'The God Of Peace' - Sermon Outlines. Org



"The God Of Peace"

Hebrews 13:20-21

INTRO. This world is constantly striving for peace. Many means have been tried to achieve world peace. The world has relied on political leaders, policies, and programs, and even, fought wars to suppress oppression to bring peace, but nothing has availed. We still see, in our world, hatred, strife, racial divisions, and murder. Nothing mankind can try will bring true peace!

But I know One Who can bring true peace, He is the God of peace! I want to title the message, “The God Of Peace.” The BIBLE says in Isaiah 9:6, prophesying of the coming Messiah, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Again the Scripture says in 1 Corinthians 14:33, "For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace..." He is our peace! Jesus Christ is PEACE! Only through Him can mankind have true peace!

The sad thing is that instead of looking to the God of peace to bring peace; the world looks to various other ways. But the ONLY WAY to achieve peace is to have Him as Our LORD and Savior! In Ephesians 2:13-14 the Scripture says, "But now, in Christ Jesus, ye who were sometimes far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace..." But of the wicked, the Scripture says in Isaiah 48:22, "There is NO PEACE, saith the LORD, unto the wicked." Again the Scripture says in Romans 3:17, "And the way of peace have they not known." So the Scriptures undeniably tell us, "that there is no hope of peace for the wicked, and even if there were, they couldn't find it!

Only Christ Jesus can bring true peace! I pray each one here knows the God of Peace as your personal LORD and Savior. In our text, in Hebrews 13:20-21, there are two things mentioned that the God Of peace does in our lives, and what our response should be, Let's look at those together.

THE GOD OF PEACE:

(1) MAKES US PERFECT

Text: HEBREWS 13:21a—“Make you perfect in every good work to

do his will…”

A. WHAT THIS PERFECTION MEANS. Notice the word “perfect” used

here. In the Greek in means “to complete thoroughly, to prepare, to

restore. to repair” Johnson in The People’s New Testament writes that

the means to “make you perfect” is “by supplying what is defective.”

(The People’s New Testament). Warren Wiersbe writes: The phrase

“make you perfect” (Heb. 13:21) is the translation of one Greek word,

katartidzo. This is an unfamiliar word to us, but it was familiar to the

people who receive the letter. The doctors knew it because it meant “to

set a broken bone.” To fishermen it meant “to mend a broken net…To

sailors it meant “to outfit a ship for voyage.” To soldiers it meant “to

equip an army for battle.” Our Saviour in heaven wants to equip us

for life here on earth. Tenderly, He wants to set the “broken bones” in

our lives so that we might walk straight and run our life-races

successful. He wants to repair the breaks in the nets so that we might

catch fish and win souls. He wants to equip us for battle and outfit us

so that we will not be battered in the storms of life. In brief, He wants

to mature us so that He can work in us and through us that which

pleases Him and accomplishes His will” (Warren W. Wiersbe. The Bible

Exposition Commentary. Volume 2. Ephesians-Revelation. p. 330).

B. WHAT THIS PERFECTION MANDATES. None of us are sufficient in

and of ourselves to please God and do His will. The apostle Paul wrote

in 2 Corinthians 3:5—“Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think

any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God.” For God to

“make you perfect …to do his will” you must be willing to do two

things:

1. Rely Totally on HIM (Psalm 18:32).

2. Recognize What Grace Has Done For us (2 Peter 1:2-4).

None of us are perfect. We have some broken bones He needs to set,

we have some breaks in our nets that need repaired, we need to be

equipped and outfitted to overcome the raging storms of life. Praise

God He isn’t finished with us yet! And as we surrender our lives and

submit our wills unto Him, He makes us “perfect…to do his will.”

ILLUS: The Hemphills wrote a song titled: He’s Still Working on Me

It goes something like this:

“There really ought to be a sign upon my heart,

don’t judge me yet there’s an unfinished part.

But I’ll be perfect just according to his plan,

Fashioned by the Master’s loving hand.

He’s still working on me,

To make me what I ought to be.

It took Him just a week to make the moon and stars,

The earth and the sun, and Jupiter and Mars.

How loving and patient He must be,

‘Cause He still working on me.”

Aren’t you glad today that He’s not finished you yet? None of us are perfect, but Thank God, we are forgiven! THE GOD OF PEACE MAKES US PERFECT and also let us see that THE GOD OF PEACE…

(2) WORKS IN US

Text: HEBREWS 13:21b—“Working in you that which is well-pleasing

in his sight…”

Philippians 2:13—“For it is God which worketh in you both to will

and to do of his good pleasure.”

*GOD WORKS IN US:

A. HOW? THROUGH JESUS CHRIST!

Philippians 1:9-11; 4:13

John 15:5

B. WHAT? THAT WHICH IS WELL-PLEASING IN HIS SIGHT!

Romans 12:1-2

How Is This Accomplished?:

1. By Listening To The Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:16).

2. By Looking To The LORD (Hebrews 12:1-2).

3. By Laboring Till He Comes (2 Corinthians 5:8-9).

THE GOD OF PEACE MAKES US PERFECT by WORKING IN US and our response should be that He…

(3) IS DUE ALL THE GLORY

Text: HEBREWS 13:21c—“TO Whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

Psalm 72:18-19—“Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only

doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious

name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his

glory. Amen, and Amen.”

1 Chronicles 16:29—“Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name:

bring an offering, and come before him: worship the

LORD in the beauty of holiness.”

*We Give Glory To God By:

A. HONORING HIM WITH OUR TESTIMONY (Psalm 107:2-3). And friends, let remember our words mean little if our actions don’t back up what we say.

ILLUS: It's one thing to TALK about Jesus, but another thing to show him.

A reporter actually saw this following incident occur, and wrote

about it in a New York newspaper:

It was on a cold day in December when a little boy about 10 years

old was standing before a shoe store on the street, barefooted,

peering through the window, and shivering with cold. A lady

approached the boy and said, "My little fellow, why are you looking

so earnestly in that window?" "I was asking God to give me a pair

of shoes," was the boy's reply. The lady took him by the hand and

went into the store and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of

socks for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of

water and a towel. He quickly brought to her. She took the little

fellow to the back part of the store and, removing her gloves, knelt

down, washed his little feet, and dried them with a towel. By this

time the clerk had returned with the socks. Placing a pair upon the

boy's feet, she purchased him a pair of shoes. She tied up the

remaining pairs of socks and gave them to him. She patted him on

the head and said, "No doubt, my little fellow, you feel more

comfortable now?"

As she turned to go, the astonished lad caught her by the hand,

and looking up in her face, with tears in his eyes, answered the

question with these words: "Are you God's wife?"

People may hear us chatting about God and what good things we

OUGHT to do, but when we actually SHOW the love of the Lord,

that's when people will identify us with the family of God. When is

the last time you showed the love of God to someone? (Bible

Illustrator for Windows. Version 3.0f. Copyright 1990-1996,

Parsons Technology, Inc. All Rights Reserved).

B. HONORING HIM WITH OUR TIME (Psalm 90:12). Many experts say that we should be arrested for murder when we kill time. Close examination, however, makes it obvious that killing time is not murder - it's suicide. - Zig Ziglar. Friends, we need to “See each day as a chance for something new to happen, something you never experienced before.” (Sadie and Bessie Delany, Christian Reader, Vol. 33, no. 2).

C. HONORING HIM WITH OUR TALENT (1 Peter 4:10).

ILLUS: Bertoldo de Giovanni is a name even the most enthusiastic lover of

art is unlikely to recognize. He was the pupil of Donatello, the

greatest sculptor of his time, and he was the teacher of

Michelangelo, the greatest sculptor of all time.

Michelangelo was only 14 years old when he came to Bertoldo, but

it was already obvious that he was enormously gifted. Bertoldo was

wise enough to realize that gifted people are often tempted to coast

rather than to grow, and therefore he kept trying to pressure his

young prodigy to work seriously at his art. One day he came into

the studio to find Michelangelo toying with a piece of sculpture far

beneath his abilities.

Bertoldo grabbed a hammer, stomped across the room, and

smashed the work into tiny pieces, shouting this unforgettable

message, "Michelangelo, talent is cheap; dedication is costly!" Gary

Inrig in A Call to Excellence says We have nothing to do with how

much ability we've got, or how little, but with what we do with

what we have.

The man with great talent is apt to be puffed up, and the man

with little (talent) to belittle the little. Poor fools! God gives it,

much or little. Our part is to be faithful, doing the level best with

every bit and scrap. And we will be if Jesus' spirit controls. (S.D.

Gordon in The Bent-knee Time).

CLOSING: I am glad to say I have peace today because of the God Of peace! In

Luke 1:79, speaking of Christ’s mission in coming, it says, "To give

light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to

guide our feet in the way of peace." That's where I was, sitting in

the darkness and in the shadow of death, until the God Of peace

came, and I met Him by faith.

Do you know the God of peace? Only He can bring you the peace

you desire!

Christian, Are you sharing the gospel of peace that has been

entrusted to you with others?

PREPARED BY BROTHER BRYAN L. BROWNING, PASTOR OF BEECHMONT BAPTIST CHURCH, BEECHMONT, KY FOR SUNDAY EVENING, MAY 11, 2008.

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