The GCF Podcast: Recent Episodes
Pastor Johnny Johnson
This is the podcast of Gadsden Christian Fellowship in Gadsden, AL. We hope that you will be encouraged, inspired and challenged to take your next step in your relationship with God.
Abraham made 2 major decisions that affected his future generations.
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Abraham birthed an Ishmael
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Abraham birthed an Isaac
The Domino Effect - A decision or action that causes a chain reaction that ends in a good (positive) result or a bad (negative) result.
Why were the Magi truly, really wise men?
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They searched diligently for King Jesus!
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They followed the light (star) to King Jesus!
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They rejoiced with exceedingly great MEGA joy when they found King Jesus!
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They fell down and worshipped King Jesus!
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They presented their best gifts to King Jesus!
The second most important thing about Christmas is family and relationships.
Joy Stealers:
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Unbelief
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Unfaithfulness
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Unforgiveness
How to avoid your joy being stolen:
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Be filled with faith.
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Be filled with the Holy Spirit
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Be filled with exceedingly great mega joy!
True Joy is to know Jesus and His love, goodness, and favor.
How we can experience the joy of Jesus this year:
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Receive the invitation.
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Join the Celebration
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Experience the transformation
In order to find true freedom and experience God’s peace, provision, and protection, we must learn to live Under Cover, ultimately submitting to God’s DIRECT authority (His Word and His ways), and God’s DELEGATED authority (those whom He placed over us in leadership).
One cannot just choose to be a pastor or in leadership, he or she must be called!
Our response to Church leaders and those they appoint:
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Obey
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Submit
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Honor
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Show great respect.
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Show wholehearted love
Four Divisions of Delegated Authority:
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Civil: Presidents, government officials, law enforcement
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Family: Parents, grandparents, legal guardians
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Social: Bosses, teachers, coaches
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Church: Overseers, pastors, elders, department head
Satan’s primary goal is to convince you that something is good, when it is actually bad for you.
Truth: Submitting to divine authority will provide protection, provision, and peace.
It's not about the person, it's about the position.
If you really know God, you will recognize authority. Someone who doesn’t recognize, respect, or submit to authority, simply does not know God.
Four Divisions of Delegated Authority:
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Civil: Presidents, government officials, law enforcement
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Family: Parents, grandparents, legal guardians
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Social: Bosses, teachers, coaches
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Church: Oversees, pastors, elders, department heads
When you resist delegated authority, you resist God Himself.
All authority is of God, but not all authority is godly!
We must remember these things:
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All authority is of God, but not all authority is Godly.
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God is in control, not us. His ways, not ours. His plan, not ours.
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Obedience is not unconditional, but having a submissive attitude is.
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How you respond to leadership determines your future.
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If you're in a position of subordination to a bad leader, unfair boss, or an ungodly supervisor, God wasn't surprised and wants to grow you. He may even want to use you to reach your leader.
What to do when under bad leadership:
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Pray. Pray that God will show you the error of your ways. Pray for your leader.
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Submit and obey.
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Repent. Repent for any negative things you have said behind your boss's back. Repent for any gossip or slander that you have caused or participated in.
Living under cover provides freedom!
Three promises of being under cover (living in God's shelter):
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Peace
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Protection
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Provision
Consequences for NOT being under authority: Instead of...
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Peace: Unrest, fear, anxiety
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Protection: Vulnerable
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Provision: Lack (in all realms of life)
There is bondage in disobedience, but there is freedom in submission.
How to live under cover:
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Submit to God's direct authority: HIs Word and His Way
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Submit to God' delegated authority.
We are all living under the influence of something. So many of us are walking through life like a zombie being "tossed to and fro..." (Ephesians 4:14). But what if we flipped the script? What if WE became the influencers? you may not be able to jump on social media and build a following of millions of people and make millions of dollars. You may not have a platform that allows you to reach thousands of people, but you do have influence. Every single one of us has a level of influence. How can we use our influence to spread the Gospel?
We must first understand how we are currently being influenced.
Three things that influence us:
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Culture
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Others
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Sin
Three areas where we have influence:
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Family: Those closest to us and with whom we have the most influence.
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Social Circle: Those outside of our family, but with whom we have relational equity.
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Public Arena: Those who we interact with incrementally in the public setting.
Before we can have influence over others, we MUST reposition our lives to live totally 100% under the influence of Jesus.
Is what's happening right now in Israel part of the "signs of the end times?" What does the Bible say about our final moments? How should we as believers and followers of Christ respond to what is happening around us? Pastor Johnny does a masterful job of answering all these questions and more in this message, "God's End Time Signs."
Notes:
"God loves both Jewish People and Muslim People."
Four Types of responses from people during times like these:
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Skeptical
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Scoffers
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Scared
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Shouters
Are we spiritually awake enough to discern the times?
How should we respond? What should we do?
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Don't be deceived
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Don't be fearful
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Don't be asleep
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BE READY!
"Thankfulness is measured by the number of our words, but gratitude is measured by the number of our actions."
Three Altars:
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Altar of Gratitude
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Altar of Praise
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Altar of worship
Altar = Any place where we meet with God.
Three types of Altars:
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Personal
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Corporate
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Family
Enemies of the Altar:
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Busyness
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Laziness
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Pride
We all have some level of expectation. What are you expecting?
Missions:
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Missions is about the glory of God! It's about worship!
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Missions is about the inheritance of God.
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Missions is about the kingdom of God.
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The kingdom of God is the culture of Heaven brought to Earth.
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Kingdom Anticipation
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What are you expecting?
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Kingdom Anointing
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The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you!
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Kingdom Advancement
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Be witnesses! A witness is someone who tells what they have seen and heard.
We are all called to live on mission and make a difference in our Jerusalem.
Three things that happen we we live on mission:
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We REALIZE our purpose. He RELEASES our calling.
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We REPRESENT our creator. He RESIDES in us.
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We REACH the lost. He RECLAIMS His children.
Living on mission means living every day of your life as if you were on a mission from God!
Living on mission is a lifestyle of fulfilling the great commission.
The Great Commission is the church's mission to proclaim the good news of Jesus and make disciples locally and globally teaching them exactly what Jesus taught.
How to live a life on mission:
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Have a heart for Jesus
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Have a heart for people
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Be a goer and a sender
Three things from our story:
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We fell asleep.
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Matthew 24:42
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1 Thes. 5:6
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We were alone.
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1 Cor. 10:24
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We saw a beacon.
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Psalm 27:1
"What comes into your mind when you think of God is the most important thing about you!" - A.W. Tozer
If you have a flawed view of the Father, you will have a flawed view of life.
Our good, good Father is not a reflection of your dad, but the perfection of your dad.
Things to remember about our good, good Father:
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He loves us.
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We are no longer slaves to the past.
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We are our good, good Father's children.
Why God is a Good, Good Father:
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He is a GIVER
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God is a good, good Father because He loves to give good gifts to His children.
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James 1:16-18
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Psalms 68:5
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John 3:16
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He is full of LOVE and COMPASSION
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God is a good, good Father because He gives us unconditional love and compassion.
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Psalms 103:13
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He RESTORES what the enemy steals from us
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God is a good, good Father because He restores back to us everything the Devil has stolen from us!
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Ephesians 2:18
Our best friend, the Holy Spirit, always gives the best gifts!
Awesome facts about the Holy Spirit:
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The Prophetic PROMISE of the Holy Spirit
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Joel 2:28-29
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Acts 1:4-5
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Acts 2:1-8
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Tongues - (Greek: Glossa) = "The supernatural gift of speaking in another language without it having
been learned."
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Acts 2:32-33
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Acts 2:37-41
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The Prophetic PURPOSE of the Holy Spirit
To give ordinary everyday believers the power to live for Jesus every day!
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Power to WITNESS
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Acts 1:8
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Power to PRAY
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Acts 1:13-14
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Romans 8:26-27
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The Supernatural Prophetic GIFTS of the Holy Spirit
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1 Cor. 12:7-11
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Three Categories of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit
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REVELATION GIFTS:
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Word of Wisdom
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Word of Knowledge
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Discernment of Spirits
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VOCAL GIFTS
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Prophecy
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Tongues (Languages)
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Interpretation of Tongues (Languages)
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Demonstration Gifts
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Faith
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Gifts of Healing
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Working of Miracles
Proverbs 18:24 24 One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
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The Holy Spirit gives me peace in times of heartache.
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The Holy Spirit gives me strength to lead in times of distress.
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The Holy Spirit gives me boldness to share Jesus with others.
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The Holy Spirit convicts and corrects me when need be.
"The proof that the Holy Spirit is in you is if He's working through you."
The Holy Spirit...
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...wants to be our best friend.
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...wants to be our helper.
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...wants to be our comforter.
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...wants to empower and equip us.
The Holy Spirit's job is to convict.
God's job is to Judge.
My job is to love.
"In order to need a miracle, there has to be a crisis."
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We are free from the law: Don't be entangled again in slavery.
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We are free in His Spirit: Walk by the Spirit.
"Jesus' obedience to the Father is a model for our obedience to Him."
Before the PROMISE could be fulfilled, Jesus had to go through a PROCESS.
Three times that Jesus walked in obedience:
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In the Temple (His preparation):
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Luke 2:41-52
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God is our ultimate authority. We are obedient to Him FIRST, then our earthly
authority
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In the Jordan (His baptism):
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Matt. 3:13-17
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Jesus' baptism signified...
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one more step of obedience
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God' public expression of approval of Jesus
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the beginning of His earthly ministry.
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In the Garden (His surrender):
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Matt. 26:36-46
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Jesus wanted His Father to do something different, but ultimately submitted to Him.
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Jesus surrendered to God and man that day.
How do we find freedom? Trust and obey!
How do we find fulfillment? Trust and obey!
How do we find forgiveness? Trust and obey!
"Jesus must be Lord OF all, or He's not Lord AT all!"
Jesus must be Lord of our thoughts, words, and actions.
Is Jesus your Lord, or is He just your savior? The truth is that He should be both.
"We celebrate Jesus not because He needs us, but because He wants us!" Just as God chose John the Baptist to prepare the way for the coming Messiah, He has chosen us to prepare the way for His return. When we accept Christ as our personal Savior, we become part of the family and Kingdom of God. At that moment, everything changes.
Why do we prepare the way?
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It's our purpose.
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They're more likely to say "yes."
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It could change their life forever.
"If you want to be blessed, you must invest!"
The smart way to a happy blessed family:
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Choose to invest in your family.
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Choose to obey the Lord.
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Choose to love the Lord, His Word, and church with all our heart.
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Choose to commit ourselves to teaching and training our children diligently.
"It's stupid to live by the flesh, but it's wise to live by the Holy Spirit."
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We always pay stupid tax when we birth something out of the flesh.
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It's smart to be led by the Holy Spirit.
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To live in freedom, we must crucify the flesh.
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The flesh brings death, but the Spirit brings life.
When we run from God, we are running from true life and freedom! We can learn a lot from Jonah. Jonah ran from God, but in the end he still ended up doing what God wanted him to do. Don't be stupid like Jonah. Don't run from God!
As husbands/fathers, wives/mothers, and even children, we have a choice. We must "choose this day who we will serve." Join us as we unpack how God's design for family impacts the world and spreads the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
We must... 1. Counter the counter culture. 2. Cancel the cancel culture. 3. Love those of the culture.
When we enter into a relationship with Christ, our bodies and our minds are to be transformed to be the temple of the Holy Spirit.
Discover what God's word says about marriage and how we can grow His kingdom through our REALationships!
To many people, Christmas is a lot of things. Join us as we unpack what Christmas really is all about and why we celebrate it.
How do we overcome what keeps us down in this world? Pastor Leon shares how we must rise up and live ascended and elevated.
In this message, Pastor Randy shares that, as followers of Christ, we are to be beacons of hope...especially during this time.