Sunday, 19 June 2016

VFC Church Camp 2016 Sermon Series

In a series of sermons shared during church camp, the first shared was unlocking our thinking.

7 keys points to unlock our thinking and embrace Kingdom values:

1. Change self : don't carry briefcases; remove our old nature & mindsets that hinders our walk with God and His promises.
2. Take a long range look : don't waste time; rise up & be counted and useful for God.
3. Sense God's timing : He makes all things beautiful; God opens door in His timing. Be alert and be still to know His calling.
4. Be specific: don't generalize; be focus in our Godly endeavor.
5. Consultation and confirmation : consult your leaders who are accountable and will guide you. Together in unity.
6. Build bridges/not barriers: don't cut off our relationship with one another and people.
7. Have faith in God: trust Him and press in; Believe. Phil 1:6 He will bring to completion.

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Second Sermon: When God says "No"

Knowing that God has destiny in our life.

Acts 16:6-9

Rejection: when God closes door; He also opens door for their children. God's heart is for the good of His children.

Some principles to takeaway:

1. Our carnal (often selfish, 'I') must die to embrace God's vision.

2. Knowing God as our Father; book of John chap 3, 5, 20; focus on our Father.

3. Claim your sonship; we are God's precious; heirs; reject the orphan spirit.

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Third Sermon what does the picture of God looks like to you

Luke 15:1-2; 3-5; 8-10;28-30

God loves us because of who He is

He did not love us just because of how good we are; smart; poor; our past background etc. He has accepted us as we decided to follow Jesus in our heart.

Some takeaways:

1. Do not live in self-condemnation; guilt; destruction; lies of Satan; entangle.

2. Do not live with a spirit of religiosity; religiosity is the enemy of relationship.

Are you struggling to try to do good to please God?

- Know that God loves you because of who He is;
- God is love; unconditional sacrificial love.

- Don’t let the person next to you rob you of a divine encounter with Jesus

- Don’t hold not to stumbling blocks in your life; start to embrace God;

Hold on, cling on to Him with all your heart.

Know Him - our loving Father, a good good Father.

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Fourth sermon Drama of Redemption

Eph 3:10; 5:22-25

Outline of Ephesians
1. Eph 1-3 worship
2. Eph 4:1-6; 9 walking
3. Eph 6:10. warfare

The above sums up what submission to Christ means for every one of us.

Key takeaways:

1. Worship and Walk leads to effective warfare against the enemy through Jesus Christ.

2. When we walk with God Closely and abiding in Christ, we declare our authority of Christ against the enemy to stay away.

Mankind submit to God's love; His command and commandment of Redemption.

Eph 5:22; 23-27
#Wives, submit to husbands..

Make her holy; means set apart for ministry; thru' the Word of God

#Men to love your wife unconditionally; sacrificially and purposefully

3. Spiritual covering for one another

# our fight is not against fresh and blood; but against dark principality

Eph 6:10-20 put on our armour of God

# dont provoke your children; teach then in the ways of Christ. Eg leadership and submission

Children to obey their parents in the Lord for that is right.

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Fifth sermon Spiritual Inheritance

Eph 1:5 He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will

Takeaways:

How do we transfer the secret of our marriage?

1. building family altars; meaning family coming together regularly; impartation of the Word; worship and praise; praying together; setting apart for Christ.

2.  sharing of your passion for Christ  to the children and during family time.

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Sixth sermon Passion for Presence

Gen 28:12-19
He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “ I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.

Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. *All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring*

I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.

When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.

He was afraid and said, “ How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”

Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it.

He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called *Luz*.

Key takeaways:

1. Jacob life transformation & divine encounter with God begins as his hip was broken, a reminder Gen 32:25 ; He builds altars in his life; in particular, he builds 2 altars in the city of 'Luz*

Luz a certain place
Bethel House of God
El Bethel God of the house of God

Is our focus on House of God 'Bethel'; or God of the house of God 'El Bethel'?

Lesson learn:

Turning an ordinary place/certain place to an awesome place. what do we need to know:

1. We need a revelation of the person of God; experience the manifested presence of God


Presence of God comes in 3 dimensions

1. Omnipresence of God

2. Practical presence of God; eg worship, ack God; bible study; prayer

3. Manifested presence of God; divine experience - with our heart condition right & timing of God is right; we meet God in a tangible way.

Therefore, What should our heart's condition be?

1. Be humble and thirst for God. Matthew 5:6

2. A revelation of the purpose of God; knowing we are blessed to be a blessing.

Psalm 67:1-2; Gen 28:14; Psalm 2:8

Why did Christ came? His main key - Jesus not just to redeem us; to restore the Kingdom back to God (fallen mankind); therefore, the Gospel of His Kingdom has to be preached.

3. Response from a person of passionate heart/pursuit.
Jacob was passionate (birthright; 14 yrs work in exchange to have his wife, Rachel)

We are to be passionate for God and His Kindgom values.

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Seventh sermon Passion for prayer

Generally, all of us pray; wants to pray; dissatisfied with our prayer life; hunger for more;

Then How do we breakthrough in our prayer life?

3 key things hinder our prayer life:

1. Bed of Laziness

1 Peter 4:7 The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.

Clear away distractions in life; be of clear mind for things of God.

2. Climb out from valley of doubt

Believe to see (John 11:40)

Without faith; impossible to please God (Heb 11:6)

Know that Prayers cannot be answered until they are prayed.

3. Conquer the absence of passion

Rom 12:11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord

Stay Hot for Jesus!


Some practical solutions to develop our prayer life:

1. Watch and Pray
2. Walk and Pray


Objectives of Prayer:

1. Develop authentic prayer life
2. Keep company with God through prayer; communicating; keep it simple; heart's matter.

Draw from the Holy Spirit that dwells within us; His oil; anointing and Power.

The Key to prayer is to have a right view of God; know who are we praying to - God , the Source.

Luke 11:1-13 The Disciples were looking for a formula/method to pray; Jesus not only taught them how to pray (handles); he helped them understand a parable to able to know who God is.

Prayer helps us:
# See Picture of an issue/someone;
# Mirror of ourselves; state of our heart; #Window to see who God is.

Key Principles to learn
1. We serve a God who is more than willing to give; how much more we can come to Him in gladness to pray and seek His face.

Luke 11:9
And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened...


Understand that God is willing and God is able to answer our prayers above and exceedingly.

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Eighth sermon Passion for God's power

Neh 8:1-18

Well infrastructure, sounds systems etc are good; above all and most importantly, Spirit of God must be blown (God's Power, Presence) are essential; it is God who brings dry bones to life; revival; signs of transformation in life.

3 signs in every revival

1. A return assembly of God's people

- lost sheep returns; longs to be amongst hot believers

Stay connected and be amongst the church; cells groups. Acts 2:42-47

He, who stays out and chose to be isolated is liken to the banana that leaves the bunch and gets eaten.;

like a man who chose to be a soldier but refuse to serve nationl service

Outcome: become vulnerable target of the enemy.

2. A restoration of the Word of God

Saturate God's Word at homes, nations...

Water is like a picture of the Word of God;

An illustration of taking bath every day liken the reading of His Word.

#Bath every day with His Word; *Soak in*; chapters

#Taking Shower - reading trickles of verses and scriptures bits and pieces

#Dry clean - reading sporadically; as and when

#Once a week shower- on sundays only.

we are called to bath and soak in the Word

3. A rediscovery of the feast of the tabernacle

The former rain is the feast of the Pentacost; the latter rain is the feast of the tabernacle.; where in the latter there is havest of plentiful, overflow, fruits, oil..

Joel 2:21-27

the people will experience the presence of God's power in the latter rain where:

- fresh, in-filling of the Holy Spirit; baptism of the Holy Spirit..

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Ninth sermon overflow

1 Corinthians 10:31

Phil 1:21

Key point: Giving God all the glory in all things helps us able to handle all situations

4 takeaways to give God all the glory.

1. His Glory demands See who God is in the following perspective:

His Is worthy 

(defines us)

I am a worshipper

He is holy 

(motivates us)

God sets us apart

He is good 

(establish trust)

He is all wise 

(sets our Direction & Purrpose)

He is Father 

(sets our relationship)

He is soon coming King (Victory)

2. His Glory demands *seek to glorify God by enjoying Him forever*

Enjoy His presence; Dwell in Him; In-filling of the Holy Spirit

Learning to enjoy God helps us overcome many life issues; lean on Him

3. His Glory demands fight His battles

Understand the following:

Wrong battle at the wrong time leads to Chaos
Wrong battle at the right time leads to tolerated

Right battle at the wrong time leads to hurts and misunderstanding

Right battle at the right time leads to victory

Lessons:

#Move on from past hurts, discouragement etc baggages

#God has won; Satan defeated; God is in-charge of our destiny; 

Matthew 6:33

#Don't take hurts personally;

God is able; He uses us to come out strong and able to comfort others.

4. His Glory demands I see His vision

To live is Christ; To die is gain

The secret to long life don't die before you die

Takeaway:

Press in; overflow; minster out of the overflow; serve God faithfully; building strong godly family for Christ.