Hearing God's Voice - Week 4

When I Ask

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

What are you (people in general), afraid of/concerned about when asking for an answer from God about a personal situation or need?

Three areas of fear/concern when asking God for something:

God is Uncontrollable.

Job 38-42


Romans 11:33-36
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?” For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

1 Corinthians 2:10-16
these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

My plan is the best plan - God doesn’t have my best interest in mind.
What if you gain the whole world and lose your soul? Mark 8:36
Better to be blind, or lame, or limbless than spend eternity far from God.
Rather be a door keeper in the house of God than dwell in tent of sinners.
I know what plans I have for you…
God is uncontrollable, but we can know his heart and have the mind of Christ.
Fear hearing “No” - God says no sometimes. (My plan is the best plan lie.)
Fear it won’t be what I want to hear but what I need to hear.
Fear that in my selfishness/ humanness/ weakness/ impatience I want what I want more than I want what God wants.
Fear my answer won’t be the way I imagined or hoped for. Different isn’t bad. Bring pain. Pain isn’t the absence of God, it’s an opportunity for God.
Fear the answer (yes or no) will push me out of my comfort zone. And that I might fail his testing or in the new area he is moving me.

I am Incompetent.

Luke 18:9-14
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Hebrews 4:14-16
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Romans 8:26-27
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

You are incompetent if answered prayer depends on you, but it doesn’t.
Jesus is our High Priest and Intercessor, the
Fear I’m asking the wrong question or the wrong way. I’m worried worry that I am not praying in faith because I have those fears.
Fear my living outside God’s will makes me unworthy.
Fear I’ll be impatient and run toward my own answer, missing his timing
Fear I will not hear Him right/ understand/ interpret the answer correctly. Or misinterpret the answer. Doubt and fear of taking wrong action. Missing God’s will.
Fear I miss God altogether (depart from me)

I am Unworthy.

Luke 5:8
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”

1 Peter 2:9-10
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Moses' reply: "Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent . . . send someone else "(Exodus 4:10, 13). After witnessing the presence of the Lord in the temple, Isaiah's response was, "Woe is me for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips "(Isaiah 6:5). After hearing rumours speculating that he might be the Christ, John the Baptist's reply was, "I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals "(Luke. 3:16). When the apostle Peter recognized that he was sitting in the same boat as God Incarnate, he pleaded with Jesus, "Depart from me Lord, for I am a sinful man "(Luke. 5:8).

We are unworthy in comparison to a Holy God, but He places value on us. We search for validation and answered prayer is our pat on the back, or our “I love you”. God gave his love, his son, his spirit, his words, his eternity, his grace and invites us into a relationship with him (liken to a bride), how much more validation do you have to have? How wanted and loved and full of worth do you need beyond what God has already done for you? He’s loved you from before you knew him, he’s provided for you, cared for you, courted you and has brought you to the alter to spend eternity with him. Does that look worthless to you?

Recognizing how great God is in comparison to your humanness is not a sin or bad. It should produce humility which God honors and rewards. But when your feeling of unworthiness negates the truths of God, then that is a problem. Guilt is not what God wants you to live in. He never has wanted that and never will.

Dog poops on the floor needs correction. But you don’t constantly walk around with the paper and threatening him. He will live in fear, a broken spirit and in the feeling of being unloved. That is not correction, that is abuse.

Fear God will find me unworthy. He gets fed up with me and my messes. Will answer me with the opposite to punish me for bad things in my past. Not close enough to him.

Fear I’m bothering him with my needs that, in the big scheme of things, are little.

Fear I don’t have the right to really expect God to hear me. So much guilt. Even that God wouldn’t want me to even ask for it.

Fear God doesn’t answer at all.

HOW TO REQUEST GUIDANCE

1.) Believe God cares about the details of my life.

Matthew. 6:31-32
So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

Hebrews 4:14-16
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

I can’t teach you how to believe, or make you believe. Those who have eyes/ears.

2.) Ask God specific questions.

Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

This isn’t to help God know the specifics but to help you know and understand when you get the answer. Write them down and celebrate when God answers.

3.) Expect God to answer!

James 1:5-8
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

CS Lewis said, “Prayer doesn’t change God; prayer changes me.” If I’m in a boat and I reach out with the boathook and pull, am I pulling the land to me? Or am I pulling myself closer to the shore? This is what prayer does for us.

Whatever answer God may give you or whatever way He may deliver it will always come secondary to your relationship with Him.

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Hearing God's Voice - Week 3

How to Recognize God's Voice

Message by:
Pastor Terry Carwford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

4 Ways to Test an Impression

 

1. Does it agree with the Bible?

  James 1:17
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

  Psalm 119:89
Your word, Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures.

  Galatians 1:7-8
Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.  But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse!

 

Check out the scriptures, know them, memorize them, God can bring them to mind.

 

2. Does it make me more like Christ?

  1 John 2:6  (ESV)
Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked

Romans 12:2
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

James 3:13-17
Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving,  considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

 

3. Would Godly, wise people confirm it?

  1 Samuel 3
The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions. One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord , where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.” And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down. Again the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” “My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord : The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. A third time the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, Lord , for your servant is listening.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” And the Lord said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle. At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family—from beginning to end. For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons blasphemed God, and he failed to restrain them. Therefore I swore to the house of Eli, ‘The guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.’ ” Samuel lay down until morning and then opened the doors of the house of the Lord . He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, but Eli called him and said, “Samuel, my son.” Samuel answered, “Here I am.” “What was it he said to you?” Eli asked. “Do not hide it from me. May God deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything he told you.” So Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing from him. Then Eli said, “He is the Lord ; let him do what is good in his eyes.” The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the Lord . The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.

 

Ask mature believers to evaluate.  Small Group.

 

4. Is it consistent with how God has shaped me?

  Ephesians 2:10
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

 

S.H.A.P.E.

S - Spiritual Gifts
H - Heart
A - Abilities
P - Personality
E - Experiences

 

Are you testing what you believe God is speaking to you

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Hearing Gods Voice - Week 2

Message by:
Pastor Terry Carwford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

God created us for relationship, invited us into relationship, fulfills his end of relationship, so we are able to know what he is asking us or communicating to us.

How does God Talk to Us?

God decides how and when he will communicate with us.

1. God speaks through the BIBLE.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (Message)
Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God’s way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.

Scripture is the only sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience.

Sola Scripturameans.
“The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for his own glory, man’s salvation, faith, and life, is either expressly set down in scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from scripture: unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men.” — Westminster Confession of Faith
What Does Sola Scripture Mean C.L.A.S.S. 101 - We teach that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are verbally inspired of God and inerrant in the original writing, and that they are the supreme and final authority in faith and life.

We genuinely long for God to guide us. We genuinely long for a personal word from God, a supernatural experience with God. Yet we fail to grasp that as we read and study and hear the Word of God taught and preached, it is a personal word from God. Because the Scriptures are "living and active," God's speaking to us through them is a personal, supernatural experience.

Who you need be, how you need to live your life and react to life’s struggles, proactive ministry and maturity actions are all in there. I believe 99.9 % of all of your life questions are already in the Word and the other .1 percent will be filtered through it.

2. God speaks through gifted TEACHERS and LEADERS.

Ephesians 4:11-15
So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ

3. God speaks through HOLY SPIRIT IMPRESSIONS.

John 14:26
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you

Job 33:14-15
or God does speak—now one way, now another— though no one perceives it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on people as they slumber in their beds,

Matthew 10:19-20
But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

Acts 16:6-7
Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to.

Every impression is not from God.

And if we want to go back a little further, Jonathan Edwards warned: I . . . know by experience that impressions being made with great power, and upon the minds of true saints, yea, eminent saints; and presently after, yea, in the midst of, extraordinary exercises of grace and sweet communion with God, and attended with texts of Scripture strongly impressed on the mind, are no sure signs of their being revelations from heaven: for I have known such impressions [to] fail, and prove vain.

Godly impressions are given for the building of His Kingdom.

Question: Am I listening for God in ways he normally speaks?

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New Year Soul Goal Week 2 - United in Mind

Message by:
Pastor Terry Carwford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Last week we talked about one of our main strategies of growth and maturity where we share our lives “our very souls” with one another through Small Groups. This is how we do life together. Where we encourage, comfort and challenge one another to live a life worthy of God. Today I want us to look at another of our strategies and it deals specifically with unity. Go with me to …

I Corinthians 1:4-10
I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge - God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.

Passionate followers of Jesus are to be united in mind and purpose.

We have different gifts and talents and are uniquely made up, but in the context of moving together as a gathered people, just like the Corinthians, Philippians, Thessalonians, Ephesians and other New Testament churches, we are to utilize all of the uniqueness for unity of mind and purpose. Several times the phrase “one mind” and “One accord” was used for those in Christ ready for his leading.

Unity does not happen naturally.

Unity is given by Christ and must be taught and exampled.

Believers are never told to become one; we already are one and are expected to act like it. - Joni Erikson-Tada

Covenant’s strategy for essential unity is through our

Christian Life And Service Seminars

(C.L.A.S.S.).

This isn’t all we offer for discipleship and maturity. We have small groups, individual biblical courses, leadership training, mission trips and other specific events to continue maturity efforts. But the foundational knowledge, purposes and expectations are spelled out in our CLASS Seminars. It gets us all on the same page, the same song, to be the most united and affective.

1. In essential beliefs — we have unity. Ephesians 4:4-6 - There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
2. In non-essential beliefs — we have liberty. Romans 14:1 - Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. , Romans 14:4 - Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand., Romans 14:12 - So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God, Romans 14:22 - So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves.
3. In all our beliefs — we show charity. 1 Corinthians 13:2 - If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

I have never yet known the Spirit of God to work where the Lord's people were divided. - D.L. Moody

Christ Jesus and the power of His cross.

1. There are things that God gives us that no man can.
2. There are things that we give to one another.
3. There are things that the called leaders of God’s church give to equip the saints and keep unity.

Goals of Christian Life And Service Seminars

1. In CLASS 101 - To commit to loving Christ and His family at Covenant.
2. In CLASS 201 - To commit to growing in the habits for Spiritual Maturity.
3. In CLASS 301 - To commit to discovering your unique design and serving a Ministry in our church.
4. In CLASS 401 - To discover your Mission of reaching the world for Christ.

The Essentials We Believe:

1. We teach that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are verbally inspired of God and inerrant in the original writing, and that they are the supreme and final authority in faith and life.
2. We teach one God eternally existing in three persons - Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
3. We teach that Jesus Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary and is true God and true man.
4. We teach that man was created in the image of God, and that he sinned and thereby incurred not only physical death, but spiritual death, which is separation from God.
5. We teach that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice, and that all who believe in Him are justified on the ground of His shed blood.
6. We teach the resurrection of the crucified body of our Lord, in His ascension into heaven, and in His present life there for us as High Priest, Intercessor and Advocate.
7. We teach the personal, bodily visible, imminent return of Jesus Christ.
8. We teach that all who receive by faith the Lord Jesus Christ are born again in the Holy Spirit and thereby become children of God.
9. We teach the bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust, the everlasting blessedness of the saved and in the conscious everlasting punishment of the lost.
10. We teach that a true believer is eternally secure, that he cannot lose his salvation, but that sin may interrupt the joy of his fellowship with God and bring the loving discipline of his Heavenly Father.
11. We teach that the Holy Spirit is a person, is God and possesses all the divine attributes. He dwells in all believers, baptizes and seals all believers at the time of their salvation, and fills them in response to confession of sin and yieldedness.
12. We teach that it is the goal of every Christian to grow in spiritual maturity through obedience to the Word of God and the indwelling Spirit.

I Corinthians 1:10
I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.

Question of the day: How will you be perfectly united in mind and thought?

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Christmas Re-Gifted Week 3: A Gift for the Kids

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Trusting Jesus gives us the right to be Children of God.

John 1:9-13
The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

The Christmas Story - Jesus, the true light, came into our world.

A Hard Truth: Not everyone is a child of God.

We are made in His image, we are drawn to Him, and we have faith to come to him that he placed in us, but only a life giving spiritual birth places you in his eternal family. Not the outcome of a biological urge, or legal marriage. A spiritual Birth for a spiritual kingdom by a Spiritual/heavenly father.

Privilege of Being Born of God

1. Not of blood - i.e., by virtue of physical descent (Abraham our Father)
2. Not of flesh - i.e., by virtue of the lusts of the flesh (Biological urge or lust)
3. Not of the will of man - i.e., by virtue of power in a man's will alone (Legal)
4. But of God - i.e., a rebirth possible only by the Spirit of God

Between us and eternal life there are two great obstacles. One is that we are spiritually lifeless and dead. The other is that we are sinfully corrupt and guilty. We cannot inherit life as children of God if we are dead and if we are guilty. But God so loved us that he did two things.

He sent his Spirit to cause us to be born again, to quicken us and make us pass from death to life. And so he overcomes the first obstacle.

But in perfect harmony with the work of his Spirit God sent his Son to die for our sin (John 1:29) and remove the guilt of all who believe in him. So the moment we believe in him, even though we are sinners, we are authorized in him to lay hold on the inheritance of the children of God. And so the second obstacle is removed.

Receivers and believers have the right to become children of God.

Romans 8:14-17
For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry,“Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Children of God receive Jesus and what he has to offer.

lambánō (from the primitive root, lab-, meaning "actively lay hold of to take or receive," see NAS dictionary) – properly, to lay hold by aggressively (actively) accepting what is available (offered). lambánō ("accept with initiative") emphasizes the volition (assertiveness) of the receiver.

When we recognize the light we grab it. We willfully welcome him into our lives.

John Piper:
Receiving Jesus means that when Jesus offers himself to you, you welcome him into your life for what he is.

If he comes to you as Savior, you welcome his salvation.

If he comes to you as Leader, you welcome his leadership.

If he comes to you as Provider, you welcome his provision.

If he comes to you as Counselor, you welcome his counsel.

If he comes to you as Protector, you welcome his protection.

If he comes to you as Authority, you welcome his authority.

If he comes to you as King, you welcome his rule.

Receiving Jesus means taking Jesus into your life for what he is. It does not mean a kind of peaceful co-existence with a Christ who makes no claims—as though he can stay in the house as long as he doesn't play his music so loud.

When Jesus preached in Nazareth in Luke 4:16 ., the people received him gladly. It says In Luke 4:22, "All spoke well of him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth." But a few verses later it says in Luke 4:28 they were "filled with wrath" and tried to throw him down from a cliff. They were happy to receive him while his words were pleasing. But when their pride was fingered, they rejected him. Receiving Jesus does not mean a kind of peaceful co-existence with a Christ who makes no claims. Receiving Jesus means taking him into your life (your home, your school, your work, your marriage, your dreams) for who he really is.

Children of God believe Jesus is who he claimed.

pisteúō (from pístis, "faith," derived from peíthō, "persuade, be persuaded") believe (affirm, have confidence);

I am the bread of life - John 6: 35, 48

I am the light of the world - John 8: 12, 9:5

I am the door - John 10:9

I am the good shepherd - John 10:11

I am the resurrection and the life - John 11:25

I am the way, the truth, and the life - John 14:6

I am the true vine - John 15:1

Being a child of God is not a label but a lifestyle.

Colossians 2:6-7
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness

If not everyone is a child of God, am I?

Covenant Church Website

Christmas Re-Gifted Week 2: A Gift to Brighten Your Day

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

John 1:1-3
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

John 1:4-5
In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

The 3 words we need to pay close attention to are life, light and darkness.

Our gift from God was not a what but a who.

He began all things with life and came as a life to give us life. Life begins with him and is sustained by him. Stuff will never satisfy, so all the wants leave us empty. But in Jesus, the way, the truth, the life, we find our rightful place in God’s kingdom.

Life - Sun (gives us life, but also illuminates our darkness) power source

Light -

Our gift from God was not darkness but light.

This is important because the use of light here represents life and the ability to see our path to God clearly.

John 3:19
This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.

Darkness deals with the motives of our heart and the actions of our lives.

Darkness - Our ways, sin, it will always desire to overcome but cannot.

1 Corinthians 4:5
Therefore don’t judge anything prematurely, before the Lord comes, who will both bring to light what is hidden in darkness and reveal the intentions of the hearts. And then praise will come to each one from God.

Romans 13:12
The night is nearly over, and the daylight is near, so let us discard the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

So darkness is the power of evil and unbelief. The darkness is the world of evil and unbelief and death and judgment.

What you will experience in darkness.

1. Fear
2. Confusion
3. Hopelessness
4. Lack of movement
5. Faulty Confidence

Following Christ brings light into our lives to see clearly.

Micah 7:9
Because I have sinned against him, I will bear the Lord’s wrath, until he pleads my case and upholds my cause. He will bring me out into the light; I will see his righteousness.

Paul before King Agrippa (Jesus spoke to Paul)
Acts 26:17b-18
I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

John 8:12
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

The gift of life and light is for everyone.

John 1:9
The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.

Overcome - direct and powerful attack

Motives of the heart

So the first reason the light shines in the darkness and the darkness does not overcome it is that this light is living—it has energy and purposefulness and growth and reproduction. It is not a static thing, like a stoplight that might be ignored. The light that shines in the world today is the very life of the Son of God.

That leaves one last reason for why we can be sure that the light will not be overcome by the darkness. Not only is the light a living light, and not only is the life of this light the life of God's Word through whom he created all things, but this Word, this life, this light, IS GOD! And God Almighty cannot be overcome.

And the light shineth in darkness,.... Which, through sin, came upon the minds of men; who are naturally in the dark about the nature and perfections of God; about sin, and the consequences of it; about Christ, and salvation by him; about the Spirit of God, and his work upon the soul; and about the Scriptures of truth, and the doctrines of the Gospel. Man was created a knowing creature, but, not content with his knowledge, sins, and is banished from the presence of God, the fountain of light; which brought a darkness on him, and his posterity, and which is increased in them by personal iniquity, and in which Satan, the god of this world, has an hand; and sometimes they are left to judicial blindness, and which issues in worse darkness, if grace prevents not: now amidst this darkness there were some remains of the light of nature: with respect to the being of God, which shines in the works of creation and providence and to the worship of God, though very dimly; and to the knowledge of moral good and evil:

Christmas is the end of religion as we know it. We don’t get a religion, we get a person.

Covenant Church Website

Christmas Re-Gifted - Been Here Before

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV
God has Given Himself since the beginning.

John 1:1-3
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

The Christmas Story started before the beginning of all creation.

Adam/Eve, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, The Priests, David, Solomon, The kings, The Nation. God has been chasing us all throughout History, loving us and desiring that we put Him in the right place in our lives so it will go well with us.

Ephesians 1:4 (MSG)
Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love.

God loved us and was thinking of us before we recognized Him.

He was setting things in motion to rescue us – to pursue us. The sins of all humanity were laid on Him once and for all so that we might be called sons and daughters.

God designed us to be whole.

This is a word that comes from the ritual of sacrifice.  It is amomous.  It means, “without a blemish or spot.”  It describes someone who has been declared “not at fault.”  ámōmos (an adjective, derived from 1 /A "not" and 3470 /mṓmos, "blemish") – properly, unblemished, without spot or blot (blight); (figuratively) morally, spiritually blameless, unblemished from the marring effects of sin.

Isaiah 53:6
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

God designed us to be holy

Ephesians 1:11 (MSG) It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living

One  aspect  that makes  Christianity  distinct  from  other  religions is the  fact we  serve  a God who chases us.  He binds Himself to a person and then pursues them with earnest,  even when  they  run  from Him.  The  degree  to which He will  travel,  fight  and  give  up  something costly  to  win  over  His  “true  love”  is  truly  remarkable  and  far  exceeds  the  most  stirring emotions of any romantic movie.

C.S. Lewis wrote of his encounters with this ‘Hound of Heaven’: “You must picture me alone in that room in Magdalen, night after night, feeling, whenever my mind lifted even for a second from my work, the steady, unrelenting approach of Him whom I so earnestly desired not to meet. That which I greatly feared had at last come upon me. In the Trinity Term of 1929 I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England …The Prodigal Son at least walked home on his own feet. But who can duly adore that Love which will open the high gates to a prodigal who is brought in kicking, struggling, resentful, and darting his eyes in every direction for a chance of escape?”

We are designed to be caught

Psalms 139:7-10
Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

If God can turn a man like Paul around, a man who’s former driving passion was persecuting the church, then He can surely turn your life or situation around. All it took for Paul to change His identity was ONE encounter with God. The change was so deep, He even changed the way he perceived himself. The name Saul means “asked for, prayed for”,  but Paul simply means “little or small”. Paul was irreparably changed. His life was no longer about himself. He saw his life as little. He threw his former place of prominence out the door and relied solely on God. Maybe you need a name change that kind of encounter. Maybe your identity has become influenced by your situation instead of the other way around.

Francis Thompson in his poem, The Hound of Heaven, tells about how he tried to flee God. As a young man he studied medicine, hoping to find meaning and purpose. It did not work so he got involved in drugs. He came to such despair that he contemplated suicide. In the poem Thompson describes how he latched on to various philosophies that denied God: "I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways Of my own mind." He tried to distract himself with sensual pleasure, but it all turned sour. In the end he heard God say, "all things fly thee, for thou fliest Me!" God sought him like a bloodhound. In the end Francis Thompson allowed God to find him. Weary, he fell into God's arms.

ThanksLiving Week 3 - Remember

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Luke 17:11-19
Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

Thanks and remembering go hand and hand.

A thankful heart remembers to:
1. Reach Up
2. Reach Back
3. Reach Out

Reach Up

Luke 17:15-16
One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

Not a generational thing but a human nature thing. The people who have the greatest reason to say thank you are the worst at it.

Gratitude is not an obligation, it’s an opportunity.

“When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude.” - G.K. Chesterton

True thanksgiving begins in the heart and flows upward as we lift our prayers and songs of gratitude to God. Our first act of Thanksgiving should be to reach up to God with our hands and hearts laden with our sacrifices of praise.

Reach Back

Remember where you came from and who has gotten you here. If you are alive today, person of faith or not faith, you should be thankful for living through the gift one more day.

Psalm 103:1-5
Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Psalm 77:11-13
I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.” Your ways, God, are holy. What god is as great as our God?

Remembering God’s greatness takes intentionality.

Don’t let people who sew a seed of blessing in your life get away without them reaping a harvest of your gratitude.

Reach Out

Hebrews 13:16
And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

2 Corinthians 9:11-12
You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.

Givers are more glorious than receivers. Benefactors are more glorious than beneficiaries. When we thank God, we acknowledge and display that he is the giver; he is the benefactor. We pay him a high compliment. Therefore, when gratitude springs up in the human heart toward God, he is magnified as the wealthy source of our blessing. He is acknowledged as giver and benefactor and therefore as glorious. But when gratitude does not spring up in our hearts at God's great goodness to us, it probably means that we don't want to pay him a compliment; we don't want to magnify him as our benefactor. And there is a very good reason that human beings by nature do not want to magnify God with thanksgiving or glorify him as their benefactor. The reason is that it detracts from their own glory, and all people by nature love their own glory more than the glory of God.

Generosity is necessary to live a life of THANKSliving.

“In ordinary life we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich.” - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Psalm 79:13
So we, Your people and sheep of Your pasture, will give You thanks forever; We will show forth Your praise to all generations ...

1st Thanksgiving In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast that is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. It wasn't until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November.

In September 1620, a small ship called the Mayflower left Plymouth, England, carrying 102 passengers(50 crew)— religious separatists seeking a new home where they could freely practice their faith and other individuals lured by the promise of prosperity and land ownership in the New World. After a treacherous and uncomfortable crossing that lasted 66 days, they dropped anchor near the tip of Cape Cod, far north of their intended destination at the mouth of the Hudson River. One month later, the Mayflower crossed Massachusetts Bay, where the Pilgrims, began the work of establishing a village at Plymouth.

Throughout that first brutal winter, most of the colonists remained on board the ship, where they suffered from exposure, scurvy and outbreaks of contagious disease. Only half of the Mayflower’s original passengers and crew lived to see their first New England spring. In March, the remaining settlers moved ashore, where they received an astonishing visit from an Abenaki Indian who greeted them in English. Several days later, he returned with another Native American, Squanto, a member of the Pawtuxet tribe who had been kidnapped by an English sea captain and sold into slavery before escaping to London and returning to his homeland on an exploratory expedition. Squanto taught the Pilgrims, weakened by malnutrition and illness, how to cultivate corn, extract sap from maple trees, catch fish in the rivers and avoid poisonous plants. He also helped the settlers forge an alliance with the Wampanoag, a local tribe, which would endure for more than 50 years and tragically remains one of the sole examples of harmony between European colonists and Native Americans.

In November 1621, after the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest proved successful, Governor William Bradford organized a celebratory feast and invited a group of the fledgling colony’s Native American allies, including the Wampanoag chief Massasoit. Now remembered as American’s “first Thanksgiving the festival lasted for three days. While no record exists of the historic banquet’s exact menu, the Pilgrim chronicler Edward Winslow wrote in his journal that Governor Bradford sent four men on a “fowling” mission in preparation for the event, and that the Wampanoag guests arrived bearing five deer. Mayflower’s sugar supply had dwindled the meal did not feature pies, cakes or other desserts, which have become a hallmark of contemporary celebrations.

New York became the first of several states to officially adopt an annual Thanksgiving holiday; each celebrated it on a different day. In 1827, prolific writer Sarah Josepha Hale—author of the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb”—launched a campaign to establish Thanksgiving as a national holiday. For 36 years, she published numerous editorials and sent scores of letters to governors, senators, presidents and other politicians. Abraham Lincoln finally heeded her request in 1863, at the height of the Civil War, in a proclamation entreating all Americans to ask God to “commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife” and to “heal the wounds of the nation.” He scheduled Thanksgiving for the final Thursday in November. 1939, Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday up a week in an attempt to spur retail sales during the Great Depression. (known derisively as Franksgiving) .

“Piglet noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude.” ― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh Covenant Church Website

ThanksLiving part 1 - It Starts With The Heart

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Two Major Benefits of Living a Life of Thanks:

1. It is good for me.
2. It opens the door to God’s power in my life.

BENEFIT ONE: GOOD FOR ME

It turns out, giving thanks is good for your health.

A growing body of research suggests that maintaining an attitude of gratitude can improve psychological, emotional and physical well-being.

Thankfulness doesn’t equal happiness. You can be sad and thankful. Thankfulness can speak to spiritual maturity.

Psalm 69:30-32 (NAS)
I will praise the name of God with song and magnify Him with thanksgiving. And it will please the Lord better than an ox or a young bull with horns and hoofs. The humble have seen it and are glad; You who seek God, let your heart revive.

THANKS TO THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY

Revelation 11:15-17
The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign forever and ever.” And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying: “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign.

Overflow of Tanksgiving

2 Corinthians 4:15-16
All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

BENEFIT TWO: Opens the door to God’s Power

Paul and Silas

Acts 16:25-26
“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose.”

Paul and Silas were free before they were free. Bars did not dash their thanks.

Thankfulness starts with the heart.

Give Thanks

1 Chronicles 16:34
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

David believed God was good and that God loved him.

Idea of being thankful, grateful, honoring. It was a time of sincere thanks and it looked and felt that way.

Some know how to be sarcastic or cynical, others thrive on it and live in it constantly, That is a heart problem.

DARK AND CONFUSED

Romans 1:21 NLT
“Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.”

Paul goes on to spell out what happens when we become indifferent to spiritual truth:

1. We refuse to glorify God.
2. We refuse to give thanks to God.

At this point it is helpful to recall Question 1 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism
“What is the chief end of man?” Answer: “To glorify God and enjoy him forever.” Truth demands a response, and the truth about God demands that we the creatures glorify him as the great Creator. When we don’t, we fail in the great purpose for which we were created. It didn’t start with us. It started in the dim mists of the earliest days of the human race when Adam and Eve willfully rebelled against God. They should have glorified God by obeying him, but they didn’t. That was and is the chief sin of the human race. From Eden to your hometown a bent toward disobedience has entered our spiritual genetic code.

Charles Spurgeon preached on this verse, he offered this comment:
I cannot say anything much worse of a man than that he is not thankful to those who have been his benefactors; and when you say that he is not thankful to God, you have said about the worst thing you can say of him.

Thankfulness…

1. Softens a hard heart
2. And combats a cynical world.

The poet Milton, the blind poet, he said that a person with an ungrateful spirit only has one vice, he said because all of the rest of his vices are virtues compared to ingratitude. Every other sin is a virtue compared to the sin of ingratitude.

“Piglet noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude.” ― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” ― Cicero

“When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude.” ― G.K. Chesterton

“When we learn to read the story of Jesus and see it as the story of the love of God, doing for us what we could not do for ourselves--that insight produces, again and again, a sense of astonished gratitude which is very near the heart of authentic Christian experience.” ― N.T. Wright

“Gratitude is the ability to experience life as a gift. It liberates us from the prison of self-preoccupation.” ― John Ortberg

Covenant Church Web Site

Storms of Sudden Tragedy

Message by
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Storm Winds

Job 1:18-19
While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

Not Free of Tragedy

We do not live in a tragedy-free world.

Allowing this to be the reality in our lives may help with the start of the mourning process if tragedy hits in your life. This is not utopia or heaven. It is a world affected by sin and its consequences. When we start with the mindset that nothing bad can happen then there is a wider gap to overcome when tragedy hits.

Job Reacts

Job 1:20a
At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head.

Mourning

Mourning is a natural reaction to tragedy.

5 Stages of Grief
1. Denial
2. Anger
3. Bargaining
4. Depression
5. Acceptance

God can handle your feelings.You can bring your complaints and questions to God. He’s big enough to handle your doubts, complaints, questions, and feelings. He’s even big enough to handle your anger. That’s why you can release your feelings to God. In Mt. 5:4, Jesus says, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Literally, God blesses those who mourn. So, it’s okay to grieve. It’s okay to mourn. God doesn’t expect you to be happy all the time. You can face your feelings honestly. You can release it all to God.
Although grieving is an individual experience, there are symptoms many people share after suffering personal loss:

Feels physically drained

Can't sleep at night

Forgetful and unable to think clearly

Noticeable change in appetite

Physical distress such as chest pains, headaches or nausea

Stays extremely busy to avoid thinking about his or her grief

Eats, drinks watches television, etc. excessively

Participates in harmful activities

Becomes withdrawn, lonely and apathetic

Frequent sighing and crying

Job Worshiped

Job 1:20b-21
Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.”

Great and Good Lord

Even in tragedy, Job praised the Lord because he was confident that:
1. The Lord was Great.
2. The Lord was Good.

I believe he knew that if any good or healing or restoration would come, it would only be because of God’s greatness and goodness. Where else can we go? Our own strength?

2Ways to Help in Storms of Tragedy
1. Bear one another’s burden. Galatians 6:2
2. Be a comforter not a curser.

Friends in Tragedy

Job 2:11-13
When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite, heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him. When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads. Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.

How to not React

Job 2:9-10
His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”

Comfort from God

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God".

Blessed after Tragedy

Life is not the same after a tragedy but it can be blessed.

More Blessed Later

Job 42:12
The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part.

Heard and Seen

Job 42:5
My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.

A Hurricane Called Me

Message by:
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Running From the Lord

Jonah 1:1-3
The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.

Coming Storms

We can blind ourselves of a coming storm.

Running creates Storms

Jonah 1:4-5
Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.

We cause Storms

Some storms of life are caused by our disobedience.

Idea that storm was a curse or payment for something done wrong.

A Storm was a tool of God and Only stops through obedience or death.

God Disciplines

Hebrews 12:5-11
And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.” Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Discipline for Good

God’s discipline is for our good and produces righteousness and peace.

Our storms

Storms meant for us affect those around us.

Our Storms
1. Cost more money (fare for Tarshish)
2. Affected others (ship in trouble)
3. Scared them with storm
4. Endangered them
5. Heaped guilt on them for doing what was necessary

The Storms End

When we deal with our disobedience the storm will end.

Recognize

When we recognize God’s movement in storms, our lives are changed.God was able to answer prayers and chastise his son/prophet at the same time.

Other’s Should not be punished because of you

Jonah 1:13-15
Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.” Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.

The 2 Keys for Dealing with Our Disobedience
1. Repentance - turning toward God
2. Obedience - walking with God

Humble Yourself and Pray

2 Chronicles 7:14
if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

The Deluge of Disillusionment

Message by
Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Squall over the Sea

Mark 4:35-37 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.

Storms

Jesus went through storms.

Jesus was Tempted

Hebrews 4:15
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet he did not sin.

Jesus Cares

Mark 4:38
Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

Disillusioned

When Jesus doesn’t move like we want him to, we can get disillusioned.

A storm in your life isn’t an indication that …
1. God doesn’t love you.
2. God isn’t aware of your need.
3. God is powerless.

Jesus’ Calms

Mark 4:39
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
Jesus is the calmer of storms.

In the Beginning
Well the simple answer to that question is, "He is God because only God has such power over wind and waves." We shouldn't be surprised about that since we hear the testimony of John in John 1:1, "In the beginning was the Word," meaning Christ, "and the Word was with God, the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being." That is to say that Christ, the Word, is the Creator of everything that exists. If He has the power to create it, He has the power to control it.

Christ Sustains
In Hebrews chapter 1 it speaks of God's Son who is appointed heir of all things, verse 2, "Through whom also He made the world." And then in verse 3 He upholds all things by the Word of His power. Here we are told that God made the world through the agency of Christ and Christ sustains it by His power.

All Things
In Colossians chapter 1, there is a similar testimony from the Apostle Paul where it tells us in verse 16, "By Him," that is by Christ, "all things were created both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible. All things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together. He is the Creator and the sustainer of the creation." That is the testimony of Scripture. And those are only samples of the kind of testimony that is repeated in the New Testament regarding Christ. Another one is 1 Corinthians 8 which tells us similarly that He is the one who has made everything that has been made. "There is but one God, one Father from whom are all things. We exist for Him and one Lord Jesus Christ by whom are all things and we exist through Him." He is the Creator of the universe, all things exist because He made them and all things are sustained because He sustains them.

Mighty, Faithfull, and Calming

Psalms 89:8-9
Who is like you, Lord God Almighty?
You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you.
You rule over the surging sea;
when its waves mount up, you still them.

The storm or the Follower

Sometimes Jesus calms the storm first, sometimes he calms the follower.

Wind and Waves obey

Mark 4:40-41
He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

Who Is Jesus

It is only in storms that we see who Jesus really is.
1. Healer - It is in the midst of the healing process where we see the healer.
2. Reconciler - It is in the separation that we see the reconciler.
3. Out of Ashes - It is in the ashes where we see him make things beautiful again.
4. Redeemer - It is in the ruin where we see the redeemer.
5. Calmer - It is in the storm where we see the calmer of the storm.

Action in the face of the Storm

Our understanding of Jesus will define our actions in a storm.

The Storms Are Coming

Message by Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

HOUSE ON ROCK OR SAND

Matthew 7:24-27
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

STORMS

Everybody will have storms in their lives.

RIGHTEOUS AN UNRIGHTEOUS

Matthew 5:45b
He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

Four Observations About Storms:

1. Storms are a part of life. No one is exempt from storms, (Even God-loving, God-fearing, God’s favorite Christians are not exempt!). If you are not in one or coming out of one right now, then one is coming.
2. Storms come in all shapes and sizes.
3. Storms can either make us or break us. Trials, tragedies, and misfortunes can either be a stepping stone or a stumbling block for us depending on our heart’s response.
4. Storms expose areas of weakness or unpreparedness in our lives. Trials, tragedies, and misfortunes expose our character to surface strength or weakness in our character. It is not when everything is going well that our true character is revealed but it is when things go wrong.

Foolish preparation brings a future fall.

What Jesus offers brings strength in times of storms.

BUILD ON THE FOUNDATION OF ROCK

Matthew 7:25
The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

NARROW OR WIDE GATE

Matthew 7:13-14
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

NOTHING CAN SEPARATE US FROM GOD

Romans 8:38-39
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Storms will tear down any Christ-less foundation. What is your foundation?

People are like teabags. You never know how strong they are until they are placed in hot water.

George MacDonald a Scottish writer and man of faith, who influenced writers like C.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, and Oswald Chambers wrote… “God left the world unfinished for man to work his skill upon. He left the electricity still in the cloud, the oil still in the earth. How often we look upon God as our last and feeblest resource! We go to Him because we have nowhere else to go. And then we learn that the storms of life have driven us, not upon the rocks, but into the desired haven.”

A Legacy Worth Leaving

Stewardship Series
Message by Pastor Terry Crawford
Covenant Church
Shepherdstown, WV

Everyone leaves a legacy.  Our actions determine which kind.


Stewardship encompasses all areas of our life:  Our time, our talents and our treasure.

When you mess with people’s calendars and check books it is going to get real.


Matthew 6:24 NIV
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.


Admitting to ourselves and God that everything we have is a gift from him is the first step to kingdom stewardship.

John 1:1-5 NIV
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

What if you could leave a legacy of joy, purpose, fulfillment, contentment and life for your family and friends?


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