Gtcotr/ss042819
I.
The Pre-Message Altar
& Prayer Time
Bring your past,
your present, and your future to the altar this morning … we are going to stir
up dreams and visions for your greater success in life.
1.
Dreams and Visions are the language
of the Spirit
2.
The
1st lesson in the Bible
i. Open your
mind to God possibilities
ii. Let faith begin to
open your mind to God’s possibilities – (Dream)
3.
You
may need a new faith project in your life
4.
Faith makes things possible it does not make things easy.
5.
What
would you ask God to do for you if you knew He was willing to work with you?
6.
Today
I believe God will drop the seed of a new dream in your heart that He is
willing to fund.
II.
The Message – God’s Dream
In
the very early days of the first Church in Jerusalem, many religious leaders
were dead set against the group they called the Nazarenes who were followers of
Jesus. One of the most religious among these anti-Christian zealots was a man
named Saul of Tarsus. Saul was a young, highly educated Jew who had come to
Jerusalem to study the Jewish faith.
Acts
chapter 8 begins with Saul of Tarsus consenting to the stoning of Stephen, one
of the deacons of the Church in Jerusalem. Acts chapter 9 continues the
accounts of Saul and his persecution of Jews who were Believers in Jesus. These
new Christians were afraid of Saul because he relentlessly hunted them down and
cast them into prison for blasphemy against Jehovah, a charge worthy of death
under the Jewish law.
Because
of Saul’s hatred for Christians and the Church of Jesus, he hatched a plan and
volunteered to travel all the way to Damascus to find any Jewish followers of
Jesus and return them to Jerusalem under arrest to be tried under Jewish law.
The High Priest agreed and gave Saul letters authorizing him to act in his
name. Saul departed with a group of men who were deputized to carry out the
orders.
As
Saul and his group drew near to Damascus, a great light shinned from heaven and
Saul heard a voice say, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” This was the
voice of Jesus. As a result of his encounter with Jesus on that Damascus road,
Saul was converted to Christ, but he had to be escorted into the city because
he was blind. He sat waiting for three days on a man named Ananias whom the Lord
said He would send to help him know what to do.
It
is certain that Saul was converted to Christ on the Damascus road that day. He
was Born-Again. Everything became new in his life. However, although he was
saved, he was blind and without direction for his new life. Jesus had a plan
for Saul that would reach far beyond his conversion experience … a plan of
which Saul was yet unaware.
After
3 days Jesus sent Ananias to confirm Saul, pray for him, heal his eyesight,
water baptize him, and begin teaching him all about his new life in Christ.
Saul spent some days with the disciples there in Damascus, learning more about
Jesus and God’s plan for his life. Finally, after some time, Saul began to
witness to others about this saving grace of God.
Acts 9 NKJV
17 And Ananias went his way
and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the
Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you
may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
18 Immediately there fell
from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once;
and he arose and was baptized.
19 So when he had received
food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus.
20 Immediately he preached
the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God.
Saul
of Tarsus is a prime example of what can happen in the life of a person who has
a true conversion experience with Jesus. The scriptural account paints a clear
picture of a man before he gets Born-Again. Saul was educated and angry; He was
motivated and driven to succeed; Saul was connected and moving up in life; He
was liked by his friends and feared by his enemies; He had respect and he had a
great job doing something he believed in and something he was good at.
Without
regard as to how happy, prosperous, successful, content and influential Saul of
Tarsus was before he met Jesus, he was leading his family and friends straight
to hell. Not only was he bad for his family and friends, he was causing trouble
for anyone who didn’t agree with him. Saul had problems and he caused problems
for everyone he met. Saul needed what we all need at some point in life – Saul
needed to change.
Most
problems in life can be solved in three simple steps.
1. Get saved
a. Saul got saved!
b. What does salvation
do for a person?
i. They become a new
creation in Christ Jesus.
ii. Old things pass
away, and all things become new.
iii. Their Born-Again
spirit and soul receives the capacity to understand and apply God’s Word and
Will to their life.
c. How does a person
know if they are saved?
i. The Holy Spirit will
be their witness of salvation.
ii. The Holy Spirit will
encourage, challenge, teach, correct and inspire every child of God to obey
God’s Word and God’s will.
iii. Others will notice a
change in their heart and attitude.
d. How can you be
saved?
i. Recognize
ii. Repent
iii. Receive
After
salvation, most of the problems we bring with us from our old lives can be
dealt with if a person will only:
2. Become a disciple of Jesus Christ and His Word
a. Saul of Tarsus
became a disciple of Jesus Christ and His Word.
b. Discipleship is Education
and Preparation to live a godly life.
i. A person can be
saved and still tell lies.
ii. A person can be
saved and commit adultery.
iii. A person can be
saved and still cheat on a test.
iv. A person can be
saved and not be a good witness.
v. A person can be
saved and still get drunk or do drugs.
vi. A person can be
saved and continue to cuss or talk bad about other people.
vii. But why would anyone
want to stay like they were before they got saved?
c. Discipleship checks
us, challenges us and changes us … it changed Saul and gave him the basis for
beginning his new Christian walk.
d. You must decide for
yourself if will become a disciple of Jesus Christ and His Word.
If
you have been born again and have become a disciple of Jesus Christ and His
Word … It is time to:
3. Begin living the changed life
a. Life is a
choice-based adventure.
b. Saul immediately
began living his changed life.
c. Success is dependent
on only two things:
i. Knowing the right
answer
ii. Applying that answer
iii. Life isn’t more
complicated than that.
If
you can’t seem to conquer your problems or can’t get a handle on life:
·
Become a disciple of
Jesus Christ and His Word.
o Place yourself under
spiritual authority
o Welcome instruction,
correction, reproof, rebuke and encouragement aimed at cleaning out the old
carnal attitudes and establishing the
new spiritual graces of life
o Submit your life to
the Word of God
o Become a functioning
part of a local Church Family for the glory of God
o Accept every
challenge to grow and be more like Christ
·
Live the changed
life.
o Commit yourself to a
spiritual code of conduct
o Bridle your tongue
o Curb your sinful
desires
o Repent and Recover
yourself from failures
o Activate your faith
for signs, wonders and miracles
o Be a witness of what
Jesus can do in one person’s life
God has a dream … What is your
take-away today?
·
Are
you saved?
·
Have
you become a disciple of Jesus Christ and His Word?
·
Will
you begin living your changed life today?
I
challenge you to open your heart and mind to God’s potential in your life.
Faith makes things possible it doesn’t make things easy.
In
just a moment I’ll be back to seal God’s Word in our hearts. I’m going to pray
in faith that God will drop the seed of a new dream in your heart … a dream that He is willing to fund.
