When God Changes Your Plans (2)
When God Changes Your Plana • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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When God Changes Your Plans
When God Changes Your Plans
Good morning. I am so humbled that you would join us this morning.
I want to welcome everyone joining us online and remind you to like, share, follow, or subscribe.
Please grab your Bibles, tablets, phones, or whatever has GOd’s Word on it and open to Philippians 1.
Have you ever ran into anything or up against something so hard you just wanted to quit.
I was raised by a West Virginia hillbilly - the rule is if you start you finish
I remember as a kid a neighbor offered me $100 to mow his lawn while he was gone.
As a 12 year old that was a lot of money, so I jumped on it.
What I did not think through he lived on 1/2 an acre and I had to mow his lawn weekly in June and July with a push mower in Florida
I started strong, but by July I was begging to stop, and cuttting corners to just get done as soon as possible.
My dad set me right and told me one day I would understand and apprciate this lesson.
Today, I still say that was stupid choice I made and I should of charged a lot more.
We are talking about “When God Changes Your Plans”
A sudden or unexpected change can stop you in your tracks. It can take the wind out of your sail and often we ask if it is worth it, would it be easier to quit?
We ask how can we persevere?
This morning I want to dive into this.
If you hear nothing else I want you to hear that perseverance is not only on us and our strength.
Perseverance may be defined as that continuous operation of the Holy Spirit in the believer, by which the work of divine grace that is begun in the heart is continued and brought to completion. It is because God never forsakes His work that believers continue to stand to the very end. - Lois Berkhof “Systematic Theology”
Even if we want oto quit, God doesn’t and won’t.
God Will Finish What He Started
God Will Finish What He Started
I ask you to please stand as we open and read God’s Word.
Out of everything that I will say these are the words that matter, the ones that can change everything.
1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. 7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.
8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
12 I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. 14 And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.
15 Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. 16 The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice,
Let’s pray
God Will Finish What He Started
God Will Finish What He Started
Some background on Philippians -
Paul wrote this letter around 10 years after Paul’s first visit from prison
Which is amazing when you will see one of the major themes is Joy.
Even in the midst of struggle uncertainty Paul had joy
He had confidence in what Christ was doing and had done.
His confidence was unshakeable because he knew what it was based on.
Paul knew:
We are never meant to face things alone.
1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
These people, saints were his family and support
They sent him aide.
He goes on
3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
We are never meant to face things alone.
They were in his heart, in his prayers, they were his partners
No wonder the author of Hebrews says
25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
We are never meant to face things alone.
We need each other, we need to gather - thats why I say if you can be here be here.
Listen to his heart for this community
7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.
Paul knew something else:
6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
God finishes what He starts
God takes everything - the good, the bad, the changes and uses it all to shape, mold, grow us - as individula and the church.
Do you hear that? GOd will what he started here at Gospel Centered Church.
Through it we will grow - personally, spritually, even numerically.
9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
God finishes what He starts
We have our part:
We pray, we dive into His word, we share, we invite, we serve, we sacrifice
Not for Gospel Centered Church but
11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
His glory His kingdom.
Paul also knew:
Nothing surprises God, He uses it all
12 I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.
Nothing surprises God, He uses it all
God never looks down and says - how did that happen, we need form a comittee and research and look up strategies.
The Gospel is the strategy and it keeps moving on
14 And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.
It engouraged other to be bold. You stepping up and stepping out just might push someone to do the same.
Ther last thing:
Keep focus on God and His plan.
15 Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. 16 The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice,
Keep focus on God and His plan.
Don”t focus on the issue or what others are saying or doing
Focus on what God is doing here and calling us too.
There are great leaders here and if you strugling in trusting , Trust the Holy Spirit that dwells in them.
God Will Finish What He Started
God Will Finish What He Started
Life throws us curves and sometime just beens us in the head.
It can feel so easy to give up and quit.
When I am weak He is strong
God never has and never will quit on us. We can step forward in confidence.
“Perseverance is more than endurance. It is endurance combined with absolute assurance and certainty that what we are looking for is going to happen.” - Oswald Chambers
God will finish what he started in your life and in this church.
God Will Finish What He Started
God Will Finish What He Started
Someone may be here or watching that sees this and has no confidence and feels like it is time to quit.
It start with surrendering our way to the Way Truth and Life Jesus. He has kept and is keeping every promise.
For others it may be hard right now and you just need to rember He is not done.
Wherever you are don’t leave with unfinished business.
Let’s Pray
