dislikes you so much that he doesn’t want you to be saved. He doesn’t want you to be with God in heaven when you close your eyes in this life. He wants you to be with him in the Lake of Fire. He wants you so badly that he sends false teachers to deceive you. In Matthew, Chapter 7, Verse 15…the Lord Himself warns about this…
MATTHEW 7:15
“Beware of the false prophets…who come to you in sheep’s clothing…but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”
The bad news is that all of us are born in a state of unrighteousness. We are born physically alive and spiritually dead as ungodly, unrighteous unbelievers. It’s not our fault, but it is our circumstance. In First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 22, the bible says…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:22a
For all in union with Adam at physical birth (and that is every human being who comes to earth) are set to die the second death in the Lake of Fire…
This gospel message is your guide to the good news that rescues you from
the kingdom of darkness you were born into, inviting you to be born again into the spiritual life available in God’s kingdom of light.
Satan, the enemy of God, who is a very real being, not a concept… sends false teachers to give you a false gospel message. 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 believe in a false gospel message and a false god so you can share eternity with them in the Lake of Fire! Neither of these groups believes that Jesus Christ is God. I have family members who are part of one of these religions, and in spite of 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 an eternity 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. 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).
In fact, Romans, Chapter 4, Verse 4 says you CAN’T work for salvation…you can’t save yourself!
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, Verses 16 and 17 highlight Jesus’ mission…
JOHN 3:16
“For God the Father loved the world unconditionally…and He loved the world so much…that He gave His uniquely born Son (the God-man…the Lord Jesus Christ…to be crucified on a Cross) … so that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but has eternal life.”
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 from God…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…
If you’d like, you can spend the eternal state with God’s enemy, Satan, in the Lake of Fire…OR…you can have the free gift of eternal life in God’s presence…and you can decide right this minute! 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! Take The Lord’s word for it concerning what it takes to be saved, and the resurrection life is yours free of charge!
SONG INTRODUCTION
The most powerful event in human history is the Cross, and what the Lord Jesus Christ did for us there. The religious undo the Cross’s power in their lives by falling for a Satanic substitute. Just like Satan did, the religious propose that their works are good enough to please God and to earn their own salvation. The Bible insists they are wasting their time. Galatians, Chapter 2, Verse 21 is one of the places where the apostle Paul makes these religious ideas ridiculous…
GALATIANS 2:21
“I (Paul) do not nullify (set aside) the grace of God (with self-righteousness)…for if righteousness comes through (obeying) the Mosaic Law, then Christ died needlessly.”
If we could pay for our own sins, then why did the Lord Jesus Christ need to go to the Cross? June Murphy lets us know in song, no matter how hard you try, YOU CAN’T UNDO THE CROSS.
MUSIC AND REFLECTION
Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ
Enjoy the Singing of His Praises
YOU CAN’T UNDO THE CROSS
June Murphy
MUSIC AND REFLECTION
Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ
Enjoy the Singing of His Praises
YOU CAN’T UNDO THE CROSS
June Murphy
CLOSING VERSES
A Doxology of Praise to Our God
EPHESIANS 1:3
Worthy of praise is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us believers in Christ in eternity past with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms (a place of permanence)…through our union with Christ…
God wants us to enjoy His gracious provisions…
EPHESIANS 1:7-8
In Jesus…we have redemption (deliverance from slavery to sin) through His blood…the forgiveness of our trespasses…according to the glorious wealth provided by His grace…which He lavished on us…including as a gift, wisdom and insight…
EPHESIANS 3:20
Now to God the Father…who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we could ask or imagine (more than is humanly possible) …according to the divine power (omnipotence) that works within us…
EPHESIANS 3:21
…to Him be the glory…through the church age believers in union with Christ Jesus…and to all generations forever and ever. Amen.
CLOSING PRAYER
Let us pray...
Thanks for coming!
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for listening!
WHAT DOES GOD THINK ABOUT REPETITIVE PRAYER?
Sometimes, I hear the sound of desperation in your prayers.
I also hear the sounds of your own boredom with your repetition in prayer. You keep on asking for the same things.
How does God feel about your repetitive prayers?
LUKE 18:1-8
Now Jesus was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart, saying, “In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God (an unbeliever) and did not respect man. There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him (at his home), saying, ‘Give me legal protection from my opponent.’ For a while the judge was unwilling…but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming (to my home) she will wear me out.’” And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge said; now, will not God the Father bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them? I (the Lord Jesus Christ) tell you that God the Father will bring about justice for His believers quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”
With God, we never take NO for an answer.
God loves persistent prayers.
God is bigger than our “way too little” prayers.
God is bigger than our little problems…
Friends and family members with Alzheimer’s
Friends and family members with negative volition toward a relationship with Christ
Empty Bank Accounts
Broken Relationships
Enemies
So we pray our repetitive prayers with confidence, knowing that the Father hears us and that He loves our persistence
| April 2024 | ||||||
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
| 31 | 1 Mon | 2 Tue | 3 Wed | 4 Thu | 5 Fri | 6 Sat |
| 7 Sun | 8 Mon | 9 Tue | 10 Wed | 11 Thu | 12 Fri | 13 Sat |
| 14 Sun | 15 Mon | 16 Tue | 17 Wed | 18 Thu | 19 Fri | 20 Sat |
| 21 Sun | 22 Mon | 23 Tue | 24 Wed | 25 Thu | 26 Fri | 27 Sat |
| 28 Sun | 29 Mon | 30 Tue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
 |
1220 S. Alma School Rd. Suite 201 Mesa, AZ 85210 |
 |
(480) 237-9903 |
 |
info@barahministries.com |
