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Eph. 5:15-21
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can download our service on iTunes or tune in for “The Good Word” each day on AM 1230 WSAL or on Hoosier Country 103.7 FM just after 8am. How many of you heard “these are the best years of your life, enjoy them” while you were in school? How many of you believed that when you heard it? How many of you believe that now? Whether it is the 1st 18 years or the last few years of life, as David says, “as for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.” Ps. 103:15, 16. Let’s look for a few moments at some Biblical guidelines that will help, not just graduates, but those who will be graduates, and those of us who are already graduated. FYI everyone has one final graduation that opens eternity for them. For all people everywhere life begins by:
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LAYING THE FOUNDATION. It is common knowledge everything built to last is built on a solid foundation. No foundation, no security or stability! It doesn’t take much to destroy a building without a strong foundation. Jesus teaches us how a strong foundation is necessary to build a life that is worthy of the name Christian! To build a solid foundation requires persistence. Notice the man took time to dig deep. He kept digging until he came to rock, then he laid his foundation on the rock. 1. To build a solid foundation also requires precision. Not only did the man dig deep, he had to follow the blueprint for the foundation to be square, and for the house to sit on it. 2. To build a solid foundation also requires patience. The man dug the foundation one shovel full of soil at a time. Each shovel by itself wasn’t much, but over time all the shovels of soil together prepared the foundation! 3. To build a solid foundation one must have patience. The point Jesus is making is: The Word of God is the only foundation upon which a successful life can be built. That is the same point Paul is making in 1 Cor. 3:11, with one difference. The difference Paul makes is that Jesus Christ must be the foundation. Jesus point us to the Word of God as the foundation for life. At whatever point, and for whatever reason you leave home, you begin to build the rest of your life. Now, the question you have to answer is: are you going to build your life on the foundation your parents have prepared for you according to the blueprint Scripture drew for them, or are you going to build your life without a solid foundation? For the rest of your life God will continue to lay new foundation as He grows you in Christ. It is to your benefit and blessedness to live:
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A LIFE OF APPLICATION. Read 1 Tim. 4:11-16. Notice especially v. 15. “These things” are all the principles and truths Paul has shared in this letter. In v. 12-14 Paul summarizes them. Paul is exhorting Timothy to see each new day as another opportunity to “practice” or demonstrate how a true Christian lives each day. We often get caught in the trap of complacency thinking that whatever level of achievement we may have reached in our Christian life is good enough! That philosophy is not Biblical. Nowhere does Scripture ever teach some sin is acceptable! Read Eph. 4: 25-31. Paul tells the Col. the same thing in 3:5-11; and Peter repeats that same thing in 2:1 of his 1st letter.
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STRIVE TOWARD GODLINESS. One truth I trust you have learned is that as a true Christian, your entire outlook must be toward eternity in the visible, physical presence of The Lord Jesus Christ! All NT theology is future oriented. One of the major themes of the NT is found in Phil. 3:12 – 21.
Paul is giving 4 truths for us to follow as we look toward our own graduation into eternity:
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We “press” hard to for perfection. The 2nd truth we need to practice to prepare for graduation is
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Forget what is past and strain forward. Notice Paul says to strain, press, put all your strength into, moving forward to what lies ahead!
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Aim high! V. 14 notice the call of God is upward! Jesus tells us to set our affections, love, thoughts, plans, our whole life on things in heaven, not on earth! The old saying applies here, “get your mind out of the gutter!” Live in Phil. 4:4-9. Finally,
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“Hold on to what you have already received.” V. 16. One of satan’s favorite tools of destruction is to cause Christians to become less and less devoted to Christ over the course of their life, while at the same time making them think they are standing fast! Any time any Christian embraces anything that violates Scripture, even in the smallest part, that person has become unequally yoked! That principle in 2 Cor. 6:14-18 is not just about dating relationships. It is a life principle that means no Christian is ever to join hearts, hands, minds, business associations, anything with unbelievers.
No matter what your station in life, as a Christian, you are being prepared for the next stage of your life, whether that is the next phase of school, you career, your family, or your graduation into heaven.
If we can help you with your spiritual questions, call us at 574-643-9419.
