Words of Encouragement - Jeremy Utley - June 19, 2016
http://rlcfchurch.org/words-of-encouragement River of Life Christian Fellowship 1306 N Lincoln Avenue Loveland, Colorado - 80537, USA
Summary
The speaker emphasizes that knowing God should compel us to change, warning against the danger of maintaining old habits or attitudes after God has revealed Himself. Using Abraham's repeated lies and Elijah's flight from Jezebel as examples, the message stresses that a refusal to change in light of new revelation is dangerous, and we must always be willing to be purged of impurity.
Outline
The message in plain words, in the order it unfolds. Select a time to jump the video to that moment.
Why God reveals impurity in usWhen God reveals himself to us, our goal should always be to respond with change and be purged of any impurity.Genesis 20:10
Abraham's persistent old patternDespite experiencing God's faithfulness and power over many years since Genesis 12, Abraham continued his old ruse about Sarah being his sister.
Elijah's refusal to change after seeing God's gloryElijah was so consumed by fear of Jezebel that even after witnessing God's magnificent power pass by, he repeated his exact same complaint word for word, costing him his prophetic mantle.1 Kings 19:9–14
Being transformed from glory to gloryGod's desire is to transform us as we behold Him, and it is dangerous when seeing His glory fails to produce a corresponding change in our hearts.
The hot air balloon and the sandbagJust like a hot air balloon needs sandbags removed to rise higher, the Lord asks us to drop old weights and attitudes so we can continue our upward progression.
A personal example of protecting timeThe speaker shares how he had long justified an uncompromising policy against interruptions based on old advice, until he saw the disconnect between his miserly attitude and God's compassionate mercy.
Jesus washing the disciples' feetWhen Jesus insists on washing Peter's feet, He explains that unless Peter allows this cleansing, he can have no part or intimate ongoing fellowship with Him.
Having a greater estimation of our needLike Peter, who passionately asked Jesus to wash his hands and head as well, we should hold our practices loosely and desire an utter cleansing from the Lord.
Remaining open to God's continued workWe must never assume our habits are already settled and good, but instead remain willing for God to question any attitude so He can transform us from one degree of glory to the next.
