Jesus Disciples Are Not Working Alone

The Holy Spirit changes us and gives us power to live for God.

Matthew 28:20  Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

John 14:16-18  And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it isn't looking for Him and doesn't recognize Him. But you know Him, because He lives with you now and later will be in you. No, I will not abandon you as orphans, I will come to you.

Yes we live in a gospel community doing life together and helping each other but I want to talk about a much better helper that we cannot be without if we are going to grow as a disciple or if we are going to make new disciples.

The work of the Holy Spirit is a part of the process of becoming more like Jesus, his work starts with giving us life when we were spiritually dead and he helps us to move through all of the stages of spiritual growth from infants all the way to a spiritual adult.

Of all the gifts given to man by God, there is none greater than the presence of the Holy Spirit, He has many functions, roles, and activities so we will only take a look at a few of them:

The Holy Spirit guarantees my salvation.

Ephesians 1:13-14 And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.

God grants to us His Holy Spirit as the certain pledge that we are His forever and shall be saved in the last day. He has saved us and given us His Spirit to renew us and cleanse us from the desires of the flesh. He produces in our hearts the evidence that we are accepted by God, that we are regarded as His adopted children, that our hope is genuine and that our salvation is sure.

The Holy Spirit gives me power to live for God.

Ezekiel 36:26-27 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.

The proof of the Spirit’s presence is the work that He is doing in my heart. The cold indifferent and unloving heart will become tender and compassionate and we will respond to God's commands and conform to His will for our lives.

My character will look a lot more like God's character. (Ephesians 4:21-24, John 16:7-11) The power that He provides will help me to live with the fruit of the Spirit. My life will have "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." (Galatians 5:22-23)

The Holy Spirit helps me tell my story to people that don't know the gospel.

Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be My witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere--in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Jesus disciples were appointed to tell what they had seen and what they had heard. They saw his life, his character, his suffering and his teaching. They saw His life, death and resurrection and they were about to see him ascend to heaven. Jesus had changed their lives dramatically and he wanted them to tell their story. (Acts 4:33)

Jesus also wants us to tell our story and he has given us the Holy Spirit to help us have the words, the timing for our words and the power to go and share the good news. The more we tell our story and talk about how God has intervened in our life, the more people will begin to realize that God is for real, miracles do happen, and they will see that He can change their life too.

I am not able to live the life that God wants me to live without the Holy Spirit's power, I need to remember that I don't have to be more like Jesus in my own strength, the power to be who he wants me to be can only come from Him.

Help me Lord to be serious about my mission here on earth and help me to rely on the Holy Spirit to change me and then help me spread the good news about what you have done.

Grace Wins

Romans 3:20-24 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.

But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Romans 8:1-2 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.

Here I Am, Send Me

According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, the word sent is used about 690 times in the Bible, 184 of those times being in the New Testament. The word go is used 251 times in the New Testament. Jesus says or implies 40 times in the New Testament that He was sent by God. Clearly, God is a sender by nature.

In the Old Testament, He sent prophets, angels and the very special Angel of the Lord. In the New Testament, He sent not only angels, but John the Baptist, Jesus and the Holy Spirit, among others. Jesus sent the apostles, and He has sent us.

When watching news stories, one cannot help but notice the fallen state of the world. How can we, as individuals, make an impact for the better?

Each year, we honor the life and advocacy of Annie Walker Armstrong (1850-1938) when we give to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American missions. As a tireless servant of God and a contagious advocate and supporter of missions efforts throughout the world, Annie Armstrong led women to unite in missions endeavors that ultimately led to the formation of Woman’s Missionary Union, for which she served as the first corresponding secretary.

Annie believed in and followed Christ with all her heart, but it was her hands that expressed that belief in tangible ways. She spent a great amount of time typing and handwriting letters in support of missions. Many of these letters were quite lengthy and all were filled with conviction that more could and should be done in our missions efforts.

Annie never hesitated to use her hands to reach out to hug a child or distribute food, clothing and the Word of God to those in need. Her hands held her own Bible as she studied to know how best to share Gods love with others. And, most important, Annie was a woman of prayer, folding her hands in prayer to intercede for the missionaries and for those they were helping discover Christ.

You can help push back lostness in North America by:

Praying Fervently

Pray for the mission field where you are and for the pastors and ministry leaders committed to the area where you live. Pray for the North American Mission Board missionaries working to reach the US and Canada with the power of the gospel. (Galatians 6:9–10.) The world needs for the Lord to intervene now more than ever before. God says in 2 Chronicles 7:14 if His people will humble themselves and pray and seek His face and turn from their evil ways, He will hear from heaven, forgive their sin and heal their land.

Pray that Christians worldwide will stand firm in the faith and not stand idly by while darkness takes over. Ask for corporate forgiveness and determine to be obedient even when it is hard.

Giving Generously

God’s not asking for a gift that will impress people sitting in your pew or standing in the pulpit. He’s asking for sincere, sacrificial gifts that will glorify Him. Ask the Lord what amount you should give to support missionaries and church planters in North America through the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering. (Luke 6:38)

Going Intentionally

Determine to eagerly raise your hand and say, “Here I am. Send me.” Ask God what your “Send me” looks like.

Maybe it’s ministering in the retirement community across town. Maybe it’s building relationships at the school in your neighborhood. Maybe it’s planting a church six states away. Wherever God puts upon your heart, pray that He will prepare the mission field there and that He will prepare your heart to serve there. (Exodus 4:12)

OFFERING FAST FACTS:

✔  Purpose: To support the efforts of the North American Mission Board missionaries and church planters as they push back lostness in the United States and Canada. ✔  Amount of AAEO used to support missionaries and their work: 100% ✔  Amount of NAMB budget that comes from AAEO: 49% ✔  Amount of NAMB budget from Cooperative Program: 38% ✔  Year offering started: WMU started it in 1895 ✔  Amount given in 1895: $5,000 + ✔  Amount given to AAEO fiscal year Oct 1, 2014 – Sept 30, 2015: $58 million ✔  Year offering named after Annie Armstrong: 1934 ✔  Offering Goal for 2016: $70 million

[su_button url="https://anniearmstrong.com/donate/" target="blank" radius="0"]Donate Online[/su_button] [su_spacer] Donate by mail directly to the North American Mission Board at: North American Mission Board P.O. Box 116543 Atlanta, GA 30368-6543 Make sure to indicate “Annie Armstrong Easter Offering” on your check.

Your Glory - Nothing But The Blood

https://youtu.be/XoyttwTgQ30

My life is Yours My hope is in You only And my heart You hold Cause You made this sinner holy Holy holy

My life is Yours My hope is in You only And my heart You hold Cause You made this sinner holy Holy holy

Your glory is so beautiful I fall onto my knees in awe And the heartbeat of my life Is to worship in Your light Cause Your glory is so beautiful Your glory is so beautiful

Glory, glory hallelujah Jesus, You are good

What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus

Oh! Precious is the flow That makes me white as snow No other fount I know Nothing but the blood of Jesus

Bless The Lord

https://youtu.be/XtwIT8JjddM

Bless the Lord oh my soul Oh my soul Worship His Holy name Sing like never before Oh my soul I'll worship Your Holy name

The sun comes up It's a new day dawning It's time to sing Your song again Whatever may pass And whatever lies before me Let me be singing When the evening comes

Bless the Lord oh my soul Oh my soul Worship His Holy name Sing like never before Oh my soul I'll worship Your Holy name

You're rich in love And You're slow to anger Your name is great And Your heart is kind For all Your goodness I will keep on singing Ten thousand reasons For my heart to find

Bless the Lord oh my soul Oh my soul Worship His Holy name Sing like never before Oh my soul I'll worship Your Holy name Bless You Lord

And on that day When my strength is failing The end draws near And my time has come Still my soul will Sing Your praise unending Ten thousand years And then forevermore Forevermore

Jesus Disciples Forgive

Live to forgive and you will change your world.

Matthew 18:21-22 Then Peter came to Him and asked, "Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?"

"No, not seven times," Jesus replied, "but seventy times seven!"

Colossians 3:13 Make allowance for each others faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

It's the gift that keeps on giving, it never wears out or goes out of style, the one gift that we need the most. But as much as we love this gift we are also supposed to give it away, we are not allowed to keep it for ourselves, we should re-gift it and let others have some. The best forgivers in the world should be the people that have experienced Jesus forgiveness but it seems like they may be the worst at it.

The Bible is very clear that if I do not show mercy in the same measure that it was given to me then I am in a very serious situation. If I really understand how much I have been forgiven through no merit that I earned then I should always remember to do the same for others.

The desire to get even with someone is a natural human desire that must be overcome as a disciple of Jesus. Because of our pride and self-esteem we want somebody to pay for our hurts and disappointments. We tell ourselves, “I won’t forgive because he/she never accepts responsibility for what he/she does” or  “I would be a hypocrite if I forgave because I do not feel like forgiving” or  “Forgiving is only for weak people”.

We don't want to suggest that every hurt is something that you can easily forgive and get over it but most of the wrongs that we experience are very small and we can make a conscious decision to let it go. For the most part I can say that I haven't been done very wrong too often.

Jesus gave up his rights and canceled the debt. Forgiving as Jesus did will change the world, I need to love like Jesus loves and forgive as Jesus forgives, without any restrictions or any strings attached.

Help us to be world changers Lord by unlocking the freedom found in forgiveness, help us to have empathy and love so that we can give up our rights and allow our world to experience grace.