Cornerstone Church - Lolo, MT: Recent Episodes
Cornerstone Church
We are a non-denominational church. We love God and believe that He sent His one and only Son to die on the cross for our sins. We believe that the Bible is flawless in its original languages and is perfect for instructing each of us through daily living and life’s great challenges. We delight in His Grace, His Love, and His Laws. Listen in as Pastor Chuck Keller speaks truth directly from the word with passion and humor.
What are the signs to watch for that might clue us into when end times might be near? Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies Jesus' words to his disciples on that exact question.
Mark 13
Join Pastor Chuck as he looks at scripture and reflects on the meaning behind Good Friday. "It is finished!”
What does your giving to those in need say about your heart? Are you giving to the poor? Are you helping the needy? Are you giving cheerfully? Join Pastor Chuck as he studies in Mark 12 and learns what Jesus says about giving.
Being someone’s child means we have their DNA. As a Child of God, what should our DNA look like? Join an Elder of Cornerstone Church, Mark Krause, as he points out numerous scriptures as to what our DNA should look like and how our heart reflects what DNA we choose to live by.
Jonathan Huls joins us again and shares with us how scripture defines truth. In a war of culture vs. Christianity, Scripture is your ultimate foundation for the truth.
1 Corinthians 15: 13-19 1 Peter 3:15 Isaiah 1:18-19 John 18:37-38 Romans Ch. 12:1-2 Matthew 18:1-4 Romans 1:25 John 1:1-5 John 14:5-6 John 8:31-32 Mark 10:6-9 Isaiah 14:12-15 Genesis 3:5 John 17:20-23 Matthew 7:21 Matthew 12:30 Isaiah 5:20 Matthew 18:5-6 Revelation 3:20-22
Join Pastor Chuck from Cornerstone Church as he continues his study in Matthew, and we see Jesus condemning the Scribes and Pharisees of their hypocrisy.
Cornerstone Church has ordained and sent two missionaries to Italy! Please join us for this replay of an incredible Sunday celebration as we learn more about what Aaron and Amanda will be doing for the Kingdom in Italy!
Seven Woes to Avoid - Part 2 | Pastor Chuck Keller | Matthew 23:13-22 by Cornerstone Church
Mark 12:35-40 Luke 20:41-47
All of the knowledge and wisdom in the world will not do you any good if you don’t know how to apply it. The Pharisees had that head knowledge of scripture, but Jesus showed them they never understood with their hearts. Join Pastor Chuck Keller as he studies Matthew 22:41-46.
Mark 12:28-34 Matthew 22:34-40
If your desire is to please and honor God, then His commandments have great authority to you. In Matthew 22, Jesus tells a scribe what the greatest of all the commandments is. Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he dives into the Word and shares Jesus’ answer to the question of, “What is the greatest commandment?”
Hope Rescue Mission truly brings hope to those experiencing homelessness. Join us as April Seat reminds us of how God uses us, the Church to bring hope to destitute and lost.
Mark 12:18-27 Luke 20:27-40
We have a hope and future! Believers in Christ Jesus will rise from the grave and live eternally with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in Heaven. Pastor Chuck takes a fresh perspective on Jesus’ interaction with the Sadducees in Matthew 22.
Most people don’t like paying taxes or rent or other expenses, but do—because it’s necessary. It’s necessary to have a roof over your head and to be in a safe community. Do you like paying or giving to God what is God’s? Have you ever thought about it? Join Pastor Chuck of Conerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he teaches from Matthew 22.
You've been given a personal invitation by the King! Are you dressed for the occasion? Join Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies the parable of the wedding feast, found in Matthew 22:1-4.
Jesus came as a light to this world, pointing back to the Father. Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies the word of God and encourages you to celebrate your Savior this Christmas season.
Jesus has left his vineyard to us believers to cultivate and harvest. Join Pastor Chuck Keller as he studies Matthew 21:33-46 and shares how this parable from scripture can be and important learning moment for us.
Mark 12:1-12 Luke 20:9-18
If your Bible Study is not equipping you, more importantly motivating you to get out and go and do work in the vineyard, you need to rethink what and why you are even studying. Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies this message as delivered by Jesus in the book of Matthew.
Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, Montana as he talks about Jesus and encourages you to have an active faith and share the Good News with your friends, family, and neighbors.
Part 2 of 2 series
Every person on the face of the earth, whether they are a Christian or not, has asked or been asked the following question: “If God exists, then why do bad things happen to good people?”
Join guest speaker Jonathan Huls as he studies that exact question in part two of the two-part series at Cornerstone Church in Lolo, MT.
Every person on the face of the earth, whether they are a Christian or not, has asked or been asked the following question: “If God exists, then why do bad things happen to good people?”
Join guest speaker Jonathan Huls as he studies that exact question over a two-part series at Cornerstone Church in Lolo, MT.
1 Peter 3:14-15 Ephesians 4:11-12 Ecclesiastes 2:9-11, 17 Isaiah 1:18 2 Timothy 3:16 Exodus 3:15 John 14:6 1 John 4:7-8 Psalm 107:1 2 Peter 3:9 John 3:16 Romans 5:8 1 John 4:19
Have you ever struggled with understanding why Jesus cursed the fig tree that didn’t bare fruit? What was the purpose for His action? Join Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies Matthew 21:18-22 and Mark 11:12-14; 20-26.
We’ve all heard the story of Jesus clearing the temple with a whip or when He turned over the vendor’s tables. But have you ever considered what Jesus thinks of what he finds in the temple of your heart? How would he react to what he found in there? At first that thought might seem to be a discouragement, but what if we were to take it as an encouragement to turn our hearts over to Jesus for an overhaul? Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies Matthew 21:12-17.
Join Pastor Chuck Keller as he studies Jesus' vivid, emotional reaction to Jerusalem as he entered the city on Palm Sunday.
When Jesus made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem the week before he went to the cross, his disciples and those who knew His works gave him all honor and praise as the now come Messiah. How are you giving honor and worship to Jesus?
Have you ever been honored by someone? What did that look like? Have you ever honored someone else by doing something special and out of the ordinary? Join Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies John 12:1-8 and learns of Mary honored Jesus during an evening meal given in His name.
If you are a believer, God has given you gifts to use to increase the Kingdom of God. What happens if you don't use those gifts? Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies Luke 19:11-27.
Zacchaeus was a traitor and a cheat to the Jewish people, yet his encounter with Jesus radically changed his life and salvation found him that day. Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Conerstone Church of Lolo as he studies Luke 19:1-10.
Have you ever been desperate for an answer to prayer? How about in need of healing? Jesus loves to answer prayer and of course, he loves to heal! Join Pastor Chuck Keller from Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies Mark 10:46-52.
Do you often feel like you aren't recognized enough? Do you wish that you had more authority--as in you wish that you had a higher status in life? Then you'd probably understand James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They also desired higher status. They wanted to be recognized as the right hand man and special guest of Jesus throughout eternity. Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he studies Jesus response to James and John and how their story can speak to us.
Matthew 20:17-19 / Luke 18:31-34
Jesus told his disciples several times that he would have to go to his death, but they never seemed to understand what he was saying. the Bible says that the meaning behind the words of Jesus were "veiled" to them. Join Pastor Chuck as he looks at Matthew 20 and Luke 18 and we discover how the words of Jesus affect us and our walk today.
Join Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church as he studies John 11:38-46, and explores how the passage has deep meaning and direction for both the believer and non-believer.
This is the kickoff weekend of this new ministry opportunity for Cornerstone Church. Join missionary Pastor Doug Fourtner from Father's in the Field as he shares what God's word says about taking care of the fatherless child.
Fathers in the Field Mission Statement: To rekindle and establish the spirit of boys who have been abandoned by their fathers; mentoring them one-on-one in life skills through outdoor activities, and by sharing a Christian understanding of our Heavenly Father’s love and sacrifice for His children.
Adult & Teen Challenge is a worldwide network of Christian faith-based corporations intended to help teenagers, adults, and families with problems such as substance abuse or self-destructive behavior. This was a special presentation presented by the local facility on August 9, 2020.
In John 11, we see the death of Lazarus, a friend of Jesus. Here we also find the shortest verse in the Bible--it's only 2 words long. "Jesus wept." Join Pastor Chuck and the congregation of Cornerstone Church in Lolo, MT as they read John 11:28-37 and learn more.
Join Pastor Chuck Keller as he teaches what Jesus says about who He is in John 11:17-27.
Have you ever found that God's timing is different than yours? He really does work in mysterious ways and often in most unexpected ways. Join Pastor Chuck as he reads though John 11:1-19 and finds out how Jesus reacts to hearing that Lazarus has died--and then we see what He does.
John 11:1-19 Recorded 7/19/20
The Pharisees had stones in their hands and were ready to stone Jesus because he made explicitly clear that he was the Son of God and that God the Father and Him were one. They now had to make the choice of whether or not to believe Him. What would your choice be? Join Pastor Chuck as he walks us through John 10:31-42.
Whose Voice Are You Hearing? | Pastor Chuck Keller | Matthew John 10:22-31 by Cornerstone Church
We often ask our Dad's what they'd like for Father's Day, or maybe they even drop hints to us in the weeks leading up to the day. Have you ever wondered what God would like for Father's Day? Join Pastor Chuck as he reads through scripture to determine exactly what God is looking for from us.
June 21, 2020 (Father's Day) 1st Peter 5:8 John 10:10 Galatians 5:19-21 Ephesians 5:1-2 Genesis 1:27 Genesis 6:18 Acts 17:26-27 Romans 5:8 2 Corinthians 5:17-20 1 John 4:7-21 Romans 12:18 Matthew 5:43-48 John 13:34-35
Are you often bogged down by your stuff? Are you more concerned about the material things you own than you are your relationship with Jesus? Join Pastor Chuck as he reads from the book of Mark this challenging message.
What do you need to do to get to heaven? Are there a list of things to do? Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT will be discussing exactly this question today, asked in Mark 10:17-22. Join us as we learn what exactly Jesus had to say.
We can learn a lot from children. In fact, even Jesus scolded his disciples after they kept children from coming up to Him, and then in that moment He explained how important it was to the receive the kingdom of God like a little child. What does that mean?
Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he walks us through the words of Jesus in Mark 10:13-16.
Mark 10:13-16 Release May 24, 2020
Divorce has become commonplace in our culture, but it seems that it was also commonplace when Jesus walked among us some 2,000 years ago. What did/does Jesus think about divorce? Is it a sin? Is it OK? Is it ever allowed? Pastor Chuck Keller will help us understand better exactly what Jesus taught about the subject of divorce in this teaching from Matthew.
Matthew 19:1-12 Release May 17, 2020
How has God been working in your life lately? Have you noticed? Do you have that peace that surpasses all understanding? COVID-19, self-isolation and quarantine have changed all of our lives dramatically. Join Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he looks at Romans 8:28 and discusses how God works good for all those who love Him.
Romans 8:28 Release May 10, 2020
Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church in Lolo, Montana continues his Red Letters sermon series (Part 145) with Luke 18:9-14.
The Red Letters--these are the words that Jesus himself spoke to His disciples, religious leaders, and the people of his day…and we find that these words are just as important to us today.
If you would like to learn more about Cornerstone Church, please find us on Facebook @ cclolomt, or visit our website at www.cclolo.com. If you would like to give and help support the ministries of Cornerstone Church, your tax deductible gift can be given online at cclolo.com, you can also use your phone to text the amount you’d like to give to the number: 84321, or send a check to Cornerstone Church, PO Box 1246, Lolo, MT 59847.
Release date: May 3, 2020
Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church in Lolo, Montana continues his Red Letters sermon series (Part 142) with Luke 17:26-37.
The Red Letters--these are the words that Jesus himself spoke to His disciples, religious leaders, and the people of his day…and we find that these words are just as important to us today.
If you would like to learn more about Cornerstone Church, please find us on Facebook @ cclolomt, or visit our website at www.cclolo.com. If you would like to give and help support the ministries of Cornerstone Church, your tax deductible gift can be given online at cclolo.com, you can also use your phone to text the amount you’d like to give to the number: 84321, or send a check to: Cornerstone Church PO Box 1246 Lolo, MT 59847.
Release date: April 5, 2020
Join Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church in Lolo, Montana for his Easter Message for 2020.
If you would like to learn more about Cornerstone Church, please find us on Facebook @ cclolomt, or visit our website at www.cclolo.com. If you would like to give and help support the ministries of Cornerstone Church, your tax deductible gift can be given online at cclolo.com, you can also use your phone to text the amount you’d like to give to the number: 84321, or send a check to Cornerstone Church, PO Box 1246, Lolo, MT 59847.
Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT shares a Good Friday message about why Jesus cried out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" from the cross.
If you would like to learn more about Cornerstone Church, please find us on Facebook @ cclolomt, or visit our website at www.cclolo.com. If you would like to give and help support the ministries of Cornerstone Church, your tax deductible gift can be given online at cclolo.com, you can also use your phone to text the amount you’d like to give to the number: 84321, or send a check to Cornerstone Church, PO Box 1246, Lolo, MT 59847.
Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church in Lolo, Montana continues his Red Letters sermon series (Part 142) with Luke 17:20-25.
The Red Letters--these are the words that Jesus himself spoke to His disciples, religious leaders, and the people of his day…and we find that these words are just as important to us today.
If you would like to learn more about Cornerstone Church, please find us on Facebook @ cclolomt, or visit our website at www.cclolo.com. If you would like to give and help support the ministries of Cornerstone Church, your tax deductible gift can be given online at cclolo.com, you can also use your phone to text the amount you’d like to give to the number: 84321, or send a check to Cornerstone Church, PO Box 1246, Lolo, MT 59847.
Release date: April 5, 2020
Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church in Lolo, Montana continues his Red Letters sermon series (Part 141) with Luke 17:11-18.
The Red Letters--these are the words that Jesus himself spoke to His disciples, religious leaders, and the people of his day…and we find that these words are just as important to us today.
If you would like to learn more about Cornerstone Church, please find us on Facebook @ cclolomt, or visit our website at www.cclolo.com. If you would like to give and help support the ministries of Cornerstone Church, your tax deductible gift can be given online at cclolo.com, you can also use your phone to text the amount you’d like to give to the number: 84321, or send a check to Cornerstone Church, PO Box 1246, Lolo, MT 59847.
Release date: 29 March 2020
Pastor Chuck of Cornerstone Church in Lolo, Montana continues his Red Letters sermon series (Part 140) with Luke 17:5-10.
The Red Letters--these are the words that Jesus himself spoke to His disciples, religious leaders, and the people of his day…and we find that these words are just as important to us today.
If you would like to learn more about Cornerstone Church, please find us on Facebook @ cclolomt, or visit our website at www.cclolo.com. If you would like to give and help support the ministries of Cornerstone Church, your tax deductible gift can be given online at cclolo.com, you can also use your phone to text the amount you’d like to give to the number: 84321, or send a check to Cornerstone Church, PO Box 1246, Lolo, MT 59847.
The Red Letters - Part 139 - Unforgiveness...The Temptation To Sin by Cornerstone Church
Join us for part one of this three part series about the prodigal son, and how we can see ourselves in every aspect of this story.
The Red Letters - Part 126 - Fear...Ain't Nobody Got Time For That! by Cornerstone Church
The Red Letters - Part 124 - When Religion Gets in the Way of God by Cornerstone Church
The Red Letters - Part 120 - Dress For Action, Keep Watch. The Master Will Return. by Cornerstone Church
Jesus is the Good Shepherd and His sheep hear and follow His voice. He is the way. Enter thru the door.
John 7:32-36, John 1:1, John 20:29, Matthew 7:7-8, Revelation 3:20
Jesus is not hiding from us, if we are purposefully seeking Him.
The Son Doesn’t Pay - 1/20/2018 It is believed that just Peter and Jesus are involved, and that Jesus takes this opportunity to reveal more of His divinity to Peter. Matthew 17:24-27 Now, this tax was established back in Exodus when God told Moses to take a census and to collect money for the temple. Exodus 30:11-16 This was a reminder of the atonement, a ransom for their souls. And so, this “temple tax” that was taken was a reminder of what God had done in their lives. How does that tie in to today’s passage? How can one make an atonement… if He is without sin? How could our atoning sacrifice, the One who paid our ransom, be expected to pay? So, we have this situation, where Peter is asked by the temple tax collectors, if Jesus pays His taxes, and Peter says… “Yes.” Peter has this encounter and then walks into the house, presumably to tell Jesus what took place. And Jesus in His omniscience… knowing what just took place, speaks before Peter can get started. Verse 25 Jesus is confirming the confession that His friend had made just a short time ago. Matthew 16:16 Jesus is not obligated to pay anything because He is the Son! And The Son Doesn’t Pay! Who pays tribute to the king? Not the sons. Who is this temple tax for? The KING! God… the Father… Jesus the Son of God is not obligated to pay taxes or tributes to the temple of God! Jesus assures his friend… “it’s all good… we are going to pay the tax...” What a better way to pay a divine tribute, a temple tribute, than by doing so in a divine fashion. Now, Peter could have puffed up and told Jesus… “Don’t tell me how to fish!” But he didn’t. His Lord and His Savior told Him to do something crazy and He did it. That obedience only comes from time spent in the presence of Jesus Christ! Trusting and believing that He is the Son of God! How would you respond? Do you trust Jesus enough, that you will do whatever He asks you to do? Do you trust Jesus? Do you trust Jesus like Peter did? Do you believe in Jesus like Peter did? Do you receive Jesus like Peter did? John 1:12
The Red Letters - Part 71 Connect With Jesus And Do Amazing Things by Cornerstone Church
The Compassion of Christ
We are called to share the Good News, the Gospel, with people. We are to share the hope that comes from our study of the Bible, so that we can build up and edify those we come into contact with. To offer good godly counsel. We are supposed to point people to Jesus Christ. We will read in today’s passage that Jesus was grieved and moved with compassion by the lack of ministry that was taking place by the religious leaders of His day. They were not fulfilling what they were commissioned to do, which was lead people spiritually and it disappointed Jesus, to say the least. I want to encourage you to examine your hearts! If Jesus was to come into your work place or soon to be schools would He be pleased by what He sees you doing? Or would He be grieved, moved with compassion at the lack of ministry taking place there? Matthew 9:35-38 Jesus was traveling from village to village, town to town sharing the Good News. Ephesians 5:1-2 instructs us to be imitators of Christ. So, in light of this passage, if Jesus went all over sharing the Good News, we should also, right? Jesus was motivated by love to go and teach and heal, because He loved people! Do we possess the compassion of Christ? That when we see the “crowds” of people that we deal with every single day, that we would be brokenhearted for them, that they feel confused and helpless when it came to spiritual matters? Verse 36 (KJV uses the word “fainted”) Strong’s Greek Word “Fainted” is Eklyo (Ek lu o) – which is basically translated as “disheartened, to grow weary.” When the people were eklyo (ek lu o), they had lost heart in following the religious leaders. They were giving up on church. Sound familiar in our culture? We see it all around us! Jesus was looking at these crowds of people that were hungry for spiritual truth and hungry spiritual direction. And because they could find none and / or they were treated badly, they were disconnecting from church and so He had compassion on them. Does your heart break for others: your co-workers, your classmates, the stranger on the street, those people who are disconnected from church for whatever reason? And what did Jesus tell His disciples? What was the answer they were supposed to seek out? Verse 37 Jesus’ answer is that more workers would rise up! That we would to rise up! We are that answer to prayer! There is plenty of work to be done. But there are not enough workers! Pray that someone would come along side and help in the process of ministry! Do you feel pity for those who are lost and more than likely hell bound? Do you have the compassion of Christ within you?
Can I Get a Witness? Have you ever gotten frustrated defending yourself? You produce evidence upon evidence, testimony upon testimony and they never seem good enough to those you are talking to? I don’t know how you handle those situations but today we get to see how Jesus did. John 5:31-47 Over the last few weeks we have looked at how Jesus has been explaining who He is to these Jewish leaders. How He has shared “who” He is and the relationship that He and God the Father have. He’s bringing the discussion to a close. Deuteronomy 19:15 Jesus openly says, “Don’t take just my word for it… because at that point it is just my word.” If I were to testify on my own behalf, my testimony would not be valid. The 1st Witness: God - Jesus is calling God to the stand. Jesus lets them know that God has been testifying about Jesus the whole time. They just haven’t received the truth of that message! The truth of who Jesus Christ is! The 2nd Witness: John the Baptist - Jesus calls them out on the fact that the Jewish leaders both went and sent people to listen to John the Baptist. Matthew 3:1-11; Mark 1:1-8; Luke 3:1-18 Luke 3:15-16 The Synoptic Gospels also record that John the Baptist was a fulfilment of the Prophet Isaiah. The Scriptures spoke of John the Baptist, who in turn spoke about Jesus Christ… The 3rd Witness – Teachings and Works - Jesus’ actions spoke louder than the words of John the Baptist! Jesus tells the Jewish Leaders that even though He has John’s witness there is a better witness… Look at the things that I do!! He was preaching with an authority that amazed everyone who heard. Mark 1:21-27 The 4th Witness – Scriptures - Jesus lets these leaders know that they have missed it, and how!!!! He tells them that they have everything they need to believe, but since their hearts were not open to believe, they rejected the One that was written about! They rejected God in the flesh! It’s not bad to study! But if the pursuit of whatever you are studying takes away any part of the Work of the Cross or any aspect that we are saved by grace through faith… Can I suggest stopping that pursuit? Pour that energy into getting to know who Jesus is. What was His nature? How did He treat people? How did He speak to others? Why did He come to earth and die for us? The world has all that it needs, to know who Jesus Christ, the Messiah, our Savior is. God the Father and Jesus the Son of God have made themselves known! They scream out from heaven, “Can I get a witness?” Will you witness to others for God? Not because He needs you to, but because the other person may. Will you testify on His behalf?
Red Letters The Voice of Life 08/05/2018
We are going to read today that Jesus says that if people hear His voice, if they hear His message, then they will live… They will have eternal life. They will be saved from judgment. Which means the alternative is that people who don’t hear His message, won’t have eternal life and they won’t be spared from judgment. John 5:24-30 People need to hear Jesus, because there is life in what He has to say! Vs. 24 What else did Jesus have to say? John 3:3; John 3:6; John 14:6; John 14:23-24; Matthew 22:37-39; John 8:11 When people hear the words of Jesus and believe in who He is, they are promised eternal life! Right then, right there! That is the Good News! They are saved from hell. Vs. 24; Vs. 25 Who are the dead that Jesus is referring to? Jesus is referring to the people who have not believed in Him, in His message. They are dead spiritually! But Jesus has the voice of life! Those who believe are made alive with Him. Ephesians 2:1-5 It is by the grace of God that we are made alive with Christ! God and Jesus worked out this crazy plan that Jesus would take our punishment! That Jesus would bear our sins on that Cross! Jesus was willing to do that knowing that some would reject Him but He also knew that some would believe in Him! So the question is, “When?” When is the time to respond to Jesus? When is the time to listen and hear His voice? The time is now! Will you allow Him to give you life? Will you repent of your sins and believe that Jesus is the Son of God? Because we are going to be judged as to whether or not the life of Christ is within us. Vs. 26-27 Where do you stand? Are you alive in Christ? Don’t wait! Because if you do, you may never have a chance to. A time will come when those who are physically dead will rise at the sound of His voice, whether they have believed in Him or not. Those who believed have eternal life will rise into life. And those who did not believe will rise and be judged and sent to hell. Vs. 28-29 Jesus will be the judge. And He will judge fairly. Vs. 30 Praise God that you still have an opportunity to respond to Jesus’ message! Praise God that you still have the chance to receive eternal life through Him! Are you ready to meet Jesus? Will you respond when He calls? Do you know the voice of your Savior, the One who has the Voice of life?
The Apostle John does a wonderful job of showing us, and the world; anyone who is willing to look for the truth of Christ, that Jesus is in fact God the Son, the 2nd Person of the Trinity. I want to look at some of John’s Gospel that has brought us to where we are today so that we can see the truth of the message taking place in this passage. John 1:1-4 Establishes the Word as God! John 1:14 The Word (God) Becomes Flesh. John 1:18 The Word (the one and only Son) being referred to as the Unique One reveals God to us through Himself. You want to see God… look to Jesus!! John 1:29 Jesus, the Word, is the sacrificial Lamb that will save us all. John 2:18-22 Jesus has the power and authority over all things and will raise Himself from the grave. John 3:3-21 Vs. 18-19 You must be born-again of the Spirit to be able to believe that Jesus is God in the flesh, that He died for your sins and only by believing in Him can you be saved. With that foundation, we turn to our passage today and examine the words of Jesus. John 5:16-18 Jesus is telling the Jewish leaders that Daddy has never stopped working and I won’t either. He is always working, just as I am, on saving souls. He then goes on to tell us how Their relationship works. John 5:19-21 What a beautiful picture that is, of God the Father working with Jesus, the Son. There is intimacy here! You may be here, and you may have never had an experience like that. You may be here and you want that intimacy with God as well! You can have that! TODAY! Until you lay it down, God won’t pick you up! You need to repent of your sins and believe! James 4:7-10 God is ready to meet you! He wants you to call Him Abba Father (Daddy)! Ephesians 1:3-5 You see, God and Jesus, have desired to have fellowship with you from before the world was made! And it is not by anything we have done or can do aside from having saving faith. But it is because of the Father’s love. It all starts there! Jesus paid the ultimate price to save mankind! Who better to make the rules? Who better to judge us? God granted Jesus all authority to judge mankind. John 5:22-23 We Honor the Father by Honoring the Son. You can have that today!
John 5:1-15 We are all going to have to answer to Jesus. Let’s look at just the words of Jesus. “Would you like to get well?” “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” “Now you are well; so stop sinning, or something even worse may happen to you.” We say it all the time, “Jesus is a judge of the heart.” He knows what you want before you can even speak it because He knows your heart! Psalm 139:1-7 Just like Jesus knew this man’s condition, He knows your condition. Just like the man couldn’t process “how”…, we often cannot process “how.” So we say, “I can’t, sir”… I want to tell you today that you are right about that!!! YOU CANNOT!!!! But Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, can!!! What is Jesus breaking off of you, right now, today? What are you being made well from? I want to tell you that it does not end there… In the words of Jesus…“Now you are well; so stop sinning, or something even worse may happen to you.” Jesus came to this man, asked him if he wanted to be well, healed him, left him in the crowd and then found him again in the temple, and then instructed him to stop sinning or something worse, than the previous affliction, could happen. Has Jesus met you in a real way that has brought you to church this morning? Hebrews 10:26-29 That blood covenant is the work of the cross! It was Jesus taking on our sins and dying, for us… in our place… so that we could be made right with God!!! What is the value of seeking forgiveness if you are only going to turn around and do the same thing again? Paul addressed this in Romans 6:1-2 and Romans 6:15-16 There’s your two choices. Jesus was warning this man, as He is also warning us today, to not allow the fact that we are healthy, or as the passage puts it “well”, to lead us back into a life of sin! If we are truly repentant… we will change!!!!! Will you show others around you the fruit that you have been made well and reinforce that with a changed life? Will you stop sinning so something even worse does not happen to you?
John 5:1-15 We need to make sure that we are not getting hung up on all the details of what is going on around the main point. Because the main point is that Jesus healed a man, that was in sin, and told him to sin no more. John 5:8-9 The Jewish leaders focused on the fact that it was the Sabbath… and missed out on a miracle had taken place in their midst. They were more upset that something happened on the Sabbath vs. being excited about the fact that someone who could not walk, was walking and carrying his sleeping mat that he had been hanging out on for 38 years in hands or over his shoulder. Again, we see the “letter of the law” overriding the “Spirit of the law”. And we also see this mindset of: You Are ¬¬¬___________… But Are You _____________? And so the question has to be asked, “Can we be comfortable and let God be God and celebrate when God does amazing things in our midst?” Can we join in with heaven, in that moment, and celebrate with the angels and saints that God has brought another soul into His Kingdom? What about a spiritual battle that someone is overcoming, and God is moving in them? Can you stick around and join us in prayer for those individuals? Hear this… as soon as you say “yes” and that becomes your heart… there will be “Pharisees” that will come at you and lay into you and tell you can’t. Are we letting ___________ manage us or are we managing our _____________? There are people in here… there are people that we know… there are people that we would love to help if they would only ask… that feel like this guy did. John 5:7 Are you able to be used by God this morning? “You Are Forgiven… But Are You Available?” If someone was to give their lives to the Lord, would you develop a pit in your stomach or a lump in your throat, because you have other things planned today? If someone said, “I want to know Jesus! I want to have a relationship!!! I want to repent (say I’m sorry to God)! I want to know that I get to go to heaven today, can you help me?” Are you prepared to lead them… and not to an usher, not to an Elder or me, but to lead them in receiving the grace of God for the first time? Are you willing? “You Are Forgiven… But Are You Available?”
The last couple of weeks we have discussed the power of faith! Today, we are going to look at an example of just the opposite. Mark 6:1-6 Every Christian should guard against themselves against unbelief because of 4 problems that it can cause. Problem #1: Unbelief Hinders ______________ Unbelief can hinder the growth of others as well as your own growth. All too often, we know someone so well… they are so familiar… what we just can’t believe that they will change. How are they supposed to grow, if the chains they put down to believe are being picked up by others and placed back around their necks again? 2 Corinthians 5:17 Believe that you have been made new in Christ Jesus? You are a new creation… try some new things! Problem #2 – Unbelief Causes ____________________ These people were amazed at Jesus’ teachings only to take offense that He was the one doing the powerful miracles they expected the coming Messiah to be doing. Not this Jesus the carpenter!!! We have other examples, in Scripture, of this type of division. Genesis 37:18-20; Acts 9:21-26 Unbelief based on being familiar with someone and their past can cause division. Let’s embrace the heart change regardless of what someone’s past was. These examples show us that people defaulted to what they thought they knew and pushed away a messenger of God. Problem #3 – Unbelief Causes __________________ One commentary I read suggested that the Jews had a preconceived idea of what the Messiah should look like and act like. They could not connect the dots between the prophesied Messiah and Jesus (the Messiah) standing before them. They could not see that Jesus the carpenter, was the Messiah! Vs. 2-3 In answering their own questions, they became hard-hearted because of their unbelief. Problem #4 – Unbelief Hinders a __________ of God If faith produces healings and miracles, then a lack of faith denies them possibility of them! Mark 6:5-6 Just like Jesus stood in amazement at the unbelief of those He grew up with, God is standing in our schools, government buildings, work places, on the street, our homes and He is amazed at the unbelief in our culture. We cannot sit by and let Satan have our city, our work places or our schools! Christians… we have work to do! We need to guard ourselves against unbelief and then we need to take action! need to take action!
Today we are going to see two blind men that will be healed according to their faith. Matthew 9:27-31 I believe that everybody can have their needs met by Jesus by following examples found in Scripture. Mark 5:34; Mark 5:36; Matthew 9:29 Can I tell you this, that if you don’t believe that it _______ happen, you will never believe that it ___________ happen! Doubt will ___________ your miracle and ________ you of your faith!! James 1:5-8 Example #1: Pursue Jesus All three groups had to ________ Jesus and then ________ toward Jesus. They had to get into His presence. You need to see this… Jesus was available to each of them. He is available to each and every one of you that seeks Him out, today. Hebrews 13:8 Example #2: Profess Faith The woman with the issue of blood made a profession of faith prior to touching Jesus. Mark 5:28 Jairus made a profession of faith at the feet of Jesus. Mark 5:22 These 2 blind men made a profession of faith when they were in the house with Jesus. Matthew 9:28 How would you respond to that question? Luke 11:9-13 If we ask, in faith, if we seek, in faith, if we knock, in faith… Jesus will respond! Example #3: Do not doubt When you ask, ask without doubting! We just read in James, … ask in _________, with no _______________, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive _________________ from the Lord; Jairus’ daughter didn’t get kinda healed. Luke 8:55 The woman’s blood did not just taper off. Luke 8:44 The blind men didn’t have blurry vision. Matthew 9:29-30 All you and I have to do is follow the examples found in Scripture! Pursue Jesus – Come to His feet today! Profess faith – Believe in Who Jesus is and that He can do what you ask! Do not doubt – Ask, Seek and Knock and know that you will receive, you will find, and the door will be opened!
Today, we are going to look at an attribute about a dad… This attribute is what drives him. This attribute is what helps define him. This attribute is the __________ of a father. But Jesus, knowing the heart of the father, encouraged Jairus not to fear, to hold on in _________ and his daughter will be healed. Luke 8:50-56 As dads we have these invisible spiritual shoulders that can carry just about any load that is put on them… as long as it is worth carrying. Can I tell you that when a man has someone standing with them at their side… they will endure just about anything! Jesus knowing this gave Jairus the ___________________ he needed to continue in his quest for a miracle. This was Jesus, who demonstrated His _____________________ over the weather by calming the storms! This was Jesus, who demonstrated His ______________________ over the super natural, the spiritual realm, by casting out demons! This was Jesus, who was now going to demonstrate His __________________ over life and death! With everyone laughing in the other room, Jesus raised Jairus’ daughter to life! One commentator said something to the effect that, her soul having gone to God in death returned to God coming back to life. Jesus __________________ the faith of a father. He reinforced the faith of a father, who is crazy enough to believe that God can do anything! She was not “on the mend!” No, she was __________! She was__________! Jesus did not want people focusing on the “things He did” vs. the fact that He is the _______________ and had the authority to do them. If you are only drawn to _______ Jesus can do and not WHO He is… then you have missed the point of ______ Jesus came to this earth.
Today, we are going to look at how sometimes situations appear hopeless. And when they do, we need to Hold on in ____________! Luke 8:40-42; 49-50 How many here have experienced, “God’s timing,” in the fact that God’s timing is not always in line with our timing? Can I encourage you: “just because there is a __________, remember, Jesus has the final say!” Sometimes the last thing we want to hear is: James 1:2; Philippians 4:6-7 You may not want to hear that, but you need the word of God spoken to you and over you! In a time of need, we need to be encouraged that we are not alone, and that God’s got this! We need to hear that all things are possible still. Romans 12:12 echoes Jesus’ response to Jairus and to all of us today that are going through trials… “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith, and she will be healed.” Rejoice in _______ – Don’t be afraid Be ________________ in tribulation – Just have faith Be constant in ______________ – she will be healed Trust that the miracle you need to happen will happen in Jesus’ name! Mark 9:24 Do not let the _______________ magnify the process to the point that it causes you to ______ hope. And with Jesus, there is _____________ hope! Romans 15:13 MacLaren’s Expostions: “But one’s gain shall not be another’s loss, and Christ does not let any applicant to Him suffer whilest He attends to any other. Each has an equal claim to His heart.” Hebrews 10:23 Is Jesus truly your Lord and Savior today? Is He truly your source? Do you believe that He is faithful? Will you hold on in faith this morning, to the promise that your miracle is coming?
We get to see a demonstration not only of people operating in faith, but Jesus’ response to their actions. Our passage today is an encouragement that when we step out in faith… our faith gets Jesus’ attention. Luke 8:40-48 We see here, Jesus responding to the multiple needs for His healing touch. Here a man is desperate to get Jesus to heal his daughter. There is also a woman who sees touching Jesus as her last possible chance to be healed. And they both are putting a demand on Jesus at the same time for the same thing! And the great thing is Jesus is never too busy to respond to an act of faith! We have a local Jewish leader from the synagogue coming and kneeling at Jesus’ feet begging for Jesus to do a miracle. But He is also the focus of another in desperate need of His healing touch. We have Jesus surrounded and being pushed in on from every side. And we have a woman pressing in through the crowd, in faith, hoping for a miracle. I wonder how often we don’t receive a miracle because we don’t press in? I wonder how often we think that Jesus is just too busy, so we don’t ask, or we don’t try to reach out to Him? Can I encourage you today, that Jesus is never too busy to do a miracle! Jesus can always handle another request! What is faith? Hebrews 11:1 Can I encourage you today, bring your need before the Lord today! You can ask for Jesus to come and do a miracle and He will come to you! You reach out and touch the fringe of His robe today and He will heal you today! It really is that simple! Don’t let your fears get in the way. Don’t let your doubt block your miracle! Don’t let pride keep you from falling to your knees at Jesus’ feet. Don’t let a crowd deter you from getting to the Source that can provide a breakthrough in your life! Mark 10:47-52 I wonder how many times instead of ushering people into Jesus’ presence to be healed and delivered, the religious spirit drives people away. Hebrews 4:14-16 There was a spiritual withdrawal that had taken place. Something had gotten Jesus’ attention! Someone used some faith and Jesus felt it! Someone’s desperation, someone’s fear, someone’s hopelessness, someone’s “this is my last chance”, someone’s “I know He can do it, I just hope He will do it”, someone’s faith stopped Jesus in His tracks. Jesus took note of healing power leaving Him! When we deliberately reach out for the hem and make contact… Healing power is transferred! Will you respond in faith and allow Jesus to respond to you? Will you allow yourself to hear the words that this woman heard… “your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” Jesus wants to have an encounter with you today! Will you exercise your faith?
Last week we saw Jesus demonstrate authority over the natural and this week we will see again His authority over the supernatural. Mark 5:1-20 I want to focus on 4 aspects of this passage: 1) Jesus’ authority over the demons. 2) The foolishness of demons. 3) The foolishness of the people. 4) Jesus’ commission to the saved man to share the Good News First: Jesus’ authority over the demons. And here, even a demon, an enemy to God and it comes before Jesus and kneels at His feet. Verse 2 & 6 These demons in the presence of Jesus couldn’t flee, they couldn’t escape, they ran to Him instead of away from Him. So it is with any attack from the enemy, that when confronted with Christ… they have no power… they have no authority… Christ does. Second: The Foolishness of the Demons. There wasn’t any reverence in their tone. Their tone was more of a, “mind your own business, Jesus” tone. Verse 7-8 Verse 9 Take note of the foolishness, here kneeling at the feet of Jesus, instead of pleading for mercy and salvation they plead for lack of torment. They are not apologetic… they just don’t want their fun to be cut short! Verse -10-13 Third: The foolishness of the people. Verse 15 They were afraid! Here this man that was tormented and destructive was sitting quietly at Jesus’ feet. Again… “Who is this man…?” Verse 16-17 Matthew Henry Commentary: There are a great many who prefer their swine before their Saviour, and so come short of Christ, and salvation by Him. They begged Jesus to leave them! Fourth: Jesus’ commission to the saved man to share the Good News. Verse 18-19 Jesus didn’t permit him, but instead left him with a command… Verse 19 The paradox of coming into a saving relationship with Jesus is that we want more of Jesus! But the people around you may not be as eager to know Jesus as you are. They may still prefer their swine over a Savior. We may desire to leave that situation and get a “fresh start”. But can I encourage you today that when you come to know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you have the freshest start anyone could hope for. Can I tell you that you sticking around and “being different” will be a witness to your family and friends more so than if you took off and went somewhere. Verse 20 Will you share your story? Will you share your story?
Today, we are looking at Jesus’ divine authority over the weather. Mark 4:35-41 I love that this all started with Jesus saying, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” “Let’s” … or “Let Us”… cross to the other side of the lake.” There was a promise given... Jesus told the disciples that they were going to cross to the other side of the lake. Jesus was going with them! Jesus got into the boat with them! How often do we “get in the boat” with Jesus when times are good only to freak out when the storms of life come at us? I want to remind you today that Jesus is still in the boat, right? How often do we try to manage things in our lives when we should just trust that Jesus is in the boat, so it’s going to be ok? How often do we default to old ways of solving things, instead of trusting that Jesus is in the boat, so it’s going to be ok? How often do we get our lives to where it looks like we are about to sink, and then we turn to Jesus for help? How often do we allow fear to drive us? 2 Timothy 1:7 We need to walk in faith and not panic! We need to go to Jesus before our storm becomes an issue… not wait until there is nothing more WE can do. And in all of those, it is usually after we get the boat to just about sinking that we go to Jesus to bail us out. Instead of trusting Jesus in the beginning and handing those areas of our lives over to Him and believing that since Jesus is in the boat with us… it’s going to be ok. Jesus says to us, “I am still in the boat with you… so you are going to make it! Where is your faith?” 41 The disciples were absolutely terrified. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey him!” This is the question that needs to be answered: Is He just a man? Or is there more to Him? Philippians 2:9-11 See, when we believe that Jesus is God. When we believe that He can control the storms in our lives, we can live with the peace that surpasses all understanding! We can praise God in the storm because He is the one who comforts us through the storm. 2 Corinthians 1:3-7; Revelation 12:11 Christ will provide comfort to those who trust in Him and call out to Him. I believe that when we grab ahold of that understanding… We will be able to weather the storms of life! When we realize that Jesus is still in the boat, right… There is hope! There is peace! There is a strengthening of our faith! There is the confidence that if God is for us… nothing can stand against us! Will you trust God? Will you trust in Jesus… even if He is napping in the back of the boat?
04/29/2018 Today we are going to read the parable and the explanation, and it is found in the Gospel of Matthew 13:24-29; Matthew 13:36-43 Do you realize how special you are in God’s grand plan? Do you realize that you have been intentionally sown in the situations of your life that you find yourself in? If you don’t, I want to challenge you to change your thinking! You may not realize the purpose God has for your life! Can I tell you that God can use you! He wants to use you! You have a purpose! God has you exactly where you are supposed to be! God has sown you into your workplaces, into your schools, into your neighborhoods, into your communities! Jesus is the farmer and He is planting good seeds. and the good seed represents the people of the Kingdom. Who are the people of the Kingdom? You are! You are the good seed! He is planting us in the places that we belong. Satan is planting his own crop! But God knows this! He is not worried about it! God’s Got This! It is not our place to be farmers and we might tear out some wheat instead of the weeds. Look at the wisdom of Gamaliel found in Acts 5:33-39. What a terrible mistake that would be, to find yourself fighting against God. Let Jesus take care of the harvest! Jesus has got this!!! He is watching His field! He is patient and just. 2 Peter 2:4; 2 Peter 3:8-9 We need to let God be God. I don’t know about you, but it is comforting to know that God is in control! You have purpose! I want to encourage you today, to see your situations in life as something that has been ordained by God. He knows all the evil that is going on around you! I want to encourage you today, to know that God has planted you… a good seed… in the place where He wants you! So that you can be a light to those around you! Ephesians 2:10 You have a place in God’s plan! He has sown YOU, His Kingdom people, the good seed where He needs you!! All you need to do is grow and produce fruit! God’s God This!
Prepare Your Heart, Break Up The Soil 04/22/2018 We are looking at today is the condition of our own hearts. I want to remind you that you need to keep the soil of your heart ready to receive the seed, the word of God, that will bring about change in your life. Examine your hearts because here is the deal… God does. Jeremiah 17:10; 2 Corinthians 13:5 Luke 6:45; Matthew 6:21 What is taking root in the soil of your heart? Mark 4:13-20 The first soil, the foot path. The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message, only to have Satan come at once and take it away. This is the heart of someone who either doesn’t know any better, doesn’t care or has preconceived ideas about “religion” and they don’t want to hear about Jesus. Satan has robbed these individuals of the truth, in that moment. Second is the heart of rocky soil. The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. 17 But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. The rocky soil is the heart of an immature Christian. This person needs mentors, accountability partners, friends, brothers and sisters in the Lord in their lives. Someone that will share wisdom, strengthen faith when they don’t seem to have it. Their roots are too shallow, and they cannot stand up against the persecution. The third soil, the thorny soil. The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, 19 but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced. This person, unlike the rocky soil, lets their own desires, their own concerns that get in the way of producing a lasting harvest. Can I encourage you today to get into your gardens and clean them up? Remove the rocks! Remove the weeds and thorns. The fourth soil – the good soil. And the seed that fell on good soil represents those who hear and accept God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted! The good soil speaks for itself. The good soil produces results. The good soil shows maturity. It puts the things of God before the things of the world or better yet, before one’s own desires. These people are not just hearers of the word but doers of the word. These people live out Psalm 119:18 It is human nature to think more highly of ourselves than we ought isn’t it? Romans 12:3 Can I encourage you to examine your hearts?
Do You See and Hear the Hidden Message?
Matthew 13:10-17 So why did Jesus teach in parables? The short answer is because not everyone was supposed to or rather could not pick up on the messages that He was sharing. How many of you know that sometimes people just don’t get things, or they don’t understand things and that there are barriers that develop because of that? As a result, they need an explanation. So, when asked why parables, Jesus told the disciples that there are Kingdom secrets that are to be found in them, but that only a few were granted access to the code. Matthew 13:11-12 Jesus grants them and us permission to know the Secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven. 1 Corinthians 2:10; Ephesians 3:3-5 Look at those who don’t have permission. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them. Those who choose to not listen, to not pay attention… they will miss out! Can I say to you, you do not want to be in this camp! You don’t ever want to get to a place where you stop seeing and hearing God in your life! If you can’t seem to crack the codes of life, you need to ask yourselves, “Have I given my life to the One who makes the codes? Am I in relationship with the One who grants permission to understand them?” You have a special access to the Father, because of the Son. You have special access to the insight of God because you are given permission to have it!!! Matthew 13:16-17 We have permission to witness things that the prophets of old desired to know! We have permission to see things they only wished they could see. We have permission to hear things that they longed to hear. When we become born-again, Jesus says: You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not. What an honor… amen? Hebrew 3:7-8 Stop rebelling and receive! Amen?
Sowers Need To Be Sowing 04/08/2018
We are going to read today from the Gospel of Matthew. But this is also written about in the Gospels of Mark and Luke. Matthew 13:3-9 If you are a believer in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior… you have been recruited by the All Mighty to be a “sower.” You are a “Great Commissioner” if you will. The passage we just read is the explanation of the “HOW” in the Great Commission. Matthew 28:19-20 G.O.! And SOW! Here are 3 points that I want to cover today. I believe if we would own these points, our lives would change, and our world would change. You cannot operate in a kingdom principle without change taking place, Amen? You have to have some seed, before you can sow some seed! You have to be committed to the job! You have to trust God with the outcomes!
1 You have to have some seed, before you can sow some seed! What is the point of carrying around your seed bag if you got no seed in it? Why would you go out to “sow” if you have no seed? Can I suggest that there are too many sowers walking around with empty bags because we did not pack enough seed.
2 - You have to be committed to the job! The sower got up to “GO, SOW!” They were committed to throw seeds regardless of where they landed. We are called to cast seed.
3 You have to trust God with the outcomes! We tend to over think things at times and sometimes… that paralyzes us. You see, God knows the birds will come. God knows that the soil is shallow. God knows that the thorns will come along. But God also knows that there is good soil and there will be a plentiful harvest.
He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” Listen up! Sowers need to be sowing! We need to do our part! We need to have seed, we need to be committed to sowing, and then we need to be trusting God for the harvest!
Join Pastor Chuck Keller from Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT as he talks about how we describe Jesus our Savior.
We Are Family As we enter what is known as the Holy Week or the Passion Week, we need to take time to reflect on WHO Jesus Christ is to us. We need to know WHO WE are in Christ. Because when we realized WHO we are in Christ, we will understand WHY He did what He did and also the magnitude of what He did. He literally loved us to death. “WHO IS JESUS?” John 7:3-5; Acts 1:14; John 20:29 Let’s look at today’s passage. Matthew 12:46-50 I have heard it said that Jesus is disrespecting His mom and family here! Is He? Or was Jesus establishing the foundation of a “spiritual family”? Was Jesus being rude or was He commending those who followed Him and as such were now a part of a “spiritual family” through faith? One commentator said that Jesus was not dishonoring Mary, but rather honoring His Father. Mary was secure in her belief in God. She had no reason to take offense. But Jesus was honoring those who did not let anything come between them and Jesus not even blood relationships. Matthew 10:37 We are family… spiritually! We become family by faith, when we repent and believe in Jesus and do the will of the Father. Romans 8:17; Galatians 3:23-4:7 The crazy part is this was the plan from the beginning of time! Ephesians 1:4-6 God had already planned out a way to receive us and make us heirs with Christ! Do you realize the amount of love God has for you and for me… that it pleased Him to bruise and crush His own child so that we could be brought into relationship with Him? Colossians 1:19-22 God the Father allowed Jesus His Son to go through the pain of the cross, and He did it knowing there would be rejection but there would also be those who believed! It “pleased” God to do that so that His creation could be made one in Him. That we would all be one family! Bound by blood, not our own, but Jesus’ blood! We would be a spiritual family! “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” … “Here are My mother and My brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.” Good Friday marks the day that Jesus made the sacrifice. It marks the day that He said, “It is finished!” So we need to ask ourselves the question… WHO IS JESUS? He is faithful and just to forgive.
When the Unclean Spirit Returns 03/18/2018
Today’s passages can be found in both the Gospels of Matthew 12 and Luke 11. This is indeed a sad state of affairs! Jesus is spelling out just how bad off these people are. We need to replace the void with the Holy Spirit. If space is created and not filled, the enemy will come back. The void that was created from casting out the demon needs to be filled by something, and there are only 2 sources to fill from: God or Satan. You are fooling yourself if you think that you can overcome sin without replacing it with something: and that something is the Holy Spirit. You see, unless you fill the void… those demons will come back; they will circle back around! And when the demon comes back and sees that the space has only been put in order, it has been swept clean, the fridge is full but no one has taken up residence… the demon leaves again and finds 7 demons more wicked than itself and it comes back. and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Matthew 12:29 See when we turn from our wickedness and repent and confess Jesus as Lord, His Holy Spirit is the one cleaning house! He is the one who takes up residence! But if we don’t… we are destined to be afflicted and in an even worse way than before. Proverbs 26:11 As a dog returns to his own vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. Why go through the process of deliverance only to stay in, or return to that sad state? We who believe understand this and yet we have been told to armor up for the battle. Ephesians 6:11-12 See there is a battle going on daily over me and over you that we can’t even see. Let the “Stronger Man” clean house! Fill the void with the Holy Spirit. But those who don’t believe… those who reject the work of God… those who explain away miracles and then say, “prove that God exists” those are the ones that need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and he finds none. And when it can’t find a suitable place… it will come back around to see what has changed. Barnes’ Notes on the Bible – The Jews ancient belief was “that evil spirits had their abodes in those desolate, uninhabited regions.” This is related to a prophesy found in Isaiah 13:21 and echoed in Revelation 18:2. The Pharisees would have known exactly what Jesus was talking about when He mentioned the prophecy in Isaiah. Jesus describes a terrible state of the soul. He describes a state of utter ruin. Romans 1:22 Jesus has already given us the sign. He already came and conquered sin and death. He already came to deliver those who will call on His name and repent. We need a revival to take place in our churches. We need Christians to get serious about sharing the truth, sharing the Bible. We need Christians to be bold in their faith! We need Christians that have cleaned the house and have the “Stronger Man” leading them.
Elder Mark Krause takes us through the words of Jesus in Matthew 12:38-42.
Jesus continues to be challenge by the Pharisees, but he return with an incredible message about the one miracle or "sign" that everyone needed to pay attention to in order to recognize Jesus as the Messiah.
We are closing out this three-part series, if you will, covering the event that has taken place in Matthew 12:22-37. And today we will conclude the whole thing by talking about: What Is Your Heart Telling People? The heart is the core of who an individual is… what is your heart saying to people around you? Matthew 12:33-37 We saw a similar passage regarding fruit in Matthew 7:15-23. This passage however, speaks about them and ultimately us making our trees good or bad. Matthew 12:33 If the tree represents the heart, one commentator said that the reason Jesus said this like this is because the heart starts out bad from original sin. Jeremiah 17:9 We have to cultivate or take the steps to make the tree good. Jesus, called the Pharisees evil, because they had not transplanted their tree. Matthew 12:34a Just like we have to choose to make our trees good, they had chosen to make their trees bad. Matthew 12:34b What Is Your Heart Telling People? Satan has people fooled! Because out of the mouth of Jesus, He says, For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. Each one of us needs to look at the core of our hearts and honestly examine what is overflowing in our lives. And the source of both, the tree of both, produces the fruit that is stored up in that tree. Matthew 12:35 Satan has people walking around deceived that they will never spill. While Satan has people creating messes all over, Jesus has people that are graciously cleaning things up. What Is Your Heart Telling People? Because in the end… there will be a reckoning. Matthew 12:36-37 Consider these passages regarding your mouth and your heart. James 1:26; Proverbs 26:18-19; Proverbs 18:21; Proverbs 15:4; Proverbs 12:13-14; Proverbs 12:18-19 What Is Your Heart Telling People? If we are all ambassadors like God’s Word says we are how are we doing?2 Corinthians 5:20 What is the world seeing in us? What are they hearing from us? What is the overflow in us that is coming out from us? Will you pursue God like the Psalmist wrote? Psalm 119:171-175 Will we ask for what the Psalmist asked for? Psalm 141:3 Will we take the words of Jesus that we just read and practice what Paul wrote to the Ephesians? Ephesians 4:29 We are living in a world that is in desperate need of those who can lift up the spirits of men, women and children! We are living in a world that needs mouth pieces that are full of hope, mouth pieces that overflowing with love and mouth pieces that have answers of a better way! Will you do your part to share the love of Christ? Will you empty your heart today and ask God to come and fill you up? Will you take the step to make your tree good?
Last week we looked at how a house divided will fall. How 2 opposing views on who Christ is don’t work together. You either believe He is deity or you don’t. Today about what it is to blaspheme the Spirit. The Unpardonable Sin. Matthew 12:28-32 Let’s define a couple of words before we get started. “Blasphemy” and “Apostasy.” So, what was blasphemous about this situation? Simply put, the Pharisees saw God at work, in Jesus and denied that it was God working through Him. There was no denial that demons were cast out. The discussion being had was, “By what power were they cast out?” We are not talking “Apostacy” which I have heard used interchangeably with “Blasphemy.” Hebrews 6:4-6 But this is not what Jesus is talking about here. Jesus is addressing people, that should have known better. If anyone should have known a work of God, it should be the Pharisees. Because they had their own exorcists working on their behalf doing the same work that Jesus did. When they did it, God was working, but when Jesus did it, He is in league with Satan? That’s blasphemous. That is The Unpardonable Sin! Jesus, being gracious even then, told them that “To say that I am not who I say I am, ‘As a man’ is excusable because of ignorance or even prejudice.” We’ve been given an example of what that looks like. John 1:43-46 Nathanael, who had studied Moses and the prophets… blasphemed Jesus, the man. He wasn’t denying a work of God in that moment. But look at the response when he met Jesus – the Son of God. Look at what Nathanael says when the Spirit of God worked in his midst. John 1:47-49 In the presence of Jesus, the man, Nathanael was skeptical! But having witnessed a work of God, when Jesus responded, Nathanael believed. He marveled at the work of God and confessed Jesus as Lord in that moment! The man, Jesus, had been blasphemed based on natural understandings, that’s forgivable. But God the Son (Jesus) was received and worshipped based on a spiritual understanding. You see, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to us to counsel us, teach us and guide us through this life. To reject that is to blaspheme. Jesus is actively demonstrating who He is on a daily basis! Will you respond to Him today?
Today, we are going to hear from Jesus about division and what outcome is brought about by A House Divided. Matthew 12:22-30 As we look at our passage, even the average person saw evidence of Jesus’ power and with that childlike faith, they asked the question, “Could it be that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah?” And looked who tried to talk them out of it. The Pharisees. They made a crazed accusation against Jesus. “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power form Satan, the prince of demons.” So, Jesus sets the record straight. Matthew 12:25-27 This is why a house divided collapses. Someone comes up with the crazy argument like Satan casts out Satan. They sow those seeds of confusion and doubt which destroys people’s faith! The stubbornness of a person to see a miracle and deny the source of the power that brought about that miracle! We have divisions within individual churches! But we have divisions within those who identify as Christians but do not see Jesus as deity. They see Him as just a man… a perfect man… but a simply a man. That’s nuts to those of us who believe in the deity of Christ. I have had discussions with people who claim that Jesus is just a man and they say that John 1:1 does not tell us that God and Jesus are one. That the “Word” is not referring to the WORD (Jesus). They told me that it “COULD BE READ LIKE THIS.” John 1:1 – In the beginning was the Word (The Knowledge of GOD), and the Word (The Revealed Word of God) was with GOD, and the Word (Essence of GOD) was God. When confronted with John 1:2-3; John 1:18 The answer I got was, “Let’s stick to the simple Scriptures… turn to…” and off they went. How do you call yourself a Christian and deny the essence of who Christ is in the face of so much evidence??? You see, the house is divided on the foundational point of WHO CHRIST IS. And that is the same thing the Pharisees were doing. They were redirecting people’s thinking and trying to manipulate Scripture to make it fit their narrative. Matthew 12:28-30 What an amazing thing! Those people were experiencing the Kingdom of God, heaven, in that moment… here on earth. Jesus told them… the Messiah had arrived. God’s power, His Healing, His Son all things Kingdom were present in their midst. He also gave a warning. Matthew 12:30 You can’t claim to be a Christian and deny the deity of Christ. Matthew 10:33 You can’t claim to be a follower of Christ, and not do what He asks us to do. Luke 6:46 You can’t claim to be a follower of Christs and bring division to His house. Matthew 12:25 The local church needs the time, energy, talents and finances of its members to advance the Kingdom of God. Romans 10:14-15 How does the Gospel message get preached without a sharing of everyone’s time, energies, talents and finances? God established the church to that together. We, the church, are His hands and feet! That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!” Think of the people that brought you up or into the faith. Did they spend any time on you? Did they spend any energy on you? Did they share their talents with you? Did they spend money on you? If we do not do the work of the Gospel, together, we will never fulfill the Great Commission.
Have you ever broken something that belongs to someone else and it is irreplaceable? Have you ever been caught in a scandal and the person that could dole out punishment offers mercy instead? How bad did you feel in those moments? Where you wish you could do something, anything, to make it all better and take all the pain and humiliation away? That should be our response when we are in our sin. It is so monumentally one sided that we should get a pit in our stomachs every time we sin. But so often, we don’t even think about the cost owed for our sins. Today, we are going to read about an encounter that happened prior to Jesus’ death on the cross, but even still we will see a model of what the response that our guilt and shame and appreciation for Jesus’ forgiveness should look like. When we truly understand that Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death…” is what we deserve, and we truly appreciate the second part that “but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” (NLT) Our sin debt has been paid in full by someone else… our Savior, Our Lord, Jesus Christ! Luke 7:36-38 There is our standard. She heard that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house and she made the decision to go where Christ was. She modeled… A Broken Response. Knowing the gravity of her sin and the majesty of who she was in the company with, she brought a sacrificial gift. That “anything” to make things right. And in her sin in the presence of Jesus all she could do was weep over His feet and clean them with her hair. She then kissed the feet of her Savior and anointed them with the sacrificial gift she brought with her. Here she brought that earthly reward she had earned while sinning, her perfume, and she laid it on the feet of her Savior. Luke 7:39-40 Here the Pharisee, looked down on this woman and on Christ in this situation and Jesus answers his thoughts. His thoughts! We are told in Matthew 12; Romans 14 and 2 Corinthians 5 that we will give and account for our words and deeds and how we lived. Luke 7:41-48 We must go to the One who loaned us these temporary lives to settle our accounts. And the one we must pay is standing and waiting for us to come to Him so that He can kindly forgive our debt along the journey. Acts 26:20 Here’s the deal, we are all sinners that need to repent and prove that we have changed by the good things we do. But some of us won’t. Paul wrote a letter to the church in Corinth that hurt their feelings, but it brought about a great outcome of repentance and growth within that church. I hope you receive this message the same way. 2 Corinthians 7:9-10 It has been said, over and over and over that you don’t have to leave here the same way you came in. You can walk out of here, forgiven and free! The woman we read about today was confronted with the same fears as you and I have in this area. “Who’s watching?” “What will they say?” “What will they think?” And my answer to all of those is this… “Who cares!” Luke 7:49-50 Jesus wants to forgive you too! He wants you to repent! He wants you to trust Him! Will you trust Jesus to defend you? Would you join me as we declare the truth found in Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” (NLT) Let’s go before for the Lord in brokenness and seek His forgiveness
We have gone through a series of interesting messages the last few weeks and it is interesting how they all build up to today’s message of What Will Jesus Say About You? Be Persistent; You Will Know Them By Their Fruit; Does Jesus Even Know You?; What Are You Building On? We are going to read what Jesus has to say about John the Baptist. The question for us today, is: What Will Jesus Say About You? The account of Jesus confirming the ministry of John the Baptist is recorded in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Luke 7:18-23 Why would he send his disciples to ask such a question to Jesus? Matthew 3:1-6 People came from all over to hear John preach. John was persistent and known by his fruit! People knew he was a messenger from God. Here his whole life was committed to the announcement of the coming Messiah. John knew Jesus. Luke 1:39-45 John saw heaven open when Jesus was baptized. John 1:32-34 John knew Jesus was the Messiah. John was helping confirm to his disciples who Jesus was! Look at the response they received in asking if Jesus was the coming Messiah that John spoke of. Luke 7:21 Jesus fulfilled the prophecy. Isaiah 35:5; Isaiah 61:1 Could you imagine that scene? That had to have been so awesome to have witnessed. Luke 7:24-28 Malachi 3:1 He is confirming John as one that fulfilled God’s will for his life. John was not a fake, a phony, a poser. He lived out his faith at the cost of comfort, luxury, fine dining and other creature comforts. Why, because John was not living for this life! He understood, like Peter, that we are temporary residents here, we are simply passing through this life so don’t get caught up in the cares of this world. 1 Peter 2:11 Jesus said this about John. Verse 28 I tell you, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John. Yet even the least person in the Kingdom of God is greater than he is!” What Will Jesus Say About You? Luke 7:29-35 Jesus let the religious people that they missed it!! The religious spirit will miss the move of the Spirit! The religious spirit will never be happy! What is it you would like to hear from Jesus when you enter into His courts?
And often times as believers, we get caught making sand castles, that we know are going to wash away. Or we build with straw and wood and when they get knocked over we either rebuild or move along. But as Christians we really need to be taking the time to build with brick and build on a solid foundation. We are going to read today from the Gospel of Matthew and Luke, about building houses. Matthew 7:24-27; Luke 6:46-49 What are you building on? What kind of foundation have you laid? Psalms 127:1 Have you been wasting your time? Have you been trying to build your house (your life) without the Lord? We have to establish our lives on the truth of Jesus Christ. We have to follow His blue prints, not come up with our own designs. We have to surrender to His design. And when we surrender our lives to Him, He comes in with His set of blue prints and shows us how to build a strong foundation, a strong home, one that will last. Jesus told Peter that because of his foundational understanding, Jesus could build His church on that foundation. Matthew 16:15-18 Did Peter ever mess things up after this? Did he do things that were not the most righteous? Did he say things that he regretted? Yep. What did Jesus do after His resurrection to Peter? The Gospel of John records the beautiful moment where Jesus gave Peter a 2nd chance. In His love, Jesus, went to His friend Peter and lovingly reinstated him. Lovingly gave him a 2nd chance. Lovingly restored their relationship again. And here is the deal, Jesus is here today and He wants to do the same for all of us. This house, Cornerstone Church, and the people within it, have been established on the foundation of Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:20-22 We are not perfect, but we are family! And family loves! And true love is established on the firm foundation that is Jesus Christ! What are you building on? This church and the people in it are a strong foundation that can be relied upon because it is full of people that have a firm foundation for their lives. 1 Peter 2:5 What would happen in your life if your health failed, if your friends or family die, if your job suddenly goes away or some other sudden life change takes place? Would your foundation crumble? Are you in a place where cracks are forming and you know it is a matter of time before the whole thing comes crumbling down? Can I suggest that today you repent and surrender your life to Jesus? Can I suggest that today you take these blue prints (the Bible) for life and begin building a new foundation?
Does Jesus Even Know You? Matthew 7:21-23 All I can say, is how horrific! How sad that only at the end of one’s life they will have to accept the truth that “good deeds” alone will not get you into heaven! Knowing Jesus Christ as your Lord and Your Savior does! Does Jesus even know you? 1 Corinthians 8:3; John 10:14; 27 Has He touched you in such a way that like the Apostle Paul, everything you had or owned is worthless compared to knowing Him and walking with Him? Philippians 3:7-10 Has Jesus captured your heart? 2 Timothy 1:7 You are called to great works when you are known by Jesus! John 14:12-14; Romans 8:9-11 When you are known by Jesus, and Christ loves through you, you love others differently than ever before. 1 John 4:18-19; Ephesians 3:18-19 When you are known by Jesus, you are self-disciplined. 1 Corinthians 13:11; 1 Corinthians 9:25-27 Do you possess the power? Do you possess the love? Do you possess the self-discipline that comes from knowing Christ and being known by Him? Jesus wants to know you! He is knocking at the door of your heart daily! Revelation 3:20 Will you open the door for Jesus, today? Will you live out 1 John 5:20 Are we going through this life putting together a resume when we can have the ultimate referral? How does one go from walking in stride with Jesus to going back to the old ways? Philippians 4:9 Why would you leave this place the same way you came in? Can I encourage you today? To open the door that Jesus is knocking on! Respond to His voice! Will you partake of the fellowship that can only be had by repenting of your sins and confessing Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Will you walk out of here today professing that you know Jesus and Jesus knows you?
I am so excited to start off the New Year with the message of Be Persistent. God is basically telling us to “bring it on!” “Don’t quit!” Much like in Malachi 3, where instructs us to trust Him with our finances He is telling us to Be Persistent. Malachi 3:10 That is the only place in the Bible that God says, test me in this “Try me!” And just like God said “Try Me” with your finances, He is telling us to be persistent in our prayers and our pursuit of His will. Matthew 7:7-11; Luke 11:9-13 We need to pursue the things of God. James 4:3; 1 John 5:14. Jesus just got done preaching to us about pure motives and intents of the heart and now we see that when we have those pure motives and pure intentions, God will respond! There is nothing wrong with persistent prayer. Luke 18:1-8 I don’t know why or how God answers prayer. But pray until that prayer gets answered!!! But doesn’t that show a lack of faith? Obviously not! Are you still asking God to show you people that you can share the Gospel with? Are you still seeking opportunities to serve people? Are you knocking on the doors, so that they may be open to you? When we keep on asking for people to minister to, you will receive the opportunities to do so. When we keep on seeking for people to serve, you will find the opportunities to do so. When we keep on knocking for God to open doors of opportunity to bring Him glory, the doors will be opened to you! I want to encourage you today! Don’t grow weary!!!! Keep on asking! Keep on seeking! Keep on knocking! There will be a harvest when you do! Galatians 6:9 Be Persistent! Are you praying for the salvation of your kids? Be Persistent! Are you praying for the faith to honor God with your finances? Be Persistent! Are you praying for a marriage that just doesn’t seem to have a shred of hope in it? Be Persistent! Are you praying that God will grant you peace in the storms of life? Be Persistent! Are you praying for healing that never seems to come? Be Persistent! We have an awesome and mighty God that is all ears, when we pray according to His will! Be Persistent!! Asking = Receiving Seeking = Finding Knocking = Open doors!
Tomorrow starts a whole new year and a fresh new start! How will you start your year? It would be interesting if Christian Resolutions were made. Where would %ages fall? How long would our resolutions last? Better than the worlds? Would we truly appear to be “Set Apart” in accomplishing Biblical resolutions? I think we would have more success, in any of those resolutions – worldy or Christian, if we evaluated ourselves more honestly. I believe the reason so many people fail to attain their goals or have success in their resolution is that they take their eyes off of what they should be doing and focus on others. Today, we are reading one of the more misquoted verses in the Bible. One that the non-Christian world tries to use against Christians, but uses out of context. DO NOT JUDGE!!!!! But Jesus judges. And Jesus also instructs us on how to judge others. We are to Judge Righteously. We must Remove the Plank in our own eyes. Matthew 7:1-6; Proverbs 9:8; Luke 6:37-42 How we see things skews how we judge and Jesus is telling us that we need to make sure that we are judging situations properly. John 7:24 Remove the Plank! We are so quick to judge at times, so quick to jump to conclusions. And many times when we judge others we are guilty of doing the same thing, that we are condemning in someone else. Romans 2:1 Remove the plank!! Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:5 & Luke 6:42. We are instructed to judge wisely… to judge righteously! Don’t allow pride to keep you from examining yourself honestly! Take a moment. Remove the plank!! When you remove the plank: First of all you won’t be a hypocrite! Second, you won’t look like a fool for spouting off a bunch of nonsense without having a clear picture of what is going on. Proverbs 17:28 But back to judging… If you clean your eye first: your judgment will be righteous. If you clean your eyes first: you will be less likely to condemn, when you clearly see all points of view. If you clean your eyes first: you will graciously grant forgiveness, because you can clearly see how and where it needs to be given. If you clean your eyes first, you will be more apt to give, because you can clearly see the cause to which you are giving too. I want to encourage us all to take to heart what is being said in these Scriptures! 2018 New Year’s Resolution… Remove the plank!
Good morning and welcome to the Ugly Sweater Christmas Eve service! You may be wondering; how did the Ugly Sweater make it into a Christmas service. Well, that’s what we are here to find out isn’t it? The ugly Christmas Sweater theme was recognized as starting in around the 1950s where dads would wear these very Christmasy sweaters to get the family in the mood for Christmas. Now, people wear them as a gag. They wear them to make a mockery of fashion. They wear them to make fun of what was originally intended to be a good thing. And that is where the Ugly Christmas Sweater and this message come together.Today, we celebrate the eve of the birth of our Lord and Savior. But He is also referenced in Scripture as: Isaiah 9:6 We celebrate God coming to earth in the form of a man. John 1:14 And why did He come? Luke 19:10; John 12:46 Jesus came to rescue mankind from itself. When God breathed the breath of life into the clay that was to become Adam, God looked at His creation and said it was “very good.” Look at what mankind has become. What was once a beautiful “sweater,” if you will, became a joke. What was once glorious is now decayed. Jesus stepped down out of the glory of heaven and put on the “ugly sweater” of humanity.He became the fulfillment of prophecy, by removing His glorious nature. Matthew 17:2; Mark 9:3; Luke 19:10 He made that decision knowing that some would see Him as just a man and nothing more. That some would equate this good works to the nothing more than the filthy rages spoken of by the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah 64:6a He counted His life here on earth as a temporary inconvenience, much like we count wearing these ugly sweaters as temporary attire, to save those He created. Jesus counted the cost before coming down from Heaven! Philippians 2:5-11 As we just read and as we saw in the video, Jesus chose to enter into humanity in a humble fashion, born in a manger. Imagine stepping out of glory knowing that you would be rejected even while in the womb. Would you step down from the beauty of Heaven to be treated this way? Isaiah 53 2b-9a No one but God could have made that choice. Praise God that Jesus did! Today we celebrate when Jesus dawned His ugly sweater and came to the party. We celebrate with all of heaven and the angels and shout out as they did in Luke 2:14 Will we sing out, “JOY TO THE WORLD!!!!!! THE LORD HAS COME!!!!!!!!!!!! LET EARTH RECEIVED HER KING!!!!!!” Merry Christmas!!! May God richly bless you and your families!!!
The last couple weeks we have looked, inwardly, at the intent of our hearts. Where is our treasure? What are you worried about? And this week we are doing a major shift from looking at ourselves to looking at those around us. Luke 5:17-26 Today we are looking at “The Faith of the Centurion” which is recorded in Matthew and Luke.I would encourage you to look at them and study them for yourselves. It will enrich your appreciation of the fullness that can be found in Scripture. Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10 So right off we see that in Luke’s passage Jesus speaks to a delegation, where Matthew records Him speaking only to the centurion. We also have Jesus saying more to one crowd in one account than another. So why the discrepancies? The answer is there really are none. And we see this when Matthew warns of the “subjects of the kingdom” who will miss out of the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth So, how could they be so different but still so true? There was centurion, he did talk to Jesus and Jesus was amazed by his faith. We should go to Jesus ourselves (in prayer) and exercise the same kind of faith the Centurion did. This Roman Centurion was asking for something for someone besides himself. And he was asking… IN FAITH!! He believed in and had faith in Jesus Christ for a miracle! Do you have that today? Have you experienced that lately? Do we have miracle working faith? Do we have the kind of faith that amazes Jesus? Hebrews 13:8 If Jesus can marvel, and take action, at a Centurion’s faith yesterday, can He marvel and take action at our faith today? And if He marvels and takes action at our faith today, can we not count on Him to marvel and take action in the days, weeks, months and even years to come?Yes! And Yes! You want to see miracles happen? You Gotta Have Faith!! Simple. Childlike. Unquestioning. Faith!
Last week we read about storing up treasures in heaven and asked the question, “Where is Your Treasure?” This week we are continuing in that vein of thought but discussing how our treasures may cause us to become anxious. The same type of question can be asked about anxiety. What Are You Worried About? Luke 12:22-34 For life is more than food … and your body more than clothing … What Are You Worried About? What does worry accomplish? Worry can ruin, ruin, ruin… but it never accomplishes. Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? 26 And if worry can’t accomplish a little thing like that, what’s the use of worrying over bigger things? What does worry solve? Why not seek eternal things instead? Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. Don’t worry about work, school, cars, houses and all the other stuff that consumes our minds and hearts. TRUST IN GOD!!!! You may be sitting here thinking, “I’d like to, but I just can’t.” Jesus is asking… Why do you have so little faith? And He is telling us… don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom. You don’t think He will take care of you, His child? What Are You Worried About? And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. When you are worried and consumed with the cares of this life you are no longer focused on the things in the next. Sell your possessions, and give to those in need. This will store up treasure for you in heaven! And the purses of heaven never get old or develop holes. Your treasure will be safe, no thief can steal it and no moth can destroy it. 34 Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. Live a life where the knowledge that God owns it all is not just a mental ascent, but a spiritual one for you! You can have surety knowing that if your treasure is in heaven, your heart will be there as well. . And you can do so without a care in the world! “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life” - Jesus
We place value on the things in our lives. And often there is a misplaced value to begin with. And sometimes things can distract us from caring about what is really important. Eternal things. Matthew 6:19-24 Where is Your Treasure? Is it here on earth chasing after the next new thing? Or is it in heaven? How about this question… what do you treasure? The things of man or of God? Are you more consumed with comfort? Are you more concerned about status? Are you driven by luxury? Or are you consumed with church? Are you concerned about how to be a better Christian? Are you driven by the Great Commission which tells us to “Go”? Because as the Scripture states: The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being. We can say that we are driven by the things of God… but when we examine our treasury, what do we see? How about when others examine our treasury… what will they see? Where is Your Treasure? We all know the things of this world will not last, yet we sometimes get caught up in pursuing them. Because when we pursue the things of the world, we have stopped pursuing the things of God. Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have! What are your eyes seeing? Are your eyes open and in God’s Word? Are your eyes taking in the beautiful things found in God? Are your eyes taking in light? Or has darkness creeped in? Has the spark of pursuing God gone out? Have you pulled the curtains shut and blocked out any light? Are you using world based rationale when determining the return on investment when you give to the church? There is no spiritual cost analysis! Put a price on saving a soul! Where is Your Treasure? You can’t worship two gods at once. Loving one god, you’ll end up hating the other. Adoration of one feeds contempt for the other. You can’t worship God and Money both. I would encourage you to seek the Lord! 1 Peter 4:11 Where is Your Treasure? Let’s show the world that our treasure lies in heaven!
Today we will be looking at part 3 of a group of 3 acts that Jesus is telling us to do righteously. We have covered Alms (Charity), Prayer and today Fasting. Let’s get into Fasting – When No One Else Knows. Sometimes people “do” correct things to get that attention. They put on an act if you will to become more noticeable. And that includes fasting. Fasting is a tool to help us draw closer to God. It is a tool to help us strengthen self-discipline. It is a tool to prepare us to do things that God wants us to. It is a tool to overcome the evils of Satan. Matthew 17:21 The kind of Fasting – When No One Else Knows. And those who mourn or grieve with you may fast alongside of you. Psalm 35:13 Matthew 6:16-18 Righteous acts can become perverted and skewed if we are not careful. What starts out as a holy obligation can quickly become the measuring stick we judge others by. Jesus shared this parable in the company of some Pharisees. Luke 18:9-14 And we see how that righteous act became an opportunity to be arrogant. No one is exempt from perverting the motivation of why they started do what they do in the first place. God knows when that happens. He checks the heart. Many of the commentators state that these people put on a show while putting on a show. That they are laboring through the process of fasting to show people that they are fasting. And that Jesus is telling us, they have just received their reward. It should matter what your Father who sees the motive of your heart thinks. Jesus is warning us not to be like the posers / hypocrites. Your private fast should not draw attention to yourself. Are you fasting to hear from God? Are you fasting to prepare yourself for good works? Are you fasting seeking God’s direction in your life? Are you fasting to learn self-control? Are you fasting in a way that honors God? Are you fasting with righteous motives? Because that is what we should all be striving for. The approval of God who sees what is done in secret, not man’s. Has God won over your heart? Not just lip service, not a show, not a decision made on emotion, but a decision made based on truth? Have you surrendered your life to Him by repenting and believing on the name of Jesus? Let today be your day of salvation!
We are looking at 3 acts (alms, prayer and fasting) that Jesus tells us we need to do with righteous motives. What motivates us to speak with God? How are we entering in to His presence? The passages that we are going to cover on prayer are recorded in Matthew 6 and Luke 11. Now we are going to cover 3 parts here. 1)How we pray. 2)What we pray. 3)The impact our forgiveness has on our prayers. 1.How We Pray. Matthew 6:5-8 As believers we should go to our Father who is in the “secret place” of our hearts and what the Father sees in “secret” will be rewarded. God know the secrets of your heart! If there be sin, confess it! Then begin praying. Don’t give vain praise. Therefore, Therefore what? Therefore, do not be like them. God knows the heart of even the simplest of prayers! 2.What we pray. Matthew 6:9-13 Jesus gives us a condensed framework in 6 parts. 1st - Acknowledge who God is! 2nd – Ask to be a part of His kingdom. 3rd – Provide us only what we need on a daily basis. 4th – Give me a heart like you! 5th – Let me be like Jesus! 6th – God – It is all in Your hands anyway and I submit to that! 3.The impact our forgiveness has on our prayers. Matthew 6:14-15 It is interesting that the piece that Jesus focuses in on, after giving us the prayer, is the piece that we are responsible for. We are responsible for one line. “As we forgive our debtors.” So, when we consider this whole idea of praying righteously… how are we doing? How do we even have the guts to go before a holy God and make petitions to Him, for our sake, and not take the time to make sure that we are in good standing with Him by forgiving others? We need to check ourselves. Jesus is giving us instruction on how to keep our prayers righteous. Let’s go to our Father in prayer, but let us do it with pure and righteous motives. Amen? Amen!
As we celebrate Veteran’s Day as well as hosting our Thanksgiving Potluck today, we have so much to be thankful for this weekend. Thank you to all our Veterans! Thank you to all who serve! Today we are looking at “The Heart of Giving.” What is the motive of our hearts? Matthew 6:1-4 We are called to show our love, be light and salt, be generous, help others and often to do so is to do it publicly. What are seeing here is the warning from Jesus that while we are out doing those good deeds and being charitable, we need to make sure that we are doing so with the right intentions. “Cornerstone Church’s Vision is to see every person in the Lolo Community and greater Bitterroot Valley receive the gift of salvation that is freely given by Jesus Christ.” We want this house of God to be a place that saves souls. Not by our power but by God’s. We want this house of God to be a place where people come to meet and know God. “Cornerstone Church’s Mission is to show people the love of Jesus Christ through service within the Church and Community, to grow disciples through Bible study and godly mentoring, and to be a family that worships God together and cares for one another.” That involves us getting out into the community and loving on people regardless of whether or not they come through the front doors of this church. We are 1 church that God is using to love on His people. We need to have the heart of Peter and John in Acts when they were doing good deeds and were asked for money, they performed a miracle and they gave glory to God. Acts 3:4-13 Stop and think about this… that our simple acts of goodness may be so different that we can’t help but draw attention to ourselves. Where do we defect the praise? To God! Jesus is not telling us to be Secret Service Christians. We are not living, Christian Impossible! Jesus is cautioning us to make sure that our righteous deeds remain just that… righteous. The heartbeat of our church is: “Loving God, Serving People, Becoming Family” We believe that when we truly love God we will be motivated to serve people and they will naturally become family. And when that happens I would say the same thing to you today that Peter said all those years ago. “WHY ARE YOU SURPRISED? WHY ARE YOU STARING AT US FOR DOING GOOD WHEN GOD IS THE ONE DIRECTING OUR STEPS? GOD HAS ALLOWED US TO DO GOOD THINGS TO BRING GLORY TO HIM AND HIS SON NOT OUR OWN SELFISH GAIN!”
Last week’s passage we read from was Matthew 5:38-42 but it is also recorded in Luke 6:27-31. And Luke opens and closes in an interesting way, which dovetails into today’s message. Luke 6:27; Luke 6:31 I wonder how many of us are willing to listen to Jesus today. I wonder how many of us are prepared to treat everyone the way that we would like to be treated. Are we proving to others that we are truly followers of Christ? Can we answer the question, “Yes” when asked, Do You Love Differently?” Matthew 5:43-48; Luke 6:32-36 And so, I ask again, Do You Love Differently? You look around at all that is going on in the news and around the world. Are you willing to listen to Jesus’ words regarding that? How does our love look different than the world’s? How does the church’s love look different than the world’s? Matthew 5:46; Luke 6:33-34 Jesus is calling us to love different! He is calling us to love like His Father! Romans 5:6-11 All of us in here stand as testimony to this! That is the power of God’s love! Love can overcome multitudes of sin! Love can overcome checkered pasts! Love can overcome bad decisions! Love can overcome hate! Love can overcome fear! Love can change a person’s life! So, Do You Love Different? Will you love different? Will you respond to our Savior’s instruction to do so? Will you love the unlovable? Will you love the outcast? Will you love those that God has called us to love? Will you love everyone?
Matthew 5:38-42 You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I say, do not resist the evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also. 40 If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat too. 41 If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles. 42 Give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow. (NLT) You see somewhere along the line, people took things a little too far when it came to getting even. So Jesus is recalibrating our hearts here. Cain pleaded with God that the punishment did not meet the crime in Genesis 4:13. We have witnesses in the Bible that endured unfair hardships and did not seek revenge. Genesis 50:19-21; 1 Samuel 24; 2 Samuel 1:17; Hosea 3 They Apostles counted it an honor to be beaten and persecuted for the name of Jesus. Hebrews 11 So here we have another, “you have heard it said, but I say,” moment followed by something that sounds so counter intuitive it makes you stop and wonder. Proverbs 19:11 Jesus is telling us to offer the other cheek to those who would strike us, to give our coat if we get sued for our shirt, to walk an extra mile when we are forced to only go 1. As Christians, we have to do things differently than the world does. Colossians 3:1-2; Colossians 3:12-13 It has to be a determination in our hearts that we will not retaliate, but rather we will give more than expected. We need to allow God to handle things when we are wronged and not seek vengeance ourselves. When it comes to Revenge – Leave that up to God. Romans 12:17-21 Jesus also calls for us to be a generous people. Jesus is expressing the better way. The way of Love. Get on with living and as far as revenge is concerned… leave that up to God.
Pastor Chuck and Tara Keller share their testimonies about their powerful experience at The Dream Center in Los Angeles, CA.
Jesus has really been challenging us as we have been working through the Red Letters by showing the separation between God’s standard and man’s standard. There has been a lot of “You have heard” followed by “but I say”. Today we will be covering vows, making promises, swearing by things. How often has our Lord’s name been used in vain due to empty promises or even worse used as nothing more than a swear word? Exodus 20:7; Leviticus 19:12 You are advised to keep all of your vows but those that did not mention God were ones that if you were to break a vow… those would be the ones deemed ok to do so. One commentary stated, vows taken that you did not mention God’s name in were not as binding as the ones you did. And what Jesus is revealing is that in actuality all vows end up coming back to God. The solution: stop making vows and let your simple “yes” be a “yes” and your “no” be a “no”… that’s all you need. Matthew 5:33-37 Jesus is telling us, it’s not ok to separate out our promises and vows and say that, “some were made before God and everyone and others weren’t.” John 1:3 So then any vow you make is actually before God and whomever else is present. And any “thing” that a vow is sworn by actually comes back to God, the One who created it. See, all things come back to God. Unfortunately we live in a society that doesn’t trust you and forces you to enter into legal agreements because in their view a person’s word is no longer enough. When you stop and think about it. People have been burned by idle promises and vows. Matthew 5:37 Let your “yes” be “yes” and your “no” be “no”. Jesus challenged the people of His day with this teaching the same way we are being challenged today. If we truly believe that His word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path, then we have to take the hard teachings with the easy. We have to receive the challenges the same way we receive praise. We have to desire to be more like Jesus Christ rather than making allowances for bad habits and entrenched behaviors. Will you simply say, “Yes”?
We are continuing in the Red Letters today and discussing Adultery. Where does it start? What do we do with it? What far reaching impact can our actions have on our lives and the lives of others? Matthew 5:27-30 Where does it start? Jesus tells us that it starts with a look. “Lust is conscience baffled or biased: Biased, if it say nothing against the sin; baffled, if it prevail not in what it says.” - Matthew Henry You see, we are either ok with the sin or the idea of lusting or we are always wresting with why it is so difficult to overcome. So… what do we do with it? People need to stop looking other people with lust! On the flip side of that is that people need to stop dressing in ways that draw attention and cause lustful thoughts to take place. Jesus wasn’t playing around. Matthew 5:29 Jesus uses hyperbole to reinforce His point that even just looking lustfully has caused you to sin. But it speaks to just how important it is to understand this principle of sin and the extreme measures we should be willing to go to avoid sinning and going to hell. 1 Corinthians 6:18 So… what far reaching impact can our actions have on our lives and the lives of others? Adultery trickles over into divorce. Matthew 5:31-32 No one wants to take blame for causing others to sin: man’s standard. Jesus is telling us that is exactly what we are doing: God’s standard. Matthew 19:8-11 Man’s standard justifies its actions and issues a certificate of divorce. But does God’s standard change? Are we guilty of making allowances? Have we allowed man’s ways, man’s logic, man’s standards to creep into the church and trump God’s ways? We need to be more concerned about living up to God’s standards… and forgetting about man’s. James 4:7-8 Can I tell you some Good News? Can I share a message of hope with you? Today we covered adultery and divorce, a couple of weeks ago, murder and anger, but there is lying, cheating, stealing, greed, there is premarital sex (fornications) and all the rest that many of us here today are guilty of as well. So guess what, no one in here is the only one here with sin. The Good News is that there is a Savior that can cover those sins, and His name is Jesus! Will you humble yourself today and surrender your sin to God, whatever it may be?
Tithing is an act of worship to God. Tithing seems basic, at first, and it is. However, that is not exactly where God is going to leave us. Tithing requires a great deal of trust. Evenything we have belongs to the Lord on High and when we tithe or do anything for the glory of God, remember He will always be enough for you. You have to trust in God! Do you think you can do better than God to give you what you need? Be faithful, trust God always!
We continuing our reading in Matthew where Jesus is giving us a breakdown of man’s standards vs. God’s standards. And today we are looking at murder. Exodus 20:13 That commandment seems pretty simple to understand. But as we so often do, we allow our limited scope of thinking leads us astray. So you may be sitting here today and asking yourself, “Yeah, but, can I really be found guilty of murder?” Matthew 5: 21-26 How many of you looked at vs. 21 and 22 and were like, that makes no sense!!! We justify, it’s only words! verse 19 Jesus tells us, “Murder begins in your hearts!” vs. 21& 22 “Yeah, but, can I really be found guilty of murder?” Jesus is telling us, “YES!” It is not the act of murder that makes you guilty, in God’s sight. It’s our hearts! We All Need a Savior, And the Answer is Jesus! Matthew 5:23-24 It is interesting to see the implication on Jesus’ part that we are already guilty of calling people idiots and forgetting about it. 22 and 23 And Jesus is calling us out on it!! How callused have we become? How insensitive to others. More over how insensitive to God’s standard. “Yeah, but, can I really be found guilty of murder?” You may be sitting there looking at me and thinking… “No one can live up to that!!! And you are right!! We All Need a Savior, And the Answer is Jesus! Matthew 5:25-26 Jesus is telling us we need to be quick to make things right. And the act of “making things right” will be a much longer process than if we never caused offense in the first place. Don’t let things go unresolved! Seek out forgiveness! What happens when you make murderous comments and don’t “suddenly remember” and continue to do it over and over and over? “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What you give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) We can all be found guilty of spiritual murder. Romans 3:23 But it is what we do in those moments that reveal our hearts. We need to be quick to remember that God’s standard is higher than our own standards. We need to be quick to repent. We need to be quick to be peacemakers.
We are into the Sermon on the Mount and we have covered the Beatitudes and being salt and light, as ways of living. You see, we don’t get to set our own standard. God does. And it is not about being good. No one can ever be good enough. Have you always loved God with all of your heart, you mind and your strength? Have you always loved others as much as you love yourself? We have all missed the mark even with 2 simple commandments. Matthew 5:17-20 Jesus is reinforcing that God’s standard does not change. He tells them and us that the standards established by God will never pass away! We make concessions for our shortcomings and the sins of others and then sell others on the acceptability of our shortcomings. And Jesus says those who do, “shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven.” Has anyone heard about telling “little white lies? And we claim to be light. We church things up and say, “God knows your heart.” Well in that moment when someone chooses their way and sins over God’s way… He does know their hearts. In that moment, they have created an idol called, SELF! And “yes,” God understands… He understands that we missed the mark. He understands that we need to repent! We need to turn from our wicked ways and turn to His Son and believe in Him and the trust in the Word for direction! And when we do that and teach others to do the same Jesus says: but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus was talking to the common person. And the common person could never live up to the standard of even the Pharisees, much less that of God! Heck, the Pharisees were not even living up to the standards of God because they were living according to the Letter of the Law instead of the Spirit of the Law. Romans 2:28-29; Romans 7:6-7 So when you are presented with a standard that you can never measure up to… what do you do? Do you turn away? Do you give up? Or do you repent and take the hand of the standard bearer? Do you repent and realize, “I need a Savior, and the answer is Jesus!”? Have you fallen short? I have. You see, God does love you! He sent His Son into the world to die on a cross and pay the penalty for us. Because without that sacrifice, we have no hope! We all need a Savior, and the answer is Jesus!
There is nothing worse than regret! Last week we discussed the Beatitudes and the Supreme Blessings a person can receive from living them out. There is nothing regrettable about that. What is regrettable is to live a life to its end and not having made an impact for Jesus? We need to ask ourselves, honestly, is: Am I making a difference? Matthew 5:13-16 Salt is used for many reasons. It has many functions: flavoring food, preserving food, drawing out impurities and infection. Are we adding flavor to people’s lives? Are we a blessing to those we come into contact with? Are we a preserving agent for others? Are we helping people in their walks? Are you making a difference? But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. We don’t want to lose our flavor! I don’t want my life here on earth to be to reflect that I was worthless except to be walked on because I had no Godly value. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. We are called to be light. You don’t light a lamp and then cover it! Acts 13:47 Jesus gives us permission to shine!!! We need to come to a point in our lives where it is all about God! You see, just as salt can make or break a recipe… the saltiness of the Gospel being lived out in our lives can either make or break someone’s life. Just as too much light can be blinding or too little can be dangerous, we need to properly light people’s paths to God. We need to come to the point where we ask ourselves: Am I making a difference for you God? What is the value of living if I don’t point anyone to You, God? No one wants to live with regret.
Jesus gave us in the Sermon on the Mount and outline for living, the “Beatitudes.” Beatitudes means “supreme blessedness”. These are examples of how we should be striving to “be” attitudes. Matthew 5:2-12 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. This has nothing to do with your financial position in life. It has everything to do with your spiritual condition. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are those who feel bad, who grieve, and whose heart is broken for sinning against God… because they are driven to the Cross when they repent and they will be comforted by God! Supreme blessing is available to those who mourn for the souls of others, because they carry compassion. Romans 12:15 Supreme blessings can be experienced through tears! Revelation 21:4 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth (land). Supreme blessings of the meek is their quite nature, their calm spirit, their good nature that points people to God, they will inherit the earth, the land, heaven. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are those who strive to be Christ like, also wanting God’s righteousness to prevail, their efforts will not be in vein! Blessed are merciful, for they will be shown mercy. What supreme blessing to know that your acts of mercy will not go unnoticed! Lamentations 3:22-23 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. It all starts in the heart! King David knew that when he wrote: Psalm 51:10-11 What a supreme blessing to be able to see God in everything?? Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who pursue peace, regardless of the cost! What a supreme blessing to have God call you His child because of your efforts in maintaining peace! Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. The Disciples rejoiced for being counted worthy to suffer for the name of Christ. Acts 5:41 Supreme blessings come with persecution! Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” There is a supreme blessing that we cannot even understand coming our way when we endure persecution for Christ’s sake. How different does your life look a day from now, a week, a month, a year from now as you work to master these attitudes? Are you willing to be like King David and say, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Will you live for the supreme blessings that only come from truly living for God? Or has God’s word fallen on deaf ears today?
Tricia Collins from Child Bridge tells us her story and talks about how we can get involved in the foster care system.
Today we are going to look at two different events on 2 different Sundays. These accounts are found in Matthew 12:1-14; Mark 2:23-3:6; Luke 6:1-11. Let’s look at the 1st account where Jesus’ disciples picked some corn to eat while walking through a field. It was the Sabbath, a day to keep holy. Exodus 31:13-7 Now the Pharisees, were watching Jesus and His disciples closely. And the Pharisees questioned Jesus about their behavior claiming it to be sin. But the disciples were feeding themselves the same way the Pharisees would “work” to feed themselves at home. Let’s look at what Jesus has to say: Matthew 12:3-8 Mark adds this statement, which is a statement I want to focus on later. Mark 2:27-28 Which brings us to the 2nd encounter with the Pharisees on a separate Sabbath, as recorded by Luke. Jesus is at church and there is a man with a withered hand. And the Scripture says that they Pharisees watched to see if Jesus was going to heal on the Sabbath… which in their eyes… was work. Look at His wisdom! When they ask if it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, Jesus doesn’t argue, “Yes or no” “right or wrong”, He makes it personal for them. Matthew 12:11-13; Mark 3:4 and Luke 6:9 When asked what they would do, they realized they were busted. I want to go back to that passage I told you we would revisit again. Mark 2:27-28 God made the Sabbath for us. Church is God’s gift! Matthew Henry’s Commentary says this: “The Sabbath is a sacred and divine institution; but we must receive and embrace it as a privilege and a benefit, not as a task or drudgery.” - Matthew Henry’s Commentary Church is a place where you come to hear God’s word! Church is a place where you see and hear about God’s healing! Church is a place where we learn about God’s forgiveness! Church is a place where we experience God’s love! Church is a place where you go and are humbled that an all loving God would look at you in your sin and know that you are destined to great things! Church is a place where you go and tell God, “I’M NOT WORTHY!” and He tells you, “YES, YOU ARE!” Church is a place where restoration takes place. Why in the world wouldn’t you want to go to church? Jesus said, “For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.” We come to celebrate Jesus! There is so much good that goes on here! And as Jesus said, “it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath” I’m going to go with Jesus on this one.
What comes to mind when you hear the phrase, “Out with the Old, In with the New”? Ultimately, we are talking about changes. Jesus was confronted a number of times about how He was changing ministry in His day. And Jesus did not condemn the old ways… He simply explains that His way is new way. The passage regarding all of this found in Matthew 9:14-17; Mark 2:18-22 & Luke 5:33-39 By this time, people have seen Jesus do some pretty amazing things. His teachings have amazed crowds and they have even commented that He teaches with an authority they have not seen before. But now people are recognizing some other new behavior and they are asking, “why?” Jesus’ disciples were living with God, our Messiah! How much closer could they get than face to face with God? Luke 5:34-35 Jesus gives 2 illustrations of what He is talking about. The New Garment / The New Wine and Wineskins Luke 5:36-39 Jesus is ushering in a new teaching, a better way, the way of faith through grace. Paul explains it like this: Galatians 3:19-25 The law was necessary until Jesus came. He brought salvation through faith not by works. The process of fermentation makes adding new wine to old wineskins a bad idea. The wine will burst through spilling the wine and destroying the wineskin.I love this analogy because in order for it to work everything has to be new. The wine is new, the container is new, the growth is harmonious and it happens inside the new you. It is a filling of the Holy Spirit, that new wine, in you a new creation or new wineskin, when you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior! We all made a change when we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Why did you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? Luke 5:39 We were all there once. We didn’t want to change. But something drew us in. It’s called the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is speaking to you today, whether you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior or not, and He’s letting you know that today is the day you need to let some old things go. I want to encourage you to respond to the Holy Spirit! Take that step of faith! Don’t fear change... Jesus was a champion of it!
This week we see His desire to know us. Matthew 9:9-13 Have you ever seen someone that was wrong and everyone knew it, including them, and they continued being wrong… like they are saving face by sticking to their guns? It is a sad sight to see! And so often that is us when it comes to sin in our lives. Romans 1:28-32 Thank God for those people He sends into our paths who let us know, “we have missed the mark.” We see in today’s passage that Jesus came to be that “someone”. There are 2 examples of how Jesus ministered to people this in this very short passage! 1st Group) The Tax Collectors You see tax collectors were considered scum, dirt bags, criminals, traitors, extortionists, the bottom of the barrel. Matthew 9:9-10 Jesus called Matthew, while he was at work, steeped in his sinful way of employment and said, “Follow Me.” The Holy Spirit does the same thing in our lives. And He does it for every sin in our life, it’s called “Sanctification,” the process of becoming holy! He calls us while we are at work in our “sin” and says, “Follow Me.” Behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciple. Jesus is willing to get into our world, our business, our lives, our homes, our clicks so that we can know Him. And often times we cringe and think, there is no way He wants to know me!!! He is so holy and I am so not!!! But He sits at the table and allows us to join Him there. 2nd Group) The Pharisees. And Jesus shares with them that they missed the mark! Matthew 9:11-13 And He points them to the passage they need to learn. Hosea 6:6 Jesus let them know that He desired handing out mercy by getting to know the sinner and being in relationship, rather than receiving a sacrifice of obligation by someone who was self-righteous. God wants relationship over religion! How humbling that is that God and His Son want to know us! So the question is: “Who are you today?”
Last week we saw that Jesus is willing to cleanse us from our sins and heal us. Today we will see a display of the authority of Jesus to forgive and to heal. And it is recorded in: Matthew 9:1-8; Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26 And today we are going to look at Luke’s account. Luke 5:17-26 Jesus is showing us and the people in this account His authority to do things that had not been done before. This is what we catch a glimpse of today. We need to bring people who need Jesus to Jesus. We need to bring people that we know need Jesus to where Jesus is regardless of what it looks like or who is there or how hard it may be. How often do we quit when it gets tough? We make excuses for those people that we should be carrying to Jesus. We are leaving people lying on their mats instead of bringing them to Jesus! And look at what Jesus takes care of 1st. “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” Jesus dealt with the man’s eternal need 1st. His salvation! Because in that culture, it was assumed this man was a product of sin, either in his life or his parent’s. John 9:2-3 So for this man to hear that his sins are forgiven was healing to his soul. “I… am… FORGIVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!” Jesus never defended if He had the authority to forgive. “Not only will I forgive, but now I’m gonna heal the guy!” “Because I said so!” That guy could have died happy, knowing his sins were forgiven. Because He has the authority and He is willing! Everyone glorified God! The man that was healed walked away glorifying God and everyone who saw it glorified God! To where all that can be said is, “We have seen strange things today!” Can you imagine what this city would be like if we were zealous enough for other people’s souls that we would carry them into the presence of God so He could tell them, “your sins are forgiven… go home you are healed”? What if we were zealous enough to bring the concerns of our spouses’ and children’s souls before the Lord? What about our own lives, if we were zealous enough to bring our own sins before Jesus in faith and that because of that faith, He tells us our sins are forgiven? I want to be a church that Jesus looks at and sees the faith of our people and takes action. How awesome would it be if every time people came into this house they left saying, “We have seen strange things today!” And God receives all the Glory!
Red Letters Bring Your Stuff To Jesus 07/16/2017
Welcome
It’s amazing how fast and how easy we can accumulate stuff!
Have you ever had something, some stuff that has followed you over the years that you don’t even care about anymore?
Do you go through an emotional separation and mourning period as you get rid of your stuff?
Do you realize that sin does the same thing in our lives… it follows us? Let’s think about our sins. Not all of them, but “that one.” Your deepest darkest sin… right now. The one that makes you shutter. The one that “Only You and God will ever know about.” Why do we keep any of those sins, but even more so those deep dark sins? Is it because if people knew what they were, you would be treated like a leper? Like a leper we hide our sin away in the shadows and darkness. Matthew, Mark and Luke all record Jesus healing the leper. Tell me this guy does not have some stuff he is carrying! But he is tired of carrying it. Yet he seeks Jesus because he knows Jesus can take his stuff from him. Mark 1:40-45 When we come to Jesus, and ask Him to take our sins away… Jesus’ response to our repentance is always: “I am willing; be cleansed.” Jesus was moved with compassion then with the leper and He is still moved with compassion today with you! Jesus will cleanse you from your sin… your spiritual leprosy. Do you want to part with that sin today? Do you want to feel the liberation from bondage to that sin? Then come to Jesus, today! Repent of your sins, today! Confess them and allow Him to heal your spirit! Romans 8:31; Philippians 4:13; 1 Corinthians 15:57 Once we are cleansed, we need to take action and let our actions be a testimony for all to see. Will you come to Jesus this morning? Will you ask Him to cleanse you today? Will you drop your stuff at His feet today?
We are about to get into Jesus’ Galilean ministry. Today’s passages: Matthew 4:12-22; Mark 1:14-20; Luke 4:14-30; John 4:43-45 Jesus honors John the Baptist for the work he has done and even starts by echoing the message that John was preaching to: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matthew and Mark speak briefly about calling disciples. Matthew 4:19 & Mark 1:17 It is this calling of disciples that is our focus for today. There are two parts to this calling (Follow me; Get fishing) 1 Corinthians 1:27 We often say to ourselves there is nothing special But doesn’t call the equipped… He equips those He calls. Jesus started his Galilean Ministry by choosing men who were not strangers to hard work, disappointments, frustrations but also beating the odds at times. Jesus knows that when He says, “Come follow me,” it is not going to be an easy task. In one statement Jesus summed up the full understanding of just how difficult this calling is: “I will make you fishers of men.” You see, when we answer that call of salvation, we answer the call to “follow Him.” Jesus call to “follow me” is a call let go and to leave what we are doing. He is leading us away from what is comfortable… what is familiar… what is possible in our own sight and strength. He is leading us to a place where we are wholly dependent on Him. He leads us to the place we are to cast our nets. “I will make you fishers of men.” We are called to get fishing! I am here to tell you that it is not too late to answer the call. It is not too late to start fishing. What adventure awaits for those who do! God led Abraham! Jesus led the disciples! The Holy Spirit leads us! Will you answer the call today?
Last week we left off with the discussion of pulling water from a well, instead of Jesus’ flowing, living water. We need to share the message of Jesus with others! How sharp is your sickle? This is such a bizarre exchange because after being called out this woman continues to engage in conversation. John 4:19-20 Here she gets called out for having multiple husbands and that she is living with a 6th guy and she is like, “Wow, you’re a prophet! By the way, where should I go to church?” John 4:21-24 The Holy of Holies is no longer limited to Jerusalem. Everyone is going to have access! Hebrews 4:16 He is telling her that a time has come where it is not about where you worship but Who you worship and how! The time is now that people will need to start worshiping “in spirit and in truth.” He tells us, “God is Spirit.” And Jesus tells us that He is “Truth”. John 14:6 Jesus is telling her and us that a time is coming, NO… in fact it is here!!!! Where people will be worshiping God like they have never done so before. John 4:25-26 She has just had this amazing one on one with Jesus and she had to be working through everything. Then a bunch of guys show up. John 4:27 Jesus was obviously breaking norms! And here we come to it. The harvester. John 4:28-30 This passage takes away any excuse for people not to share their faith. Here a woman with a known checkered past managed to get people to “stream” out to see Jesus. And there are Christians who feel like they have done too much and lost all credibility and are failures in life, and… and… and… And they talk themselves out of sharing the Good News with others. In fact, we are entrusted, by God, to share the Gospel with others! And Jesus, being fed by the Spiritual work He had just finished was no longer hungry but satified. John 4:31-33 But the fact is, when we engage in ministry and worship God in Spirit and in Truth, we get filled up! John 4:34-38 Jesus is telling us, to wake up! The harvest is ready! We just need to get to work! John 4:39-42 Who aren’t we talking to about Jesus and why? How sharp is your sickle? If God were to inspect the blade, would it be worn? John 4:23
Happy Father’s Day! Today we are going to read about a teachable moment for all of us that is laid out by none other than Jesus Christ Himself. Today we get to see the Great Commission in action even before it is spoken. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 So let’s take a look at how Christ did things. John 4:6-8 We have Jesus setting the stage as to how far He will go to reach one person. John 4:9-11 Like Nicodemus, she looked at the natural understanding of what was being said and missed the spiritual gift that was being offered. The gift of salvation! John 4:12 Think about how often Jesus is speaking to you, through the Holy Spirit, and you are at a “well” of familiarity, a “well” of historical significance, a “well” that you have drawn from for years “that has nothing wrong with it,” and you reject Jesus because you think you have great water from a well that has been there forever that you think is better than the water that Jesus is offering! And Jesus is offering you a breakthrough. He is offering healing. He is offering restored relationships. He is offering you salvation. And you sit there and ask, “Where’s your bucket Jesus?” John 4 13-14 Look at that! When you have Jesus Christ, your life will never be the same! Our lives, ours spirits become a fresh, bubbling spring when we drink from the source of living water, Jesus Christ! John 4:15 Jesus take my sins away! John 4:16 Look at how completely Jesus deals with sin! He calls it out! John 4:17 People are walking all around us that need to hear about Jesus Christ! We need Jesus! We know that!They need Jesus! We know that too! We need to share the message of Jesus with others!
Guest speaker Pastor Darryl Carnley from North Pole Worship Center in North Pole, AZ speaks to Cornerstone Church.
We are going to be reading in the Gospel of John about Jesus clearing out the temple. Let’s start by reading the Scriptures. John 2:12-16 So what triggered this outburst this time? Look at the events that we have been studying leading up to this. Jesus is a man on a mission. Jesus can’t let these things slide anymore. John 2:17 His actions caused others to see Scripture played out before their eyes. John 2:18 One commentary said that the corruption was so blatant that even the sinners themselves could not justify their actions. John 2:19-22 They were not allowing for people to bring a proper offering or gift to the Lord because it was being done dishonestly. When confronted in sin, people often challenge the authority to do so of the one that is holding them accountable. Some folks come go to church bartering with God about how they are going to worship. You have to ask, what kind of heart is that person bringing to God in worship? Are they walking in to church ready to give Him their all and instead they receive all of Him? Hebrews 13:15-16 Are you bartering with God on worship? Is Jesus flipping your tables and driving out the animals because of how you enter into praise? Are you bartering with God on giving? Is Jesus flipping your tables and driving out the animals because of your heart toward giving? 2 Corinthians 9:6-9 How about serving? Are you bartering with God and making excuses? Is Jesus flipping your tables and driving out the animals of your service? Or are you showing up early or on time with a heart of praise and worship to serve the Lord that infects everyone you come into contact with? Colossians 3:23 Kids workers how about you? Is Jesus flipping your tables and driving out the animals of your service? Proverbs 22:6 Is your service to those kids an act of worship to where 30 years from now they will know your name and remember the craft or lesson that you lead that sealed and confirmed their faith in Jesus Christ? How about inviting people to “come and see?” Are you bartering with God on who you should invite? Hebrews 13:1-2 If we have had our tables turned, we need to repent and get right with the Lord today! The Good News is that He will forgive you!
We are continuing in our Red Letter series and today we will be looking at the first miracle that Jesus performed, turning water into wine. Jesus invites us to come into His world and see His goodness. John 2:1-4 He has begun His ministry. After this, people are going to see Jesus’ works and glorify God. From this moment on, Jesus was answering to His heavenly Father, rather than others including His mom. What do you do when God’s timing does not match yours? How many of us are coming to Jesus and pressing Him to do something when He is fully aware and waiting for the perfect timing so that His Father may be glorified? His timing removes the shadow of doubt. We need to continue to have faith that the need will be met. That is exactly what Mary did. John 2:5 She maintained her faith and told others that Jesus was going to come through. For believers, it would be an encouragement to hold on to our faith. For those that don’t believe, it is the same as telling them, “Come and See.” Jesus wants to show you something, watch! You do not want to miss this! But God’s timing did not match up with her timing. John 2:6-8 The crisis has now come and now Jesus the miracle worker is on the scene. Matthew Henry says that this situation like many unfortunate ones that come into our lives, “teaches us that man’s extremity is God’s opportunity.” Our moments of extreme need are the opportunities for God to step in and do something amazing! Here the servants know the best is gone and all they have retrieved is water. John 2:9-10 First, Jesus showed His creation power! He didn’t speak over this transformation. He simply willed the water into wine and it was. And not just any wine but the best! We get to see what can happen when God’s timing does not match our timing. Second, we see a foreshadowing of the Gospel message. 2 Corinthians 5:17 The water took on the properties of wine. When we believe on the name of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, we become a new creation! We are born again! The problem is that many of us don’t recognize that we are made new in God’s sight. We continue to see ourselves as water. Instead of embracing that we have become the best wine. John 2:11 I want to encourage you… Jesus extends a simple invite you today to come to Him and see what He can do in your life. We just saw that God’s timing is perfect. If you feel His tugging on your heart, now is the time to respond to Him.
Just like a word spoken by Mom tha you know you should heed, so too we should heed the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Marvin Wilson gives his testimony about a recent experience he had regarding the Holy Spirit leading him.
The passage we are going to look at today is a tremendous passage showing Jesus’ divinity, but also His eagerness and openness for us to follow Him! You see, Jesus welcomes you to come to Him! John 1:35-38 How gentle yet to the point. What do we seek Him for? John 1:39 “Come and see.” Jesus welcomes you! When we say, “Jesus, where are You? I need more of You!” He says, “Come and see.” John 1:40-46 “Come and see.” When faced with opposition to the invite, they only thing we have to say is, “Come and see.” The burden is on God to move in the hearts of those we invite to church, to life group or even into salvation. Let God prove Himself. Are our invitations to others compelling them to come and see? Could the reason we may not be successful with our invites be because we are perceived as “inviting others to church” instead of “inviting them to come and experience Jesus?” Are we showing others that we have “found the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth” and to come and see? “Come and see where prayers get answered!” “Come and see where marriages are restored!” “Come and see where hurts are mended!” “Come and see where the one who has the answers to your problems is!” “Don’t believe me… Come and see!” Jesus calls us daily, “Come and see.” The invite shifts from, “Come on and give church a try” to “You have to come and see… I have found the Messiah!” We see His divinity revealed as He confirms who He is to those that respond to the invitation… “Come and see.” John 1:47-51 This passage speaks to how Jesus dealt with Nathanael. Jesus met him at a personal level that removed any shadow of a doubt of who Jesus was. There is an important piece of the Scriptures that we just read that I want to make sure does not get overlooked. John the Baptist: John 1:35-36; Andrew: John 1:41; Philip John 1:45 There had been previous conversations between these people about the coming Messiah. About Jesus. Let Jesus reveal Himself to the people you are speaking to! If they doubt or question… what’s the response? “Come and see! Jesus welcomes you!”
Do you sit there and memorize movies? TV Shows? How about Commercial Jingles? How about Scripture. “For God __ __________ ___ ______...” “God has not ¬¬¬¬__________ ____ __ _________ of fear…” “You are ¬¬¬¬___________ ___ ________ ____________ faith.” Good!!!! You know your Scripture! Today, we are looking at Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:11-12; Luke 4:1-13 If we remember Jesus had just been baptized. He was approved and affirmed by the God the Father as His Son. And we pick up with Him headed to the wilderness. Matthew 4:1- 3 Jesus has just come from the heavens opening and God telling everyone… Matthew 3:17 Jesus was led by the Spirit to the place that a show down was going to take place. He was created by Jesus. John 1:1-4 Matthew Henry’s Commentary points out that Jesus wasn’t tempted by just any demon nor a group of Satan’s best minions but by Satan himself. This was Satan’s great opportunity to bring down the Son. But not having any faults to worry about, Jesus was not led as a common man to give it His best shot. He was led as a champion heading into the ring. Matthew 4:4-11 Jesus finishes with the 1-2-3 knock out. But what did He stand on? Scripture! Jesus used the Word of God to defeat Satan. How about this, can you defend these statements? “Chill out with the Bible thumping, God likes us to do things in moderation.” Revelation 3:16 “When God tempts you, it’s okay to get mad at Him. He will understand.” James 1:13-14 “God will never forgive what you just did don’t bother asking forgiveness!” Matthew 12:31; 1 John 1:9 Look at that! We overcame mediocrity, temptation, anger and fear, doubt and possible depression. And we used Scripture to help us! That is the model that Jesus gave us! We need to learn the Scriptures. The only way we can do that is by spending time in God’s word.
I want to talk today about “precious moments.” So often those precious moments are brief, yet powerful moments in our lives. What about “God Experiences”? Do you remember the moment you received Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? What about the day you decided to be baptized? What about all the answers to prayer that you have received? How often we have these monumental God moments and we think to ourselves, “There is no way that I will ever forget this day!” We take all the mental pictures of the moment and put them in our mental photo albums and then were to we place them? On a shelf, only to be remembered when we stumble upon them. The Gospels have recorded for us the “precious moment” of Jesus’ baptism by John the Baptist. Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:29-34 And as you study it, there are some amazing revelations that can escape us if we are not careful and I will let you go find those for yourself. Matthew 3:13-17 Here we have this precious moment where God reveals Himself in the Trinity; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I want you to catch this. Luke 1:39-41 John the Baptist was not a foreigner to the work of the Holy Spirit! John 1:30 John had a Holy Spirit encounter in the womb that was later repeated when Jesus approached. John knew, by the power of the Holy Spirit, that same power that filled John’s mother Elizabeth when Mary greeted her, that Jesus was the Messiah as he exclaimed those words: John 1:29 John’s heart had to have skipped a beat as Jesus approached! As they exchanged words… He saw the Spirit descend like a dove! He heard the voice of God! But sadly, we will later read that John sent his disciples to confirm that Jesus was the Messiah. Did he forget that “precious moment? Have you forgotten “your precious God moment”? Have you forgotten what it felt like when your heart skipped that beat when your spirit saw Jesus approaching you? Do you remember the day when God confirmed His covenant in your heart, that whoever believes in Jesus and receives Him as their Lord and Savior. When is the last time that you pulled that photo album off the shelf? Give your life over to Jesus today.
Today we serve a risen King! The King of glory! There are many religions that say that they acknowledge Christ but how? Who is Jesus to them? We have heard over and over that Christianity is the only faith that serves a risen Savior. Let’s look at a few other religions. Because when many of them speak the name Jesus, they are not speaking about Him in the same capacity we are. We need to understand that! We will look at 4 areas: When they were founded and by whom; Who is Jesus to their faith; How is one saved; What happens upon death Matthew 28:5-10 That is a big deal folks! Today we celebrate a risen Savior. We celebrate that God’s one and only Son stepped down out of glory from His place in heaven and came to this earth and lived and died, but was resurrected by the power of the Holy Spirit. God made it easy for us to come to Him! Jesus paid the horrible price for us! All we have to do is believe that He did so and that He has risen these 3 days later! What’s the point of it all if we don’t? 1 Corinthians 15:12-19 Today we celebrate an awesome God! One who lived for us! One who lived with us! He was tried like us! But He never sinned like us! He went to the cross for us! And He died for us! He overcame death for us! And now He has gone and is preparing a place for us! He sent His Comforter to us! And He has promised to return for us!
Today is Palm Sunday. Today we will look at Jesus’ entry on a donkey that preceded His death on the cross. Matthew 21:1 – 27:56; Mark 11:1 – 14:52; Luke 19:28- 22:53; John 12:12-18:11 This week before His crucifixion is referred to as the “Passion” week. What did your Messiah do and say? How did your Messiah act? Who did your Messiah surround Himself with? I say, “your” Messiah on purpose because I don’t want the weight of this moment to be brushed aside. I don’t want the generality of “our” Messiah, to be mistaken that He did something for others and not for “you” specifically! Jesus knew the cost of doing what we are going read today and where that would lead… And He still did it… And He did it for “you”! We are going to read today from the 4 Gospels. Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; There are similar recordings but there are also additional details given in others. This does not discredit the accounts given, but it adds a fuller picture of what is taking place. Jesus who has walked everywhere, decides to enter back into Jerusalem in the manner that fulfills the prophecy given by Zechariah. Zechariah 9:9 He is riding into the final battle scene of His life in much the same fashion as He came into this world… devoid of any possessions, with the exception of what He was wearing. This was a march of death that He did for our sakes! Jesus entered life in humbleness and now we see Him march into death in humbleness. Luke 19:28-44 Jesus is telling the religious leaders that something monumental is taking place! If they don’t praise Me for what is taking place, the very stones of the earth would shout for the coming Messiah. John 12:12 – 19 How fitting that God so loved the world that He sent His one and Only Son and that in this statement the Pharisees confirmed that the mission had been accomplished? When Jesus mounted up on that colt, He mounted Himself on that cross for you and for me!
We are going to be taking a look at the words of Jesus for the next little bit as we travel through the Red Letters of Scripture. Only 1 of the 4 Gospel writers was inspired to share a moment in time of Jesus’ adolescence with us. But that there is such tremendous significance to be found within it. Luke 2:41-50 Here we have a record that gives us a glimpse into the life of Jesus, growing up. Luke 2:41-42 Jesus is recorded as being 12. He is almost a “man” according to Jewish customs. Luke 2:43-45 You see, Jesus is coming into His own, if you will. He stayed behind. And we see that they were “seeking Him.” Luke 2:46-48 They looked everywhere! They sought Him anxiously! Where did they think Jesus would be hanging out? Where did they search first? How often do we have this discussion with Jesus? “why have You done this to me? … I have sought You anxiously.” How often do we blame Him when we are the ones who have wandered off and not made sure He was with us? We were the ones who wandered away and yet we say, “why have You done this to us?” His response is the same for us today as it was for Mary and Joseph. You had to seek me? You should have known where I was. 49 And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” If you have wandered from Jesus you can find Him again, today. If you have been blaming Jesus for things in your life that He really isn’t responsible for, ask Him to forgive you today! Forgiveness is His Father’s business.
The Book of James instructs us that we need to shine our lights. I want you to keep in mind that this book was written by the half-brother of Jesus Christ. In fact, James was a part of the family that said that Jesus was out of His mind. Mark 3:20-21; Mark 3:31-35; John 7:2-5 It is crazy to think that you could live with the Light not knowing who Jesus truly was until He showed Himself to you after His resurrection as recorded in Acts and 1 Corinthians. James commands us to shine the light! James is telling us that it’s not enough to believe in Jesus, his brother, unless that belief brings about action. And he is talking to Christians… James 2:14-19 Unless your faith causes you to act, there is no value in it. The implication is that you don’t truly have faith in Christ. You have to shine the light. Otherwise, you are simply providing lip service. James 2:21-24 James used the patriarch of the Jewish faith, Abraham as an example. And then providing a second example of a much less desirable sort. James 2:25-26 So what does a lifestyle of shining our light for Christ look like? We’ve been told that we can’t just claim to believe and sit back and do nothing. Even the thief on the cross did something after professing his faith in Christ. He chastised the other thief. He was not saved by this action of chastisement, but it was because of his faith (which saved him) that he was moved to speak out! We are not saved by works. God saved us so that we would do good works that He already planned for us to do. Ephesians 2:8-10 Matthew Henry’s Commentary states that if our lives are compared to that of a plant, “Faith is the root,” and “good works is the fruit produced.” Colossians 1:9-11; Psalm 119:105 Yet another implication that your faith is moving you along. We can’t change lives if we are not Shining the Light in our daily lives.
John 3:19-21 We know that Christ came into this world as a light for all to see. We know that we need to seek out God with all that we have. We need to seek His truth. And when we find it we rest in that truth. Matthew 11:28-30 How do you Be the Light? You turn to the Light. You must repent of your sins and acknowledge who Jesus is and what He has done and surrender to Him. Romans 10:9-13 How do we “Be” the Light? We have to accept the Light, Christ Jesus, and receive Him into our hearts. Ephesians 5:1-2 Why do we want to “be” a light to others? Philippians 3:8-14 Christ came to die for us. We must imitate and die to ourselves be willing to die for others. Galatians 2:20 How do we “Be the Light”? We allow Jesus, the Light, to live in and through us! We have to make a conscious effort put on Christ. Romans 13:14; Galatians 3:26-27 We need to do the things He did. 1 Peter 2:21-25 Are we being like Christ, who pointed everything He did back to God? 1 Corinthians 11:1 Are we an extension of Christ to the world? Are we a light to the world? Ephesians 5:8-9 We can “Be” the light for others! We just have to believe that we are worthy to make such a statement!
Find the Light / Be the Light / Shine the Light Find the Light March 5, 2017 Welcome What does that look like? Matthew 6:22-23 We look at that and say, “OK! That makes sense.” If my eye is good… my lamp, or light, is good. If my eye is bad… my lamp, or light is bad. Matthew 6:23 If you think that you are all good when you are actually bad, what is bad to you? Are we all in for God or are we allowing a little bit of Satan into our lives? We need to understand that there are only 2 choices in this life. Living for God, who is the Light. Or living for Satan. Acts 17:27-30 God wants us coming back to Him Let me ask you this, if 3 billionaires told you that they would teach you the secret to making money, and all you had to do was listen and believe and do… I mean, that it was a sure fire way that you would guaranteed make billions as well, would you listen? Matthew 3:1-2; Matthew 4:17; Acts 2:38 We need to be looking for the Light! We need to find the Light! 2 Corinthians 6:14b – 15a The answer is that it can’t. 1 John 1:5-8 We are called to make a choice! Do we walk in His light? Or do we stick with darkness? John 3:19-21 Did you catch that? Did you see it? John 3:20 How do we find the light? We seek it out! Deuteronomy 4:29b; Isaiah 55:6; John 5:19-20; Psalm 73:25; Matthew 7:7-8; Matthew 6:33 How shall we come before Him? James 4:7-8; Ephesians 3:12; Hebrews 4:14-16; Hebrews 10:19-22 How do we find the Light? We seek Him out and once we find Him, we spend time with Him. We learn His ways. We die to ourselves and actively try to become who He created us to be.The awesome thing about finding the Light, is that He wants to be found! Seek God this week! Find the Light! And once you do… Stay there… Stay in His presence! Become like Him!
Elder Mark talks about how we were created to praise and worship God. At what point do we start worshipping in our own personal lives? Job was a blameless and upright man. He feared God and shunned evil and "there was no one on earth like him." but he fell into the trap of satan for a time and into such dispair that he began to push God away. Job came to realize and accept that he was not perfect and that he had to relinquish control of his life to God because God's plan is perfect even though he didn't know what that was. Job had to surrender without any knowledge of where God was going to take him. Until we can surrender control of our own lives, we cannot truly worship God. Our attempt at control will hold us back.
We are starting a new series… Find the Light, Be the light, Shine the light. Who is our light? God is. Jesus is. 1 John 1:5; John 8:12 So what does it look like to “Find the Light, Be the light, Shine the light”? It looks like coming to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, becoming a Christian, and showing others the way to Christ. We can no longer be ok with dueling identities; one for work or school, one for home and friends and one for church. The goal is to be the same person in each environment. This is what changes people! This type of understanding of, surrender to and commitment to model a life lived for God. Daniel 3:1-5 So this new decree has been announced to everyone! Daniel 1:18-20 These guys really stood out. Already, early on, they took a stand for the things of God and He blessed them. Daniel 3:6 That’s a hard decree. Daniel 3:7-12 So they are displaying the fact that they have found the Light. They were Being the light for others to see. They were standing on their relationship with God! Daniel 3:13-18 They had every chance to back track, give in, make excuses for, try to convince. But they didn’t. Daniel 3:19-23 What would your co-workers or classmates be saying at this point if that was you? Daniel 3:24-27 Every one of their peers, if you will, got to see the awesome power of God! The very principles they got in trouble for shining were now about to become policy. Daniel 3:28-30 They were the epitome of what it means to Find the Light, Be the light, Shine the light.
The end of our series on A Season of Change. “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) So the question that we really need to ask ourselves is “Who do people say that I am?” Galatians 6:14-16 One of the biggest testimonies to this being true is when people share their testimonies and the people around them are blown away. Ephesians 4:21-24 We are called to be Christ like. Colossians 3:5; 10-11 We are called to abandon our old ways! Ecclesiastes 7:10 The only reason to look back would be to reaffirm that you need to move forward! Ezekiel 36:31 But don’t long for “the good old days!” God redeemed you from “the good old days” remember? Luke 9:62 Jesus is requiring all of us, from all of us. “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) The Israelites had God going before them in a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day. They had the miraculous power of God before them and look at what they say… Exodus 16:3 They were slaves! They just crossed the Red Sea on dry land and just got done singing “The Song of Rescue” just a little while before that. God was before them every day! Tell me that hard times can’t mess with someone’s mind. Matthew 16:13-16 If we asked your co-workers or classmates, “Who do people say that, enter your name here, is?” What kind of answers would we get? If we asked people in this church, “Who do people say that, enter your name here, is? What answer would we get? If there is a discrepancy, why? What have you become? “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown)
Last week we talked about getting back to a heart of Worship, that as believers we are a walking “letter” from Christ to the world. What did people read this week? Did your actions and words draw people closer to or further away from wanting to know God? “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) Love is so important to our walk! 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 We have nothing without love! Our giftings, abilities, and even our faith are all worthless to us without love! Here is an easy commandment. 1 Corinthians 16:14 Next thing you know God is going to tell us to love everyone! 1 Thessalonians 3:12-14 How many of us are bursting at the seams with love? If we were containers, would we be overflowing? Romans 12:9a “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) We cannot claim to be Christians and choose not to love. Matthew 5:44; Luke 6:27-28; Romans 12:14 We are being told to bless and pray and act! 1 John 3:18 “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) What is in our hearts is being revealed. It just is. 1 John 2:3-6 Finished are the days of hearing the excuses: “Well, that is just the way I am.” “I’m just a jerk, deal with it.” “I’m too old.” “I don’t care!” No! Stop thinking that! Don’t let your heart believe that! Don’t let your actions show that! Become the opposite of that! Do you realize when you say that, you are testifying that God is no longer able to work in your life? That is a dangerous place to be in! Do you realize that you are hardening your heart toward anyone that would come in and try to speak a word of life… of love into your heart!
We are continuing our series in A Season of Change and my last message discussed that our hearts are corrupt. Jeremiah 17 “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) Worship is such a heart thing! Worship is about intimacy with God! 1 Chronicles 28:9 -10 Worship is also a learned action. There is a song by Michael W. Smith called “The Heart of Worship.” Listen to the intimacy of the lyrics. Getting rid of distractions / Understanding that I’ve got nothing to give / Wanting to please Him / Intimacy / Beyond the facade of who we think we are / He is looking to where the “real” us is / Have we perverted our worship? “I’m sorry, Lord, for the thing I’ve made it” is a hearts cry! Psalm 51:10 We need a clean heart! We need a renewal of who we are! Jesus didn’t do anything without hearing from His Father. John 5:19-20; John 12:49-50 We need to have a heart like Christ! When we change from having a heart that is “most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. We start looking more and more like Christ! When we can let go of that offense that is hindering our worship. We become more like Christ! When we start looking out for other’s needs before our own. We become more like Christ! When we don’t have any other agenda than serving God and advancing His Kingdom. We become more like Christ! Titus 1:15-16 If we start living for Christ, people will notice a difference! 2 Corinthians 3:3 Are you a walking letter from Christ Jesus to the people you come into contact with? 1 Chronicles 29:17-18
Why do we worship God? Elder Mark details several of the many reasons why we should worship God.
We talked about giving up the behaviors and customs of the world. We established that it starts with our thoughts and they determine our heart. “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) Mark 7:20-23; Matthew 12:34b-37 The heart is a major deal here. Romans 3:23 Everyone means “everyone.” All means “all.” How can all fall short? Jeremiah 17:9 How many of us cringe at things we have said and done in our past? It came from your heart, Christian. It came from somewhere deep down inside that you thought you removed it, but what has happened is that that remnant has laid there dormant, waiting for that prime opportunity to reveal itself. Our deceitful and desperately wicked hearts. Romans 2:1-5; Luke 16:15 Have you examined your heart this last week? Did you go looking? Did you even ask? Did this deceitful and desperately wicked thing called our hearts convince us it was not important? “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) God knows our hearts. The Book of Proverbs is all about the heart. Proverbs 14:10; Proverbs 14:12; Proverbs 20:9 If you are a sinner and you are here today, you are not alone. For even the best of us, “Christians” are carrying around deceitful and desperately wicked hearts. Isaiah 64:6 “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) Hebrews 3:7-8; 2 Corinthians 6:2
“What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown)
It starts with our thoughts. Our “buts” take root in our thoughts. And “buts” can be bad or good. Romans 12:2-3 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of the world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. 3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. (NLT)
A Season of Change A Time of Self-Reflection 01/01/2017
New Years is a time of Self Reflection. Can I say that this may be one thing that the world pushes that does align with the word God? Each year we are given a free pass to change. We are given the opportunity to start something new, without justifications. So why not pick something in the Bible to do and start doing it? 2 Corinthians 5:17; Philippians 2:12 How often do we lose the intensity of our desire to change and revert back to old habits? Ecclesiastes 7:10; Luke 9:62 We have been called to put off our old self. Romans 6:6; Ephesians 4:22; Colossians 3:8-9; 1 Peter 4:3 Have any of us mastered any of these? Or are we guilty of Ecclesiastes 7 and Luke 9? We have had to become something new. Romans 6:7-8; Ephesians 4:23-24; Colossians 3:10; 1 Peter 4:8 That requires continued resolutions! We are going to be continuing this series: A Season of Change. And as we do, I want you to pray about and consider the following statement. “What you give your thoughts to, you give your heart to. What your give your heart to, you give your actions to. What you give your actions to, you become.” (Unknown) As we enter into this new year of 2017, do not take lightly that we are called to examine ourselves. If you need help with a starting point or a few statements to use as benchmarks, look at the Holy Scriptures that have been given today!
Isaiah 9:6 “For a Child is born to us, a Son is given to us.” (NLT) Luke 2:10-11 “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior – yes, the Messiah, the Lord – has been born today in the town of Bethlehem, the city of David!” (NLT) John 3:16 “For God so loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” (NLT) Do you realize that we are celebrating the anniversary of Jesus’ birth with heaven today? I wonder what Christmas in heaven is like? This morning we celebrate waking up to the greatest gift ever given. A Savior! God brought His Son into the world in a very unlikely way. Shepherds have come and confirm that the Messiah has arrived. God continues to confirm who Jesus is shortly following His birth. Luke 2:21-38 So let this sink in just a bit. You just had the Messiah, in a manger of all places Shepherd come and visit and tell you angels told us where we could find the Christ. You go to the Temple 8 days later and 2 random people, that walk with God so closely, come up to you and praise your Son for who He is. Talk about a whirlwind experience! Shortly after this the Wise Men are going to pay a visit and offer some gifts that would are typically given to rulers. They were a tribute to a King. Yet, another confirmation of who Jesus really was, the King of King and Lord of Lords. Today we celebrate the birth of our King of King and Lord of Lords. What gifts are we presenting Him with? All He wants for His birthday is our hearts! Spend some time today as you enjoy Christmas traditions and festivities and dedicate some time one on one with your Lord. Amen? Amen.
What did Joseph and Mary experience as they struggled to find a place to stay as she went into labor? Did they fail as parents? Why would the Savior of the world be born in a barn? Listen in as Pastor Chuck brings the Christmas story to life and how it relates to us.
Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church in Lolo, MT helps to bring the Christmas story to life in this advent series. Did you know the shepherds watching their flocks that night were a certain types of shepherd?...and those flocks of sheep were destined for a special purpose?!
Advent Season 12/18/2016
Today we are going to take a look at some other “random” folks that actually turn out to be rather special. Luke 2:1-20 So we read this all the time… The angels appear to shepherds, tell them where to find Jesus, they sing “Glory to God in the highest…” and they go back to heaven and the shepherd go find Jesus. What was the significance of “these” shepherds? Jesus who refers to Himself as the Good Shepherd, came to earth to be among His sheep and in the process, became our sacrificial Lamb. John 10:11-14 Contrast that with Jesus’ description found in John 1:29. Jesus the Good Shepherd, the Lamb of God, our sacrificial Lamb was announced to this specific group of shepherds. These shepherds watched over the sheep that had to be spotless, without blemish. God announced the coming of the perfect, spotless Lamb of God, the final Passover Lamb, to shepherds that raised Passover Lambs. They lived out prophecies found in Micah, Isaiah and Jeremiah. Micah 4:8; Micah 5:2; Isaiah 7:14 Isaiah 11:1-2; Jeremiah 23:5-6 God selected the lowly shepherds, the low rung of society to share the Good News with. This announcement symbolizes that no one is too far gone to be reach and used by God! The Greek Word for “suddenly” used in Luke 2:13 is the Strongs Word #1810 exaiphnes: adv. Meaning – suddenly or unexpectedly. It is associated with two other words: 1978 episemos & 2005 epiteleo; Strongs Word # 1978 - Episemos – notorious, prominent, outstanding: notable; Strongs Word # 2005 - Epiteleo – to finish, complete, end; to perfect, attain a goal So angels “suddenly appeared” (unexpectedly, notably, finished the wait for, completed the arrival of, attained the goal of) fulfilling the prophecy of the arrival of God’s Son to the world! Do you remember that moment when God (unexpectedly, notably, finished the wait for, completed the arrival of, attained the goal of) winning your heart and bringing you into the family of believers?
Advent Season 12/11/2016 What is Advent? An advent is “an arrival of a notable person, thing, or event. At Christmas we celebrate Advent where we count down the days until Christmas. How many of you go shopping and then drop hints that you are done shopping and love it when people start guessing, “what did you get me?” And your response is, “It is something awesome!” “You’re gonna love it!” God did something very similar some 700 years before Christ was born through the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah 9:6 God is telling the prophet, I have this awesome gift coming! These passages show Jesus as a Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace.Mark 2:17; Mark 2:5-12; Luke 19: 9-10 How amazing to see that prophecy fulfilled in your sight! How amazing it would have been to witness Jesus in the flesh doing these things. But how much more amazing to be a part of the most important event in history! Matthew 1:18-23 Parents imagine your child today coming to you with this story. Instead of looking for God in the situation we would have been trying to figure out how to cover it up. We don’t even think about the aunts, uncles and other extended family that was wrapped up in this, “scandal!” Yet God was using them too! Luke 1:39-56 As we pass through this Advent Season, stop for a moment. Put yourself there. How are you doing now? How are you preparing your hearts and home to receive your King? Is the arrival of the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty King, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace buzzing in your heart? In just a few days, we will celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Have we prepared Him room?
Elder Nick Hunter of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT encourages the congregation to serve others as Christ would serve.
God, I Need You To Tell Me Where To Go And What To Do 11/27/2016 Welcome It’s funny how many of us are so self reliant at times that we reject any input from others. Yet all throughout Scripture we see God giving direction to people. He led the Israelites out of Egypt and went before them as a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. Exodus 13:21-22 God led the shepherds to Jesus. Luke 2:8-22; 10-12 God led the Wise Men to Jesus. Matthew 2:1-12; 1-2 The Gospels of Matthew (Matthew 10:1-15), Mark (Mark 6:6b-13) and Luke (Luke 9:1-6) record Jesus sending out the Disciples giving them instructions on where to go and what to do. Jesus instructed the Disciples on where to prepare the Passover (Matthew 26:17-19; Mark 14:12-16; Luke 22:7-13) We are going into the month of December and intentionally and corporately seeking God’s direction for this church. I am so excited about this! It is a powerful thing, when God’s people come together and lift Him up and seek His direction! When He answers our prayer of, “God, I need you to tell me where to go and tell me what to do.” Let’s look at Acts 16. Acts 16:6-10 I wonder how excited they all were. It says they “immediately sought to go to Macedonia, concluding the Lord had called us…” Paul and the gang saw where they need to go and went. They took action steps toward that end. They had to get to Macedonia. Acts 16:11-12; Acts 16:13-15 Victory!!!! Acts 16:16-40; 18-23 Paul and Silas were having a Worship Jam Session! Acts 16 goes on to tell us that Paul and Silas preached salvation to the guard, his family and I am sure, every prisoner in the prison. Acts 16:40 Paul and Silas came back with the “good report.” How do you lead your family in a lifestyle contradictory to what the “world” wants you to do? Would you be bold enough to get back on your knees and ask again, “God, I need You to tell me where to go. I need You to tell me what to do?”
How Do We Display Our Attitude of Gratitude? 11/20/2016 Welcome What does that even look like? There is a different sense of importance, or value between “showing” something and “displaying” something. When you think about the concept of Displaying an Attitude of Gratitude toward God. How does that look? Psalm 92:1-2; Psalm 95:1-2; Psalm 96:1-3; 1 Chronicles 16:8-9; 1 Chronicles 16:34-35 These passages are a call to action in your worship. These aren’t just sit around and say “thanks” Scriptures. No. These are some stand up and make a spectacle of yourself Scriptures. We can’t hide this kind of praise! These Scriptures require a Displaying of an Attitude of Gratitude. We can’t Display an Attitude of Gratitude if it is not in our hearts! Luke 6:45; Psalm 86:11-13; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; Colossians 3:15-17; Psalm 118:21 How many times has the God of the universe taken time to meet your need? When you put on an Attitude of Gratitude all kinds of God’s workings will reveal themselves to you. That is when it starts sinking into your heart! When everywhere you look you see a move of God… Sing a Psalm! Bust out a hymn! Whistle a catchy little tune for the Lord! When you put on a “show” of gratitude that is like just having a good day. But when you Display an Attitude of Gratitude that is a way of life. That is who you are! Give thanks to God! Praise His holy name! Amen?
2 Peter 3 On Guard and Living for the Lord 11/13/2016 Welcome Peter beings chapter 3 with a reminder to jog our memory but also an additional warning. 2 Peter 3:1-4 -Peter is telling us to be On Guard and Live for the Lord! -Peter’s reminder applies to us just as much as it did the people of his time. Philippians 4:8; Romans 5:12 -We are reminded to be On Guard and Live for the Lord! 2 Peter 3:5-9 Let’s look at Paul. Philippians 3:5-11 -Paul did not care about the arguments! He cared about the experience of God in his life! -Paul says, “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead.” (NLT) -1 Corinthians 2:1-2 You see, Paul was On Guard and Living for the Lord. -2 Peter 3:11-14 How do we even do that… “hurry it along” thing? The Great Commission, right? -How are we doing? Matthew 24:14 -That is what we are called to work on all the way up to either the end of our lives or the end of times. 2 Peter 3:14-16 -We need to be On Guard and Living for the Lord! 2 Peter 3:17-18 Amen indeed! -Let’s thank God that He graciously reminds us to be “On Guard and Living for the Lord!”
2 Peter Beware of False Teachers 11/06/2016 Welcome Last week Peter told us about how we needed to supplement our faith to grow in the understanding and knowledge of God. From there he writes to us about the danger of false teachers. Jesus’ Warnings: Matthew 24:11; Mark 13: 21-23 Paul’s warning: Acts 20:28-30 Peter explains to them and us how these people will act and how God will handle them. 2 Peter 2:1-8 So we have God handing out punishment on angels, all the things of the world and cities, because of the abominations that they embraced. Genesis 6:2-4; Genesis 6:7-8 But God spared Noah. But God spared Lot. We sometimes get so worried about those that do bad things getting away with everything that we forget God’s got it. 2 Peter 2:9-10a What is interesting is that Noah and Lot had to endure the evil that surrounded them. 2 Peter 2:10b-14 2 Peter 17-19; Romans 1:28-32 That should be a wakeup call to all of us, to make sure that we don’t allow new believers, young Christians or any Christian for that matter to be swayed by their influences. When we realize where their eternal destiny lies, we need to go after them and keep them grounded in the faith. 2 Peter 2:20-22 1 John 1:9 “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” (NLT) It is called surrendering to the One Who has overcome the death. If you are here today and you want to let a burden go, today is the day to do so! If you have never made Jesus the Lord of your life. If you have never surrendered to the way of righteousness. Today is that day.
2 Peter The Power of Your Testimony 10/30/2016 Welcome What makes a testimony powerful? Deuteronomy 19:15; 2 Corinthians 13:1-3 A lot of times testimonies come about as a result of an inquiry. Someone needs encouragement. They need hope. “Tell me your story…” Can anyone argue with your testimony? NO! It’s YOUR TESTIMONY! Testimonies give encouragement! Testimonies bring hope! Testimonies remind us that we are not alone in this life! Matthew 17:1-9; Acts 2:40; 2 Peter 1:16-18 Peter is supplying his testimony to these churches to deepen their faith! He is supplying his testimony to encourage them. 2 Peter 1:19-21 He is giving his testimony to inspire people by telling how God’s Son, Jesus Christ, has changed his life. Our testimonies are no different! When we share our testimonies, we are speaking to the evidence that God is working in our lives. When people come up to you and tell you they notice there is different about you, what do you say? Do you tell them… “Jesus Christ is the difference you see in me. Let me tell you about it.” “Thanks for noticing, I made a bet with Jesus that no one would notice the change. I guess I lost. Let me tell you about it.” “MAN! GOD IS EVERYWHERE I LOOK! I SEE HIS AWESOMENESS EVERYWHERE! Don’t you?” We all have a story! A Jesus story!
Master recording failed, so please accept this back up in its place. It's a bit noisy, but you'll still be able to hear the words clearly.
2 Peter 1 Spiritually Fit 10/23/2016
1 Peter really showed us how we should model our faith in front of people. 2 Peter is an epistle that encourages us to strengthen our faith, to reject false teachers and to await the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:1-2 The more we grow in our knowledge of God, the more we appreciate His grace and the more peace we have in our lives. 2 Peter 1:3-4 If you ever wondered to yourself if you have what it takes to be a good Christian, there’s your answer. It is by God’s grace that we have been saved and by His divine power that He has equipped us to live a godly life. How do we escape the world and become more Christlike? 2 Peter 5-7 We stand on faith! Hebrews 11:1; 2 Peter 1:8-11 Be like Peter! 2 Peter 1:12-15 Ask yourself, “Do I have this same attitude?” Am I willing to keep reminding people of the things that will keep them on track? Am I burdened in my heart that I will continue to do so as long as I live, because I love the people God has surrounded me with? As for your part, stay spiritually fit!
1 Peter Chapter 5
1 Peter 5 Modeling Your Faith 10/16/2016
We have heard all through 1 Peter here about how we are to model our faith. We are told how to model respect. And as he closes in Chapter 5, he brings the message within the church. Peter addresses the spiritually strong in the church and the spiritually weak. 1 Peter 5:1-4 Peter is exhorting us or strongly encouraging or urging us to pay attention to what he is about to say. Peter did the unthinkable. He denied Christ. He denied his friend. Matthew 26:35; Mark 14:31; Luke 22:33; John 13:37 Shepherd your flocks of God! I wonder where Peter got the idea of tending the flock from. John 21:15-17 Peter went from being this blow hard, boastful, proud, self – reliant man. To a man that made the biggest mistake in the world and was given a second chance. The gospel of John is the only Gospel that records this exchange of Jesus speaking to Peter about His flock. We see here in 1 Peter, Peter now speaking to us about God’s flock. 1 Peter 5:5-7 Peter is speaking to and encouraging the future of the church here. 1 Peter 5:8-11 Peter is exhorting us to be on guard. Peter is sharing the same counsel that he received from Christ. Just before he boasted about wanting to die with Him. Christ told Peter Satan wanted to take him out, but to be strong, don’t lose faith and build up the other believers. Luke 22:31 1 Peter 10 To God be the glory for your victory! Model your faith! Amen?
1 Peter 4 Living For God 10/02/2016 We continue our study in 1 Peter. We have been promised salvation and called to live a holy life, Chapter 1. 1 Peter 1:5 We have been informed that we, as believers, are now considered God’s chosen people. 1 Peter 2:9 We are to live “honorable lives.” 1 Peter 2:15 We were also taught to how to live while under authority in Chapters 2 and 3. 1 Peter 2:13; 1 Peter 3:1; 1 Peter 3:7 In Chapter 3 we also read about “Suffering for doing good.” 1 Peter 3:17 1 Peter 4:1-3 We need to steel our hearts to be willing to suffer physical pain for our faith. Until we are “anxious to do the will of God”…We will never move forward. “You cannot rebuke a devil that you continuously grant access to your life.” - T.D. Jakes “When Christ calls a man He bids him come and die.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer How many of those people in our pasts mock us for our choices? GOOD! You are in line with Scripture! 1 Peter 4:4 They may mock you but remember God is protecting us by His strength, they will have to answer for that. 1 Peter 4:5-6 We need to continue to be that light for them. We need to continue to display the Good News. We need to show the impact that God has had on our lives. We need to continue to be anxious to do the will of God. 1 Peter 4:7-9 There are many Spiritual Gifts, but Peter only uses a couple for examples here. 1 Peter 4:10-11 The Vision of this church is: “To transform the spiritual landscape of Lolo, Mt. and beyond by fulfilling the Great Commission.” How are we doing as a church? How are we doing as individuals? How are we living for God?
1 Peter 4 Cont’d Rejoice In Your Sufferings 10/09/2016 This sounds like such a contradictory concept. Our flesh is so against this line of rationale. Be happy while suffering? 1 Peter 4:12-13 Why do Christians get so shocked when they face troubles? Can I suggest that our focus is not on the right thing? Ephesians 6:12-13 Our spirits can take us far beyond what our flesh will want to endure. Mark 14:38; Romans 5:1-4; James 1:2-8 Why are these passages so important to understand as we go about our daily lives? They are important because they help us get our mind right. James 1:4 Don’t be in such a hurry to get out of your trial that you don’t learn anything from it. Let that trial work on you, as you study it. See, when we understand the passages in Ephesians, the passage in Romans and the passage in James, we can face the day to day trials that come our way with a different attitude. When we have prepared for the spiritual battle, the battle of the flesh is easier. 1 Peter 4:14-16; Acts 5:40-42 Christian, we have to get it right, in here! At church! 1 Peter 4:17-19 Hey, we owe it to each other to knock the dust off, stick a band-aid on and send you out for more. We need to be showing off our battle scars! We need to armor up and live Acts 5:41. How different would life be?
Mark Roman is a life-long student of science, evolutionary theory and eventually Creationism. Listen in as Mark walks us through an overview of the theory of Evolution and then Creationism. He'll then walk through powerful examples of how society has eroded as we have talk our youngsters that life really has no meaning outside of the here and now.
1 Peter 3 Instructions For Living 09/18/2016 Are we living “honorably?” 1 Peter 3:1-2 Wives, daughters, you need to hear this! 1 Peter 3:3-6 Now for the husbands. 1 Peter 3:7 “Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered.” Are you giving your wife honor? 1 Peter 3:8-12 Are we living honorable lives? Here’s a better question… What do you lose by living an honorable life? 1 Peter 3:13-17 But here is the exciting part of today’s message. 1 Peter 3:18 Christ suffered. He suffered in a bad way. But He did so because He wants to do what? Bring us “safely home to God.” We have seen over and over in 1 Peter about how God’s intention is that we get to spend eternity with Him! We read about an “inexpressible joy” or being “truly glad” while suffering because of what? A “wonderful joy” that comes from being saved! We serve a living Savior! 1 Peter 3:18 Where did He go from His burial? 1 Peter 3:19-22 Scholars have differing ideas on what vs. 19-21 mean. But if you cut out all of the discussion of whether Jesus went and preached or not, there is one fact that remains undebated… He is alive! And He is seated “in the place of honor next to God.” Amen? Amen!
1 Peter 2 God’s Chosen People 09/04/2016
Welcome: Last week we discussed that we have been called by God to a life of holiness. 1 Peter 1:16 Today, we are going to look God’s Word, and what it says about who we are. We are “God’s Chosen People!” I am not speaking about a replacement theology type of “Chosen” that title was given to the nation of Israel, but we are a new people who get to partake of the promises God gave to them because of Christ’s death on the cross. Ephesians 2:11-15; 1 Peter 2:1 The NLT says to “get rid of.” The NIV says to “rid yourselves of.” The NKJV says to “lay aside.” 1 Peter 2:2-3; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1 Peter 2:4-5; John 14:12 We are “God’s Chosen People!” 1 Peter 2:6; Matthew 21:44; 1 Peter 2:9-10 We are “God’s Chosen People!” 1 Peter 2:11-12
1 Peter 1 A Call to Holiness 08/28/2016 We are living: “A Call to Holiness.” (NLT); “Living Before God Our Father” (NKJV); “Be Holy” (NIV) 1 Peter 1:13-16 We are told that we “must live” as “obedient children.” I want to encourage you, young folks, of a life that you can have. An Enoch life. Genesis 5:21-24 Enoch epitomized the passage in 1 Peter and so much so that God swept him up. 1 Peter 1:15-16 Have you ever heard the saying that we should take everything to the Lord in prayer before doing it? They we laugh it off like, “that’s nuts! Why would you take everything to God?” It demonstrates a lifestyle of “walking in close fellowship with God.” WHAT DO we know of holy? WHAT CAN we know of holy? If we don’t spend any time with Holy. 1 Peter 1:17-20 We need a healthy dose of reverence for the God who sent His one and only Son. Matthew 10:28; 1 Peter 1:21-23 If you are sitting here today and you do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you do not get to partake in this promise of salvation, but you will still be judged according to what we just read. God does not play favorites. It is the precious blood of Christ that cleans you and covers you. So when God looks at you, He sees the blood of His Son in your place. 1 Peter 1:24-25 We are told that we told that we are foreigners in this life. Here we are also told that we are like grass and flowers that wither and fade. Jesus called Himself the living water. We are to water our lives with Him as our source, daily. We are to grow and be beautiful plants of our Savior. We are to live and walk in close fellowship with God. We are to be holy, because He is holy!
1 Peter 1 The Promised Reward of Salvation 08/21/2016 Welcome: 1 Peter was believed to have been penned in the early 60s A.D. while Peter was in Rome. He died either 64 or 65 AD by being hung upside down on a cross. Christianity at that time up to this had been called a “religio licita” or “permitted religion” since it was so close to Judaism in its origins. Christians were tortured and put to death under Nero. So, naturally those in the church became scared of what was to lie in store for them. So Peter was not writing about some hypothetical persecution. He knew what the churches were dealing with 1st hand. In fact, he was a victim of the persecution that he wrote about. 1 Peter 1:1-12 Who were they? God’s choses people. What were they? Foreigners. Why would it be by God’s great mercy that we are born again? Isaiah 64:6; John 6:44 1 Peter 1:6; Hebrews 12:1-2 We have to embrace the suffering, the hardships, the lack, the fear, the confusion, the anger, the pain knowing that in the end, there is a greater reward than anything we could imagine! None of us are walking in uncharted territory when it comes to conflict or persecution. Jesus is our standard bearer. He has already suffered, even to the point of giving His life. So don’t give up! Be encouraged! Don’t become weary and give up! Hebrews 12:3-4 Matthew 6:1
A four-part series on the Kingdom of Heaven by Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT.
Kingdom of Heaven How Much Do You Value It? 08/14/2016
Welcome: We are in the 4th and final message in the series: “The Kingdom of Heaven.” “The Kingdom of Heaven, How Much Do You Value It?” Matthew 6:9-13 What is “Your kingdom”? Heaven. What do we want with God’s Kingdom? To come We are asking God to bring heaven down to earth. Where would God’s kingdom dwell? On earth but where? In the church. Colossians 1:13-14 Matthew 6:31-34; Mark 4:30-32 Let’s look at a couple of additional Scripture passages regarding the Kingdom of Heaven and how it applies to God’s church. Matthew 13:44; Matthew 6:45-46 “The Kingdom of Heaven, How Much Do You Value It?” Matthew 8:11-12 warns us “church folk” of taking church for granted. Matthew 8:11-12 Luke 9:60; Hebrews 10:23-25; Matthew 6:10 “The Kingdom of Heaven, How Much Do You Value It?”
A four-part series on the Kingdom of Heaven by Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT.
Kingdom of Heaven Who’s Gettin’ In? 08/07/2016
John 3:1-21 – Jesus and Nicodemus John 3:3-4 We’ll come back to this. Here we have an intellect trying to wrap his head around how one becomes born again and look at what his rationale is… ‘Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!” Why do we do this as adults? 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 This is confirmed in Jesus’ responses toward children. Matthew 18:1-4; Matthew 19:13-14 So you may be wondering how this relates to Nicodemus? Matthew 11:25 Turn back to John 3 Vs. 6 It is so simple a child can understand. They have the blind faith to trust what mommy or daddy or most grownups have to say. Nicodemus’ reply was… John 3:9 “How can this be?” (NIV) John 10-21; Eph. 2:8-9 We have to realize that once we become born again, once we receive the free (to us) gift of God our lives should be different. Matthew 7:13-14 We don’t get to take days off from being a Christian! 2 Peter 1:3-11 a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (NIV) God made it so simple yet sometimes so hard. When is the last time you entered the world of a child? When is the last time you wanted something so bad you did not care what others thought about you? God wants you to have that kind of abandon when it comes to believing in Him. Can we celebrate the fact that God has delivered us from our own path of death and destruction? Can we celebrate that we are heaven bound?
A four-part series on the Kingdom of Heaven by Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT.
Kingdom of Heaven Who’s Gettin’ In? 07/31/2016
Welcome: We are in the 2nd message of this 4 part series on the “Kingdom of Heaven.” Matthew 6:10 Let’s start with the things that God hates. Proverbs 6:16-19 Genesis 1:26 “We are the visible representation of an invisible God.” Why do we not like those attributes? Because God does not like those attributes! 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Galatians 5:19-21; Ephesians 5:3-7 How many of us saw bits of ourselves in any of these verses? That should scare us to the foot of the cross! “We are the visible representation of an invisible God.” What are people seeing from the church? Matthew 6:10; Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:57-62 “We are the visible representation of an invisible God.”
A four-part series on the Kingdom of Heaven by Pastor Chuck Keller of Cornerstone Church of Lolo, MT.
Your Kingdom Come On Earth as it is in Heaven 07/24/2016
“The Lord’s Prayer” Matthew 6:9-13 Who are we addressing? We are addressing a holy, righteous, sovereign, all knowing, all powerful, all wonderful God! What are we praying for? We are praying that God’s kingdom would come to earth. What is this “Kingdom of Heaven” or “Kingdom of God”? It’s heaven!!!! John 18:36 Jesus fully understood what He was telling us to pray for! So what does that kingdom look like? Romans 14:17; 1 Corinthians 4:20 Imagine the Fruit of the Spirit abounding in your life! Galatians 5:22-23 Can I suggest to you that the church should be a model of what the Kingdom of Heaven is here on earth? Ephesians 3:10-11 Are we modeling God’s Kingdom? Matthew 18:3-9 – The Parable of the Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven (Church) Are we taking care of God’s children? Matthew 18:21-35 – The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant Are we showing forgiveness in the measure that we have been forgiven? Matthew 20:1-16 – The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard We all get to spend eternity in heaven! PRAISE GOD!!! Matthew 22:1-14 – The Parable of the Wedding Banquet Are we filling God’s wedding hall with guests? The kingdom of heaven here on earth is the church experience. It is the church living out God’s intended purpose and fulfilling His will.