Good morning.
As we begin this morning, I'd like for you to imagine with me a sad situation.
! Imagine that within the past year, a group of people have left Maranatha.
! Because of growing tension over some theological views that they had come to believe.
You see, as they had begun to consider Jesus, they began to ask questions like,
Is Jesus really God's Son? Is Jesus really the Messiah?
Is Jesus God? Is Jesus man?
As their thinking on these theological issues began to unfold and tension within the church began to build,
they decided that they would leave and go elsewhere.
That in and of itself would be a sad situation, but it gets worse.
Not only has this group left, but they've continued to be in contact with the people at Maranatha.
They continue to try to influence those that are still here to consider their new enlightened form of Christianity,
to question their beliefs.
Well, that in itself would also be sad, but it gets worse from there.
You find out that this group that's left has targeted some of your dearest friends.
They've begun to talk with them and try to persuade them that they've missed it,
that they haven't really believed the truth, that they've been deceived,
and they need to consider these things about Jesus.
Is he truly all that we make him out to be?
And to try to influence them, they are constantly telling them,
we must be right.
Look at how blessed we are in our lives.
God's given us all these material things.
Well, your friends are beginning to question,
are they really right?
Do they really have a relationship with Jesus?
Is their theology correct?
Do what they think about Jesus, is it true?
Is what they've thought was going on in their life and their relationship with God, is it true?
And as you find out your friends are struggling with these questions,
you're greatly concerned.
And so you sit down and begin to write a letter out to them,
to challenge them about what they truly believe,
to encourage them to see God's work in their life
and how he has worked faithfully in their lives in the past.
And it's important for us to have this picture in our mind
because that's exactly what is happening as John writes this letter to the church at Ephesus.
That's the background.
And John, as we have seen again and again as we've worked through the book of 1 John,
John is writing to challenge them to say,
this is true religion.
This is what it truly means to walk with Jesus.
And this is how God has been faithful in your life.
Don't overlook these things.
Don't be dissuaded.
Don't be discouraged.
Don't be led astray.
And this morning, the passage we come to is no different than that.
But before we begin, would you join me in prayer?
Father, we do come before you.
And we ask that your spirit would be at work in our lives.
Father, we come with various situations in our lives, in our home, our families.
We come with different struggles, with grief and loss, with struggling and suffering.
And we come before you now and before your word.
We ask that you would encourage us.
That you would strengthen us.
That you would convict us and change us.
That you would move each one of us closer to Jesus today through your word.
And it's in Jesus' name we ask these things and for his glory.
Amen.
This morning, we come to 1 John 4, verses 13 through 21.
1 John 4, verses 13 through 21.
And it reads,
And to believe the love that God has for us.
God is love.
And whoever abides in love abides in God.
And God abides in them.
By this is love perfected with us.
So that we may have confidence for the day of judgment.
Because as he is, so also are we in this world.
There is no fear in love.
But perfect love casts out fear.
For fear has to do with punishment.
And whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
We love because he first loved us.
If anyone says, I love God and hates his brother,
he is a liar.
For he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen,
cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
And this is the commandment we have from him.
Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
So this morning as we come to this section,
this passage of scripture,
the thing I'd like for us to see
is that John is writing this
to help the church at Ephesus
know, know without a doubt,
be sure that they are abiding in God.
And that God is abiding in them.
Be sure of their abiding relationship with God.
And you may recognize verse 13 in a sense
where it says,
By this we know we abide in him and he in us
because he has given us of his spirit.
It sounds very similar to what we see
in 1 John chapter 3, verses 23 and 24,
where it says,
And this is his commandment
that we believe in the name of his son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another,
just as he commanded us.
Whoever keeps his commandments
abides in God and God in him.
And by this we know that he abides in us
by the spirit whom he has given.
And chapter 4, verse 13,
and chapter 3, verse 24
have a lot of similarities,
but I want to point out to you
the subtle yet important difference.
In chapter 3,
John tells them that we know this is true
because he's given us his spirit.
But in chapter 4,
John says,
We can know this is true
because he has given us of his spirit.
It's very little difference,
but it's an important difference.
It's not talking about the fact that
here we have some assurance
because we've gotten a part of the spirit.
Like we could subdivide the Holy Spirit into pieces.
It's not that we've gotten a part of the spirit,
but it's about the product of the spirit
in our lives.
And so I think we'll see in this passage here,
John trying to show us
we can have assurance
of our abiding relationship with God
because of the work of the Holy Spirit,
what the Holy Spirit is doing in our lives.
And there's two main areas
we're going to look at.
But in doing this,
I want us to try to make it practical
and accomplish the same thing
John is trying to do here.
I hope for us to be encouraged this morning
as we look at this,
to be assured of our abiding relationship with God.
And in order to do that practically,
we're going to stop seven times
throughout this sermon
and ask some questions for reflection.
Some things for you to just take a moment
and ponder about your own life,
hopefully so that we will be able to say
with confidence at the end of the message today
that we are assured
that we are abiding in God.
The first area we want to look at
as far as the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives
is that the Holy Spirit gives us true faith.
The Holy Spirit gives us true faith.
And we notice, starting in verse 14,
that the Holy Spirit gives us faith in God's Word.
It says,
And we have seen and testify
that the Father has sent His Son
to be the Savior of the world.
Now, John, again, is here referring back
to himself and the other apostles,
the first-hand witnesses
about the work of Christ,
even as he did at the beginning of 1 John.
And he's saying,
We bear testimony to these things,
the testimony of the apostles.
And I think what we can see in this
is that the Holy Spirit gives us faith
in the Word of God
and makes it meaningful to us.
Now, I want you to stop and consider for a second.
Consider how amazing it is
that the Word of God is meaningful to you.
Okay?
Now, this is a book that's thousands of years old.
Thousands of years old.
And it's full of miracles
that many find unbelievable,
including the creation of everything,
a worldwide flood with a giant boat,
the sun standing still in the sky,
a man swallowed alive by a big fish,
innumerable acts of a supreme being
that truly are awesome,
in the fullness of the word awesome,
numerous prophecies,
a virgin birth,
a God that dies,
as resurrections,
a man that flies away into the clouds.
Now,
most books that you would read
with material like that,
you would easily just sort of classify as,
well, that's entertaining,
or that's mythological,
or that's nice.
But let's not stop there.
Think about this.
Not only does the Bible contain
all of these miraculous stories,
but the Bible is full of horrible stories.
I mean,
it's full of stories of murders,
and rapes,
incest,
things that constantly are showing us
again and again
how wicked humanity is.
I mean,
honestly,
as we look at it,
we see even the majority of the heroes
that we see in the Bible
are capable again and again
of the worst possible things.
Basically,
Scripture leaves no question
about the fact that
there's no disgusting or gross act
that's beyond us.
We're completely broken
with no way to fix ourselves.
We're dead
with no way to heal ourselves.
I mean,
it's the opposite of a self-help book,
isn't it?
Right?
Time and time again,
as you read the Word,
it cuts to the very core
of who we are as people
and says,
there is no one that's good.
Now,
if you read any other book
full of these kind of miracles,
full of this kind of
harsh truth about humanity,
you would easily set it aside.
But yet,
through the work of the Holy Spirit
in your life,
the Bible is meaningful to you.
Let's stop and consider
these first set of reflective questions,
okay?
Do you believe the Bible
is God's Word?
Do you accept it
as the very words of God?
Do you believe
it is completely trustworthy
and reliable?
Do you desire for the Bible
to be the supreme authority
in your life?
If those things are true,
if that's true
in any measure in your life,
you need to understand
that is the work
of the Holy Spirit
in your life,
that is an evidence
that you are in
an abiding relationship
with God.
If it was not
for the faith given you
by the Holy Spirit,
the Bible would be
no more meaningful
to you than any other book.
But wait,
not only does the Holy Spirit
make the Bible meaningful to us,
but it makes it precious
to us, right?
It's not just a book,
it's not just that we
intellectually agree
this is important
or this is true,
but it's precious to us.
We long for it,
we desire it,
we find comfort in it,
we find hope in it,
we love it,
we would be willing
to die for it.
That's the work
of the Holy Spirit.
Consider these questions.
Reflection number two,
do you cherish God's Word?
Do you long for it?
Do you savor it?
Are you hiding it
in your heart?
Are you meditating
on it with your mind?
That's the work
of the Holy Spirit
in your life.
It's an evidence
that you are in
an abiding relationship
with God.
Now, let me give you
a little disclaimer here.
I'm not asking
or even implying
that you never have
dry times
or there are never times
that you feel
more indifferent to
or more distant from
or too busy
or neglect the Word of God.
That's not my point at all.
But as you look
at your life
and the direction
of your life,
looking back
to where you've come from,
looking forward
to where you're going,
do you see
in your life
a growth
in your desire
for God's Word,
your love
for God's Word,
your hunger
for God's Word?
If you do,
that is the work
of the Holy Spirit
in your life
and an evidence
that you are in
an abiding relationship
with God.
So He gives us,
the Holy Spirit
gives us faith
in God's Word.
But He also gives us
faith that Jesus
is the Son of God.
Jesus is the Son of God.
In 1 John 4, 15,
it says,
whoever confesses
that Jesus
is the Son of God,
God abides in Him
and He in God.
Now,
the Holy Spirit
not only makes
God's Word meaningful
to us,
but the Holy Spirit
makes Jesus
meaningful to us.
Again,
stop and consider
how amazing it is
that Jesus
is meaningful to you.
According to the Internet,
which knows everything,
there are 4,300
religions in the world.
4,300 religions
in the world.
And in each
of those religions,
there are people
that started it,
there are prophets,
there are leaders,
there are teachers,
there are messiahs.
And out of all of them,
you don't believe
in Muhammad
or Buddha.
You don't believe
in Joseph Smith
or Charles Russell.
You don't believe
in Mary Eddie Baker,
Mary Baker Eddie
or in L. Ron Hubbard.
You believe in Jesus.
You see,
He has become
meaningful to you.
And notice,
even in these verses,
here we see
Matthew chapter 24,
verses 23 and 24.
Jesus Himself
warning us,
He says,
Then if anyone
says to you,
Look,
here is the Christ,
or there He is,
do not believe it.
For false Christs
and false prophets
will arise
and perform great signs
and wonders
so as to lead astray,
if possible,
even the elect.
Peter says it
in 2 Peter chapter 2,
verses 1 and 2.
But false prophets
also arose
among the people,
just as there will be
false teachers
among you
who will secretly
bring in destructive
heresies,
even denying the Master
who bought them,
bringing upon themselves
swift destruction,
and many will follow
their sensuality,
and because of them
the way of truth
will be blasphemed.
And even John,
as we read earlier,
1 John chapter 4,
verse 1,
where He said,
Beloved,
do not believe
every spirit,
but test the spirits
to see whether
they are from God,
for many false prophets
have gone out
into the world.
You see,
our world is in
no want for Messiahs.
There's tons of them,
thousands of them,
throughout history.
They come again
and again and again,
and yet,
amongst all of those,
Jesus,
has been made
meaningful to you.
It's the work
of the Holy Spirit.
But again,
as we also see,
oh wait,
I gotta pause
for reflection number three.
Reflection number three.
Do you believe
that Jesus
is the Son of God?
Do you believe
that Jesus
is 100% God
and 100% man?
Do you believe
that Jesus
lived a perfect,
sinless,
God-centered life?
Do you believe
that Jesus died
to take the wrath
of God
that you justly deserve?
Do you believe
that Jesus rose again?
Do you believe
that Jesus will return?
Do you believe
those things?
That is the work
of the Holy Spirit
in your life,
bearing testimony
that you are in
an abiding relationship
with God.
But not only
has the Holy Spirit
made Jesus
meaningful to us,
but again,
He's made Jesus
precious to us,
right?
We love Jesus.
We long for Jesus.
We have a desire
to be near Him,
to be like Him.
Our hearts
are turned towards Him.
As we read
of His life,
our hearts
are stirred.
As we read
of His love,
we're emotionally moved.
We don't just
intellectually acknowledge
He was a great teacher,
but our hearts
are moved
with love
and passion
towards Him.
That is the work
of the Holy Spirit.
Reflection number four.
Do you find yourself
emotionally moved
at the thought
of Jesus?
Can you honestly
say that you love Him?
Do you desire
to grow
in intimacy
with Him?
Do you speak
to Him often?
Do you find yourself
desiring to be with Him
and to be like Him?
Are you overwhelmed
with His glory?
Again,
if those things
are true
in your life,
they are the work
of the Holy Spirit.
And it gives testimony,
assurance,
that you are
in an abiding
relationship with God.
Now, again,
I'll give you
the same disclaimer.
We're not saying
that there aren't times
when you are distant
or there aren't times
when you feel
more disconnected
or times when
you don't feel
as passionate
about Christ,
but looking at your life
from where you were
to where you're going,
do you see growth?
Are you growing
in your faith
in Christ?
Are you growing
in your love
for Christ?
Are you growing
in your intimacy
with Christ?
If so,
that's the work
of the Holy Spirit
in your life.
So we see
the Holy Spirit
gives us faith
in God's Word.
It gives us faith
to believe Jesus
is the Son of God.
It also gives us
faith to accept
God's love
for us.
Verse 16,
So we have come
to know
and to believe
the love
that God has
for us.
God is love
and whoever abides
in love
abides in God
and God
abides in him.
Now,
not only does
the Holy Spirit
give us faith
in his Word
and faith that
Jesus is the Son of God,
but it's
the very source
of our faith
that allows us
to accept
the fact that
God loves us.
Now,
I don't know
about you,
but I know
personally,
this is the area
that's hardest
for me.
Being convinced
of the fact
that the Bible
is God's Word,
seeing in that
all of his
great glory,
seeing in that
my own sin,
being convinced
that Jesus
is God's Son,
looking at his life,
how he walked
in intimacy
with the Father,
how he was willing
to give his life
sacrificially
for us,
and then
I look at me
and I see
how often
I struggle,
how often
I'm still rebellious,
how indifferent
I can be to God,
how much
there is
within me
that pulls
against
the very things
God longs for,
and I think
God's love
for me
truly is
incomprehensible.
it doesn't
make sense.
I don't
understand
grace.
And
truthfully,
it is only
through the work
of the Holy Spirit
that I could
have faith
to believe
that God
could love me.
Reflection
number five.
Do you believe
God really
loves you?
that he
loves you
in spite
of all
the reasons
he shouldn't?
Do you
abide in
that love,
reminding
yourself
regularly
of the
truths
of the
gospel?
Do you
find your
heart
overflowing
with thanksgiving
because of
God's love
for you?
Do you
find God's
love for you
overflowing
into the
lives
of others?
If you
do,
that's the
work of the
Holy Spirit
in your
life.
That's the
evidence that
you are in
an abiding
relationship
with God.
So we see
the Holy Spirit
giving us
true faith,
but I think
we also
see the
Holy Spirit
giving us
true love.
The Holy Spirit
giving us
true love.
He gives us
love as
God's
children.
love as
God's
children.
And that
true love
as God's
children changes
both our
relationship to
God and our
reaction to
God.
And let's
look at the
relationship with
God.
Romans chapter
8 verses
15 through
17 says
this,
For you did
not receive
the spirit of
slavery to
fall back
into fear,
but you have
received the
spirit of
adoption as
sons,
by whom we
cry,
Abba,
Father.
The Spirit
himself bears
witness with
our spirit that
we are children
of God,
and if
children,
then heirs,
heirs of
God and
fellow heirs
with Christ,
provided we
suffer with him
in order that
we may also
be glorified
with him.
Or Galatians
chapter 4,
verses 4
through 7,
where Paul
writes,
But when the
fullness of
time had
come,
God sent
forth his
son,
born of
woman,
born under
the law,
to redeem
those who
were under
the law,
so that we
might receive
adoption as
sons.
And because
you are sons,
God has sent
the spirit of
his son into
your hearts,
crying,
Abba,
Father,
so you are
no longer a
slave,
but a son,
and if a
son,
then an
heir through
God.
You see,
the Holy Spirit
giving us true
love as God's
children changes
our relationship
with God.
We're no longer
enemies of God.
We come into
his presence as
his children,
and because of
that, it also
changes our
reaction to
God.
Our reaction
to God.
And we see
here in 1
John 4,
17 and
18,
that we
no longer
need to
fear death,
judgment,
and eternity
because we
have been
given this
love as
his children.
It says,
By this
is love
perfected with
us,
so that we
may have
confidence for
the day of
judgment.
Because as
he is,
so also are
we in this
world.
There is no
fear in
love,
but perfect
love casts
out fear.
For fear
has to do
with punishment,
and whoever
fears has not
been perfected
in love.
So, because of
the love that
we've received
as God's
children, we
no longer
have to fear
death.
We no longer
have to fear
judgment to
come.
We no longer
have to be
fearful of
eternity.
We don't
come before
him as
his enemies,
facing his
wrath, but we
come into his
presence as
his children.
We can run
into his arms
lovingly,
seeking to be
in the presence
of our
father that
we've longed
to be near.
But I also
think that
this love as
God's children
enables us to
handle the
challenges that
come every day,
even now,
without fear.
I don't know if
you're like me,
but when things
are hard, when
I'm struggling,
when I'm facing
suffering or
challenges,
things seem to be
falling apart,
something seems to
be broken or
I'm grieving,
somewhere in the
back of my
mind, there's
always this
thought, well,
here it is,
finally, God is
going to give me
what I deserve.
After all this
time, I know I
haven't been doing
what I should be
doing, and this
is it.
Finally, God's
going to give it
to me.
But that's not
what Scripture
tells us.
In Hebrews
chapter 12,
verses 7
through 11,
it says this,
it is for
discipline that
you have to
endure.
God is treating
you as sons,
for what son is
there whom his
father does not
discipline?
If you are left
without discipline,
in which all have
participated,
then you are
illegitimate children
and not sons.
Besides this,
we have had
earthly fathers
who disciplined
us, and we
respected them.
shall we not
much more
be subject
to the father
of spirits
and live?
For they
disciplined us
for a short
time as it
seemed best
to them,
but he,
he disciplines
us for our
good that we
may share
in his
holiness.
For the moment,
all discipline
seems painful
rather than
pleasant,
but later it
yields the
peaceful fruit
of righteousness
to those
who have
been trained
by it.
So the
Holy Spirit
pouring out
this true
love into
our lives
as God's
children
changes how
we can react
to everything
we're going
through,
especially when
we face
trials,
when things
are struggling
in our lives,
when we are
suffering,
when we're
facing pain
or brokenness.
We don't
have to see
it as God's
wrath.
even if we
are guilty
of sin,
which of
course we
are,
but even
if we are,
we are told
here as his
children,
his discipline
is not in
anger but in
love.
He's at work
in us to
change us,
to give us
the gift of
holiness.
And so we
no longer need
to respond in
fear,
even when we
face these
crises,
these pains,
these struggles
in this life.
So reflection
number six.
Are you
living in
love as
God's child?
Are you
living in
love as
God's child?
Do you
delight in
running to
him with
every need,
challenge,
struggle?
Do you
find comfort
in knowing
that you
can boldly
approach the
throne?
Do you
find comfort
in knowing
that any
trial,
struggle,
suffering that
you face
now is
still an
expression of
his love
for you?
Are you
looking forward
to eternity
with him?
Again,
if these
things are
true in
your life,
it's the
work of
the Holy
Spirit in
your life.
It's the
assurance you
are in an
abiding
relationship
with God.
But not
only does
the Holy
Spirit give
us true
love as
God's
children,
but he
gives us
true love
for God's
children.
Look at
1 John 4,
19-21.
It says,
we love
because he
first loved
us.
If anyone
says,
I love
God and
hates his
brother,
he is a
liar.
For he
who does
not love
his brother
whom he
has seen
cannot love
God whom
he has not
seen.
And this
is the
commandment
we have
from him.
Whoever
loves God
must also
love his
brother.
And we've
seen time
and time
again as
we've gone
through the
book of
1 John.
John's
saying this.
You can
tell that
religion is
true.
The love
that those
people have
for the
children of
God.
We can
see their
faith is
real because
of the love
they have
for God's
children.
We can
see that
they really
are walking
with God
because they
will love
those whom
God loves.
He says it
again and
there's still
more to come.
But it's
not really
surprising because
John's only
saying what
he's heard
Jesus say.
You know
Matthew
chapter 22
36 through
40 where
Jesus is being
questioned about
the greatest
commandments.
He says
teacher which
is the greatest
commandment in
the law?
And Jesus
says to him
you shall
love the
Lord your
God with
all your
heart with
all your
soul with
all your
mind.
This is the
great and
first commandment
and the
second is like
it.
You shall
love your
neighbor as
yourself.
On these
two commandments
depend all
the law and
the prophets.
Or in
John 15 where
he's speaking
to his
disciples he
says this is
my commandment
that you
love one
another as
I have
loved you.
Greater
love has
no one than
this that
someone lay
down his
life for
his friends.
Paul talks
about it in
Romans 12
10.
Love one
another with
brotherly
affection.
Outdo one
another in
showing honor.
Galatians 5
13-15 where
he says for
you are called
to freedom
brothers.
Only do not
use your
freedom as
an opportunity
for the
flesh but
through love
serve one
another.
For the
whole law
is fulfilled
in one
word.
You shall
love your
neighbor as
yourself.
But if you
bite and
devour one
another watch
out that you
are not
consumed by
one another.
love for
God's children
but love
for God's
children.
So
reflection
seven.
Ask yourself
these questions.
Do you
find yourself
growing in
love for
God's
children?
When you
act in
unloving
ways are
you saddened
and do you
actively seek
forgiveness and
commit to
change in
those areas?
Are you
actively
evolved in
the life of
the church in
order to love,
serve,
encourage,
and care for
your brothers
and sisters in
Christ?
Are you
seeking to
actively outdo
one another in
showing honor?
Intentionally
looking for ways
to show love,
care, and
concern to
those in the
church?
Are you
sacrificing of
your time,
your money,
your rights,
in order to
show God's
love to his
children?
If those
things are true
in your
life,
guess what?
It's the
work of the
Holy Spirit.
It's evidence
that you are
in an
abiding
relationship
with God.
Now,
it's interesting,
I got to
this point and
I realized,
really,
we're just
talking about
the gospel,
aren't we?
I mean,
think about it.
The Holy Spirit
giving us faith
to believe and
cherish God's
word,
seeing in it
God's great
glory in our
own sin,
the Holy Spirit
giving us faith
to believe
that Jesus
is the Son
of God,
the Savior
of the world,
giving us
faith to
believe that
God loves
us in spite
of our
sinfulness,
and that he's
made us his
own children
through the
work of
Christ on
the cross,
and that from
that everything
in our lives
change,
right?
Our relationship
to God
changes,
our reaction
to God
changes,
and our
relationship
and how we
deal with
each other
changes,
especially
those who
are our
brothers and
sisters in
Christ.
Really,
once again,
we just have
the gospel
presented here.
So,
here we are.
I hope by
this point,
everyone here
is at one
of two
places.
I hope the
majority of
you are able
to look at
how the
Holy Spirit
is at work
in your life,
how he's
given you
true faith
in God's
word,
true faith
in who
Jesus is,
and in God's
love for you.
I hope that
you can see
his true
love at work
in your life
as you come
to realize
his love
for you
as his
children,
and as your
love is
growing for
the other
children of
God,
and that as
you see the
Holy Spirit
doing that,
that you can
be encouraged,
that today
you can be
assured,
you can know
for sure
that you are
in an abiding
relationship with
God.
You are abiding
in God,
and God
is abiding
in you
now.
If any of
you are like
me,
I know,
for me,
it's much
easier to
look at
what's not
done than
at what
the Holy
Spirit has
already done.
And so
for you,
I want to
leave you
with this
quote,
or maybe
I should
say for
us,
by John
Newton.
John
Newton
says,
I am
not what
I ought
to be.
I am
not what
I want
to be.
I am
not what
I hope
to be
in another
world,
but still,
I am
not what
I once
used to
be.
And by
the grace
of God,
I am
what I
am.
And I
hope that
you can
take time
today and
rejoice in
the Holy
Spirit's work
in your life,
and rejoice
in God's
faithfulness to
you,
be able to
rejoice in
the assurance
that you are
in an abiding
relationship
with God,
and thank
him,
and rejoice
over that.
But now
maybe some
of you here
have heard
all these
questions,
and it
creates some
doubt for
you.
Maybe even
it's clear
to you that
you are not
in an abiding
relationship
with God.
you look
at all of
these things
and you
realize that
you are not
able to
have some
assurance
that the
Holy Spirit
is at work
in your
life.
If by chance
you fall
into that
category,
let me
challenge you
even today
to cry out
to Jesus
for mercy,
for grace,
to change,
because the
truth is
the condition
of your
eternal soul
is at
stake.
So this
morning,
if you have
questions,
if you have
doubts,
if you are
even sure
that you
don't have
a relationship
with God,
let me
encourage you.
We're going
to have a
prayer,
and it's
going to be
up on the
screen,
and you
can follow
along,
but I'll
pray it.
You just
pray silently,
and I
would beg
you,
start a
relationship
with God
today.
Let's
pray.
Oh,
merciful God,
I realize
even now
that I
don't see
in my
life the
evidence
of your
abiding
presence,
or the
fruit of
the Holy
Spirit at
work in
me.
Instead,
I see a
faith in
myself,
and a
self-centered
life,
and I
realize that
I cannot
change
without you
working in
me.
so even
now,
I humbly
ask that
you would
save me,
that by
your Spirit
you would
open my
eyes to
clearly see
the beauty
of your
word,
the glory
of your
Son Jesus,
and the
love that
you offer
me because
of his
death in
my place.
Please
give me a
clean heart
and a
spirit that
is willing
to turn
away from
self-centered
living and
live a
Christ-centered
life of
true love
for you,
and for
your
children.
Fill me
with joy
and peace
as I come
to accept
the love
that you
offer me.
From this
day on,
I will never
consider myself
to be my
own,
but to be
yours and
to surrender
my life to
Jesus as
my Savior
and my
King.
And for
his glory
and in
his name,
I ask
these things.
Amen.