What Can the Righteous Do?

I. Refuse to Panic Over the Situation Around You

II Refuse to Give up on Prayer

III Practice Righteousness Before Others

Watch us on our YouTube channel, our website or our Facebook page

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi7C66QudDzbTDtA-DaSQBw/

https://midwaybaptistnc.org

https://facebook.com/midwaybaptistnc

2020.05.31 - Where Do We Go From Here Acts 1:3-14 by Midway Baptist Church

2020.05.24 - The Importance of Remembering (Ephesians 2:11-13) by Midway Baptist Church

2020.05.17-How To Be Renewed Day By Day (2 Corinthians 4:16-18) by Midway Baptist Church

Every Family Needs A Godly Mother

Text: 2 Timothy 1:5; 3:14-17

Opening Statement:

It has been said, “Behind every great man is a greater woman.” I think it can be said as well, “Behind every godly child is a godly mother.” Mothers do influence their sons and daughters! One of life’s greatest blessings is to have a godly mother. And, thus, one of the greatest gifts you can give your children is to be a godly mother.

Through faith in God and by honoring His Word, godly mothers have great influence as they train their children.

I) Godly Mothers are Women of Sincere Faith (1:5)

As Paul thought fondly of Timothy and his sincere faith, he was reminded that such faith also dwelt first in Timothy’s grandmother, Lois, and in his mother, Eunice.

Not only are godly mothers’ women of sincere faith, but they also seek to hand off that faith to their children. Timothy’s faith could be traced back through his mother to his grandmother. He could see the Lord in them, and it attracted him to the Lord.

II) Godly Mothers Train their Children in God’s Word (3:14-17)

The phrase, “knowing from whom you have learned them” points to the reality of God’s Word in these people who had influenced Timothy. The best thing you can do for your kids is to instill in them from an early age the importance of reading, studying, memorizing, and obeying God’s Word. How do you do that?

A) A mother must have her own love for God’s Word.

You cannot impart what you do not possess. If your kids seldom see you seeking God through His Word, they won’t catch it for themselves.

B) A godly mother will use God’s Word to share the story of salvation.

Salvation is built on the knowledge of the truth revealed in Scripture. They need to know what saving faith is, as opposed to empty profession that does not result in salvation.

So, a crucial task for godly mothers is to pray for and use the Scriptures to lead each of her children to faith in Christ.

C) A godly mother will train her children to live by God’s Word.

God’s Word is mighty to save, but also is sufficient for all of life and godliness. 2 Tim. 3:16.

Your kids should see you applying Scripture and you should teach them how to apply it to the things they face as they grow to maturity.

III) Godly Mothers have Great Influence on their Children Throughout their Lives.

Only God knows what depth of influence Lois and Eunice had on young Timothy life. Sure, he was strengthened greatly through his relationship with Paul. But the foundation was laid by his godly mother and grandmother. It is not too much to argue that world history is shaped in the home through godly mothers.

That is not to disparage the crucial role godly fathers must play. But it is to encourage you in the crucial role godly mothers play.

In Closing:

God can use you as He used Lois, a grandmother and Eunice, a mother, in Timothy’s life. As parents we need to walk with God in sincere faith. Use His Word to lead your children and grandchildren to the same sincere faith and to train them in God’s ways.

We should never underestimate the importance God has placed on the family and how we are to raise them.

Text: Isaiah 63:18-65:8

Opening Statement:

We might say here is Isaiah’s hope and prayer for his nation. The portion we have read is a prayer. It guides us in our attempt to pray for our nation which stands in need of revival. Here is our only hope and prayer for our nation today. I want you to see four principles to guide us in praying for revival.

Recognize the Desperation of our Situation (Isaiah 63:18-19)

Isaiah’s tone is reminiscent of the Psalmist’s tone as revealed in Psalm 42:1-3

The reason for the Psalmist’s desperation is the apparent “absence of God.” “While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” This must indicate the mockery of the watching world. Doesn’t our world do that today? The watching world continues to ask, “Where is your God?” 

My fear is that we will not desire revival until we become desperate about our situation. This virus has caused us inconvenient, difficulties and even painful moments but what it has not caused is for us to be desperate for God.

We must come to that place where we say, “God, unless you show up, there is no hope.” Now, that’s desperation. Jonah 3:5-10.

Recognize the Definition of Revival(Isaiah 64:1-4)

We might conclude this simple definition of revival: Revival is God coming down!

In a figurative sense, we need the Heavens to open and God come down. Here’s what God says in 1 John 4:1

Revival is Isaiah hearing from heaven Isaiah 6:3. Revival is Isaiah then saying 6:5. Revival is Isaiah then hearing the Lord say, 6:8

Recognize the Demand for Repentance(Isaiah 64:5-8)

Here is the hard truth: We will never experience revival until there is repentance.

A.W. Tozer hit the nail on the head when he wrote this over 60 years ago “Have you noticed how much praying for revival has been going on of late–and how little revival has resulted? I believe the problem is that we have been trying to substitute praying for obeying, and it simply will not work.”

Our first task is to search our hearts and repent of sin. Joel 2:12-13 & Psalm 51:17. This must be our prayer for revival. It is not fun, but we must.

Reevaluate the Desire for Revival(Isaiah 65:1)

The Lord answered Isaiah as revealed in Isaiah 65. Look at verse 1. The Lord is simply saying, “Here I am; where are you?”

Leonard Ravenhill, author of Why Revival Tarries, said, “The only reason that we don’t experience revival is because we are willing to live without it.”

In Closing:

God has revealed that we are a nation in need of revival and is calling His people to a time of concerted prayer for Spiritual Awaking in our nation.

Burdened so by the need, Jeremiah Lanphier decided to invite others to join him in a noonday prayer-meeting, to be held on Wednesdays once a week. He therefore distributed a handbill: 

HOW OFTEN SHALL I PRAY?

As often as the language of prayer is in my heart; as often as I see my need of help; as often as I feel the power of temptation; as often as I am made sensible of any spiritual declension or feel the aggression of a worldly spirit.

In prayer we leave the business of time for that of eternity, and intercourse with men for intercourse with God.

A day Prayer Meeting is held every Wednesday, from 12 to 1 o'clock, in the Consistory building in the rear of the North Dutch Church, corner of Fulton and William Streets (entrance from Fulton and Ann Streets).

This meeting is intended to give merchants, mechanics, clerks, strangers, and business men generally an opportunity to stop and call upon God amid the perplexities incident to their respective avocations. It will continue for one hour; but it is also designed for those who may find it inconvenient to remain more than five or ten minutes, as well as for those who can spare the whole hour.

Will you join us in prayer?

WHAT DO I HAVE TO REJOICE ABOUT?

Text: Luke 10:17-20

Opening Statement:

The only item necessary for there to be rejoicing in your life is just the fact that you name is written in Heaven. If we could ever get a hold of that truth, we would shout it from the roof tops! I am here to tell you that if you are saved, then you have reason for rejoicing. You have cause for shouting. You have all that is needed to praise the name of the Lord as long and as loud as you wish.

Allow me to give you three reasons “What You have to Rejoice About.”

REJOICE BECAUSE YOU HAVE ETERNAL SALVATION

Salvation is more than a "get out of Hell free card." Salvation brings with it many wonderful gifts that the believer tends to forget about as he fights the battles of life.

Notice what some of them are.

Relationship

At the very instant of conversion, a new relationship is formed. I want to touch on 2 aspects of that relationship.

Adoption

Gal. 4:4-6; 2 Cor. 6:17-18 When we are saved, we are adopted into the family of God. He takes us as His children with all the rights and privileges thereof.

Access

As children, we have unlimited and unhindered access to the Father in Heaven, Heb. 4:14-16. Because we are the children of God, we can and should go to the Father and allow Him to minister to our needs.

Renewal

When a person comes to Jesus for salvation, somethings are made new. Sometimes are done away with and that is a reason for rejoicing!

We Are Cleansed By Him

1 John 1:9

We Are Changed By Him

2 Cor. 5:17

Reward

As hard as it may be to imagine, the Lord is going to reward His children, both now and when they get home. Titus 3:7

Rescue

Daniel 12:1 tells of a time when those whose names are written in the book of life will be taken out of this world. We believers know that event by the name of the rapture, 1 Thes. 4:16-17.

REJOICE BECAUSE YOU HAVE ETERNAL SECURITY

Notice the words "are written". The literal sense of this verb is this, "your name is written and shall be written." Simply stated, Jesus said this, "your names stands written in heaven."

If you and I ever catch on that we have been saved by grace and are kept by that same grace, we might come unglued but praise the Lord we will not come unsaved!

REJOICE BECAUSE YOU HAVE ETERNAL SATISFACTION

The word "written" means to "enroll as a citizen." When you received Christ as your Savior, and your name was written in Heaven, you were enrolled as a citizen of that country - Phil. 3:20. Just think of what that means! It means that Heaven is ours and that one day, we will enjoy all the glories of that Heavenly city!

In Closing:

Even though things have changed and maybe even gotten downright uncomfortable, I hope you can see that we who are saved have many reasons for rejoicing. Don’t let feeling, circumstances or getting or not getting your way keep you from rejoicing in the one thing none of us deserves (salvation) but God has given us (Eph.2:8-9).

Let me speak to those who may not have experienced the gift of salvation yet by asking the simple question; Why not today? Simply pray, “Lord, I am a sinner in need of forgiveness, and I repent of my sin and ask you to forgive me and to come into my life and take control of my life. In the name of Jesus. Amen!”

Website - https://midwaybaptistnc.org

Facebook - https://facebook.com/midwaybaptistnc

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi7C66QudDzbTDtA-DaSQBw

What do I do with my Doubts? | Text: John 20:24-30

I want to talk today about a topic that is relevant for every single person whether you’re a Christian or not. It is a topic that will affect us at some time in our life. We will all wrestle with it to some degree.

HOW DOES THE DOUBT VIRUS PRESENT ITSELF?

There’s a lot of misconceptions about doubt.

Many people think doubt is the opposite of faith, but it isn’t. Unbelief is the opposite of faith.

Many people think doubt is unforgivable, but it isn’t.

Many people think struggling with God means we lack faith, but that’s not true.

HOW DOES THE DOUBT VIRUS INFECT US?

Basically, in three ways.

Doubt Infects Our Mind.

Often intellectual doubts come in through our mind. We read the Bible, put it down, then comes the question: “Am I to believe there are really things like angels and demons and Satan and heaven and hell and that Jesus is really coming back? Are these things credible?”

Doubts can come into our mind if we don’t know why we believe what we believe.

Doubt Infects Our Emotions.

This can happen in several ways. Some people have a faith that is fundamentally built on feelings.

Faith is fundamentally a decision of the will to follow Jesus Christ. Our faith doesn’t fade and surge according to how emotionally charged up we are.

Doubt Infects Our Will.

Doubt can come in through our point of decision.

If as followers of Jesus we willfully decide to pursue a pattern of sinful and immoral behavior in our life, we’ve got this one little pocket where we don’t want God in there, if we’re going to continue to pursue this sin because we enjoy it and we’re going to continue to practice what we know that God doesn’t want us to do, that kind of choice can introduce doubt and uncertainty into your faith.

HOW CAN WE GET THE DOUBT VIRUS UNDER CONTROL?

Here are five steps to healing doubt. The first letter of the first word in each of these points spell out the word FAITH. 

F-ind the root of your doubt.

You’ve got to diagnosis the source of how doubt has entered into your life before you can know how you to deal with it.

A-sk God and others for help.

Be honest with God.

Also, ask other Christians for help too. (James 5:16)

I-mplement a course of treatment.

Figure out what course of treatment you’re going to follow to fight the virus of doubt.

T-ake care of your spiritual health.

When we exercise our faith, when we feed our faith with appropriate material, our faith grows deeper and when doubts come in, they don’t take a foothold and they don’t grow and destroy our faith.

H-old on to your remaining questions

What does that mean? Basically, suspend judgment for a while on some questions you might have. Let me put this into context. Because you and I are finite individuals with finite minds and finite understanding and finite imagination we can’t fully understand an infinite God. Deuteronomy 29:29

In Closing:

Hebrews 11 Hall of Faith is filled with people who at one time or another doubted. Their lives are not defined by their doubt. Their lives are defined by the faith that God grew as they journeyed through doubt to trust God for who He is and what He is doing.

Today Easter is more about bunny rabbits who lay decorative eggs. And what has always bothered me, how did they ever get a bunny to lay an egg.

Whatever happened to the day where we celebrated Jesus’ resurrection, you know, the whole coming back from the dead thing, the whole, Jesus died upon the cross, buried, and on the third day rose from the dead.

Look at what the angel said on this very morning almost two thousand years ago.

“He’s not here, He’s alive.”

On this Sunday the early church would greet one another with “Christ is Risen,” and the response would be, “He is risen indeed.”

This was the message of the early church, and it is the same message that needs to be preached today. The Apostle Paul sums up this message in his letter to the Roman church. “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4)

What does the empty tomb mean?

What does the Empty Tomb mean for you? Either Nothing or Everything!

What will it be for you today, will you accept the evidence of the resurrection and in doing so receive the promise of ever lasting life with the Savior?

If you already have then you have so much to give God praise for, so let your praise be heard. May the world hear us proclaim “Christ is Risen,” “He is risen indeed.”

2020.04.05 - The Road To The Cross (Luke 19:28-39) by Midway Baptist Church