Church Of Christ - Youth Group

We are going to be looking at a little passage of Scripture from Romans 13:11-14 this morning.

“And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.”

Life in high school is all about material things. What we wear, what we look like, and what we possess. How important is it for us to wear the right clothes and do the accepted things? Most people would have to admit that it is important to be accepted. But how do we obtain acceptance from our peers? The verses preceding the Scripture reference states one of the main themes of the Bible: “Love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no harm to its neighbor.” Love is referring to having a general respect for everyone. People will respect and accept you only if you do the same.

Verse 11 tells us to wake up from our slumber. Wake up from sinful desires and coveting. Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. At any moment God could take us from this earth. Would you want God to see what is in your heart at any given time? “Put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.” (verse 12) Fight sinful human desires with the strength God fives us in faith. The Bible commonly speaks of itself as “armor” so use it!

In verse 14, it says to clothe ourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ. What does this mean? Let it be known for all to see that you are living in Jesus’ light. Clothing is something that everyone sees, and Jesus should be shown to all.

So, instead of living in sin, show to all your love for Christ.

Points To Ponder: What priority do we really give God? How does our faith show on the outside?

Prayer Possibilities: Ask God to forgive sins, and ask for strength to resist temptation.

This is a good reminder and made me think twice about my favorite movie - Transformers. Read Psalm 1:1 and we’ll talk about it for a minute.

“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.”

“I was so mad that I turned off the TV!” the mother said to me. It got me thinking. How many of us turn off violence or bad language we see and hear?

Most of us admit that our standard of moral sensitivity towards judging the contents of television programs had gone down in the past ten or twenty years. Our parents would have been shocked to view some of today’s sex-oriented programs if they had been aired in the 60”s or 70”s.

God says to us, “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.” In other words, God promises that He will bless us for being spiritually sensitive.

Don’t conform to the world, Paul warned the congregation at Rome. But, all these outside influences—such as TV or the movies or the people at my place of work or the magazines I read—certainly can and do influence me. Do they conform me to the world’s ways? Have I become comfortable with sin or the world’s low standard of morality?

When I was younger, my mother told me that if something dulled my desire for God, it was sin. Afterwards I learned the Scripture verse of Hebrew 12:1, “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Notice the action needed by us, “running the race.” It is not the comfortable action involved in “walking, standing or sitting with the wicked” as Psalm 1 warns us.

Running the race means to be living Christ’s way. There is no mystery what way that is. It’s told us in the Bible. In fact, the power or strength to live our lives for Jesus also comes in and through the Word of God. Jesus’ love for me and His promise to share eternal life with me motivates me to use Scripture, think about it, apply it, and pray over it. We can’t maintain our spiritual sensitivity if we spend only one hour of worship with the Lord on Sunday and then spend the other 167 hours on the world. What we need is Bible study, family devotions, Christian friends and wholesome entertainment. That will sharpen our spiritual discernment or sensitivity, so that we can say “no” to walking with the wicked.

Points To Ponder: What deadens our Spiritual Sensitivity? What used to bother us that doesn’t anymore? What can we do to become more sensitive again?

Prayer Possibilities: Pray that God would make our hearts “fresh”. Pray that we would be sensitive and willing to change what we watch, do and talk about with our friends.

I know that in the USA, Homecoming is a big event. Today we are looking at the a real homecoming talked about in Luke 24:13-35. I’ve quoted verses 13-21 below.

“Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him. He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” They stood still, their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?” “What things?” he asked. “About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.”

Imagine the joy the disciples on the way to Emmaus must have felt when they discovered they had been walking with their Savior! Wouldn’t it be truly wonderful to walk with our Lord as those two disciples were able to? Well, why can’t we? After all, Psalm 23:2-4 reads, “He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they will comfort me.”

He makes me to lie down, He leads me; though I walk. . .You are with me. Whatever we do, wherever we go, God is with us always! He even says this in Matthew 28:20b, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” What thought could be more comforting to anyone? Every step of the way in this life that we are temporarily traveling in to reach our heavenly home, God is with us giving us strength when we need it as stated in Isaiah 40:31, “Those who put their hope in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; walk and not be faint.”

With Jesus as our companion and true friend, what have we to fear? In times of trouble and weakness and in whatever we do, we need to remember, “I will fear no evil; for You are with me.” (Psalm 23:4) This should give us strength and comfort no matter what obstacles get in our way down life’s bumpy road.

Points To Ponder: In what situations do I forget that God is walking with me and I don’t rely on Him completely? How can I change this?

Prayer Possibilities: Ask for help to rely on Jesus 100% of the time. Thank God for walking by our side and never leaving us.

Sometimes we can get awefully proud. Let’s take a look at James 4:6-8 this morning and see what God things of pride.

“But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

In these verses it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” I think all of us should learn to be more humble in everything we do. When you’re at work, don’t smart off to your boss. When you’re at home, don’t fight with parents. When you are out with friends, don’t get into fights about who is better than the others. God says, “be humble.” We should submit to others and think of ourselves last.

Points To Ponder: Why does God give grace to the humble? What should we wash our hands and purify our hearts of? Who do you know that is a good example of a humble Christian? What could I do yet today to make my life more pleasing to my Lord?

Prayer Possibilities: Thank God for patience with our proud hearts. Ask God for help identifying the things that feed our pride and ways to change.

Joshua was a guy who had big shoes to fill. He was the successor to Moses and he had to lead over a million people on foot into the promised land. If anyone needed encouragement or comfort, it was this guy. Take a look at Joshua 1 today and we’ll focus on verses 6-9 below.

“Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.

Have you ever been afraid to do something because you did not know what was going to happen when you did it? For example, if you find out that you are going to have to move to a new area, you could have some apprehensions. It does not matter if it is just a few blocks or hundreds of miles away. There can be a lot of fear involved. You are going to have to make new friends when you are suddenly yanked from your comfortable circle. You might have to go to a new school. This can be especially difficult if you have never done it before. You will probably wonder, “Will they accept me? Will I like the teacher? Will anyone want to become friends with me?” All these things could be spinning through your head which brings about fear.

The Lord gives us comfort about this. He says in Joshua 1:9, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” This passage can give us more confidence to face the unexpected, because whatever happens, He will be with us and listen to our troubles. He will make sure that nothing happens to us that we cannot handle. Even though we may think we can’t, God will help us out if we ask.

Joshua was to be the next leader of Israel in this chapter. He had the important task of leading the Israelites into the Promised Land after 40 years. He did not know the dangers which lay ahead of him or what type of people he would encounter. He only knew they were heathen. He was probably afraid and possibly doubted whether or not he could handle it. God told him and us, “Be courageous.”

Points To Ponder: In what ways is Joshua like us? How can we take comfort in this?

Prayer Possibilities: Thank God for this promise of comfort. If you are struggling with the unknown, tell God about it.