1 Peter Chapter 4 - Homiletics Practice

First and foremost I must learn to spell Homiletics! Apparently I have spelled it differently a few times!!

Divisions ~

I. 4:1-6 ~ Putting on the mind of Christ frees us from sins grasp to live a spirit filled life.

• In this section I was interested in the word "arm" in the ESV, here is the definition:

The original Greek word is: oplizo, meaning:

1. to arm, furnish with arms
2. to provide
3. to furnish one's self with a thing (as with arms)
4. metaph. take on the same mind

When I think on #4, being of the same mind, I think of Philippians chapter 3 and how we are to have the mind of Christ (vs. 5). To "arm" ourselves with the same mind as Christ had in his suffering, is what we are told to do here. When we suffer in the flesh, as Christ did, sin no longer has power over us, and we are able to live our lives for the will of God. This "arming" is important!

It also reminds me of putting on the Armor of God. We need this in order to fight the battle that WILL rage. It says later in Chapter 4, that suffering WILL come to test (vs 12), so we must be prepared.

II. 4:7-11 ~ Recognize the time, be good stewards of God's gifts for his glory through Christ Jesus.

• In this section the word that interested me was "varied"

The Original word is: poikiloß, meaning:

1. a various colours, variegated
2. of various sorts

I like the NAS version of verse 10: As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

We (as true followers of Christ) have received a "special gift", that God has given us (every one of us) to use as good stewards of his "manifold" (varied) grace. Without exception, if you are a child of God you have a gift, given to you by the Father to use for His glory. There is no excuse. We are also given the gift to be able to love each other, because as in vs. 8 "Love covers a multitude of sins". I also looked up "covers", it means to: to hide, veil, to hinder the knowledge of a thing. In Christ's death and resurrection we have a covering of our sin, and so our love continues that showing of God's grace to others. Don't you just love the definition of "varied"? It reminds me of a rainbow. God's grace is brilliant and beautiful, and has many different characteristics, and this he bestows on you and I!

III. 4:12-19 ~ To suffer for Christ is something to rejoice in, knowing God is the Faithful Creator.

• Under this section the word that interested me was "judgement"

The original word is: Krima, meaning:

1. a decree, judgments
2. judgment
   1. condemnation of wrong, the decision (whether severe or mild) which one passes on the faults of others
   2. in a forensic sense
      1. the sentence of a judge
      2. the punishment with which one is sentenced
      3. condemnatory sentence, penal judgment, sentence
3. a matter to be judicially decided, a lawsuit, a case in court

Honestly on this one I had to go to the footnote of my ESV bible. Our judgment (as followers of Christ) is refinement. It mentioned in my footnote the passages of Ezekiel 9:1-6 and Malachai 3:1-4. In Ezekiel the Lord talks about going through the House of Israel and marking those who are saddened by the abominations going on in Israel, and striking down those who are not marked, regardless of age or gender. In Malachi the Lord talks about the refiners fire, that purifies the sons of Levi. We are being refined at this time. If we are being refined, then how much more will those suffer who are not of the House of the Lord. Knowing all of this, we need to live our lives giving it over to The Faithful Creator!

Subject Sentence ~ "Christians" share in Christ's suffering, entrusting God with their souls.

AIM ~ To cause the audience to understand: As Christians we no longer live as we did in the past. We understand we are different and live in the power God gives to be good stewards of his graces, know he is faithful.

Application ~

I. Are you living a spirit-filled life? Do your unsaved friends notice a difference in you?

II. Are you using the gift God HAS given you to serve His body for His glory?

III. Are you prepared for the suffering that WILL come as a Christian? Have you been arming yourself with the mind of Christ through the study of the Word of God?

1 Peter Chapter 3 - Homelitics Practice

I find that I have not developed the ability to come up with clever tie ins for my division yet. You know like all words beginning with the same letter! Hopefully I will be able to in time, or maybe I'm thinking to much about that. Anyway here is my 3rd installment.

Divisions:

I. 3:1-7 ~ God's standards for marriage bring the better reward.

II. 3:8-13 ~ Evil exists, don't be part of it, but bless others and seek peace.

III. 3:14-18 ~ In suffering revere Christ, be prepared, gentle & respectful when telling of your hope.

IV. 3:19-22 ~ God's patience produces salvation symbolized by water through Christ's resurrection, placing all in submission to Him.

Subject Sentence: Do not fear submission & suffering; obey and receive blessings.

AIM: To cause the audience to: Understand that all relationships are blessed through mutual submission, first to Christ, then to each other.

Application questions:

I. How are you measuring up in your marriage? If your spouse is a non-believer, does he/she see Christ in your conduct?

II. Are you willing to turn the other cheek? Do you desire peace and pursue it, or are you letting bitterness drive you?

III. When others see your conduct in the face of suffering are you prepared to give an answer for your hope, that they hopefully see? Are you critical of others in their walk or are you respectful and gentle in teaching them?

IV. Has your conscience been washed in the blood of Jesus Christ? Are you submitted to Him as LORD?

This study hit very close to home for me, well it hit me period. I am mindful that it is not about me, but about Christ, and how I am supposed to react to what goes on around me. The evil part of me wants so badly to retaliate, to hurt back, to not forgive, but that is TOTALLY unChristlike behavior, and it DOES NOT bring glory to God. PERIOD. I'm reminded of the verses:

Romans 12:18-20
If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." To the contrary, "if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head."

It is not up to us to handle the situations that come our way in life. We are to submit to God in ALL things. It says in verse 9 of Chapter 3 ~ "Do not repay evil for evil, or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were CALLED, that you may obtain a blessing."

May God continue to show me how I am to live my life, and may it bless someone our there also!

1 Peter Chapter 2 - Homiletics practice

2nd attempt at Homiletics.

I am enjoying what God is teaching me through this study. I hope you are blessed too.

Divisions:

I. 2:1-10 ~ Living because Christ is living; chosen because Christ is chosen, to proclaim God!

II. 2:11-20 ~ Live life so that it brings honor to God in all areas of life.

III. 2:21-25 ~ Christ leads by example, showing true humility and trust.

Subject Sentence: Chosen by God, to honor God through Christ's submissive example.

AIM: To cause the audience to: Know they have been chosen, and given power to live a God honoring life through Christ's example in his suffering.

Application:

I. Do you see yourself as chosen? Why or why not?

II. Do all your actions among non-believers bring glory to God? At home, work, church?

III. Where is Christ calling you to follow his example of suffering for him?

My tug of war....

For the past little while I have been struggling with how to minister to people and show them Christ. The reason this has become a struggle for me is because I have noticed that people seem to only come when there is something in it for them. If we don't have a gimmick to get them there, they won't be there.

Boy that sounds awful, even as I type it!!! Let me try to explain it better. I realize that there is desperate need out there in so many places and I for one want to help those people and most definitely show them the love of Christ. What I am speaking too (I guess) is the entitlement game. There are those who take help not only for granted, but seem to assume that it is their right. There seems to be no appreciation. They seem to have no idea that the people who are serving genuinely want to show them a better way.

So there it is ~ my ugly little secret. I'm a little ticked! It's not pretty is it?! So this thought has been going through my head since about 2:45 this afternoon, and I started to think on Christ.

What would Christ be like in these situations? How would he react? I remember him speaking to the woman at the well in John 4. He told her in verse 13 & 14 "Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

So Jesus gave freely, without reservation, and as he gave he taught. I am also reminded of all the many, many times he healed in scripture. To the point of exhaustion on his part, but he could not turn the people away. Jesus loved these people! He knew their hearts. He knew that some were there just to get what they could get and then leave. He knew that there would be very few out of the crowds who would genuinely follow him. But that did not stop him to helping them.

He is my example. Where I can, I will serve. Where I can, I will serve and speak of His love. Where I can, I will remember that it is not about me, or how I think someone should feel, act, or appreciate what is being done, but I will do as my Savior calls me too.

I am also reminded that those that Christ spoke most critically too, where the religious leaders, who should have known better, and been about doing His work, instead of getting so stuck in observing the law, and making new laws.

Christ was about loving! He was about not condemning, but also he would not excuse their sin. He told the woman caught in adultery to "go and sin no more" John 8:11, but he loved her.

These are things I MUST remember!

1 Peter Chapter 1 - Homiletics

Bear with me here! I am learning the study of Homiletics, and I thought it might be nice to type out my process here. If there are any Homiletic scholars out there pointers would be appreciated!! I started learning this in Bible Study Fellowship this past year so I am following their instructions. So here we go:

Divisions ~

I. 1:1-2: Peter addresses the elect exiled by work of the Trinity, for santification, obedience and forgiveness of sins.

II. 1:3-7: Born again to a living hope through Jesus Christ to an inheritance kept by God's power until end, rejoicing in these even in trials for faith's testing.

III. 1:8-12: Because of the prophets faithfulness we believe in and love Jesus Christ, the one they fortold of coming.

IV. 1:13-21: Called to be holy as our Heavenly Father is holy, through Jesus Christs.

V. 1:22-25: Purified through obedience to the truth, born again through the Living & Abiding Word that last forever.

These are supposed to be division headings. I'm thinking I should have split the chapter into 2 homelitics, way to much info. I was only supposed to have 4 sections, and I had to do 5.

Subject Sentence ~

Our salvation secure, living holy lives, through the Living Word.

This sentence is to combine several sentences into one of no more then 10 words. The sentence should be grammatically correct, containing a subject and a verb. This sentence represents to "thrust" of the whole passage.

Aim ~

To cause the audience to: Rejoice in their salvation, living lives holy unto the Lord, through the Living & Abiding Word of God that last forever!

The "aim" is the main lesson or principle you want the audience to learn or do after hearing the lesson. Aims should be short and very definite.

Specific Application Questions ~

I. Am I rejoicing in the hope of my salvation or am I living a life of guilt and regret?

II. Do I desire to live a holy life, bringing glory to God? If not, why not?

III. Am I in the Living Word everyday and heeding it's instruction?

Well there is supposed to be one application section for each division so I kind of messed up there, but they are supposed to apply to real life. The application should be a question, that will motivate the audience to put the aim into action.

So how did I do????? Confused yet? I am!!!

They kissed twice!........

Those are the words that a little boy said to me yesterday at our local grocery store when we saw the their picture on the front page of the Newspaper.

Yesterday was a special day for the people of England, and for my daughter and I.. It was the day of the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. Bekah and I got up at 4:00 am to begin watching it.

There was so much excitement! So much joy! So much hope for the future! So many glowing smiles and sure signs of love!

What is it about this wedding that gets so many excited? What about any wedding does the same thing?

I think there are several reasons:

• The expectation of what the bride will be wearing, the colors, the flowers, etc....
• It's a wonderful chance to dress up, celebrate, eat at good meal, and CAKE!!!!
• The promise of true love.
• But most of all the people who watched William & Kate's wedding or any wedding for that matter are hopeful that these two will be the odds. That they will understand the beauty in marriage, and truly live until death do us part.

It was evident (at least to me) that William and Kate love each other. I have also seen this evidence in many weddings I have gone too. So what goes wrong? Why do so many people stand in a church before God and pledge to love one another til death do us part, and then divorce?

• Could it be that they don't really realize what it is they are doing?
  
• Could it be that even though they say the words, they are not hearing or believing them?
• Are they truly ready to put the other persons needs above their own?
  
• Are they aligned with God and allowing him to be the head of their lives in ALL things?
• Do they truly understand that marriage is a covenant (not a legal contract) that they are entering into with God as a witness (Malachi 2:14).

At the wedding yesterday the Bishop of Canterbury did (what I believe) was a great job of instructing this young couple in what marriage is:

• Marriage is a covenant created & ordained by the Creator of the universe and He is a witness to it.
• It was meant for procreation.
  
• It was meant for the support and help of the couple.
• It was mean to be Until death do us part.
• It was meant to show the Mystery of Christ and His Church(Ephesians 5:31-33).
  

Are we (The Church) adorning ourselves for our Bridegroom as a bride does for her groom? Where is our excitement for His return?

Oh the beauty and promise of a wedding! Oh the mystery of the relationship between husband & wife; and Christ and His Church.

My heart calls out to all who are married & struggling; looking to get married in the future, or don't even want to have a thing to do with marriage. Look at the Author or marriage and trust him with your life & marriage.

I pray William and Kate have a long and blessed life together! I pray that for everyone that enters the marriage covenant.

Call me Hephzibah

There are times in our lives when we are a new creation. The first being when we are conceived(Psalm 139:13-16). The second when we accept the gift of salvation through Jesus Christ(2 Corinthians 5:17), and the third when God does a trans formative work in your life.
Today in our study of Isaiah in Bible Study Fellowship, we studied Isaiah 62. In this chapter Isaiah is prophesying about the transformation of Zion from a Forsaken and Desolate place to a place called Hephzibah (My Delight is in her) and Beulah (your land shall be married). God has shown them who they are (rebellious children); and what they've done (continually sinned against God, worshiped idols, and denied God's control). He reminds them to look back and see what God has done for them and now hear what God will do in the future. God was going to make Zion beautiful again! He was not only going to restore Israel, but give a double portion (Isaiah 61:7) of grace to them.
We discussed in small group the other times when names were changed: Abram to Abraham; Sarai to Sarah; Jacob to Israel; Simeon to Peter; Saul to Paul. When each of these people were given a new name God did an amazing work in them. Abram was a pagan; Abraham a God follower and a man of faith; Sarai was barren; Sarah fruitful and a mother of many nations; Jacob wrestled with God; Israel rendered himself to God; Simeon was weak; Peter became a rock; Saul was a murderer of Christians; Paul was a messenger of the Good News to Christians.
When a name was changed it signified a person transformed by God.
This touched me in a profound way. I desire to be used of God for his glory. I believe he is doing a trans formative work in my life as well. This year in BSF God has shown me again and again His Sovereignty, and how all things (good and bad) work together for the good of those who love Him. There have been many lessons, but in those lessons, best of all has been a transformation of my heart!
I am blessed beyond measure and now more then ever I desire to do God's will, whatever that may be. He has redeemed me and called me by name, I am His (Isaiah 43:1). I am precious in His eyes and honored, and He loves me (Isaiah 43:4)!! So that being said:

Call me Hephzibah!

For I am a life that was changed and His delight is in me!!!!!

What would your name be?