The Good News of the Gospel! (2)
Notes
Transcript
Good morning Pinecrest Baptist!
Before we get started, let us pray
Woe is me if I do not preach the Gospel.
I would like to 1st and foremost thank Pastor Kenny and Pinecrest Baptist for allowing me the honor of speaking today.
I would also like to thank you all for your support of Celebrate Recovery.
Some of you may be wondering what Celebrate Recovery is.
I am so glad you asked.
Celebrate Recovery
Celebrate Recovery
Celebrate Recovery is a beautiful community of strugglers that courageously enter this safe and beautiful space to get honest about our pain, and the negative ways we may see ourselves, God and others. In this process we come to accept that some of the habits we may have developed to escape our pain has caused destruction in our life and those close to us.
Celebrate Recovery is a biblically balanced approach to help bring sustainable recovery and healing to our hurts. It guides us toward new healthy truths and life-giving habits as we repair our broken relationships.
Who is welcome?
You all have some very good questions this morning.
EVERYONE.
Maybe your thinking I don’t have a problem with drugs or alcohol.
1 out of every 4 people who attend Celebrate Recovery struggles with drugs and alcohol.
Just to give you an idea of some of the issues people find freedom from at CR other than drugs and alcohol.
Anger
Codependency
Eating Disorders
Food Issues
Love and Relationship Addiction
Physical, Sexual, and/or Emotional Abuse
Gambling Addiction
Addiction to Sexual Sin
Childhood Dysfunction
Grief
Mental Health
Basically whatever your fill-in-the-blank is.
OUR MISSION at Celebrate Recovery of Cordele is to provide a safe environment for those struggling with any of life’s hurts, hangups, and habits to be able to come and take their mask off. We know that the only way to truly recovery from anything that life throws at you is Jesus Christ.
OUR PURPOSE is to reach the unchurched and point them to Jesus first. Then as we walk with them, we show them what it looks like to live with sobriety and freedom.
OUR GOAL is to work with local churches such as Pinecrest Baptist Church in hopes that they will take the next step in finding a church home.
We meet every Tuesday at the CFUMC Activity Center.
Dinner is at 5:45PM.
The service starts at 6:30PM.
We have small groups directly following the service.
Dates to put in your calendar.
November 21st, Pinecrest will be teaming up with Miss Linda Mitchell to provide and serve dinner at CR. This will give you all an excuse to come check us out.
December 19th, we will have our 4th annual Austin French concert. This is a free concert to all. Everyone is invited.
Now onto a new ministry coming to the city of Vienna soon.
Peniel Recovery Ministries, Inc.
Peniel Recovery Ministries, Inc.
God gave me a vision of a men’s Christ-centered residential recovery home a few years back.
OUR MISSION is to provide a free, safe place where men and one day women, Lord willing, can go to be shown the love of Christ as they learn to be sober through Biblical teachings and the 12-steps.
OUR PURPOSE is to love on these individuals and walk with them through their mess, discipling them with the tools to gain long term sobriety.
OUR GOAL is to commission each individual to enter back into society with the tools to stay sober and most importantly, a relationship with Jesus.
Through the power of Jesus Christ, we will see real life reconciliation, captives set free, chains broken, and families reunited in Christ.
Why the name Peniel?
That is the exact question I hope to be asked by each loved one that brings someone through our doors.
We find the story of Peniel in Genesis chapter 32.
Jacob like myself, didn’t get much right in life.
Maybe you know the story.
After a life of bad choices, he comes to a place where he has no choice but to wrestle with God.
In this meeting with God, he is made to limb and given a new identity.
Jesus causes him to never walk the same and gives him a new name, Israel.
30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”
So my hope and prayer for everyone that has to bring their lost and hurting loved one through the doors of Peniel is that this will be a place where they will meet and even wrestle with God. And through this they will leave with a new identity in Christ and never walking the same, leaving their addiction behind.
So far, we have seen God give us a building.
A van.
The zoning of the land.
And the land itself.
12 acres on 215 right off the interstate between the library and DFACS.
We voted a few weeks ago to purchase the land. As soon as I walked out of that board meeting, a gentlemen approaches me and goes on to tell me that he and his wife will be sending a check for the entire amount of the land purchase. Bare in mind this is more than most people make in a year. Praise the Lord.
God has blessed Peniel with a phenomenal board of directors.
Hey, as we move forward with construction of the property, there will be many opportunities to get involved.
This will take the entire community coming together on a continual basis to accomplish.
Now that we have gotten CR and Peniel out of the way, which are 2 things that I am super passionate about, allow me to tell you about That which I am most passionate about!
The Good News of the Gospel!
The Good News of the Gospel!
Buy the way, the worship was phenomenal!
If that praise and worship doesn’t get you fired up, your woods wet!
You might of noticed my hands raised in the air during worship.
I’ve been asked, “Why do people raise their hands in the air during worship?”
I can only speak for myself.
I am really excited about Jesus and all that He has done for me.
Some might say that I’m a bit extra.
That’s okay.
On July 21st, 2019, Jesus Christ saved me and I have been extra for Jesus every since.
He delivered me.
And now there is a fire burning in me that I cannot contain.
I get so excited when I talk about Jesus that I can’t be still and I just want to shout, “Hallelujah!”
When I got saved, I wanted to see the world saved.
I still do.
Man I will try and lead a stop sign to Christ if it will let me.
I remember the first time that I ever lead someone to Christ at CR. We were in small groups. I gentlemen said, “Hey I want to be saved.”
To that I replied, “Wait, I think I can help you with this!”
Illustrate going to the Bible and turning to Romans 10:9.
This moment created a passion for seeing souls saved and I wanted to know more. I wanted to see more.
During my pursuit to learn all I could about salvation, God lead me to a verse in Romans.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
This got me thinking, what is the Gospel or the Good News of Jesus Christ.
I took a survey on Facebook a while back.
Here are just some of the answers I received.
Jesus
God’s Word
The Bible
Jesus saves
These are all good answers.
The Gospel is the Good News of what God did for us.
What exactly did God do?
Chapter 15 of 1 Corinthians gives us a great theological description of the Gospel.
Let’s look at the first four verses.
I encourage you to go back and study the entire chapter.
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand,
2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,
In verses 1 and 2 we see again that the Gospel saves.
In verses 3 and 4 we see that Jesus died for our sins and that He rose from the grave.
My goal today is to help articulate the Gospel to you so that when you leave here today, you may share it with others.
YES! EVEN YOU IN THE BACK!
If you have something to write with, jot this down.
HE WAS!
HE CAME!
HE DIED!
HE ROSE!
HE LIVES!
HE’S COMING!
Speaking at men’s brotherhood when asked how many people have been saved under the ministry of CR.
It has nothing to do with me.
I’m not a good speaker.
What I have found is that no matter how bad my sermon is if I close out every time with a Gospel presentation, God will draw who He wants, when He wants.
My job is simply to present the Gospel.
I always end with this.
GIVE GOSPEL PRESENTATION!
They said, “Clay you need to write that down and go around teaching that.”
That blew my mind.
How many people do not know or share the Gospel?
It’s not that complicated.
Let’s look at it together.
He was!
He was!
Jesus has always been!
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Did you know that you and I were created for relationship with God?
12 I will walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people.
Sin separated us for that relationship.
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
There is absolutely nothing we can do in and of ourselves to reconcile this relationship on our own.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
He came!
He came!
Because God loves us so much, He sent Jesus!
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
He died!
He died!
Jesus willing took on the weight of all our sins when He died on that old rugged Cross.
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
That word propitiation in the Greek is hilasmos which means atonement or means of appeasing.
He rose!
He rose!
Jesus rose from the grave to conquer sin and death, so that we might have eternal life with Him in heaven.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
He lives!
He lives!
Sing Because He Lives, I can face tomorrow!
Jesus offers eternal life through a reconciled relationship to all those who repent of their sins by placing faith in Jesus Christ.
3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
He’s coming!
He’s coming!
Jesus is coming back soon. Are you living in such a way that is pleasing to Him? Are you spreading the Gospel to the lost?
What was the score of the GA game yesterday?
What is their record so far?
What are they ranked?
Congratulations.
You have just shared the good news of something you are passionate about.
We share what excites us.
Band come up and piano start playing.
Lifeway research shows that 55% of those who attend church at least once a month say that they have not shared with someone how to become a Christian in the past six months.
One of the main reasons Christians do not share their faith is because maybe they feel it is awkward.
CONVERSATIONS WITH PAUL!
One day when we get to heaven, we’ll meet Paul.
He’ll come running up and say, “Hey, wasn’t it awesome to share the Gospel with all the lost?”
“Well.........”
“Oh, did they lock you up?”
“No.”
“Let me guess, they beat you with a whip too?”
“No.”
“Man, it must have been those stocks. Good night, those things hurt.”
“No. Not those either.”
“What was it then? Why didn’t you share the Gospel?”
“You see Paul. I didn’t share the Gospel, because it was awkward.”
“Awkward?”
“Yea, I was scared I would make someone or myself uncomfortable.”
I close out this morning with an encouraging challenge.
I challenge you Vienna 1st Baptist to tell the world about Jesus.
When it is time for you to lay crowns at the feet of Jesus, will you have any to lay down.
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
Hey. move out of the way, there is a dump truck full of crowns coming through.
I stand before you a man that has broken all 10 of the commandments.
I have been addicted to everything on this earth.
I have been homeless.
I have been arrested more times than I can even remember.
I have been in prison.
I am the worst of sinners.
I’m just a nobody, trying to tell everybody, about Somebody that saved my soul.
Will you join me?
I leave you with Gospel.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
God created a perfect place.
He created us to be in relationship with Him.
Sin entered the world and separated us from God.
God loved us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to this earth.
Jesus lived on this earth fully man for 33 years.
He willingly took all the weight of our sins with Him to the that old rugged Cross.
Everything you have ever done. Past, present, and future were nailed to the Cross.
He died.
Was buried.
In three days, He rose from the grave to conquer sin and death, so that whosoever believes may have eternal life.
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
10 As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Would you please bow your heads?