Consistent prayer for others creates warm, spontaneous relationships.  The relationship Paul had with the Philippians was more warm and spontaneous than existed with any other church.  The congregation at Philippi appears to have been his favorite of the many he supervised.  Paul assured these Saints that he prayed regularly for them.  He said, "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you and making request with joy" (Philippians 1:3-4).

1. Deficient love vs. abundant love.
   
2. Paul observed that the Philippians lacked the real kind of love.
   
3. We cannot pray for a better thing for our Christian friends, than that they may abound in love.
   
4. When one person acts so another may benefit, that is love.
   
5. Paul wanted the Philippians to love other believers so that their love might;
   
   1. it would run over as a river overflows.
      
   2. to not only consider us in prayer, but others.
      

1. Necessary in order to love God and others.
   
2. Founded on the Word of God.
   
   1. Romans 14 tells us that love uses the knowledge of the strong Christian so as not to hurt the weak.
      
   2. I Corinthians 8:1, we read that knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.
      

1. Discernment.
   
2. Transparent character.
   
3. Blameless relationships.
   
4. Righteousness.
   

The Christian is a person of many high privileges.  There are some people who think that the life of a Christian is completely devoid of any privilege.  They believe that when one becomes a Christian he gives up every joy, and his life becomes barren, humdrum and sad.  The Christian has many sweet privileges which the unbeliever never has.  He has the privilege of going to the Bible and reading God's love-letter to his heart.  He has the privilege of going to church and hearing a Gospel message that will help him to live a better and sweeter life.  He has the privilege of fellowship with the finest people on earth -- God's people.  He has the privilege of giving his substance that others might come to know Christ.  He has the privilege of serving in the only army that will be ultimately victorious.  But the Christian's sweetest privilege is the privilege of talking to God, that's what prayer is.

1. Forgiveness of sin (I John 1:9).
   
   1. Listen to the heart of David asking God to forgive him in Psalm 51:1-3.
      
2. A supply of wisdom (James 1:5).
   
3. Divine healing (James 5:15).
   
4. Provision for our needs (Philippians 4:6).
   
5. The answer to covenant prayer (Matthew 18:19).
   

1. To get things from God
   
   1. The Bible tells us over and over to ask for the things we need.
      
2. To prevent worry (Psalm 34:6).
   
3. To keep in close touch with God.
   

1. They are not offered (James 4:2).
   
2. We pray with the wrong motive (James 4:3).
   
3. We pray with the wrong spirit in our hearts (Psalm 68:18).
   
4. We do not really believe they are going to be answered.
   
5. We are not submissive to God's will.
   

Solomon had everything but could not enjoy it.  Everything he had always wanted was not enough.  Can we learn from Solomon?

1. Many feel that all they lack is wisdom.
   
2. The outcome is vexation, grief and sorrow.  (Ecclesiastes 1:14, 17-18)
   

1. The world is seeking a "Whatever feels good attitude".
   
2. The outcome is vanity.  (Ecclesiastes 2:11)
   

1. The outcome is vanity and sorrow.  (Ecclesiastes 2:l1, 6:26, 7:26)
   
2. Many are committed to the love of money.
   
3. The antichrist will be very wealthy.
   

1. Some feel that works will pave their way to Heaven.
   
2. The outcome is vanity.  (Ecclesiastes 2:17-18)
   

1. Our world is full of power-hungry people.
   
2. The outcome is vanity.  (Ecclesiastes 2:11)
   

1. We need to get our priorities in order.
   
2. God is able and will supply all our need.
   

What these men were doing was not in their own strength.  They were getting their courage and strength from another source.  Something outside the realm of human effort and human power was moving them to tackle this superhuman task.  There were at least three important forces that motivated them.  These forces will also move us into action for the Master.

1. What is conviction?  It is defined as "A state of being convinced, a strong persuasion or belief."
   
2. John Wesley stated that "The whole world is my parish."
   
3. According to John 3:16, Christ died for the whole world.
   
4. Jesus wants us to "Occupy until He comes", taking charge and keeping the Spiritual House in order.  He wants us to run His affairs on earth.  We are His ambassadors (Mark 13:34).
   
5. We talk about being concerned about our family and friends who are unsaved, but spend day after day not winning them to Christ.
   

1. What is compulsion?  It is "An act of compelling, the state of being compelled, subjection to force, an impulse or felling of being irresistibly driven toward action.
   
2. When Jesus started His public ministry, He declared, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me" (Luke 4:18).
   
3. Matthew 9:37-38, makes it very clear concerning why we are here today on the earth.
   
4. If you have experienced anything from Christ, How can you not want to share such a wonderful happening (Acts 4:20).
   

1. What is compassion? It is to bear or suffer sorrow or pity, excited by the distress or misfortunes of another; sympathy.
   
2. Jesus saw the need and had compassion upon others (Matthew 9:36).
   
3. Christ preached to:
   
   1. the despised Samaritan (John 4:7).
      
   2. the demoniac of Gadara (Mark 5).
      
   3. the Syrophenician woman (Mark 7).
      
4. How can we say that we have compassion upon others when we stand by idle and watch them enter hell?
   
5. Are we concerned or not?
   

1. He must know the Scriptures (Acts 8:32-34).
   
   ³² The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter;  and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:  ³³ In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.  ³⁴ And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?
   
   
2. He must reach the sinner (Acts 8:29-30).
   
   ²⁹ Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.  ³⁰ And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
   
   
3. He must preach the Savior (Acts 8:35).
   
   ³⁵ Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
   
   
4. He must be ready to follow-up after conversion (Acts 8:38).
   
   ³⁸ And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.
   
   

The first four kings of Israel present a remarkable study in momentum that peaked with the reign of Solomon.  You may never have thought about the Hebrew's first four leaders in that way before, but as you reflect on who they were and what they did, you will see what I mean.  Here's how each stacked up when it came to momentum.

1. When Saul was anointed King, his task was to take Israel in a new direction.
   
2. For more than three hundred years, judges had ruled the Hebrews.
   
3. Saul was not equal to the task because of:
   
   1. Weak character.
      
   2. Selfishness.
      
   3. Improper motives.
      

1. David on the other hand, was a momentum maker.
   
2. Even as a small boy, he had a knack for creating momentum, beginning with Goliath.
   
3. David spent time:
   
   1. Building momentum.
      
   2. Capitalizing on victories.
      
   3. Consolidating his resource.
      
   4. Cultivating his character.
      

1. Solomon started with the momentum that his famous father, David, had created during his reign.
   
2. Solomon took a good kingdom, and turned it into a great kingdom.
   
3. Solomon used:
   
   1. An impressive administration.
      
   2. Numerous alliances with neighbors.
      
   3. Secured trade and shipping routes.
      
   4. Engaged in a extensive building campaign.
      
   5. Accumulated incredible wealth.
      

1. Everything that Solomon achieved in his forty-year reign, his son Rehoboam destroyed in a matter of days.
   
2. According to I Kings 12:7, the people advised Rehoboam to simply be a servant and serve them that day.  Also to speak good words to them, and they would serve him forever.
   
3. Rehoboam became the greatest momentum breaker in the history of the Hebrews.
   

Christmas is the giving of love.  Christmas means many things to many people.  It means gifts and glamour, celebration, mediation, reunion, reminiscence, old friends, old faces, worship, prayer, pageantry, and parties.  Christmas is a holiday, a Holy day, and a Christmas tree.  Christmas means Christ and Christ is the center of life.  Minus Christ, Christmas degenerates into merely another day.

1. Isaiah 9:2-6 tells us that the Prophet anticipated the Messiah would be born.
   
2. Elizabeth, wife of Zacharias the priest, anticipated the birth of Jesus and poured forth prophetic utterance when Mary appeared to her (Luke 1:42-43).
   
3. Mary responded with anticipation by saying, "My soul doth magnify the Lord", Luke 1:46-48.
   
4. Simeon, anticipated that he would see the Messiah before he died (Luke 2:25-30).
   

1. The nature of man.
   
   1. Man without Christ is lost.
      
   2. Man without a Savior, a Messiah, and a Redeemer is alienated and cast out from God.
      
2. The fall of man.
   
   1. In the Garden of Eden, man, by transgression fell.
      
   2. b. Transgression is sin, and will cause us to miss Heaven.
      

1. God identified with man.
   
   1. God did His best to forewarn man in the beginning.
      
   2. As a last resort, God sent His son to redeem man (Romans 8:3).
      
   3. From a manger in Bethlehem, to a cross on Calvary's hill, God has tried to identify with His creation.
      

1. According to Romans 5:8, God commended love toward us, God and man have been brought together again.
   
2. The most striking manifestation of God's love is the gift of His only Son.