Preparing for RECESSION

SERMON STARTER

 

          There is too much fear and paranoia in the land. This decade has been the decade of fear. Job said in chapter three and verse twenty-five, “For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, And what I dreaded has happened to me.”  Our people have been afraid of losing their exalted economic position in the world, and it has happened. We have been afraid of the perils of nature and the things we have feared have come to pass.

          The eve of this decade began with the Y2K Bug’s imagined computer disasters. Fear has plagued us every year since. Never in my six plus decades of life have I ever seen such “natural disasters’ and so much damage and loss of life. This decade also began with the clash between Islam and the fall of our Western World decadent sophisticated culture, with 9/11 and the terror that followed.

          Another growing problem has been domestic terrorists and their terror and fear. The list grows all the time: Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols, Eric Rudolph and Theodore Kacyznski.  The collapse of Wall Street and the unstable financial markets along with the mortgage industries’ Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac disasters have left investors all over the country with reduced retirement funds and has destroyed many people’s financial future

          Thank God our spiritual lives are not wrapped up in the world’s economic problems. Our TRUST is in the Lord! He is our provider!    We have God and we have each other!  This sermon explores the much needed faith approaches to an unstable and unforgiving financial world.

 

 

 

March 15, 2009

Sheepfold Ministries, Pastor Phil Roland

Preparing for RECESSION

Matt. 24:22-36

"There is too much fear and paranoia in the land.  Our spiritual lives are not wrapped up in the world’s economic problems. Our TRUST is in the Lord! He is our provider!    We have God and we have each other!”                            Pastor Phil

 

There are EIGHT THINGS I can do:

1.  I WILL REFUSE TO SAY, “I CAN’T!”  Philippians 4:13

            “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”

 

2.  I WILL REFUSE TO SAY, “I DON’T HAVE ENOUGH!” Phil. 4:19 “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”

 

3.   I WILL ELIMINATE FEAR - 2 Tim 1:7; 1 John 4:18    

      “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a

        sound mind.”

      “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to

        do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”

 

4.   I WILL NEVER CONFESS MY LACK OF FAITH  

       Romans 12:3

       “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself

         more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober

         judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.”

       Galatians 2:16 

       “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of

        Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be

        justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the

        works of the law shall no flesh be justified.”

 

5.   I WILL REFUSE TO WORRY ABOUT ANYTHING - 1 Peter 5:7

      “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

 

6.   I WILL REFUSE TO ACCEPT DEFEAT - 2 Corinthians 2:14

      “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ

       and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.”

 

7.   I WILL NOT ALLOW LONELINESS - Matt. 28:19,20; Heb. 13:5

       “. . .And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

      “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you

        have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."

 

8.   I WILL NOT BE OVERCOME BY STRESS - John 16:33

       "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world

        you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

 

Preparing for RECESSION,  TEXT:

Mat 24:22  If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.

Mat 24:23  At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it.

Mat 24:24  For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect--if that were possible.

Mat 24:25  See, I have told you ahead of time.

Mat 24:26  "So if anyone tells you, 'There he is, out in the desert,' do not go out; or, 'Here he is, in the inner rooms,' do not believe it.

Mat 24:27  For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.

Mat 24:28  Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

Mat 24:29  "Immediately after the distress of those days "'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.'

Mat 24:30  "At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.

Mat 24:31  And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

Mat 24:32  "Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.

Mat 24:33  Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door.

Mat 24:34  I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.

Mat 24:35  Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

Mat 24:36  "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

Top Ten Things You Can Know About the Future 10. The Bible will still have the answers... Psalm 119:105 "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."

 9. Prayer will still work... Matthew 21:22  "...whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it             will be yours."   8. God’s Spirit will still move... Romans 8:26 "...the Spirit helps us in our weakness." 7. God will still inhabit the praises of His people... Psalm 22:3; Isaiah 25:1

“But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel.”

"O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for you have done marvelous things" 6. There will still be anointed preaching... Romans 10:15 "How can they preach unless they are sent? How beautiful are the feet of             those who bring Good News!"

5. There will still be anointed singing... Ephesians 5:19

"Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make         music in your heart to the Lord."

4. God will still pour out His blessings... Malachi 3:10 "Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it."

 3. There will still be room at the cross... 1 Timothy 2:3-6 "This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men."

2. Jesus will still love you... Romans 8:35, 38-39 "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ Jesus?  For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present not the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." 1. Jesus will still save... Acts 16:31 "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved..."

A L O N E

God’s remedy for your loneliness

 

Who was alone in the Bible?

Patriarchs of Antiquity had moments of feeling A L O N E:

Adam and Eve - Genesis 3:23,24 - They left the Garden of Eden alone

Noah - Genesis 6-9 - Noah and his family were very much alone

Abraham - Genesis 12:1-4 - At 75 Abraham leaves his homeland to obey God

Jacob - Genesis 28:1-5 - Jacob leaves father and mother for a new land

Joseph - Genesis 39:20 - Joseph imprisoned and abandoned 15 years

Moses - Exodus 2:15 - Moses leaves Egypt with only the clothes on his back

David - 1 Samuel 22-24 - David is alone again and again, pursued by Saul

Jesus - Luke 22:44 - Jesus prays in the Garden the night before Crucifixion

Jesus - Matthew 24:46 - Jesus cries out from His Cross in His Aloneness

 

God’s Word gives His Promises to us when we feel  A L O N E:

1. John 14:18 - Jesus Words ,“I will not leave you orphans, I will come to you.”

2. Psalm 68:6 -“God sets the lonely in families, He leads the prisoners                                            with singing.”

3. Isaiah 58:9 - “Then you will call, and the Lord will answer, you will cry                                        for help, and He will say: Here am I.”

4. James 4:8 - “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”

5. Zephaniah 3:17 - “The Lord your God is with you. . .He will take great

                                    delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will

                                    rejoice over you with singing.”

6. Isaiah 54:5 - “For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His

                            name.”

7. Hosea 2:19 - “ I will betroth you to me forever. . .”

8. Colossians 2:10 - “You have been given fullness in Christ, who is the                             head over every power and authority.”

9. Genesis 28:15 - “I am with you and will watch over you wherever you

                                    go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave

                                    you until I have done what I have promised you.”

10. Isaiah 41:10 - “ So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed,

                                    for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I                                               will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

11. Hebrews 13:5 - “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”