NCCF Church Sharing - Oct 02, 2016

October 3, 201617mWatch on YouTube

In this collectionChurch Sharing129 messages

Speaker: Church Title: NCCF Church Sharing Date: 10-02-2016 Our Goal as Christians is this: To be an exact reflection of Jesus, the Son of God (Romans 8:29) We do this individually by growing in purity in our personal lives (1 John 3:2-3) We do this corporately by becoming fully functioning members of a local Church (Ephesians 4:11-16)

Summary

The speaker emphasizes that Christian life requires being a reflection of Jesus, which involves personal purity and functioning within the local church. Key lessons drawn from scripture include recognizing that one loses personal rights when committed to the church, and that true praise and thankfulness must come from the heart, not just the lips. Furthermore, the message stresses that prayer must be a priority, acknowledging God's sovereignty and desiring only to do His will.

Outline

The message in plain words, in the order it unfolds. Select a time to jump the video to that moment.

Peter's bad influence and surrendering personal rightsReflecting on Peter's decision to go fishing in John 21, the speaker learns we must watch our influence in the church and recognize that we lose our individual rights and ambitions when we belong to God's body.John 21:3

Choosing to praise God in every situation like David and JobDavid's declaration in Psalm 34 to bless the Lord at all times encourages the speaker to respond to workplace stress with praise rather than frustration, mirroring Job's response of worship through suffering.

Prayer as our number one priority and dependence on GodA men's prayer meeting convicted the speaker that prayer is our greatest privilege, bringing us to helpless dependence on God just as Jonah learned in the belly of the fish.

Praying according to God's will to build His churchWhen we acknowledge God's sovereignty and pray according to His will, He hears us, guiding us to seek His kingdom first just as Jesus taught in the Lord's Prayer.

Being faithful in all God's house like Moses and DanielHebrews 3 describes Moses as faithful in all his house, a standard reflected in Daniel's life of consistency across purity, work, study, prayer, and fellowship.Hebrews 3:5

Avoiding the trap of only doing what we are good atHuman nature draws us to rooms where we feel comfortable, like serving, while neglecting harder areas like prayer; however, strength in one area does not compensate for neglect in another.

The humbling experience of receiving helpLearning to accept physical limitations and graciously receive help from others has been a humbling reminder of our need for one another in the body of Christ.

Lifting each other up in weakness to run the raceJust as the speaker was physically pushed up a hill during a time of illness, believers are called to use Christ's strength to carry and lift one another through times of weakness.