“Behold I Am with You Always”
Introduction: From ancient times God gave us an identity.
- He called us the offspring of Abraham who would bless the world (Genesis 12; Galatians 3:29)
- He said we would be a “kingdom of priests.” Exodus 19:5-6; “ …you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’
Cf. 1 Peter 2:9 “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. - He prophesied in Zechariah 3:10, “In that day, declares the Lord of hosts, every one of you will invite his neighbor to come under his vine and under his fig tree.”
- How Can We Do What Seems Beyond Our Ability?
- Like Moses, we readily say, “Who am I that such a great work should be placed on my shoulders?”
- First, remember Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 4:7, “But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.”
- Matthew 28:18-20 can you imagine what is was like for the apostles when Jesus told them he was leaving? It is evident by the fact that Jesus repeatedly encouraged them the night before his death.
- 2 Corinthians 5:16–6:1 He has made us a new creation, giving us the ministry of reconciliation, entrusting to us the message of reconciliation as ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. Therefore (6:1), we are “working together with him…” The fact that he has given us this ministry so that we can work together with him, indicates a partnership. In other words, we are not doing this on our own.
- Training of the 12: With Every Command, Jesus Is There
- Mark 4:35-41 Stilling the storm. As we serve the Lord, unimaginable obstacles will arise…where is your faith?
- Mark 6:7-13 Sending out the twelve (limited commission). When the Lord gives “unreasonable” commands, where is your trust?
- Mark 6:30-44 Feeding the 5000. When what we have is not enough, do we trust he will supply what we don’t have.
- Mark 6:45-52 Get in the boat and go to the other side. When we have seemingly used all our strength, do we trust him to bring us the rest of the way?
Conclusion: Our strength and resources will never be enough—but it isn’t our strength that matters—it is his. Luke 17:1-6
Berry Kercheville
Podcast: Download (18.9MB)