Sermon Tone Analysis

The Rights and Responsibility of the Firstborn

excerpts from Jimmy Evans message “The Secret of the Double Blessing.”

10/11/18

Inheritance Rights of the Firstborn

Deuteronomy 21:15-17

Biblical law gave preference to the firstborn son.

He had the rights to a double portion of his fathers possession.

He recieved a double portion because he also inherited the responsibility for the family.

Jesus is the firstborn of God.

Romans

Colossians 1:15-16

Jesus came as God’s representative and Jesus came to take responsibility for God’s family.

Jesus came with the double portion blessing on Him.

In Jesus we are all firstborn.

Hebrews 12:22

“to the assembly of the firstborn”

We are the church of the firstborn and have rights and privileges to a double portion blessing, why?

Because we are responsible for the family of God.

It is not automatic, tho. it has to be given to us.

How do we receive the double portion blessing of God?

5 loaves and 2 fish

Matthew

Disciples went to Jesus and wanted permission to disperse the crowd bc of a lack of food.

Jesus told them not to send them away, but to take responsibility for them.

“We only have 5 loaves and 2 fish!”

The Spirit of the firstborn must fill us before the blessings of the firstborn falls upon us Jimmy Evans

The disciples were looking at what they did not have to complete something Jesus had told them to do.

Jimmy Evans

He said bring them here to me.

“The spirit of the firstborn must fill you before the the blessing of the firstborn falls upon us.”Jimmy

Evans

The church is responsible for God’s children, those in the church and those not saved yet.

The Problem

Matthew 14:5-12

Matthew 16:

Beware of the teachings/doctrine of the Pharisees

What was their doctrine?

Selfishness

Jesus approached the crowd and said I’m here for you

The pharisees approached the crowd and said You’re here for us

Jesus was using the feeding of the crowd as an object lesson.

Take responsibility for my people irregardless of your own need and I will take care of you.

We have to take responsibility for this community right now!

Not after we get alot of money in the bank, but right now.

Share the recent SCF story.

We approached 2018 facing budget issues, giving was down and bills were up.

Elders meetings were consumed with discussion about our finances.

We had received some large gifts but we didn’t want that to skew reality of the normal ebb and flow of church giving.

We were focused on our need and not what the Lord has called us to do.

We decided as a staff we had to be better stewards.

As elders we decided to stay the course and ride out the summer.

The summer of 2018 has been the best summer of giving in the 6 years I’ve been here.

It gets better.

When we bought the mall the Lord had provided $400k thru the sale of some land SCF owned to remodel this area for worship.

We borrowed and additional $220k to complete it.

That was a significant monthly payment we had to make.

We had been applying generous gifts to the debt, as of September, the church, Spring Creek Fellowship is debt free!

(We still owe on the mall, but that is being taken care by the leasing of the stores.)

I began wondering what had caused this, God was the obvious answer, but after I had heard this message at conference I started to look at the things that had taken place this past year.

Linda our awesome office administrator, who handles the tithes and offerings on a weekly basis had been convicted by something.

Finances had gotten so tight we had stopped setting aside money for missions and benevolence.

It wasn’t the first thing set aside every week, it was last, if we could afford it.

She knew we had originally committed to setting aside 10% of the weekly giving to missions and started doing it again, first.

Our Daily Bread food ministry kicked off taking care of a need in this community, providing food to those in need twice a month.

We continue to support global missions such as OCC.

We became better stewards of the tithes and offerings coming in.

Deacons and Missional Communities continue to take care of needs of the widow, the elderly and others in need.

Our baptisms have also increased this year, which is a good indication that we are reaching more people with the Gospel.

We didn’t have a money problem, we had a identity problem.

We are the firstborn of God and have a right to a double portion, not so we can have a large bank acct or alot of stuff, but so that we can take responsibility for those in the church and those in our community who are not saved yet.

Back to the problem in with the bread, pharisees and sadducees.

When the 5 loaves and 2 fish was in the disciples hand it was not enough.

Once it was transferred from their hands to Jesus’ hands, there was more than enough.

The disciples had a problem, the crowd was large

God’s plan for his church is to impact our communities with the gospel and meet needs by living a life of generosity.

Not just for those within the church family, but for those not saved yet.

The devil has a plan for the church.

That plan is to keep us bound up in these four walls praying for survival.

The church is viewed today as irrelevant in our communities because the church has been irrelevant in our communities.

Jimmy Evans

In Christ we are the firstborn, it is time to take responsibility for those God has charged us with.

It is time to talk to that friend or family member about Jesus.

It is time to talk to that friend or family member about Jesus.

It is time to stop praying for survival Christian and time to realize who you are in Christ, understand the privilege and responsibility that comes with being a firstborn.

Isa 58: