TVCC Students,
Wow! Summer is flying by so fast. We know that summer can be a little bit chaotic with vacations and other things that throw normalcy out the window. With all of the summer madness it is so nice to come on Wednesday and worship with you all. We say this often but we are so encouraged to see you all growing in faith and love. Getting to worship with you all is such a blessing to us. Last night we were able to study Acts 17 and Paul's defense of the gospel in Athens. Here are the highlights...
~Acts 17:16: Paul's spirit was provoked when he saw the city of Athens given over to idolatry. When Paul saw false theology and people living for and worshipping things that were lifeless, he had to do something about it. It was not okay with him to sit by idly and let others live for something that would lead to their eternal suffering. Love is demonstrated when we speak the truth.
Q: Is your spirit provoked when you see people worshipping things that are false or do you just sit back and let others continue in their false worship knowing that Christ died so that they could be brought back into a relationship with the Father? If you have found yourself being okay with the idolatry of others, we pray that you will confess that and ask the Lord to give you a spirit that longs to see others know and worship Him.
~Acts 17:22: Paul knew the culture of the city that he was sharing the gospel with. He knew their past and the plague that had been checked by the "unknown god." He used their current and past situations to point them to Jesus.
Q: Are you someone who listens and gains information before speaking? Listening to someone's life-story before sharing the gospel with them might be a great help in finding where they are and showing them that Christ came to fill their emptiness.
~Acts 17:24: Here Paul is revealing the falsities in their worship. They ignorantly worshipped many gods and were pretty much full pantheists (everything is god). Paul here states that their worship is empty and there is a Creator who isn't contained by anything humans can make. He is above and beyond all of our human comprehension and ingenuity. Psalm 139 reminds us of this truth. God is everywhere and creation is declaring His power and glory. We cannot escape His presence and we cannot confine Him. Our only appropriate response is to humbly worship Him!!
Q: Do you try to fit God into a mold that you have made for him (not only physical but even ideological)? Are you letting yourself be transformed by His word on a daily basis? We must realize that God's Word needs to continually be shaping our view of Him or we will (even unknowingly) let the culture lead us to worship false gods that we have made in our own image.
~Acts 17:25: God doesn't need anything. Our worship does not define Him or sustain Him. It is good for us to remember that He was and is wholly complete without us. We are the ones that need Him. He created us and we are His through belief in the death of Jesus on our behalf. We belong to Him and our lives should be lived in such a way that we trust Him to do with us what seems best to Him. Everything good in our lives is by His grace and we do well to trust Him with our who lives.
Q: Do you realize that all that you have is really the Lord's? Are you continually striving to be at a place of complete surrender to Him where you fully trust Him to do what is best for you and His glory? What things are you trying to hold back from Him? We pray that you will repent of trying to keep things safe apart from Him and return to a place of quiet surrender.
"Everything is safe which we commit to Him, and nothing is really safe which is not so committed."
~A.W. Tozer from Pursuit of God
~Acts 17:27: God does everything in our lives so that we would seek Him like a bride ready to meet her bridegroom. God sent His Son so that we could be brought back to Him. His goal is for us to be intimate with Him through His Son. He wants us to realize that He is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!! He is the goal, the treasure, and our hearts will find rest only when they are resting in Him!
Q: Are you walking in an intimate relationship with the Lord where you are conversing with Him daily (through prayer) and listening to Him speak back to you (through prayer and His Word)? Know today that Jesus died so that you could have an intimate relationship with the Father. This is the goal!
Dear students,
We are praying for you all this week. We pray that the Lord would reveal any idols that you have been serving either consciously or unconsciously. We pray that you would repent of any idolatry and return to an close relationship with the Lord of heaven and earth. We love you all and pray that you will diligently pursue God this week.
With hope,
~Sonny and Casi
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