December/24/ 2017
All is Calm
Part 3
Prince of Peace
Christmas Eve
Luke 12:51 “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.”
John 16:33 “…In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Mark 4:35-38 “As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 36 So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). 37 But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. 38 Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?”
Verse 38 “Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?”
1. You are in the storm with His permission
Verse 35 “ As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.”
2. You are in the storm in His presence.
verse 38 “Jesus was in the stern of the boat on a cushion.”
Hebrews 13:5 “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”
Psalm 23: 4 “Even when I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for you are with me.”
3. You are in the storm for His purpose.
a. He might use the storm to get us WHERE he wants us to go.
Verse 35 “he said to the disciples, let us go to the other side.”
b. He might use the storm to make us WHO he wants us to be...
How do I experience the prince of peace in the midst of my storms?
2 things
1. Surrender control:
Verse 38-39 “Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” 39 When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great CALM.”
2. Stay in the boat.
Galatians 6:9 “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
December/10/ 2017
All is Calm
Part 1
Peace for my Soul
Ecclesiastes 2:22-23 Solomon asked a question:
"What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest..."
1. When I am tired I let my guard down
Judges 4:17-21 “Sisera, meanwhile, fled on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, because there was an alliance between Jabin king of Hazor and the family of Heber the Kenite. 18 Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Come, my lord, come right in. Don’t be afraid.” So he entered her tent, and she covered him with a blanket. 19 “I’m thirsty,” he said. “Please give me some water.” She opened a skin of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him up.20 “Stand in the doorway of the tent,” he told her. “If someone comes by and asks you, ‘Is anyone in there?’ say ‘No.’” 21 But Jael, Heber’s wife, picked up a tent peg and a hammer and went quietly to him while he lay fast asleep, exhausted. She drove the peg through his temple into the ground, and he died.”
Luke 21:34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap.”
2. When I am tired my emotions are inconsistent.
3. When I am tired I can forget my purpose.
Hebrews 12:2-3 “Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
1. Rest is a command.
Exodus 34:21 “Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall REST ; even during the plowing season and harvest you must REST.”
2. Rest is a trust.
3. Rest is a necessity.
4. Rest is a gift.
Mark 2:27 “The sabbath was made for man not man for the sabbath.”
Psalm 62:1. "My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him."
Matthew 11:28 “Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you REST. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”
How do we live this out practically?
Psalm 46:10 “Be still and know that I am God.”
1. Be still
2. Know that He is God
Psalms 62:1-2 NCV “I find rest in God; only he can save me. He is my rock and my salvation. He is my defender; I will not be defeated.”
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