ELVIS HAS LEFT THE BUILDING 1 Sam 4:19-22 READ
What is God’s glory? Its his presence and his covering. Its everything good about God manifest.
1.God’s Glory will leave a Nation
- The Glory has departed from Israel
- Hophni and Phineas took advantage of God’s stuff, Eli was disobedient to God, There was no repentance, There was no discipline, no regard to Gods word
- The Glory of God will depart from any nation that refuses to live by his standards.
- Jeremiah 3:8 I saw that for all the causes for which backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce;
- We do not worship God as a nation, We do not uphold scripture as God’s standard, we do not walk in obedience to God. How can we believe that God’s blessing is still upon America? And God’s blessing isn’t financial prosperity and less taxes. That’s nice- but God’s prosperity is his PRESENCE its REVIVAL of HIM. Its love, joy, and peace. That’s the blessings of God
- God left Israel because of one family’s disobedience and you think he’s turning a blind eye to millions in disobedience?
2.God’s Glory Will leave a congregation
- Rev 2:5 remove the lampstand- They hated evil, they worked hard, they were patient, they called out false preachers. But they didn’t have LOVE so Jesus said- repent or I will remove you!
- Because you lost your first love- ME-
- Why would God allow a congregation to exist that doesn’t love him?
- If you love God- you obey his word, you love people, you love HIM, you make it about him, not about you
- The Glory in 1Sam4 is God’s glory leaving the congregation of Israel. God wasn’t having it
- Isa 1: 12-16 READ
- God desires holiness! He desires repentance!
- I realize we’ve been rooting out the evil these past few weeks- but lets trust God and his word!
- Having good sounding music, or lights, or preaching or events or discipleship without LOVE is WORTHLESS. We can be HOLY and LOVING at the same time! But it’s a BIBLICAL love
- John 2: 17 Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.”
- Psalm 26:8 Lord, I have loved the habitation of Your house, And the place where Your glory dwells.
- God dwells in the congregation. Yes, we are the temple of the HS. But wherever 2 or 3 are gathered is not a scripture about church. Its about discipline. God has always been in the congregation building business, not the individual building business.
- Christianity is a community driven endeavor not an individualistic one.
- 1 cor 13- If we have not love we are a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal
- Make no mistake- God will not bless or maintain with a congregation not operating in love
- Hosea 9:12 Though they bring up their children, Yet I will bereave them to the last man. Yes, woe to them when I depart from them!
God’s glory will leave a person
- 1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,
- I’m not a once saved always saved guy- some people are. I just don’t think its biblical.
- Eli was God’s appointed man at one point, at the end, not so much. Everyone destroyed.
- Matt 24: 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved
- 2 Peter 2:20 For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning.
- God’s glory will leave a person who no longer is obedient to God or walking in his grace and mercy
- Hebrews 3:12 Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;
How do we keep the Glory from departing
- Keep love alive
- In the Christian life, everything must be motivated by and covered in Love. “whoever does not love, does know God, because God is love”
- You can be truthful and loving. You can be demanding and loving. You can be holy and loving. But you can’t be truthful, demanding, and holy without love. Love is everything
- Rev 2:5 Jesus told the Ephesian church that they had lost the love
- It creeps in- little by little. You pay attention to the standard more than you pay attention to the heart- Am I being the most loving person? Am I operating from love? Is love for God and others my motivation?
- 1 John 4:8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
- Indications of cold love- sense of responsibility instead of passion. Feeling of requirement rather than relationship. Going through the motions. Looking for problems. Critical spirit. Unforgiving heart. Uncaring attitude. Indifference to sin. Isolation from others.
- Ephesians 4:2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
- in our life and the church. Everything we do comes from a love of God and his glory- if we don’t love him- what are we doing? God wants us to love him first and foremost above all
- You can tell when someone doesn’t love you and you can tell when someone doest love God
- Luke 10:27 So he answered and said, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ”
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- Resist sin
- Many churches and families fall into disrepair because they allow sin in the camp. Sin is pervasive, but when you just look the other way like Hophni and pHineas- DESTRUCTION
- Christian family allowed daughter to have boyfriend stay with them in her room
- Do not allow unrepentant sin in ourselves or our church Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
- Sin always destroys. The bible says the wages of sin is death
- James 1:15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
- Secret unrepentant sin of Hophni and Phineas hurt Israel
- I’ll feel like things aren’t well in the church and then come find out reckless sin in someone
- Sin separates. Sin destroys. Sin hurts. We can’t turn a blind eye to it.
- I heard a pastor say that he knew people who had been hurt by church discipline? If they were sin- it shouldn’t hurt- it should cause the sinner to repent- but instead they attack
- Church discipline keeps the body holy. We can’t celebrate sin. We must resist it.
- Be obedient
- Disobedience in ourselves or in our church. God loves the obedient.
- John 14:21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
- Do you know what disobedient people want to talk about? Your disobedience. They do not want to look at themselves at all.
- I’ll tell you- I have disobedience in my life. Not huge things- small things. Usually small things the HS tells me to do that I disobey and not do them and then feel horrible after.
- We must be obedient to the word of God and the spirit.
- 1 peter 1:14 as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance;
- God will not tolerate or bless a congregation that walks in disobedience
- You can’t go against God’s word and expect that God will stick around He is his word.
- Church up north went from 4k to less than 200 selling their buildings firing staff
- Because they started operating against God’s word. I’m glad that church is dying It should!
- Preach the true Gospel
- Here is the Gospel- Jesus forgives sin- put your faith in him, turn from sin and live for him
- Believing and preaching a False Gospel- love gospel, prosperity gospel, social justice gospel
- allowing false teachers- people that draw people to themselves. For their own agenda an gain
- 2 cor 5:20-21 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. 21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
- The Gospel is repentance and forgiveness of sins.
- Destroy Idols
- God wants to be worshipped above all else. He wants no one else above him
- First commandment- I am the Lord your God, thou shalt have no other Gods before me
- Allowing Idolatry Isaiah 42:8 I am the Lord, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, Nor My praise to carved images.
- Idolatry is loving anything more than God- Our families, our jobs, our plans, our ministries, anything
- Luke 14:26“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.
