David's Sin

Tell the story of David's sin, Nathan's rebuke and the results that followed (2 Sam. 11-18).   Results of David's sin:
  1. He was miserable.
  2. The child got sick and died.
  3. Amnon committed the same kind of sin his father had committed.
  4. Absalom murdered Amnon.
  5. Absalom turned against his father.
  6. Israel turned against David.
  7. David had to run for his life.
  8. Absalom raped David's 10 concubines.
  9. Twenty thousand men were killed in battle.
  10. Absalom was killed.
  11. The sword would never depart from David's house.
  12. His friends and wives avoid him because of his sickness and stink (Ps. 38).

Turn from any sin now and spare yourself and many others the curses that follow—any sexual sin or anger or unforgiveness.  Jesus said if we don't forgive, God will not forgive us.  Confess any sin now, and let Him cleanse your heart.  Don't cover it; confess and forsake it (Pr. 28:13).

"...Judgment must begin at the house of God...If the righteous is scarcely saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?" (1Pet. 4:17,18).

Each day pray, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."







The Promised Land

Tell the story of the deliverance from Egypt and of the spies (Num. 13,14) and how God keeps His promises for those who believe His promises.

Three promises we can claim:
JoyPs. 85:6  Revive us again that we may rejoice in You.
Ps. 90:14  O satisfy us early...
PeaceIs. 26:3  Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace....
Phil. 4:8  Peace that passes understanding
Rom. 8:28  All things work together for good.
Victory Phil. 4:13  I can do all things....
1 Cor. 10:13  God will not let you be tempted above what you are able.

Are you in the wilderness of a miserable, tense and defeated life, or in the promised land of joy and peace and victory.  Claim these promises!

Maybe you are not even in the wilderness, but in a land of slavery.  If you have never turned from sin, you are still a slave of sin in Satan's kingdom.  The promise for you is, "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Rom. 10:13).











Psalm 1

How to get the blessing: "Whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."
  1. Don't take the advice of the ungodly.
  2. Don't hang around sinners.
  3. Don't be scornful.
  4. Enjoy God's Word, and meditate on it day and night.

Some blessing for those who find wisdom (Pr. 3:13, 16 and 17):
  1. Happiness
  2. Long life
  3. Riches
  4. Honor
  5. Pleasantness
  6. Peace

Is your life more like the cursed tree or the blessed tree?  In the area of:
  1. Happiness   Jer. 15:16  Thy Words were found, and I did eat them...thy Word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of my heart: ...
  2. Faith  Rom. 10:17  Faith cometh by hearing...the Word of God
  3. Answers to prayer  John 15:7  ...ask what ye will...
  4. Strength to overcome sin
    • Ps. 119:11  Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee.
    • 1 John 2:14  Young men... you are strong... the Word... abides in you, and you have overcome the wicked one.
  5. Usefulness  Bears fruit in season (vs. 3).
  6. For eternity  John 5:24  ...He that hears My words, and believes...has everlasting life.






The Throne

2 Cor. 5:10  "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad."

Rev. 4  Rainbow, thunder, lightning, fire, elders bowing at the Throne
Rev. 20:11-15  Great White Throne Judgment

Abraham:Walk before Me and be perfect.
Mosesendured as seeing Him Who is invisible.
Jacob:(Gen. 28:12-22) The Lord is in this place, and I knew it not!  How dreadful is this place...the house of God...the gate of heaven...He will be my God...I will give a tenth to God.

If we could see God we would:
  • Bow before Him
  • Praise Him
  • Thank Him
  • Fear Him:  be careful not to lie, steal, lust or hurt others
  • Ask for help for ourselves and others
  • Try to win others:  We would not fear others if we could see God!

Illustration of a watch:  Anybody knows someone intelligent made it.

Illustration of walking out of sight:  You still exist.  God would not be more real if you could see Him.  We walk by faith, not by sight.

Now, do what you would do if you could see Him.  When we do see Him it will be too late to make the changes.







Lamb and Cross
John 1:29  Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.  Jesus is like a lamb because He did not sin, and He died for sinners.

Some of the 10 Commandments we have broken
  • No other gods and no graven image:
    1. Stubbornness is as idolatry
    2. You cannot serve God and money
  • Honor your father and your mother
    1. We have disobeyed
    2. We have complained
  • Thou shalt not kill.
    1. Whoever hates his brother is a murderer.
    2. Put off all anger.
    3. Calling someone a fool puts you in danger of hell fire.
    4. If we don't forgive, God won't forgive us.
  • Thou shalt not commit adultery.  Looking with lust is adultery.
  • Thou shalt not steal.  Even little things.
  • Don't lie.
  • Don't covet.
Object Lesson:  Jesus took our sin and its punishment and gave His righteousness and the blessings that go with it.





Manasseh
2 Chr. 33:1-20

King at 12!  Son of a very good king, Hezekiah

 Sins
  1. Rebuilt the evil altars his father had destroyed.
  2. Put them in the temple!
  3. Worshipped the stars
  1. Practised witchcraft
  2. Killed many innocent
  3. Burned his own sons
  4. Seduced his nation
Judgment   Then he knew the Lord is God

Fruits of Repentance
  1. Took away the false gods
  2. Sacrificed to God
  3. Commanded the nation to serve God
Giving your children to the fire (nudging them towards Hell):
  1. Offending
  2. Failing to correct
  3. Bad example
  4. Angering them by hypocrisy
Train up a child... (Pr. 22:6).
He that spares the rod, hates his son, but he that loves him chastens him.
You shall beat him with the rod and deliver his soul from hell.
Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child, but the rod of correction...
He that soweth iniquity... the rod... shall fail (Pr. 22:8).

Abraham God liked it that Abraham would command his children to go God's way (Gen. 18:14).
Joshua"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" (Josh. 24:15).
Davidfailed with Absalom and Adonijah:  he did not displease his son....
Manassehdid whatever he chose because he was king.  We do whatever we choose in our hearts, unless Jesus rules in our hearts.







Jabez: "Enlarge my coast!"
1 Chr. 4:9,10


Notice the chapters before and after Jabez.  All we know about most people in the Bible is their fathers and their sons.  Some of the most important things about you are your father and your children.  And spiritually, who won you to Jesus, and whom have you won?

We know a little bit more about Jabez:
  • He had a sorrowful start.  Maybe you had a disadvantage.  But you can pray and come out ahead!
  • He prayed.  Ps. 81:10  "Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it."
  • He was more honorable.  Elisha asked for a double portion!
  • God granted his request and put it in the Bible so we can learn from it.
His requests:

Bless me indeed!  Some blessings we can ask for:
Salvation  Rom. 10:13
Joy  Ps.  90:14
Peace  Is. 26:3
Victory  Phil. 4:13
Needs met  Mt. 6:33
Other prayers answered  Mt. 7:7
Desires granted  Ps. 37:4
Rest  Mt. 11:28-30
See also Pr. 3:13, 16 and 17  Happiness, longer life, riches, honor, pleasantness and peace

In the chalk picture the little island represents the personal blessings God gives.  The adjoining land, then the hills and finally the mountains represent how God continues to enlarge our borders, our ministry, our influence for God's Kingdom.

Enlarge my coast.
So I can bring these blessings to many others.  Ps. 67:1,2
Minister first in Jerusalem (your home town)
Then Judea (the surrounding area)
Samaria (the next area or different culture)
Unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Open your mouth wide, and God will fill it (Ps. 81:10).

Ask big!  Like Elisha.

Thine hand be with me.
"The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed..." (Acts 11:21).
You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you for witness (Acts 1:8).
Your Father gives the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him (Luke 11:13).

Keep me from evil that it may not grieve me.
David, Saul and Samson all came to grief because of evil deeds.
Each day pray, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."







Four Little Wise Things
Pr. 30:24-28

Ants work without being told, with no boss making them (Pr. 6:6-8).
Work around the house, at your job, in the Lord's work.
Whatsoever your hand finds to do, do it with your might! (Ec. 9:10).
He becomes poor who deals with a slack hand (Pr. 10:4).
I don't want Jesus to say to me, "You wicked, lazy servant" (Mt. 25:26).
If any will not work, neither let him eat (2 Thes. 3:10).
I must work the works of Him that sent me while it is day (John 9:4).
     Jesus' work: He came to call sinners to repentance (Luke 5:32).
He who is slack in his work is a brother to the destroyer (the Devil).
A lot of lazy people are dumber than an ant!

Conies are feeble, but they make their houses in the rocks.

The Lord's our rock, in Him we hide, a shelter in the time of storm.  The Devil would like to destroy us, but the demons are so afraid of Jesus that they tremble.  Stay close to Jesus.

Locusts have no king to keep them in order, but they are orderly.

Spider makes her home in king's palaces.

You may be just a child, but you have more sense than most university professors if you've repented and made Heaven your home.





Rainbow
Gen. 6-9

The Flood  came because of Violence and Evil imaginations:  lust, anger, hate, covetousness

Compare drowning in the Flood with being thrown into the Lake of Fire!

Door:   Jesus said:  "I am the door, by Me if any man enter in he shall be saved" (John 10:9).

Lamb:   Jesus is like a lamb:  He did not sin, and He died for sinners.

Rainbow:  God has also made us some promises.
  1. Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
  2. Honor your father and your mother
    • That it may be well with you
    • And live long on the earth

Ways to honor your parents:
  1. Obey quickly and cheerfully.
  2. Help them, even if they don't make you do it.
  3. Give them something nice.
  4. Don't talk back or complain.
  5. Don't talk bad about them, even if it's true.
  6. Don't raise your voice or tell them what to do.
  7. Thank them.  Write a letter thanking them for all they do.
  8. Pray for them.
  9. Brag about them.
  10. Take care of them, especially when they're old.
Extra: If they're tired, let them sleep.


ALTERNATE APPLICATION: 10 PROMISES
  1. Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Rom. 10:13).

  2. If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

  3. Seek first God's kingdom and all these things (food and clothes) shall be added to you (Mat. 6:33).

  4. Ask and it shall be given you (Mat. 7:7).

  5. Give and it shall be given you, good measure... (Luke 6:38).

  6. Meditate on God's Word, delight in it, and whatever you do will prosper (Ps. 1:3).

  7. Believe on Jesus, and you will do the works Jesus did and even greater works than He did (John 14:12).

  8. All things work together for good to those who love God... (Rom. 8:28).

  9. Honor your parents, and things will go well with you

  10. And you will live long on the earth (Eph. 6:1-3).







Brazen Serpent
Numbers 21:4-9 and John 3:14-16

Examples of complaining about:
  • Food: It was not nice enough, you did not get as much as you wanted, or you did not get it when you wanted it.
  • Homework
  • You did not get as much money as you wanted.
  • The weather
  • The rules
Jude vss. 13-16 shows how bad complaining is.
Jesus will return, punishing the wicked with eternal fire (2 Thes. 1:7-9).
It will be such a dreadful time that the sun will be darkened, and people will cry for the rocks and mountains to fall on them (Rev. 6:12,16,17).
Since Jesus is coming to judge the world, we must repent.  "Let the wicked forsake his way and...his thoughts..." (Is. 55:7).

Name sins and the results of repentance:
We've lied.  Now we tell the truth.
We've stolen.  Now, when we can, we give it back.
We've hurt others.  Now we will be kind.
We've been too selfish to share.  Now we will be happy to share.
We've disobeyed.  Now we obey, whether parents are watching or not.
We have committed sins in secret.  Now, even in the privacy of our thoughts, we want to please God (Is. 55:7).





Cain
Gen. 4:1-15
Why would God require an innocent lamb to die?  God is teaching some important lessons:
  • Sin is worse than we thought.  The wages of sin is death.
  • God is kind and gave us a substitute.
  • Abel believed God (Heb. 11:4)
  • When we believe God we obey.

Lessons that go with the little pictures:

We were all born with sinful hearts.
Adam's sin brought the curses of sweaty work, thorns and death.
Rule over sin.  "I can do all things through Christ...."
Whoever hates his brother is a murderer (1 John 3:15).
You cannot hide your sin from God.
He who speaks lies shall not escape (Pr. 19:5).
Sin brings other curses.   Cain is a fugitive.  The ground is cursed.
Adam's sin brought a curse; Cain's sin made it worse.  Rather, go in the way of wisdom.  "Her ways are ways of pleasantness and all her paths are peace" (Pr. 3:17).
Cain has a guilty conscience.  They'll flee at the sound of a shaken leaf...
when no one is pursuing.
We must all face God the Judge!












First Fruits
Dt. 26:1-11

When they entered the promised land, they were to bring some of the first fruits to the Tabernacle as a witness that God had brought them into this land as He had promised.  The fruits I am drawing represent promises that I have seen God fulfil.

Promise & Fruit Promise & Fruit
        Joy Purple Grapes          Peace Apple
       Victory Orange          Needs Bananas
       Prayer Pear          Desires Strawberries
       Power Green Grapes          Rom. 8:28 Pecans
       Rest Plum      

Tell some examples of God's faithfulness, from your life, in these areas.







Two Ways
Matt. 7:13,14

Many are on the wide road; only a few on the narrow path.
Describe Heaven.  Rev. 21 and 22.
Describe Hell.  Rev. 21:8 "...all liars...in the lake of fire."
We have lied.  Many of us have stolen.  We have hurt others by what we have done and said.  We have often been too selfish to share.  But God commanded, "Love your neighbour as yourself."  That's the GREAT COMMANDMENT!  And we have broken it many times. We have disobeyed parents and other authorities.  We have committed many secret sins.
  • Jesus said that if you look at a woman to lust after her, you have already committed adultery with her in your heart.  How many times have we done that!  This sin is so serious that Jesus said that if your eye offends you it would be better to pull it out and throw it away, than keep it and be cast into hell.
  • Jesus said that whoever is angry with his brother is in danger of the judgment, and whoever says, "You fool" is in danger of hell fire.  We probably have not shot or stabbed anyone, but we know we have gotten angry and called others bad, mean names, and Jesus said whoever does so is in danger of hell fire.  You can see that we need to make a big change!
God said, "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord... and He will have mercy."
  • We have lied; now we tell the truth.
  • That stuff we stole; now when we can we give it back.
  • We have hurt others; now we will be kind.  That's how we can tell if we are saved: "We know we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren" (1 John 3:14).
  • We have been too selfish to share; now we will be happy to share.
  • We have disobeyed.  Now we obey, even if parents...are not watching.  That's how we can tell if we are saved: "And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.  He that saith, 'I know Him,' and keepeth not His commandments is a liar" (1 John 2:3,4).

God has done a lot of nice things to help us make this change.  The goodness of God leads you to repentance.  Rom. 2:4

He sent His own son down from Heaven.  Jesus healed many people.  They murdered Him in a bloody, violent death on a cross!  But by His death He took our punishment—so we would not have to take our own punishment in the lake of fire.  Wow!  He really loved us!  So He makes eternal life a free gift.

They buried Him, but on the third day God raised Him from the dead and proved that Jesus really is the Son of God—that He is just as much God as God the Father is God.

So Jesus has made a way to Heaven.  He said, "I am the way....  No man comes to the Father but by Me."

Have you come to Jesus?  He's the way.  Or are you still going your own way?  If you come to Jesus you repent.  You start making a big change.  Telling the truth, being kind, sharing with those in need, obeying, rejecting temptation.

Is this the change you need to make?  If this is the change you know you need to make, then pray this prayer:

Lord Jesus, please wash my sinful heart.  Make me clean on the inside, so I can go up to Heaven like You promised.

Now tell Him, "THANK YOU!"

So if you have turned to Jesus for mercy, will He get you to heaven?  Yes!  He said He would.

And if you really believe Jesus, you will start making a big change.  We start telling the truth.  When we can we give back what we stole.  We start to be kind.  We forgive those who have hurt us.  We share with those in need.

This good news is so wonderful!  Let's share with many others so they will turn from their sins and receive the free gift of eternal life Jesus offers.