Sharing Our Faith With Power, Love And A Sound Mind

“that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus” (Phielmon, verse 6) ... “Every good thing in you” brings to mind the wonderfully encouraging words of 2 Timothy 1:7 – “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” What a great encouragement it is to know that we can exchange our weakness – “fear” – for the Lord’s strength – “power … love … a sound mind.” This is the fulfilment of God’s promise in Isaiah 40:31 – “Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength”. The combination of “power” and “love” is important. We might say that it is the power of love. It is the love of God at work. It is the power of God at work. His love motivates us to reach out for Him. His power makes our witness effective for Him. As well as power and love, there is also the blessing of “a sound mind.” There are times when we have the opportunity to prepare a message from God’s Word. We use our minds to think through what the Lord is saying to us and what He wants us to say to the people. There are other times when we must think on our feet. We must “always be ready to give a defence to everyone who asks for a reason for a hope that is in us.” We must do this “with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15). When we have to think on our feet, we must stand upon the Lord’s Word: “do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit” (Mark 13:11) ... We must never forget that the “power” and “love” come from the Lord and not from ourselves ...

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“… the sharing of your faith … ” (Philemon, verse 6)

Evangelism: Learning From Jesus (4)

John 4:1-42
Many more believe. This is not because of the woman's testimony. It is because of the Lord's own Word. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. We give our testimony. Through our weak words, the Holy Spirit gives His testimony. The Holy Spirit uses our inadequate words to point men and women to the Lord Jesus. As the Holy Spirit works, the Church is created. When Jesus leaves Samaria, he does not leave behind only one believer. Through His Word, there are many believers. He leaves behind many believers. What strength and encouragement these believers received from each other as, together, they rejoiced in their new-found faith - Jesus Christ is "indeed the Saviour of the world" (John 4:42). This is our faith. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we must encourage one another to go on in this faith.

Evangelism: Learning From Jesus (3)

John 4:1-42
With His whole life centred on doing the Father's will - "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work " (John 4:34), Jesus is ready for this opportunity to give to the woman the "living water" which He alone can give. As we go around, here and there, with this intention - to do the Lord's will, we can expect God to use us to bring blessing to others. In this story, how does God use Jesus to fulfil His purpose? This is not only the story of one woman. It is the story of "many Samaritans" and "many more" (John 4:39; John 4:41). When we are faithful in sharing Jesus with one person, who knows what may result from this?

Evangelism: Learning From Jesus (2)

John 4:1-42
The story continues with a very natural conversation-opener. Jesus says to the woman, "Give Me a drink" (John 4:7). It soon becomes clear that the deeper dimension - Jesus is walking in the Spirit - is about to influence the direction of the conversation. When we are walking in the Spirit, we must be ready for conversations to move in the direction of the things of God. The Spirit will give us opportunities to share the Good News of Christ with others. Jesus speaks of "living water" (John 4:10). When we have the life of Christ within us, the life of the Spirit in our hearts, we will be given opportunities to share that life with others. We share this life as we speak for Jesus. This sharing will, however, be more than a matter of words. it will be a matter of life - sharing the life which God has put into our hearts, sharing the life of Jesus.

Evangelism: Learning From Jesus (1)

John 4:1-42
Here, we see Jesus at work, sharing the Gospel, leading the Samaritan woman to faith. we see Jesus, bringing many Samaritans to faith (John 4:39; John 4:41-42). Notice how the situation develops. Jesus does not set out with the specific goal of speaking about the deep things of the faith to the first to the first person he meets. The story begins with a weary Man - Jesus, sitting down beside the well (John 4:6). There was, however, a deeper dimension. Jesus is walking in the Spirit. He is in the centre of the Father's will. He is ready to speak the Word of the Lord whenever the opportunity presents itself.

A New Generation Has To Be Won For Christ. Will We Rise To The Challenge?

Numbers 26:23-65
There is real sadness in the final words of this chapter: ‘There was not left a man of them, except Caleb and Joshua’(65). There is also a sense of expectation. So many had died in the wilderness. This was now a new generation. We’re living in changing times. God is equipping His people for new challenges. We must not stand still. We dare not say, ‘It’s never been done that way before’! A new generation has to be won for Christ. Will we rise to the challenge? Or, will we ‘die in the wilderness (65)? Taking possession of ‘the promised land’ would not be easy. Making advances for Christ will not be easy. We must lay aside those things which need to ‘die in the wilderness’. We must take hold of all that God has given to us - if there is to be ‘Good News for the next generation’!
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Blessings in Christ
Christ in all the Scriptures
http://christinallthescriptures.blogspot.com

Rebuilding, Revival, Restoration (Psalm 85)

In Psalm 85, we have three great lessons:
* the principle of rebuilding - There's work for us to do.
The prayer of the Psalmist comes from a time when the Lord's people needed the challenging words of Haggai and the inspiring leadership of Nehemiah. We dare not be apathetic when the Lord's work lies in ruins. We must rise to the challenge. The Lord's work must not be left in ruins. We must build on the one sure foundation - Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 2:11).
* the prayer for revival - As we work, we must also pray.
In the work of the Lord, it is not all about what we do. There needs to be a real looking to the Lord for His blessing - "Restore us again ... Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?" (verses 4, 6).
* the promise of restoration - Working and praying, let us look to the Lord to send His blessing.
"God promises peace to His people ... that His glory may dwell in our land ... The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest" (verses 8-9, 12).

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