Faith, philosophy, religion and truth - Right Living sermon by George Morgan

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Sermon on 'Right Living' and how to get it - Wednesday 25th May 2005 - by George Morgan

[ PRAYER TO START ]

Decisions
Responsibility
Freedom / liberty
Gates

Decisions

Please read: James 1:19-21 - God doesn't leave you guessing on how to stay pure and how to make it in this life. It's our choice if we say no to His instructions or yes to them, every day, even if we stuff up.
Choosing life in God (Dt 30:19).
Committing to the Lord (Jos 24:15; 1Sa 12:20; 1Co 15:58).
Walking righteously (Heb 12:1).
Remaining in Christ (Jn 15:4-5, 7; 1Jn 2:24,28).

“I am the Lord your God; do not worship the gods of those in whose land you live.” Judges 6:10 - The things of this world should NOT rule you or your life. If a game or band or hobby or girl/boy or even churchlife overtakes your commitment to God, it's time to address that balance. No matter what it is, if it is your first love and Jesus isn't, then you are missing out on what it's like to walk hand in hand with the risen King of Heaven, and every single day no matter what you've done, the option is there with Jesus unlike any other, to start again, to become His friend and His student.

God is a jealous God (in a holy way), it says in the Bible. He wants you, not your skills or your abilities. He wants you. Just like a Husband wants his wife, not her pay check or her PC or her car (some of you may disagree).

Don’t think it odd that God isn’t as bothered with you obeying His law as he is with you choosing to spend time with Him (Church, Bible, prayer, service, helping the needy). BUT! The choices that you make show how MUCH you love him. It works the other way around.

Because you love Him, you should WANT to please Him. You should want to show your love. Who here had a GF or BF and doesn’t want them to know how they feel about them?

God is a person. He isn’t a box you confess in once a week, as some are in the habit of doing, and He's not an insurance ticket to heaven that only activates once you die. Jesus will say to a lot of people on the final day ‘depart from me, I do not KNOW YOU’.

Your primary calling in life if you’re wondering what it is, is to know Jesus more. If you do nothing else, do that. That is what being a Christ-follower is all about. Church and stuff is good, but that comes second to knowing Jesus.

HOW do you know Jesus? - Stuff like church, reading the Bible, will save you from not doing this. Pastors and teachers are there to lead you into a place of learning about God and knowing Him more. Worship songs are there to help you touch the throne of God with your spirit and raise Jesus up in your life.

Old song - 'And the things of the earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His Glory and Grace'

You don’t DO church/Bible/prayer because He says you should. You do it because you are desperate to better know your friend, your teacher, your father in heaven, your lord.

It is not a religion of rules, but a relationship and relationships need work or they fall apart.

NOTHING happens be accident.

You didn’t turn up at Ignite or at church by mistake. God knows you and He called you, through whatever means, probably knowing someone else who comes here.

You have purpous and meaning.

Responsibility

Bible verses:

You are responsible for your personal walk with God. It is you who decides your love-love involvement, how much you give and how much you seek to receive. God is only a prayer away. If he feels far off, guess who moved.
Do not look to others to booster you or carry you. It's important to realise that getting into GOOD habits will help prevent slipping into BAD ones (or staying in bad ones). Don't be surprised if you slip up a lot if your life is 99 per cent ungodly except on a sunday or wednesday night.

Attempts to shift: Adam (Ge 3:12-13), Esau (Ge 27:36, w Ge 25:29-34), Saul (1Sa 15:20-21), Pilate (Mt 27:24).

Personal (Eze 14:14-20; Ro 14:12; 1Co 3:8,13-15; Gal 6:5; Rev 2:23).

Laziness/being active Proverbs 6:6-11 - I feel very strongly that as young people we need to look around every moment of every day and take personal, not 'group mentality' responsibility for our surroundings, our walk with God, our life and those we meet. Don't leave it to someone else. Only YOU will get close to God for YOU. Take that time. Cut it out of something else if you have to, for what worth are those things anyway? What will it profit you to gain the entire world, and lose your soul?

Proverbs 6:16-19 - Things the Lord does not like. He doesn't leave us guessing. take responsibility and stay away from these acts and those who commit them. What a man loves he will go and do. If someone still loves their sin, beware for they are going to probably trip again and if you join them, that's you tripping too. BE WISE. Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Freedom/liberty

Bible verses:

1 Pe 2:16, James 1:25; 2:12, Gal 5:1, 2 Cor 3:17

Realise that when you came to Jesus, He freed you from sin. Sin will not damn you to hell anymore! You cannot be saved in part, Jesus' blood was strong enough to save you and that's that. However, those who truely got saved will begin to demonstrate this and change over time. If you are not, you need to examine yourself. You are free - but everything that is possible is NOT profitable or a good idea. So live free, be well, live happy in the knowledge that Jesus freed you. You are free in every possible way! But in that freedom, there is the strongest of all bonds - love. Love binds a Husband to love his wife to the point where he will do absolutely anything for her, even giving his life for her to live. Your love for Jesus frees you utterly, the devil has no authority or power over you anymore. But, your bond of love should keep you from ignoring what the Bible says to do and not do. Obey because you wish to, not because you HAVE to.

Gates (in going mainly, but outgoing as well)

Bible verses:

“If you love me, keep my commandments” | Jn 15: 9-10 “If you obey my commands, you remain in my love.” - If you love Him, you will want to please Him.

This is not boring and not God stopping your fun. It’s about as much fun later when you are trying to live your life for God and for your family, as having a tattoo with the name of your ex partner on it and a crude image, and your current partner or child asking ‘Mummy/Daddy what’s that mean?’

Some marks don’t wear off so easily, the enemy sees to that. You got to be careful what you do, it does matter. God is forgiving yes - but don’t think there won’t be earthly consequences for your choices.

Eyes - It’s not a hippy new age thing to say ‘the eyes are the windows to your soul’, pretty sure there’s a Bible verse about that somewhere.

What you sit there feeding into your eyes matters. If you watch demonic film or imagery, in the name of art or because you think you can handle it, you are going to get a very large shock when that comes up later in your life as you try to enter ministry for God. The enemy is not a sucker and he’s been fooling Christians and non Christians for a lot longer than we’ve been alive thinking we’re very smart.

If you allow degrading imagery to seep into you, your mind is over time going to start telling you that ‘it’s not really degrading’.

There is a LOT of evidence that especially for men but also for women, looking at pornographic material of ANY sort, including sex scenes in movies and books, will deaden the acceptance levels of what you will tolerate in the future. In short - slippery slope. One month you allow one degree, the next another degree - all in the name of art perhaps?

Art is not an excuse. If anyone here tonight is making that one, believe God first and flee away and resist the things of the devil. Also, don't make the mistake so many make of thinking 'this is just harmless'. It's not. Be smarter than this.

Ears - What you hear will tend to be what comes out later. What you choose to fill yourself with will become what you are. You are what you eat, and you certainly will speak the language you hear (how a baby learns). GUARD your ear gate jealously. Who or whatever tends to own your air time will ultimately own your mouth & your heart.

Ppl who hang around with others who swear a lot end up slipping gradually into it themselves. It is a bad witness and a fresh water fountain should not also produce salty water (Jane last week). You gotta choose if your mouth is for good or for evil, and then flee away from the option you've shunned.

'Bad company corrupts good character' - Whilst you can know ppl who don't have the same commitment to God that you do, know that so long as you refuse to change your lifestyle, ultimately it's gonna be very hard to change when all around you, it's same old same old. If you choose to be with ungodly people most of the time, you are likely to be ungodly most of the time. It's pretty basic stuff.

Mouth - Out of the heart, the mouth speaks. If your heart has changed, so should your mouth. If it hasn’t, then you can join me in the ‘not quite perfect yet’ club!

Jane last week - what you say does matter - 'Tongues hold the power of life and death.'

You need to start taking very seriously the way you talk, especially when you are not in a church meeting.

Ppl I know who’ve really seen change - took a couple of years for full difference - but their mouths just don’t DO certain tricks anymore. Certain words you just won’t hear.

Endurance in:
Obedience (Jn 8:31; 1Co 15:58)
grace (Ac 13:43)
faith (Ac 14:22; Php 1:27; Col 1:23)
holiness (1Th 3:8,13),
sound doctrine (Eph 4:14; Tit 1:7; Heb 2:1)

Final note:

Be different! You're not the same, so stop letting the enemy tell you that you're still the same weak, unimpressive person you were before you found Jesus. You are now in His army and His church and His household. He loves you. So act like it!

If you slip up...do NOT berate yourself too much, or beat yourself either.
[ READ from May 25th in Joyce Meyer book ]