Brother Gary Sunday Morning 7/26/15

Brother Gary Sunday Morning 7/26/15

2Jn 1:8  Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.

We just finished an excellent revival meeting.  It was wonderful to enjoy such a sweet spirit of the Presence of God.  It is good to have family and friends visit us and it is good to have a pastor come and edify us. 

I doubt that there was anyone that didn’t experience conviction.  The bible tells us to look to ourselves.  God will do a lot for us but we must take every precaution to not lose the good things that God has brought to every one of us.

It is wonderful to have conviction.  God’s attribute is that He loves all mankind.  His direction to the church is that we love all mankind.  There is not this one that is special and that one that is not so special. 

The sacrifice that we made was very well received and granted.  It is wonderful to labor together.  I was impressed with the cause and effects.  I saw children change during VBS.  Those that didn’t have interest in the things of God changed and had an interest.  I appreciated going to the youth revival in Athol; I was amazed to see the affects that the youth revival had on the young people.

Then we came to the revival meeting and I entered feeling taxed and responsible.  I have reached that place where whatever we need to do we need a lot of help to get done.  You saints gave of yourselves very willingly and we appreciate that. 

(The brother preached an awesome message as we entered the revival.  Brother Figeroa is an excellent preacher and evangelist.  We could sit under him and not get tired or stop learning.)

I saw something in the revival.  The gospel brought the things of God to preeminence.  There were those that started thinking of using their lives for God.  Good revival is such a marvelous thing.  We experienced good edification and the presence of God moving upon lives.

We only have about a month more until school starts.  We don’t know whether we will have an Indian summer or not.  We may get a killing frost Labor Day weekend and winter set in.  This we know.  We want to take a great effort to not lose what God has given us. 

We don’t want to crowd God out.  I want to keep God first.  Maybe I will change some of my plans.

We need to read, pray, and study the Word of God.  I have the garage, an office, the basement, the lazy-boy to read, pray, and study in.  We won’t do it if we don’t keep the fire of God stirred in our heart. 

The message is not “to not go hunting”.  The message is to know how to do it. 

The young people have a challenge to keep God first as they go to school.  They will not do it on their own.  They need our encouragement.  My challenge to those that are failing in health is to keep God first.  Don’t let your health become your topic or your doctor appointments be your topic.  Keep God first. 

That conviction that we felt, we have been blessed from you as a congregation with time and money for an extended vacation.  We have to keep God first and keep what God has so graciously given to us.

It thrilled us to hear the message on Revelations.  It was absolutely wonderful to hear it.  We have to keep it real.  Not only the chart and the lessons, the spirit of God that keeps it alive and real to ourselves.

Looking to ourselves and taking the responsibility to continue.  There were stirring messages.  We want to remember, “This message is for me.”  We must take the responsibility.  Don’t take the thought, “We have a certain name and are a part of this congregation.”  We are each responsible to God first and then to one another.

Pray.  Pray without ceasing.  Don’t let prayer become just habitual.  “God help me today, help mine and ours…”  It was inspiring to me to have Brother Figeroa come to me with his bible in hand and say, “I have been feasting on the good things of God in Many Glacier Hotel.

The sacrifice of this congregation was excellent, but let’s keep sacrificing.  Let’s keep well trained in our hospitality.  Show our love and labors to one another.  In a world that is so void of the love of God, keep yourself in the love of God.  Hold the vision.

I have been thinking and praying, “What can we do? Can we set a certain service aside to hold the vision? Invite Brother Neely, a young energetic brother, once a month?”  Hold the vision.

Keep God first.  Wait on God in all your decisions.  We live in a world, Karen and I have been trying to buy a car for a year or two, they let us know, “This car is awful hard to find and if you don’t buy that then you won’t find one for a long time.”

Wait on God in all your decisions.  Ask, “How will this affect me?  How will it affect the brothers and sisters in Christ?”  Seize the opportunity.

Lose not the things that were wrought.  John was probably sending this to a lady pastor and her congregation, “Look to yourselves that you don’t lose what God has given us.” 

It is wonderful to be spiritually revived.  We probably all have experienced, “All the foundations of the world are out of course.”  We have experienced our life getting out of course just a little bit.  It is not out of course because of sin.

The lady pastor that used to be here told us, “There is nothing wrong with knitting but at a golden age as she tried to master the art she found it was taking her thoughts.”  There are a lot of things that are not sinful but because of our personality we have a tendency to allow some things to get our life to whatever degree out of course

We can become so taken in our mind that whatever we are thinking of: pleasure, relationships, school… we must not let any of it get us out of course.  We cannot let our jobs get us out of course. 

This year God has given us a marvelous garden.  We don’t want to get out of course and only take care of the huge bean crop.  It can be very legitimate but we want to keep everything in its rightful place so that our life doesn’t get out of course. 

The conviction:  Isn’t conviction a wonderful thing?  We must labor together.  I loved the message of the death of the old man.  You may have personal traits that God is dealing with you on and you realize that “This has to go.”

We live in a world that would say, “The only important thing that is going on is the election of our next president.”  This one thing I know, don’t let our times push you out of course with God.  Stay focused on God.

The importance of worship:  We must worship. We know what it takes for us to be at our best for every service.  Prayer meeting is one of the most important.  Let’s come in and pray and seek God.

Take heed that we receive a full reward. 

3Jn 1:2  Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.

God doesn’t want our soul like the desert and like the juniper tree, God wants our soul anointed.  God has answered your prayer for me this month of July.  I have enjoyed the mercies of God.

God wants us to prosper in our soul as well as in our body.  He wants to give us strength for the journey.  There is strength for the journey that is ahead, but we must know that source of strength.

Psa 121:1  A Song of degrees. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.

Psa 121:2  My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.

He is our source of strength and we praise God for that.

A full reward of having an anointing for the occasion:  Some of you will work hard on your job this week.  Some of you are wondering what the next client will be like.  God has an anointing for us that we will not only have mercy but also grace for the occasion.

God wants us to have the full reward of not being graceless.  Paul said, “I do not frustrate the grace of God.”

A full reward of a vision:  Walk in the vision that God has given you.

The golden vials filled with sweet incense:  your prayers are being bottled up in golden vials.  It is wonderful to have that prayer, praise, and worship before God.

There is a full reward of the garments unspotted by the flesh.  It is a challenge; because it is bible we can take the challenge and keep our garments clean and totally spotless before God.

1Co 13:4  Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

1Co 13:5  Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

1Co 13:6  Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

1Co 13:7  Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

1Co 13:8  Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

The true love of God suffers long.  We all understand people being on edge, being short, and curt.  There is something about God and there is something that humans don’t possess and that is being longsuffering.  They want something done just the way they wanted and they want it done before they even think of it.

Charity is kind.  Thank God for the kindness in the revival meeting.  We haven’t arrived.  There is more and greater depths to kindness.  There was real kindness shown to a young man that came into some of the services.

Love is kind.  It starts at home.  If I am not kind to my wife at home, I can bring her flowers and put on a show but if I am not kind at home then it is sounding brass and tinkling cymbal. 

Kindness does not mean that you are a push over.  I am not leaving all the training of my grandchildren to their parents.  I want to teach them about God.  Our times have brought us to where it is rare, and it isn’t good, but in most families the moms and dads are both working. 

You and I have to have the desire, “I want to teach this little one.”  The thought is, we love souls.  The issue is, “they have a soul and I have a burden.”  You say, “They might not take it right.”  Who are you serving?”  If they don’t take it right then we are clay.  Most people’s feelings are pretty tender.  Some have a good shell on. 

If you don’t teach your children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, then who will?  Sister Gerhardt didn’t fear my mom or my dad, she loved my soul.  Sister Klemstein told me that I was so proud that I had a long ways to travel on that road to humility.  My mom didn’t get mad at her.  She was probably praying for someone to talk to her son. 

Charity envies not.  That is absolutely beautiful.

Gal 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

God wants us to have a full reward.  Lots of faith in a world where faith is always under attack.

Heb 13:15  By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.

We have so much to praise God for.  My praise always begins with God sending Jesus.  I am so glad that Jesus came.

Heb 10:24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

Let us challenge each other toward love and good works: loving God, the lost, and each other.

What can I do to encourage the rest home laborers?  What can I do to encourage this Kelly family that was singing this morning?  I wish the Altmiller family reunion could hear them sing.

Encourage to love; encourage to good works.

Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

How we need each other!  How we need to be our best!  You dear ones that live a distance from church, you are challenged.  We want to meet that challenge.  You that are struggling in your bodies, how can we help you have more church in your life?

Encourage each other.  Jesus is interceding.

Rom 8:34  Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

God wants you to make it.  He wants you to be victorious.  He wants you to stay saved. 

Rom 8:35  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

Rom 8:36  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.

Rom 8:37  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

There have always been tough times ahead, but we cannot let that separate us.  In all these things we are more than a conqueror through Him that loved us.

Rom 8:38  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

Rom 8:39  Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Sometimes death doesn’t come easy.  We know that.  I have visited people that were dying and seen the pain that they were in and the pain that their family was in.

Life can be hard.  Dealing with disappointment is hard.  Heartache is hard.  To be broken hearted, to have hoped and have that hope deferred is hard, but it need not separate you from God.

Nor angels: sometimes you feel that you are surrounded but not by heavenly angels.  Have you ever felt darkness move in?  It is tough.  Stay true to God.

Nor principalities:  I don’t know what this year will hold or what life will deal to you or to me.  You don’t know when you will lose a friend.  There are those that court you until they get you.  Then there is a shift.  They try to make life miserable.

My life story in work: show up; loved until it turned.  I was asked to quit one time before I was fired and then I was asked to come back to work with a raise.  It happened at an inopportune time.  That is life.  God has never failed

When it seems that you are all alone, you are not alone. 

Paul said, life, nor death, nor powers, nor principality, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God.

“I am persuaded.” 

Church of God at Paradise, look to yourself, seize the opportunity, keep your body under subjection, be responsible to God, yourself, and each other.  Don’t lose what God has given you, receive a full reward.