The Rock of KC

Due to some technical issues, we weren't able to record this message from Pastor Phillip O'Reilly so I, Andrew, read Pastor Phillip O'Reilly's sermon notes for this message.

- 1 Sam. 17:1-47 - the israelite army was listening to the enemy and was scared. David heard Goliath and a spark welled up inside to defend God's honor. - Saul lost sight of God (v. 35-36) - Characteristics of a Cause: 1. it is bigger than any of us (Col. 3:17) - we are here for teh glory of God - the kingdom of God is first - not my family or possessions - everything I do is to the glory of God 2. it is something you will die for 3. you are in its hand - it possesses you, you don't possess it, it is not self-possessed 4. it leaves you with no choice - you must deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Jesus (Matt 16:24) 5. you exist for the cause 6. you can't ignore it - the Holy Spirit is constantly nudging me to glorify God in my life and words, and convicting me when I'm wrong. 7. it has eternal significance 8. it never changes - it's always the glorification of Jesus Christ 9. it generates power 10. it creates change

Matt. 26:63-68; 27:22-31 - spitting was to degrade the soul - spit of the soldiers can represent the wrath in our hearts - Jesus took our spit to the cross - everytime we willfully disobey, we're spitting on the face of God - Isa. 50:6 - God carried my spit to the cross - the sinless One took on the fade of a sinner so that we sinners could take on the face of a saint - 1 Cor. 15:1-22 - if there is no resurrection, there is no afterlife, and we are still in our sins, faith is futile, and our hope is to be pitied but...HE IS ALIVE, HE DID RISE and we now have a responsibility. - the death of Jesus: - at the age of 33, Jesus was condemned to the death penalty - each nail was 6-8 inches long - Jesus endured this reality for over 3 hours - JEsus had to endure this experience, so that your sins can be washed away. All of them, with no exception. - it's now your responsibility (Matt. 27:4, 27:24)

- Ps. 30:5 - there is more favor in your future - flow of God's favor, will usually come to you through someone observing you who is capable of blessing you (book of Ruth) - you and I are to stand in favor (Rom. 4:18-5:21) - hope = confident expectation - we need to live in the favor zone so grace can reign in and through us - the path of wisdom is the path of favor (Luke 2:52, Prov. 8) - wisdom allows you to know when to apply the knowledge you have - when favor is on your life it overflows to people around you.

- God wants to surround your life with favor Favor: - there is no quota of favor - you have not used it all up - God's favor is enduring, it is never ending as long as you have breath there will be favor - it is always around us, on us, within us - God's favor will give you favor with the right people - God's favor will open doors of opportunity - big opportunity starts with small opportunities - we are never too big to serve - God has favor planned for your future - there is more grace in your future - when you are favor minded, you not only see favor increase, but you also see opportunity to give favor and grace helping others - don't lose heart (Gal. 6:9) - you don't have to go looking for favor and grace, it'll come to you - God will make happen for us what we cannot make happen for ourselves. We are to stand in favor.

Gen. 6:5-8, Lev. 26:8-9, Ps. 5:2, Ps. 84:11, Ps. 90:17, Prov. 3:3-4 (How do we get favor? Binding mercy and truth to our neck and hiding God's word in our heart) Micah 6:8 (mercy and justice), Dan. 1:9, Luke 1:28-30, Acts 2:46-47 1. Favor is the outworking of God's grace (grace is getting what we don't deserve; mercy is not getting what we deserve) - Titus 2:11 - grace appeared in Jesus - if you yield to grace, it wants to come and free you from habitual sin 2. We must battle against our instincts to qualify for God's favor - we often put up walls because we think we need to qualify for grace 3. We don't qualify for God's favor, we receive it 4. Favor is not based on who you are, but whose you are (Matt. 7:9-11) - I am God's child - it's not about being better than others, it's about being part of the family of God 5. When you are favor-minded, you will see favor increase - if you're trouble-minded, you see trouble increase - if you're anger-minded, you see anger increase - if you're poverty-minded, you will always be in poverty - you're not just looking to get favor, but to give it 6. Don't allow yourself to think differently about yourself than God has thought about you (Num. 13:30-33) 7. You can grow and increase in favor (Luke 2:52, 1 Sam. 2:26) - God's favor will give you favor in the eyes of the right people at the right time to do and be what He has called you to do and be - when you have confidence in God's favor, it releases you from the striving of getting man's favor. - confidence in God's favor releases you from having to feel that you have to manipulate yourself to the top - if you join the rat race, it makes you a rat - have confidence that God will take care of you. He will put you where you belong and need to be.

Gen. 1:27-29, 1 Kings 17:8-24, 2 Kings 3:9-24, Mark 6:34-42, John 2:1-11 (weddings are important in the eyes of God), 2 Kings 4:1-7 - partnering with God for supernatural provision 9 truths: 1. man was given dominion, but not ownership (Ps. 24:1) 2. growth is not man's domain (1 Cor. 3:6-7) - we only plant the seeds, God causes the growth 3. God involves us in the process 4. start with what you have 5. you always have a seed - God always has a seed for you 6. God cannot lie 7. God cannot fail 8. God cannot be second - He's the first and the last - "seek first the Kingdom of God", - first things first, need to fix the leaks before you can receive more, - tithe is first fruits, offerings come after 9. Get the Order Right: a.Tithe : This will break greed faster than anything. You must be willing to fix the leaks in order to receive more. b. Offerings: Planned, Purposeful, Regular, Joyful c. Beyond Our Means: (2 Cor.8:3) - Natural First-Supernatural Second - When You Need an Increase quit looking for a miracle and look for a jar!

- God is a generous giver (Matt. 20:20-28, John 3:16, Rom. 8:28-32) - we are never more like God than when we give - God loves a cheerful giver (2 Cor. 9:7) - we are to be imitators of God (Eph. 5:1) This is a command, not a suggestion. - we are to be generous with our time, talent, and treasures (2 Cor. 9:6, Luke 6:38) - giving leads to life

Matt. 20:25-28 - greatness is defined by servanthood Mark 10:35-45 - tag, you're it (John 13) Jesus washes the disciple's feet - pick up a towel - not a title 4 qualities of a servant: 1. the job is never too small - people do not catch what you preach/say, they catch what you have 2. it's a free choice - it's not something they have to do 3. they have the value to be served - servants are the royalty of the church and are true givers 4. never lose sight of the mission (Matt. 25:14-23) - success in the eyes of God is serving

Ps. 143:3-4, 2 Cor. 4:8-9 What to do when you don't know what to do. 1. Pursue God with all your heart - passionately pursue God - get your heart in the right place 2 Chron. 20:3-4 - don't let the problems paralyze you, but let them drive you to God - there's power as you pursue God - Ps. 18:6 - cry out to the Lord - God is moved when we're moved - 2 Sam. 12:20 - worship when you don't know what to do - Luke 22:54 - have you begun to follow Jesus from a distance? - be a prayer warrior - not a prayer worrier - move your focus away from worry and towards God instead Jer. 29:13 2. Choose your companions wisely (Heb. 3:13, 1 Cor. 15:33) - fast from the criticizing people around you and start hanging around loving people instead 3. Resolve past hurts - Lord search my heart and cleanse me of wounds - things kept in the dark will foster over time - ask God for help (Matt. 11:2) - doing the work - step up, be courageous, and rise up. Don't just dwell on your past hurts, resolve them and move on. 4. Do what you can do - you can't change people's positions or their circumstances - when we stop trying to do things we can't do, it frees God to do what only He can do - loving people serving, praying - help someone else, love on someone else (1 Cor. 15:58) - part of healing from knee surgery is to walk - even when you don't feel like it - because it helps speed up the recovery (2 Chron. 20:22, Heb:10:36)

Luke 10:25-37 - we are to do likewise - the greatest character you have as a Christian, is the love that you express - don't let your excuses keep you from expressing the love of Jesus to those He's placed in your life - this is a theme through the Bible: Rom. 13:8-10, Lev. 19:18, Gal. 5:14 - God says I'm the Samaritan and I need to put some of my own resources out to love my neighbor - this doesn't mean that we must love ourselves before we can love anyone else; it means that in the same way we take care of ourselves and are concerned about our own interests, we should take care and have concern for the interests of others. - 1 John 4:20-21 - since I love God, I must love my brother also - only by the work of the Holy Spirit can we truly love our nieghbors - John Vianney said: "Love for our neighbor consist of three things: 1. to desire the greater good ov everyone; 2. to do what good we can when we can; 3. to bear, excuse and hide other's faults" - I am to love my neighbor: (1 Cor. 13:1-13) * patiently * kindly * without envy * without boasting * without pride * without rudeness * with no strings attached (love is not self-seeking) * without being easily angered * by protecting * by hoping * by persevering

Mark 12:28-34 - every other act is useless if you don't love God first - God doesn't just want our obedience, He wants our love. - It is easy to think that religious ceremony and devotion are more important than love for God and our neighbor, but this isn’t the case. A thousand empty burnt offerings are not more to God than a single act of love done in His name. Loving God involves: 1. Obedience (John 14:23 "If you love Me, you'll keep My commandments" - God's love language is obedience. 2. Self-Denial (Matt. 16:24) 3. Seek First the Kingdom of God (Matt. 6:33) 4. From the Heart (Mark 7:6-7) 5. From a Passionate Heart (Matt. 24:12)

Genesis 50:22 - the back-story of Joseph's experience - there's a huge difference between trying to be a believer and just being a believer - beyond: the past, the offense, the pain, the judgement or justification of revenge or defense, the emotions. As a family, they had to make the decision that things would be different. That they would move beyond. - we live in a world of whiners - Get Over It Tools For Getting "Beyond" 1. Forgive - it's not optiona, it's a command (Matt. 6:16, John 20:23) - unforgiveness causes us to retain the pain of the past - it accomplishes nothing - forgiveness is to cut loose the pain of the past and give your whole life to the love of Jesus 2. Forget (Phil. 3:13) - there are things ahead of us, that if we don't forget the past, we'll never be able to enjoy the life or the family God has planned for us. 3. Press On (Phil. 3:13-14, John 20:23, Ps. 45:1) - it's possible for your life to be so full of regret, guilt, unforgiveness, and shame, that there's no capacity for us to really grab a hold of and experience not only the present but have vision for the future. We've got to get beyond those hurts because there's something greater at stake. - I refuse to let my failures of my past control my future. 4. Looking Back (Gen. 50:20) - because the past is real, then how do we view it? The same way Joseph did. We see the good and not the bad. We see the promise and not the pain, we see the family together, whole and enjoying life. - Joseph and his brothers, and their families, got beyond their past. - discontentment gets us stuck being held back. Godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Tim. 6:6) - our families and home is a big deal. Don't take it for granted. - learn how to release things like God forgives and forgets our sins

Giving Account: Our Words and the Golden Rule Matt. 12:22-37, 7:12 - golden rule - every person will give an account of their words to God, whether they want to or not. - Lev. 19:16-18 - God wants us to live out this life as Jesus did - Rom. 14:11-12 - your words reveal your heart, God is God of the heart - Rom. 7:12 - God is a God of action "Do to others..." - Jesus requires that you show kindness to others - speak evil of no man 10 principles to help us live out the golden rule: 1. If I have a problem with another person, I will go to him/her privately. 2. If someone has a problem with me, I want him/her to come to me privately, and I will be open to hear what he/she has to say. 3. If someone has a problem with me and they come to you, send them to me and I’ll do the same for you. 4. If someone hesitates to come to me, say, “I’ll go with you. I’m sure they’ll discuss this situation with you.” I’ll do the same for you. 5. Be careful how you interpret me. I’d rather do that. (instead of jumpint to conclusions, ask what they meant) 6. I will be careful how I interpret you. 7. If it’s confidential, I won’t tell, unless someone is harming himself/herself or someone else. 8. I won’t send or pay attention to unsigned letters or notes. Information should always travel with a person’s name so it can be cleared up, if necessary. 9. I will not manipulate; I will not be manipulated. 10. When in doubt, I will bring up my concern or question.

Romans 14: 1-12 - everything I have is on load from God and I will give an account of how I've managed it. - secret of contentment - Eccl. 6:9, Phil.4:12 - by nature, we tend to be discontent 4 Steps to Contentment: 1. Stop comparing yourself to others (2 Cor. 10:12) - we all have designer genes and we're all unique - America's favorite sport is comparison - Principles of contentment: I must learn to admire without having to acquire. I don't have to own it in order to enjoy it (Ex. 20:17) - coveting is the uncontrolled desire to acquire - if you own something you can't let go of, it actually owns you - bring our desires under control of the Holy Spirit 2. Enjoy what you have (Eccl. 5:19) - God enjoys watching us enjoy what He's given us - what do I have now that I'm not enjoying? - get rid of "when and then" thinking (when this happens, then I'll be happy) - it doesn't cost anything to be happy - two ways to have enough: work more and want less (1 Tim. 6:17-19) - ways to be wealthy and not materialistic: - don't become proud of your wealth - don't put your hope in money - use it to do good - share it with others - giving is an antidote to materialism - tithing is the starting point of honoring God in our giving and begins to break the grip of materialism on my life 3. Remember life is not about things - the greatest things in life are not things 4. Focus on what whill last forever - (2 Cor. 4:18) - truth: I can't have it all and I don't need it all to be happy - my satisfaction is not in what I have, but Whose I am and Who I belong to (Ps. 17:15)