HOW TO GET CLOSER TO GOD
50 Days of Transformation - Part 1 (Spiritual Health)
Rick Warren
January 25-26, 2014
The further away you get from God, the more your life is troubled.
The closer you get to God, the more your life is transformed.
The shepherd must be watchful to protect them from harm or danger.
THE LOST SON & LOVING FATHER:
LUKE 15:11-24
Jesus told this story: “A man had two sons. The younger son told his father, ‘Give me my share of your estate now, instead of waiting until you die.’ So his father divided his wealth between his sons. A few days later the younger son packed all his belongings and left home to live in a distant land. (He got as far away from his Father as he could.) There he squandered the gift he’d been given and wasted his life and money on wild parties and reckless living. About the time all his money ran out, a severe famine hit the land, and he began to starve because he was left with nothing.
The only job he could find was feeding swine on a farm. He became so desperate and hungry that even the pig slop he was feeding the swine looked good to him. But no one would give him anything for his hunger.
When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘This is crazy! At my Father’s home even the lowest paid workers eat well, while I’m far away dying of hunger! I’m going to return home to my Father and humbly say: Father, I have sinned against both God and you, and I am not worthy to be a part of this family or called your son. But please just make me one of your servants who works for you.’ With that attitude, he headed back home to his Father.
But while the son was still a long distance away, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran out to his son, threw his arms around him, and kissed him! The son said ‘Father, I’ve sinned against both God and you, and I’m no longer worthy of being called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring me the finest robe in our house and put it on him. Then get my signet ring for his finger and shoes for his feet. Then roast the calf we have been fattening. We’re going to celebrate with a feast of eating and drinking. For this child of mine was distant and dead but now he’s back and alive! He was lost, but now he’s found! So the party began!’”
1.
GET FED UP and dissatisfied with my life to do something about it.
“...he wasted it all…he had nothing left…he got desperate and hungry… he finally came to his senses...”Luke 15:13-14, 17
The son was very self centered and greedy. He asked his father to give him his inheritance and then he took off and distanced himself from his family to squander all that was given to him to live a reckless and hedonistic lifestyle. He became homeless and a poor beggar. A young Jewish boy is not supposed to take pork - it is not kosher - but he accepts pig slop from a swine farmer, since he is starving to death in a foreign country. He finally came to his senses.Nothing in your life will be transformed in the next 50 days until you get desperate for change. When you feel distant from God you must become desperate and hungry and anxious for change. You must go back home to God, reconnect with Him. Admit you have walked away from God and tried to live life on your own power and realize it doesn't work.
On judgment day God will say to many people, "You never intended to find me or know me. You were too full of yourself, proud to say I need God in my life."
GOD: “You’ll find me when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else.”
Jeremiah 29:13
Jeremiah 29:13
2.
OWN UP to my sin, faults, failures, weaknesses. It is my responsibility.
“When he came to his senses, he said...“I have sinned against God and you...”Luke 15:17-18
Take inventory of your life. To live your life disconnected from the loving creator God is stupid, irrational and illogical. Living without God is nonsense it causes: stress, worry, lonliness,troubles, etc.
“Your sins have separated you from your God, and God has hidden his face from you...”Isaiah 59:2
When you feel distant from God and your prayers are not being heard, it is because your sins separate you from God. Guess who moved?Sin is backing away from God and doing things your own way.
You are as close to God as you choose to be.
Blame is spelled: Be lame.
You can't blame anybody except yourself concerning your relationship to God.
King David prayed this prayer after he committed adultery and murdered his wife's husband. He is owning up to his sin... he doesn't conceal it, he reveals it.
“Be merciful to me, O God, because of your constant love. Because of your great mercy wipe away my sins! Wash away all my evil and make me clean! I recognize my faults and I am conscious that I’ve sinned against you.”Psalm 51:1-4 (TEV)
“The Lord says, ‘No matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can remove it. I can make you as clean as freshly fallen snow.’”Isaiah 1:18 (NLT)
God will forgive you.The HABIT of a Regular Spiritual Check-up:
Check for Spiritual Cancer:
It is best to check your soul and spiritual condition regularly to nip any problems early before they bloom into bigger troubles and dominates and controls your life, steals your vision, kills your purpose and life.Check the way you think.
Since your thoughts about people, God and your life, money, sex, etc. that will control how you behave.
50 Days of 5 minutes of daily devotional reading.
Take the spiritual assessment on page 20-24 for your soul's check up and evaluate yourself.
“Test yourself to make sure you’re solid in the faith. Don’t drift along taking everything for granted. Give yourself regular checkups. If you fail the test, do something about it.”2 Corinthians 13:5 (Mes)
“A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.”1 Corinthians 11:28 (NIV)
You should NEVER take communion without doing a self examination and confession.3.
OFFER UP my life. Ask God to make you the person you are supposed to be.
The son drifted away saying, “GIVE ME MY share...”Luke 15:12
He returned to the Father saying, “MAKE ME a servant”Luke 15:19
Note the change in attitude. Nothing will happen in your life until you change from being self centered to a God centered life.
It's a lifetime transformation.
Transformation is never instant, automatic or happens all at once. Transformation is a transistion that is a continual process that times time and your entire life with ever increasing glory from one stage to the next.
Metamorphosis is the Greek word in the bible that means change like a caterpillar worm transformed into a beautiful butterfly. The caterpillar completely dies and dissolves for a period of time to itself to become completely transformed into a new creature.
“Because God is merciful to you, OFFER YOURSELVES as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. And do not conform to the pattern of this world, but BE TRANSFORMED by the renewing of your mind.”Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
We were created to be transformed to soar and live beautifully & free. It's a long process.
When the prodigal son returns to his father he is turning his life back around after being distant, he became fed up, owned up, offers up himself to become a servant to his father.
THE FATHER’S RESPONSE
HE runs to meet his wayward son and warmly welcomes him home.
“Filled with love and compassion, he ran out to his son, threw his arms around him, and kissed him!...Bring the best...”Luke 15:20, 22
4.
LIFT UP your praise. Be grateful. Have an attitude of gratitude. Learn how to sing & worship.
“We’re going to celebrate with a feast of eating and drinking...He was lost but now he’s found! So the party begin!”Luke 15:23-24
Romans 12:1 - Because GOD is merciful to you. Offer yourselves as living sacrifices to God, this is your act of service. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
If there was a better life than just the good life, wouldn't you want to know about it and live it?
The way is to live God's way.
“Sing to God, sing praises to his name; LIFT UP A SONG to him... his name is the Lord!”Psalm 68:4 (ESV)
“I will sing to the Lord because he has been so good to me!”
Your voice doesn't have to be pretty - just joyful.
"Make a joyful noise unto the Lord." Psalms 98:4
“On the night he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread and spoke a PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING. He broke the bread and said, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.’”1 Corinthians 11:23-24
Communion is a commandment from Jesus to remember Him and to do regular self evaluations to confess our sins and ask God to help us change.
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