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The Privilege of Intimacy

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Preached Friday PM, September 20, 2019

Privilege of Intimacy

To view the video of this message, please visit our Resurgence 2019 page.

“The church has no greater need today than to fall in love with Jesus all over again” -Vance Havner

“The most important thing is your personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It is first above everything else because who you are and who you will become flow out of your intimacy with Him.” -Charles Stanley

“Make your ultimate goal your own personal relationship with Him” -Oswald Chambers

Scripture: Luke 10:38-42; John 12:1-8

Supporting Passages:
James 4:8- Draw near to God and He will draw near to you”
Jeremiah 29:13 – And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

Intimacy Defined: Closeness, the experience of really knowing and being know by another person

Scripture teaches that it is we, not God who determines the degree of intimacy we experience with Him

Everything in our Christian life and service flows from our relationship with God

How do we know that God wants an intimate relationship with us?

  • He created human beings with relationship in mind – Genesis 1:26; 3:8
  • He provided a way for us to spend eternity with Him through Christ – John 3:16, 17
  • He chose to make us the dwelling place of His Spirit – John 14:17; 1 Corinthians 6:19
  • He encourages us to pray and read His Word – Philippians 4:6; Joshua 1:8
  • He says repeatedly in scripture, “I love you” – John 3:16; Romans 5:8; Ephesians 2:4; John 17:23 “Thou hast loved them, as thou hast loved me”
  • His greatest commandment is for us to love Him – Matthew 22:37
  1. The Privilege of Intimacy
    1. Object of our intimacy – Infinite God
      1. Self-existent – Self-caused, no origin (Exodus 3:14)
      2. Infinite – Limitless (Jeremiah 23:24; 1 Kings 8:27)
      3. Eternal – Everlasting, always was, always is, always will be (Deut. 33:27)
      4. Incomprehensible – No one can remotely understand and comprehend God (Isaiah 55:8)
      5. Immutable – Unchanging (Malachi 3:6)
      6. Omniscient – All knowing (Psalm 139:3)
      7. Omnipresent – Everywhere present (Psalm 139:7)
      8. Omnipotent – All powerful (Revelation 19:6)
      9. Holy – Separate, set-apart, absolute purity (Isaiah 6:3; 1 Peter 1:16)
      10. Glorious – Weighted down with brilliance, brightness, radiance (Psalm 8:1)
    2. Access to the Throne (access to God Himself)
      1. Hebrews 4:14-16
      2. Matthew 27:50, 51 – Veil of the Temple torn
    3. Acceptance with God
      1. Ephesians 1:6 – To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
      2. In the death of Christ, provision is made for a cleansing so deep, so radical, so continuous that a believer can walk with God in unbroken communion and deepening fellowship.
    4. Indwelling Holy Spirit
      1. While on earth, Jesus was geographically limited – Our Lord’s departure from earth made possible a deeper, more constant intimacy with Him through the Holy Spirit
      2. “The great business of the Holy Spirit is to stand behind the scenes and make Jesus real” – According to Dr. A. B. Simpson
      3. I Corinthians 6:19-20 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
  2. The Discipline of Intimacy
    1. Time
      1. It’s not if you have time, but will you make time?
    2. Solitude
      1. Matthew 6:6 – But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
      2. Alone with Him in His presence
    3. Drawing near – James 4:8
      1. Communion with God that is close and real
      2. Prayer
        1. “The primary point of prayer is not to get something, but to know someone.” –David Platt
      3. Scripture Reading
        1. “There is an inseparable relationship between your affection for Christ and your affection for the Scripture.”
      4. Listening and responding
    4. Focus
      1. Intimacy grows out of a deepening revelation of the divine character
    5. Moment by Moment Walk
      1. Walking in the Spirit – Galatians 5:16
        1. Walk is a term for daily living
        2. To walking in the Spirit will require a walk-in accordance with the Word the Spirit has inspired (See Colossians 3:15)
  3. The Embrace of Intimacy
    1. “Be absolutely His” – Oswald Chambers
    2. Decision of the will
      1. Our wills have a responsibility of choosing
      2. The Law of Desire: “We do what we do because we want what we want.”
    3. Ordering of priorities
      1. Passion: “An intense desire that saturates every aspect of life and compels us to pursue its object”
    4. Consistent Pursuit
      1. Daily drawing near
    5. Intentional Trust
      1. Trust is the heart of intimacy
      2. Psalms 73:28 – But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.
  4. The Product of Intimacy
    1. Deepening knowledge of God
      1. An experience of intimacy with Christ will only feed the flames to know Him still better
    2. Heightened sensitivity to sin
      1. “The closer we are to God, the more the slightest sin will cause us deep sorrow” -R.C. Sproul
    3. Experience of His presence
    4. Radiance from His glory – Exodus 34:29
      1. Peace
      2. Joy
      3. Contentment
    5. Elevated desire to please Him
      1. “Effective ministry to people grows out of intimate experiences with God” -Jerry Bridges
  5. The Obstruction of intimacy
    1. An Impure Heart
      1. A pure heart is one in which no known, conscious, unjudged sin is tolerated and entertained
      2. Psalm 24:3, 4 – Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.
    2. Some thing or someone else
      1. “Beware of anything that competes with loyalty to Jesus Christ” -Oswald Chambers
    3. Lack of Desire
      1. Ask the Lord for the desire (the thirst)
        1. Psalms 63:1-2a – O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; To see thy power and thy glory
        2. Psalms 84:2 – My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.
      2. Taste and see that the Lord is good!
        1. Psalm 34:8a – “O taste and see that the LORD is good.”
      3. Lack of Relationship – Because of being in a lost condition

Invitation:
Confess lack of desire for Him
Tell the Lord that you want a desire, a thirst for Him
Begin to taste and see that the Lord is good through getting to know Him as never before

Thank Him for the privilege of intimacy with Him

Maybe you have realized tonight that you don’t desire the Lord because you are unsaved, you don’t know Him as Lord and Savior

Resurgence, The Ground Work

Sunday AM Worship Services
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These notes are from the Sunday Morning Worship Service August 4, 2019

Scripture: Mark 4:1-8; 14-20
Supporting Passages: Matthew 13:3-23; Luke 8:4-15

The Ground Work

The Soil Parable

Parables – Stories about everyday situations used to teach spiritual truth.

  • The Sower – Jesus Himself – by extension all who share the Word of God
  • The Seed – The Word of God
  • The Soil – The heart of the hearer
    • Heart preparation is the first step in preparing for resurgence.
  • The Spirit – The Spirit of God is the driving force in any resurgence

The Soil Represents Various Types of Hearers (4 types of soil):

  • Way Side – Unresponsive People (v 15)
  • Stony Ground (Rocky) – Impulsive People (vv 16-17)
  • Among Thorns – Preoccupied People (vv 18-19)
  • Good Ground – Fruitful People (v 20)

In any given teaching / preaching session there are various types of soil present.

Elements of Resurgence:

  1. Preeminence of the Word of God
  2. Essential Prayer
  3. Thirst for a Fresh Encounter with the Presence of Christ
  4. Prevailing Humility
  5. Recognition of the Holy Spirit’s Voice
  6. Honest Confession of Sin, Accompanied by Repentance
    • The most intense revivals are those where the people get judgment day honest with God, themselves, and others.
    • Personal sins must be confessed to God
    • Private sins should be confessed to those involved
    • Public sins call for public confession
    • What happens in us determines what happens through us!
  7. Resistance to the Enemy
    • The intensity level of satanic conflict increases dramatically in potentially life changing events.

Please visit the Resurgence 2019 section of our website to watch a video of this important message and to learn more about this major event in the life of Corner Stone Baptist Church coming up September 20-22, 2019.

Resurgence

Sunday AM Worship Services
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These notes are from the Sunday morning service on July 28, 2019.

Scripture: Jeremiah 29, James 4

What is Resurgence?

Defined: A growth or increase that occurs after a period without growth or increase.

  • A fresh encounter with the presence of Christ
  • A return to the same love, joy, excitement, and obedience that characterized you the day you got saved.
  • An extraordinary work of God

“The word revival is sparingly used in the Bible. Though rarely used, the concept of spiritual resurgence is woven throughout the entire fabric of Scripture.”

Harold Vaughan

Example from Scripture: II Kings 22-23, II Chronicles 34-35

Why is Resurgence Needed?

  • Christians become weary in well doing. -Galatians 6:9
  • Christians lose their thirst for God. -Psalm 42:1-2
  • Christians develop a Sunday Morning Only mentality.
  • Christians become complacent in service.
  • Christians can lose their burden for the lost.
  • Christians drift in devotion to Christ, backsliding from a church pew.

Why does Corner Stone of Naola Specifically Need Resurgence?

We cannot handle a “wave” should God send one!

“Watch and see where God is working and join Him.”

Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God

“Our job as church leaders, like experienced surfers, is to recognize a wave of God’s Spirit and ride it. It is not our responsibility to make waves but to recognize how God is working in the world and join Him in the endeavor.”

-Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Church

Three Observations About Waves

  • God is the one that makes the waves.
    • Ocean waves are caused by wind moving across the surface of the water.
    • In Scripture, wind is an emblem of the Holy Spirit.
  • Surfers just ride the waves.
    • We respond to what God is doing and join with Him.
  • Waves only last for a period of time. (Window of opportunity)
    • Ephesians 5:16 – Redeeming the time, because the days are evil

Some Positive Things to Note About Corner Stone Baptist Church of Naola

  • A loving congregation
  • A congregation that desires to be taught Biblical truth
  • A congregation that cares about reaching beyond the walls of this church building
  • A giving congregation
  • A congregation that is supportive of pastoral leadership
  • A church that has exceptional men serving as deacons
  • Our church has people who truly care about humbly serving the Lord
  • Just in the last year there are people that we have seen God at work transforming their lives

All that being said, we are also a church that has leveled off or is in decline.

Not enough people have stepped up to replace those who are either no longer with us or are unable to continue serving at the level they once did.

Please visit the Resurgence 2019 section of our website to watch a video of this important message and to learn more about this major event in the life of Corner Stone Baptist Church coming up September 20-22, 2019.

Stopping Not Sharing the Gospel

Sunday AM Worship Services
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Confronting the Reality of Our Disobedience

Delivered in the Sunday AM Worship Service 7/7/2019
Scripture: John 4:1-39

11 Steps to Stopping Not Sharing the Gospel:

The majority of this outline is from Pastor Mark Dever’s book, “The Gospel and Personal Evangelism”

PRAY – For opportunities to share the Gospel

3 Important Requests:

  • Opportunity
  • Willingness
  • Boldness

Boldness is:

  • Boldness is deciding to say something when it would be easier to say nothing.
  • Boldness is creating opportunities.
  • Boldness is something you determine to rely on God for.

PLAN – to make time to build relationships or to put yourself in positions where you know you will be able to talk to non-Christians

ACCEPT – responsibility for sharing the Gospel

  • Matthew 28:18-20
  • Mark 16:15
  • Luke 24:47-48
  • John 20:21
  • Acts 1:8

UNDERSTAND – even if evangelism is not your gift, that it is still your duty

Be FAITHFUL – to share the Gospel

Often we can find ourselves:

  • Too polite to be faithful to God
  • More concerned about people’s response than God’s glory
  • More concerned about their feelings rather than God’s

RISK – sharing with others regardless of their response

PREPARE – yourself; learn how to share the Gospel

LOOK – for opportunities that God will provide

Things that interfere with opportunities:

  • We are too busy
  • We are lazy about it
  • We are unwilling to be inconvenienced
  • We are selfish
  • We are Apathetic
  • We don’t consider the reality and finality of death, judgment, and hell.

LOVE – we are called to love others

  • We share the Gospel because we love people. Likewise, we don’t share the Gospel because we don’t love people.
  • We don’t want to cause awkwardness.
  • We want their respect.
  • We don’t want to look foolish or weird.
  • We protect our pride at the cost of their souls.

FEAR – should not be directed to man but to God

  • When we don’t share the Gospel, we are essentially refusing to live in the fear of the Lord.
  • We are not regarding Him or His will as the final and ultimate authority of our actions.

CONSIDER – what God has done for us in Christ

  • Consider that God has loved us as He has
  • Consider the great price He paid for us
  • Consider the forgiveness that He provided us
  • Consider that God is glorified by our telling others of His incredible love
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