THE FOUR STREAMS

CJ DICKENSON

Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

0 ratings

· 5 views

Notes

Transcript

Sermon Tone Analysis

Emotion

Language

Social

View more →

The FOUR STREAMS

if you have your Bibles be opening to the Olkd Testament Book of Joshua, Joshua chaptyer 5. We have now come to the

This is God’s battle

Concecration to the Lord.

The amount of talent that

Prelude to Worship

I don’t have what they have....

The factors behind mastery of anything, no matter the subject, music, martial arts, sales sports, computer programming. The amount of effort

Joshua 5:13

Joshua 5:13–15 ESV

13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” 14 And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15 And the commander of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

The tireless effort they give to their goal.

Show the picture of Jericho

Today we come to the part in scripture where Joshua and the people of Israel have crossed the Jordan River and they have come into the Promised Land where they are about to face their greatest battle. The city of Jericho. What made this the greatest battle, is not because it was their first battle, its not because it was the people of Jericho were giants, or had the most powerful army. It was the greatest because Jericho had the greatest fortification. The walls of the city were impenetrable.

Archaeologist have excavated ancient Jericho and found that the walls were thrown down by sudden force.

They found charred wood where the city had been burned

and food supplies that show that the city was wasn’t captured by siege.

What do you need to Conquer

Show the picture of Jericho

This city was a stronghold. an impenetrable freak of nature. Today we are going to be dealing with strongholds those things that rise up and defy or try to defy the things of God.

The key to victory is similar to what Joshua experience right before this battle. He encounters the Lord Jesus Christ. Now I know that this man that has his sword out is the Lord Jesus and not just an angel because of Joshua response , and the Commanders response to His response. Joshua falls down and worships, and the Commander of the Lords army didn’t stop him. There are other places in scripture like

Revelation 22:9 ESV

9 but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”

Revelation 22:8–9 ESV

8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”

Rev 22:

Revelation 22:8–9 ESV

You need to understand that the battle is the Lord’s and your proximity and your intimacy with him will determine rather you thrive or die spiritually.

Sin has its pleasuers, but my oh my how they are temporatr

If you feel like you are stuck in a rut, spiritually are in life in general listen up because I have some things that I need to speak to you. In a book by John Eldredge He wrote about four things converging today inside the church that when all four take place, the church will begin to take ground and thrive.

The Four Streams

Stream #1 Discipleship

I wish that i could share my ex

Last week we visited and looked at the great commission. Jesus commanded his followers to go out into the world and make disciples. The word Disciple sounds radical, right? And we live in a culture where that is almost like a bad word. Liek man that guy is just radical.... The picture is like a guy on the street corner telling people to turn or burn. But can I tell you that is not a what a disciple is, that a perversion formulated by the devil for the express purpose to scare you off

What is a disciple? Sin deforms us, the world wants to conform us, but Jesus transforms us

And if you are heaven born, and heaven bound. You have work to do, a Father to enjoys and weapons to discover. When people are restored to the Father through the Lord jesus Christ. you are set free, and not only set free but given life by the Holy Spirit.

But there are some enemies today from disciple making… First the assault comes from the religious crowd

Hardened Minds

The snare of legalism-

2 Corinthians 3:12–14 ESV

12 Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, 13 not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. 14 But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away.

I know plenty of people who have turned to Christ, but then they turn back to the law, and reduce whats is supposed to be this glorious relationship into rigid rules, and liberty gets taken captive by legalism. Listen we have great hope in Christ. And discipleship is not meant to drive you into bondage, it is to take you out of bondage.

And discipleship get whittled down to reason and just making good decisions, and it leaves the whole learning how to wakl with God thing out.

2 Corinthians 12:15–17 ESV

15 I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less? 16 But granting that I myself did not burden you, I was crafty, you say, and got the better of you by deceit. 17 Did I take advantage of you through any of those whom I sent to you?

2 Corinthians 3:15–18 ESV

15 Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. 16 But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 12

And when you leave it all, you walk away from your fishing nets like the disciples did, it may cost you everything, but you are going to get back so much more. Oh if I could just tell you how much pleasure there is in walking with the Lord. Oh how I wish I could tell you how good it is when I am filled with the Spirit of God and He is speaking and directing my life. Oh how wicked and evil it is when people start preaching a legalism that leads to religious bondage. When you start placing burdens on peoples shoulders and aren’t willing to lift them yourself, you are being a legalist. When you start to add rules to God’s rules you are being a legalist. When you use truth as a club instead of a key that frees them you are being a legalist.

But listen this is where you have to then be skilled and pull back the reigns, and don’t get to far out there. That doesn’t mean there aren’t any rules. And it doesn’t mean that we yoke up with darkness either. Listen there is evil. There is a clear sense of right and wrong. We mu

2 Corinthians 3:15-

THE BLINDED MIND

But there is another enemy to discipleship.... Not only is there the Hardened mind, oH NO YOU DON’T WANT TO HAVE A HARDENED MIND, OR BECOME A HARDENED PERSON IN GENERAL. BUT THERE IS ANOTHER ENEMY OF THE DISCIPLE PROCESS AND THAT IS THE BLINDED MINDS.

But we are living in a world of Blinded minds....

2 Corinthians 4:1–6 ESV

1 Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 CORINTHIANS 4:1

LISTEN we are living in a world of blinded minds. This is another faction of the lost. The other group was religious and lost. But this group is non religious and lost. And in their case the god of this world, speaking of the devil has blinded their minds. Listen when you see a man or a woman openly scoff at the gospel or at the Bible, what you are seeing is someone that has the devils initials carved on their heart. And listen don’t htink that being a disciple means that you are here to please everyone and make everyone happy. Listen people without Jesus are going to do what people without Jesus are going to do. They are going to preach a tolerance to every form of soin and perversity and then label you a biggot when you preach the gospel. it’s going to happen, just get ready..

2 Corinthians 4:6 ESV

6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

he has brought us out of darkness into the light. And you can still love people and tell them that they are wrong, and that God will judge those things. You can in love warn people about a hell. in fact you are not walking in love if you skip that detail out.

Listen there is a hell to shun, and a heaven to gain. Thats iksThe message that Jesus came preaching is still in effect today, repent and believe in the gospel. The gopsel not only sets men and women free, but it also causes them to behave.

The point of discipleship is to teaach you to work with God. It is not to teach you to be a better church member. It is not to brow beat you when you don’t make it too service, or some of you make it to service on time.

Stream #2 Healing

When you come to the Lord, the Bible says that you are a new creation. The old things have passed away and behold all things have become new

1 Peter 2:24 ESV

24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

1 Peter 2:24

Isaiah 61:1 ESV

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

Stream #3 Spiritual Warfare

Stream #4

Last week we looked at , the Great Commission where Jesus commanded his Apostles to go out into the world and make disciples.

We are in need of more disciples more than ever. We are living in a day that is spiritually

We spoke a little bit about that last week and what it means to be a disciple. A disciple is not a person that get’s religious all of a sudden, and its not learning a bunch of

English Standard Version Chapter 4

18 While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him

It’s crazy when you think about it, but the disciples left everything that they knew and loved and with complete abandon followed Jesus