Justyn Smith • A Heart For Revival

TEENAGE SUMMER BAGGAGE #9: The Baggage Of Fear   In Genesis 15:1, God speaks to the fears of Abraham, "After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." The word magen refers to an object which provides covering and protection to the body during warfare.  It also refers to a prince, as protector of the realm. Psalm 89:18 For the Lord is our defense (shield); and the Holy One of Israel is our king .  Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth, And with my song will I praise Hi m. I. Realize you have a shield and defender - Genesis 15:1 NOTE HOW GOD SPEAKS: I AM THY SHIELD... A. From your past choices “After these things” what things? Genesis 14 - war between kings 14:11-12 - Lot is stolen and Abraham gets involved 14:13-16 - A rescue and recovery mission be...

  TEENAGE SUMMER BAGGAGE #8: The Baggage Of Your Past   In 1 Corinthians 6:11, Paul reminded the Corinthians about the past to encourage them in their present position and purpose in Christ, "And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God."  Someone once said, My past beats within me like a second heart.  The decisions you make now will form your future. In your future, your present will either be filled with past regrets or joyous memories.  Let's study the Scriptures to find God's victory over our past regrets and move on to present victories! I. Let's realize our past pulling away from Christ A. Your past doesn't refuse you of a home in heaven.  1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of...

  TEENAGE SUMMER BAGGAGE #7: The Baggage Of Being Offended In Luke 17:1, Jesus addresses the reality of and response to offences, "Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come, but woe unto him, through whom they come!"  According to  dictionary.com  the word  offence  means:   “an act of stumbling; a cause or occasion of sin : stumbling block ; something that outrages the moral or physical senses.” Offense is an act of stumbling. . .it will cause you to break your focus.  If you stumble you’re no longer concerned about where you’re going. . .but rather, the immediate desire to keep from stumbling. I. The near impossible battle of an offense. Proverbs 18:19 A brother offended  is harder to be won  than a strong city: and  their  contentions  are  like the bars of a castle . II. The devastation of offending the Holy Spirit. Isaiah 63:10 But they rebelled, a...

  TEENAGE SUMMER BAGGAGE #6: The Baggage Of An Identity Crisis In Psalm 139:14, David challenges us to respond to God's working in our lives with acceptance and awe, "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well."  God isn't confused about who He made us to be, and we shouldn't be confused about it either. May we find rest and victory in who God created us to be. Identity: the distinguishing character or personality of an individual. In today's message, we are dealing with a crisis...a situation that has reached a critical phase. We call it a crisis of identity or an identity crisis.  Many children and teens (and even some adults) have become very confused about who they are, where they are headed, and what they are created to do. The Bible has the answers for the questions of life. Let's go to God and ask HIM to help us today! I. Let's talk about Our Identity  Question:...

  TEENAGE SUMMER BAGGAGE #5: The Baggage Of Spiritual Apathy/Carelessness   In Haggai 1:6, the results of spiritual apathy are revealed , "Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes."  The exhortation for each of us is, "Consider your ways." I. We can't afford spiritual apathy. Haggai 1:6,9-11 Notice the gain the people had, and then notice the immediate loss or lack of sufficiency. Isn't it amazing how spiritual life really is?  II. We shouldn't avoid spiritual assignments.  Haggai 1:2-4 The people were once so excited to get to work for the glory of God. They were set free from captivity to only set the hammer down once they got more focused on themselves. We avoid spiritual assignments when we set our attention on things below more than on things above. Avoid spiritual a...

  TEENAGE SUMMER BAGGAGE #4: The Baggage Of No Self Control In 2 Peter 1:6, the exhortation to, "add to knowledge temperance..." is huge to overcoming lives challenging temptations. Do we even try to reign victorious over temptations, or do we simply fall to them every single time?  Temperance means self-control. It comes from a word that means: strong in a thing (masterful) or self- controlled (as in appetite). When you "give in" every time, you are constantly lending yourself to defeat when we are told we already have victory in Jesus. Please take note of these testimonies of self control from the Bible, and then realize you can react just like them with the help of the Lord! I. Self-control removes blindness. 2 Peter 1:5-9 2 Peter 1:5-9 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; [6] And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; [7] And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to ...

  TEENAGE SUMMER BAGGAGE #3: The Baggage Of Secret Sins In 2 Kings 17:9, the people of Israel have gone down in history with sinful baggage weighing them down, "And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the LORD their God..."  Secret sins slow the soul’s peace, joy and prosperity. We cannot afford to let these secret sins live in our lives any longer. We can have rest from the effects of sin and victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! I. SECRET SINS AFTER BLESSED SITUATIONS 2 Kings 17:7-9 Just because we have been blessed to see or know the God of a miracle doesn't mean we will  choose to stay faithful. We must purpose to remain pure even after the "high" times of the Christian life! II. SECRET SINS MAY SLIDE INTO BLATANT SINS 2 Kings 17:10-12 If we choose to enter into deceitful secret sins and if those sins remain a source of pleasure, we will slide into blatant rebellion before God. We must understand the reperc...

  TEENAGE SUMMER BAGGAGE #2: The Baggage Of Depression   In Psalm 34:18, God's Word encourages the troubled and broken hearted with this promise, "The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit."  This message addresses those who are depressed, those who have the tendency to get depressed and those who are looking to help those who are depressed. May God give great rest and victory to those with mental struggles of depression. Psa 34:17  The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. Psa 34:18  The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Psa 34:19  Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all. NOTE THREE CAUSES for DEPRESSION WITHIN THIS PASSAGE (they all are related but slightly different): Trouble : adversary, adversity, angu...