May/15/ 2016
Ducks in a Row
Part 3
Finances in Order
Key Thought: “In things that matter most it’s the order that matters most.’
Haggai 1:5-6 “Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 6 You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.”
Haggai 1:7-8 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 8 Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,” says the Lord. 9 “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house. 10 Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. 11 I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the olive oil and everything else the ground produces, on people and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.”
Malachi 3:8-10 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’ “In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the LORD Almighty. 12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the LORD Almighty.”
4 questions about tithing.
1. What is it?
Malachi 3:10 tells us that we should bring the “whole tithe”.
Exodus 23:19 ““Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the Lord your God.”
Proverbs 3:9 MSG “Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best.”
Deuteronomy 14:23 LB “The purpose of tithing is to teach you to always put God first in your lives.”
2. Who should do it?
Malachi 3:10 “Bring the tithe into the storehouse.”
Leviticus 27:30 MSG “A tenth of the land’s produce, whether grain from the ground or fruit from the trees, is God’s. It is holy to God.”
3. Where should I do it?
Malachi 3:10 “bring the whole tithe into the storehouse.”
4. Why should I do it?
Malachi 3:10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.
Proverbs 3:9-10 “Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.”
May/07/ 2016
Ducks in a Row
Part 3
Finances in Order
Key Thought: “In things that matter most it’s the order that matters most.’
Haggai 1:5-6 “Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 6 You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.”
Haggai 1:7-8 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 8 Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,” says the Lord. 9 “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house. 10 Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. 11 I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the olive oil and everything else the ground produces, on people and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.”
Malachi 3:8-10 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’ “In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the LORD Almighty. 12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the LORD Almighty.”
4 questions about tithing.
1. What is it?
Malachi 3:10 tells us that we should bring the “whole tithe”.
Exodus 23:19 ““Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the Lord your God.”
Proverbs 3:9 MSG “Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best.”
Deuteronomy 14:23 LB “The purpose of tithing is to teach you to always put God first in your lives.”
2. Who should do it?
Malachi 3:10 “Bring the tithe into the storehouse.”
Leviticus 27:30 MSG “A tenth of the land’s produce, whether grain from the ground or fruit from the trees, is God’s. It is holy to God.”
3. Where should I do it?
Malachi 3:10 “bring the whole tithe into the storehouse.”
4. Why should I do it?
Malachi 3:10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.
Proverbs 3:9-10 “Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.”
May/01/ 2016
Ducks in a Row
Part 2
Getting your Schedule in Order
Key thought: In things that matter most it's the order that matters most
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 I get my schedule into order? 3 realizations.
1. Some things need to be shared.
Exodus 18:17 “This is not good!” Moses’ father-in-law exclaimed. 18 “You’re going to wear yourself out—and the people, too. This job is too heavy a burden for you to handle all by yourself.”
Galatians 6:2 “Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.”
2. Some things need to be stopped.
Luke 10: 41, “Martha, Martha, You are worried and upset about many things, Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Mary chose not to do some things so she could do what is better.
3. All things need to be surrendered.
Psalms 62:1 “My soul finds rest in, in God alone. My salvation comes from Him”
What radical change do you need to make?
Communion:
I Corinthians 11:23-26 “The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
April/24/ 2016
Ducks in a Row
Week 1
Get your Life in Order
Psalm 90:12 “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
The word number could be substituted order.
Key Thought: In things that matter most it's the order that matters most
Why does order matter?
1. Order communicates priority.
What we put first communicates what we value most.
Revelations 2:2 “I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. 4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.”
2. Order determines capacity.
Matthew 6:33 “seek
first the kingdom and all these things will be added as well.”
3. Order impacts outcome.
How you start determines how you finish.
How do we get our lives in order?
- Make your list
If you don’t set your priorities someone else will set them for you.
2. Make your life match your list
The distance between the truth you know and the truth you live equals the pain you experience.
James 4:17 “If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn't do it, it is sin for them.”
Revelations 2:2-5 “I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. 4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. 5 Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.”
