02/02/2025 Church service

周日礼拜

视频

 

    Power in the Presence 力量在场     

 

Luke 10:41,42: The Lord answered her, “Martha, my beloved Martha. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they really that important? Mary has discovered the one thing most important by choosing to sit at my feet. She is undistracted, and I won’t take this privilege from her.”
路加福音 10:41,42: 耶稣对她说：“玛大，玛大，你为太多事情忧虑烦恼。 其实最要紧的事只有一件，玛丽亚选择了上好的，
是夺不走的。” (page 1682)
Mark 4:18, 19: The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced.
马可福音 4:18,19: 种子落在荆棘丛中，是指人虽然听过道， 但生活的忧虑、钱财的迷惑和其他欲望把道挤住了，以致不能结出果实 (page 1623)
Col 1:22: ...he reconnected you back to himself. He released his supernatural peace to you through the sacrifice of his own body as the sin-payment on your behalf so that you would dwell in his presence. And now there is nothing between you and Father God, for he sees you as holy, flawless, and restored
歌罗西书 1:22: 但现在上帝借着基督肉身的死使你们与祂和好了，让你们在祂面前成为圣洁无瑕、无可指责的人 (pg 1909)
1 Peter 3:12: For the eyes of the Lord YAHWEH rest upon the godly, and His heart responds to their prayers.
彼得前书 3:12: 因为主的眼睛看顾义人，祂的耳朵垂听他们的祈求。(page 1969)
2 Cor 3:5: Yet we don’t see ourselves as capable enough to do anything in our own strength, for our true competence flows from God’s empowering presence.歌 林 多 後 書 3:5: 我们的意思并不是说我们凭自己能做任何好事，是上帝使我们能够做到我们所做的。(page 1872)

 

 

 

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视频脚本 Script

Power in the Presence
Luke 10:38-42
Sometimes it feels like I am riding an emotional roller coaster…
“One moment you’re up – the next you’re down.”
Does this describe you? Doesn’t this seemingly describe everyone?

Do you have woulda-coulda-shoulda’s?
“Left to my own devices”
It’s normal to feel occasional feelings of discouragement - - but the successful people in life learn how to deal with those moments and push on.

to discourage - cause (someone) to lose confidence or enthusiasm.

The enemy wants to dis-courage you and make you feel unenthused about pursuing your dream – about changing your life – about serving the Lord.

“The matters on your heart matter to God.”

When we get inspired – whether it’s by a scripture that stirs our heart, a song that moves us, or a flash of memory that reminds us of who we want to become or what we want to accomplish in our lives… this is a seed.
…A seed that can take root in our hearts and cause us to live life on a higher level.
…or not.

Jesus warned us of how certain things can rob us of the power of those seeds…

Mark 4:18, 19: The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced.

The cares of this world can put your fire out with dis-couragement.
It’s 2025: This is no time for discouragement.

“The cares of this world” will try to tell us that there’s no point in even trying –
- and yet, all around the world there are people making a difference.

(and yet) …even today - There are people getting healthier. There are people building successful businesses.
There are people living victorious Christian lives and not continuing down the old paths of their old nature.

? Do you dare to be en-couraged today? Are you willing to let God in-spire you with enthusiasm as His Word speaks directly into your heart?

The answers are waiting in the Presence of the Lord
Col 1:22: ...he reconnected you back to himself. He released his supernatural peace to you through the sacrifice of his own body as the sin-payment on your behalf so that you would dwell in his presence. And now there is nothing between you and Father God, for he sees you as holy, flawless, and restored

God says His Word will not return to Him void.
He desires that when you hear the Word that it takes root in you and changes you.

Ø Something struck me big-time one morning as I was praying.

I can’t even get close to the president. My congressman probably wouldn’t have any time for me. I probably couldn’t get a sit-down meeting even with our mayor (not very easily)
…and yet – here I am – talking to the Creator of the Universe.

I’m not just “talking to the sky” – or to a voicemail.
I am talking to and with GOD. How awesome is that?

1 Peter 3:12: For the eyes of the Lord YAHWEH rest upon the godly, and His heart responds to their prayers.

I don’t have to go to a heavenly “waiting room” and have some angel take down my message and hope that maybe they will put it on God’s desk somehow.

I commune with the Father. I come directly into His Presence.

A famous minister spoke of being on an elevator in a high-rise building. He said he’d never been particularly comfortable on such elevators. There was something about riding up and down in a little box several hundred feet off the ground that has never sat well with him.
He worried that something would go wrong.
One day it did. The car he was riding in got stuck in between floors way up in the higher floors. He noted that some of the people in the car became frantic. They began to beat on the door hoping to get someone’s attention. Others began to yell in the hopes that their voices would get someone on the surrounding floors to come to the aid. But nobody heard their noise or their cries.
He quietly made his way to the front of the car, opened a little door in the wall and pulled out a telephone. Immediately he was connected with someone on the outside. He didn’t need to beat on the wall to get their attention. He didn’t need to speak loudly in the phone to receive their help. He could have whispered and they would have heard him.
The preacher said that - in this world, we’re going to get "stuck" in places we aren’t comfortable with. Some people begin to beat against the walls, others cry out in dismay. But the person who trusts in the power of confident prayer knows there’s someone on the other end who hears their call and comes to their aid.
Two Lessons:
1. The desperation, panic and shouting were unnecessary
2. Once the call was made, the people could rest and let the experts do their work
Hebrews 10:19 tells us that we now can have "boldness" to enter into very presence of God because of the blood of Jesus:
And now we are brothers and sisters in God’s family because of the blood of Jesus, and he welcomes us to come into the most holy sanctuary in the heavenly realm—boldly and without hesitation.

Paul wrote (2 Corinthians 3:5) Yet we don’t see ourselves as capable enough to do anything in our own strength, for our true competence flows from God’s empowering presence.

Jesus has opened the way for us to approach God’s throne and earnestly ask whatever

It is an awesome thing to know that because of the Cross, we can come into the very Presence of God.

Acts 3:19 says, “times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord”

If your enthusiasm is waning – if your spirit needs a boost – the place for renewal is in God’s Presence.

If “the worries of this life” can choke out the Word and cause it to be of no affect, then the obvious solution is to not allow those cares to take root in your heart.

In our gospel lesson today: Martha let the cares of other things keep her in stress, even as Mary sat at Jesus feet and rested in His Presence.

2 Cor 3:4: We carry this confidence in our hearts because of our union with Christ before God.

There is a time to work… there is a time to think about things that must be done.
…but there is also a time to rest.
The needful thing at that time is to let Jesus do what you cannot.

We all need those “times of refreshing” that “come from the presence of the Lord”

Holy Communion is just such a time. It is a “means of grace.”
It is a means of God getting through to you with His grace and His renewal.

We’ve got to enter into His rest so the Word can do its perfect work in our hearts.
all we are to do in this sacrament is to (by His grace) receive by faith with thanksgiving

“…the seed that fell on good soil represents those who hear and accept God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!”

We’ve got to become Good Soil. Say, “I am good soil”

It’s so easy to get distracted. Even in church. (or online church)

To forget the needful thing and start worrying about your job, the state of the world, family members…

It’s time to REST. The Grace of God will allow you to rest from your striving.

When we are weak, He is strong.
Jesus told the Samaritan woman, "If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water."

Jesus keeps calling us to come to Him – to trust Him – to rest in His care for us.

“how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.”

The Savior is calling to us – calling us home – calling us to rest.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

? What are you struggling with today?
? What has become more important to you than just being in God’s Presence and resting in Him this morning?

I’ll help you. It was what you were really thinking about just now when I asked you that.

The Lord answered her, “Martha, my beloved Martha. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they really that important? Mary has discovered the one thing most important by choosing to sit at my feet. She is undistracted, and I won’t take this privilege from her.”

“Spirit of the Living God, fall fresh on me…”
Those that wait upon the Lord…

Hillside United Methodist Church
3739 US 80
Phenix City  AL  36870
United States
Pastor: Mike J Koger

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