Opened Eyes - Open Heaven
John 9:1-3

The Works of God

• Revelation 3:18
• • "I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see."
• We need our eyes opened! eye salve
• God has provided the access to His presence!
• • Restored relationship & authority
• Hebrews 4:14-16
• • "Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need."

Jesus' Fall Feast Ministry

• John 7:2 - 10:39
• The prophetic timing of the ministry
• Jesus' Messianic proclamations!
• • The prophetic confrontations
  • The prophetic context:
  • Siloam = Sent

Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him." John 7:17-18

On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. John 7:37-39

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." John 8:12

And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." John 8:23-24

Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him." As He spoke these words, many believed in Him. John 8:28-30

Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me." John 8:42

Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." John 8:58

Siloam

• Greek pronunciation of the name derived from Hebrew, "Shiloah," meaning, "sending."
• Jesus' play on words:
• • John 9:7, 11 - the blind man was sent to Siloah by one who was Himself the One who was sent.
• To gain his sight, the blind man went to and obeyed the One who was sent.

Living Under an Open Heaven

• Revival is atmospheric!
• An Open heavens means:
• • Unlimited Access
  • Genesis 28:10-22 - Jacob's ladder
• Unhindered communication
• • Ezekiel 1 (150 times "God spoke")
• Unquestioned honor
• • Acts 7 - Stephen's martyrdom
• Unconditional Affirmation
• • Matthew 3:16;17:1-13 - Jesus' baptism & transfiguration
• Unlimited Provision
• • Malachi 3:8-13

Christmas Peace - Real Peace
Luke 2:1-20

We Have Some Problems With Christmas

• We have developed a barrier to spiritual life.
• • We are trained to survive by sense knowledge.
• The commercialization of Christmas.
• • it's all about money and consumerism!
• The politically correct "war on Christmas."
• • it's offensive to those who don't believe.
• The false history of the event:
• • it's an historical manipulation of the many celebrations of the winter solstice and pagan holidays.

We Have A More Serious Problem!

• The sentimentalizing of the Christmas story.
• • The new movie "The Nativity"
• These are the acceptable stories of Joseph and Mary, properly garbed, Mary riding a donkey bravely into Bethlehem in the dead of night and cheerfully turning a stable into a maternity ward.
• • Various farm animals provide local color.
  • Foreign dignitaries offer impractical gifts.
  • A chorus of angels announces peace on earth to all men.
• The same story line, delivered faithfully in school plays, greeting cards, nativity scenes and in many sermons.

The Real Problem - Where is the Peace?

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased. Luke 2:14

The angels proclaim peace but the world is in chaos!

Peace

1. The absence of war or other hostilities.
2. An agreement or a treaty to end hostilities.
3. Freedom from quarrels and disagreement; harmonious relations.
4. Public security and order.
5. Inner contentment; serenity: peace of mind.

Biblical Reality
We must put away the sentimental illusions about life, as Martin Luther said;

All Christians live on the razor's edge of faith and despair, freedom and bondage.

~ Here is a faith that does not ignore the heart of darkness in our lives; the deep mystery of evil remains.
~ Yet the hope of the Christmas story, a hope that engages the mind as well as the soul, is that the evil will not remain forever!
~ God himself - here now among us, in this crib of straw - will overcome it.

Peace does not exist independently. Peace is not a detached creation, unrelated to everything else. Peace is bound up with other things, and is entirely dependent upon them. Peace is the fruit of certain relations, and if those relations are secured peace is inevitable. - Pastor John Henry Jowett (1864-1923)

Illustrated Peace:

• Architectural Peace
• Musical Peace
• • The Wizards of Winter
• Bodily Peace = Physical health
• All have one thing in common:
• • The peace results from something!
• If only we would give glory to God in the highest, peace on earth is sure, and goodwill among men is secured!

The Peace of God

• I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety. - Psalm 4:8
• The LORD will give strength to His people; The LORD will bless His people with peace. - Psalm 29:11
• But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. - Psalm 37:11
• Psalm 72:1-7
• 1. Give the king Your judgments, O God, And Your righteousness to the king's Son.
  2. He will judge Your people with righteousness, And Your poor with justice.
  3. The mountains will bring peace to the people, And the little hills, by righteousness.
  4. He will bring justice to the poor of the people; He will save the children of the needy, And will break in pieces the oppressor.
  5. They shall fear You As long as the sun and moon endure, Throughout all generations.
  6. He shall come down like rain upon the grass before mowing, Like showers that water the earth.
  7. In His days the righteous shall flourish, And abundance of peace, Until the moon is no more.
• You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. - Isaiah 26:3
• There is no peace, says the LORD, for the wicked. - Isaiah 48:22
• All your children shall be taught by the LORD, And great shall be the peace of your children. - Isaiah 54:13

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Romans 5:1

Life Is For Loving!
Life is for Living, Laughing and Loving!

Hannukah
~ The Feast of the Dedication
~ The Festival of Lights
~ The Feast of Maccabees

• The Message of the Feast
• • John 10:22-39 "The deity of Jesus"
• The History of the Feast prophesied
• • Daniel 8:1-27
• The Feast Today
• Dedication - Consecration - Holiness
• • The Hebrew root word of Hanukkah is hanak, which means "to make narrow."
  • Dedication is similar to the idea of "holy", or kadosh, which means "to set apart, to hallow, or to consecrate."
• Hanukkah speaks of the fulfillment of God's purpose for His Temple.

The Feast of Dedication/Hanukkah

• I Corinthians 6:19-20
• • "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.
  
  
• Colossians 1:13
• • "He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins

Life Is For Loving!
I John 4:7-11
Mark 12:29-31

Sermon In A Sentence
The life of God in His Kingdom is for living, laughing, and loving!

Serving the King and His Kingdom!
John 10:10
Romans 14:17
Luke 12:32
Matthew 7:14

"A merry heart does good, like medicine"
Proverbs 17:22a

Why Laugh?

• The unexpected - The incongruity theory
• • Suggests that humor arises when logic and familiarity are replaced by things that don't normally go together.
• The superiority theory
• • When we laugh at jokes that focus on someone else's mistakes, stupidity or misfortune.
• The relief theory
• • Comic relief "Somebody tell a joke!"

Laughter - The 4 Main Sources

• The unexpected - Incongruity
• The Sense of Superiority
• Comic Relief
• Knowledge or revelation of good! A Eureka experience!!!
• • A Christmas Carol
  • It's A Wonderful Life

Real Life is Loving!

• Matthew 10:38-39 And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.
• Since real life is loving and real loving is being alive in Him, then, the God kind of life is found in living for God and others.

Team Hoyt

Real Life is Loving!

• John 3:1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!
• I John 3:16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

Live simply,
Love generously,
Care deeply,
Speak kindly...
Leave the rest to God

Life Is For Living!

John 1:1-5
John 6:33
Genesis 2:7
John 10:10
Luke 12:32
Romans 14:17
Matthew 7:14

Preparing our hearts for Revival

5 Key Concerns in LIFE

• Attitude of Expectancy
• Childlike Faith
• Desperate Abandonment
• Spontaneous Order
• Burden for Souls

5 Key Words of Worship

• Presence - The Fear of the Lord
• Devotion - Your Focus on the Lord
• Passion - The Zeal of the Lord
• Godliness - The Holiness of the Lord
• Contentment - The Rest of the Lord

Sermon In A Sentence
The life of God in His Kingdom is for living, laughing, and loving!

Serving the King and His Kingdom!

There are two ways to live your life.
One is as though nothing is a miracle.
The other is though everything is a miracle.
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Awaken your hearts to God
Malachi - the messenger of God
Insight from the questions asked:

• 1:2 "In what way have you loved us?"
• • Do we demand proof of God's love for us?
  • This question reveals an alarming lack of trust in God.
  • Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths."
  
  
• 1:6-7 "In what way have we despised your name? In what way have we despised You?"
• • Do we offer God our best in worship, or do we just go through the motions?
  • This question reveals a half heartedness and rationalizations - "What more do you want?"
  
  
• 3:7 "In what way shall we return?"
• • When faced with our sin, do we make excuses?
  • Blindness to sin, an arrogant attempt to gloss over wrongdoing.
  
  
• 3:8 "In what way have we robbed you?"
• • Do we gladly give to God?
  • This underscores the peoples greed.
  • They have lost sight of their covenant before God.
  
  
• 3:13 "What have we spoken against you?
• • Do we wholeheartedly serve God?
  • Calloused hearts before God

Our God is an awesome God!
Come alive in Him!