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Sermon Notes
Why Christmas?
John 8:44 – You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want
to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth,
because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own
resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.
Genesis 3:4-5 – 4Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5For
God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will
be like God, knowing good and evil.”
I. The Consequence of the Lie – Shame, Fear, and Hiding
Genesis 3:8-10 – 8And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in
the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of
the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9Then the LORD God called to
Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” 10So he said, “I heard Your voice in the
garden, and I was AFRAID because I was NAKED; and I HID MYSELF.”
• God’s presence did not change; Man’s condition did.
• The Two Shackles of the Fall – They direct and determine our thinking and life.
- Shame – “Something is wrong with me, I am unaccepted.”
- Fear –“I am no longer safe.”
PHYSICAL ALIGNMENT: APPETITE – THE DEMANDS OF THE BODY
Mark 4:28 –
“For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after
that the full grain in the head.”
Matthew 5:13-16 – 13“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how
shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and
trampled underfoot by men. 14You are the light of the world. A city that is set on
a hill cannot be hidden. 15Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but
on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16Let your light so
shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in
heaven.”
Genesis 3:1 – Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which
the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You
shall not EAT of every tree of the garden?’”
Luke 4:1-4 – 1Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan
and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2being tempted for forty days by
the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had
ended, HE WAS HUNGRY. 3And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God,
command this stone to become bread.” 4But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is
written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’”
8 ESSENTIAL TRUTHS ABOUT APPETITE
1. The Body Has Only Four Appetites – Everything else is biological and autonomic.
The Providence of Thanksgiving
I. Thanksgiving began with a Church, not a Country.
II. Thanksgiving was born out of Suffering, not Abundance.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 – In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
III. Thanksgiving was a display of God’s Providence.
Isaiah 65:24 – “It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.”
PHYSICAL ALIGNMENT – MANIFESTATION
I. REPRESENTATION – Your Body displays God “TO” His Creation
• God has Dominion over His Creation – Displayed by Us
Genesis 1:26–27 . . . Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have DOMINION over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. (We are higher than the animals)
• God seeks to Redeem everyone – Displayed by Us
2 Corinthians 5:20 . . . Now then, we are Ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, “BE RECONCILED” to God.
1. They Represent the King, Not Themselves
2. They Carry the Culture of Their Kingdom
3. They Establish Their Kingdom’s Interests in Foreign Territory
4. They Are Not Controlled by the Culture They Are Sent Into
5. Their Provision Comes From Their Kingdom, Not Their Environment
• God seeks to do Good to everyone– Displayed by Us
EMOTIONAL ALIGNMENT – RESTORING GOD’S GOVERNANCE
I. Emotion – God’s design and Satan’s distortion - God has a Divine Order
Mark 4:28 . . . For the earth yields crops by itself: FIRST the blade, THEN the head,
AFTER THAT the full grain in the head.
Genesis 3:6 . . . So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was
pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and
ate.
• Emotion was created to serve truth, not shape it
- The SPIRIT received truth from God.
- The MIND translated that truth into understanding.
- The EMOTIONS gave that understanding energy and expression.
- And the BODY carries it out in the world.
BUILDING THE FRAMEWORK: MENTAL ALIGNMENT
Romans 12:2 – And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
I. Your thoughts are not the problem. Your thinking is.
• Thoughts are the fruit; Thinking is the root.
Ephesians 4:23c – and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.
• You interpret truth through the lens of your mindset.
THE FORMATION OF THE HEAD - FRAMEWORK
Mark 4:28 – For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.
I. God's Order Requires Structure Before Substance
Genesis 1:1-3—In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was WITHOUT FORM, AND VOID; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
Genesis 2:7 – And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
• Building Structure Is Slow Work
THE LAW OF THE SEED; THE STRUCTURING PROCESS, pt. 2
Mark 4:28 – For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.
I. God's Order Requires Structure Before Substance
Genesis 1:1-3—In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was WITHOUT FORM, AND VOID; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
Genesis 2:7 – And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
• Building Structure Is Slow Work
“BREAKING THE SURFACE: THE LAW OF THE SEED”
"Breaking the Surface: The Law of the Seed" discusses biblical principles from Matthew 5:13-16, Mark 4:26-29, Genesis 1:11-12, Galatians 6:7, and other verses. It introduces the "Law of the Seed," stating that everything reproduces according to its kind, and every result is the harvest of a sown seed. This law eliminates randomness and operates automatically according to God's fixed laws and principles. It also determines a divine order of growth, with stages from the blade to the full grain, emphasizing emergence and the new environment of exposure that challenges potential.
The Good Soil
I. Full Potential Demands Being Rooted and Grounded in the Good Soil
• GROUNDED – Founded upon for the purpose of carrying the weight.
• ROOTED – Integrated into the soil for the purpose of connecting us to the ground and drawing the nutrients from it.
II. The True Nature of God’s Love
Next Steps - From Old To New
I. YOU Must Shed the Old Man
Ephesians 4:22 — that “YOU PUT OFF,” concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts (apotithēmi)
If YOU don’t, it won’t.