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The American Bible Challenge – Week 1–Day 2

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Today’s Scripture:  Exodus 3

Introduction:

In today’s message we’re going to talk about a subject that really gets me fired up some times because the majority of Christians today are waiting for God to speak to them through a “Burning Bush”…the problem is we have a burning bush that less than 20% of Christians read on a daily basis…that burning bush is the Word of God.  You know, that thing that’s sitting on your nightstand, coffee table or in your bookcase collecting dust.

I have a feeling that this message may come across with a bit of a rebuking tone, but we’ll have to see where the Holy Ghost takes us.  How many of you know it’s always best to allow the Holy Ghost to give you direction?  In a way, that still small voice of the Holy Ghost is another “burning bush”, but when you neglect the Word of God then you’re also neglecting the Holy Ghost.

How can I say that?  Because the Holy Ghost responds only to the Word of God…and like I said a moment ago…the main way God speaks to us isn’t through a “burning bush”, but through the Bible.  If you want to know the voice of God, if you want to know what the Holy Ghost’s promptings feel and sound like…then you have to spend more time reading the Bible and less time on Facebook, Twitter, and watching television.

Listen, there may be some really good stuff posted on Facebook and Twitter…and I’m one of those that posts on both of those.  However, there is no substitute for spending quality time with just you and your Bible…and I’m admittedly just as guilty as anyone else when it comes to not spending enough quality time reading it…but this is just the introduction…and if the message is going to be anything like the introduction…then I think we’re in for one heck stern rebuke…Amen!?!

Today’s Message:

A Friend Request from the Burning Bush

There was no social media in the time of Moses. Especially in the wilderness of Midian.

There were only sheep and rocks and staffs…and bushes.

I guess that’s the title of today’s message:  “A Friend Request from the Burning Bush”.

See…this gets us right to the point of where we started going during the introduction.  The Word of God is the real burning bush.  I think some times we put way to little emphasis upon personal Bible study, and the proof was the fact that we needed to talk for an entire month about why we should read the Bible.

Can I tell you that our Burning Bush experience isn’t always going to come by word of knowledge from pastor so and so?  Can I tell you that the latest greatest evangelist may not be the burning bush neither?  Can I tell you that the main way that you and I are going to come across a “burning bush” today is by opening that Bible that’s dusty and hasn’t been read in months or maybe even years!?!

I keep coming back to this point, and that point is that when I discovered the statistics about how less than 20% of Christians read their Bibles on a daily basis…that has be extremely concerned…and I believe it’s something that the Lord has impressed upon me to drive home the importance of getting that old dusty Bible out and start reading it again.

I worry that in the 80% that don’t read the Bible on a daily basis are found in pulpits across the country.  I don’t know about the world statistics, and maybe I should have that “global mentality”, but the truth is that when the majority of believing Christians who own Bibles either barely read them or never read them at all…that speaks directly to why there is so much controversy and compromising the truth within American churches today.

That’s why there are so many willing to preach how God loves everyone, and no one is going to hell.  Really?  Where is it writing that none are going to spend eternity in hell.  Friend…let me assure you that what ever the Bible says is absolute truth.  So…if what the Bible says about Heaven is true…and it IS true…that means that what the Bible says about Hell is also true.

There are many differing doctrines and beliefs which is why there are so many denominations, but Paul says that there is really ONE Body…the Body of Christ.  So many are worried about titles.  Listen…there’s only ONE title that we should all be concerned with…Believer or Unbeliever.

If you’re an unbeliever…I don’t care how good a person you are, how many charities you donate to, and how many hours of volunteer work you do at the local soup kitchen.  All of those things are wonderful.  I don’t care if you’ve never let alcohol touch your lips, never took a puff of a cigarette, and have never even learned one curse word.  If you have never been a whosoever that’s called upon the name of the Lord…you are an unbeliever, you are not saved, and you are not going to Heaven…because it doesn’t matter what you do…it matters Who you are in.  The ONLY way to spend eternity in Heaven is to be a whosoever that calls upon the name of the Lord.

If you’re a believer…I don’t care how bad a person you are, how little money you donate to charity, or how many hours you don’t spend working or volunteering.  We should all want to be better people, we should all learn to spread our money to places within our community, and we should also be willing to lend a helping hand…of course all of those things need to be done out of a heart of love in order to matter, but that’s another point for another message.

This part is going to rub religious people the wrong way, but it’s the truth.  I don’t care if you drink, smoke, and cuss…if you are a whosoever that’s called upon the name of the Lord…you are saved, you are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, and you are a new creation.  Yes, I believe that there are many things in our lives that ought to change for the better…and I’ve had many people leave me comments about how my theology is wrong…however…when you’ve had the HOLY SPIRIT personally teach you the CORRECT division of the Word of God…then what you’re saying to me is that the HOLY SPIRIT’s theology is wrong.

I don’t know why we went off on that tangent, but I guess it was necessary.  I have gone way far away from the topic and message at hand, but when you let the Holy Ghost direct…some times that’s going to happen…and you just have to go with the flow of the Spirit.

So, let’s get back to the message…Amen…

But God found a way to reach Moses in the middle of nowhere, where reception seemed minimal – maybe a weak single bar in our cell phone mindset. Moses “Friend” list included hundreds of sheep, who he probably had cute nicknames, but never challenged him or talked to him about deeper issues.

Moses wasn’t really looking for a friend, but God was. God came to Moses because he wanted to involve him in the greatest, most miraculous event in Jewish history.

Can I tell you that God is pursuing your heart?  That He wants you?  He’s seeking after you?  Listen.  We know that God isn’t a respecter of person, and if He pursued Moses, David, Abraham, and others…don’t you know the God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever is pursuing you too?  Look at this…the first thing that happened when Adam and Eve fell is what?  They hid themselves, but God went to pursue them because their fellowship with Him was broken.

Can I tell you that God is doing the same for you whether you know Him or not…or maybe you knew Him and thought God has given up on you.  Let me tell you from my own life that God never gives up on those that are His…and until you take your last breath in rejection of Him…He’s waiting for you to become His.  He loves you…and you are valuable to Him…He sent His Son to prove it.

If you don’t know Jesus then I would like to encourage you to visit this link to find out how you can: 
http://christlikeministriesnwa.wordpress.com/do-you-know-jesus/

Did God seek Moses? Yes. Did God need Moses? No. Did Moses seek God No. Did Moses need God? Yes indeed.

We may not be seeking God, but He is seeking us. We may not want to be friends with God, but He wants to be friends with us.

That’s really the bottom line, friends.  God IS seeking us, and just like He did with the Prodigal Son…God’s wanting to run to you, put His arms around you, and welcome you into the family…the Body of Christ.

Friends…maybe today is your “burning bush” experience, and it can be…just visit the link above if you’re a “whosoever” and never “called upon the name of the Lord” to be saved.  He loves you, and doesn’t need you to clean yourself up or do anything other than come to Him right now…as you are…and follow along all the way to the simple prayer at the end…and you too can know Him not just as your God…but as your Father.

So next time a voice from a burning bush sends you a friend request, listen up. Better yet, listen to the still small voice inside your heart calling out to you.

And ACCEPT.

Oh…yeah…and dust off that Bible…and start reading.  If you need help in knowing where and how to start…we have a free resource available to you…just email me with your contact information…and we’ll get that out to you right away.

Don’t delay any longer.  Make sure that today is the day you respond to the Burning Bush…Amen!?!

Conclusion:

I hope and pray that maybe this message was a sort of Burning Bush for you…especially if you’re a whosoever that has never trusted Jesus as your Lord and Savior.  It’s really simple to do…and just in case you decide not to visit the link provided: 
http://christlikeministriesnwa.wordpress.com/do-you-know-jesus/

Today’s closing prayer is for you…all you have to do is believe in your heart that what Jesus did upon the Cross was for you, and confess that you need a Savior…and you can do all of that by saying this simple prayer:

“Dear Lord Jesus, come into my heart.  Forgive me of my sin.  Wash me and cleanse me.  Set me free.  Jesus, thank You that You died for me.  I believe that You are risen from the dead and that You’re coming back again for me.  Fill me with the Holy Spirit.  Give me a passion for the lost, a hunger for the things of God, and a holy boldness to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I am saved:  I’m born again.  I am forgiven, and I am on my way to Heaven because I have Jesus in my heart.  In Jesus’ Name Amen.”

As a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I tell you today that ALL of your sins are forgiven.  We’d also like to encourage you to find a good, solid Bible based church…and let them know that you have recently accepted Jesus Christ…and ask them to get you plugged in to New Believers, Small Groups, and anything else they can do to help you get going in your walk with God.  Always remember this above all:  God loves you and has a great plan for your life.

 

why read the Bible–day 25 of 32–God’s Guidance

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Today’s Scripture:  “ I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.”  Psalm 32:8

Introduction:

We’re now one more week away from completing this series, and what a way to begin the last seven messages!  Why Read The Bible?  Because that’s how God guide us.  That’s what we read in today’s verse isn’t it?  I don’t have a long-winded introduction for this message because God gave the introduction for me through Psalm 32:8.  So, let’s get right into today’s message.

By the way, if you have made it all the way through all 25 messages so far…good work!  I hope that these messages have helped you to understand just how important to us the Word of God is…and today’s message is about to further drive home just how important God’s Word is to us, and why we need to read our Bibles.

Today’s Message:

One of the greatest reasons that we need to read the Bible is because this is how God’s guidance comes to us.  You know, everyone is waiting for God to speak to them through the burning bush, but the truth of the matter is the majority of the time the greatest way that God is going to speak to us He’s already provided us…He’s going to speak to us through what He’s already spoken…His Word.

I am convinced that what the body of Christ needs to do is stop looking to pastor so and so to speak a word to them, but look to the Bible to see what God’s already said to them.  I think a lot of times people are looking for the man of God to take the place of the Word of God…but really the man of God doesn’t always have anything more to go on than what the Word of God already says.

Listen, I’ve had men of God speak things over me that as soon as they were done I heard God say…”I did not say that.”.  Specifically, I remember a day when someone had laid hands on me and prayed that I was going to ‘do the work of an evangelist”, and I swear to you on everything I know that’s holy…God said:  “That’s not from me.”.  Listen, all pastors can “do the work of an evangelist”.  Anyone who is a born-again spirit-filled believer in Jesus Christ can and should “do the work of an evangelist’.  Even Paul writes in Romans that all can do the work of an evangelist, but not all are evangelists.  All can prophesy, but not all are prophets.  All can teach, but not all are teachers.

Remember in Ephesians 4:12 Paul writes that God called SOME to be prophets, apostles, pastors, evangelists, and teachers?  I sense a short side-journey here…are you ready?  I am convinced that one of the problems in the Body of Christ is that we have a lot of self anointed and self-appointed people in positions of authority in the Body of Christ that God did not place there.  Let me say that again.  There are some people preaching from pulpits that are not called to be preachers.  There are some who call themselves pastors that are not called to be pastors.  They are self-appointed and self-anointed.  Paul said that the Holy Spirit places people in their offices in the body of Christ as HE desires…not us.

Let me give you an example.  I recently had someone applaud me because I wrote on another Social Network site, and even in my biography that God called me to this ministry.  In response to them I said that I didn’t wake up one morning and say to myself:  “I’m going to be the pastor of Christlike Ministries NWA.”  No…what happened is one day I heard the Lord say to me:  “Bryan, I have called you to be the pastor of Christlike Ministries NWA”

Now, what’s significant here are two things.  One, that the Lord called me into this ministry.  He gave me the name, the scriptures, and not until this year He gave me the mission and vision for this ministry.  God gave me all of that…I didn’t call myself into ministry, and I didn’t anoint myself.  Two, God called me a pastor.  He showed me the position in His Body that I was to have, and when He did that there wasn’t any question about what I was supposed to do or what my role in the body of Christ was.  Let me be as clear as I can be…I didn’t call myself nor did I anoint myself as a pastor…God did.   In both cases…now we’re coming back to today’s message…God spoke those things to me through His Word…I didn’t anoint myself as a minister.  I didn’t anoint myself with a ministry…God did.

I had read Jesus’ encounter with Peter a hundred times, but one day when I read the encounter with Peter…God spoke and made those verses personal.  Every time Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him, and Peter responded:  “Lord, You know that I love You.”  Jesus said:  “Feed My Sheep”.  One day when I read that encounter it went from the encounter being between Jesus and Peter to being between me and God.  I understood that God was asking me if I loved Him, and as I responded by saying yes…He said “Feed My Sheep”.  Do you want to know something else?  This is another little side-note that I sense the Lord taking me down now for some of you preachers who have gotten into pride over the size of your congregations.

Preacher, I’m going to share something with you that the Lord told me that burst my pride balloon immediately.  He said:

The sheep I entrust to your care are not your sheep they are Mine.  I have called you to feed MY sheep, and therefore the people who I draw to Your ministry aren’t Yours they are mine.

I’m not sure who that was for, but I know that I was lead to write that for someone.  I know I’m not writing that to myself because I am grateful for every person who likes or follows Christlike Ministries NWA, and I can honestly say that I never consider anyone who decides to follow Christlike Ministries NWA mine.  Everyone of you is God’s, and it’s a privilege to be able to know that God’s entrusted me to equip you or encourage you or instruct you.

Okay, back to the message.  Like I said.  I didn’t one day wake up and anoint and call myself to be pastor of Christlike Ministries NWA.  God anointed me as a pastor when I was reading a devotional book one morning on the Psalms and Proverbs.  The reading for January 13, 2011 was “The Lord is the strength of His people, a fortress of salvation for His “anointed one”.  Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever.” Psalm 28:8-9 NIV.

Now most people probably wouldn’t get that from those two verses, but I did.  As I began to study those two verses out, I already understood what “be their shepherd” meant because pastors are shepherd’s to their flock.  Christians are referred to often as “sheep”, and sheep need a “shepherd”…and that’s what pastor’s are.  Many times you’ll hear that pastor’s have a “shepherd’s heart”…and there’s a difference.  See, shepherd’s have a relationship with their flock of sheep.

God owns the farm, God owns the sheep, but those of us who are called to “Feed My Sheep” are called to be “shepherds”.  See, there it is again.  I cannot ever look at the people who follow my ministry as mine…they aren’t mine.  They belong to God.  You belong to God, and if you follow this ministry I thank God for you…but you aren’t my sheep you’re His.  You belong to Him.  I am responsible and accountable to tending, shepherding, carrying, and instructing you.  That’s all.  I have no right of ownership to you because you don’t belong to me or Christlike Ministries NWA…you belong to God.

So, when it comes to receiving God’s guidance.  Sure.  Sometimes you’ll get a word of knowledge from someone.  For instance, God spoke through Pastor Stephen Robbins that I would one day use my writing ability for the advancement of God’s Kingdom.  However, when it comes to specific guidance and direction for my life and my ministry God spoke to me through His Word…and that’s what the Psalmist is getting at here.

So, if you’re needing God’s guidance…instead of looking for the burning bush or consulting the man of God…try consulting Him and the Word of God.  Listen, I promise you that God is big enough to not only speak His will to you, but show it to you in His Word.  However, I want you to understand something…and maybe this will help a lot of you who are on the fence about serving God…and wondering why it’s taking so long for God’s call upon your life to materialize.

God called me into ministry in January of 2001…specifically around or about January 13, 2001.  I can’t remember exactly when, but I believe it was also during 2001 when God spoke directly to me through His Word in Jesus’ encounter with Peter at the end of the Gospel of John.  On January 13, 2011, is when I read Psalm 28:8-9 NIV to come to the understanding that I am called to be Pastor Bryan J. Kizer of Christlike Ministries NWA.  God gave me the theme and message: 2012 – GETTING SERIOUS ABOUT BEING SERIOUS WITH GOD in February of this year.  Christlike Ministries NWA was launched for good on January 1, 2012.

It took God ten years to get me to the place where He was able to trust me to become a pastor.  It took God eleven years to get me from the conception to the birth of Christlike Ministries NWA.  So, I sense that maybe some of you are wondering why it’s taking so long for you to get to a place where you’re ready, willing, and able to embrace the call of God upon your life.

Listen, to be truthful to you, I’ve known since probably 1999 that I was supposed to do something with my life for God, and I had a little taste of what serving God would be like.  However, I wasn’t ready to hear and embrace that call…I ran from it because I saw myself the way the world did, and I saw myself as inadequate and unworthy to be able to fulfill the call of God upon my life.  So, in all reality I’ve known since 1999 that I was to serve God, but it wasn’t until 2001 when I clearly heard from God and understood that He indeed was calling me.

However, that was in 2001, and I still wasn’t fully able to embrace the call.  I wasn’t mature enough as a believer, and I certainly didn’t have much of a foundation.  So, if you’ve followed along in my messages you’d know that I was incarcerated in the Kenosha County Jail in 2001.  Which was significant because I spent that entire year being instructed by the Holy Spirit in the Word of God, and like I’d mentioned it was during that year that I’d had the Lord speak to me about “feeding His sheep”, but 10 years passed between knowing I was called, and being anywhere near ready to embrace that call.

Even back in January of 2011 when the Lord again spoke to me through His Word that I was going to be Pastor Bryan of Christlike Ministries.  I was still not fully ready to embrace the call of God upon my life, but that’s when He’d begun to use my wife to encourage me to believe in me until I could see myself the way He saw me.  In January of this year, through messages preached by Pastor Cass Hill of New Life Christian Center, and later the theme for 2012 the Lord gave me:  2012 – GETTING SERIOUS ABOUT BEING SERIOUS WITH GOD…that’s when I began to mature, grow up, and embrace the call of God on my life.

Now, over 150 messages later…I’m walking in the vocation in which He called me.  I am Pastor Bryan J. Kizer of Christlike Ministries NWA.  I didn’t call myself, I didn’t anoint myself, and I didn’t have some burning bush experience.  What I had was a slow methodical pushing and pulling from God until He gave me a Holy Ghost kick in the butt from Pastor Cass Hill of New Life Christian Center.

“Why Read The Bible?”…if I never read the Bible I would never be where I am today because I would’ve never heard and received God’s Guidance for my life through His Word.  That’s why we read the Bible…because that’s the main way that God is going to lead us, guide us, speak to us, and mold us into the image of His Son…Amen?

“ I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.”  I am where I am today because I finally got out-of-the-way, and allowed God to do exactly what He said He’d do for me in His Word.  What about you?

Points for Pondering:

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.”  Psalm 32:8

  1. How does God feel about us?
  2. Can you see areas in which the promises in this verse came true in your life?
  3. Where?  When?  How?

Conclusion & Prayer:

Well, glory to God.  We have six days left in this series after today.  I would again like to give a word of encouragement and congratulations to those of you who have managed to follow along.  However, what’s much more important to me isn’t that you’ve followed along, but rediscovered your own passion for the Word of God.  Maybe until you began to follow along with this series you didn’t know why the Bible was so important…and you didn’t have any passion for the Word at all.  The bottom line, friends, is that what’s most important to me isn’t that you’re following Christlike Ministries NWA, but that you’re making a firm commitment to follow after the heart of God.

How do we do that?  By being committed to reading and studying His Word.

Father God, thank You as always for Your Word.  Thank You for practical ways to illustrate Your Word.  Thank You that I can use my life to illustrate what You’ve done in my life, and I pray, Lord for those reading along that You would do a work in them and their lives.  Lord for those who have never had a passion for Your Word…I pray that You’d light a fire in their hearts that cannot be put out.  For those who have rediscovered a passion for Your Word, I pray that You would fan the flames of their hearts, and that the fire in their hearts for Your Word would burn hotter and more intense than ever before, and for those who are already on fire and have a passion for Your Word, I pray that You would give us greater wisdom, knowledge, and understanding of Your Word…and also that You’d fan the flames in our hearts as well…and let the intensity of the fire and passion in our hearts drive us always to the Cross that we would remain on fire, but humble.  Lord, lead us and guide us…allow us greater discernment to know when and where You are…and we love You.  We give You all honor, all glory, and all praise.  We thank You so much for the Word of God for it is a lamp unto our feet, a light unto our path, and ammunition for the spiritual battles that are before us.  In Jesus’ name we glorify You God…Amen & Amen.