Good Words from God’s Word
I will be preaching this morning from Psalm 24, which begins with a song of faith in what God has done, “The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it. For He has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers” (Psalm 24:1-2).
God is worthy of worship because of what He has done in creating the universe and everything in it. As we begin a new year in worship and service to God, the same faith that inspired the Psalmist’s declaration drives us to exalt the Lord in everything we do. Faith compels us to worship.
Let’s talk about what God has done. At the beginning of 2016, we felt God challenging us to reach 25 new believers with the good news of Jesus. The results are in. We actually recorded 25 professions of faith with 21 of these born again believers following the Lord in baptism.
God gave us exactly what we asked for, “Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:13).
Faith precedes asking and worship follows God’s blessing. God always does what He says He will do. We must learn to trust Him and worship Him when He does what we have asked Him to do. We have fresh evidence that God is faithful.
I must tell you that I am already asking Him to give us 35 souls in 2017. I pray that He has a larger number in His mind than what I have prayed about.
Here’s something brand new. We have been working to challenge our members and friends to pledge their participation is the ONE MILE FOR GOD’S GLORY Capital Campaign. We are asking God to provide $150,000 in donations and gifts for the renovations and construction costs necessary to prepare the new location. As of this week, we have already received in cash donations $9,264, which when doubled by the matching pledge for our benefactor, Mr. James Walters, the total on hand becomes $18,538. We are well on our way toward the $150,000 goal because God has answered our prayers.
The Bible defines faith as “…the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).
Basically, faith leads to praying, praying leads to God’s provision, and God’s provision results in worship and praise. Our church has seen God supply miracle after miracle after miracle because we have faith enough to trust Him and ask for His provision.
We’re not done yet. We know that within a 15 minute drive of our front doors there are 51,951 people who are unclaimed and lost to the kingdom of God. When we consider the 25 lost people who where saved through the ministry of Grace this past year, we have only lessened that enormous pool of unbelief by .05%.
The truth is, we have a long way to go in telling lost people about Jesus. Additionally, there are 69,975 people who are not attending any church on a regular basis. Imagine 121,926 people within 15 minutes of our church who need Jesus and His church family. We need to pray about that number. How many of those outside God’s grace and His church should we reach? Is our faith big enough to make a difference?
When you enter the worship center this morning, sing these words, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein…” (Psalm 24:1).
Faith is where this new year should start. We must have faith that God wants everyone to know Jesus. We must believe that God is working to bring the lost and unchurched into His glorious kingdom to worship and serve Him here at Grace.
I will be preaching this morning from Psalm 24, which begins with a song of faith in what God has done, “The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it. For He has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers” (Psalm 24:1-2).
God is worthy of worship because of what He has done in creating the universe and everything in it. As we begin a new year in worship and service to God, the same faith that inspired the Psalmist’s declaration drives us to exalt the Lord in everything we do. Faith compels us to worship.
Let’s talk about what God has done. At the beginning of 2016, we felt God challenging us to reach 25 new believers with the good news of Jesus. The results are in. We actually recorded 25 professions of faith with 21 of these born again believers following the Lord in baptism.
God gave us exactly what we asked for, “Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:13).
Faith precedes asking and worship follows God’s blessing. God always does what He says He will do. We must learn to trust Him and worship Him when He does what we have asked Him to do. We have fresh evidence that God is faithful.
I must tell you that I am already asking Him to give us 35 souls in 2017. I pray that He has a larger number in His mind than what I have prayed about.
Here’s something brand new. We have been working to challenge our members and friends to pledge their participation is the ONE MILE FOR GOD’S GLORY Capital Campaign. We are asking God to provide $150,000 in donations and gifts for the renovations and construction costs necessary to prepare the new location. As of this week, we have already received in cash donations $9,264, which when doubled by the matching pledge for our benefactor, Mr. James Walters, the total on hand becomes $18,538. We are well on our way toward the $150,000 goal because God has answered our prayers.
The Bible defines faith as “…the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).
Basically, faith leads to praying, praying leads to God’s provision, and God’s provision results in worship and praise. Our church has seen God supply miracle after miracle after miracle because we have faith enough to trust Him and ask for His provision.
We’re not done yet. We know that within a 15 minute drive of our front doors there are 51,951 people who are unclaimed and lost to the kingdom of God. When we consider the 25 lost people who where saved through the ministry of Grace this past year, we have only lessened that enormous pool of unbelief by .05%.
The truth is, we have a long way to go in telling lost people about Jesus. Additionally, there are 69,975 people who are not attending any church on a regular basis. Imagine 121,926 people within 15 minutes of our church who need Jesus and His church family. We need to pray about that number. How many of those outside God’s grace and His church should we reach? Is our faith big enough to make a difference?
When you enter the worship center this morning, sing these words, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein…” (Psalm 24:1).
Faith is where this new year should start. We must have faith that God wants everyone to know Jesus. We must believe that God is working to bring the lost and unchurched into His glorious kingdom to worship and serve Him here at Grace.
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