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HELP! I AM JUST A YOUNG PERSON

August 5, 2001 AM

Sermon Outline

Ps 119:9-16

INTRO: I believe God has a very special concern for young people. Some of the greatest biblical examples of faithfulness are very young people: David meets Goliath; Joseph meets Potiphars wife; Daniel meets King Nebuchadnezzar; Jesus meets the learned teachers of the day. Further, Gods word includes frequent admonition and instruction for young people. The book of Proverbs begins with a purpose of giving knowledge and discretion to young people (1:4). In the verses we have read there is special concern for the faithfulness of the young.

I. PETITION GOD - PRAY

A. young people, are you praying people?

B. Pray for Gods help - 119:9a

1. in our youth we try to be so independent

2. but thats not the answer - we need Gods help - ask! Mt 6:11

C. Pray for Gods protection - 119:10b

1. I recall Mt 6:13a

2. prayer for His protection heightens our awareness of His resources and our options

D. Pray for Gods instruction - 119:12b

1. this is not a prayer for some special revelation

2. but such prayers do have impact on our attitude and receptivity - the words of instruction are readily available - 2 Pet 1:3,4

II. TAKE HEED TO GODS WORD

A. Soul cleansing necessitates this knowledge

1. 2 Tim 1:9,10 - Rom 1:16 - Rom 10:13-17

2. if you are concerned about right/wrong, great

3. if you are concerned about pleasing God, great

4. if you are concerned about the hereafter, great

5. but all of those concerns depend on the information, instruction of the word

6. and note the word heed! knowledge without action?

B. Temptation is only met with knowledge

1.Mt 4:3,4 it is written

2. we are all subject to temptation ... but the inexperience and immaturity of youth is so attractive to Satan

3. if he can confuse, cause stumbling, raise doubts in the young, he may have won the adulthood

4. so, you should be very concerned about confronting him

5. and you cant do it alone!

6. 1 Thes 2:13 the word working in us!

C. Rejoice in th knowledge of the word

1. note v.14 and v.16a

2. I believe that when we actually put Gods word into action in our lives we will see and appreciate its value

3. young people need security of an anchor, need reliable and workable direction

4. and the security is in the word at work in us

5. note 119:99,103 this I have learned over years

6. the greater your knowledge, the greater your joy potential!

D. Review, refresh, meditate

1. I will meditate in thy precepts ... I will not forget Thy word

2. without review and use we do tend to forget

3. to have read is good - to have studied is great - to have meditated over and again makes it yours

4. 2 Tim 2:15 only through diligence!

5. at v.13 - teach others ... few better ways to learn, know, and retain than through teaching another

6. and there are other young people who would like to have the spiritual advantages you have

III. THE OUTCOME?

A. Success in confronting Satan - 119:11

B. The making of right choices - 119:15

CLOSE: Young people are of special concern to me. And I know that without the word they will drift! So, in the verses the Lord has given you important keys to spiritual and moral well-being.

Cecil A. Hutson

05 August 2001

God's Plan of Salvation

You must hear the gospel and then understand and recognize that you are lost without Jesus Christ no matter who you are and no matter what your background is. The Bible tells us that "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) Before you can be saved, you must understand that you are lost and that the only way to be saved is by obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:8) Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6) "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17)

You must believe and have faith in God because "without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." (Hebrews 11:6) But neither belief alone nor faith alone is sufficient to save. (James 2:19; James 2:24; Matthew 7:21)

You must repent of your sins. (Acts 3:19) But repentance alone is not enough. The so-called "Sinner's Prayer" that you hear so much about today from denominational preachers does not appear anywhere in the Bible. Indeed, nowhere in the Bible was anyone ever told to pray the "Sinner's Prayer" to be saved. By contrast, there are numerous examples showing that prayer alone does not save. Saul, for example, prayed following his meeting with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:11), but Saul was still in his sins when Ananias met him three days later (Acts 22:16). Cornelius prayed to God always, and yet there was something else he needed to do to be saved (Acts 10:2, 6, 33, 48). If prayer alone did not save Saul or Cornelius, prayer alone will not save you. You must obey the gospel. (2 Thess. 1:8)

You must confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (Romans 10:9-10) Note that you do NOT need to make Jesus "Lord of your life." Why? Because Jesus is already Lord of your life whether or not you have obeyed his gospel. Indeed, we obey him, not to make him Lord, but because he already is Lord. (Acts 2:36) Also, no one in the Bible was ever told to just "accept Jesus as your personal savior." We must confess that Jesus is the Son of God, but, as with faith and repentance, confession alone does not save. (Matthew 7:21)

Having believed, repented, and confessed that Jesus is the Son of God, you must be baptized for the remission of your sins. (Acts 2:38) It is at this point (and not before) that your sins are forgiven. (Acts 22:16) It is impossible to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ without teaching the absolute necessity of baptism for salvation. (Acts 8:35-36; Romans 6:3-4; 1 Peter 3:21) Anyone who responds to the question in Acts 2:37 with an answer that contradicts Acts 2:38 is NOT proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ!

Once you are saved, God adds you to his church and writes your name in the Book of Life. (Acts 2:47; Philippians 4:3) To continue in God's grace, you must continue to serve God faithfully until death. Unless they remain faithful, those who are in God's grace will fall from grace, and those whose names are in the Book of Life will have their names blotted out of that book. (Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:5; Galatians 5:4)