Experiencing God Wk 3
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God created for us a love relationship.
Has there been a time in your life when you questioned God’s love for you?
In that experience, were there ways God was expressing His love for you?
What scriptures do you turn to when looking for assurance of God?
Two relationship focuses: His Work, and His Relationship with Us.
This unit will focus on the second reality - our relationship with Him (through His work within us).
QUESTIONS:
What are you becoming in Christ?
How should that influence your life today?
How did Paul deal with his past?
4 though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more:
5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee;
6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.
7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.
8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ
9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—
10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
God Desires a Relationship
God Desires a Relationship
It doesn’t matter what WE have done.
It doesn’t matter what WE think.
It doesn’t matter what WE wan.
It’s all about developing a relationship with God.
What is your current relationship with God? How do you describe it?
Matthew 22:37 (ESV)
37 And he (Jesus) said to him (the lawyer), “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
34 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together.
35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him.
36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”
37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
We have to have our priorities in place with our relationship with God before He can EVER start working fully in our lives.
Jesus reminded the Pharisee lawyer of Deut 6:4-5
4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
Describe These Love Relationships
Describe These Love Relationships
19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live,
20 loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
Loving, Obeying, Holding Fast
BRINGS
Life and length of days & dwelling in the land God promised!
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.
10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
19 We love because he first loved us.
Why should we love God with all our heart, mind, and might? Because HE first loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins! (Turning away of anger by the offering of a gift). We have been pardoned from the wrath/anger of God through the gift given by Jesus!
“Everything in your Christian life, everything about knowing Him and experiencing Him, everything about knowing His will depends on the quality of your love relationship with God”.
“Everything in your Christian life, everything about knowing Him and experiencing Him, everything about knowing His will depends on the quality of your love relationship with God”.
A Love Relationship With God
A Love Relationship With God
“A love relationship with God is more important that any other single factor in your life.”
I’d Rather Have Jesus written by Rhea Miller
I'd rather have Jesus than silver or gold
I'd rather be His than have riches untold
I'd rather have Jesus than houses or land
I'd rather be led by His nail-pierced hand
I'd rather have Jesus than worldly applause
I'd rather be faithful to His dear cause
I'd rather have Jesus than worldwide fame
Yes, I'd rather be true to His holy name
Than to be the king of a vast domain
And be held in sin's dread sway
I'd rather have Jesus than anything
This world affords today
What can compete with Jesus for a person’s love and attention?
I'd rather have Jesus than silver or gold
I'd rather be His than have riches untold
I'd rather have Jesus than houses or land
I'd rather be led by His nail-pierced hand
I'd rather have Jesus than worldly applause
I'd rather be faithful to His dear cause
I'd rather have Jesus than worldwide fame
Yes, I'd rather be true to His holy name
Than to be the king of a vast domain
And be held in sin's dread sway
I'd rather have Jesus than anything
This world affords today
Why is this so important to our relationship with God???
24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
How easy is this?
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?
28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin,
29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Why is it more important to be focused on God that the things of this world?
19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
What things will be added to us?
Treasures in heaven!
How does our past influence the limits in our lives?
Family problems?
Failures?
Shame over sin? (family or self)
Past abuse?
Pride?
Unhealthy desires? fame, success, recognition, wealth?
Looking back at Philippians 3:4-14, what are some of the things in Paul’s past that could have influenced his present?
What did Paul do to prepare for a future prize? Philippians 3:13-14 “13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
What are WE investing in today?
Walking With God
Walking With God
How many of us pursue quiet time with God daily?
verb (pursues, pursuing, pursued)
1 follow in order to catch or attack.
2 seek to attain (a goal).
3 proceed along (a path or route).
4 follow or continue with (a course of action).
▶ continue to investigate or discuss.
When we think of the time we spend with God, I encourage you to put it into perspective: how much time do we spend eating, sleeping, talking on the phone, spending time on technology, watching TV, all of the routines compared to our alone time with God?
Note the quote from page 59:
“People who struggle to spend time with God don’t have a scheduling problem; they have a love problem.”
God Pursues a Love Relationship
God Pursues a Love Relationship
How do we know God loves us?
God initiated the love relationship with us!
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
He is waiting for US to return that love.
20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
What keeps us from returning that love?
10 as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one;
11 no one understands; no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.”
Does God only pick certain ones to love?
44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.
If God draws a person, does that mean there are some who He will not draw?
John 6:45 (ESV)
45 It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me—
Jesus clarifies His statement in John 6:65
65 And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”
The only way a person comes to Jesus is to hear, and those who hear then have the choice to respond, whether it be positively or negatively. However, God is willing to accept anyone who come to Him, through faith.
How is it He works through us?
Hebrews 11:6 (ESV)
6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Remember, WE do not choose God, HE chooses us, He loves us, and He will reward those who seek Him.
Ever wonder what God’s will is for our lives? Ever pray and not get an answer? Ever wonder why He does not speak or answer what we ask for?
Are we seeking to draw closer to God so that He CAN???
A Real, Personal, Practical Relationship
A Real, Personal, Practical Relationship
God wants to have a real and personal relationship with each of us!
I have used our personal relationships as an example for the relationship we have with God. When we find our “perfect” mate, we want to know everything about them, correct? We spend time talking, we spend time listening, we spend time WITH that person. Why? Because we love them and want to spend time with them! In the same manner, our love relationship grows more real, more personal, and practical when we spend time with God - both talking (prayer), listening (quiet time), and spending time WITH Him!
How do we know He wants to spend time with us?
James 4:8 a (ESV)
8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.
How do we spend time with God?
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
Does scripture support spending alone time with God?
10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
17 pray without ceasing,
10 For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.
15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands.
12 I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds.
And probably the best example of getting alone to be with the Father comes from the Son:
35 And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.
Do we have a real, personal, and practical relationship with God?