What an incredible sight to behold! Over 400 people gathered together in our auditorium to watch “Fireproof” and to then be challenged to work on a 40-day program called “The Love Dare”. It was wonderful to see so many visitors and church family members come to take advantage of a tool to hopefully bless their marriages. It is my prayer that God will work in the families of this church and our community to bring about loving relationships that produce fulfillment for each one involved.
This morning we begin looking at what God sets out in His word for husband/wife relationships. I am hoping to shed light on the practical teaching He provides in order to show the beauty and value of entrusting ourselves to His plan for marriage. Our creator knows the way He wired us and the challenges that come with being different, yet corresponding to one another, thus He provides some timely and powerful teaching on how to work together to build unity, intimacy, and a relationship founded upon the characteristics of love and respect. Over the next six weeks, in conjuncture with The Love Dare, I will be preaching on passages such as Genesis 2; Ephesians 5; and I Peter 3 to show the wealth of material God has provided for training and guiding husbands and wives so they function as a team, where each is respected and built up in the ways of the LORD.
These sermons will be challenging. I plan to come across unrelenting when proclaiming this material. It is not my intention to make suggestions that might work if you half-heartedly try them. The level of commitment God calls us to have is much greater than that! I will be demonstrating His plan for marriage and calling for each individual to evaluate their own heart and relationship. I will be striving to bring about change where things are outside of God’s design so that marriage fulfillment will reach the height God has designed it to have. I know these are lofty goals, but why set the bar low? God certainly didn’t!
At times you may wonder if I have a camera and am spying on what is going on within the walls of your home. (At least, I hope it comes across this way!) Because God’s teachings and the implications of what they mean are THAT practical and relevant to the situations we face in our world today. I certainly am praying for His truth to come across alive and active and relevant to your particular situations or circumstances.
We live during a time where there are vast resources available for marriage enrichment. I have read several books that I would highly recommend couples take time to read. However, the absolute greatest resource is found in the pages of Scripture, and that will be my focus over the next six weeks! May God capture your heart and your imagination for what you can build in your marriage as we consider the beauty of His plan! May you be filled with the energy and clarity of thought to fulfill your Love Dare with passion and determination! And, may you experience the fullness in your marriage bond that God has created it to bring!
Click to listen to sermon.
-Scott
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
A Study of the Tabernacle—Part 13
The Altar of Incense—The Prayers of the Saints
Do you know what is near and dear to God’s heart? Hearing from His children!
The Tabernacle (as we have seen thus far) gives us image after image of what Jesus has done for us in order to provide the means to an intimate relationship with God. He is the one way into God’s presence (like the entry of the Tabernacle courtyard). He is the sacrifice offered before God in order to atone for our sins and help us have peace with God (like the Altar of Burnt Offerings). He is the means to be cleansed so we can enter into the presence of God (like the Laver). He is the Light of the World providing victory over darkness and lighting our way to the presence of God (like the Golden Lamp Stand). He is the Bread of Life—God’s provision for our souls and the means to have table fellowship with God (like the Table of Showbread). God’s design for the Tabernacle was meant to point forward to the person and ministry of the Savior we all need so we can dwell in the presence of God and live life to the fullest!
There was one more piece of furniture you encounter before entering into the very presence of God—The Altar of Incense. This was a square altar made of acacia wood and covered with gold upon which the priests were to keep a special blend of incense burning continually before the LORD (See Exodus 30:1-10). Once a year Aaron was to purify the altar by placing on its horns some blood from the atoning sacrifice on the Day of Atonement (Exodus 30:10).
Can you see the beautiful picture this presents?
David writes in Psalm 141:2 “May my prayer be fixed as incense before You; the lifting up of my hands as the evening offering.” We find in Revelation 8:3-4 a golden altar before the throne of God (His very presence) and the angel of God added incense to the prayers of all the saints to offer before God. The golden censer mentioned was a tool used to transport burning coals in order to burn the incense. This is the very same activity the priests would have to do each morning and evening in the Tabernacle. In other words, the incense represented the prayers of God’s people! What was closest to the very presence of God was the sweet-smelling prayers of His people! Unfortunately, there was a veil separating this altar from the presence of God in the Tabernacle, but Jesus would see that removed through the work He came to the earth to accomplish!
Jesus’ work was also foretold through the use of the altar of incense. You see, basically there were two altars—one indoors and one outdoors. The outdoor altar was brass and represents what Jesus did on the earth—offering an atoning sacrifice. We see a picture of Jesus in humiliation. However, the indoor altar was gold and represents what Jesus does in the presence of God—interceding for us so God is pleased with the aroma of our lives. It is a picture of Jesus in exultation! The fire for burning the incense on the golden altar came from the altar of burnt offerings where the sacrifices were offered to God (Lev. 16:12-13). The point is that true prayer must be based on the work of Jesus on the cross! This is powerfully illustrated on the Day of Atonement when blood from the sacrifice for the nation of Israel was spread on the horns of the Altar of Incense. To be the fragrance God desires in His presence, we need the blood of Jesus spread on our lives!
Next week we will talk about what this means in our everyday living.
Click to listen to sermon.
-Scott
Do you know what is near and dear to God’s heart? Hearing from His children!
The Tabernacle (as we have seen thus far) gives us image after image of what Jesus has done for us in order to provide the means to an intimate relationship with God. He is the one way into God’s presence (like the entry of the Tabernacle courtyard). He is the sacrifice offered before God in order to atone for our sins and help us have peace with God (like the Altar of Burnt Offerings). He is the means to be cleansed so we can enter into the presence of God (like the Laver). He is the Light of the World providing victory over darkness and lighting our way to the presence of God (like the Golden Lamp Stand). He is the Bread of Life—God’s provision for our souls and the means to have table fellowship with God (like the Table of Showbread). God’s design for the Tabernacle was meant to point forward to the person and ministry of the Savior we all need so we can dwell in the presence of God and live life to the fullest!
There was one more piece of furniture you encounter before entering into the very presence of God—The Altar of Incense. This was a square altar made of acacia wood and covered with gold upon which the priests were to keep a special blend of incense burning continually before the LORD (See Exodus 30:1-10). Once a year Aaron was to purify the altar by placing on its horns some blood from the atoning sacrifice on the Day of Atonement (Exodus 30:10).
Can you see the beautiful picture this presents?
David writes in Psalm 141:2 “May my prayer be fixed as incense before You; the lifting up of my hands as the evening offering.” We find in Revelation 8:3-4 a golden altar before the throne of God (His very presence) and the angel of God added incense to the prayers of all the saints to offer before God. The golden censer mentioned was a tool used to transport burning coals in order to burn the incense. This is the very same activity the priests would have to do each morning and evening in the Tabernacle. In other words, the incense represented the prayers of God’s people! What was closest to the very presence of God was the sweet-smelling prayers of His people! Unfortunately, there was a veil separating this altar from the presence of God in the Tabernacle, but Jesus would see that removed through the work He came to the earth to accomplish!
Jesus’ work was also foretold through the use of the altar of incense. You see, basically there were two altars—one indoors and one outdoors. The outdoor altar was brass and represents what Jesus did on the earth—offering an atoning sacrifice. We see a picture of Jesus in humiliation. However, the indoor altar was gold and represents what Jesus does in the presence of God—interceding for us so God is pleased with the aroma of our lives. It is a picture of Jesus in exultation! The fire for burning the incense on the golden altar came from the altar of burnt offerings where the sacrifices were offered to God (Lev. 16:12-13). The point is that true prayer must be based on the work of Jesus on the cross! This is powerfully illustrated on the Day of Atonement when blood from the sacrifice for the nation of Israel was spread on the horns of the Altar of Incense. To be the fragrance God desires in His presence, we need the blood of Jesus spread on our lives!
Next week we will talk about what this means in our everyday living.
Click to listen to sermon.
-Scott
Sunday, February 1, 2009
A Study of the Tabernacle—Part 12
The Table of Showbread (Part 2)—He Invites Us Into His Banquet Table
“I owe, I owe . . . so, off to work I go!”
What are you working for? What are you trying to accumulate? Money can buy you a house, but not a home; money can buy you an education, but not wisdom; money can buy you a bed, but not restful sleep; money can buy you influence, but not respect; it can buy you medicine, but not health.
Do you take time to reflect upon what you are chasing after and whether it is worth it? Are you caught up in the rat race for more things and don’t even have time to enjoy the things for which you still owe money? Jesus calls us to work not for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life (John 6:27). Are we thinking about this as we chase after the shiny things the world holds out in front of us? When it is all said and done, what will be said about you, and what will you have done?
The Table of Showbread was a reminder of God’s provision of the things we really need. Not just our physical needs, but something much more meaningful! This bread placed upon the Table of Showbread was called the “Bread of Presence”, or more literally, the “Bread of Face”—GOD’S FACE! The Table of Showbread represents eating in the presence of God—TABLE FELLOWSHIP WITH THE MAKER OF THE UNIVERSE! He invites us in to His banquet table and His banner over us is love! The point in the Tabernacle was the same as what Jesus later taught in John 6:27. Are you making your decisions based upon the things that bring you deeper into the presence of God, so you can sit down with Him and enjoy table fellowship? Or, are you chasing after things that distract you from this type of intimacy with God?
Jesus was very consistent in what He taught us about this. When the devil tempted Him to turn stones to bread after He had been fasting for 40 days, Jesus made it clear, “It is written, ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4). The devil was trying to find a way to disrupt the intimacy and fellowship Jesus enjoyed with the Father, much like he did to Adam & Eve in the Garden. However, this time he was unsuccessful. Jesus also had this to say to His disciples when they tried to get Him to eat after His encounter with the woman at the well in Samaria, “I have food to eat that you do not know about. . . . My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work” (John 4:32-34). Jesus never let His physical appetite take precedence over His spiritual appetite. His decisions in the flesh were based upon what would help Him stay in the presence of God—feasting at His banquet table!
Have you considered what it is you are working for and why you feel these things are necessary? Are you striving after things that move you closer to the presence of God, or further away from Him? Let the Table of Showbread remind you that God will take care of the things you really need, and His “bread” is meant to draw you nearer to Him so you can have table fellowship. If this is not what you are experiencing, will you see what He is calling you to experience and make the changes necessary in your quest?
Click to listen to sermon.
-Scott
“I owe, I owe . . . so, off to work I go!”
What are you working for? What are you trying to accumulate? Money can buy you a house, but not a home; money can buy you an education, but not wisdom; money can buy you a bed, but not restful sleep; money can buy you influence, but not respect; it can buy you medicine, but not health.
Do you take time to reflect upon what you are chasing after and whether it is worth it? Are you caught up in the rat race for more things and don’t even have time to enjoy the things for which you still owe money? Jesus calls us to work not for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life (John 6:27). Are we thinking about this as we chase after the shiny things the world holds out in front of us? When it is all said and done, what will be said about you, and what will you have done?
The Table of Showbread was a reminder of God’s provision of the things we really need. Not just our physical needs, but something much more meaningful! This bread placed upon the Table of Showbread was called the “Bread of Presence”, or more literally, the “Bread of Face”—GOD’S FACE! The Table of Showbread represents eating in the presence of God—TABLE FELLOWSHIP WITH THE MAKER OF THE UNIVERSE! He invites us in to His banquet table and His banner over us is love! The point in the Tabernacle was the same as what Jesus later taught in John 6:27. Are you making your decisions based upon the things that bring you deeper into the presence of God, so you can sit down with Him and enjoy table fellowship? Or, are you chasing after things that distract you from this type of intimacy with God?
Jesus was very consistent in what He taught us about this. When the devil tempted Him to turn stones to bread after He had been fasting for 40 days, Jesus made it clear, “It is written, ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4). The devil was trying to find a way to disrupt the intimacy and fellowship Jesus enjoyed with the Father, much like he did to Adam & Eve in the Garden. However, this time he was unsuccessful. Jesus also had this to say to His disciples when they tried to get Him to eat after His encounter with the woman at the well in Samaria, “I have food to eat that you do not know about. . . . My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work” (John 4:32-34). Jesus never let His physical appetite take precedence over His spiritual appetite. His decisions in the flesh were based upon what would help Him stay in the presence of God—feasting at His banquet table!
Have you considered what it is you are working for and why you feel these things are necessary? Are you striving after things that move you closer to the presence of God, or further away from Him? Let the Table of Showbread remind you that God will take care of the things you really need, and His “bread” is meant to draw you nearer to Him so you can have table fellowship. If this is not what you are experiencing, will you see what He is calling you to experience and make the changes necessary in your quest?
Click to listen to sermon.
-Scott
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