Book Club- Week 2- Keep the Change- Sermon Notes
June 10, 2023

We can wait for crisis to change or we hae the wisdom to change before we have to.

It’s great to start a new habit or behavior but how do you keep it permanent and keep the change?

Change is hard especially in an instant society.

The Apostle Paul knew that change was hard and keeping the change requires us to look back at how far we’ve come and looking forward to where God wants us to go.

Philippians 3:13-16
No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.

Self- Deceptions and Excuses:

Faulty Memory

Deuteronomy 4:9
Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them.

Samson Syndrome- I have it under control

I Corinthians 10:12
So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!

Not My Fault

Genesis 3:12
The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

Just This Once

No One Can See

Hebrews 4:13
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

No Harm, No Foul

I Timothy 5:24
The sins of some are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them.

I’m Not As Bad As…

Luke 18:9-14
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

I Wasn’t Prepared

Learned Helplessness

Psalm 40:1-3
I waited patiently for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the Lord
and put their trust in him.

Time to say NO to excuses.

Hold the gains.

God will give you the strength to do it.

It’s worth it!

II Corinthians 12:8-10
Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Make the change.

Keep the change!