Hearing God’s Voice from His Word
James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.”
Take a moment and turn your attention to God. Tell God that you desire to trust and obey Him. Ask God to speak to you from His word.
Psalm 98:1-3 Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. The Lord has made his salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations. He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Read the entire Psalm
Praise God because he reveals himself. This Psalm reminds us that he has made his salvation known. We can know God because he has revealed himself.
SCRIPTURE READING:
1 Peter 1:1-2 – New Living Translation
1 This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ.
I am writing to God’s chosen people who are living as foreigners in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. 2 God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ.
May God give you more and more grace and peace.
Having God’s Ear through Prayer
- Express thanksgiving to God.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal sin to you.
- Confess your sin to Him and receive forgiveness.
(1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sin He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins.”) - Bring your personal requests to God.
(Psalm 62:8 “Pour out your heart before God”) - Pray for someone in your small group.
- Join with others from River and those who do not know God. Ask God to give you opportunity to have gospel conversations and to build trust with those in your life who do not know God.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
Do you often look at what is happening in your life and in the lives of others, and then take those experiences and try to make sense out of Scripture? Or do you think you are more likely to take what you know of Scripture and then try to make sense out of what you see in your life and in the world around you? I understand that it’s not that simple. Of course, we will go to Scripture and try to make sense out of our experiences, but it is important to understand which lens we are to use to gain understanding. Our lives cannot be the lens for understanding Scripture (though experience can increase wisdom). Scripture must be the lens for understanding our experience. When we begin with ourselves, we are elevating our own individual and extremely limited experiences to the place that God alone (and God’s Word) can legitimately have in our lives. Consider a puzzling world event or personal struggle you are experiencing. If you are honest, would you say that you take what you know of Scripture and scrutinize that event or struggle? How does the Bible help you make sense out of the world as it is? I don’t mean in terms of simplistic details. It’s often said, “Everything happens for a reason.” Of course, that is true, but in our lives, it doesn’t mean we will always see or appreciate that reason. What I mean by making sense out of the world is that the Bible will give a framework through which everything that has or will happen can be understood in general terms. The Bible is God’s word and therefore it is going to accurately and adequately describe the world as it actually is.
Application
As you move through your day, imagine that you are looking through a lens that is a Biblical worldview. (Hopefully you actually are, but it helps to imagine it in more literal terms). What do you see as you move through the day, drive your car, experience emotions, deal with difficult people? How would you see differently if you did not wear this lens?