Red Sea Rule #4

Red Sea Rule #1 - 8/23 -  Realize that God means for you to be where you are
Red Sea Rule #2 - 8/30 -  Be more concerned for God's glory than for your own relief
Red Sea Rule #3 - 9/23 -  Acknowledge your enemy, but keep your eyes on the Lord


Random service notes from Bro Mike's message Sunday evening, 9/25

Red Sea Rule #4 - Pray!

This message brought us back to the "prayer issues" we have been dealing with lately.

The disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray - not how to fish - not how to get along - but how to pray.

Main Text:

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. Exodus 10:14

Quote from Matthew Henry:

Their fear put them apraying, and that was a good effect of it. God brings us into straits so that He may bring us to our knees.

Quote from Bro Mike:

Let's get real. If you don't get into trouble you'll never learn to put great effort into prayer. It's good to be in trouble.

From Robert Morgan:

I'm not talking about regular daily quiet time prayer habits, important as they are. I'm talking about crisis-time prayer.  Prayers of importunity and intensity. Prayer during life-threatening or soul-searching events.


Part of the theology of prayer is to keep "pounding on the door." Despite opinions to the contrary, the Bible recognizes  such a thing as "storming heaven," "praying through."  The fervent prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. (James 5:16).

Desperation brings us to this kind of prayer.

Open yourself up.  Listen to the hurt and pain around you. What can we do in love to minister?

When was the last time you cried out to God?

When was the last time you cried out to God on behalf of someone else?

Service Notes - September 25, 2011 - Acts

What a wonderful service Sunday!

Daren somehow seems to select music that echoes in my mind throughout the week.

Our first  hymn was Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee..."Hearts unfold like flowers
before Thee, Opening to the sun above....Giver of immortal gladness, fill us with the light of day!"

Immortal gladness....what a wonderful thought!

And we sang He Keeps Me Singing....

All my life was wrecked by sin and strife
Discord filled my life with pain
Jesus swept across the broken strings
Stirred the slumbering chords again!

Broken strings - to immortal gladness!

Immortal gladness from broken strings...

Bro Mike's message text was Acts 4:32, 34 (yes, we are moving slowly):

All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had....there were no needy persons among them.

Bro Mike talked about how we might, at a younger age, offer our lives to God, expecting Him to call us to the mission field --China or Africa. To most of us that was what was meant when we said we were giving our lives to Christ.

But we have learned it was not limited to that -- the question now is what God wants to do with our lives and possessions here -- how will the Holy Spirit influence us to use what we have?

What does He want us to do with our stuff?

1. He will lead you to see your possessions as available to the Kingdom
2. He will lead you to offer your possessions for the Kingdom
3. He will lead you to commit your possessions to an actual situation


1. These words from 1 Timothy 6:6-9:

But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. 

[Well,  I can certainly give lots of pertinent examples of that last sentence!]


2. Bro Mike used verses 34 and 35 of  Acts 4 to picture this (our offering of our possssions)) for us:

From time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from their sales and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.

This is the "offering" - as Mary bowed in humility at the feet of Jesus
and washed His feet, drying them with her hair.

The early Christians brought the money from the sale of their property and placed it at the feet of the apostles - they left it there. They walked away. It was a true offering of what (maybe all) they had.

When the Holy Spirit invades our lives He produces generosity in us.

The question here is: What do I feel about my stuff?

3. Bro Mike gave us an illustration of a growing church in Buenos Aires - people were inspired to give their homes, cars, titles to property, to their church. The deacons met and prayed at length, and then returned the titles to the property --
telling their congregaton to keep the houses and cars - to live in their homes and drive their cars - but just remember it all belongs to God, so use it for Him!

What a great story!

Bro Mike took us to Romans 15:26 and we could see that the practice of sharing all their possessions did not resolve permanently the problem of need in the early church at Jerusalem --(Jesus had pointed out to the disciples, when Mary was criticized for using her expensive perfume to wash Jesus' feet, "The poor you will always have") -- Paul was telling the Romans that the saints in Acaia and Macedonia were making contributions for the poor in Jerusalem and in 1 Corinthians 16 Paul was talking about churches in Galatia ahnd Corinth collecting money "on the first day of the week" for Paul to take to those in need.


Everything we have comes from God.  We are asked to manage it.

Is there any evidence in our lives that the Holy Spirit influences what we do with what we have?


This is a challenging message. I am not doing it justice here. But these are just random notes. I need to go to our website and listen again....fbc-bc.org

We closed with the uplifting song, "There's Room at the Cross" and Bro Mike reminded us that even though the economy is bad, that there does not seem to be enough, or sufficient, money to take care of all the probolems we have - great debt, etc., that God's economy is different. There is a surplus in His economy. There's room for every one in His Kingdom. And there is never a shortage in His bounty to us!

There's room at the Cross....And its grace so free is sufficient for me, and deep is its fountain, as wide as the sea....

Yes, there's room at the cross for all of us...even for me..even for you....

God is good. All the time.

Red Sea Rule #3 - Sermon Notes

Red Sea Rule #1 - August 23
Red Sea Rule #2 - August 30

Red Sea Rule #3 - Acknowledge your enemy, but keep your eyes on the Lord - Sermon Notes for 9/18

Bro Mike was gone. Charles Koenig continued the series on Red Sea Rules. And he did a great job!

Random notes:

Exodus 14 sets the stage.

The Israelites left Egypt, not fearful, but victorious. They also left loaded with spoils, too, gifts
of the Egyptian people.

God orchestrated another step in His redemption plan for His people. "I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for Myself through Pharaoh and his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD."

(It's always about God's glory!)

"So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him....and he pursued the Israelites who were marching out boldly..."

Pharaoh came upon the Israelites where they were encamped -- in the exact place God told them to
make their camp.

The  Israelites were terrified and cried out to God and challenged Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us out here on the desert to die?" (I really love that line!)

Moses answered them, telling them to stand firm, to not be afraid, and to "see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again." (And that sure came true!)

After all the miracles the people had witnessed in their last days in Egypt, they even now, already, doubted God's power and goodness.

Satan is always ready to step up and stir up trouble and try to defeat us and destroy God's plan.

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.

                                      I Peter 5:6-8

Satan wants us to be defeated, not victorious.

Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you ..." I Peter 5:9-10

         Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  James 4:67



Words from Charles Haddon Spurgeon: The great tyrant has not forgotten you and he desires your recapture and enslavement.

Then God told Moses to tell the Israelites to move on and shared His divine plan with Moses, step by step, and what would be the outcome.

(I think this is the best part -- God willingly shared His plans with Moses. He could have told Moses to just tell the people to 'relax and everything will be okay'--- but He did so much more. He told him what would actually happen -- step by step -- and why (for God's glory) -- and God arranged His main characters on the set (the angel and the pillar of cloud) moved from in front of the Israelites to the rear -- and the stage was then set for the next act of the drama. There's a verse in Psalm 25 (verse 14) that
says "The LORD confides in those who fear Him..." What a wonderful promise -- He will let us in,
as He did Moses, on His plans...) Like we are in the "in crowd" -- part of His inner circle-- like being
able to go in and out of the Oval Office and have the President show us his heart and share with us his plans. What an amazing God we have!)

Back to Acts - Sermon Notes

Just some general, random notes from Bro Mike's sermon on September 18. Hear the complete message at our church website: fbc-bc.org.

Main Text:

       All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions
       was his own, but they shared everything they had.  Acts 4:32

A pastor today is responsible for leading a particular church to be faithful to what got started in Jerusalem on that Pentecost.

People deserve, by God's grace, to be able to walk into a church that is faithful to the blue-print
laid out for us in Acts.

If someone says a certain church is of "one heart and soul" - what do they mean? Is the sanctuary full? Is the music loud and joyful? Are people friendly?

Luke means their "stuff." They said, about their possessions, "You can have it!"

It would be a good practice for us to begin noticing what we say about everything -- our calendar -- our things -- our money --

Apparently these early Christians said "If it is mine, it is yours" and they meant it.

So what do Spirit-filled believers do?

1. They act on their beliefs.
2. They gather around other believers
3. They are generous with what they have.


Generosity- tipping at restaurants, blessing people, making room for people in your schedule, etc.
It's a generosity of spirit that involves the sharing of everything  - time, energy, resources...

What did they (do we) have in common?

1. They were (we are) all  condemned and in need of  a Savior. We must understand that we are lost.
2. They knew (we know) that Jesus is Lord and our lives should be ordered around Him and His
teaching.

"Believing" is demonstrated by measurable commitment -- we must act on what we believe. What we truly believe is more than just an opinion.

Example: Corrie Ten Boon and her family. Living in the Netherlands during the 1940's and seeing
what Hitler was doing to the Jews. They demonstrated their Christian beliefs by building a hiding place
in the home and saving the lives of some Jews. They paid dearly for living out their faith. Their belief in Christ's message was not just an opinion.

We talk about giving "a portion" back to God -- the early Christians gave everything back to God.

We need to look at ourselves, not at others down the street to see what they are doing.

Am I a Spirit-filled believer?

God's grace - sure, we often come up short. He says, "I am  not here to knock you down. I am here to
help you."

His river of life flowing through us has no end.

The Wrestling Match - Sermon Notes for September 4, 2011

Great Labor Day Weekend Service!

Mike Henderson shared an important quote -- Sin is the freedom that keeps us chained -- that is surely something to ponder in the coming days
.
Bro Mike announced that we will have Lord's Supper next week and that becomes a reminder that we should begin now to prepare ourselves for that incomprehensible event.

The sermon text  for today's message was from Genesis 32. The well-known section where Jacob wrestles with God - and Bro Mike compared it to our wrestling with God in our prayer life.

The subject of prayer seems to be heavy on Bro Mike's mind these days. It is a theme that underlies much of his messages to us -- the importance of prayer, its practice and its power -- especially its power.

A few weeks ago at Wednesday prayer meeting he handed out to us copies of a short quote from Richard Foster:

     The primary purpose of prayer is to bring us into such a life of communion with the Father
     that, by the power of the Spirit, we are increasingly conformed to the image of the Son.
     None of us will keep up a life of prayer unless we are prepared to change. We will either
     give it up or turn it into a little system that maintains the form of godliness but denies the
     power of it -- which is the same thing as giving it up.

I can't get these words off my mind.They are clipped to my brain like a yellow sticky note. I do not,
or only rarely, take into account the power of my time with God (TAWG - Time Alone With God).
I seem to ignore that aspect completely. Why? I guess so I don't have to confront Him. Jacob had to confront Him.

Again, today's message was really all about prayer. And the illustration from scripture was the
time of Jacob's wrestling with God - his perseverance, and his demand for a blessing. It is interesting to me that Jacob had already cheated his brother Esau  out of his blessing and birthright - and now Esau
is waiting for Jacob, probably to kill him, and Jacob is asking God for another blessing! How amazing is that! (Is there a message there?)

I had never thought of this event in Jacob's life as an example of confronting God - and God confronting us - in prayer. I never saw that part of the story.

Here are a few random notes that I found provocative. There was so much more. Go to our web site (fbc-bc.org) for the complete message.

Here is the text:

     That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants and his eleven sons and  crossed the ford of the Jabbok. After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. 

     So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him til daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.


     Then the man said, "Let me go for it is daybreak."


     But Jacob replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."


     The man asked him, "What is your name?"

    "Jacob," he answered. Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome."

    Jacob said, "Please tell me your name." But he replied, "Why do you ask my name?" And he blessed him there. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."

So who was Jacob wrestling with? Was it the angel Michael? Was in an appearance of the pre-incarnate Christ? We don't know for certain. But in any case, it appears to be God's very, very special "Man."

Some things Bro Mike brought out:

(1) Jacob was alone. His life was reaching a climax. He had years before swindled his brother out of his inheritance, tricked his father, planted seeds of animosity in his family (his own and Laban's) and was now fearful that he was going to reap the tragic harvest.

Sometimes we have to be truly alone to hear God's voice.  Jacob was finally alone, and so God came down to him.

(2) The duration of the event. God is eternal. He has all the time in the world, but He does not give us unlimited time. We must take advantage of the situation when He is speaking to us.

(3) The attitude of Jacob. He did not give up. Like the parable of the woman who kept pleading with the judge in Luke 18. The  purpose of the parable, Christ said, was to demonstrate that we should always pray and not give up. 

Jacob did not name the geographic place of his encounter  to show that he had won a wrestling match with God. He made mention of the place because he had an encounter with God and "yet his life was spared."

He knew it was only through God's grace that he was allowed to enter God's presence.

Why should we wrestle with God in prayer?

Maybe God wants to bless us. Does God let us miss things He has for us?
We should wrestle with Him in prayer and look for the blessing.

Sometimes His blessings equip us to become the person He wants us to be.

There will probably be a scar. And we will say, "Thank you, Lord" for that experience. Jacob left with a limp.

This was a "big" sermon - to hear it all, or hear it again -- go to fbc-bc.org.