RAY JOHNSTON MARCH 19/20, 2011

WALKING WITH GOD IN CHALLENGING TIMES

"Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love."
1 CORINTHIANS 16:13-14

CHARACTERISTICS OF A DISCIPLE

Appetite for Worship and Prayer MATTHEW 15:8-9 Faithful Student of the Scriptures LUKE 5:21 Faithful in Their Serving for God MATTHEW 7:22 Gives Time to Memorizing the Scriptures LUKE 11:46 Consistent in Giving Tithe to God LUKE 11:22 Regular in Attendance at Local Church MATTHEW 23:6 Regular in Fasting and Prayer MATTHEW 6:5, 16 Willing to Stand for Their Faith and Values LUKE 12:1 Loves Lincoln Brewster's Music 1 RAY 3:16 Roots for the San Francisco 49ers JOE 4:16

HOW TO GROW DEEPER SPIRITUALLY

HOW TO DEVELOP SPIRITUAL STRENGTH
CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 2

1 CORINTHIANS 3

1 CORINTHIANS 1-2

"How To Weaken Your Life"

God wants us living free from (1:1-9) Self-Indulgence - Weakens Your Life (1:10-17) Broken Relationships - Weakens The Church! (1:18-31) Arrogance - Weakens Your Future!

How To Strengthen Your Life

God wants us living with (2:1-5) A Solid Foundation! (2:6-9) Reliable Direction - The Wisdom of God (2:10-16) Supernatural Power The Spirit of God

THREE TYPES OF PEOPLE

1. People That Dont Know God
(2:14)
"The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit."

2. People That Know God

(2:12-13)

"What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words." A. Received Gods Spirit
(12A)

B. Growing in Gods Grace (12B)

C. Speaking Gods Truth

(13)

3. People That Know God, But Act Like They

Dont
"Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly mere infants in Christ."

(3:1)

MARKS OF SPIRITUAL MATURITY

Their Behavior (not their beliefs) told Paul their maturity level Spiritual growth takes time - but time does not = spiritual growth! Spiritual maturity is not Age, Achievements, Appearance, or Academics

1. By Their VALUES

"Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly mere infants in Christ." (v. 1) "For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus." (4:17)

2. By Their DIET

"I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready." (v. 2)

3. By Their RELATIONSHIPS

"You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? For when one says, 'I follow Paul,' and another, 'I follow Apollos,' are you not mere human beings?" (vv. 3-4)

4. By Their HUMILITY

"What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are coworkers in Gods service; you are Gods field, Gods building." (vv. 5-9)

3 MARKS OF A HEALTHY CHURCH

1. 2. 3. Diversity of ministry Unity of purpose Humility of spirit

5. By Their FOUNDATION

"By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ." (vv. 10-11)

"In more than thirty years of ministry, I have seen 'churches' try to build on a famous preacher or a special method or a doctrinal emphasis they felt was important; but these ministries simply did not last. The Corinthians were emphasizing personalities Paul, Peter, Apollos when they should have been glorifying Christ. The foundation is the most important part of the building, because it determines the size, shape, and strength of the superstructure. A ministry may seem to be successful for a time, but if it is not founded on Christ, it will eventually collapse and disappear." -WARREN WIERSBE,
THE AMERICAN CHURCH NEEDS TO BE RE-INTRODUCED TO JESUS)

6. By Their BUILDING MATERIALS

"By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each persons work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved even though only as one escaping through the flames." (vv. 10-15)

ACCELERATING YOUR SPIRITUAL GROWTH

1.Participate in Weekly Worship 2.Get in a Small Group
Read Study HEBREWS 10:24 ACTS 5:42 PSALM 119:11 Meditate

3.Increase Your Intake of Scripture

Memorize

4.Start Actually Living by Faith: Believe That God is Using Your Circumstances JAMES 1:2-4
Is God Trying to Promote, Protect, Prune, Provide, Prepare?

5. Take a Step of Faith

2 CORINTHIANS 5:7

7. By Their PERSPECTIVE
"Dont you know that you yourselves are Gods temple and that Gods Spirit dwells in your midst? If anyone destroys Gods temple, God will destroy that person; for Gods temple is sacred, and you together are that temple. Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become 'fools' so that you may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in Gods sight. As it is written: 'He catches the wise in their craftiness'; and again, 'The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.' So then, no more boasting about human leaders! All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God." (vv. 16-23)