The UNQUENCHABLE Flame The Apostolic Sword The Secret of True Revival Preaching

Transcription

1 May 30, Wednesday Morning Bible Class--SPRING CLASS Chapter 13 Lesson 10 pt 1 Section 3: Continuous Revival: The UNQUENCHABLE Flame The Apostolic Sword The Secret of True Revival Preaching 1. Who was an angry Pharisee charges (run) up the road to Damascus? 2. Blood boils in his eyes as he breathes, out murderous threats against whom? 3. In his hands hold papers giving him what to crush the fledging (young, new, inexperienced) church? 4. Who sees this Pharisee coming? 5. Jesus raises His hand and the within Him shines out: rays flashed from His hand, where His power was hidden. (Hab. 3:4) 6. Suddenly, a light [ ] from heaven around him [Saul]. So excessively (too much) bright is this lightning from God that instantly (quickly) engulfs (wrap around) young Saul. He falls to the ground, stricken (hit) by the glory of Christ. A sudden view (picture) of Jesus flashes before him [Saul] and he [Saul] Him saying, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me [ ]? Saul nervously asked, Who are You, Lord? The Lord answered to Saul, I am, whom you are persecuting Me. At first, he [Saul] : o How can this be (happen)? We Him [Jesus]. We Him on a tree [ ], and Anyone who is hung on a tree is under God s. (Deut. 21:23, Gal. 3:13) Now it on him [Saul]. Jesus has spoken to me [Saul] from Heaven. o Saul said, Oh, no! That means God s curse was on Him [ ]! A long deep breaks from Saul s lips. fills Saul. Saul grabs his head, rolling on the ground, grinding his face in the dirt, and say, My Lord, what have I done? He, sorrow sweeping over his soul and breaking him in sobs of. Suddenly, like the bursting of the sun from behind a dark cloud, the of Christ floods over his soul. It is just as the Scripture says, they will look on Me, the One they have pierced (crucified), and they will for Him as one mourns for an only child. (Zech. 12:10) PAUL S CONSUMING PASSION: 7. Saul was broken by this vision of. 8. Saul s preaching/teaching is about what? 9. John Stott points out that Paul defined: His gospel as His ministry as His baptism as

2 The purpose of the Lord s Supper as 10. TRUE FALSE: Now Paul s mind had been forever scarred. 11. Paul had fellowshipped with: a) scourged b) stone with heavy rocks c) Jesus sufferings d) shipwrecked 12. These [ ] Paul called his light and momentary troubles. (2 Cor. 4:17) Other translations: For our present trouble, which is only a short time, is working out for us a much greater weight of glory. (BBE) Our suffering is light and temporary and is producing for us an eternal glory that is greater than anything we can imagine. (GW) And this small and temporary we suffer will bring us a tremendous and eternal glory, much greater than the trouble. (GNT) These troubles and sufferings of ours are, after all, quiet small and won t last very long. Yet this short time of distress will result in God s riches blessing upon us forever and ever! (LB) 13. But Paul s HEART had been, cut open by the of the Lord, for the Bleeding One [ ]. o The LOVE OF CHRIST him [Saul] and [overpowering, effect] him [Saul] to preach Christ crucified. This one [ ] burning motive drove Paul. Paul s highest purpose and deepest yearning were by this one [ ] electrifying cause in his [Paul s] life: to bring the reward of His [Jesus ] suffering. Paul wrote, Christ s love compels us because we are convinced that One [Jesus] died for all. (2 Cor. 5:14) Other translations: We are ruled by the love of Christ, now that we recognize that One Man died for everyone, which means that they all share in His death. (GNT) Christ s love has moved me to such extremes. His love has the first and last word in everything we do. (MSG) Whatever we do, it is certainly not for our own profit, but because Christ s love controls us now. Since we believe that Christ died for all of us, we should also believe that we have died to the old life we used to live. (LB) 14. Because of this one consuming passion, Paul came to the Corinthians, not with eloquence or superior [excellence of speech or of wisdom, fancy words or a show of human wisdom]. Paul said, For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and crucified. (1 Cor. 2:1-2) Other translation: While I was with you, I decided to deal with only one subject Jesus Christ, who was crucified. (GW) Jews demand what? Greeks looks for what? Christians preach what? 15. What is the Apostolic Sword? 16. Paul [to wave] the blade of this Apostolic Sword, men and women were to the heart, and the gospel was throughout the world. Many ministers in the Western Church today preach every other rather than the Cross. Name one Paul s chief (top one) obsession: 17. The Christ crucified is: the and, the and the, the and the, the and the, the and the the and the of Paul s soul.

3 Paul wrote, God forbid that I should glory, save in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ! (Gal. 6:14) Other translations: As for me (Paul), however, I will boast only about the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ; for by means of His Cross the world is dead to me and I am dead to the world. (GNT) As for me, God forbid that I should boast about anything except the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that Cross my interest in all that attractive things of the world was killed long ago, and the world s interest in me is also long dead. (LB) 18. John Stott quoted: Paul s whole world was in orbit round the. What does it means to you? It [ ] fills Paul s. It [ ] (light up) Paul s life. It [ ] Paul s spirit. Paul in it [ ]. It [ ] meant more to Paul anything else. perspective should be the SAME as Paul. WHERE ARE THE TRUE APOSTLES? 19. Paul was like what? 20. Paul lifted up what? 21. Paul preached what? 22. We hear much about the apostolic today: Where are the apostles who will preach the apostolic message of the Cross? Where are the preachers who will allow the Lord to pierce their own hearts for the Cross? o They (preachers) from a crucified heart will preach a crucified Lamb, and their one driving motive will be to bring Jesus the of His suffering. Where are those like St. Francis of Assisi whose words were like, piercing the heart? There are those like Savonarola, the great Italian Reformer, who preached with such irresistible power that a reporter, trying to write about his sermon, had to lay down his pen. He said, Such sorrow and weeping came upon me that I could go no further. Where are those like George Whitefield whose preaching was like shooting with rapid bursts into human souls? His sermons were all life and fire. There was no getting away from them there was a holy about him [George W] which firmly took your attention by storm. Where are those like Charles Finney, whose preaching was like a fire and breaking the hard rock of stony hearts? Preaching 40 years of revival. Finney described one of his meetings: The Spirit of God came upon me with such power, that it was like opening a battery upon them. For more than an hour the Word of God came through him (Charles F) and carried all before it [Word of God]. It [Word of God] was like a sword that was piercing to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit. Where are those like Methodist John Benton whose preaching produced the same kind of effects as Peter s on the day of Pentecost when the hearers were pierced to their hearts. Where are those like Richard Baxter, who preached with such force that the rock of hard hearts was into bits. Just as fortresses cannot be stormed without the use of force, human hearts cannot be stormed without. As Baxter said, If a hardened heart is to be broken, it is not stroking but that must do it. Apostolic preaching of the Cross strikes the human heart with blows. Sandy did talking about: a) personal eloquence b) true burning fire c) human ability o Apostolic preaching of the Cross causes one to erupt like a because the message inside cannot be contained (hold).

4 o Jeremiah said, His Word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. (Jer. 20:9) Other translation: And I can t quit! For if I say, I ll never again mention the Lord never more speak in His Name then His Word in my heart is like fire that burns in my bones, and I can t hold it in any longer. (LB) o Where are those who are bursting with the message of the Cross until finally the flames shoot out, settling the dry tinder (a highly flammable material for catching the spark from a flint and steel struck together for fire or light) in other hearts ablaze with? This was how John Wesley preached in 50 years of revival. Here is the heart of Wesley s gospel and the final cue (hint) to his effectiveness. No evangelism will succeed which does not set the CROSS in the. Billy Graham shook the world with his fiery preaching, leading tens of millions to Christ. When his memorial library was dedicated in N.C., his son Franklin said, This library is not about Billy Graham, it s about the message which he preached for 60 years the message of the Cross! Charles Spurgeon wrote, Oh, down, down, down with everything else but up, up, up with the doctrine of the naked Cross and the expiring (dying) Savior! Sandy s former student Sun Hee, a Korean American, ministered in China, she asked the pastors, Do you really have the revelation of the Lamb? If you don t, you can t really preach the Word of God with. J.C. Ryle said, Take away the Cross of Christ and the Bible is a book. It is like the Egyptian hieroglyphics, without the key that interprets their meaning curious and wonderful, but of no value. Sandy believes the chief (primary) reason why so many today are to the gospel is because we have preached a message. PRAYER: o A gospel that fails to take people into the of the sufferings of Jesus will fail to lead them into the of His love. o Charles Spurgeon quoted, You have disemboweled (remove the bowels from your body) the gospel and torn from it [gospel] its very heart when you take out the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ. o James Denney quoted, The condemnation of our sin in Christ upon His Cross is the barb upon the hook. If you leave that out of your gospel and I don t deny that your bait will be taken, but you will not men. What does it means to you? Discuss with group: Dear Jesus, the Word of Life, forgive me for sharing the gospel without a barbless hook to the deaf lost people and did not catch them. Oh! Oh! Jesus, I did not have any revelation of You and Your Cross. Oh let the Fire of Your Cross stab my heart and burn Your Word in my heart and my bones like Jeremiah the prophet. I can t quit. I can t quit. I must go out and share with the deaf lost people about You Jesus and Your Cross. Help me to understanding of Your suffering the Cup of wrath. Oh, let Your Word like a gunfire shooting through my heart. Oh, let Your Word like a volcano erupts in my heart. Oh, open my eyes that I can see the picture of Your Cross where You died for me. Today everything in the world is dead to me and I am dead to the world. My heart is burning like a fire for You O Lamb Jesus. You are the center of my heart. Oh Lord Jesus, the Apostle and the High Priest, it is my responsibility to pray for my pastor, my teacher and my brothers and sisters in Christ, I pray that in the name of Jesus I release the HOLY FIRE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT into their lives and fills them with the power of the message of Your Cross. I pray that You anoint them with the HOLY SPIRIT POWER upon them and they are preaching the gospel of Your Cross to your people. Oh, let the Word of God through them will strike, hit, shoot, stab, hammer upon Your people s hardened heart and let their hardened hearts be shattered and You will humble Your people and bring them before You with heavy convictions in their hearts until Your HOLY FIRE OF HOLY SPIRIT overtakes their lives. You change their lives from glory to glory. Oh! Oh! I believe. I believe. I believe You will do what You promised according to Your Word. You do it now in our lives I pray in Your precious Name. Amen.

5 Answer: 1. Saul 2. the Lord s disciples 3. the authority 4. Lord Jesus 5. splendor 6. [glory], blazes, blindness hears Jesus thinks crucified, [Jesus] hung, [cross] curse dawns, Jesus moan confusion groan, repentance revelation, mourn 7. the crucified and risen Jesus 8. the Cross of Christ 9. the message of the Cross we preach Christ crucified into His death proclaim the Lord s death 10. false 11. c) Jesus sufferings 12. [shipwrecked, scourged, beaten, stoned] 13. circumcised woundings Bled, [Jesus] consumed, compelling [Christ crucified] energized, [Christ crucified] 14. miraculous signs wisdom Christ crucified 15. the message of the Cross 16. brandished struck spread subject Christ crucified 17. joy, delight comfort, peace hope, confidence foundation, resting place ark, refuge food, medicine 18. cross [cross], vision [cross], illumined [cross], warmed gloried, [cross] [cross], than our 19. a burning torch 20. the Apostolic Sword 21. the power of the Cross 22. reward fire gunfire, violence hammer shattered, forceful preaching, strking, irresistible b) true burning fire volcano holy fire center conviction dark, real immune, cup-less depths, heights catch