Lent – A Season of self-examination and repentance; [of] prayer, fasting, and alms-giving; and [of] reading and meditating on God’s holy Word.
· When Jesus called people to repent the Greek word often used to tell us what he said is metanoeo – “to change one’s mind”
Mark 1:15 (NIV) “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!”
GUARDRAILS Series
A guardrail is:
· A system designed to keep vehicles from straying into dangerous or off-limit areas.
· They direct and protect.
· They are not placed in the actual areas of .
Guardrails for our consciences are standards of behavior.
· Determined by where YOU want to draw the line
· As long as you don’t cross the lines that God has said mark the danger zones
Wherever you set your guardrail, it’s at that point that you’ll be tempted to cross it, to give in.
· It’s at that point that the conflict and struggle starts.
· You don’t avoid conflict by widening your guardrails (setting them closer to the edge).
Luke 4:1-13 (NIV) 1 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.
3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”
· The temptation was to meet a legitimate need in an way
4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.'”
[Matthew 4:4b (NIV) “…’but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'”]
5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours.”
Beware shortcuts that promise to get you to your destination without .
· There’s a reason we have wise sayings like
“No pain, no gain.”
“A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.”
“What is right is rarely easy, and what is easy is rarely right.”
8 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.'”
Proverbs 14:12 (NIV) There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
9 The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. 10 For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; 11 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'” (from Psalm 91)
12 Jesus answered, “It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'” (Deut. 16:6)
· (This basically means don’t put God on trial to force him to himself to you)
Ephesians 5:18 (NIV) Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
· Debauchery – recklessness that ends in
o Getting drunk leads to careless decisions, unwise choices, regrets you can never undo.
· We don’t plan to mess up our lives, we just don’t plan NOT to
Self-examination: Where are you riding right on the edge of a danger zone? (Drinking? Something else)
(MULTILINE)
· You can’t change it yourself; instead “be filled with the Holy Spirit.”