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Sermon of 10-20-01 Taste
Him Again for the 1st Time by
Dr. David Farmer, pastor “And
such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye
are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our
God.” 1 Corinthians 6:11. Do you
remember you 1st love experience? I remember mine. I’ll
probably never forget my “first true love” experience. Sorry Kathy. Linda was her name. She was all I
talked and dreamed about. I was thirteen and she was a real cute
twelve-year-old. I was living in west Texas and had just recently moved
into the neighborhood where I became the new “boy” on the block.
Linda wanted to show how neighborly she was and came over and knocked on
our front door. I answered the door and it was “love at first
sight.” She had the body of a fourteen-year-old with long blond hair
and brown eyes. Funny isn’t it how we can
remember all those details so many years ago yet find it difficult to
remember our spouse’s birthday or anniversary today! Anyway, right
away we were both attracted to each other. We just knew we were to spend
the rest of our lives together. Well you know “the rest of the
story” as Paul Harvey would say. It’s happened to most of us when we
were young and in love. Another new boy moved down the street. And I
wasn’t her “only true love” anymore. I was heart broken to say the
least. I tried everything to win her back. I bought her expensive gifts,
you know, three-dollar bottles of perfume. I tried calling her on the
phone, - but nothing seemed to work. And it wasn’t long before I knew
she was gone forever. It took me what seemed an eternity to get over
her. But that week past and I then found my “real” true love, Ronda.
My love life continued like that
until I found the one God had waiting for me. The one I was to spend the
rest of life with. My really “real” first love, Kathy. In God’s original plan, when two
people fall in love and get married, they are to form a new identity.
The Bible says in Matthew 19:6; “Wherefore
they are no more twain, but one flesh”. From the beginning, God planned
that two shall be formed into one. A newly married couple is to leave
their childhood home and form their own home together. They are to have
an intimate relationship with each other that no one else is to be
involved in. A home where happiness and peace can be found. It is to be
a home, a relationship that is to last as long as the two are alive. God
never planned that our love for each other was to stop. But all to often
the love does stop in many homes. Many lose that love experience they
once had for each other. Why? And an
even bigger question - can that love a couple once had for each other
ever be regained? Before I try to answer that question lets look at
another love experience we all might have or once had. What love
experience am I talking about? It is our 1st love experience
with Jesus. Do you remember it? Do you recall how you felt? Most of us
were excited when we first found the Lord. He meant everything to us. He
was all we talked and dreamed about. We invited everyone we knew to
church. We just knew they would fall in love with Christ too. Do you
still have that feeling? Or have you lost it? And if you have lost it,
what happened? Listen to Revelation 2:4; “Nevertheless
I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” When the
church Ephesus left her first love, Jesus said in verse 2 He knew it. If
we have lost our first love experience, do you suppose Jesus knows it
too? I think so. So how do we find that first love experience again? And
can it be regained back? Today I
would like to look at how the Holy Spirit works in a Christian life. I
would like to look and see if we can regain that lost first love
experience back. Hopefully
you remember my sermon from a few weeks back called “Spirit and
Truth.” If you did not hear it, please seek a copy of the tape or
download it from our web page. In it we discovered how we have “The
Truth” and have the “Holy Spirit” but we may not be “Filled”
with the Spirit. We have not been baptized with the power of the Holy
Spirit. We also
discovered that without being filled with God’s Holy Spirit maybe the
very reason we often feel embarrassed, uncomfortable and uneasy when we
are called to witness for our Lord. That’s one of the reasons why I
hope to show you from our Bibles how we may possibly be filled with
God’s Holy Spirit. And how to restore the love we have lost. Probably
the first thing you need to know and understand is that a person changes
when they come to Christ. In fact the greatest proof that a person has
been born again and experienced a new birth in Christ is that they now
encounter a changed life. A person starts loving what he or she once
hated. In fact
after Paul came to the Lord he wrote in Romans 7:15-24 from the RSV: “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but
I do the very thing I hate... So then it is no longer I that do it, but
sin, which dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is
right, but I cannot do it... Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me
from this body of death?” Look at
our scripture again in 1 Corinthians 6:11: “And
such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye
are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our
God.” The word “washing”
mentioned in this verse, means we are washed from sin. Cleansed -
purified – blessed and sanctified. And it’s in baptism that the
outward sign of an inward experience can be seen.
The Bible
promises that anyone can find complete happiness and salvation in Jesus.
A person is transformed into a grateful, humble, and sincere follower of
Christ. After our sins have been forgiven,
the Holy Spirit starts developing a believer into a character like
Christ’s. In fact that is what the word Christian means, “Christ-like.”
The verse also says we are ”justified”. Justification is only
possible because of our faith in Jesus. Later read Romans 3:24–26; and
4:3-5. Those verses show that our faith in Christ is counted as
righteousness. When the Father looks upon a converted sinner, He
sees the pure white garment of Christ’s righteousness. And it is
accounted to us. All sin is forgiven. And like Paul, we start loving
things we once hated. Lets look at some of those things a “Real
Born Again Christian Loves.”
Take out your bulletin insert (see at the end of this
sermon). Please fill in the blanks as we study together. The 1st thing a Christian loves is Jesus. Often
before conversion, many sinners might hold Christ up in high respect.
But they really don’t know Him as their “personal Saviour”. But
after conversion something happens. We start loving Jesus. We start
seeing Him in a totally new light. We see Him for what He has done and
is doing in our life. And it’s love. A love like we have never felt.
Listen to 1 John 5:1,2; “Whosoever
believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that
loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. V:2 By
this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and
keep his commandments.”
Next –
a Born Again Christian Loves
God’s Word. Turn with me to Psalm 119. We should love
God’s Word like the Psalmist does here. He expressed his great love
for God’s Word no less than 17 times in this longest chapter in the
Bible. Look at
verse 9: “Wherewithal shall a young man
cleanse his way? by taking heed [thereto] according to thy word.” Now verse
11: “Thy word have I hid in mine heart,
that I might not sin against thee.” Later
read the verses I placed in your bulletin. 24, 40, 47, 48, 72, 97, 103,
111, 113, 127, 129, 140, 143, 159, 162, 165, 168. The third
thing a Born Again Christian loves is other
people. Listen to
1 John 3:14: “We know that we have
passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren.” Luke 6:27 says;
“But I say unto you which hear, Love
your enemies, do good to them which hate you”. Jesus said in Matthew 5:43 and 44; “Ye
have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and
hate thine enemy. V:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them
that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which
despitefully use you, and persecute you;”
Matthew 7:12 paraphrased says; “Do
unto others as you would have others do unto you.” I think those verses are pretty clear on
how we should treat and love everyone. That means our neighbors,
friends, enemies, relatives, and yes – even our church brothers and
sisters. Fourth
– a Born Again Christian loves a pure
and Holy life. Listen to
1 John 2:15-17; “Love not the world,
neither the things [that are] in the world. If any man love the world,
the love of the Father is not in him. V:16 For all that [is]
in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the
pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. V:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that
doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” Now look
at 1 John 5:4; “For whatsoever is born
of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the
world, [even] our faith.” When a person turns his or life over to
Jesus they change the things he or she used to read. They change the
things that watch on TV. They don’t go into places that Jesus
wouldn’t go. Their entire life is changed. Where the spoke mean things
– now they speak nice things. Their dress changes and outward
adornment changes. They are completely Born Again. Fifth - a
Born Again Christian will love keeping
God’s 10 Commandments. Turn to John 14:15; “If ye love
me, keep my commandments.” If you
want that lost 1st love again – to taste Him again – then
start by obeying all of God’s Commandments. The sixth
and last thing a Born Again Christian will love to
talk to God.
Listen to Ephesians 5:19-20; “Speaking
to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and
making melody in your heart to the Lord; V:20 Giving
thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ;” Friends, when is the last time you spoke
to God as you would your best friend? When is the last time you sang to
Him – not about Him? How do you feel inside when you know Christ is
next to you? Do you feel loved? Safe? Protected? Secure? Sheltered? This love and security is what we all felt when we
first came to Christ. Want to feel it again? You can. All you have to do
is give your life to Him again. Ask for the out-pouring of the Holy
Spirit. Ask for the Latter Rain. If you
ask for the Holy Spirit, then the promise in 1 John 5:14-15 is; “And
this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing
according to his will, he heareth us: V:15 And
if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the
petitions that we desired of him.” Taste Him again
folks – whether for the first time – all over again. He is there
waiting for you to come. He won’t refuse your prayers or gifts. And He
wants you to come as you are. He will do the modeling. Always remember
as I close, we are the clay and He is the potter. Invite Him in or back in your heart
this morning.
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Printed From Texarkana SDA Church Website http://www.tagnet.org/texarkana |
