My Notes

 Reach Beyond We are asked to reach beyond, going out of our normal circumstances.... What is the motivation? Jonah 4:11 11 But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?” It is the God's compassion that should spur us on to go beyond... What should we do to go beyond what is expected. .... What is expected? Verse: Matthew 28:19 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Great Commission is what we are asked to do. What do we do to reach beyond our expections? How do we define Reach Beyond? ..... It is when you undertake something that you cannot achieve. What are the standards for Reaching Beyond? Let us look at some examples David Livingstone CT Studd David Livingston - I have sometimes seen int he morning sun in the smoke of a 1000 villages where no missionary has ever seen.  This b...

 Jacob at Jabok Passage: Genesis 32:22-29 Jacob was a deceiver and that was what his name meant. He knew how to get things from life and people. But at this time, he is wrestling with God. He is at his lowest point because he knew that his brother is meeting with him along with 400 men. All his schemes are not working and he has to face reality Verse: Genesis 32:7 Jacob was terrified at the news. He divided his household, along with the flocks and herds and camels, into two groups. What is the reality he was faced with? Nothing is going to work. Need to get to a place where he is alone with God Brokenness opens our hearts to God Confess and be honest before God  Alone with God Verse: Genesis 32:23‭-‬24 23 After taking them to the other side, he sent over all his possessions.  24 This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break. He is alone with nothing. He has sent his possession to the other side of the river. And...

Representing God as a Church The church was spoken of in the New Testament. That is where it started. And here is God's commitment to the church Verse: Matthew 16:18 18 Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. How do you be part of the church? Simply by declaring (confessing) Verse: Romans 10:9‭-‬10 9 If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. And here is privilege of being part of the church - you are a child of God Verse: John 1:12 But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. Our life flows out of our faith. So it is important to know what you believe is right. The Thessalonians accepted the word of God through Faith V...

Representing God as Families Design - Rajiv God's design is perfect. We can't argue and debate the divine design. Instruction to the Husband Verse: Ephesians 5:25 For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her Jesus loved the church so much that he suffered and gave us everything. When Jesus set the standard, we as husbands should conform to this and nothing less. Verse: 1 Peter 3:7 In the same way, you husbands must give honor to your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God’s gift of new life. Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered. Instruction to the Wives Verse: Ephesians 5:22‭-‬23 For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of his body, the church. Instruction to Children Verse: Ephesians 6:1  Chil...

 Being a good Father Introduction Verse: Psalms 119:9 How can a young person stay pure? By obeying your word. There was a young man ... Daniel. Daniel purposed in his heart that he wouldn't sin.... it means that he made up his mind not to sin even before the situation presented itself. The other young man was Joseph. He was serving at Potipher's house and was being tempted. But he ran away from the situation of temptation.  As young men, we need to purposeful about our vision and the future. Find the purpose of life.  Personality: It is important to understand personality type..... you you like being around people or along Potential: Find out your potential.... Is it coding, leading, etc. Paul encouraged Timothy to "fan into flame the gift...". This means that your potential needs to be constantly sharpened Passion: Something that you love to do. You don't mind doing it even if you don't get anything Problem: What is the problem you want to solve. If you are m...

 Godly Man 1 Corinthians 16:13 Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. What does in mean to be that Biblical man? Man of Valour Man after God's own heart Man of Humility Man who is a Friend of God  Man of Conviction Man of Valour Verse: Judges 6:12 The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!” Gideon is hiding in fear. But God is calling him Mighty man of valour. God is calling every man to be men of courage.  Courage will mean that you are taking on challenges. It will seem impossible but despite that God is calling us to overcome challenges together.  The criteria is not ability but availability, its not expertise but willingness, it is not self confidence but faith God, it is not strategy but obedience The call of Gideon was not based on Gideon's self worth but on God  knowledge of Gideon Man after God's own heart Verse: Acts 13:22 But God removed Saul and replaced him with David, a man about whom...

 Being a Woman of God Verse: Genesis 1:27 So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. The word of God states that male and female are the image of God.  Men and Women are not equal in form but we are both are created with equal value.  Unique Different in form and function Different in roles Complementing the man Physically, mentally and emotionally  Celebrate the differences in manhood and womanhood Unity and intimacy Made of the same stuff build for one another Both were naked and no shame (Gen 2:24) Sin has marred the image Instead of celebrating hei similarities, equality was ignored Instead of ruling together, subordination was imposed Unity was severed as guilt brought accusations Intimacy was thwarted as sin exposed their shame Cultural influences on women The litrature of the greeks and Romans reveal a very negative attitude towards women A culture that holds an opinion tht women are infe...

 In the image of God - Representing God Verse: Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” While all creation amazes us, no other creation is made in the image of God. Man is the most beautiful of his creation and hence the fight for man's soul And the weapon used for man's soul is sin. When sin happened, man started hiding. Man lost the authority because of sin. And Jesus was sent to restore man to the previous glory. That glory is the display of Jesus in us.  Verse: 2 Corinthians 4:11 Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies. Is the life of Jesus evident in our lives? The display of Jesus in our lives is so that others will see Jesus How can we represent Jesus? By employing the divine ...

 Jesus - The Image of God Whe God made man, He said....  Let us create man in our image. This statement may not be fully understood and people have tried to create this image through various philosophies. Our discovery to see the God involves  To know him to become like him to do the work of him To bring honor and glory to him.  Why are we constantly looking for God? Because God made us to be that image bearer of God. If we substitute God's image and rely on created image, it will bring our downfall. Verse: Exodus 20:2-4 2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 3 “You shall have no other gods before[a] me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below We are desparate because we can't see God. But God's image can be seen because man is made in the image of God. Human beings are spirit beings having a temporary earthly existence. If people w...

 Spiritually Unclean Spiritually unclean is moral defilement of soul. The defilement of the soul can happen because of things not related to our actions. Hence we need to be washed by the Word every day. So we need to be do this so that we will enter the Heavenly Kingdom Verse: Revelation 21:27 Nothing evil will be allowed to enter , nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. So how is an unclean situation dealt with Verse: 1 Corinthians 6:11 Some of you were once like that. But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God . There are 3 areas that we need to be careful with respect to be clean Spirit Soul Spirit Verse: 1 Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. And Go...