Click here to download the sermon file.
Below is a recap for 7/26/09's sermon.
As part of a strategy for purity we need to have a biblical understanding of God’s purposes for the sexual relationship.
1. There are four scriptural purposes for sex: procreation (Genesis 1:28); recreation and release (Proverbs 5:18,19); and communication (Genesis 2:24).
2. God has created us as sexual beings, therefore, in the context of the marriage relationship:
sex is good; it has been marred by the Fall (Genesis 3), and is for married couples only.
3. Sex outside of marriage causes us to sin against our own bodies in a way that is different from other sin (1 Corinthians 6:9-20) and has other destructive effects. It separates us from God, keeps other aspects of a relationship from developing, introduces fear and guilt into the relationship, and is training for unfaithfulness after marriage.
(Sources for this and other information see: A Compact Guide to the Christian Life by K.C. Hinckley and Before You Say I Do by H. Norman Wright and Wes Roberts)
Monday, July 27, 2009
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
A Primer in Purity & Other Virtues, Pt. 2
There is no sermon for Sunday, July 19, 2009 due to technical errors. We apologize.
Below is the re-cap of the sermon, taken from Genesis chapter 39, vv. 1-20:
1. For Joseph temptation and testing come at the time of his greatest success. Success often gives rise to greater testing than does failure or adversity.
2. Joseph succeeded in resisting temptation to sexual sin for several reasons:
-He rightly called Potiphar’s wife’s invitation to sexual sin what it was, a “wicked thing” and “sin.” He did not try to justify wrong behavior by calling it something else (“my wife/husband doesn’t understand me like you do,” “I’ve found my soul mate,” “What goes TDY stays TDY.”
-He realizes that ultimately he would be sinning against God (not just himself, Potiphar, or his wife)
-He took steps to avoid her (Romans 13:14)
-He fled the compromising situation
3. We must think through our strategy for dealing with sexual temptation:
-We must have a strategy for purity including things such as allowing our spouse free access to all electronic/phone communications (email accounts, cell phone, websites, etc.); except for work situations avoid being alone with a person of the opposite sex, etc.
-We must count the cost of moral failure. We should make a list of the people and things most important to us in life and then think through the devastation that our moral failure would bring to us and to them.
-We must immediately call upon God in the moment of temptation (1 Corinthians 10:12,13)
-We must be growing in our relationship with Jesus Christ (through the word, Bible study, prayer) we can pursue sin or Jesus but we can’t be pursuing both.-We must retain our thinking and attitudes about sex and sexuality so that they are Biblical.
Below is the re-cap of the sermon, taken from Genesis chapter 39, vv. 1-20:
1. For Joseph temptation and testing come at the time of his greatest success. Success often gives rise to greater testing than does failure or adversity.
2. Joseph succeeded in resisting temptation to sexual sin for several reasons:
-He rightly called Potiphar’s wife’s invitation to sexual sin what it was, a “wicked thing” and “sin.” He did not try to justify wrong behavior by calling it something else (“my wife/husband doesn’t understand me like you do,” “I’ve found my soul mate,” “What goes TDY stays TDY.”
-He realizes that ultimately he would be sinning against God (not just himself, Potiphar, or his wife)
-He took steps to avoid her (Romans 13:14)
-He fled the compromising situation
3. We must think through our strategy for dealing with sexual temptation:
-We must have a strategy for purity including things such as allowing our spouse free access to all electronic/phone communications (email accounts, cell phone, websites, etc.); except for work situations avoid being alone with a person of the opposite sex, etc.
-We must count the cost of moral failure. We should make a list of the people and things most important to us in life and then think through the devastation that our moral failure would bring to us and to them.
-We must immediately call upon God in the moment of temptation (1 Corinthians 10:12,13)
-We must be growing in our relationship with Jesus Christ (through the word, Bible study, prayer) we can pursue sin or Jesus but we can’t be pursuing both.-We must retain our thinking and attitudes about sex and sexuality so that they are Biblical.
Monday, July 13, 2009
A Primer In Purity
Click here to download the sermon file.
Recap of the July 12, 2009 sermon, taken from Genesis 39, verses 1 through 20a.
1. Joseph, at seventeen, finds himself a slave in an Egyptian official’s estate. He evidences no bitterness, no anger, and no resentment for his predicament.
2. God is with him in this dark moment in his life (38:2,3,21,23) and he is successful - rising to the highest position, that of steward or overseer, in Potiphar’s household.
3. Joseph’s success could be attributed to several factors: God’s hand on his life, the promises of the Abrahamic covenant, his faith, and his work ethic.
4. Christians should make a difference in their workplace—they should work to make their employer successful, whether they are a Christian or non-Christian employer. They should be hard workers, have a good work ethic (diligent, industrious, conscientious, honest, faithful, upright), and be a positive force. (see Ephesians 6:5-8; Colossians 3:22-25; 1 Timothy 6:1,2)
5. There are similarities between Joseph and Daniel the prophet: both were captured and taken to lands far away from their homes and families; both kept their faith and commitment to God and flourished despite the negative attractions, morals, and ethics of cultures far different from their own; both had to make difficult decisions without parental help or influence as relatively young people.
Recap of the July 12, 2009 sermon, taken from Genesis 39, verses 1 through 20a.
1. Joseph, at seventeen, finds himself a slave in an Egyptian official’s estate. He evidences no bitterness, no anger, and no resentment for his predicament.
2. God is with him in this dark moment in his life (38:2,3,21,23) and he is successful - rising to the highest position, that of steward or overseer, in Potiphar’s household.
3. Joseph’s success could be attributed to several factors: God’s hand on his life, the promises of the Abrahamic covenant, his faith, and his work ethic.
4. Christians should make a difference in their workplace—they should work to make their employer successful, whether they are a Christian or non-Christian employer. They should be hard workers, have a good work ethic (diligent, industrious, conscientious, honest, faithful, upright), and be a positive force. (see Ephesians 6:5-8; Colossians 3:22-25; 1 Timothy 6:1,2)
5. There are similarities between Joseph and Daniel the prophet: both were captured and taken to lands far away from their homes and families; both kept their faith and commitment to God and flourished despite the negative attractions, morals, and ethics of cultures far different from their own; both had to make difficult decisions without parental help or influence as relatively young people.
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
The Family of the Unsandaled
Click here to download the sermon file.
Recap of July 5, 2009:
1. Concerning Genesis 38, J. Vernon McGee writes: “This is another chapter that seems to be about as necessary as a fifth leg on a cow. After you have read the story, you may wish that it had been left out of the Bible.”
2. There are four reasons for the inclusion of chapter 38 in the Genesis record:
-Judah’s failure is a contrast with Joseph’s victory in Genesis 39
-to teach, by contrast, the need for purity
-to teach the importance of not buying into the culture’s viewpoints, especially of sex and marriage
-MOST IMPORTANTLY, Chapter 38 traces the line of Messiah through Judah, Tamar and Perez (see genealogies at Ruth 4:18-22; Matthew 1; and Luke 3).
3. John MacArthur rightly says: “The genealogy of Jesus Christ is immeasurable more than a list of ancient names; it is even more than a list of Jesus’ human forbears. It is a beautiful testimony to God’s grace and to the ministry of His Son, Jesus Christ, the friend of sinners, who ‘did not come to call the righteous, but sinners’ (Matt. 9:13). If He has called sinners by grace to be His forefather, should we be surprised when He calls them by grace to be His descendants? The King presented here is truly the King of grace!”
4. Once again Genesis 38 shows us that: God uses sinful people (we’re the only material He has to work with); whatever we are today, we may be better; and whatever our past sins, we may be forgiven and used of God again (though we will experience the consequences of forgiven sin.
Recap of July 5, 2009:
1. Concerning Genesis 38, J. Vernon McGee writes: “This is another chapter that seems to be about as necessary as a fifth leg on a cow. After you have read the story, you may wish that it had been left out of the Bible.”
2. There are four reasons for the inclusion of chapter 38 in the Genesis record:
-Judah’s failure is a contrast with Joseph’s victory in Genesis 39
-to teach, by contrast, the need for purity
-to teach the importance of not buying into the culture’s viewpoints, especially of sex and marriage
-MOST IMPORTANTLY, Chapter 38 traces the line of Messiah through Judah, Tamar and Perez (see genealogies at Ruth 4:18-22; Matthew 1; and Luke 3).
3. John MacArthur rightly says: “The genealogy of Jesus Christ is immeasurable more than a list of ancient names; it is even more than a list of Jesus’ human forbears. It is a beautiful testimony to God’s grace and to the ministry of His Son, Jesus Christ, the friend of sinners, who ‘did not come to call the righteous, but sinners’ (Matt. 9:13). If He has called sinners by grace to be His forefather, should we be surprised when He calls them by grace to be His descendants? The King presented here is truly the King of grace!”
4. Once again Genesis 38 shows us that: God uses sinful people (we’re the only material He has to work with); whatever we are today, we may be better; and whatever our past sins, we may be forgiven and used of God again (though we will experience the consequences of forgiven sin.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)