Sermon Series 2012 Relationship Wars Part 2

Relationship Ambushes 1: The Eye

Scripture lesson: 2 Samuel 11:1-17

Key Verse: Exodus 20:17 You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

You shall not covet

Covet: “to desire wrongfully, beyond a normal or acceptable limit, or without due regard for the rights of others”
People covet because they become convinced that what they don’t have will make them happier than what they do have
Coveting starts with how we look at things
Coveting can lead us to act “without due regard for the rights of others,” and that destroys relationships

Lessons from King David

Relationship destroyer: (verse 1) He wasn’t where he was supposed to be
Relationship builder: Be where you are supposed to be!

Relationship destroyer: (2) He kept looking where he wasn’t supposed to look
Relationship builder: Move your eyes!

Relationship destroyer: (3) He sought information he wasn’t supposed to have
Relationship builder: Let it go!

Relationship destroyer: (4a) He initiated a contact he knew was inappropriate
Relationship builder: Let them go!

Relationship destroyer: (4b) He did something he knew was wrong
Relationship builder: Don’t do anything you know is wrong!

Relationship destroyer: (5-13) He repeatedly tried to cover up his wrongdoing
Relationship builder: Confess and repent!

Relationship destroyer: (14-17) He allowed it to lead him into something even worse
Relationship builder: Cut your losses!

· Different kinds of coveting threaten different kinds of relationships

Coveting people can destroy marriages
Coveting possessions can destroy families and friendships
Coveting positions or influence can destroy business relationships

Relationship Ambushes 2: The Mind

Scripture lesson: Mark 7:1-23

Key verse: Philippians 4:8 Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Overcoming “Divide and Conquer”

Evil spirits try to push your emotions into harmful actions
Every Christian has the authority to use the name of Jesus to resist and evict these spirits
Evil spirits are most successful when they can ambush us

Thinking negatively about others makes for poor, negative relationships

Suspicion
Distrust
Envy

Thinking positively about others makes for healthy, positive relationships

Always err on the side of grace
Always give the benefit of the doubt
Let people know you believe in them

Overcome “divide and conquer:” always think the best!

Relationship Ambushes 3: The Heart

Scripture lesson: Matthew 5:3-10

Sermon key verse: Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a right spirit within me.

Overcoming “Divide and Conquer”

Evil spirits try to push your emotions into harmful actions
Every Christian has the authority to use the name of Jesus to resist and evict these spirits
Evil spirits are most successful when they can ambush us

Heart attitudes that ambush relationships

Taking offense
Unforgiveness
Jealousy and envy
Vanity
Clinging dependency
Playing the victim
Demanding your rights

Make yourself immune from heart ambushes (Matthew 5:3-10)

Depend on God (verse 3)
Feel people’s pain (4)
Be gentle (5)
Be fair (6)
Give people a break (7)
Stay clean (8)
Wage peace (9)
Live for God (10)

Relationship Ambushes 4: The Will

Scripture lesson: Exodus 32:1-14

Sermon key verse: Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ. I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Overcoming “Divide and Conquer”

Evil spirits try to push your emotions into harmful actions
Every Christian has the authority to use the name of Jesus to resist and evict these spirits
It takes two to have a relationship
Evil spirits are most successful when they can ambush us

Your will is that part by which you make choices

Your free will is very important to God
How you use your will is very important to God
Misuse of your will can destroy your relationships

Ambushes of the will

Control
Rebellion
Self-centeredness
Stubbornness
Procrastination
Indecisiveness
Refusal to take responsibility
Laziness

Lessons from today’s Bible story

The people wanted gods and leaders they could control (verse 1)
Aaron refused to take responsibility to stop them (2-5)
The people indulged in self-centered revelry (6)
God saw it as stubbornness and rebellion (7-8)
God considered stubbornness and rebelliousness as grounds for death (9-10)
Moses resisted self-centeredness (11a)
Moses respectfully argued his will against God’s will, based on God’s principles (11b-13)
God listened to Moses’ prayer and changed God’s mind! (14)

Relationship Ambushes 5: The Tongue

Scripture lesson: James 3:2-12

Sermon key verse: Ephesians 4:29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

The Bible has much to say about the power of words
If you can control your tongue you can control your life (James 3:2)
Ambushes of the tongue destroy relationships

o Lying

o Complaining

o Nagging

o Gossip

o Telling secrets

o Sarcasm

o Lack of communication

o Lack of encouragement

o Failure to express empathy

o Failure to express support

o Failure to express love

Relationship builder: by the power of the Holy Spirit, follow our key verse

o Bite off ambush words

o Speak what helps people

o Speak what builds people up

o Speak what meets people’s needs

o Speak what benefits people

Relationship Ambushes 6: Actions

Scripture lesson: Galatians 5:16-26

Sermon key verse: Galatians 5:16 Live according to your new life in the Holy Spirit. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves.

Your actions can ambush your relationships
- Actions that make you hard to trust can ambush a relationship
- - Secrecy
  - Deception
  - Unfaithfulness
- Actions that make you hard to be around can ambush a relationship
- - Selfishness
  - Suffocating
  - Micro-managing
  - Pushing people’s buttons
- Irresponsibility can ambush a relationship
- - Not taking care of money
  - Not taking care of things
  - Not taking care of people
  - Not taking care of yourself
  - Not following through on promises or obligations
- Self-destructive behavior can ambush a relationship
- - Your own behaviors
  - Enabling the behaviors of others
These ambushes come from the old sinful nature
To avoid these ambushes, follow our key verse
- Let God give you a new life in the Holy Spirit
- Learn what the new Holy Spirit life is all about (Galatians 5:22-23)
- Learn to connect with the power and love of the Holy Spirit of God who lives within you
- Consciously, action by action, choose to live as the new person you have become in Jesus

E Pluribus Unum

Scripture lesson: Ephesians 2:11-22

Series theme verse: Ephesians 6:12 We are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms.

Sermon key verse: Galatians 3:28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. For you are all Christians—you are one in Christ Jesus.

o The enemy tries to divide and conquer

Ethnicity

Nationality

Gender

Language

Age

Education

Economics

Politics

Denomination

Anything else he can get us to argue about

o Jesus gave his life to make us one

o Jesus is building us all together into a house for God

Many kinds of materials are necessary to build a house for people

Many kinds of people are necessary to build a house for God

Our diversity makes us strong. Celebrate it!

Sermon Series - 2012

“Relationship Wars: Overcoming ‘Divide and Conquer.’”

The enemy is not who you think!