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Be Pure

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

1 Peter 2:1-3 New International Version (NIV)

Pure – anything that is NOT contrary to God or what God would want for us.

Garbage In > Garbage Out

As you come to him, the living Stone – rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him – you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:4-5 NIV

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
1 Peter 2:9-10 NIV

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:13 New King James Version (NKJV)

Take an inventory of the spiritual purity of your lives.

Be Holy

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade…
1 Peter1:3 -9 New International Version (NIV)

So roll up your sleeves, put your mind in gear, be totally ready to receive the gift that’s coming when Jesus arrives. Don’t lazily slip back into those old grooves of evil, doing just what you feel like doing. You didn’t know any better then; you do now. As obedient children, let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God’s life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness. God said, “I am holy; you be holy.”
1 Peter 1:13 -16 The Message (MSG)

Holy (hagios – Greek) = different

You call out to God for help and he helps – he’s a good Father that way. But don’t forget, he’s also a responsible Father, and won’t let you get by with sloppy living.
1 Peter 1:17 (MSG)

Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God. It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in. He paid with Christ’s sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb. And this was no afterthought. Even though it has only lately – at the end of the ages – become public knowledge, God always knew he was going to do this for you. It’s because of this sacrificed Messiah, whom God then raised from the dead and glorified, that you trust God, that you know you have a future in God.
1 Peter 1:18-21 (MSG)

For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
1 Peter 1:18-19 New Living Translation (NLT)

Now that you’ve cleaned up your lives by following the truth, love one another as if your lives depended on it. your new life is not like your old life. Your old birth came from mortal sperm; your new birth comes from God’s living Word. Just think: a life conceived by God himself! That’s what the prophet said, The old life is a grass life, its beauty as short-lived as wildflowers; Grass dries up, flowers droop, God’s Word goes on and on forever. This is the Word that conceived the new life in you.
1 Peter 1:22-25 (MSG)

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; were there is deeper, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved, as to love; for it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
– St. Francis of Assisi

I am holy; you be holy.
1 Peter 1:16 (MSG)

The Fruit

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

Galatians 5:6 New International Version[NIV]

Love Trumps All!

Before the coming of this faith, we were held in custody under that law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed. So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile,  neither slave nor free, nor is there male  and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  If you belong to Christ, then you are  Abraham’s seed, and heirs according  to the promise.

Galatians 3:23-29 [NIV]

Don’t misunderstand why I have come.
I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets.  No, I came to accomplish their purpose.

Matthew 5:17 [NIV]

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this  one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Galatians 5:13-14 [NIV]

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!

2 Corinthians 5:17 [NIV]

The acts of flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you,  as I did before, that those who live like this  will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Galatians 5:19-21 [NIV]

But the fruit of the Spirit is  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  Against such things there is no law.

Galatians 5:22-23 [NIV]

The Gifts

PRAYER TO THE HOLY SPIRIT

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful  and kindle in us the fire of your love.  Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created.  And You shall renew the face of the earth.
O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit,  did instruct the hearts of the faithful,  grant that by the same Holy Spirit  we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

Acts of the Apostles

On one occasion, while he was eating with them,
he gave them this command:
“Do not leave Jerusalem,
but wait for the gift my Father promised,  which you have heard me speak about.”

Acts 1:4 (NIV)

“…But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses  in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,  and to the ends of the earth.”  After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

Acts 1:8-9 (NIV)

Pentecost: the Jewish Festival of Weeks – 7 weeks following Passover on the 50th day

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.  They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.  All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)

“Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem,  let me explain this to you;  listen carefully to what I say.  These men are not drunk, as you suppose.  It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘In the last days,  God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people…’”

Acts 2:14b-17a (NIV)

“God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. Now he is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand.  And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see  and hear today…So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus,  whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”

Acts 2:32-33, 36 (New Living Translation [NLT])

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized,  every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ  for the forgiveness of your sins.  And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit…” Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

Acts 2:38,41 (NIV)

Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.  Every day they continued to meet together  in the temple courts. They broke bread together in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.  And the Lord added to their number daily  those who were being saved.

Acts 2:43-47 (NIV)

Spiritual Gifts: Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4

There are different kinds of spiritual gifts,  but the same Spirit is the source of them all.  There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways,  but it is the same God who does the work  in all of us. A spiritual gift is given to each of us  so we can help each other.

1 Corinthians 12:4-7 (NIV)

The Promise

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”
John 14:1-4
New International Version (NIV)

“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him,
for he lives with you and will be in you.
I will not leave you as orphans;
I will come to you.
John 14:15-18
[NIV]

All this I have spoken while still with you.
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father
will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.
I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
John 14:25-28
[NIV]

Holy Spirit
power, and wisdom, and truth

Holy Spirit
power, and wisdom, and truth
Advocate

Paraklētos:
counselor, intercessor, advocate, helper, one who encourages and comforts, one who speaks in defense of.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
Genesis 1:1-2
[NIV]

Then God said, “Let us make mankind   in our image, in our likeness,….”
Genesis 1:26a
[NIV]

“When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father— 
he will testify about me.
And you also must testify,  
for you have been with me from the beginning.
John 15:26-27
[NIV]

…, but now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless
I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go,   I will send him to you.
John 16:5-15
[NIV]

When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment:  
about sin, because people do not believe in me;   about righteousness, because I am going to the Father,
where you can see me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
John 16:5-15
[NIV]

“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he
will make known to you.”
[NIV]
John 16:5-15

Holy Spirit Brings Revelation
revealing the true meaning of what Jesus did and who He was

the trinity
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

Feed My Sheep

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter,  “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”  Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”  He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him,  “Simon son of John, do you love me?”  Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time,  “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord you know all things;  you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.”

John 21:15-17 : New International Version

Jesus Reinstates Peter

Reinstate:
to restore someone or something to their former job, position, or condition

Loving Jesus = Feeding His Sheep

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Empty Yet Full

Now very early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been moved away from the entrance. So she went running to Simon Peter and the other disciple whom Jesus loved and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”

Then Peter and the other disciples set out to go to the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down and saw the strips of lien cloth lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter, who had been following him, arrived and went right into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen cloth lying there, and the face cloth, which had been around Jesus’ head, not lying with the strips of linen cloth but rolled up in a place by itself.

Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, came in, and he saw and believed. (For they did not yet understand the scripture that Jesus must rise from the dead.) So the disciples went back to their homes. But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping.

John 20:1-11b New English Translation (NET Bible)

Anyone who can do that has just broken the back of the world’s power. Until Easter, death was the one thing of which we were certain. It was the world’s final trump card over life. Now that we have a Savior who conquers even death, Jesus can save us from anything. I think this means that of all the emotions we may have in life, fear is probably the one that Christians can use the last. After death has been defeated, what is the world are you afraid of? M. Craig Barnes. An Extravagant Mercy. p. 198

They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” Mary replied, “They have taken my Lord away, and I do not know where they have put him!” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” Because she thought he was the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will take him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni” (which means Teacher).

John 20:13-16 (NET Bible)

Loved Yet Hated

Many people spread their cloaks on the road,  while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!” “Hosanna in the highest heaven!” Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple courts. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late,  he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.

Mark 11:8-11 New International Version (NIV)

HOSANNA > SAVE

The Triumphal Entry

On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves,  and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them,  he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’” The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.

Mark 11:15-18 NIV

Then one of the Twelve – the one called Judas Iscariot – went to the chief priest and asked,  “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. From then on Judas watched for an  opportunity to hand him over.

Matthew 26:14-16 NIV

But they kept shouting, “Crucify him!”

Luke 23:21 NIV

“He saved others; let him save himself  if he is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.”

Luke 23:35 NIV

Jesus called out with a loud voice,  “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this,
he breathed his last.

Luke 23:46 NIV

Do you ever wonder as you wander?

Psalm 23: 6

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The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life, and I shall dwell
in the house of the Lord forever.

Pslam 23 (ESV)

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His love endures forever.

1 Chronicles 16:34 (NIV)

The Ark of the Covenant was a physical reminder for the people of  God’s everlasting promise  (his covenant to them)  to dwell among the people forever.  

Chesed – God’s lovingkindness;  God’s faithful action over time.  God’s mercy and unconditional love.  His “covenant loyalty;”  his divine love and promises over time.  

Know therefore that the Lord  your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his [CHESED] covenant of love  to a thousand generations of those  who love him and keep his commandments.

Deuteronomy 7:9 (NIV)

I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you  and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land  he swore to give your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Deuteronomy 30:19-20 (NIV)

Is the Lord your shepherd?

“Do not let your hearts be troubled.  You believe in God; believe also in me.  My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you,  I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”

John 14:1-3 (NIV)

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me. I [Jesus] give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my  Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

John 10:27-29 (NIV)

Psalm 23: 5

Psalm 23: 1-5 – ESV

Mesa – table

But here on this mountain God-of-the-angel-Armies will throw a feast for all the people of the world, a feast of the finest foods, a feast with vintage wines, a feast of seven courses, a feast lavish with gourmet desserts. And here on this mountain, God will banish the pall of doom hanging over all nations. Yes, he’ll banish death forever. And God will wipe the tears from every face. He’ll remove every sign of disgrace from his people, wherever they are. Yes! God says so!

Isaiah 25:6-8- THE MESSAGE

Jesus and banquets

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

Psalm 23:5 – ESV

The Lord claims us!

The Lord claims you!

When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought,  “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before him.”  But the Lord said to Samuel,  “Do not look on his appearance or on the height  of his stature, because I have rejected him.  For the Lord sees not as man sees:  man looks on the outward appearance,  but the Lord looks on the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:6-7 – ESV

So Jesse sent for him. He was dark and handsome, with beautiful eyes. And the Lord said,  “This is the one; anoint him.”  So as David stood there among his brothers,  Samuel took the flask of olive oil he had brought  and anointed David with the oil. And the Spirit  of the Lord came powerfully upon David  from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.

I Samuel 16:12-13 – ESV

Jesus is anointed to be  our King,
our Leader,  our Lord.

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Archives: Messages

Be Pure

Be Holy

The Fruit

The Gifts

The Promise

Feed My Sheep

Empty Yet Full

Loved Yet Hated

Psalm 23: 6

Psalm 23: 5

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