2 Chronicles 7:14 – If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land.

Daniel 1:1-4 – In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles form the temple of God. These he carried off to the temple of his god in Babylonia and put in the treasure house of his god. Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring into the king’s service some of the Israelites from the royal family and nobility – young men without physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians.

Daniel 1:6-7 – Among those who were chosen were some from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. The chief official gave them new names: to Daniel, the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.

SERMON POINT #1 – DANIEL DECIDED TO HONOR GOD NO MATTER WHAT

Daniel 1:8 – But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission no to defile himself this way.

Daniel 1:17&20 – To these four young men, God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning…In every manner of wisdom and understanding about which the kind questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in the whole kingdom.

Daniel 3:17-18 – If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.

SERMON POINT #2 – DANIEL PRESSED INTO GOD

Daniel 6:10 – Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he has always done before.

Daniel 10:11-12 – He said, “Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up for I have been sent to you.” And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling. Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.”

Psalm 10:1-2 – Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide in times of trouble?

Habakkuk 1:2-3 – How long Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not save? Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife and conflict abounds.

Definition of trust – act of placing confidence in someone or something

Mark 9:20-24 – So they brought him. When the sprit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming in the mouth. Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?” “From childhood,” he answered. “It has thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.” “ ‘If I can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

SERMON POINT #1 – ADJUST OUR EXPECTATIONS

Job 14:1 NLT – “How frail is humanity! How short is life, how full of trouble!”

John 16:33 – “I have told you these things, so that in my you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

SERMON POINT #2 – UNDERSTAND OUR LIMITATIONS

Isaiah 55:8 – “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.

Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

1 Corinthians 13:12 NLT – Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.

SERMON POINT #3 – TRUST IN THE GOODNESS OF GOD

Numbers 23:19 – God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill.

John 3:16 – For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 5:6-8 – You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

SERMON POINT #4 – REMEMBER GOD IS IN CONTROL

2 Corinthians 1:8-9 – We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God who raises from the dead.

SERMON POINT #5 – STAY CONNECTED

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 – Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.

Jeremiah 17:7-8 – “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

Isaiah 30:15

15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says:

“In repentance and rest is your salvation,

in quietness and trust is your strength,

but you would have none of it.

Lamentations 3:40

40 Let us examine our ways and test them,

and let us return to the Lord.

Micah 6:8

8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.

And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly[a] with your God.

Isaiah 30:15

15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.

Lamentations 3:40

40 Let us examine our ways and test them,

and let us return to the Lord.

Micah 6:8

8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Romans 12:9-10 - Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.

SERMON POINT #1 - GOD’S PLAN IS FOR THE CHURCH TO BE IN COMMUNITY WITH ONE ANOTHER

Acts 2:42-47 - They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had a need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

SERMON POINT #2 - YOU NEED YOUR CHURCH FAMILY

Galatians 6:2 - Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

SERMON POINT #3 - YOUR CHURCH FAMILY NEEDS YOU

Romans 12:4-8 - For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace give to each of us. If you have the gift of prophesying, they prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, the give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

Hebrews 10:24-25 - And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23 NLT – Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

GOD WILL MAKE ALL THINGS NEW

Psalm 13:1-4 – How Long Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,” and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

SERMON POINT #1 – JUSTICE IS COMING

Acts 17:31 – For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.

SERMON POINT #2 – RESTORATION IS COMING

Acts 3:21 – Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.

SERMON POINT #3 – GOD WILL MAKE EVERYTHING NEW

Revelation 21:1-5 – Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the order of things has passed away.” He who is seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

2 Corinthians 4:17 NLT – For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them all and will last forever.

Hebrews 10:23 NLT - Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

THE PROMISE OF THE Holy Spirit

John 14:15-16 - “If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever - the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor know him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you."

SERMON POINT #1 - HOLY SPIRIT IS TEACHER

John 14:26 - But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

SERMON POINT #2 - HOLY SPIRIT IS CONSCIENCE

John 16:7-8 NLT - But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgement.

SERMON POINT #3 - HOLY SPIRIT IS GUIDE

John 16:13 - But when he, the Spirit of Truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will only speak what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

Isaiah 30:21 - Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”

SERMON POINT #4 - I NEED THE HOLY SPIRIT TO CHANGE ME

2 Corinthians 3:17-18 NLT - For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord - who is the Spirit - makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

Hebrews 10:23 NLT - Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

PROMISE OF SALVATION

SERMON POINT #1 - JESUS’ MAIN CONCERN IS LOST PEOPLE

Luke 19:9-10 NLT - Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

Romans 3:23 NLT - For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.

Romans 10:9 - If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

SERMON POINT #2 - GOD DOENS’T WANT ME TO STAY IN MY SIN

Romans 6:1 NLT - Well then, should we keep on sinning to that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it?

2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT - This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun.

SERMON POINT #3 - THE GRACE OF GOD IS FOR EVERYONE

Titus 2:11-12 - For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,

Romans 5:8 - But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Hebrews 10:23 NLT – Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

PROMISE #1 – GOD IS NEAR

Jeremiah 29:13 – You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Psalm 119:2 – Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart.

Jeremiah 10:21 – For the shepherds have become stupid And have not sought the Lord; Therefore they have not prospered And all their flock is scattered.

SERMON POINT #1 – SEEKING GOD IS A CONSCIOUS CHOICE

1 Chronicles 22:19 – Now set your mind and heart to seek the Lord your God.

SERMON POINT #2 – SEEKING GOD REQUIRES HUMILITY

Psalm 10:4 – In his pride, the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.

SERMON POINT #3 – MAINTAIN A HEART OF WONDER

SERMON POINT #4 – GOD PROMISES GOOD THINGS WHEN WE SEEK HIM

Psalm 34:10 – The lions may become week and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

Isaiah 55:6-7 – Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

Lamentations 3:25 – The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks Him.

Psalm 9:9-10 – The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

Galatians 6:9 – Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

SERMON POINT #1 – READING THE BIBLE BUILDS RELATIONSHIP

SERMON POINT #2 – READING THE BIBLE REVEALS TRUTH

John 8:32 – “Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”

Counterfeit Bill

SERMON POINT #3 – READING THE BIBLE GROWS MY FAITH

Romans 10:17 NKJV – So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

STEPS FOR EFFECTIVE BIBLE STUDY

1) Preparation - Am I prepared to hear from God?

2) Searching - What do I see in these verses?

3) Meditating - What is God saying to me in this passage?

4) Revelation - Can I restate this in my own words?

5) Action - How can I apply this to my life?

Romans 8:1 – Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.