<p>Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.</p>

Lansing SDA Church

The Sacred Circle

Wes Peppers

The Sacred Circle: Joyous Covenant

Father, this morning, we come to You, praising You, thanking You, rejoicing, Father, in the joy that we find through Jesus Christ.

The love and the peace that we find in Him can compare to no earthly treasure, no earthly relationship, no earthly joy.

And Father, we would come this morning seeking to know You, seeking to be known by You, Lord, seeking to be experiencing the fullness of your Spirit.

And we pray, Father, that you would draw close to us this morning.

We lift up those families that have had loss this week, and we pray, Father, that your Spirit would be close to them, that you would draw near to them, that you would minister to them.

And Father, we pray that our church family would also put their arms around them.

Father, it's terrible to lose loved ones.

It's terrible to lose children and parents and brothers and sisters and friends, Lord.

But we know that this is not Your original plan.

So we pray, dear Father, that as we draw close to each other, we draw close to You, Lord, that Your love would fill our hearts and fill those voids that we often experience.

And now, Father, we turn our eyes upon You to be drawn to You through the worship of the Word.

And we pray that that Word would be broken today, that our hearts would be comforted, convicted, and encouraged.

And Lord, we ask all these things to be poured out in Jesus' precious name.

I want to just review with you from last Sabbath, a few statements and a few thoughts before we move in here.

Adventist's home, page 17, says, God would have our families symbols of the family in heaven.

Let parents and children bear this in mind every day, relating themselves to 1 another as members of the family of God.

Then their lives will be such a character as to give to the world an object lesson of what families who love God and keep His commandments may be.

His peace and grace and love will pervade the family circle like a precious perfume." How many of you think that's a beautiful statement?

How many of you want your homes to be like this.

Whether you're single, whether you're married, whether you have children, it doesn't matter.

And God desires and has designed that the family would be a revelation of the relationship between Himself and His people on earth.

But even further than that, God would design that the family unit would be a revelation of the relationship between the Trinity in heaven, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

So we saw last week real quickly that from ages 0 to 3, the child watches and learns more from who?

And then from the ages of 3 to 5, the child watches and learns more from who?

What I wanted you to see and remind you of this week is that from ages 5 to 9, the child actually watches how the mother and the father do what?

So, 0 to 3, you can be sure, my daughter is attached at my wife's hip.

She has to know where my wife is all the time.

If My wife leaves and I'm there with her.

She loves Papa, but she's always asking, where's Mommy, where's Mommy?

My son right now, he's 4 and a half, he's attached to my hip.

And the more time we spend together, the more that bond is developed.

But from the ages of 5 to 9, it's very, very important that we understand that the child watches the mother and the father, how they interact.

I would propose to you today that the child actually watches the mother and father their whole life.

But in that intimate level of development, from the ages of 0 to 9, children are watching.

These influence the child's foundational character for life.

Theodore Hesburgh said, the most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their what?

A man ought to live so that everybody knows he's a Christian and most of all his family ought to know.

Now I want to mention something here that I think is very important.

You see, when you're, well, I'll come back to it.

So we looked at the biblical formula from Colossians 3 for how to bring that family together spiritually.

We looked at the biblical model for family worship and what that ought to look like in the home.

And right there in Colossians 3, it gives it to us step by step by step.

Number 1, we found from Colossians 3, 2, that we should choose to set our mind on what kind of things?

I know some of us are missing out over at the Grand Ledge Church for the school, but the rest of you here, that means you've got to kick it up a notch.

Secondly, be committed to putting off what kind of things?

Number 3, we must practice intentional love through humility, forgiveness, responsibility, and apologies.

So as we're preparing for family worship, we want to make sure that our relationships are correct with each other, yes or no?

Yes, and that we have made those apologies that are necessary, we have taken responsibility for our actions that have hurt each other, we've asked for forgiveness.

Number 4, practice intentional love through appreciation for 1 another.

Talking about sharing what you appreciate about each other.

Does that build each other up in the Lord, yes or no?

Number 5, asking the question, what are we thankful for?

By expressing thanksgiving to God in verse 15.

Number 6, verse 16, opening God's Word together.

So we're either sharing some passages from the Bible or we're opening or reading some kind of story, et cetera.

He said, let your hearts be knitted together by singing.

And then number 8, praying together and for each other.

These were the elements of family worship, and I talked about them more in depth last week, but I'm just reviewing them for you this week.

And Adrian Rogers, who was a pastor, made this statement.

The same Jesus who turned water into wine can transform your home, your life, your family, and your future, He is still in the miracle working business, and His business is the business of transformation.

How many of you believe today that Jesus can transform our homes?

You know, in the last days, Satan is attacking 2 elements in the world.

He's attacking the Sabbath and he's attacking marriage.

And the Sabbath is the test for the world, and I believe this morning that marriage is the test for the church.

I mean, Sabbath is a test for the church as well.

But if we can't get it right in the home, we're not going to get it right in the church, are we?

If we can't get it right in the home, we're going to receive the mark of the beast, because the pressure is going to be too much, isn't it?

The Sacred Circle: Godly Love in the Home

Father, we thank you so much this morning for the opportunity to study your word.

We pray that as we look at this precious subject, that your presence would be with us, your presence would be close to us, that you would draw sweetly near to our hearts.

And we ask for your blessing in Jesus' name.

Make us like you in our homes, in our workplace, in the church, everywhere we are, Lord.

May we love each other as you have loved us.

There's a bit of information in this 1, but we won't tarry too long on anything.

Well, last week we talked about covenant versus contract marriages.

And we hit that pretty hard from the book of Genesis and all of us are either in a contract or a covenant marriage or relationship is that true when you are involved in just relationships with other people You can have a covenant or a contract relationship.

And I'm not going to go through all these again.

I went through them last week, but I didn't want to hit the 2 bottom ones.

A contract marriage or relationship demands joy through mutual benefit.

In other words, I'm in this relationship because you're satisfying a need that I have.

And then also a person will say, I'll meet your need as long as you meet what?

A covenant relationship, however, seeks joy through mutual what?

Not what you can do for me, but what I can do for you.

The circle of life is that I give and receive, but giving comes what?

And also, in the contract relationship, you have this concept of that I will split you in 2 if that's necessary to get what I need or to defend and protect myself.

We saw that from Genesis 2 and Genesis 3.

In Genesis 2, God established between Adam and Eve a covenant relationship.

But in chapter 3, when sin came into the picture, it brought about a what?

Contract, and that woman whom Adam was so ready to love in chapter 2, he was ready to throw her under the bus in chapter 3, right?

He said, oh, the woman you gave me, right?

And so sin always will carry us from a covenant relationship to a what?

But the good news is that in Genesis 3 15, because both Adam and Eve had entered into that contract relationship, God said, I will make a covenant with both of you and I will be the 1 that will be split in 2 for your sakes.

And he's done the same thing for each 1 of us.

And so the only true success in marriage is going to come when God is at the what?

If we are both looking up towards Jesus in the marriage, then we're both going to be drawn closer to him, and as we're drawn closer to Him, we're drawn closer to who?

Now what we're going to talk about today is 5 areas of the covenant relationship or the covenant marriage.

Now let me help you understand in 1 sermon you cannot cover everything okay?

I'm gonna hit the core of the core and do my best to do that.

By the way I want to recommend some books to you.

There's a lot of great books out there and I'll give you a list of books next Sabbath, but I always want to recommend this book right here, The Adventist Home.

If you've not read this book in your home and you're planning your marriage, please do so immediately, like today.

Also, the last 4 chapters of the book, Ministry of Healing, the last 4 chapters deal so powerfully with relationships, both marriage and others.

I don't know if you've ever seen this book, The 5 Love Languages.

How many of you have seen this book before?

Here's a book that the conference, I'm so thankful in the Michigan conference, on our anniversary, they actually send us some kind of book or DVD every year that will enhance our marriages.

And this is the book they sent us this year.

It's a really wonderful book called Lifelong Love by Gary Thomas.

And then here's a book, I'm not necessarily pointing you to this book, but Willard F.

There's a book called His Need, Hers Needs, also by the same author.

Any books by this gentleman are very good.

There's lots of books out there, but these are some of the ones that have blessed us in a very special way.

Now we can't cover everything as I mentioned, but I do want to hit these 5 points.

Please turn in your Bibles to Matthew 19.

Matthew 19, and we're going to start in verse 5 and 6.

It says, and he answered and said to them, have you not read that he who made them at the beginning made them male and female and said for this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife and the 2 shall become 1 what?

We talked about this last week, and that word 1 flesh means ikad, which means 1 in unity.

So we maintain our individuality in marriage, yes or no, but we are still yet 1.

Then he says, so then, they are no longer 2, but 1 flesh, therefore what God has joined together, let not man do what?

Now you hear those words all the time in a marriage ceremony, right?

When God is joined together, let no man separate.

But that includes both the other man and yourselves.

And God wants us to not separate, but He wants us to be 1.

The Sacred Circle: A Higher Calling

Father, this morning we're thankful to be a part of a church family.

We have many families that make up the larger church family.

And Lord, we want to have strong families.

We want to have families that are true disciples.

We want to have families that are loving and kind to each other.

We wanna have families that have a missionary spirit in the home.

We wanna have families that are tight knit, close together.

And so Father, we pray that today and every day, your spirit will be poured out upon us.

We wanna pray, Father, that you would move upon us, you would draw us close to you, close to each other.

And we pray today, Father, that as the world has sought to creep into our homes, I pray today that as mothers and as fathers and as young people, we would take back our homes, we would take charge of our homes, and we would allow them to be sacred circles of sweet godly influence, and their presence would be there.

We ask your spirit to guide and lead and we come in Jesus' name, amen.

Last week we looked at 5 areas of the covenant marriage.

And those areas were, number 1, was what?

It actually won't be today, but it'll be soon.

And we're going to post those on the website as well, but I'll have a hard copy for you also.

We want to be honest in our homes, completely honest, even if the wife says, does this look good on me today, honey?

My wife doesn't always like when I say, honey, that doesn't look the best.

And honest in all things, in our private life.

Is there such a thing as a private life in the home, yes or no?

Number 3, we talked about trust and respect, right?

Being able to trust each other's word and respecting each other and we talked about that in depth.

And number 5 was intimacy, spiritual, emotional, and physical intimacy.

We talked about those 5 aspects of a covenant marriage.

Now what's the alternative to a covenant marriage?

And a contract marriage is based upon you meeting whose needs?

A covenant marriage is based upon what can I do for you?

So which kind of marriage do we want to have?

Now today, I want to talk a little bit about families, the family unit involving the children in this.

And we're going to take a look at 5 different areas of a happy home.

Now that doesn't mean these are the only 5 areas.

I wish that I could talk about this a lot more than I am, but there's enough for probably 20 or 30 sermons, and I'm trying to compact it all into 1.

So I try to take the broadest strokes and put it into a message.

All right, I wanna just start with this statement from the book, The Adventist's Home, page 21.

It says, while there are weighty responsibilities devolving upon the parents to guard carefully the future happiness and interests of their children, it is also their duty to make home as attractive as what?

This is a far greater consequence than to acquire estates and money.

For your children to have a happy home, a nice place, And when I say happy, when I say nice, I don't mean a big fancy home, but to have good memories, to have pleasant experiences, to have joyful moments in the home.

That is more important to your children than what kind of house you live in.

Then how much money is in the bank and how many vacations you take, what kind of car you drive, how many boats or motorcycles you have.

It's more important for your children to have a happy, simple, pleasant home than it is to acquire money or estates.

The home feeling should be kept alive in the hearts of the children that they may look back upon the home of their childhood as a place of peace and happiness next to heaven.

Now, maybe some of you did not have that growing up.

Some of you may have had a very bitter experience, a very negative experience, But that doesn't mean that we can't turn that around for our own children.

And if you've you've have children grow, then for your grandchildren.

Yes, I can remember my home was kind of back and forth.

But what I always knew when I went to grandma's house, that was a great time.

My grandma always had something cooked for me, whether it was pinto beans and cornbread or, or homemade apple pie or something.

And he could always count on the blessing of Grandma's house.

And so whatever you are, if you're single by yourself, you have the opportunity to minister to some young person.

And when they come to your home to make it pleasant for them, amen?

Now, when it says make them pleasant and happy, What it doesn't mean is to indulge.

And we're going to talk about that here as we go.

So Here's a verse I want us to understand that makes every home a happier home.

Series

The Sacred Circle

The Sacred Circle: A Higher Calling

Transcript

Parent Series

Sponsor

Recorded

2019: Evening and Sabbath Meetings

God’s Quiver

56m

Plenary Sessions

As For Me and My House

1h 15m

Lessons from the Book of Genesis

The Eden Family

49m

Love at Home

What’s the Best Thing I Can Do For My Family

1h

Move Over, Mountain

52m

Education Reformation

Education Reformation: Inexcusable Ignorance

59m

Dane Griffin: SWYC 2005 Practical Christianity Seminar

Practical Christianity Seminar, Part 1

51m

Teen Talk: In Search of Love

49m

Restoring the Home

01 The Sealing Work and Its Order

44m

SWYC 2012: As In the Days Of ...

Family Reunion

1h 17m

Three Strikes

40m

Love at Home

Keep the Heart

56m

Sound Doctrine