Sister Alice Sunday School 3/31/13
Each and every one of us has a mission that is bigger than
our life, than our family, our career and all we possess. If we faithfully live that mission as David
did, happiness will be a byproduct of the mission.
No one but Christ had the mission to save the whole world. We want to watch by example His attitudes toward
His mission to use for our mission so that we can be used in the place that we
are. We are to serve God with all our
heart, but a lot of times there is a transition in our mission and what it is. The empty nest is one example, our children
grow up and we are left alone.
Jesus did not let anything distract Him:
Mat 16:21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto
his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of
the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again
the third day.
Mat 16:22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him,
saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
Mat 16:23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for
thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.
Peter latched onto the part where Jesus was to be killed and
said, “No, you are the Messiah; that should not be.” I think in my life of how just waiting two
minutes or letting someone else talk first would have kept me from making a
mistake in what I said. It was this way
with Peter. It is for an example to us.
Mat 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his
cross, and follow me.
Mat 16:25 For whosoever will
save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall
find it.
Mat 16:26 For what is a man
profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what
shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
There are many times in Psalms that the writer compares us
to the grass of the field. It grows up
for a season, is mowed or burned off and then is gone. We are like that.
Mat 16:27 For the Son of man
shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward
every man according to his works.
Mat 16:28 Verily I say unto
you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see
the Son of man coming in his kingdom.
We see where His rebuke to Peter was sharper than when Peter
was to deny Him. ‘Savourest’ means to
set your mind to, like in Col 3 it means to ‘set your affection on’. Set your mind on what is really the mission to
do. As Jesus said, “I must die and rise
again.”
‘Savourest’ means to exercise our mind with concern and
obedience. There was one that asked a
question about horses. The person that
was asked indicated me and said, “Here is the one that can help you she has
been around horses her whole life.” I
thought, “I’ve been in kindergarten with horses my whole life why didn’t I grow
up?” We can be around something our
whole life and never learn what we need to learn.
Peter was with Christ all this time but he was not with Him
in understanding where He was to go. He
did not understand. If he had then he
might have said, “We’ve been studying the scriptures and see this is what will
come to past and we will be with you.”
A man came to speak to me for fifteen minutes; he wanted to
tell me he was going to die. I wanted to
say, “No, you’ve got many good years yet ahead for you.” But the Spirit of God got to me and said, “Be
quiet. That is not what will comfort this man.”
He wanted to talk seriously with me.
Jesus finished His mission, His course:
Mat 26:30 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out
into the mount of Olives.
Mat 26:31 Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is
written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered
abroad.
Mat 26:32 But after I am risen
again, I will go before you into Galilee.
Mat 26:33 Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.
Mat 26:34 Jesus said unto him, Verily
I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me
thrice.
Mat 26:35 Peter said unto him, Though I should die with
thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.
Mat 26:36 Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place
called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye
here, while I go and pray yonder.
Mat 26:37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons
of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
Mat 26:38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye
here, and watch with me.
Mat 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his
face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be
possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou
wilt.
Mat 26:40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth
them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not
watch with me one hour?
Mat 26:41 Watch and pray, that
ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh
is weak.
Mat 26:42 He went away again the second time, and
prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass
away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.
Mat 26:43 And he came and found them asleep again: for
their eyes were heavy.
Mat 26:44 And he left them, and went away again, and
prayed the third time, saying the same words.
Peter wasn’t the only one that denied Jesus. They all forsook Him. Just because Jesus was the son of God didn’t
make it easy for Him. But He had a heart
cry toward God and total surrender. He
had a heart of total surrender. We will
not get by on anything else.
Joh 17:4 I have glorified thee
on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
He has finished the work that He had to do. This is what we want to do on our mission.
Joh 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the
vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed
his head, and gave up the ghost.
It is finished. He
went through to the finish. That was on
His mind to finish it.
Joh 13:1 Now before the feast of the passover, when
Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto
the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto
the end.
Isn’t that beautiful?
I want to encourage every one of you that this promise is for every one
of us. He will love us to the very end
of our mission.
Joh 20:1 The first day
of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the
sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.
Joh 20:2 Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter,
and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have
taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid
him.
Joh 20:3 Peter therefore went forth, and that other
disciple, and came to the sepulchre.
Joh 20:4 So they ran both together: and the other
disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre.
Joh 20:5 And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet
went he not in.
Joh 20:6 Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and
went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,
Joh 20:7 And the napkin, that was about his head, not
lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.
Joh 20:8 Then went in also that other disciple, which
came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed.
Joh 20:9 For as yet they knew not the scripture, that
he must rise again from the dead.
Joh 20:10 Then the disciples went away again unto their
own home.
Joh 20:11 But Mary stood without at the sepulchre
weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and
looked into the sepulchre,
Joh 20:12 And seeth two angels in white sitting, the
one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
Joh 20:13 And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest
thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not
where they have laid him.
Joh 20:14 And when she had thus said, she turned
herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.
Joh 20:15 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to
be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me
where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.
Joh 20:16 Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to
say, Master.
Joh 20:17 Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my
brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and
to my God, and
your God.
Joh 20:18 Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples
that she had seen the Lord, and that he
had spoken these things unto her.
Joh 20:19 Then the same day at evening, being the first
day of the week, when the doors were
shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and
stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.
Joh 20:20 And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples
glad, when they saw the Lord.
Joh 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my
Father hath sent me, even so send I you.
Joh 20:22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:
Joh 20:23 Whose soever sins ye
remit, they are remitted unto them; and
whose soever sins
ye retain, they are retained.
We are joint heirs with Him.
“I ascend unto my Father and your Father and to my God and your God.” When we as humans have a grief we want to go
right back to where we were before the grief.
He said, “Don’t touch me, there is more work to be done
here. The work is not quite complete; I
have not yet ascended to the father. But
go to thy brethren.” He had the work to
finish and that was on His mind.
It made me think of the story in the Old Testament where the
lepers found the spoil and said, “Wait we can’t stay here and eat, we must go
tell the others.” This is what Jesus was
telling her. “You must go and share
this. I go to my father and to your
father.”
The last part of Jesus’ mission was to send out His
disciples. “So send I you.” In order for them to be sent they needed the
Holy Ghost, “It is necessary that I leave but I will send you the comforter.” The very breath of life, how blessed we are
to have that breath of life in us of the Holy Spirit.
Do you feel sent? Jesus
told Peter, “If you love me then you will feed my lambs.” Peter was sent and each of us is sent to be a
witness and a testimony to the world.
This is how it is to be for each one of us. It must be bigger than each of us.
“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word.” Feed my sheep and my lambs. Are we willing to have an arm full of bottles? Babies take a lot of care. Lambs and sheep take a lot of care.
Mar 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every
creature.
Mar 16:16 He that believeth and
is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
We have to take a whole lot in if we are to have anything to
feed out. This is what He told His
disciples. We are not all called to be a
preacher, but we are all called to be followers and to be a witness. Many times our lives are speaking louder than
words.
Mat 28:16 Then the eleven disciples went away into
Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.
Mat 28:17 And when they saw him, they worshipped him:
but some doubted.
Mat 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and
teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Ghost:
Mat 28:20 Teaching them to
observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you
alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
What a wonderful promise.
On every one of these before He sent some out it said, “Some
doubted.” If you are having a battle
with faith, don’t feel like you are lost, but say, “I’m going to get the
victory and have faith.”
There is victory to conquer every foe and that is why Jesus
died. We don’t want to settle for
anything less than the victory that Jesus purchased for us.
Act 1:1 The former treatise have I made, O
Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,
Act 1:2 Until the day in which he was taken up, after
that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he
had chosen:
Act 1:3 To whom also he shewed himself alive after
his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and
speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:
Act 1:4 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart
from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father,
which, saith he, ye have heard of me.
Act 1:5 For John truly
baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days
hence.
Act 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they
asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to
Israel?
Act 1:7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the
Father hath put in his own power.
Act 1:8 But ye shall receive
power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses
unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the
uttermost part of the earth.
Act 1:9 And when he had spoken these things, while
they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
Act 1:10 And while they looked stedfastly toward
heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
Act 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand
ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into
heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Sometimes we are thinking, “Well are we going to do this or
that; build on this or go this other way?”
Sometimes it is not given unto us to even know. This is a mission unto each of us; you shall
receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you.
Heb 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower
than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that
he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
Heb 3:1 Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the
heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession,
Christ Jesus;
Heb 3:2 Who was faithful to him that appointed him,
as also Moses was faithful in all his
house.
We are all partakers of the heavenly calling and consider
the High Priest of our profession Christ Jesus who was faithful.
Heb 12:1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about
with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin
which doth so easily beset us, and let
us run with patience the race that is set before us,
Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of
our faith; who for the joy that was set
before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right
hand of the throne of God.
Heb 12:3 For consider him that endured such
contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your
minds.
I’ve been reading “Alcoholic anonymous”. It brings out several premises: no one will
be free of alcohol without God’s help; they must acknowledge the need is
greater than themselves. They must then
go out and tell others. There is no
greater joy than to rescue someone else that thinks there is no hope than to
tell them they can be free.
There was a story told of a man that went to a friend’s
house to try to rescue him. He sat down and
his friend offered him a drink and he refused.
The friend after a while of visiting said, “What has happened to you?” The man replied, “I got religion and I’ve
come to give it to you. I’m here to tell
you that you don’t have to give into alcohol.
The joy that is set before us. If you feel that you have lost your joy then
go tell someone about what Jesus has done for you and what He can work in their
life.
