Sister Teri Sunday School 4/12/15

Sister Teri Sunday School 4/12/15

Coram Deo – Before and in the presence of God

Answering the ultimate question, “Why?”  Most of us ask questions like, “Why am I living?  What is the big idea?  Why am I doing what I am doing?”  All these questions ask the answer of purpose.  As Christians we should be looking for the answer according to what God wants.

Coram Deo means to live one’s entire life in the presence of God; under the authority of God; to the glory of God.  Today we want to try to cover these three:

In the presence of God whatever we are doing, wherever we are going, God sees.  He is omniscient and omnipresent.

Psa 139:1  To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me.

Psa 139:2  Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.

Psa 139:3  Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.

Psa 139:4  For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.

Psa 139:5  Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.

Psa 139:6  Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.

Psa 139:7  Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?

Psa 139:8  If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.

Psa 139:9  If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;

Psa 139:10  Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.

Psa 139:11  If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.

Psa 139:12  Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.

God knows what we are doing and the intent behind it; He knows the why of it.  He knows what I am doing as I go about my day and He knows my sleeping.  Sometimes I have troubling dreams that hinder me from getting a good rest.  I have asked several times recently that Bill would pray in the middle of the night so that I could get a good rest. God has been faithful to help. 

When I speak He knows every part of it, my intent and the effect of it.  Sometimes we say something not meaning it wrongly and it is taken wrong.  He knows our intent and the effect.  He can help us to get it taken care of.

Beset means cramped confined enclosed.  I believe that God has more influence in the circumstances and details of our lives than we realize.  He has plans and direction for our life.  He plans to influence us in the direction that we should go.  How responsive are we to His influence and His call?

It is hard to comprehend that that God in heaven would have such influence in our daily lives and would want us in His eternal purpose.  

It is important to realize that there is no place we can go that His presence cannot reach us.  If we desire to dwell in His presence, he will be the light and direction in every position.  He will be the hand to lead and hold us.  He will be there in every circumstance and has promised to go with us.

Under the authority: we recognize that God is God and has the ultimate and supreme power and authority over everything.  He has power over all that happens in our life.  He has a plan.  There should be a rest in knowing that. 

Sovereignty - Supreme power and authority of it all.  There is no higher power or controlling influence.  No matter what is going on around us, He is in control.

Our entire life fully and completely surrendered to His Spirit from the heart, fully consecrated in sanctification.

Psa 139:13  For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.

Psa 139:14  I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Psa 139:15  My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

Psa 139:16  Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.

Psa 139:17  How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!

Psa 139:18  If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.

God owned us from conception.  He may have even known and planned for us before conception. 

A life of praise for the awesomeness of God’s creation for us.  We are of value.  We may feel flawed but God does not create junk.  We are fearfully and wonderfully made.  He had plans for who our parents would be or where we would be born.  We could have been born in Arabia or dark Africa.  He had a plan where we would be born in history.

Jer 29:11  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

He has a plan and an end, reward, for us.  It is not just eternal, but even in the circumstances of our life there is a plan in that.

In Jeremiah it tells how God had a detailed plan for Israel.  He knew it in advance and told it to His prophet: He would lead them in captivity and in 70 years would deliver them.  There were a lot off circumstances, nations, and things to be used in the plan.  It shows how much He is in control and how little man is in control

The circumstances of our day are His plan.  Even though it seems that sin is rampant, God is in control and has a plan.

Psa 139:23  Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:

Psa 139:24  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

It takes trying situations sometimes for God to reveal things to us.  Not just our actions but what is going on in our heads.  We put on a front sometimes and hide what is going on in our heads.  He wants us to be open, so pure in our hearts that our intents and thoughts will be pure and we won’t have to cover up. 

God reveals ourselves to our self.  He knows what is going on in our heart that we hide even from ourselves.  The trials work a perfecting on us and also on others.  When we unite in prayer over situations, God likes that.  He wants us to pull together and work together as a unit. 

God wants us to carry the burden for one another as a part of the body.  We are not isolated feet and hands.  He wants us to work together.  He then shows Himself strong to encourage the faith of those in the world.  

God shows Himself strong to sinners to encourage them to turn.  Are we willing to be a part of that?  We might have to suffer so God can show Himself strong on our behalf or to others. 

To the glory of God:

Luk 2:14  Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Glory, dignity, honor, worship, majesty; a thing belonging to God, kingly majesty that belongs to Him as the supreme ruler.  Glory to God - all the things that belong to God; that our lives would give Him fully what is rightfully His.

Live a life of integrity, firm adherence to a code of moral values, a life consistently lived honestly, conformed to the purpose of God, our life belonging to God with Him supremely ruling.

Our everyday life given fully to Him for His use and purpose.  A glory and praise to Him.

1Co 10:31  Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

A lot of times I go through my day on autopilot.  If we could consciously think about how our life is geared to giving God the glory and doing what He would have us to do in the day…  We would have our to-do list and be flexible to do what God brings into our path.

Phillip was on his way somewhere and God directed him to the eunuch that had his bible opened.  God had prepared the ground, God sent Phillip and after witnessing, he left the man in God’s care and God took care of the man.  Do what God shows us to do and then trust the person to God. 

Sometimes we might pass up what God would have us to do because we think that we don’t have time for the whole picture.  Maybe it is just the seed sown and someone else doing the watering and pruning.  Let’s not try to plan all the details but just be a servant yielded to him.

Php 2:11  And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Php 4:20  Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Rom 16:27  To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.

Jud 1:25  To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

Rev 1:6  And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

1Ch 29:11  Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all.

1Ch 29:12  Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.

Rev 7:12  Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

Our sense of purpose, our sense of the why behind what we are doing, the sense of the end of the actions affects our daily life, our priorities, plans, and activities.  If we don’t take control of that in our mind and instead go with the flow and other people’s plans and desires we will not be aligned with the purpose of God. 

We need to take control so that our daily life can be according to His plan.  We want to live our life Coram Deo in the presence of God, to the glory of God, and before God.

How is His purpose affecting our daily life really, with its purpose plan and activities?  Let’s try to let His plan direct our daily life.  I have a problem with the computer, spending time seeing what everyone is doing, looking at the pictures and responding.  There is nothing really wrong with that, but how much time are we spending and is our life aligned with the plan and purpose of God?

How will we be able to know if something that comes in our life is of God or is something that God wants us to be a partaker of? Not everything that comes in our day is something that God wants us to be a partaker of. 

I am interested in politics, what is going on in our world nationally, worldwide, and locally.  If God wants me to be involved then I need to get really involved and be an influence.  I don’t think that I have time to do that.  God wants me to work with souls. 

We can know if what we do steals time from our prayer life, or we are unable to be temperate.