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 41:1-3 Happy is one who is considerate of the poor;
the Lord will save him in a day of adversity.
2 The Lord will keep him and preserve him;
he will be blessed in the land.
You will not give him over to the desire of his enemies.
3 The Lord will sustain him on his sickbed;
you will heal him on the bed where he lies.
Read the Entire Psalm
Look at the things the first verses of this Psalm tells us that God will do. He will save. He will keep. He will preserve. He will not let enemies destroy. He will sustain. He will heal. Will we see Him do all those things in every circumstance during our earthly life? No. But God is eternal and we were made for eternal life with Him. In eternity He does do all these things for those who trust in Him. He is trustworthy. You are blessed if you trust Him. Thank Him that He is trustworthy. Ask Him to help you trust Him today.
Scripture Reading
1 John 1:5-2:2 – New International Version
5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
2 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
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 Sarah as she serves overseas. Ask God to encourage her and guide her and use her for His glory.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
C.S. Lewis wrote, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” John wrote, “God is light, in him is no darkness at all.” What are some things that make light so special or useful versus darkness? Light reveals, darkness hides. Light makes the path safe; darkness makes it dangerous. Light brings comfort, darkness can make us anxious. There are also many symbols in the light/dark motif. Light is truth, dark is lies. Light is purity, dark is evil. These symbols of light and dark are not about colors, but about the presence or absence of photons. Light reveals colors; darkness conceals them. When John writes that God is light, he is referring to the two main biblical motifs of “truth and holiness.” To walk in the light of God is to live in his truth and with his kind of holy life. The good news is not that God is light, though that is important truth. The good news for us is that we can know God and have fellowship with him. We can walk in the light as he is in the light. I know people who are blind. They walk in physical darkness, but they do not walk in spiritual darkness. Plenty of people can see with their eyes, but they live in the darkness of lies and sin. Today you will see because the sun has risen, and it is bouncing photons off the world back to your eyes. Today will you see that because the Son has risen, your sins are forgiven and you can walk in the light?