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 of the Day
Psalm 119:17-24 Deal generously with your servant so that I might live; then I will keep your word.
18 Open my eyes so that I may contemplate wondrous things from your instruction.
19 I am a resident alien on earth; do not hide your commands from me.
20 I am continually overcome with longing for your judgments.
21 You rebuke the arrogant, the ones under a curse, who wander from your commands.
22 Take insult and contempt away from me, for I have kept your decrees.
23 Though princes sit together speaking against me, your servant will think about your statutes;
24 your decrees are my delight and my counselors.
Read the entire Psalm
Psalm 119 is a long reflection on the wonder of God’s word. God’s word is a grace gift to us and requires grit (action) for us to apply it. Look for the grace in the Psalm. Notice all the things that the Psalmist asks for God to do. Then look for the grit, all the things the Psalmist says he will do or has done. Praise God for His wondrous word.Scripture Reading
2 Peter 1:1-15 – New International Version
1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:
2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
12 So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. 13 I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, 14 because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. 15 And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things.
Having God’s Ear through Prayer
- Express thanks 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 pray for Austin and Jenni and their family. Ask God to encourage them and guide them as they are in the states.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
In verses 3-4, Peter claims that, through our knowledge of Christ, God has granted us both His divine power and His precious and very great promises. God has done this for a purpose: so that through them we may become “partakers in the divine nature.”
The New Testament teaches that Christians now live “in” Christ and He lives “in” us (John 14:20, John 15:1-10, Col. 1:27, Rom. 8:10, Eph. 3:17, Galatians 2:20). Our physical bodies have become temples of the Living God, whose Spirit dwells within us (1 Cor. 6:19).
Stop and consider these realities this morning. Thank God for His Divine power displayed in the Gospel. Thank Him for His great and precious promises to you. Thank Jesus for His willingness to die on the cross for your sin and then to defeat it in the resurrection. Thank Him for sitting at the right hand of the Father and interceding for you this morning.
Ask the Father to empty you of yourself today. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you anew with His presence and power. Commit yourself to walking in Christ today and ask Him to be at work in you.