Clothed in Kindness, Rooted in Christ
Notes
Transcript
Opening Scripture
Opening Scripture
Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
As God’s people we are to clothe ourselves with the Character of Jesus
As we put on Jesus daily we reflect the glory of God through living out the ministry of Jesus
In order for us to effectively put on Jesus and live out His ministry in our lives —- We MUST die to ourselves daily…
We MUST die to Anger and resentment.
We MUST die to Pride
We MUST die to treating people harshly
We MUST die to impatience
We are to make it a daily habit to leave our flesh, sins, and worldly desires on the cross where Jesus laid it to death.
How Tender is Your Heart?
How Tender is Your Heart?
Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”
“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!
“Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.
“But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.
“But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.
“His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.
“When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.
“That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”
We want mercy but are we willing to show others mercy…
Just like with pharaoh in the book of Exodus His heart was hardened which lead to judgement falling upon him and his nation
The more we choose to be self-centered or selfish the more we put on self instead of Jesus
It’s NOT always easy to show mercy and to forgive but God gives us the strength and the grace to do it within our lives.
Showing mercy and forgiveness is a sign of spiritual maturity
The closer i grow in God through Jesus the more compassion I will develop
Who do you need to show mercy to? Who do you need to forgive within your heart?
How Hospitable Are You?
How Hospitable Are You?
“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
“Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
“Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
“Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
“And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’
“And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
As disciples of Jesus and children of the most High God we are both called and required to be hospitable to others…
Being Hospitable is being neighborly…
When we are effective in caring for others we remain humble before God
God positions us in a place so that He use us to bless others.
The true blessing is not what we have but instead how we can be used by God to bless others.
As we become hospitable we reflect Jesus and the goodness of God to those who may not know God as we do
If we refuse to be hospitable… if we refuse to be neighborly we are selfishly with holding the love of God from others…
Its in the simple things that can be an answer to someone’s prayers…
How can God use you to be a blessing to others?
Are you being neighborly?
Humility: The Foundation for Kindness
Humility: The Foundation for Kindness
Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.
I can NOT effectively put on Jesus if the Character of Jesus NOT my foundation…
The main element of Jesus Character was humility… He always put the needs of others before His own.
Jesus calls us to do the same… To Serve and not look to be served by others…
The more I put away pride the more i am capable of reflecting Jesus to others.
The more i am humble the more i am capable of effectively serving the needs of others.
Are you willing to serve others?
Are you ready to put Christ first and serve Him before you serve yourself?
