Hi Men;
What a night! The Holy Spirit was working and Jesus Christ was manifested in the rooms last night. Looking around the room when John Politan was preaching, not a head was looking around, or not entrenched with his sermon, but all heads were in their Bibles with pens in hand. Praise God! If you missed it you can listen to it on this website, very highly recommended!
Our doctrine group was very small, with only a few of us who came; so I thought I would post this weeks notes on the new AISI blog. The last two weeks we have been reading the creation chapter in the Doctrine group. We took a survey of a bunch of different Christian veiws of creation, as well as some that were unreconcilable to the Holy Scriptures. Hopefully you caught the biggest point that the book made: That God did create everything we see (and a lot that we have yet to see), And the purpose behind it is to Glorify God as Creator!
While we often take God’s creative power for granted, our assumptions have profound implications for our lives. Creation reveals that God is the only God; that God is Trinitarian, eternally uncaused, and living; that God is independent, transcendent, immanent, and personal; that God is powerful, beautiful, gracious, and holy; and that God is a prophet and a sovereign king. All of these facts come from looking at and meditating on God’s incredible handiwork in us and around us.
I had planned on this week going through Psalm 148 with you men and reflecting and worshiping God though this Psalm of Praise. Time was cut short, and the few men that were there, we thought it best to send this out to the group to do in their own time this week with the Lord! So below I have attached this weeks homework if you will. Anyways with all that said I pray that we become men who follow Jesus, no turning back! No reserves, No retreats, No regrets! That we become obedient to Christ's calling in our lives, and that we can turn from our disobedience and repent. Let us not continue to be Jonahs, in running and hiding, but let us be bold, selfless, All-In men to the High Calling in which we have been called, in every are of our lives. May God bless you! And next week is going to be awesome with a dinner night, Dariens return from Israel, and I also have something special for our group. So make sure your there!
read Psalm 148
- What is the primary purpose for creation?
- List all the elements that are to praise God-
Psalm 148:1-2
Reflect on God’s creation beyond what we can see and know- there is much more to be revealed to us. Praise God that He looks after our physical needs as well as our spiritual needs, and ask Him to always make us aware of the implications of both.
Psalm 148:3-6
Creation leads us to praise because we can reflect on God’s immense and immesurable power. Thank God that you are one of His children, someone whom He loves and cares for despite the vastness of His creation. Praise Him for your life and for that which he has provided around you.
Psalm 148:7-10
How do you exalt our Lord for what He has created? Take some time and look around and note how he has blanketed His creation with beauty. Praise Him for His handiwork.
Psalm 148:11
We must remember that God didn’t just create nature but created ideas, systems, and science; and He gave us the knowledge, power, and responsibility to care for and work these elements out. Thank God that we do live in a country free to worship Him and pray for your leaders- at church, at work, as well as for the government.
Psalm 148:12
Remind yourself of those who surround you to help in your deepest time of need, those of whom you share your greatest times of joy and celebration. Praise the Lord for the friends you have and that the Lord has created such a great community around you.
Psalm 148:13-14
When looking to nature for inspiration and meditation on God’s great love and power, it’s very important not to look at the creation itself but rather to the actual Creator. Too often we can stand in awe of what is around us and very quickly forget the One who breathed life and spoke what you see into existence. Praise the Creator not the created. Make sure that your heart is deep within the presence of God and not just the presence of something that is onlu a shadow of what God can create.