"Prayer and Praise Evening"
Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 1 viewNotes
Transcript
In 1 John Chapter 2 we see the importance of growing from Children, to Young Men and then Fathers. The meaning here is that we as believers are called to grow in our faith. We should never desire to remain as infants or young children. And yet so many churches today have so many folks that are not growing or excited about God’s Word, Prayer and Right Worship. We should have a desire or love for the rich theology of godly hymns, we should have a desire to study God’s Word so that we can run from worldly temptations and to draw near to God through prayer. Tragically many churches today cater to people who are stuck in an infantile stage. The Lord however has called us out of the early stage and into spiritual adulthood. As true followers of Christ we should not be content to remain spiritually immature. We should have a deep desire to grow into godly men and women who have the mind of Christ and are convicted by God’s Word and have an affection for God. So, we come tonight to draw near to God through prayer and to give Him praise through song.
1. The first area I want us to sing about and focus on is who God is. Do you know about God and His Wonderful Attributes? If you are a Christian tonight than you should know about God. Let me share several truths about God with you before we sing and then go to the Lord in Prayer.
1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
God is the Creator of everything. He created the heavens and the earth. He designed you and I and He alone is in control of it all.
5 The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,
God is a God of mercy and He is slow to anger unlike us. He is a God of love and is faithful. He is faithful and will someday return for His bride.
4 for the Lord your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.’
God goes with His children into battle and ultimately God is the one who is victorious.
30 This God—his way is perfect;
the word of the Lord proves true;
he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
God’s way is right, because God is truth. He is our shield so we can trust Him in all matters in this life.
6 The heavens declare his righteousness,
for God himself is judge! Selah
God is a righteous judge. Someday he will settle all of the injustices that have taken place. This means that we don’t have to get back at someone or hurt someone back. Vengeance is mine says the Lord.
18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity
and passing over transgression
for the remnant of his inheritance?
He does not retain his anger forever,
because he delights in steadfast love.
19 He will again have compassion on us;
he will tread our iniquities underfoot.
You will cast all our sins
into the depths of the sea.
God alone forgives our sin. Aren’t you thankful today that God has forgiven you?
5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
God is perfect. There is no sin or darkness in Him. Because of this He is Holy, Mighty, and True.
Let’s sing these songs about God tonight.
-Blessed Assurance.
-How Great thou art.
The first area that I want us to pray for and about is Families. Pray for Fathers to be the spiritual leaders of their families. Pray for our mothers and they follow and as they help raise their children. Pray for our children as they head back to school. Pray that families would grow in their faith and know and follow God’s Word.
2. The Second Area I want us to focus on is What has God in Christ Jesus our Lord done for us? Do you know what Christ did?
8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Christ came and gave up His life for you. He died in my place and your place in order for us to be reconciled to God the Father.
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.
Propitiation here is the Greek word (hilasmos) This means that because of Christ’s death on the cross in which he atoned for our sin, Christ appeased the wrath of God.
6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
Jesus became obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross. He died so that we could be forgiven of sin and someday live with Christ.
Let’s sing these next songs and thing about what Christ has done for us.
-Jesus Paid it All.
-Nothing But the Blood.
The second area that I want to take time to focus on is praying for people to follow Christ. Let us pray for our country to follow Christ. For our leaders, national and local. Pray that we would share our faith with others. Pray for missionaries as they share Christ around the globe. There are many things we can pray for here.
3. Finally, the third area I want to focus on is knowing who God is and what He has done should cause us to Praise the Lord or be thankful. Our Response should be Thankfulness and Praise.
34 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!
17 I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness,
and I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
1 Praise the Lord!
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever!
Let us take time tonight to sing about the Lord.
-What a Friend we have in Jesus.
Let us take time tonight to focus our hearts in Prayer and by telling God all the things that we are thankful for. A prayer of Thanksgiving is so important. So, let us end this way tonight.
(After several minutes close in Prayer and Dismiss.)