Bro Gary Sunday Morning 11/27/11

Bro Gary Sunday Morning 11/27/11

Joh 7:37  In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.

Joh 7:38  He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

Joh 7:39  (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

On the last day of the feast they offered several offerings for a sin sacrifice.  The priest would bring water from the pool of Siloam and would mix it with wine and poor it upon the sacrifice.  The people would march around the sacrifice.  

On this last day, Jesus was there.  God created every individual with a desire in their soul for God.  Jesus was there and understood the depths of the thirst for God of every soul that was present.  Jesus knew that not only would that audience thirst for God but every individual in the world thirsts for God.

Many get distracted and try to satisfy that thirst with various things that the world has to offer and are disappointed. 

Jesus stood and cried, “If any man thirst let Him come unto me.  It is vital to realize that the deep thirst that is in us is the same thirst that was in them.  That thirst will only be satisfied by coming to Jesus and drinking. 

Jesus called the thirsty ones to him.  “He that believes on me.”  There is a difference in believing and having faith.  Believing is knowing that God is what He is.  He is the all knowing, al powerful and almighty God.  Having faith means that we believe that God will do for us what He has for others.

Believing in the thought that God will establish us and will quench the thirst of our soul and as Jeremiah 31 says “He will saturate the soul.” 

Sometimes men and women have the literal and spiritual mentality of “just surviving.”  God doesn’t want you to just survive.  He wants you to be able to have your soul filled and have your soul as a watered garden.  In the gospel day Jeremiah 31 is fulfilled.

John concluded in verse 39 that the Holy Ghost would be given and living waters would come forth.

In John 17, Jesus was not only praying for those present, but also for us.  John heard Jesus praying, “I pray for them.”  This was Jesus.  He was concerned about His own.  Jesus is really concerned about everyone in this audience.  He is not just concerned about those that are going to be traveling.  He is concerned about everyone that is here. 

Joh 17:9  I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.

Joh 17:10  And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.

Joh 17:11  And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.

Everyone in this audience knows that it is only God that can keep us.  When we recognize how much Jesus felt the need to pray for all that would believe on Him how we need to be kept through the Father’s name.

Joh 17:13  And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.

John heard and recorded that Jesus wanted us to have His joy fulfilled in our self.  The survival mode will leave you without joy.  There are many things in the world to be concerned about, but if you take on that load, you will not have any joy. 

Jesus prayed that we might have His joy fulfilled in our self.  Among the joy that He had was that He was doing the will of the Father.  Each one that is here this morning has life.  No matter our age, our whole life is before us whether it be many or few days. 

Jesus wants us to have the joy of doing the will of the father.  He wants us to position our self to have our thirst fully quenched and submitting our self to the will of the Father so that we have a river flowing out to others.

Joh 17:14  I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

We are blessed to have our own Bible and to be able to read.  We want to seek God not only when we are in dire straits.  We want to seek Him daily because the Word of God will prepare us for whatever our day may hold.

Joh 17:15  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.

May God help you and me to position ourselves in such a way before Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit of God until we realize that we are here to be an instrument for God with God flowing out of us.  Sometimes you are sick, or tired, or feel that you are so old.  God ordained that we be here and be kept with that river flowing out of us.

Joh 17:16  They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

Joh 17:17  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

Jesus was praying that we would be cleansed and set apart by the teachings of the Word of God.  Jesus knew that there was an inward foe.  He was parying that they be cleansed and set apart through the cleansing of His word.

Joh 17:18  As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.

Joh 17:19  And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.

How could Jesus need to be sanctified?  He didn’t have a carnal nature; He was the son of God.  Jesus told us this because He wasn’t far from Gethsemane when He prayed this prayer.  He was saying, “I’m setting myself apart.”  We had a wonderful lesson this morning of dying to self.  Jesus didn’t want to go to the cross.   

He didn’t want the nails in His hand.  He didn’t want the spikes in His feet.  He set Himself apart to do the perfect will of the Father. 

Every one of us here has a life, a mind, and desires.  We each can make plans of what we’re going to do tonight or tomorrow.  We can map our life out as far as we want to.  There is one thing that man needs to consider and that is that we are not our own.  There have been brilliant minds that mapped out how it was going to be through school, careers, financial goals, etc.  We need to have goals, but we need to realize through that process, “Not my will.”  We need to as Jesus did set ourselves apart to do the perfect will of the Father.

Joh 17:20  Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;

Joh 17:21  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

We will each go our own way unless we realize that the most dangerous thing that you and I can do is choose our own way.  The Bible declares that God will choose the delusion for those that choose their own way. 

God’s plan is not only for us to drink and be satisfied but that we let the Word and Spirit set us apart in such a way that we realize that we are only one.  We are one with God and with His people.  We all labor together and work for the common good to help souls. 

Programs to aid the poor and the uneducated are good, but we must labor to help one another spiritually.  It takes effort to be one.  We come from different backgrounds and different personalities.  We must sometimes tell our personality to leave us alone.  We need each other to be perfected.

The wisdom that is from above is first pure, gentle, and easy to be entreated.  None of us is sitting on a throne.  My dad preached the message, “There are no big I’s or little you’s.”  We are all to be approachable, edified, helped, easily entreated and taught one of another. 

Joh 17:22  And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

Joh 17:23  I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

Have you thought of the thought of souls perishing and if you don’t serve God you will perish?  If you don’t serve God, those you love will perish.  Life is a very small window.  Even if we live 100 years, life is really short.  My father was born in 1908, and they came to Montana in 1922.  none of them are here today.  That is the story of life.  You and I will perish. 

Jude wrote of those that perished like Balaam.  What he wanted was some kind of a reward.  What can you receive that will last past time? 

Cain, there are a lot of people that will perish because they will not let the Bible tell them how to worship.  They are going to worship their own way.  The God that created us gave us instruction how to worship.

Oh that we might know that love of him that sent Christ into the world.  He came so that we wouldn’t perish. 

I well remember the voices that called to me as I walked down the road of life.  The voice of the world and flesh only leads to perishing.  (The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.)

Joh 17:24  Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.

He wants us with Him.  It is wonderful to be invited and when people want us to be with them.  We all appreciate when our children come home or someone calls and asks us if we can come over.

Joh 17:25  O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.

Joh 17:26  And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.

The ugliest condition displayed in the Bible: men shall be lovers of their own selves.

2Ti 3:2  For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

Men shall be lovers of their own selves.  This is the ugliest condition and has many and various types of fruit.

The most beautiful words:

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

In order to make an expression of love to children, to husband or wife, to brothers and sisters in Christ, or to whomever it is vitally important that we have presented our self a living sacrifice to God. 

There are scammers that figure out a way to get something from someone else.  Whatever you have to give to whomever it might be, when you give love you don’t give it expecting anything in return.  If an individual has love in their heart, that love expresses itself.

Our love to God, “God I love you.”  If you love God, first you will give yourself to him totally.  You will give yourself and your time.  You will desire for more of your thoughts to be about God.  To spent more of your time praying and thinking of God.  “I want to love you and give myself totally unto you.”