WORLD

Working with teenagers from all walks of life at the SPRING Student Center is very interesting. Some have never read the bible or had any exposure at all to the things of God. So, what can we really expect of them in terms of behavior?

For one thing, to obey the rules that we lay out, since it is being provided to them free of charge. Beyond that though, we can only expect them to act like people who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. They don’t know the blessings of following His Way for their lives. They operate by the principles of this world; the same world that says you can be President of the United States, have adulterous relationships with other women and still be liked by the majority of the people. The same world that pays sports figures multi-million dollar salaries and pay the people that educate their children well below the $50,000 mark.

It is up to Christians to set an example by following God’s ways…

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. ¹⁶For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. ¹⁷And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. 1 John 2:15 - 17 (NLT)

If we follow God’s prescription for our lives and non-Christians see that difference: in our attitudes towards them and that we have a different priority system, they will want to know more about Christ.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

DISGUISE

We live in a world where marketing companies vie for the attention of every age group from young to old. They package everything from the trivial to the downright dangerous in attractive packages in order to make more money.

The spiritual world isn’t any different. There is Good and there is evil. If you have read the Bible, you have learned that God is Supreme and has already won the war through the sacrificial death of His Son, Jesus Christ. Satan, however, is still trying to keep as many people from going over to God’s side as he can and he does not care about rules or playing fair.

Paul speaks of the devil’s tactics in his second letter to the church in Corinth:

No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 2 Corinthians 11:14 (NASB)

His disguise comes in many shapes and sizes in today’s world. He can make a movie sound good by calling it fantasy or pairing it up with a seeming good charity. He can make wizards, demons, witches and warlocks sound like “fun” things rather than the flip side of God’s kingdom.

So how do we tell the difference?

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. ²This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. 1 John 4:1 - 3 (NIV)

Pray for each other and tune into God’s Word. When you are in sync with His Holy Spirit, you will not be deceived.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

BODY

The latest fashion, makeup, long hours at the gym…What do all of these have in common? They are all an attempt to make our physical bodies attractive to ourselves and to others. Do any of these things matter to God?

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? ²⁰For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 6:19 - 20 (NASB)

So, if we belong to God, having accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, dressing nicely can bring Him honor. At least people wouldn’t think we were slobs who didn’t care! And, I suppose that if we were to exercise more, the outward effects would have the same result as dressing nicely.

I would suggest to you that glorifying God in our bodies, might I add, “while” we are in our bodies, is of the utmost importance and has longer lasting implications. We only have so much time on this earth, some more than others. While I am in this body, I need to bring glory to God. Whatever I do should bring glory to God. Now, if I look good and live longer because of exercise and dressing nicely, it may increase the fruit of my labors.

Of course the more important point of this passage of scripture is that we that call ourselves Christians are not our own. We have been purchased by the blood of Jesus and the Holy Spirit is “in” us. Many simply use this passage as a caution against smoking, drinking and drugs while skipping over the specific warnings against immorality, but it has much wider reaching effects:

• We belong to Christ
• The Holy Spirit of God indwells us

That alone should cause us to walk this earth in humility and wonder while seeking daily to do the work of the Almighty God that made us and saved us from a life of sin, while at the same time giving us a long-lasting purpose of leading others to know Christ as Savior bringing them into a relationship with the Lord.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

GREAT

Many people wake up each day to the thought “Here we go again” or “Not another day like yesterday.” One can get caught up in temporary circumstance, or think that “things might have been better in my life, if only…”

The truth is that every single day we face new possibilities, new choices and new hope for a better day, if we look to the Lord Jesus Christ as our Creator and Savior. God alone has the ability to lead us down the right path as we look to Him for guidance. He has set that path before us in His Holy Scriptures…

Because of the LORD’S great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.

²³ They are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22 - 23 (NIV)

God’s love is great. His mercies are great. His faithfulness is great. It is up to us to look to Him and realize that every day is a new chance to live for Him.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

PLEAD

Over 330 different teens have been in the SPRING Student Center in the last nine weeks. Of that number, nearly 300 do not have a relationship with God or know anything about Jesus Christ as Savior. Many come from broken homes. They hunger to be part of something larger, to be loved by others and know that there is hope for their futures.

So what can we that call Jesus Lord do about that? Hear these words from the prophet Jeremiah:

Rise during the night and cry out.

Pour out your hearts like water to the Lord.

Lift up your hands to him in prayer,

pleading for your children,

for in every street

they are faint with hunger.

Lamentations 2:19 (NLT)

We need to pray constantly for these kids. Yes, it may take a sacrifice of your time and energy, but God will reward your efforts. He can and wants to help these kids. Fall on your knees, O Christian, and beg for these young lives to be touched and healed by the Lord.

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

SHOULD

I should do this. I should do that. You’ve thought that before. We all should do certain things, but do we?

¹⁰But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment. ¹¹Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live, 2 Peter 3:10 - 11 (NLT)

What holy and godly lives we should live knowing that one day we will stand in the presence of the Lord God who made the heavens and the earth.

Some of you may think, “I can’t do it. I can’t be holy and godly.” Whenever you have that thought, remember this verse:

For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13 - 14 (NLT)

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD