Sunday Sermon Outline: Revive Us Again

“Revive Us Again!”

Psalm 85:4-6

 

Introduction:

    Psalm 85, “O Lord, You showed favor to Your land; You restored the captivity of Jacob. 2 You forgave the iniquity of Your people; You covered all their sin.3 You withdrew all Your fury; You turned away from Your burning anger. 4 Restore us, O God of our salvation, And cause Your indignation toward us to cease. 5 Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations? 6 Will You not Yourself revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You? 7 Show us Your lovingkindness, O Lord, And grant us Your salvation. 8 I will hear what God the Lord will say; For He will speak peace to His people, to His godly ones; But let them not turn back to folly. 9 Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, That glory may dwell in our land. 10 Lovingkindness and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. 11 Truth springs from the earth, And righteousness looks down from heaven. 12 Indeed, the Lord will give what is good, And our land will yield its produce. 13 Righteousness will go before Him And will make His footsteps into a way.” 

    Mark 9:35, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all”?

    “The mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace” (Romans 8:6).

    Revelation 3:1, “I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.” 

    “4 Restore us, O God of our salvation, And cause Your indignation toward us to cease. 5 Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations? 6 Will You not Yourself revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?” 

I. Revival comes from the Word of God. vs. 8-9
    “8 I will hear what God the Lord will say; For He will speak peace to His people, to His godly ones; But let them not turn back to folly. 9 Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, That glory may dwell in our land.”
 

    Ezra 9:8-13, “But now, for a brief moment, the LORD our God has been gracious in leaving us a remnant and giving us a firm place in His sanctuary, and so our God gives light to our eyes and a little relief in our bondage. 9 Though we are slaves, our God has not deserted us in our bondage. He has shown us kindness in the sight of the kings of Persia: He has granted us new life to rebuild the house of our God and repair its ruins, and he has given us a wall of protection in Judah and Jerusalem. 10 But now, O our God, what can we say after this? For we have disregarded the commands 11 You gave through Your servants the prophets … 13 What has happened to us is a result of our evil deeds and our great guilt, and yet, our God, You have punished us less than our sins have deserved and have given us a remnant like this.”
     Psalms 119:25, “My soul cleaves to the dust; Revive me according to Your word;” v. 37, “Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity, And revive me in Your ways;” v. 40, “Behold, I long for Your precepts; Revive me through Your righteousness;” v. 50, “This is my comfort in my affliction, That Your word has revived me;” v. 88, “Revive me according to Your lovingkindness, So that I may keep the testimony of Your mouth;” v. 93, “I will never forget Your precepts, For by them You have revived me;” v. 107, "I am exceedingly afflicted; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your word;” v. 149, “Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your ordinances;” v. 154, "Plead my cause and redeem me; Revive me according to Your word;" v. 156, “Great are Your mercies, O LORD; Revive me according to Your ordinances;” v. 159, “Consider how I love Your precepts; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.”
    “I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place” (Revelation 2:4-5).
    2 Kings 23:2, “He went up to the temple of the LORD with the men of Judah, the people of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets-- all the people from the least to the greatest. He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the temple of the LORD.”
    2 Kings 23:3, “The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the LORD-- to follow the LORD and keep His commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, thus confirming the words of the covenant written in this book. Then all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.”
    2 Kings 23:25, “Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the LORD as he did-- with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses.”

II. Revival changes us. Vs. 10-11
    “10 Lovingkindness and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. 11 Truth springs from the earth, And righteousness looks down from heaven.”
 

    2 Corinthians 5:9-20, “So we make it our goal to please Him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. 11 Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. … 14 For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again. 16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God.”
    Isaiah 57:15, “I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.”
 

Conclusion, vs. 4-6:
    “4 Restore us, O God of our salvation, And cause Your indignation toward us to cease. 5 Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations? 6 Will You not Yourself revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?”
 

    Hebrews 1:2, “God … has spoken to us by His Son.”
     Romans 10:17, “faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”



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Sunday Sermon Outline: The Nature of Spiritual Warfare

“The Nature of Spiritual Warfare”

2 Chronicles 14

Introduction:

    1 Kings 15:3, “He walked in all the sins of his father which he had committed before him; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God, like the heart of his father David.”    

 

    2 Chronicles 14, “So Abijah lay down with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and his son Asa became king in his place. The land was undisturbed for ten years during his days. 2 And Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God, 3 for he removed the foreign altars and high places, tore down the memorial stones, cut down the Asherim, 4 and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers and to comply with the Law and the commandment. 5 He also removed the high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah. And the kingdom was undisturbed under him. 6 He built fortified cities in Judah, since the land was undisturbed, and there was no one at war with him during those years, because the Lord had given him rest. 7 For he said to Judah, “Let’s build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered.
    8 Now Asa had an army of three hundred thousand from Judah, carrying large shields and spears, and 280,000 from Benjamin, carrying shields and wielding bows; all of them were valiant warriors. 9 Now Zerah the Ethiopian went out against them with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots, and he came to Mareshah. 10 So Asa went out to meet him, and they drew up in battle formation in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. 11 Then Asa called to the Lord his God and said, “Lord, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength; help us, Lord our God, for we trust in You, and in Your name have come against this multitude. Lord, You are our God; do not let man prevail against You.” 12 So the Lord routed the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. 13 Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar; and so many Ethiopians fell that they could not recover, for they were shattered before the Lord and before His army. And they carried away a very large amount of plunder. 14 They destroyed all the cities around Gerar, for the dread of the Lord had fallen on them; and they pillaged all the cities, for there was much plunder in them. 15 They also fatally struck those who owned livestock, and they led away large numbers of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.”

 

    “As for you, if you walk before Me as David your father did, and do all I command, and observe my decrees and laws, 18 I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father when I said, 'You shall never fail to have a man to rule over Israel.' 19 But if you turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, 20 then I will uproot Israel from My land, which I have given them …” (2 Chronicles 7:17-20).
    Rehoboam “did evil because he had not set his heart on seeking the LORD” (2 Chronicles 12:14). Abijah “committed all the sins his father had done before him” (1 Kings 15:3).

I. The Elimination of Evil vs. 2-5
    “Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God, 3 for he removed the foreign altars and high places, tore down the memorial stones, cut down the Asherim, 4 and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers and to comply with the Law and the commandment. 5 He also removed the high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah. And the kingdom was undisturbed under him.”

    Psalm 119:1-2, “Blessed are they whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the LORD. 2 Blessed are they who keep His statutes and seek Him with all their heart.” 

    “Hate what is evil; cling to what is good” (Romans 12:9).
    “put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 … be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 … put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22-24).
    “Get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you” (James 1:21).

II. The Fortification of Faith vs. 6-8
    “He built fortified cities in Judah, since the land was undisturbed, and there was no one at war with him during those years, because the Lord had given him rest. 7 For he said to Judah, “Let’s build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered. 8 Now Asa had an army of three hundred thousand from Judah, carrying large shields and spears, and 280,000 from Benjamin, carrying shields and wielding bows; all of them were valiant warriors.”

    “Do not give the devil an opportunity” (Ephesians 4:27). “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. … 13 … put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground …” (Ephesians 6:11-13).

    Acts 14:22, Paul and Barnabas were “strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. "We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God," they said.” 

 

III. The Contention of Challengers vs. 9-10
    “Now Zerah the Ethiopian went out against them with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots, and he came to Mareshah. 10 So Asa went out to meet him, and they drew up in battle formation in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.”

“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith …” (1 Peter 5:8-9). “… contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints” (Jude 1:3).

IV. The Prayer of Petition vs. 11-15
    “Then Asa called to the Lord his God and said, “Lord, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength; help us, Lord our God, for we trust in You, and in Your name have come against this multitude. Lord, You are our God; do not let man prevail against You.” 12 So the Lord routed the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. 13 Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar; and so many Ethiopians fell that they could not recover, for they were shattered before the Lord and before His army. And they carried away a very large amount of plunder. 14 They destroyed all the cities around Gerar, for the dread of the Lord had fallen on them; and they pillaged all the cities, for there was much plunder in them. 15 They also fatally struck those who owned livestock, and they led away large numbers of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.”

    Luke 21:34-36, “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

    “pray … that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored … 2 … pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men, for not everyone has faith. 3 But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one” (2 Thessalonians 3:1-3).
 

Conclusion:

    Luke 19:41-44, Jesus “approached Jerusalem and saw the city, [and] He wept over it 42 [saying], "If you … had only known on this day what would bring you peace--but now it is hidden from your eyes. 43 The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. 44 They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to you."”

    "When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen. … 16 wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of My sight! Stop doing wrong, 17 learn to do right!” (Isaiah 1:15-17).

    "But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, ²¹ keep yourselves in the love of God, looking forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life" (Jude 1:20-21).

    “though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). 

    “'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD almighty” (Zechariah 4:6).

 

 

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Sunday Sermon Outline: Onward Christian Soldiers

“Onward Christian Soldiers”
2 Timothy 2:1-4

Introduction:
    2 Timothy 2:1-4, “You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. 3 Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs-- he wants to please his commanding officer.”
 

I. Protection v. 1
    “You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.”

    Romans 12:1, “present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”

    “be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, … 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:10-17).

II. Production v. 2
    “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”

    A. PREPARATION

     2 Timothy 1:10, 13-14; 2:21; 1 Timothy 4:6-7
 

    B. PRESENTATION

    Hebrews 1:3; Hebrews 4:12; James 1:21; 2 Thessalonians 2:10

    C. PRODUCTION

II. Persistence v. 3
    “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”

    2 Timothy 2:10, “I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.”

    “I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches” (2 Corinthians 11:27-28).

2 Corinthians 6:4-5

IV. Preference v. 4
    “No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs-- he wants to please his commanding officer.”

    Matthew 10:37-38, “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me; 38 and anyone who does not take his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me.” 

    “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For everything in the world-- the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does-- comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:15-17). 

    “… let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2).

   “I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8).

Conclusion:

    “No one can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24).

    Matthew 8:5-10

    “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. [The weapons we use] have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) 

    “the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry” (2 Timothy 4:3-5)

    “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-- and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7-8).

 

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Sunday Sermon Outline: A New Life in Christ

"A New Life in Christ"

2 Corinthians 5:17

 

Introduction:
     2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” 

 

I. A New Life
    Romans 6:1-4, “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” 

 

II. A New Creation
    John 3:3, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” 

    1 Timothy 4:8, “Physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” 

    Romans 12:1-2, “I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--His good, pleasing and perfect will.” 

    Ephesians 4:14-15, “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching … 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Him who is the Head, that is, Christ.”

 

III. A New Standard
    1 Peter 2:2, "Like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you may grow in respect to salvation." 

    John 13:15, “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”

     Philippians 3:16, "Let us keep living by that same standard to which we have attained." 

    “Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 1:13). “The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2).

 

IV. A New Hope
    1 John 3:2-3, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. 3 Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”
    2 Corinthians 4:8-9, “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”
    Romans 12:12, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”
    Hebrews 6:19, "this hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast."
    Colossians 1:22-23, “He has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation--23 IF you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. …”

 

V. A New Purpose

    “I must preach the kingdom of God …, for I was sent for this purpose” (Luke 4:43).
    “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10).
    “He is the head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18).
    John 12:26, “Whoever serves Me must follow Me; and where I am, My servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves Me.”
    Matthew 11:28-29, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”
    “Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God” (1 Corinthians 4:1). “For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake” (2 Corinthians 4:5).
    “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:23-24).
    “Therefore, since Christ suffered in His body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. 2 As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God” (1 Peter 4:1-2).
    "You are the light of the world ... Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 5:13-16).
    “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27)?
    “the sin which so easily entangles us” (Hebrews 12:1)

VI. A New Future (Conclusion)
    James 1:12, “Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.”
2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”
    "Behold, I am making all things new" (Revelation 21:5).


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