What a great day! Admittedly, I was quite uncomfortable, dealing with an apparent strain in my back. While I dealt with that all day, D’Ani severely strained her foot on Friday leaving work. She stayed home today, and the boys spent some time with their grandmother. Fortunately, with the help of meds and staying off her foot, I was pleased to see her getting around a little better when I arrived home.
Today, we concluded our study in the Beatitudes. This study has proven to be a great time of growth and ‘stretching’ for me personally and, thus, our congregation. I hope and pray that these demands given by our Lord to the Kingdom Citizen would continually challenge our people on a private and personal level. If these eight beatitudes teach us nothing else, they express and reveal that following Christ can be a life of paradox and contradiction.
Title: Happy are the Harassed
Text: Matthew 5:10-12
C.I.T.: God blesses those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake
Outline:
I. THE CERTAINTY OF PERSECUTION
A. Opposition and persecution for the kingdom citizen are inevitable.
In John 15:20; In 2nd Timothy 3:12; 1st John 3:13
II. THE CHARACTER OF PERSECUTION
A. Physical harm. “persecute” (vs.11)
B. Isolation. “revile” (vs.11)
C. Verbal Abuse. “slander” (vs.11)
III. THE CAUSE OF PERSECUTION
A. ‘…for righteousness’ sake’
B. ‘…for Christ’s sake’.
IV. THE COMFORT OF PERSECUTION
A. You have Proof of Salvation (Galatians 4:29; John 15)
B. You have the Presence of Christ
C. You have the Purity of Life (1st Peter 1:7)
D. You have Partnership with the Saints (Philippians 3:10)
E. You have Profit in Heaven (Romans 8:18)
We had a lot of visitors today! We had one come forward for prayer. Overall, I’ll have to say it’s been a good day. The Cowboys won against the Rams in another pre-season game. The Texans lost to the Saints. All is well!
No comments:
Post a Comment