Sermons from First Evangelical Free Church in Sioux City, IA

Psalm 119:25-32 A Heart for the Word

119:25-27 Ask for life and hope… What we need most when life is hard is for the hope that only the Lord can give. The psalmist asks for this in prayer, listening closely and attentively to the words and ways of the Lord. 119:28-30 Ask for strength… Faithfulness comes not from our own strength, but from the Lord doing the work in us and through us. When we have no strength worth looking to, trusting the Lord, desiring what He desires, is the way forward. We trust Jesus to provide all that He has promised. 119:31-32 Ask for the Lord’s work in you… Our goal is to so delight in the words of our King that we “run” in their patterns, that we would have a heart ever-more formed to love our King and joyously follow His ways. The Point: The psalmist prays that the Lord would work in him and conform him to the very ways that are prized in God’s word. Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to see ourselves rightly – as people who desperately need You for everything! And also help us to see You rightly – as our Heavenly Father who delights to provide all we need for faithfulness. Train us to love You as we treasure all that You have told us. Application: How do your prayers reflect these needs? Will you trust God to hear and to answer? Ask Him for life and hope, trust Him for strength in the proper measure and time, and call on Him to continue His work in you. Here is how I will apply these truths:

Psalm 119:17-24 Eyes to See

119:17-19 Blessing in God’s will. The psalmist challenges us to seek blessing not for ourselves, but instead God’s blessing in order to do God’s will: a heartfelt desire to please God, first and foremost, instead of our own selves. 119:20-22 Blessing instead of judgment. The one who pursues the Lord, who treasures what God has said rather than what God’s enemies have said, is the one who will enjoy His blessing – and not His judgment – forever. 119:23-24 Blessing instead of despair. God’s blessing matters not just for the future, but even in the present. The way to delight is found not in focusing on those who oppose the Lord, not in how they seek to harm the ones who follow God’s words, but instead: we focus on what our Lord has said. The Point: True blessing comes from treasuring what the Lord says matters most. We see this perfectly lived out in Jesus, and His joy in the Lord is given to we who trust in Him. Prayer: Lord, let us not seek your blessing instead of You, but rather: give us hearts and minds that want You most of all – and who delight in how your word tells us of who you are. Form us, mold and re-make us, to be a people who passionately pursue knowing and doing all that You have said. Application: What needs to change in your life so that you would delight in God’s word? How will you fill your mind and heart with what God has said so that you’d delight in Jesus even when life is hard and faith isn’t easy? Here is how I will apply these truths:

Psalm 119:9-16 Fix Your Eyes

119:9-11 A pure way. The picture is of a life that is transformed through devotion to God’s word. What does that look like? All throughout this stanza, a number of action words paint the way. Here: guard, seek, and store up. 119:12-14 A delightful way. The call of Psalm 119 isn’t only a call to read the scriptures. It’s more! It’s a call to delight in God’s word given to God’s people. What does that delight look like and how can we have it? The psalmist answers: teach me, declare, and delight. 119:15-16 A remembering way. Four more actions complete the picture of how we can be transformed by God’s word: we meditate, fix, delight, and not forget all that the Lord has given to us. The Point: Delighting in God’s word is knowing it and memorizing it, yes, but doing so with the aim of delighting in and treasuring our good God. Prayer: Lord, thank you for Jesus – our perfect King whose delight in your word led to the kind of obedience that brings us salvation and joy forevermore. Help us to respond with gladness to His gospel in how we, too, get to treasure and be transformed by all that you have told us. Application: How will you make time to, and be intentional about, delighting in God’s word this week? Who can you help to do the same? Here is how I will apply these truths: ___________________ __________________________________________________

Psalm 119:1-8 Delight in the Lord

119:1-3 The person God blesses. True blessing – the blessing of knowing God and being known by Him – comes from delighting in His law, His word, and all that He has said. 119:4-6 The blessing you can have. Far from being unattainable, you and I can have this blessing because Jesus has won it for us – He perfectly keeps all God’s words, He has fulfilled the law. Because of Jesus, because every Christian has the Holy Spirit, we too can follow the pattern of treasuring God’s words in how we live and respond. 119:7-8 The delight in God’s blessing. Delighting in the Lord leads to confidence of His care. The way to confident faith isn’t just “wishing” for it, but instead it is to hope and live and act in ways that He calls us to. The Point: Far from being something stale, boring, or even oppressive, God’s law is for the blessing of His people. As we treasure His words, we learn to treasure and delight in God! Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you that your ways are best and that you have revealed them to us! We praise you that the way of delight, the way of blessing, isn’t a mystery, but instead is clear – and that Jesus has won that blessing for us. Help us to delight in your ways as we follow our Savior. Application: How will you treasure the Lord’s words this week? Will you seek Him by reading and hearing and thinking on what He has said? Will you live – alongside the rest of First E-Free – in the way that He says is best? Here is how I will apply these truths: ___________________ __________________________________________________

Ephesians 6:21-24 Encouragement

6:21-22 People matter. It’s easy for us to overlook, so let’s thank the Lord for these verses which show us how relationships are crucial for God’s people. Our relationship with Jesus is what brings us hope – and on that basis, our relationships with one another matter as reflections of our King, too. Notice how Paul cares for the Ephesians on a personal level, and they for him. 6:23-24 Grace matters. The very kinds of things that Paul prayed for at the beginning of the letter are what he continues to hope for and point them to here at the end. Because of Christ’s work, Paul can confidently offer a blessing to God’s people in the pattern of the very things that our Savior has won for us. These are what we should embrace, treasure, and point one another toward. The Point: Encouragement is crucial for the church to be what we are called to be. We need to prioritize relationships as part of what it means for us to follow Jesus together. Prayer: Our King, because you cared to relate to us, our relationships with others take on new importance. Help us to love as we have first been loved, use us to encourage so that we would each be built up in Jesus and serve Him together. Application: Ask the Lord to help you see healthy Christian relationships as not just a “nice to have” in the church, but as foundational to what it means to gather together and grow together as God’s people. How will you be a part of that? Here is how I will apply these truths: ___________________ __________________________________________________