Bible Messages Podcast: Recent Episodes
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HIGH COTTON Sometimes life is good. It's like a summertime when the living is easy. Fish are jumping and the cotton is high. Your daddy's rich and your momma's good looking. There's certainly no reason to cry when life is like that. And it's also not a time when your faith is tested. Instead, God tests our faith during the difficult times when the living is hard. Fish aren't jumping and the cotton is burned. And you have no idea what’s going on with your daddy and momma. That's when God tests our faith.
THE BIG DIFFERENCE One day, God's wrath against sinful humanity will be poured out. Will you be sheltered? That Old Testament "PERHAPS you will find shelter" has been transformed into the New Testament CERTAINTY that there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
IN PLAIN SIGHT If this was a court of law and you claimed to be innocent of hearing about God, we could call to the witness stand two universal witnesses to testify, “I told you about God.” Who are these two witnesses? Creation and Conscience.
WRONG WAY DRIVER The spiritual impact of a Bible message isn’t based on the content of the message; it depends on how the Word is HEARD and RECEIVED. Jesus repeated this phrase many times, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” In this powerful parable Jesus shows us there’s a wrong way and a right way to receive God’s Word.
There's something about families. Our families can be the source of the greatest joy and deepest heartaches. There's more emotion attached to our families than any other unit in society. And Jesus had some revolutionary things to say about family in this passage.
Some modern textbooks are attempting to rewrite our history and sanitize any reference to the faith of our founding Fathers. But anyone who studies the original documents of our nation will see the faith of these men and women shining through at every point.
So, what is the unforgivable sin? Let me tell you what it is NOT. It is not murder. Moses was a murderer and he’ll be in heaven. The unforgivable sin is not adultery. King David committed adultery and God forgave him. It’s not divorce. The woman at the well had multiple divorces and she was forgiven. It is not suicide. Suicide is self-murder and it is no different from homicide—both are forgivable. Once you are a Christian, you don’t have to confess every single sin you commit in order to go to heaven. We confess our sins to stay in fellowship with God, but when you surrender your life to Christ, every past sin you’ve committed and every future sin you will ever commit is covered by the blood of Jesus Christ.
CHOSEN The Bible says Jesus called His disciples “that they might be with Him.” Jesus wanted to hang out with these guys so He could pour His life into them. The primary responsibility of a disciple is NOT to go out and work for Jesus; it is to get alone with Jesus and spend time with Him. The way we do that today is by spending time in personal prayer and Bible study.
Some people think all anger is sinful, and they have a hard time justifying that Jesus got angry, because Jesus was supposed to be sinless. He was. The Bible talks about different kinds of anger. Some anger is harmful and destructive. But there is a kind of anger that is holy and just.
THE 1:6 MODEL The Sabbath is not a law we have to obey, but the idea of a healthy rhythm of work and rest is a gift from God we should not refuse. The Fourth Commandment has two simple parts. God says, "Six days you shall work. On the seventh day you should rest."
JESUS THE RADICAL The religious whiners of Jesus' day didn’t like His teaching because it was so revolutionary. It was new. He said things they never heard before. His new teaching shocked and offended them. The religious leaders could not handle this new wine Jesus was offering. They were like the inflexible old wineskins. Their attitudes were "If it is new, it can't be true!" Every time Jesus said or did something new you could almost hear the sound of straining and stretching until "pop!"—so they killed the messenger instead of accepting the message.
TREATMENT REGIMEN Becoming a Christian can be summarized into three words: Admit, submit, and commit. Jesus is a doctor for those of us who are suffering from the fatal sickness of sin. But before you’ll ever go to the doctor, you've got to admit that you have a problem. You must admit you are sinner. Then you have to submit to the doctor's care. You must submit your wounded heart to the Healer. Then you've got commit yourself to the doctor’s plan. You need to take the medicine every day; or follow the treatment regimen every day. You've got to be committed to the cure. In the same way, you've got to commit to follow Jesus every day.
BUILDING SKYLIGHTS IN EVERY HOME Part of our job as followers of Jesus is to build skylights to bring light to dark places. I think the main focus of this miracle should be on those four unnamed friends who brought their paralyzed buddy to Jesus. These four guys formed the Faith Skylight Company by believing if they could somehow get their friend to Jesus that Jesus could make a difference in his life. I think God wants everyone of us to be employed in the Faith Skylight Company.
THE LEPROSY OF SIN Our sin sickness operates in the same way leprosy does. Although we are born with a tendency to sin, our first sins are usually what we would call minor. However, unless we allow Jesus to fix our sin problem early in life, sin grows and spreads like a metastasis until it consumes us. The growth of sin in a person’s life can sometimes happen so slowly that they don’t even notice it.
Mary Magdalene was one of the eyewitnesses of the resurrection. She was the last one at the cross and the first one at the tomb. She had to answer three Easter questions that day, and these are the same three questions that each of us must answer today.
So who killed Jesus? You might say the Jewish leaders did; the Roman government did; I did; and God did. But when it comes to CSI, the Cross Scene Investigation, we've got to simply close the case. Because when it comes down to it, when you ask, "Who Killed Jesus?" It's a moot point, because He isn't dead! He's alive today. You can't have a murder trial if the supposed murder victim is alive.
I AM SPARTACUS BARABBAS The Bible says Barabbas was part of the insurrection movement against the Romans and had committed murder in the process. There was a Roman cross waiting for him. But in the last moment, he suddenly found himself free, and Jesus was sentenced to die on the cross that had been prepared for him. To be honest, I've never liked Barabbas. I've always been a little angry about this guy. He was a murderer and he got off Scot-free. I want the crowd to yell, "Release Jesus! Crucify Barabbas!" But instead they yell, "Release Barabbas! Crucify Jesus!" Barabbas, a scoundrel, a sinner, a murderer, was declared innocent and Jesus took his place on a cross meant for him. When I look inside myself I realize the reason I don't really like Barabbas is because I AM Barabbas. We're in the same sandals. You are Barabbas, too. We're the guilty ones. We're the scoundrels, but we get to go free and Jesus died in our place.
I've heard of the Garden of Gethsemane most of my life, but it was only a few years ago I learned the meaning of Gethsemane. Gethsemane is a parable of what Jesus endured. The olive tree is called the tree of life because it provides oil for light, medicine, food, and soap. To harvest olives, cloths were spread under the branches, and then the harvesters took heavy sticks and beat the branches to make the olives fall onto the cloths. That reminds me that Jesus was beaten with wooden sticks by both the Jewish guard and the Roman soldiers.
THE TRAGEDY OF JUDAS When Jesus announced that one of the twelve disciples would betray him, the disciples didn't suspect Judas. He was the treasurer of the group, the one you trust the most. Each one honestly wondered if they would betray Jesus. In Luke's account, Peter was the only who spoke and bragged that he would die with Jesus, but he would never leave him. And we know how that boast turned out, cock-a-doodle-do. And that night, one disciple betrayed Jesus and another disciple denied Jesus three times. But before the night was over, all the other disciples ran away into the night leaving Jesus alone.
Jesus led a busy life. He was always in action. And yet, though He was busy redeeming the world, Jesus saw the value of setting aside a time to be alone with His Father in prayer. There are seventeen different accounts of Jesus praying in the four gospels. And he often sought solitude for His prayers.
You can't go fishing unless you go out to where the fish are found. People without Christ aren't knocking down the doors of our church to get in. We have to go out after them. That's why the Great Commission of Jesus begins with the word, "GO."
Here's the key to the strategy against Satan: As God, Jesus could have destroyed Satan, but, as a man, He defeated him by quoting scripture. Jesus chose to use the same weapon we have available against Satan, the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
Remember, the word "baptize" means "to immerse." There is a baptism that is more important than baptism in water. It is baptism in or with the Holy Spirit. Water baptism in an outward act that symbolizes the cleansing of your sins but it only touches your body. Spirit baptism is an inner act that literally purifies your soul and spirit; you become Holy because the Spirit of God is Holy. That's why He is called the Holy Spirit.
When God looks down on East Texas He sees two kinds of people. It's not black and white. It's not rich or poor. It's not Republican or Democrats. He sees lost people and saved people. He sees people on the way to heaven and people on the way to hell. The words "lost" and "hell" are no longer politically correct. We want to say people are "unchurched" or "unsaved" or "redemptionally challenged." But the Bible says they’re lost.
Because there is so much crime and hatred in our world, people have become cynical and skeptical. We are so afraid of being conned or scammed we don't trust any stranger anymore. That is a real handicap when we are trying to share the love of Christ with people. They think we have an ulterior motive. Before you can give people the Word of God, you must show them the Love of God to soften or open their hearts. Before you target their mind, target their heart.
We're all familiar with weather warning systems. When a hurricane or tornado appears to be approaching a community, the National Weather Service will issue a warning for residents to evacuate or to take cover. Early warning systems save lives. God has an early warning system as well. Sometimes a believer gets involved in dangerous behavior or starts down a spiritually unhealthy pathway. At that point God activates His early warning system. Guess who that is? According to the Bible we are to be the early warning system to help a Christian veering off track from God’s will.
Laziness is contagious. Part of human nature is that if you do nothing, you'll always drift in the wrong direction. You have to actively drive in the right direction. I call this phenomenon the gravity of depravity. If you find a friend chilling out on the sofa eating Cheetos and drinking a Coke, you might have the thought that you need to pull them up to their feet and go work out. But if they decide to pull you down to their level it's a lot easier for them—they have gravity working with them—that's the gravity of depravity. That's why you soon find yourself chilling on the sofa with orange lips.
Through the years I've had people say that they just don't have faith. But people exercise faith every day. When you sit down and eat a meal you didn't prepare, you're trusting that the cook didn't put poison in it. When you get on a plane, you're trusting the aircraft manufacturer and the skill of the pilot. Every time you send an email, you trust it will be delivered. When you sit in a chair, you trust it to hold you up. That's what it means to believe in Jesus. It doesn't mean just believing the facts about Jesus. You can give mental affirmation to the fact that there was a historical character named Jesus who was born in Bethlehem and was crucified in Jerusalem. But you must be willing to trust him just as you trust a chair that you sit.
Some people pray in generalities. They may say, "I'm praying for you." Or, "God bless my family." Some people pray so generally that they never know if God answers their prayer. But there is a kind of intercessory prayer that employs laser-guided prayer requests. It sends God coordinates for very specific requests. In this passage Paul designates four laser targets for our prayers.
You've heard the expression, "Don't just STAND there, DO something." But we can turn that around when it comes to the Christian life. "Don't just DO something; STAND there." Because the Christian life doesn't start with action, it starts with conviction and belief—standing on truth. That truth always leads to action, but first we must stand firm on what we believe. As Martin Luther said when he was charged as a heretic by the Catholic Church, "Here we stand. We do no other. God help us." Someone said if you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything.
The most powerful weapon in the universe is the Word of God. Paul said the breath of Jesus will defeat the Antichrist. Now, maybe you've knocked people over with your breath after you've eaten garlic and onions, but Paul is referring to the spoken Word of Jesus. The Antichrist might have a massive armament of nuclear and biological weapons, but they will be useless against the Word that Jesus speaks.
We live in a wicked world today. But can you imagine how wicked this world would be if suddenly there were no churches? There is moral corruption everywhere, but we're the salt of the earth. Salt was used to preserve fish and to slow down decay. Our presence in the world today is slowing down the process of moral decay. There is spiritual darkness everywhere, but we're the light of the world. Imagine the chaos and wickedness when the light is turned off.
So what does God want with us? He wants to make us worthy of His calling. He wants to empower us to bear His fruit. He wants to glorify the name of Jesus in our lives. Many people believe that this life is all there is, so their goal is to live it up, because they think they'll only have about 70 to 80 years to stuff in as much fun as possible. But this life isn't all there is.
Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels. And when each of us is born, we inherit a little bit of the devil in each of us. It's called sin. We are all children of the devil until we are born again and become a child of God. We have a choice. The wages of sin is death—eternal separation from God. But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Three of the most valuable Christian virtues are faith, hope, and love. Faith reaches upward to God in response to His grace; Love reaches outward to others in response to God’s grace; Hope reaches forward into the future to trust God regardless of the circumstances. Perseverance is another word for spiritual stamina. Stamina is the ability to keep on going even when you’re tired.
We're all in the process of being changed. None of us are there yet. That's why we should be patient with each other. But when God looks at you and me, He sees not what we are now, but what we will be when He's finished with us. That's the power of an artist. They can look at an empty canvas and see a picture. An architect can look at a piece of property and see a building.
If you are on fire for Jesus, then you'll be joyful, prayerful, and thankful. You'll honor God's Word, test everything, and hold on to good, and reject wrong. It's a sad thing for a Christian to lose his fire for God.
Buddhism won't get you to heaven. There isn't even any doctrine of heaven in Buddhism. Nirvana is reaching a state of blissful nothingness, whatever that means. Buddha couldn't even explain it. With that introduction, I want to expose you to a much better eightfold path given in the Bible. This path won't take you heaven. Jesus is the only way, or path, to heaven. He's the one-way path to heaven. But once you're on that path, this eightfold path of attitudes and actions will lead to a blessed life.
Paul concludes his section on the Second Coming by telling the Thessalonians to encourage one another and build each other up. Then he tells them HOW to build each other up. Seven guidelines for healthy relationships.
We've heard a lot lately about the "stand your ground" law. The Bible isn't talking about a legal term; it's talking standing firm spiritually. Notice Paul says there is going to be a day of evil that will come. I was reading this passage not long ago and the Lord impressed on my heart that every one of us are going to have a day that will be the worst day of our lives. It will be THE day of evil for you. Some people have already had the worst day they'll ever live. Did you stand firm? For others, that day hasn't come yet. So stay dress up in God's armor so you can stand your ground when your world falls apart.
Imagine you were leaving for a trip and you posted on your Facebook page that you're going to be gone for two weeks on vacation and your alarm system is broken, and nobody is staying in your home. And then you post, "I hope nobody takes the $50,000 cash I have hidden in my freezer." Now, if you return home, you shouldn't be surprised if that money was gone. Jesus is coming suddenly, and without warning. He's coming like a thief in the night. But we have been warned in scripture, so we should not be surprised.
Many people are confused about the second coming of Christ, because there are passages that speak of Jesus coming as a thief in the night, suddenly and secretively. Then there are other verses that speak of Jesus coming in glory and every eye will see him. So which one is it? Yes. It's both. When Jesus comes secretively, that's the rapture—and He only comes in the clouds and we are caught up to be with Him. But seven years later Jesus will return in glory leading a heavenly army to defeat the Antichrist at Jerusalem. Those of us who have been raised from the dead or raptured will return with Jesus as part of His army. But don't worry; you won't need to fight. It will be the world's shortest battle.
If you die in the Lord, the moment you die on planet earth, the angels will escort your soul and spirit to be with the Lord. Your loved ones who died in Christ are already there, and you'll see them and you'll know them. But for those who don't have a relationship with Jesus, death is a scary prospect.
We sometimes make the mistake of thinking our government is the highest authority. We need to be reminded that our rights do not come from our government. They come from God.
Jesus has already walked through the valley of the shadow of death. And he emerged on the other side alive forevermore. So even though death may seem like a dark place, and a mysterious place, it is a safe place because Jesus has already been there. Like secret service agents, He has swept it clean from anything scary or harmful.
Is your ladder of success leaning against the wrong wall? A selfish ambition is striving to do what YOU want to do and can be unfulfilling. A holy ambition is striving to do what GOD wants you to do. If you strive to BE the person God wants you to be, then you'll be doing the things He wants you to do. A holy ambition doesn't mean you grovel in the ashes of obscurity. It means you are productive for God.
"Why should I be sexually pure?" Because it is essential for you to walk in fellowship with a holy and pure God. Sex is like a powerful river. It's a beautiful thing, when it is kept within the boundaries of marriage. But when it goes beyond God's barriers, the result is always disaster.
Encouragement is like a boomerang; it always comes back. So find someone who needs encouragement and let it fly. And then get ready to catch it, because it will come back to you. If you want to BE encouraged, then you must BE an encourager.
Satan is real. And if you aren’t a believer, his #1 strategy for you is to keep you from coming to faith in Christ today. If you’re listening to me right now and you aren’t yet a Christian, don’t be surprised if your mind is being filled with all kinds of weird thoughts and distractions. The devil is like LeBron James defending a shooter to prevent him from scoring. The devil tries to prevent you from hearing and responding to the gospel.
Open your newspapers, and what do you read? Violence, wickedness, and cover-ups. The problem in America isn't the lack of gun control; it's the problem of sin.
The church isn't a club; it isn't an institution; it isn't an organization; it's a family. Everybody needs a family. Whether you're young, old, single or married, you need a family. Loneliness is the reason so many people are desperate.
According to the world's standard, Paul was a failure. He was unpopular. There was usually a mob after him. He spent more time in jail than he did in hotels. He was shipwrecked, beaten, and stoned. According to Ignatius, when Nero was Emperor, Paul was locked in the Mamartine prison in Rome. He was taken from the prison and beheaded, which was a benefit afforded him as a Roman citizen. Beheading was quick death, unlike crucifixion. The moment his head was severed from his body, he was absent from the body and present with the Lord. A failure? Think again. Today we name our sons Paul and our dogs Nero. Why? Because God can turn human failure into heavenly favor.
Faith is one step with two consequences. When a person turns to God, they are turning from their sinful past. Take your hand and place it front of your face with the palm facing you. Now, turn your hand around so the palm is facing away from you. The backside of your hand is now facing you, and the palm is facing away. That isn’t two separate actions; it was only one. Even so, you cannot turn to Christ without turning away from your sin. That turning is repentance.
If someone followed you around for four months, would the words you speak and the deeds you perform make them want to convert to Christ?
Are you tempted to give up and quit? Maybe God has given you a dream or a vision and it hasn't happened yet. You want to give up—but don't. Hang in there. Maybe you've been praying for something to happen for a long time and God hasn't answered your prayer—don't give up. Keep on praying. Keep on trusting. You may be in a bad situation, and you don't know how you're going to make it. Hang in there and hang on. Don't give up!
Jesus is preparing a place for us. But don't imagine a private room with walls and a door you can lock, like a hotel. There will be no need for locks in Heaven. Think about sharing a big house with all the other Heavenly Family members—more like a bed and breakfast.
Get ready for the most amazing new heaven and new earth, more beautiful and bountiful than you can ever imagine. That's where we'll be living for eternity. And once you understand the things we'll be doing in Heaven, there's no way it can be boring. Five reasons why Heaven can't be boring.
What will we be like for eternity? Mentally, you'll have a renewed mind, the mind of Christ. We all have questions now with no answers. Emotionally, you'll have a joyful heart. Physically, you'll have a body that will last for eternity. There will be no more pain, no more suffering, no more death. Where will you be five nanoseconds after you die? Some people might answer, "I don't care." But you WILL care five seconds after you die.
Imagine you are planning an expensive two-week vacation to Costa Rica. The easiest thing to do is use a travel agent and let them plan the trip for you. But most of us want to do some of our own research online. So you go online to learn everything you can about Costa Rica. But when you Google Costa Rica there are only three words on the website. These words are, "Beautiful, Wonderful, Paradise." You wouldn't be satisfied. You'd want to know more about the place. You want to know the history, the climate, the language, the currency, the places to eat and the places to stay. Those are some of the details of heaven we're going to be examining in this series.
God has a simple generosity cycle: Give and it will be given to you. God blesses you so you can pass the blessing on to others. When you give it away, He gives you more blessings.
There's more to the Christian life than just believing. It's important for Christians to belong. The best way to build Christian relationships is to be a part of small group where someone will know your name and where you can enjoy fellowship and ministry.
Age has nothing to do with emotional maturity. Perhaps you've heard the saying, "Everyone grows old, but not everyone grows up." The same is true spiritually. How long you have been a Christian may not be a reflection of your spiritual maturity. The five different stages of spiritual growth and how any Christian can grow toward maturity.
An explanation of what spiritual gifts are, how to discover which ones you have and how to implement them. (audio only)
A Christian once asked me, "Why should I go to church?" I thought for a moment and said, "You don’t go to church; you ARE the church." Church is not a place; it's what exists when believers gather together. A fully devoted follower of Jesus consistently gathers together with other believers.
The last word in the book of Malachi is "curse." What a great one-word summary of the Old Testament. Genesis begins in paradise, but because of sin, humanity is under a curse. And the entire story of the Bible is how God sent His only Son to remove the curse of sin.
Throughout this series I've said that unless there is a spiritual awakening, America will face the judgment of God. In some ways, we are already experiencing His judgment in these very days. He doesn't have to send some supernatural visitation from heaven to judge us. We are simply reaping the bitter fruit of six decades of pushing God off the public square in America.
In some ways the Jews who returned to Jerusalem were like Americans. They were more concerned about their own comfort than the ministry of God. They built beautiful houses for themselves while the Temple only had a foundation. Their love for possessions had turned their hearts from God.
When your world is falling apart and a foreign country is threatening to conquer your country, it would be easy to live by fear. But Habakkuk shows us that there is another way; we can live by faith. His prophecy begins with an "Oh, no! Things are awful!" And he ends with "Oh, yeah! God is in control!"
Nahum's short but powerful prophecy is one of the most under-appreciated books in the Bible. But there's nothing ho-hum about Nahum. Like a talented artist, Nahum skillfully paints a picture of the character and nature of God.
God has blessed America, because, like Israel, we were established with a deep sense of honor and reverence for God. But also like Israel, we have turned away from God. The prophet Zephaniah tells us what happens to nations that forsake God. In this short but powerful prophecy, he first describes the judgment of God; then he describes the hope that people find when they seek God.
People have asked me what I thought about the election this past week, so here goes: I pledge to pray for President Obama and respect the office of President, because God's word is clear that we should pray for those in authority over us. However, I believe America missed a good chance to put our nation back on track to God and to Biblical morality. But instead of stemming the flow of blood from the abortion clinics, instead of protecting the sanctity of marriage, we have thumbed our nose at God. As we stand at both a fiscal cliff and a moral cliff, America has voted. We’re moving forward. And when you're on a cliff, forward is the only direction you should avoid.
Hosea's marriage to Gomer was a living parable of God's relationship with Israel and with any nation that wanders from Him. Hosea is preaching came from his own personal experience of love, pain, and redemption. He told the Israelites that, like an unfaithful wife, they were guilty of spiritual adultery. Hosea could say with passion and honesty, "I know how God feels, because I felt the same way. You have broken the heart of God who loves you!"
As I read the prophecy of Amos, I can't help but notice the similarities between ancient Israel and modern America. It was a time of great prosperity for Israel, but it was also a time of great immorality. But in the midst of it all, they just didn't really care. They were complacent. Do you care about the direction of our nation? Are you alarmed that our nation's moral foundation has been cracking for the past few decades? The sad truth is many Christians don't even care enough to vote. You should let your voice and your vote be heard.
The spark of revival begins in Nineveh after Jonah gives a warning from the Lord. Guest speaker Lanny Bridges.
It is true that locusts of all kinds come and eat up things valuable to us. They may be literal insect locusts, or they may be the financial or emotional locusts that destroy our savings or our sanity. They may be the judicial or legislative locusts that strip away the leaves from the tree our founders planted. But whatever kind of locust you've faced in the past. God gives an amazing promise in Joel. He says, "I will restore to you the years the locusts have eaten." (Joel 2:25).
The main truth we can glean from both the Major and Minor Prophets is that God not only deals with individuals, He also deals with nations. Edom is a long-forgotten nation, but Israel is in existence today and is in the news almost daily. As we examine the message of Obadiah, let’s consider God’s Word to America, and then God’s Word to me.
In Roman times, a slave was often branded with a hot iron identifying the owner. Paul repeatedly referred to himself as a bond slave of Jesus Christ. So he considered the scars in his body as a mark of ownership. He belonged to Jesus Christ.
When we're crucified with Christ, we'll be like that thief. He longer cared about what people thought about him. They could have yelled that he was ugly and stupid, but it didn't bother him, because he was crucified with Christ. He didn't fear arousing the wrath of the Romans for talking to Jesus, because he was crucified with Christ.
You and I are involved in the great cause in the history of the world: Spreading the kingdom of God in the earth. Don't get distracted! Don't quit! Don't ever give up! Don't ever quit praying! Even when you face of difficulty; don't quit because you’re involved in a great cause.
The law of the harvest is both a natural law and a spiritual law. It's true in agriculture that you pick what you plant. But it's also a great spiritual truth that you reap what you sow. A look at two different angles from this irrefutable law of the harvest.
There are some burdens we need to share, and some we need to bear alone. But we all have one burden in common. It's the heaviest burden that we'll ever carry: It's the burden of GUILT we bear because we are sinners. That burden is too heavy for me to bear alone. It's too heavy for us to share it together. There's only One who can carry that burden, and He has already carried it to the cross.
If you know of a fellow believer who has dropped out because of sin and shame, will you go to them? The goal of your confrontation isn't to condemn them or demean them. Your goal is to help them deal with their sin, repent, and come clean before the Lord.
The biggest mistake you can make about the Fruit of the Spirit is to think you can manufacture love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Fruit can't be manufactured. You'll never see a fruit factory. You might see a factory that cans or processes fruit, but you'll never see one manufacturing fruit. There are factories that make cars, clothes, and computers, but not fruit. Fruit comes naturally when there is a proper mix of water, sun, and soil nutrients. You can't manufacture Spiritual Fruit either. It comes supernaturally when there is a proper mix of the Life of the Son, the power of the Holy Spirit, and your willingness.
The biggest mistake you can make about the Fruit of the Spirit is to think you can manufacture love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Fruit can't be manufactured. You'll never see a fruit factory. You might see a factory that cans or processes fruit, but you'll never see one manufacturing fruit. There are factories that make cars, clothes, and computers, but not fruit. Fruit comes naturally when there is a proper mix of water, sun, and soil nutrients. You can't manufacture Spiritual Fruit either. It comes supernaturally when there is a proper mix of the Life of the Son, the power of the Holy Spirit, and your willingness.
Is your life like a car and Jesus is a passenger? Jesus was in my life, but I had the steering wheel. I'd sometimes see a detour and flip on the blinker and Jesus would say, "Don't go down that road!" I'd say, "Who's driving? Me or you?" Then I'd always end up lost and stuck in the mud of my poor decisions. I'd say, "Jesus please give me directions to get back on the main road." My life was a continual series of bad detours. But on that night I truly surrendered to Jesus as Lord, I said, "Jesus, let's swap places. I want You to have the steering wheel." At that moment I became the passenger and He became the driver. Through the years I've seen plenty of flashing billboards directing me to go down the wrong road, and I've said, "Hey, what about that? Let's try that road!" And Jesus simply says in reply, "Who's driving? Me or You?
Is your life like a car and Jesus is a passenger? Jesus was in my life, but I had the steering wheel. I'd sometimes see a detour and flip on the blinker and Jesus would say, "Don't go down that road!" I'd say, "Who's driving? Me or you?" Then I'd always end up lost and stuck in the mud of my poor decisions. I'd say, "Jesus please give me directions to get back on the main road." My life was a continual series of bad detours. But on that night I truly surrendered to Jesus as Lord, I said, "Jesus, let's swap places. I want You to have the steering wheel." At that moment I became the passenger and He became the driver. Through the years I've seen plenty of flashing billboards directing me to go down the wrong road, and I've said, "Hey, what about that? Let's try that road!" And Jesus simply says in reply, "Who's driving? Me or You?
Gentleness isn't weakness; it's strength under control. Gentleness means you don't use strength to hurt those who are weaker. It's true physically, and it's true emotionally. If you're ever in a confrontation where you could verbally or intellectually destroy the person who disagrees with you, gentleness prevents you from hurting them. Gentleness means you don't get in someone's face and yell at them. People are fragile; they need to be handled with care.
Gentleness isn't weakness; it's strength under control. Gentleness means you don't use strength to hurt those who are weaker. It's true physically, and it's true emotionally. If you're ever in a confrontation where you could verbally or intellectually destroy the person who disagrees with you, gentleness prevents you from hurting them. Gentleness means you don't get in someone's face and yell at them. People are fragile; they need to be handled with care.
You have to move that "Our God is faithful!" understanding from your head to your heart. You have to TRUST that He is faithful. Sometimes when trouble and tragedy afflict us we wonder what God is doing. But these are the very times when you have to TRUST that God is faithful to keep His promises to us. He has a plan for your life--a plan to prosper you, not to hurt you; a plan to give you hope and a future.
You have to move that "Our God is faithful!" understanding from your head to your heart. You have to TRUST that He is faithful. Sometimes when trouble and tragedy afflict us we wonder what God is doing. But these are the very times when you have to TRUST that God is faithful to keep His promises to us. He has a plan for your life--a plan to prosper you, not to hurt you; a plan to give you hope and a future.
We think we're good because we compare ourselves to others. We look at our neighbors, our coworkers, and our friends and if we're a little better than them, we feel we're pretty good people. You're using the wrong standard if you compare yourself to other people. God's standard is perfect goodness and complete holiness. If you use the wrong standard, then all comparison is useless.
We think we're good because we compare ourselves to others. We look at our neighbors, our coworkers, and our friends and if we're a little better than them, we feel we're pretty good people. You're using the wrong standard if you compare yourself to other people. God's standard is perfect goodness and complete holiness. If you use the wrong standard, then all comparison is useless.
The kindest thing you can do for a person is to introduce them to Jesus. And sometimes the easiest way to do it is by performing some act of kindness to them in Jesus' name. Kindness is an evangelistic tool. You may not know the four laws or the seven steps, but you can show kindness in Jesus' name.
The kindest thing you can do for a person is to introduce them to Jesus. And sometimes the easiest way to do it is by performing some act of kindness to them in Jesus' name. Kindness is an evangelistic tool. You may not know the four laws or the seven steps, but you can show kindness in Jesus' name.
The mother of impatience is anger. When you are delayed or disappointed, you want to get angry. But patience is the long fuse God gives you to not lose your cool. Patience is a powerful virtue.
The mother of impatience is anger. When you are delayed or disappointed, you want to get angry. But patience is the long fuse God gives you to not lose your cool. Patience is a powerful virtue.
Sometimes Jesus calms the storms of life, but most often He calms our hearts in the midst of life's storms. We all know a hurricane is a devastating force of nature. But at the center of every hurricane there's an eye, where it's calm and peaceful. The sun is shining, the air is still, and even birds fly around in the eye of the storm. Peter was in the eye of the hurricane that night in prison. And when you know that God cares for you, you can be in the peaceful eye of the storm while all around you the storm rages.
Sometimes Jesus calms the storms of life, but most often He calms our hearts in the midst of life's storms. We all know a hurricane is a devastating force of nature. But at the center of every hurricane there's an eye, where it's calm and peaceful. The sun is shining, the air is still, and even birds fly around in the eye of the storm. Peter was in the eye of the hurricane that night in prison. And when you know that God cares for you, you can be in the peaceful eye of the storm while all around you the storm rages.
When you wake up every morning, you have a choice. You can wallow in the ashes of the world, or choose the beauty that God offers. You can give in to mourning, or you can have the oil of joy covering you. Are you burdened down with a spirit of heaviness? You can choose to put on the garment of praise. Joy is a choice!
When you wake up every morning, you have a choice. You can wallow in the ashes of the world, or choose the beauty that God offers. You can give in to mourning, or you can have the oil of joy covering you. Are you burdened down with a spirit of heaviness? You can choose to put on the garment of praise. Joy is a choice!
Love is the first of the nine Fruits of the Spirit. One of the problems in the English language is that we only have one word for love. We have to use the same word when we say we love God, love our sweetheart, and love hot dogs. Because we're restricted to the one English word, you can be misunderstood. The New Testament was written in Koine Greek, one of the most expressive languages in the world. And there are four different Greek words for love: Eros, storge, phileo and agape.
Love is the first of the nine Fruits of the Spirit. One of the problems in the English language is that we only have one word for love. We have to use the same word when we say we love God, love our sweetheart, and love hot dogs. Because we're restricted to the one English word, you can be misunderstood. The New Testament was written in Koine Greek, one of the most expressive languages in the world. And there are four different Greek words for love: Eros, storge, phileo and agape.
The apostle Paul lists fifteen different sins, but he concludes the list with the words, "and the like." That means the list isn't exhaustive: If you don't find your pet sin listed, that doesn't mean you get a pass. The fifteen different weeds of the flesh fall into four general categories. A comparison of the weeds of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit.
In World War II, the Allied forces were fighting one enemy, but we sent troops to the African front, the European front, and the Pacific front. In much the same way, spiritual warfare involves fighting one enemy on three fronts: the world, the flesh, and the devil.
I believe that when you come to Christ, God forgives every sin you've ever committed and every sin you'll ever commit. So if I'm forgiven, then why should I run from sin? One word: Consequences. Forgiveness is God removing the penalty of my sin problem—eternity in hell. But as a Christian I still have to face the consequences of my sin in this life. Moses sinned against God by showing pride and disobedience. He was forgiven, and he's in heaven, but he sinned, he suffered the consequence of never entering Canaan. King David sinned against God, and he was forgiven, and he's in heaven how. But because of his sin, he suffered tragedy and heartache in his family.
How many of you have ever seen a falling star, raise your hand. Really? I doubt what you saw was a star. Our sun is a star, and stars don't "fall." What you saw was a piece of space junk, a meteor. It wasn't a star falling. If you see a star falling, we're in trouble. And if you think you saw a Christian who fell from salvation, chances are they weren't a Christian in the first place.
When we live under the liberty of grace, we admit we are powerless to help ourselves. There's a reason why that's the first statement in the 12 steps of AA and in Celebrate Recovery. When a person is in bondage to an addiction, they will remain in chains as long as they try to help themselves. They think, "I can fix this. I can do better. I can live better." But it's only when they admit that they are powerless, that they begin the journey to wholeness, healing, and restoration. The same is true about the Christian life.
Isaac was born supernaturally—there's no way a 90-year-old woman could give birth. The thought of that was laughable. It was a miracle birth that had to be the divine intervention of God. That's what grace is. Grace is knowing that it is humanly impossible for me to be good enough for God, so instead God must intervene supernaturally at the cross to perform a miracle. Jesus became sin for me so that I may become the righteousness of God. VIDEO NOT AVAILABLE.
This planet is littered with the graves and tombs of millions of people—some are famous tombs, but the majority is obscure. The pyramids in Egypt are really tombs, the Taj Mahal in India is a mausoleum, and the Ming Dynasty emperors are buried in massive tombs, with each complex covering almost 100 acres. Go to the tombs of religious teachers and call roll: Mohammed? "Here." Buddha? "Here." Moses? "Here." Confucius? "Here." Jesus? (silence) Jesus? All we hear is the echo from an empty tomb. Even if you're a skeptic, you've got to answer the question: What happened to the body of Jesus?
There are some Christians who believe you can lose your salvation. They think there is something a Christian can do that would cause them to longer be a child of God. We believe there's nothing we can do to become a child of God, so there’s nothing you can do to lose that position. Once God has placed you into His family by a new birth, no one or nothing can cause you to lose your relationship with Him. You don't have to work to keep your salvation; He is keeping you.
All the rules and regulations of the Old Testament are only shadows of the real thing and Jesus is the real thing. If Jesus walked up to you to shake your hand would you ignore Him and try to shake hands with His shadow? That's legalism.
You might have grown up in a small family, or a large family. You might have come from a blended family or a broken family, but we all understand the meaning of the word, "family." We were once slaves to sin, but now we're siblings—we are brothers and sisters in Christ. You and I are spiritual siblings because we have the same Father.
THE DIFFERENCE IN CHRIST Yes, we may have different colored skin. Yes, we might have different jobs, and positions of leadership. And yes, there are differences between men and women. But IN CHRIST these differences don't define who we are. The only two categories that really matter in the world are: Are you IN CHRIST, or not? At the cross, Jesus destroyed all the made-made barriers of hostility.
LOCK PICK We think the door to freedom and happiness can be picked open by our own efforts, when Jesus has already declared us to be free. You may be sweating and straining at the thoughts of facing a holy God. You may be locked up by your fear of the future, tormented by the fact that you can't DO everything you think you should be doing for God. And meanwhile, through His grace, God has already unlocked the door to freedom.
Why don't we see the urgency of culture changing and understand our role in it? Our society desperately needs spiritual awakening and it is up to us to be the spark in that change.
How do you find time every day to submit to the leadership of the Spirit in our "hurry-up" world? There is value in God's daily will for us, yet we do not trust or seek it.
HOW AND WHY TO GO TO JESUS FIRST Many times in today's society, we don't turn first to Jesus or lead others to do so. We must be committed to the truth of Scripture and necessity of faith in Christ and trust him with our problems and with our friends' salvation.
It's hard to trust God in hard times until we see that he redeems all he allows. In a hurting culture, when we meet needs in Jesus' name, we earn the right to share his love.
In a skeptical culture, where we separate the spiritual and the secular, our lives must prove the reality of our faith by seeing the transforming purpose and power of God's Kingdom. A discussion of how to be a Kingdom Christian in every dimension and influence of your life.
In a self-sufficient culture, God will matter to others if He matters to us. Find out how you can be filled with the Holy Spirit why we need it. (Audio only)
Most of us struggle with the pure grace of God because we feel better about ourselves if we can do something to earn God's favor. The idea of grace goes against our human nature. Everything in our nature says, "Try hard. Work hard. Earn acceptance with God." But salvation is not by trying; it is by trusting.
When you connect suffering with legalism, you fall into the bottomless pit of thinking you are suffering because you aren't being "good enough" and the best way to remove the suffering is to redouble your efforts to be more religious.
We still have physical life, but when it comes to sin's power over us, we're dead. We still live in the world, but we can't let the world live in us. We have been crucified with Christ, but every day we must renew our death certificate.
THE TYPESETTER Justified margins means the left margin and the right margin are both straight; they agree. Justified people are those who have been made right with God. Here are God's standard on the left—absolute perfection—straight up. And here we are on the right—our lives are ragged. Religion or legalism is the attempt to JUSTIFY our lives with God's perfect standard. But we can't justify our lives to God's standard. Thankfully, God does the justification. It is His act, not ours!
THE ART OF STUMBLING Of these three characters, whose sandals are you wearing? Are you like Paul and you need to help someone who has stumbled? Or are you in the sandals of Barnabas and you're following the wrong leader? Or perhaps, like Peter, you need to examine your life and make sure your conduct matches what you believe about the gospel.
SPINNING PLATES The legalism that exists today isn't about keeping Jewish festivals as much as it is thinking that a Christian can earn God's love and acceptance by what they do or don't do. Legalism is the belief that if I can just keep all my spiritual plates spinning, then I can earn more of God's favor.
OASIS Have you ever found yourself in a spiritual desert and wondered what God was doing? You were thirsty for the living water and hungry for the bread of the Word, but instead, all you found was more desert? Desert experiences can help you grow.
Most people spend their lives trying to please others, but Paul challenges us to the take the road less traveled and live our lives to please God. That's a pretty important matter to settle in your own life. Are you living to please others, or to serve God? A comparison of people-pleasing versus the blessings we receive when we live to please God.
Jesus' last words from the cross weren't "EARN THIS." His last words were a shout of triumph, "It is finished!" Sadly some Christians spend every day of their lives feeling like they have to live in a way to earn the sacrifice of Jesus. When Jesus said, "It is finished," He was saying there was nothing else we could ever do to be saved.
Galatians is a short book—only six chapters. You can easily read it in a half-hour. But don't be deceived by its size. A tiny stick of dynamite can blow up a big building. That's more than a figure of speech; it's a metaphor for the book itself. Galatians is spiritual dynamite. Learn how to achieve freedom from fear, doubt and guilt through grace.
If Penn Jillette, a confirmed atheist, can tell us that if we believe heaven and hell exists, and if we believe there is eternal life, and we DON'T tell others; then it shows we must really hate them.
Ten years ago, few Americans were familiar with the term "jihad." Then came the Tuesday morning that changed our world. In an hour and eighteen minutes, nineteen radical Muslims killed more people that day than died at Pearl Harbor or D-Day. This remembrance service honors our local first responders and the memories of those who died on September 11, 2001 and how we turn to God to find hope for our future. View the "On That Day" video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9n6pdAvzu0&feature=youtu.be
RESURRECTION CHANGES EVERYTHING The absence of a body alone is not a compelling argument for the resurrection. But when you combine it with the fact that a living, breathing Jesus appeared on several occasions to His disciples, you either have to say the account is fictional, or Jesus really came back from the dead.
MIRACLES When Jesus died on the cross, four things happened simultaneously: Old Testament scriptural prophecy was fulfilled, darkness covered the earth, the Temple curtain was torn and an earthquake raised the dead. But the main miracle of the cross, the unseen miracle, was Jesus taking the punishment for sin in my place.
ANGEL ARITHMETIC If one angel warrior could kill 185,000 soldiers, then 72,000 angel warriors could kill 13.2 billion soldiers. That's over twice the population of the earth today! And the night Jesus spoke these words, it is estimated there were less than one billion people on earth. In other words, if Jesus had given the word, these angel warriors could have literally wiped out the entire population of the planet.
JESUS' SHADOW Jesus lived in the shadow of the cross, and so should we. There's only one safe place to find refuge from the judgment of God against sin—and that's in the Shadow of the Cross. There's no other way to be saved except through the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ.
NO EXPENSE SPARED We know from John's account that the perfume Mary anointed Jesus with was worth 300 denarii, which is equal to a year's wages. So figure your annual salary, and you begin to have an idea about how expensive this gift was. But she poured it all out on Jesus in an act of worship. To Mary, no expense would be spared. Her great love for Jesus could only be expressed by giving her most prized possession. Breaking the bottle symbolized her brokenness before the Lord.
ARE YOU SAFE IN THE FOLD? In Israel, shepherds often had sheep and goats in the same flock during the day, but at night, the shepherd separated the sheep and the goats. The sheep, which are more defenseless, were herded into a stonewalled sheepfold. The goats, which are more aggressive by nature, were left outside the sheepfold. It was a common sight in Israel to see a shepherd separating the sheep from the goats; and this is the powerful picture Jesus uses to describe how He will judge all people at the end of the world.
UPPER MANAGEMENT The parable of the talents is about money, but the application is about managing ALL the resources God has given you. In addition to your money, God has given you health, time, talent, energy, abilities, influence, and relationships. This is not just about money management; it's about life management. But it all starts with acknowledging that everything I have is a gift from God. I don't own it; I just manage it.
It is my strong belief that America is a great nation but America is in trouble. We are on a downward spiral. Our foundations are eroding as our moral foundation is decaying. We have lost our moral compass. And unless we, the younger generations, reclaim the values, the dignity, the decency, and the diligence of this greatest generation, America may not survive very far into the 21st century. A discussion of the qualities that made the Greatest Generation stand out among others in our era.
SOMETHING NOT BORROWED You can't borrow someone else's faith. You can learn from my faith, but you can't use my faith. Even though I'm saved, I cannot become your Savior. Even though you have received the Grace of God, you can't impart the grace of God to anyone else. I can give my life for you, but I can't live your life, and you can't live mine. God has children, but He has no grandchildren. You can't borrow faith from your parents or grandparents. They can instill God's Word in your heart and train you in the things of God, but they can't give you their faith. You have to choose to follow Jesus on your own.
Are you more concerned about your own needs than the needs of others? In the eyes of the world, greatness is determined by how many servants a person has, but in God's economy greatness is defined by how many people we serve. Too many people have their eyes on the sky looking for the return of Jesus. Let me ask you the same question the angels asked the disciples: Why do you stand gazing into heaven? Jesus is coming back, so get busy serving God by serving others.
WARNING! JUDGMENT AHEAD The Bible says at any moment, the Lord Jesus could return in a flash, in a twinkling of an eye. God has placed warning signs all along the road. Warning! Repent immediately. This message is just another warning. For those of us who have heeded His warning, and put our faith in Jesus, we will escape His judgment against sin. But some people just laugh at the Bible and refuse to heed God's Warning.
Most of us had the childhood experience of riding in the car heading on vacation. We were excited but we didn't really have an understanding of when we would arrive. So we would yell up to our dad or mom driving, "How much longer? Are we there yet?" And they would often reply, "We're ten minutes closer than the last time you asked!" That's a little bit how I feel about the return of Christ. We don't really know when it's going to happen, so we ask our Father. "How much longer?" And He smiles and says, "Closer than when you asked the last time." I'm not a genius but I feel safe in making this prediction about when Jesus will return: Sooner than yesterday. We can't know the exact day, but we can know the season. Pay attention: The fig tree has sprouted leaves; the Israeli flag flies over Jerusalem; and the gospel is going to all people groups.
When Jesus was looking for a particular mother to illustrate God's love, He chose a hen. Even if you've never raised chickens, you probably have a basic understanding of how a hen protects her chicks. God loves you and cares for you the same way that a mother cares for her children. However, that doesn't necessarily mean you are experiencing God's love at this moment--you must be willing to accept His love. Any person who rejects God's love will experience spiritual desolation.
ACTIONS, NOT WORDS What's the difference between tithing and justice, mercy, and faithfulness? Tithing is a personal matter between you and God. Justice, mercy, and faithfulness demand that we deal with people--and mainly needy people. It's easy to slip into the lie that the Christian life is only about "me and God." Yes, God wants to have a personal relationship with you, but it's because He wants you to be His hands and feet in this hurting world. God isn't just interested in saving you to take you to heaven. God wants to use you to DO SOMETHING to make a difference in the lives of those who are suffering in this world. Grace is not just a gift you put in your pocket and save it until the day you die so you can bring it out and say, "Okay, let me into heaven." God has showered His grace on you so you can give it away to others.
UNMASKED Do you think, "I'm a pretty good person?" Or do you say, "I'm not perfect, but I'm better than most people, or at least some people?" Or do you say, "I'm just a sinner saved by grace?" Maybe you should say, "I'm not what I OUGHT to be, and I'm not what I WANT to be, and I'm not what I'm GOING to be, but thank God because of His grace, I'm not what I USED to be." I'm just a sinner saved by grace. If you can say that, then you might NOT be a hypocrite--just a recovering hypocrite who doesn't need a mask anymore.
SCARLET LIFELINE The scarlet thread runs from Genesis to the cross, but it doesn't end there. Satan tried to cut it off at the cross, but the scarlet thread continued into a cold dark tomb. Today, this scarlet thread is God's lifeline to you. He has tossed it to you. Will you grab it? The scarlet thread runs through the Bible, but when you let it run through your heart, then you can know without a doubt that you'll spend eternity in the presence of God.
WHAT IS HEAVEN LIKE? What kind of perfect environment do you picture? If you love the beach, you might picture a perfect beachfront with no litter, undertow, sharks or crabs! Heaven is better than that. If you're a golfer, you might picture being able to play Augusta National and every drive splits the fairway and every putt rattles into the cup. Heaven is better than that. If you love hiking you might picture a perfect mountain trail with no briars or snakes, and you don't get tired as you carry a 100-pound pack uphill. Heaven is better than that. Imagine what you can, and Heaven is better than that.
Some people hold two or more passports because they are citizens of two or more countries. In this passage of scripture Jesus reminds us that we hold dual citizenships. He said, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's." By that statement He indicated that all of us live in relationship to an earthly government. He also said, "Give to God what is God's." In addition to our relationship to an earthly government, we must also consider our relationship with God. So, if you're a Christian, you live in relationship with Caesar, the government and with God. It's like holding two passports.
The message of this parable is powerful but simple. "Many are invited but few are chosen." To rephrase that, "All are invited, but only a few CHOOSE to accept the invitation." God has given you an invitation to join Him for eternity. He provides the clothing of the righteousness of Jesus. If you accept his gracious offer, then you will enjoy the presence of the King of Kings for all eternity. However, if you refuse God's offer of grace, then you will spend eternity separated from Him in a place called hell.
Uncovering four foundational truths about the character of God in Jesus' Parable of the Tenants and a corresponding personal lesson we can apply to our lives.
Someone said each of Jesus' parables is like a window. You can look through the parable and see the world in a different way. But if you really look at a window instead of through it, you will often catch your own reflection in the glass. When you truly "get it" you'll always see yourself in the parables of Jesus. The parable of the two sons and how they describe our life in relationship with the Father.
Mountains come in all shapes and sizes. Jesus says you can move a mountain. But sometimes instead of moving the mountain, God moves you.
God's collective address, the church, and God's individual address, a believer. A discussion about how the things Jesus did in the temple courts are the things He wants to do in us today.
There is a blindness even more debilitating than physical blindness. It is the blindness that occurs when people with perfectly good vision REFUSE to see what God is doing.
THE LAST SHALL BE FIRST The world determines greatness by how many servants a person has; but in God's Kingdom, greatness is determined by how many people you serve. In God's kingdom, first place goes to the servants, to the people the world puts at the back of the line of prominence.
The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard is a picture of God's grace. When we think about what the workers were paid, our immediate reaction to that story is, "Hey, that's not fair!" Jesus didn't say this is what the kingdom of this world is like. He said this is what the Kingdom of heaven is like. The world would call that fuzzy math, but the Bible calls it grace.
In the parable of the rich young ruler, he was on a quest to find what was missing in his life, a quest everyone is on. There is only room for one god in your life, so choose very carefully.
We love to talk about how God has forgiven us, but we sometimes choke on the idea of forgiving others. The world's answer is simple: Payback time! But as Christians, we're told to turn the other cheek; we're told to forgive. But sometimes forgiveness is very difficult when we know the person who needs our forgiveness is going to keep on hitting us.
The church is like a symphony. When we're in tune, we make beautiful music together, but when we aren't, it can get ugly. Jesus knew that there would be conflicts among Christians, that's why He gave us three four steps to follow to bring about reconciliation.
Most animals have teeth, claws, or a shell for defense; a poor sheep doesn't have any natural means of defense. Without Christ we are dumb, directionless and defenseless. The main thing sheep need is a shepherd, and fortunately Jesus offers to be our good shepherd.
As an adult you may be waiting until you understand salvation before you accept it. You'll never understand it. You only have to accept God's free gift of eternal life. That's easy for a child to understand, but difficult for an adult. God isn't looking for childish behavior, but He is looking for a childlike spirit. In a real sense, only children go to heaven--God's children.
THE STONEMASON This spiritual building Jesus is constructing isn't made up of bricks that are all the same size and appearance. It's more like a stone wall of all different shapes and sizes. God loves variety. If you don't believe it, just look around. Unless you're a twin, nobody else looks like you. But like the stones in a wall, we are joined together through the mortar of the Holy Spirit. The stonemason carefully chooses each stone to fit with the others. That's exactly what God does with us.
I���m not saying that the word "impossible" doesn't exist, I'm saying when it comes to living by faith in God we should remove the word "impossible" from our spiritual dictionary. Message about living by faith.
WHAT WAS THE TRANSFIGURATION? The transfiguration teaches us a great lesson about worship. Worship is not a place; it is a person. You don?t need a building and you don't even need a mountaintop. It's not about a place; it's focusing on the glory of Jesus. It's meeting Jesus and listening to Him.
THRILLED BUT UNFULFILLED Thousands of people are thrill seekers and live on the edge simply because they want the temporary reward of a rush of adrenalin or a new buzz. But the thrill is only temporary and they have to look for the next big thrill and they are constantly unfulfilled. There's nothing wrong with seeking fun, adventure, and pleasure unless it becomes the driving force of your life. If it does, then you lose.
THE STONEMASON This spiritual building Jesus is constructing isn't made up of bricks that are all the same size and appearance. It?s more like a stone wall of all different shapes and sizes. God loves variety. If you don?t believe it, just look around. Unless you're a twin, nobody else looks like you. But like the stones in a wall, we are joined together through the mortar of the Holy Spirit. The stonemason carefully chooses each stone to fit with the others. That's exactly what God does with us.
THE LAST ONE Jesus wants every "ethnos," every people group in the world to hear the good news. In fact He said, "I'm not coming back until every people group has heard the gospel." Could it be that Jesus is waiting for one final people group to hear the gospel? At this very moment there could be some missionaries who have found their village and they are right now in the process of sharing the gospel with this final people group?
There aren't any outright miracles in the story of Ruth, but it is filled with evidence of the Divine fingerprints of God's invisible hand at work. Sometimes what we think are simply random events are actually the invisible hand of God working to guide us toward His goal for us--to make us more like Jesus. How God was working in the lives of Naomi, Ruth, Obed and in our own lives.
In this drama about love and redemption, there is a crisis that must be overcome before Boaz can marry Ruth. This is also a story of God's love for us and our redemption. In much the same way, there are some issues that must be settled in our understanding of salvation before we can fully accept Jesus as our Kinsman-Redeemer. A discussion of the rival redeemer, the real redeemer and the redeemer's reward.
The story of Boaz and Ruth's rendezvous on the threshing floor. A discussion of Naomi's hope, Ruth's faith, Boaz's love and Jesus' grace.
The meaning of the important phrase "kinsman-redeemer" and what Boaz did for Ruth gives us a better appreciation what our Redeemer, Jesus, has done for us.
The story of Ruth and Boaz is more than a love story. It's a grace story. A look at grace from the perspective of the giver of grace, Boaz, who represents Jesus and a look at grace from the perspective of the recipient of grace, Ruth, who represents us.
The story of Ruth is so much more than just a romantic tale of love and marriage. It is a powerful parable of the Christian life. A study of the four main characters in Ruth 1 and how each of them represents a different spiritual experience.
The story of Elimilech is a picture of a backslidden Christian. Backsliding happens when a Christian stops advancing in their walk with God and instead slides back into their old sins and habits. Four observations from Ruth about a backslidden Christian.
GOD REWARDS PERSISTENT PRAYING Are you a persistent person or do you give up quickly? Jesus taught us, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." (Matthew 7:7) But those verbs denote continuous action. He literally said, "Ask and keep on asking--seek and keep on seeking--knock and keep on knocking." You wouldn't walk up to a closed door and knock once would you? Have you been praying for something for days or weeks and you haven't received an answer yet? Don't quit praying. God rewards persistent praying. Don't give up. Keep praying.
THE BOAT OF MEDIOCRITY When Jesus is out on the waves, sitting in the boat represents a lack of faith. Sitting in the boat represents your comfort zone. It's the status quo. The boat life is dull. It is safe, but it's sour. But Jesus calls us to think outside the boat. It took a lot of courage for Peter to throw his leg over the boat and place his foot on water. But he never would have experienced the adventure of water walking if he had stayed in the boat. What is your boat today? What is it that limits you from stepping out in faith and trusting God for something so great that if He doesn't come through, then you're sunk? Are you willing to throw yourself out of the boat of mediocrity and move toward Jesus?
POP QUIZ When you face the very hardest times of your life, it is like God is saying, "Take out a blank sheet of paper." The only question on God's test is: Do you trust me? Your answer is not for His information; it is to show you how much faith you really have. Your faith will be tested continually throughout your life, not to shame you, but to strengthen you. Once you realize problems are God's pop quizzes, it makes it easier to say, "Oh boy! Another test!"
HE REALLY DOES Jesus loves every kind of person, not just the good people. Jesus loves the down-and-out as well as the up-and-out. Jesus loves the man who drank himself into a stupor last night. Jesus loves the junkie who shot up last night. Jesus loves the woman who slept last night with someone who was not her husband. Jesus loves the guy who in secrecy and shame looked at porn on his computer last night. Jesus loves the child who cried herself to sleep last night because her parents were yelling at each other. And He loves those parents, too. Jesus loves that inmate sitting in prison because he did unspeakable things to another person. And Jesus loves the person sitting in church with a better-than-thou attitude thinking "Yeah, but He loves me more."
THE BEST INVESTMENT What if I told you there was an investment you could make and your return would make you wealthy beyond your wildest dreams? Would you be interested? Of course, you'd probably be skeptical because we all know about Bernie Madoff and the other investment scammers out there with their get-rich-quick schemes. But what if I could convince you this investment would really pay off a thousand-fold? How much would you be willing to invest? Would you invest just a little, or would you sell out everything you have and buy up all of that investment you could?
ADULT BABIES Imagine boulders represent burdens. Sometimes we all experience the occasional heavy boulders of pain and grief: the death of a loved one; a divorce; the loss of a job. You carry your own backpack, but if a boulder rolls over onto one of your fellow hikers, you're going to jump in and help take the load of that burden off them; you're going to bear their burden. As you do that, you fulfill the law of Christ. The law of Christ is the law of Love. You are to love God with all your being and love your neighbor as yourself. Spiritual maturity has nothing to do with age; there are plenty of adult Christians who still cannot feed themselves.
OBVIOUSLY FRUITFUL Any wheat farmer can easily tell the difference between wheat and weeds. Want to know how? As the harvest time nears, the top of the stalk sags downward, it bows. The head of the wheat grows so heavy with the grain, the fruit, that it begins to bow toward the ground. Meanwhile, the weeds stand tall and straight. They never bow. What a lesson! A true believer is humble; and the more mature and fruitful they become, the more they bow before the Lord in humility. But the counterfeit Christian stands tall, proud of his religious accomplishments which he foolishly believes will get him to heaven.
DESTRUCTIVE ROOTS Your heart is like a garden, it needs to be tended. Even a good garden has weeds that spring up. But you can't just chop off the weeds; you must pull them out by the roots. If you want to be a fruitful Christian, you must constantly attack the root sins of worry and the craving for wealth.
EXTENDED FAMILY Wouldn't it be nice if every biological family were a "big happy family?" But we know sometimes just the opposite is true. We all know our biological families can cause us heartache and pain. Jesus pointed to His disciples and said, "This is my mother and my brothers and sisters." He was teaching that we are part of a huge family of believers. His family is called the church. This is where you can find love and acceptance. And for many people, they feel a closer bond with their spiritual family than they do with their natural family members.
FOOTHOLD The very best way for you to hear from God is to let His Word abide in you. To do that you have to maintain a steady, daily diet of God's Word. Once you have it in your head and in your heart, you will be thinking about His Word all the time. When you're confronted with a challenge, or a challenge, you won't need a sign. You'll be able to say; "God's Word says this about that issue."
PERFECT RECALL Scientists who study sound waves theorize sound waves never really vanish; they just diminish until they are no longer audible to the human ear. And each sound wave has a unique frequency. Some believe if we could invent a sensitive enough instrument, we might someday be able to go back and capture the faint echo of words spoken hundreds of years earlier. Wouldn't it be something if we could one day actually hear Lincoln giving the Gettysburg address? Well, that's the stuff of scientific journals. But, for God, recapturing every word I've ever said won't be hard. But I'm not worried. Do you know why? Because there are a few important words I've spoken that take care of all the trash talk I've ever done. One day I said, "Jesus is my Lord." And I asked Him to forgive my sins.
What is the unforgivable sin? Let me tell you what it is NOT. It is not murder. Moses was a murderer and he'll be in heaven. It is not adultery. King David committed adultery and God forgave him. It is not divorce. The woman at the well had multiple divorces and she was forgiven. It is not suicide. Although the Catholic Church teaches suicide is an unforgivable sin, you don't find it in the Bible. Suicide is self-murder and it is no different from homicide--both are forgivable. If you think a person who commits suicide can't repent of that sin because they're dead and that's your attitude, then you don't understand salvation. Once you are a Christian, you don't have to confess every single sin you commit in order to go to heaven. We confess our sins to stay in fellowship with God, but when you surrender your life to Christ, every past sin you've committed and every future sin you will ever commit is covered by the blood of Jesus Christ.
ABSOLUTES One of the most valuable commodities in this world is hope, because it's so rare. And the Bible promises you can find hope in Jesus Christ. In our vocabulary, we've reduced the meaning of hope to something that may or may not happen. We say, "I hope I'll pass that test." Or "I hope we'll win the game.? You can ask someone, "Are you going to heaven when you die?" And their answer is, "I hope so!" We've diluted the word hope until it's something you want to happen, but you aren't certain that it will. But in the Bible, hope carries the meaning of absolute certainty.
HOW THE IMPOSSIBLE IS POSSIBLE Have you noticed in many of Jesus? miracles He simply told the person to DO the very thing they couldn't do? When the four men brought the paralyzed man to Jesus and lowered him through a hole in the ceiling, Jesus didn't touch the paralyzed man. He simply said, "Stand up, pick up your bed and walk home." Jesus told Peter to walk on water, which was totally impossible. But it wasn't until Peter stepped out onto the impossibility that he found he could stand on Jesus? Word! It is only when we trust the Word of Jesus to believe we experience His healing power. Salvation is impossible for us, but God's power makes it possible.
WHEN IS THE CHRISTIAN SABBATH? We don't have to observe the Sabbath the way the Jews did. But there is another mistake some Christians make. They say, "Oh, well Sunday is our Sabbath." No, Sunday is NOT the Christian Sabbath. I invite you to find one verse in the New Testament that says Sunday has become the Sabbath. Then where did we get the idea that existed until about 40 years ago that stores shouldn't be open on Sundays?
WHEN BEING UNEQUALLY YOKED IS A GOOD THING Say a single Clydesdale can pull a sled holding two tons of weight. And another Clydesdale can pull three tons. You would think that when yoked together, the most they could pull would be five tons. But in reality when these two horses are yoked together, they can actually pull seven tons! You may think that's not possible, but this phenomenon has been proven many times. It's called synergy. Two pulling together can accomplish more than the sum of the two parts. Now apply that principle to the yoke of Christ. You can try bearing the heavy load yourself, but Jesus invites you to join Him inside His yoke. Think about how much strength He has! He's the strong one and I'm the weaker partner.
BATTLE CRY Many of you have told me you have family members who aren't Christians. At family gatherings and you have to watch what you say, because if you bring up your faith, the battle breaks out. Verbal swords are drawn and the fight begins. Of course we love our family members, but Jesus said our love for Him must be supreme.
IN HIS GRIP How many times have you faced a scary situation and given in to fear? Wouldn't it have made a difference if you had know God was right there with you? Well, He is! Spiritually speaking, we're all like preschoolers learning to walk. We're going to stumble and fall, but He has promised to uphold us with His hand. When we stumble He grips us even stronger and that's when we need to grip His hand even tighter. You don't have to be afraid, because God has promised He will NEVER leave you nor forsake you. He watches over every sparrow that falls, so you can be certain He is watching over you!
MENAGERIE Jesus says we are to be like sheep, snakes, and doves. The wolves are those who are enemies of the cross. I want to examine what it means for us to be like these three animals. If we could talk to the animals, or they could talk to us, what would they say to us about being like a lamb, a snake, and a dove? God has called us to go out into the world and share His truth. We are sent out like sheep among wolves. We must be as clever as snakes, and as innocent as doves.
TOO MUCH STUFF As human creatures, we love to accumulate stuff. You know what stuff is. I've got my stuff and you've got your stuff. Don't mess with my stuff. People have accumulated so much stuff that they have to rent storage units to store all their stuff. But Jesus taught that we shouldn't hoard our blessings, we should give them away.
WORTH-SHIP In its purest meaning, "worship" really isn't a religious word. People worship many things. Our English word "worship" means "worth-ship." It means anything we value as having great worth. And of course, in this message I want to encourage you to truly worship the Living God.
SIMPLE OPPORTUNITIES, AMAZING RESULTS God is going to give you some opportunities over the next few months to make a difference in someone?s eternity. All you have to say is, "Come, see what a difference Jesus has made in my life." Are you looking for those opportunities? One of my favorite quotes about opportunity comes from Thomas Edison. Edison said, "Most people don't recognize opportunity because it comes dressed in overalls and looks like work."
CAN'T NEVER COULD...If you want to live according to Philippians 4:13, you've got to start believing "I can" instead of "I can't." The word "can't" is the most destructive word in the English language. It kills dreams, and destroys motivation, it denies the power of faith. If you want to see changes in your life, I suggest you take your dictionary and cut the word "can't" out of it. You may say, "I can't because I don't have a dictionary." I'm sorry, I don?t understand what you said because "can't" isn't in my vocabulary!
COMPASSION FOR THE LOST Most of us have allowed Jesus to become our Shepherd, and we are safe and secure in His arms. But this message is about seeing what He sees. When you have the eyes of Jesus you will look at others with compassion as well. Do you know what compassion really is?
KEEP AT IT We talk a lot about faith, but many people don't really understand it. People who aren't followers of Jesus claim they just can't have faith, but everyone practices some kind of faith every day of their lives. Is there something you need in your life? Don't stop trusting God for it. Keep on praying. Keep on persevering! Don't give up on God.
SNEAKING OUT THE BACK DOOR The bleeding woman would have been content to slip away into the crowd, but Jesus wouldn't let her. She didn't just sneak up and "steal" a measure of Jesus' power; it was something Jesus willingly surrendered to her when He felt her touch of faith. Jesus wanted to give her an affirmation for her public confession of His power. The same is true today. Jesus wants us to go public with our testimony of how Jesus has changed our lives. There is no such thing as a "secret agent" or "closet" Christian. Jesus invites us, He requires us, and He expects us to openly confess our faith in Him.
GOD'S TIMING Have you begged the Lord for something, and you think you need it right now, but the Lord doesn't seem to be in any hurry? With God, timing is much more important than time. God?s delays are not God?s denials. Psalm 90:4 tells us a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like a day with the Lord. We get impatient, but the Lord never gets in a hurry.
MELODY & HARMONY Just because you are a Christian doesn't mean you don't deal with suffering. Life is full of sadness, pain, and disappointment. If you compare the Christian life to a song, the melody line is always joy and praise. The harmony line is suffering and pain. Together, our lives are a beautiful song--but the melody of joy must prevail.
"AS IS" When Jesus looks at us, He doesn't just see the AS IS sign around our necks He also sees something more--He sees "what I can be" when He takes possession of my life. He delights in accepting "as is" people and transforming them into something wonderful. He saw Matthew as is and saw what he could become. He didn't just see a despised tax collector, Jesus saw a "facts collector" who would one day use his pen to write down His words and deeds. Jesus accepted the woman at the well in Samara as is. He knew she had a jaded past and was living in sin, but he looked beyond that to see she could be a relational evangelist bringing her thirsty friends to find the living water. Jesus looked at little Zacchaeus and saw Him as is--another despised tax collector. And He saw He could become a generous giver. Jesus looks at each of us and accepts us as is. Then He says, "I see what you can become." And we should look at people the way Jesus looks at people. We should be willing to accept them as is and rejoice as Jesus makes them into something beautiful.
FOUR FAITHFUL FRIENDS It requires both faith and persistence to bring someone to Jesus. Do you REALLY believe Jesus can forgive and change even the most hardened person? Then start working on them. And don't give up. The paralytic's four friends didn't give up. When they found the way blocked, they didn't quit, they tried a creative approach! God wants you to be a persistent roof-ripper and do whatever it takes to bring your friends to Jesus.
TRAPPED If the thought of the devil and demons makes you want to change the subject and talk about something else, the devil has successfully snared you in his trap of fear. Satan knows if he can keep the whole topic of demonic control in the realm of horror movies that produce nightmares that people won't ever discover the real truth--that he is a defeated foe.
IS JESUS THE CAPTAIN OF YOUR BOAT? Some Christians make the mistake of thinking that just because they have the Lord in their life that they will be immune to trouble, tribulation, and problems. Even if Jesus is in your life, you will still encounter storms. There are physical storms, financial storms, emotional storms, and relational storms which can strike you suddenly with no warning. But just because you find yourself in a storm it doesn't mean that God doesn't love you or is punishing you. Jesus led the disciples into this storm to teach them to trust Him, so don't be surprised when you face storms.
WINDSHIELDS & REARVIEW MIRRORS Regardless of your age, are you willing to follow Jesus more faithfully now than ever before? There may be some of you who are at an age when you think the best of your life is behind you. Every car needs a rearview mirror, but if driver constantly looking in the mirror then you are an accident waiting to happen. Some people live life the same way: They look in the mirror of their memories and talk about the good old days. And you can only see a tiny sliver in your rearview mirror, while God has a windshield full of blessings in front of you. The past is a great place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there. The wonderful thing about following Jesus is that the best is always ahead.
1 IN 100,000,000,000,000,000 The fact that Jesus of Nazareth fulfilled these prophecies is powerful evidence that the Bible is a supernatural book and Jesus is who He claimed to be--the Son of the Living God. Why? Because the odds of one person randomly fulfilling 40 predictions about the details of their life are astronomical!
BELOVED PARIAHS Have you ever noticed Jesus often talked to people the crowd rejected? He spoke to tax-collectors, prostitutes, lepers, and even little children His disciples tried to shoo away. And here Jesus speaks with a Gentile--and worse than that, a Roman soldier! The Jews hated Gentiles, and they despised the Romans. This Italian was not just a soldier; he was a commander of 100 other Roman soldiers who were occupying Israel. Most Jews avoided the Roman soldiers and spat on the ground when they passed. We're reminded here that Jesus receives any kind of person who approaches Him. That should give us hope today that none of us are too sinful to be outside the love of Christ.
THE AUCTIONING OF AMERICA Have you ever been to an auction? When the bidding reaches a climax the auctioneer says, "Going ... going ... gone!" and he raps his gavel. That item is no longer up for sale. I fear God may be looking at our nation and saying, "Going ... going ..." and that we are only one word away from losing the blessings of God. The answer for America's problems isn't going to come from the White House; it's got to come from the Church House. But the problem is most American Christians are asleep and unaware of the dangers we face.
TRAVEL PLANS Today when Jesus' disciples gather here Sunday after Sunday, it's a mountaintop experience as we praise Him and study His Word. And sadly, for some, that is the pinnacle of their faith. When they leave church they just look forward to the next spiritual high point of worship and fellowship the next Sunday. But you can't just stay on the mountaintop with Jesus. Monday through Saturday, you've got to go into the valley where the people are hurting and in need of Jesus.
BIOSPHERE Christians don't just survive the storms, we can thrive through the storms; they make us stronger. In the early 1990s, Biosphere 2 was built near Tucson, Arizona. It was a closed-environment in which plants and animals were to live together separate from the earth's environment. The experiment was basically a failure and it's now more of a tourist attraction. Every weather condition could be reproduced except one: wind. The researchers discovered the trees bent over and soon snapped from their own weight because there was no wind resistance to make the roots of the trees stronger--they didn't have a good foundation. When you see trees bending in the storm, they're just getting stronger. We're the same way. God knows when we survive the various storms of life, it only makes us stronger too.
BIBLE MYTHOLOGY Religion is man's attempt to reach up to God through rituals, rules, and self-righteousness. Whereas true Christianity is God reaching down to hopeless men and women and offering them a gift of a relationship with Him. The Bible never invites us to be religious. Our English word "religion" comes from two Latin words, "re," which means to repeat and "ligere," which means "to tie or to bind." We get our word "ligament" from "ligere" ligaments tie your muscles to your bones. A religion is something that binds you and ties you down again and again.
A NATION OF LEMMINGS Jesus said, "Wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many follow it." As much as we might hope that most people would trust Christ, Jesus said that many are on the wrong road. Some people were upset when President Obama spoke recently in Turkey and said that America is not a Christian nation. But he's right. Our nation was founded by God-fearing people who embraced Christian principles, but today we are a post-Christian nation. There are more lost people than saved. Don?t be surprised because Jesus said most people are on the wrong road. But these people really think they're on the right road.
SMOKING GUN Maybe you're begging God for something, and He sees you're trying to hide smoldering disobedience behind your back. We don't have to be sinless and perfect for God to answer our prayers, or none of us would qualify. But we must be willing to be honest and open before the Lord before we ask Him for His favors.
RESISTANCE IS PUERILE The glorious treasure of the gospel has been entrusted to us, but we aren't to bury it, we're to share it with others. But there are some people who are so resistant and hostile to the truth that it's like tossing pearls to pigs. So what can we learn from this? Don't waste your time and your truth with those who are antagonistic toward the truth; when you encounter them, shake the dust off your feet and move on to someone who is receptive to the gospel. Lift up your eyes and look--they are all around us!
ACTORS When we judge others while ignoring our own faults, Jesus says we're a hypocrite. That means that we playing a part--we're acting--rather than being real. We can evaluate other people, but we must realize our evaluation will always be limited to the fact that we can't see inside a person's heart. The Bible says in 1 Samuel 16:7, "Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." To put it another way, I can judge what you do, but I cannot judge WHY you do it. I can judge what you say, but I cannot judge WHY you say it: Only God can.
WHAT DO I WANT ON MY PIZZA? In our wealthy culture, there are not many of us who worry about whether or not we'll eat, drink, or wear clothes. We worry more about what we eat, drink, and wear. We worry, "Should I eat a Chick-fil-a or a Papa Murphy's pizza?? We worry, "Should I get a cafe latte? or a mocha? Venti, or Tall?" "Should I wear the black pants, or the khaki?" Decisions, decisions. The truth is that most of us worry about so much more than the basic necessities of life. We worry about terrorism attacks, gas prices, and the stock market. But whatever you worry about, Jesus said that worry is a sin.
ARE YOU A WINDOW OR A LAMP? There is an old proverb, often wrongly attributed to Shakespeare that states, "The eyes are the windows of the soul." The intent of that proverb is that you can often look into a person's eyes and see the condition of their soul. This means the eyes allow the light within to shine out. This is actually the opposite of what Jesus meant when He said, "the eye is the lamp of the soul." He was speaking of the eye letting light in, not revealing what may be there. There's a big difference between a window and a lamp. A window is passive: It merely lets light in or out of a house. A lamp is active: It illuminates a house. But as we learned in the last lesson, we don't generate light, we can only reflect it. Jesus is the light of the world, like the sun. And we are the light of the world, like the moon. So if you want to be filled with God's goodness, you need to focus on Jesus Christ, who is true light that lights every person.
LUNAR RADIATION Is Jesus the light of the world, or are we the light of the world? Yes. Here's a simple way to understand it. Jesus is like the sun, and we're like the moon. We say the moon shines, but it really doesn't. It's just a dead rock orbiting the earth. Sometimes the moon doesn't shine brightly, because the world gets between it and the sun. But at times, when the angle is right, the moon is full and it shines so brightly you can see your own shadow. It only reflects the light from the sun. The sun radiates, and the moon reflects. Like the moon, we only reflect the light of Jesus, and our job is to stay oriented to Him, so the world doesn't get in our way of reflecting His light. Jesus radiates love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, meekness, faithfulness and self-control. I can't produce that kind of light, but my job is to simply reflect His nature to others.
SALTY SAINTS We should live the kind of lives that add zest and flavor to the world around us. We should spread joy and hope to a world that is desperately seeking some kind of meaning. We don't have to go around bragging that we're Christians in order to make a difference, we simply have to BE salt in a tasteless world. Have you ever noticed what happens to salt when you shake it on food? It disappears. It dissolves into the food and becomes a part of it. I think that's a great lesson for us. When we are salt in a bland world, we give ourselves away and lose our lives for their sake. When we truly apply our lives to a sinful world, we've got to be willing to lose our lives for the sake of Christ.
JESUS' HMO Do you realize that every experience of healing costs Jesus something? When the woman slipped through the crowd and touched the hem of His garment, Jesus said, "I felt power go out of me." All healing from the hand of Christ?emotional, relational, physical, or spiritual--comes at a high cost to the Savior. In order for us to have our sins removed, Jesus had to bear them Himself. The Bible says, "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed." (1 Peter 2:24)
THE CONCEPT OF KINGSHIP As Americans, it's hard for us to understand the idea of kings and kingdoms, because few of us have ever lived in a political kingdom. However, we know enough about British royalty to know that an individual like Queen Elizabeth deserves honor and respect. In fact, many Americans are fascinated by the pomp and circumstance of they royal family. When Prince Charles married Lady Diana at St. Paul's in 1981, 750 million people were glued to their television sets to watch the wedding. Even though we've never had a political king, we have a basic understanding of royalty. Now, just multiply the honor, respect, authority of an earthly king by the power of ten billion and you might start to understand what an awesome King our God is.
DISTRACTED BY SHINY OBJECTS It's sad to say that there are multitudes of misguided Christians who have fallen into the trap of seeking the sensational and calling it faith. Every time you hear about the latest Elmer Gantry who appears on the scene claiming to do miracles, there are plenty of gullible people to fill the seats and the offering bags. Don't confuse spectacular tricks with spiritual truth. If tricks and special effects were a testimony for truth, then we should all be worshiping Penn and Teller. God is awesome, but He doesn't need to be noisy and dramatic. There is nothing dramatic about a beautiful sunset, but it has the signature of God stamped on it.
RANDOM ORDER Crowning Jesus as your Lord and being baptized in the Holy Spirit are two sides of the same coin. Now Christians quibble about whether the baptism in the Holy Spirit happens simultaneously when you are saved, or if it is a subsequent experience. I don't think we can put God in a box and say it has to happen in any particular sequence. In Acts 8, 9, and 10 there are three separate conversion stories and in each one, the sequence is different. So, forget the argument over WHEN it happens. A much more important issue than WHEN it happens is HAS it happened?
GOD'S WAYS ARE NOT OUR WAYS What are we to think about those little boys who were killed by Herod? God delivered Jesus, Joseph, and Mary--why didn't He protect the other children? I don't know why God chooses to protect some and not others. As we learned earlier, God's ways and thoughts are not our ways and thoughts. However, I do believe these little boys will occupy a special place in heaven. Stephen is often called the first Christian martyr, but these little boys were actually the first Christian martyrs. They were the first to shed their blood for the One who would later shed His blood for them. I believe God the Father welcomed them into heaven and gave them the special prominence only reserved for His martyrs.
GUIDING LIGHT The Bible calls the light that led the magi a star, but that's what most people call every light in the sky except the sun and moon. There has been endless speculation trying to explain the nature of this light. Some say that it was the alignment of Jupiter and Saturn, which astronomers calculate happened around 7 B.C. Others say it was a comet, or a supernova, an exploding star. But I think the scriptural evidence refutes all of these natural explanations. They saw the star at times, and then it's apparent they didn't see it when they stopped in Jerusalem, and then they saw it again and were overjoyed. The language says the star moved ahead of them and then stopped over the house where Jesus was. This would preclude the possibility of it being an actual star. I believe this was simply a unique light God provided for this special occasion--and it wasn't the first time God used a light as a guide.
FAMILY TREE BRANCHES An interesting thing about the list of names in Jesus' genealogy is some of the people on the list we might think weren't spiritually qualified. For instance: Rahab (who was once a prostitute) and Ruth (who was not Jewish, but Moabite). There are some pretty lousy kings who made the list too. Manasseh was one of the worst kings in Israel's history. The Bible says he led Israel into sin and did more evil than any other king. The point is that God can use all kinds of people. If He can redeem the life of a former hooker, an unclean Gentile, and a lousy king, do not be surprised that He can make something special of your life, even if your past is less than perfect.
THE GREATEST NEED The reason we even have Christmas is because of sin. Joseph heard it straight from angel's mouth—God is sending Jesus into this world because there are sinful people who need their sins forgiven. Had there been no sin, there would have been no need for God to send a Savior.
THE TUNING FORK Christian harmony is like a piano, we don't have to all sing the same note, but we have to be tuned into the same pitch. A piano tuner told me that if you lined up 100 pianos and tuned the first one to a tuning fork, then tuned each piano to the one beside it without the fork, the 100th piano would be terribly out of tune with the first one. Why? There are such minor variations in pitch that it would be impossible to precisely duplicate each piano's pitch. But if you tuned each piano to the same tuning fork, then all 100 would be in perfect tune. The same is true if you try to tune your life spiritually to mine, even if I'm tuned in to Jesus. Church people get out of tune with each other when we start comparing and criticizing each other and using anyone else other than Jesus as our measure or standard.
LOOPHOLES & LOVE LETTERS Some people read their Bibles like a tax attorney reading the IRS code looking for loopholes. But God wants us to read and study His Word like a love letter He has written to guide us through our daily lives. When you're asked a question that involves morality or ethics, is your first response, "What does the Bible say?"
A TALE OF TWO TENTS We live in a culture that promotes greed. Everyone wants more and more, but the truth is LESS is more. The Bible says "godliness with contentment is great gain." You live in one of two tents; either you're content, or you're discontent. We've all met people who are never content?things are never the way they want them to be.
JEKYLL & HYDE Money can be a monster if you love it more than God. There's nothing inherently evil about money--it's just a measure of value. Money can be used for good or evil. Money can be used to buy drugs, or it can be used to buy bread for a hungry child. Money can be used to buy missiles, or it can be used to send missionaries around the world.
FLOOD CONTROL If you are serious about becoming debt free, then you must call an absolute halt on any new debt. If the faucet is running, it doesn't do any good to mop up the floor until you turn the faucet off! Find out what debt is, where debt comes from, and how you can develop a plan to start living debt free.
MORE PRECIOUS THAN GOLD In our consumer-driven culture, we tend to work harder to accumulate possessions than we do friendships. But people matter more to God than anything else. Have you discovered people are much more valuable than things? When you do you'll cherish friendships and relationships and do anything you can to maintain them, and to repair the ones that are broken.
SECURITY OR SECURITIES? Experts are saying this crisis affects the global economy--every nation. Do you think God is worried? Instead of listening to all the pundits and so-called experts, maybe we should listen to God's Word written 3,000 years ago found in Psalm 2:1, "Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?" There's plenty of raging going on, and there are more bailout plots and rescue plans than we can handle. But I love verse 4. It simply says, "The One enthroned in heaven laughs." When we try to scramble around to fix a problem that is the symptom of the greedy, sinful human heart, God must surely chuckle. Maybe God is using this to remind us that happiness and security will never come in stocks, bonds, and possessions.
SAD TRAGEDY The current problem is that most of us don't seem to be as excited about going to heaven. I think one of the greatest tragedies of the modern church is that we have either ignored heaven or we have robbed heaven of its wondrous joy to the point that most Christians are apathetic about the idea of heaven.
I GET KNOCKED DOWN, BUT I GET UP AGAIN...Do you have an episode of failure in your past that you can look back to and say, "I blew it there. I was a flop, a failure. But I got back up and God has blessed me since."? If you've had a midnight basket escape of your own, it equips you to deal with the next time you fail. That's a great promise of God from the Bible: We will fail, but failure doesn't have to define us. God can still use failures like Paul and like us.
A FOOL AND HIS WISDOM ARE SOON PARTED Anyone has a right to be an unbelieving fool, but I am disturbed when a tiny percentage of aggressive atheists work with evangelistic zeal to try to remove every mention of God from our public life. God who created us, loves us so much that He gives us the ability to choose to believe in Him. Life is full of so much sin that suffering that people often look around and ask, "How can there be a God?" But they must remember most of the suffering we endure is created by the sinfulness of humanity.
THE SOUTHPAW ASSASSIN Ehud was left-handed, but he didn't allow his disadvantage to stop him from being God's servant. What's your excuse? You may think your weakness is that you aren't educated enough to teach children, or that you're too shy to stand at a door and greet people. But God is looking for people who turn adversity into advantage. God delights in using people that the world thinks are unfit.
I WANNA BE LIKE MIKE! Four hundred prophets were saying, "Go to war and you'll win." Micaiah had the courage to stand up and speak God?s truth. He had to go against the crowd. He faced peer pressure just as we do today. Peer pressure starts when we are young. We want to "be like" everyone else and we want to "be liked" by others, so we tend to go along to get along.
BUTTERFLY EFFECT There is a law of cause and effect woven into the fabric of our universe. It basically says the small choices you make now can have enormous consequences down the road. In hindsight, the bravery of Puah and Shiphrah NOT to kill the boy babies saved an entire generation of Hebrew men. Included in that generation was a man named Moses--God's deliverer. If Puah and Shiphrah hadn't displayed the bravery to defy Pharaoh's order, Moses' mother may never have placed Moses in a basket in the river to be discovered by Pharaoh's daughter.
THE CHAMPION AND THE CHUMP There are so many things I admire about Abigail. She was married to a fool, yet she was willing to defend him. Just imagine, when she had heard that David was on his way to kill Nabal, she could have said, "God moves in mysterious ways His wonders to perform! Good riddance!" But instead, she chose to defend her foolish husband. She didn't defend Nabal because he was good and deserved it, she did it because SHE was good and it was the right thing to do.
BENAIAH THE BODYGUARD The Bible never tells us how many possessions Benaiah accumulated; instead we're told about his mighty exploits, which is another word for his experiences. I can just picture King David sorting through the resumes for a bodyguard. One says, "I majored in security at the University of Jerusalem. Another one says, "I worked for Brinks Armored Chariots." He laid those aside, and picks up Benaiah's. "I ripped a spear from an Egyptian giant, and killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day." David said, "That's the man with the kind of experience that I'm looking for!" Later he gave him the job of leading his entire army! Have you ever considered that God allows you to go through tough challenges because He is simply building your spiritual resume? Every lion you go after is preparing you for bigger and better challenges.
GULLIBLE CHRISTIANS The same serpent who deceived Eve is actively trying to deceive believers today. And in our age of advanced technology, we have even more ways to believe lies. Abraham Lincoln said, "You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time." But it seems that Christians are some of the most gullible people around these days. We're prone to believe anything that someone emails us.
ANYTHING YOU CAN DO, I CAN DO BETTER There is a kind of arrogant boasting that destroys good relationships. Nobody really likes being around someone how is constantly talking about how great they are. Truly great people don't brag about themselves. The English philosopher Francis Bacon said: "The less people speak of their greatness the more we think of it." There are three kinds of boasting that should be avoided.
SYMPTOMS There are three comparisonitis myths that enslave us. (1) I must be like everyone else to be happy. (2) I must be liked by everyone to be happy. And (3) I must have the things everyone else has to be happy. Comparisonitis is psychosomatic, because it's all in your mind. You start believing Satan?s lies rather than God?s truth.
SNIPER There are as many possible stronghold as the wicked creativity of Satan can devise. If you are honest with yourself, you?ll admit there is an area in your life in which you seem to fail over and over. Your desire to live right is there, but it seems as if someone evil is perched on a high wall and like a sniper, he keeps taking pot shots at you when it comes to those areas. If there is some weakness, or recurring sin in your life, you should consider the possibility that it is a spiritual stronghold. But coming to the realization that it is there is good, because only when you identify your target can you prepare to do battle against it!
ATTITUDE VS. AMOUNT When you give to God, are you giving grudgingly and reluctantly? Or do you find yourself giggling as you give? If you want to be a giggly giver, understand that your attitude is more important than your amount. You've got to recognize God's law of the harvest and start joyfully, extravagantly planting seeds. And you've got to give out of a sense of gratitude for the grace that God has given to you.
HOW TO BE GRACIOUS & GENEROUS I want to share with you how we have been blessed to be a blessing. We are blessed to live in America. We are blessed to living in East Texas, and because we are blessed, we have the joy of being a blessing to others.
AT WHAT PRICE GRACE? In order to understand the high cost of grace, we must understand the price the Lord Jesus Christ was willing to pay.
LINKS The words "grace" and "give" go together like two peas in a pod. There is a direct link between grace and giving. I'm not saying that in order to experience God's grace you must give. The opposite it true: When you're full of God's grace you will be a generous giver.
THE MARRIAGE MOBILE In some ways, marriage is like a car. It'll get you where you want to go, but you've got to put something into it. If you got a new car and never changed the oil, or got a tune up, that new car is going to malfunction. I've never understood why a couple will spend so much energy, time and money on a wedding, but then they think the marriage will automatically be great. Marriage is a high maintenance relationship. Marriage is made in heaven, but it must be maintained on earth.
CASTOR OIL FOR THE SOUL Sorrow is never a pleasant experience, but neither was castor oil as a kid, but my mom gave that to me sometimes! Like castor oil, sorrow is bitter, but it can make us better.
WWW.GUILT.COM There is a deep-seated need in the human heart to seek forgiveness. For those of us who know Christ, we find our forgiveness in God's amazing grace. But what about the millions of people who claim to have no relationship with Jesus? They are still desperately seeking ways to find forgiveness and to unload their sense of guilt. Because of this need to confess and seek forgiveness, there are a number of "apology websites" in cyberspace where guilty people can go and anonymously confess their sins.
TRIPLE PLAY The amazing thing about God?s power is He can convert our troubles into joy. When the world does it worst to us, that's when God can do His best for us! Do you think I'm making this up? Here's a quick reality check. Joseph in the Old Testament: Beaten up by his brothers--trouble. Sold into slavery--double trouble. Spent time in prison for a crime he never committed--triple trouble. Through it all, Joseph kept his focus on God, and he found joy in the midst of his troubles.
ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE There are three great promises of God that should motivate us to want to avoid the dangerous radioactive relationships that are possible. Now, you could approach this by emphasizing the negative: I will keep away from the wrong kind of people. But a much better approach would be to focus on the positive: I will desire to have a dynamic relationship with my Father. As you desire to love God more and more, you'll find that the desire for the wrong kinds of relationships will naturally fall away.
THE REAL DEAL I suspect there are some people whose hearts are so closed to the truth of the resurrection that if Jesus literally appeared in our midst right now, some would claim it was a hologram or done with smoke and mirrors. If you don't believe by faith, I doubt you would believe if He stood before you with His wounded hands extended.
WALKING AMONG THEM When we were born the first time, we were born into this world. This is the world you can see, smell, taste, hear and feel. When you experience a spiritual birth, you are born again into a new world. From that moment on, we belong to a different world and we no longer feel at home in this world. There are two kinds of people living on this rock-the natives and the aliens. The natives are the ones who live for this world, the aliens are the ones who live here but realize there is another world to live for.
WHAT AN UNDERSTATEMENT! Paul warns us about receiving God's grace in vain, because there is the possibility that we can actually waste God's grace. Grace has been defined as "God's unmerited favor." But that definition isn't enough. To say that God's grace is "unmerited favor" is like saying Niagara Falls is a trickle. It's like saying the Grand Canyon is a ditch. It's like saying the Amazon is a creek. Grace is so much more than unmerited favor.
WAIT! THERE'S MORE! God does more than simply remove our sins--that's only half of the exchange. God gives us the righteousness of Christ.
ROYAL AMBASSADORS We are Ambassadors for Christ. We are the only exposure to Jesus many people will ever see. That's why we should live lives of loving kindness toward others. To show them that Jesus loves them. That's why we should always try to live in such a way that no shame or dishonor is attached to the name of Jesus.
UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT Every Christian should wear a sign around our neck that says, "Under New Management." What used to happen inside our lives has changed. I have a new purpose for living; a new attitude toward others; a new identity in Christ; and a new nature that's changing me. I've had an extreme makeover--on the inside.
TRUE GENEROSITY One of the greatest life changes you'll ever experience is when you allow God to change you to become a truly generous person. Are you generous? A truly generous person is too humble to admit, "I'm a generous person." But when someone is talking about you to others, does the word "generous" come out of their mouths?
IF IT'S BROKE, FIX IT... The church of the Lord Jesus Christ must change the way we share God's message. Notice I didn't say we need to CHANGE the message, I said we need to change the WAY we share God's message. There's a saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Well, the way we're sharing the gospel must be broke, because it's not working as well as it once did. We need to wake up to the sobering fact that we aren't doing a very good job of reaching people in our own nation. Keywords: Change, Technology, Stress, Future
DRY AS DUST Have you become old and unimpressed? Maybe it's time for a change of you to become like a little child. Look into the eyes of a child when they see a rainbow, or a butterfly, or a caterpillar, or a mud hole--that's joyful wonder. Most of us have lost and need to recapture that sense of fun and joy kids have.
THE BIG QUESTION Why do you do what you do for the Lord? Instead of focusing on WHAT you do for God, I want you to think about WHY you do it. WHY did you get up and come to church this morning? WHY did you give an offering to the Lord? WHY did you sing songs of praise? WHY are many of you teaching children, youth, or adults? In other words, what motivates you to serve God? Do you do it out of a sense of obligation, or out of a sense of love?
"RECALCULATING ROUTE..." Maybe you've made some wrong turns and arrived at some dead ends. God loves you and He is willing to recalculate your route to put you on the right track for abundant life. Don't give up on God, because He hasn't given up on you!
APPROACHABLE Before Jesus, God had always been so unapproachable that He told Moses that if anyone looked at Him, they would instantly perish. But with the birth of this son to a virgin. For the first time in history, God became Immanuel, God WITH us.
WELL DONE, GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT! Opportunities to serve God yesterday are gone, but you have the rest of today and the rest of your life to serve Him, so that when you stand before Him you can cast your crowns at his feet and hear Him say, "Well done, good and faithful servant!"
LEARNING CURVE Before you can learn to read, you've got to learn the alphabet. Before you can ever live the Christian life, you must learn this elementary spiritual principle: We walk by faith; not by sight. To me, that priceless principle is one of the foundational truths of the Christian life. We must learn to go beyond sight to faith.
AFTERLIFE Every person in every nation and culture on earth has to answer this question: What happens after a person dies? Basically, the answers to this question fall into three possible categories.
THE EYES OF FAITH If you wait until you see something before you believe, you will never believe. But if you believe first, then what you believe will be seen when you learn to use the eyes of faith.
THE CONSTANT NEED God's grace is operating right now. You needed God's grace back then when you accepted Christ, but you need it just as much at this second as well. The only person who doesn't need God's grace at this second is the person who never sins. Does anyone qualify?
GET BACK UP! You may be struggling and hurting right now because of all the personal pain you're having to endure. You may be pressured, but you WON'T be crushed; you may be perplexed, but you WON'T be left in despair; you may be attacked and persecuted, but you WON'T be abandoned by God; you might even be knocked down, but you WON'T be knocked out!
FILLING THE POT A pot or a vessel is designed and created to hold something, not to be an object in itself. Consider for a moment the pots in your kitchen cabinet. As long as they sit there empty, they aren't really fulfilling the reason they were made. A pot really doesn't truly become a pot until it's holding peas, spaghetti, or soup. In the same way, our lives are a contradiction until we understand that God created us to contain something.
LAW OF GRAVITY Paul says Satan's plan is to place a "think" veil between God's truth and the mind of an unbeliever. There are at least three truths Satan wants to keep covered from you. He wants to conceal the truth that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. He whispers, "You're a good person, you don't need Jesus." Satan also wants to conceal the truth about Jesus. He doesn't mind you thinking that Jesus was a great teacher like Plato or Buddha. He just doesn't want you to believe Jesus is the sinless Son of God and the only way to heaven. Satan even wants to hide the truth about who he is. Satan doesn't want you to believe in him, or to bow down and worship him. In fact, he wants to stay incognito. If you tell a person without Christ that Satan is blinding their minds the most common answer you'll get is, "That's impossible! I don't even BELIEVE in the devil!" You don't have to believe in the law of gravity to fall on your face either, but it's real.
LAWLESSNESS Some Christians are confused and think people in the Old Testament time were saved by keeping the Law. Nope. If that's the case, then nobody from the Old Testament times would be in heaven. So will there be any Old Testament characters in heaven? Sure. Moses will be there. Did he keep all the commandments? No. He murdered a guy. But he'll be there because he put His faith in God's plan. Will King David be there? Sure, but he broke a whole bunch of commandments. He'll be in heaven for the same reason you and I can go to heaven: he placed his faith in God and had a personal relationship with Him.
UNTAPPED RESOURCES Sometimes people think they lack confidence because when they face a challenge, they're afraid they don't have what it takes to be successful. You DON'T have what it takes, but God does! He has everything you need to be all that He wants you to be. He has a storehouse, a reservoir, an ocean of resources that He wants you to access. The sad thing is that many of us don't claim these resources.
THE MOST VALUABLE AUTOGRAPH Imagine an archaeologist digging near Capernaum in Galilee finds a clay jar with a sealed top, (just like the jars containing the Dead Sea Scrolls). He takes the jar to a laboratory and using the latest scientific technology, opens the jar. Inside, he finds a scroll of papyrus, perfectly preserved. As the scientists and scholars unroll it, they discover it is a letter written to Simon Peter and it is signed by Jesus of Nazareth. Can you imagine the stir that would create in the scientific and academic world? If it could be authenticated, could you imagine how much it would be worth? Millions? Billions? Trillions? No doubt, that letter would be the most valuable writing in the history of the world.
WHAT'S THAT SMELL?! You may have family members or friends who don't know the Lord. You've shared with them and tried to show them the Christian life. You've allowed the fragrance of Christ in your life to envelop them in the things you do and say. And yet, they still haven't come to faith in Christ. They hold their noses and say, "No thanks!" You need to remember they aren't rejecting you, they are rejecting Jesus. When you expose them to the beautiful aroma of Christ through your life and your lips, then you've done what God has expected of you. So don't be discouraged. Don't stop. Keep on loving them. Keep on sharing Christ with them.
SURRENDERING TO WIN When we surrender to Jesus, we haven't lost, we've won! Our victory is assured when we surrender completely to the rule and reign of Jesus Christ in our lives. The Bible says, "This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith." Some people stop here and think that since faith is the victory, that if I want more victory I must have more faith. Not at all.
DON'T WEAR IT OUT... In our culture we have worn out the phrase, "I'm sorry." We use it for everything from, "I'm sorry, but we're out of peanuts," to "I'm sorry I bumped into you." But the words "I'm sorry" originally meant, "I'm experiencing sorrow over what I did." In Corinthians 7, Paul writes about sorrow and repentance. "I am happy not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance...godly sorrow brings repentance" (2 Corinthians 7:9). So the Bible teaches that godly sorrow produces repentance. There is a kind of worldly sorrow that doesn't lead to repentance. When someone says, "I'm sorry" they might be saying, "I'm sorry I got caught." Or if they say, "I'm sorry" but they don't plan on changing their behavior, that isn't godly sorrow. Godly sorrow always produces repentance. When a person truly repents, their heart is broken over their sin.
LOVERS & FIGHTERS In our fallen, sinful, self-centered condition, we can't get along with others. But those of us who are followers of Jesus Christ live by a different standard. The only way we can get along with others is through the supernatural power of Jesus Christ. Just because you?re a Christian doesn't mean you automatically get along with everyone else in the church. There were conflicts in the church 2,000 years ago and there are still conflicts between Christians today.
ONE DEPOSIT, BIG RETURN It's hard to live up to the promise "satisfaction guaranteed" because there are plenty of people whose theme song is the old Rolling Stones ballad, "I can't get no satisfaction!" Some people will never be satisfied! The Bible teaches true satisfaction comes from having a relationship with God. And God guarantees we can have that. The term "salvation" covers more than just your original commitment to Christ. The Bible teaches we have been saved--that's justification; we're being saved--that's sanctification; and we WILL be saved--that's glorification. And God guarantees our salvation.
COSMIC KILLJOY Sadly, many people conceive of God in the same negative terms. To them, God is a cosmic killjoy who watches from heaven just waiting to catch them doing something wrong. They imagine Him shaking His finger at people saying, "No! No! Bad person! Stop that right now!" But the God of the Bible isn't trying to spoil your fun by constantly telling you, "No!" God loves you and He wants you to enjoy life to the fullest. I believe that God?s favorite word is, "Yes."
GROWL OR GROW The biggest question about our suffering is not "Why?" but "What?" What am I going to do in response to my suffering? You have a choice in the matter. When pain comes, some people grumble, some people gripe, some people groan, others grieve. Some people grunt and growl, but there are some people, like Paul, who GROW. The choice is yours!
LENDING A HELPING HAND Let me give you a visual definition of "comfort." Imagine an elderly man or woman is standing at the bottom of a steep set of stairs. They look up and wonder if they can make it. If you see their need and then come alongside them help them up the stairs, you are giving them comfort according to the Bible meaning of the word. If you see their need and just yell, "Use the handrail!"--that's not comfort. Or if you yell, "Go use the elevator around the corner!"--That's not comfort. In order to comfort them, you must come alongside them and physically give them your strength to help them.
FITS LIKE A GLOVE I can pick up this glove and tell it to pick up this Bible, and it can't do it. I can fuss at it and even demonstrate how to do it, but it still can't do it. But when I put my hand in it, that's when it becomes alive and can do anything I do. That's a simple but profound picture of the Christian life. Galatians 2:20 says, "Not I but Christ lives in me." Jesus can give you the strength to do anything. God says to love your enemies, and we don't have the strength to do it, but Christ in you can love your enemies. God tell us to give thanks in all things, but we don't have the strength to do it, but Christ in you can do it. He is my strength and I can do all things through Christ!
TETELESTAI! As horrifying as the physical agony of the cross was, the spiritual and mental agony of carrying the sins of the world was much worse. Jesus literally endured hell for us. When Jesus took our sin in His own body and experienced the hell of separation from God. He experienced the darkness of hell for us. He experienced the agony and torture of hell for us. As He moved closer to death, death must seemed to be as pleasant as a warm blanket on a cold night. Praise God, His suffering was over!
BROKEN BOND From the beginning of the beginning of the beginning, God the Father and God the Son had been co-equal and co-existent. They communed together in a relationship which Jesus described as "I and the Father are ONE." But for those few hours in which Jesus became sin for us, that bond was somehow broken. Did you notice Jesus addressed God with the title, "God"? Every other time Jesus spoke to God He called Him, "Abba" which means "Father" or "Daddy." The first word from the Cross was "Father, forgive them." The last word from the cross was "Father, into your hands..." But at this central moment of His suffering, Jesus called God, "Eloi" or simply "God." My two daughters have always called me "Daddy." This cry of Jesus would be like one of my daughters calling me Mr. Dykes.
ICE OR CLAY I'm amazed the two thieves died the same distance from Jesus on the cross. Yet one died trusting Jesus while the other died rejecting Jesus. That should serve as a warning to all of us that you can be close to Jesus and still die without trusting Him. How can two people be seated on the same pew and hear the same gospel, and one comes running to Jesus while the other person walks away unchanged? It's a mystery to me how anyone can see the cross and not give their heart to Christ. The same sun that melts ice will harden clay.
AMAZING GRACE We talk a lot about that word grace, but what is it really? You've probably heard the acrostic for GRACE that says it is God's Riches At Christ's Expense. That's nice, but it really doesn't define grace. Years ago, I learned a simple definition for grace: Grace is something I need, but don't deserve. To me, that says it all. Grace and mercy are two sides of the same coin. Grace is God giving me what I need, but don't deserve--His unconditional love and His full and free forgiveness. Mercy is God withholding what I DO deserve: death and hell.
BLESSED ARE THE INSULTED When you buy a new car, it has both standard equipment and options. In the Christian life, persecution isn't an option, it is standard equipment. Jesus didn't say, "Blessed are you IF people insult you." He said, "Blessed are you WHEN you are insulted."
PEACEMAKER Sometimes people ask a dying person, "Have you made your peace with God?" I know they mean well, but you and I cannot make peace with God. We don?t have to make peace with God, because Jesus already made it. We only have to accept His terms of peace. Jesus is the world's greatest peacemaker. The Bible says, "For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him [Jesus], and through him to reconcile to himself all things--by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." (Colossians 1:19-20)
GOD'S CONVICTION IS NOT CONDEMNATION The Holy Spirit doesn't convict us of sin to make us feel guilty. He convicts us so we'll realize the need to be clean. There is a huge difference between conviction and condemnation. The Bible says, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." (John 3:17) According to Romans 8:1, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." When you are dirty and sweaty it's a reminder you need to take a shower. The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin so we'll understand the need to confess our sin and experience God?s cleansing power.
HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU'VE REALLY FORGIVEN SOMEONE? How do you release someone who has hurt you? You forgive them. You don't do it for their sake; you do it for your sake. You don't forgive them because they ask you to forgive them; you do it because God has forgiven you. They may not every ask you to forgive them, but you can forgive them anyway. How do you know when you've truly forgiven someone? When you can think about them and it doesn't hurt anymore. People often say, "Forgive and forget." But outside of brain damage or senility, you CAN'T forget?but you can still forgive. You will never forget that messy divorce but you can get rid of the pain from it by forgiving the offender.
EXPECTING PERFECTION Once you decide to cooperate with God's change process, don't expect to see results overnight. But you CAN expect to see some long term results. The Bible says, "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6). Isn't it refreshing to know you aren't responsible for working on your life to bring about change? It is God who is working in you. That truth alone should set you free. God isn't expecting you to be perfect, so don't expect in yourself or in others.
GOT MEEK? Meekness is strength under control. In the same way God wants to lovingly break you and put you under His authority. He wants to make you sensitive to His leadership; ready at any time to respond to the commands of your Master. Rather than following your own will, you are following the will of God. As you consider your level of meekness, simply answer this question: Have you allowed god to break your stubborn will?
GOD IS STRONGER THAN US The opposite of being poor and spirit and mourning over your spiritual poverty is an attitude of being proud and unbroken in your belief that you can do anything. It's the attitude that says, "I don't need God's help or strength. I can do it myself!" Have ever tried to help a child do something, and they say, "Let ME do it!" That's our old sin nature that rises up and says, "I don't need any help. I can do it myself!" That attitude will get you in trouble.
NO VACANCY Playing God will wear you out. There was a time when King David tried to play God and deny his sin. He later wrote, "My strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity." (Psalm 32:4-5) Sometimes we try to run from pain by staying super busy. We ignore our pain by working 100 hours a week. Or we jump into some hobby or sport and it becomes a compulsion so we've got to be on the golf course, the tennis court, the Mahjong group, or the dominos table. You can even get so involved in religious activities, and it becomes an outlet to hide your pain. And before long you wonder why you're exhausted. When you play God, you feel like Atlas with the weight of the world upon your shoulders. Stop it. The last time I checked there was a no vacancy sign above the Trinity.
WHERE IS "UP YONDER?" Will there be a roll call up there? Well, we're going to learn in this message that God not only loves the whole world of humanity, but He loves individuals enough to write their names down in a book in heaven, and Jesus said we should rejoice, because our names are written there.
A NOTICEABLE DIFFERENCE As Christians, we don't have to make our lives extraordinary, we are extraordinary. Jesus Christ lives in us, and that makes us different. We are naturally supernatural and supernaturally natural. Every day, we have opportunities to show people how we are different. We turn the other cheek. We go the second mile. We pray for our enemies. We don't have to act different, we are different.
ENTHUSIASTIC EXCELLENCE Do you do sloppy, sub-par work? Do you only work hard when your boss or teacher is watching? God says that is the kind of attitude and behavior that will guarantee you fail in life. A lazy, sloppy employee brings shame to the name of Jesus. A Christian who is dedicated to enthusiastic excellence in everything he does presents a good testimony for Jesus. And in the same way, a Christian who is lazy and unreliable brings dishonor to the name of Jesus.
(part 2 of 2) NO PASSIVE PARENTING Nobody said it would be easy being a mom or dad. God's instructions for parents in Colossians 3:21 contains a warning against making your children bitter and discouraging them. There is a battle going on for the minds and hearts of your kids. This is not a time to retreat. This is not a time for passive parenting. You must be proactive in raising your kids in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
(part 1 of 2) OWNER'S MANUAL Kid's can drive their parents crazy sometimes--but for some of us, it's not a very long drive to start with! In this section of the Bible, we've been seeing how God gives very practical advice on how we should live in relationship with others. In this passage, we find God's directions for children and parents.
PRIMARY RELATIONSHIP Marriage is the primary relationship on the planet. Before God created parents and children, He established marriage. Before there were nations, there was a marriage. Before there was the church, there was a marriage. Before there were friends, there was one man married to one woman: That was God's first priority. If you are married, then loving your wife should be your first priority. You should love her more than your children, and your parents, and your friends.
AN AUDIENCE OF ONE Because we are so used to being entertained, it is easy to make the mistake of thinking a worship service is to entertain the audience. If you think it is like an opera, or a play where this is the stage and we're the performers--you've got it all wrong. Here's an important spiritual truth about worship: Worship is always for an audience of One. Every song, every prayer, every offering is to be directed to God Almighty. When we applaud, we really aren't applauding the talents or efforts of the person or group singing. Our applause is to show appreciation to the audience of One who has filled our hearts with grace and made all this possible.
OH, THE POSSIBILITIES! Is peace possible? Can there be peace in the Middle East? With God all things are possible. A more pressing question is, "Is peace possible for you?" In the midst of your pain and suffering, it may seem impossible. But with God all things are possible.
YOU ARE WHAT YOU WEAR Have you noticed what you wear often determines how you behave? Clothing--especially when it is a special uniform--can actually influence the way we act. When you are aware of being clothed with the Lord Jesus Christ, it will change the way you think and the way you act.
DIRTY LAUNDRY In some ways, we're like Lazarus. He was saved, but he still stunk. He was rescued but he was still reeking. He was energized, but he was still entrapped. He had life, but he wasn't liberated. Jesus could have exercised His divine power and Poof! The grave clothes would have disappeared miraculously. But I think He wanted to involve the other people in what He was doing. Fortunately, there were people there who cared enough to get their hands dirty and obey the words of Jesus and help Lazarus remove those old grave clothes. And I'm quite certain there was someone standing by who quickly found a clean garment to put around Lazarus as well.
THE BIG BLUE MARBLE Things look a lot different when you're up high. I've traveled the globe enough to know our planet is scooped out and piled up with valleys and mountains. But when you look at our world from outer space, the surface appears completely smooth. We know there are deep valleys and high mountains, but when you back away few thousand miles, it appears as smooth as a billiard ball. Life is the same way. Up close, the challenges of life may appear to be unclimbable or uncrossable, but when you look at problems from the perspective of being seated with Jesus in the heavenly realms, those problems don't seem nearly as big and scary.
IMPRESSING GOD The trouble with doing things to impress God is it forces you to keep coming up with more and better things to do for God. For instance, if you really want God to bless you, then maybe you can do more than the average person to earn more of His favor. Throughout history people have become monks, fasted, or endured masochistic pain as religious acts of devotion. Paul refers to this in verse 23 when he writes about "harsh treatment of the body." Those kinds of acts may appear valuable, but the Bible says they are worthless.
MIRACLE MONGERS There are plenty of people who call themselves Christians who aren't content to study, pray, and serve the Lord--they are looking for a feeling that comes from the next miracle. Lest you misunderstand me, let me assure you I believe in miracles, signs and wonders. I believe God is still performing miracles today. But the danger exists when believers become so obsessed with seeking visions and experiencing miracles they neglect the Word of God.
LEGAL THERMOMETER Legalism is a terrible threat to the spiritual health of churches and individual Christians. It's the AIDS of the Christian life. There are legalistic churches and grace-based churches. It's important you are able to distinguish between the two. Some people prefer legalist churches, because when they follow the rules it gives them a chance to feel they are doing well as a Christian--especially compared to the other people who aren't keeping the rules as much as they are.
LEGAL FREEZE The difference between legalism and grace is in the motive behind your obedience. If you obey God with the belief it will improve your standing with God, or that He will love you less if you don't, then you're sliding into the gloom of frozen legalism. But if you obey God because you love Him and know you are deeply loved, then you are basking in the warmth of light of His grace.
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED ON THE CROSS? In this age of computing, we have generated a new word: Multitasking. That means while you are working on one particular task, your computer can be working on two or three other processes simultaneously. You may think that's neat, but God is the original Multitasker. He can ignite the mighty sun in the sky to hold the planets in orbit, and He can use that same sun to ripen your tomatoes as if He had nothing else to do. As I began to study this passage I realized there were several divine tasks occurring simultaneously at the Cross of Jesus. At the same moment Jesus Christ was being nailed to the cross, God was also nailing three other things to the cross.
DEEP ROOTS Too many Christians are like tumbleweeds. We've all known Christians who got sucked into every new fad and fashion that comes along. A tumbleweed can become a big plant, but it lacks deep roots. Deep roots in people, as well as plants, create stability and security. The only kind of Christian who can survive periods of personal storms and emotional droughts are those who have sunk deep roots into the nourishment and stability that Jesus gives.
ELECTRONIC ISOLATION We live in an age of marvelous electronic connection, but it has only created miserable personal isolation. Today a person can sit in front of a computer monitor and feel like they have friends all over the world. There are dozens of websites facilitating social networking. To me, this trend demonstrates how hungry people are for genuine relationships. A Jesus church is a place where all different kinds of people can be united in love. A church is not a showcase for shiny saints, we are a hospital for sick sinners. We are to be a safe harbor for those whose lives have been shipwrecked.
A SECRET REVEALED Paul suffered more than most of us can imagine. By his own admission in 2 Corinthians he had been beaten eight times, shipwrecked three times, and once was stoned so badly they left him for dead. But rather than complaining about all his suffering, he boasted about them--he rejoiced in his suffering! He had uncovered a mystery that enabled him to deal with pain and adversity with a positive attitude.
IT ONLY TAKES A SINGLE LIE Why are we alienated from God? Because of our evil thinking and behavior. We are all born with a sin problem. The reason we act evil is because our minds are evil. We are both mentally and morally bankrupt before God. How many of you have ever told a lie? Hold up your hand. Those of you who didn't hold up your hand are lying right now! How many lies does it take to make a liar? Just one. We aren't liars because we lie--we lie because we are liars. You can never become a Christian until you're willing to admit you are a sinner who is separated from God.
NOT ONE RECANTED If the corpse of Jesus was stolen and hidden, either His enemies did it, or His friends did it. If His enemies took the body, when the message of the resurrection started spreading, all they had to do was produce the body and the movement would have died quickly and quietly. And suppose for argument's sake, that the disciples took the body of Jesus, and then they made up the legend of the resurrection. If they were deceitful enough to do that, surely they would have had a selfish motive leading to some personal benefit for them. So what did the disciples receive? History tells us all of them were abused and tortured; and except for John, they all died by execution. Surely, one or more of them would have recanted their story in the face of the death--but all of them went to their deaths with unshakable profession that Jesus rose from the dead. Would dishonest men be willing to die for a lie?
YOU WEREN'T THERE...BUT HE WAS! If I were to ask you what you were doing last year, you may try to remember. At least that would be a valid question, because you were doing something a year ago. But if I asked you what you were doing a thousand years ago, you couldn't answer that. You weren't doing anything because you didn't exist! Jesus was in existence long before the world came to be. We find His own supporting testimony of this when He said, "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am." (John 8:58)
THE MARVELOUS CATCH Redemption is a lot like catch and release. He is the Fisher of Men. Salvation is all about Jesus. Jesus sought you, caught you, brought you, bought you, and taught you; then He released you into this world to live a life worthy of that kind of love. And when you stand before God, He won't ask you, "Have you lived a good life?" He will ask you what you did in relation to His son Jesus. And if you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus, you can kneel before God and hear Him say to you, "Well done, good and faithful servant." (Matthew 25:21)
YOUR WILDEST DREAMS Our world still defines success as living in a big house, driving a new car, or having a lot of money. But in the midst of this lust for financial success, people aren't satisfied. They are hungry for someone to tell them about God's purpose for their lives. If you define success as finding and following God's purpose, then God wants you to be success-full beyond your wildest dreams.
ULTIMATE FAITH It's not a question of whether you have faith, because everyone has faith. When you mail a letter you're putting faith in the postal system. When you drive over a bridge you're putting trust in the architect and builders of that bridge. The key question is: In what (or whom) are you placing your ultimate faith?
PROMISES KEPT Caleb had been promised a piece of property 45 years earlier. Since that promise, he spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness with a bunch of dissatisfied, unfaithful, whining people. Then under Joshua's leadership, Caleb spent five years fighting as a soldier against the Canaanite kingdoms. Even after 45 years, he still held onto God's promise. "I remember God's promise to me; now give me this hill country!" He never let go of that promise--that's what the Bible calls persistence.
THE RIPPLE EFFECT You may think your sin only affects your life, but it always affects others. Your sins are like a pebble dropped in a pool of water--the ripples always spread out and touch those around you. Because of Achan's sin, 36 soldiers died. Because of Achan's sin, his entire family died. Sometimes people try to justify sin by saying, "It's my life, as long as what I'm doing doesn't hurt anybody else what's wrong with it?" The problem with that is that none of us lives in a vacuum. We are connected to other people and our sins always hurt those we love.
OCCUPIED TERRITORY Let me give you a definition of a spiritual stronghold: An outpost that the enemy has built in your mind. Think of it this way: Your life is occupied territory; it belongs to Jesus. But the enemy, Satan, is always on the attack. If you have a weakness, he will try to exploit it. He will try to build a fortress, a stronghold and use it as his base of operations to thwart your spiritual growth.
THE SAME MEAL 43,800 TIMES IN A ROW Do you know what the Israelites ate for 40 years? Manna. God supernaturally fed them with little white wafers that appeared on the ground every morning. When they first saw it they called it "manhu," which means "What is it?" Based on the description in the Bible, the closest food we have to it today is Corn Flakes. Corn Flakes are okay, but can you imagine eating corn flakes every meal--for 40 years? It got so bad they longed for the food they ate back in Egypt. Many of the Israelites wanted to return to Egypt, where they had been slaves. When you are living in the wilderness, you find yourself longing for the life you had before you were a Christian.
SKELETONS IN YOUR CLOSET? God took Rahab from the House of Shame to the Hall of Fame. God can change a lady of the night into a lady of the light. He can change a woman of ill repute into a woman of illustrious reputation. God can turn a harlot into a heroine. And in this message we're going to examine just how He changes a prostitute into a princess.
YOU ARE HERE Where are you on the map of salvation? Are you in Egypt? Then you need Jesus to bring you out of spiritual bondage. Are you a new Christian in the wilderness? You need to learn God's Word and keep on growing? Are you someone who has been a Believer for many years, but you're still wandering the wilderness? You need to make the leap of faith into the Promised Land.
AS GOOD AS IT GETS That's the difference between Jesus and the devil. The devil always serves his best first and then it gets progressively worse. The world, the flesh, and the devil always operate according the law of diminishing returns. What starts as a moment of pleasure always ends up as an eternity of misery. But with Jesus, He always saves the best for last. If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, the best part of your existence is ahead of you--it may come after you die, but it will come. If you aren't a Christian, this is as good as it will ever get for you.
"I WAS WRONG" We have now reached the climax of the book of Job. God finished questioning Job, and was waiting for Job's reply. If Job had argued with God and said something like, "Yeah, I heard all of what you said, but, Lord, it's just not fair that I'm suffering! What are you going to do about it, God?" If that had been his response that would have been the end of the story, and we probably wouldn't even be reading the book of Job! Instead, Job finally gets it and responds to God in the proper way. If you are suffering and hurting, this is way you need to react as well.
LOVE LETTERS But don't miss the point. The Bible is not a science textbook that tells us HOW we were created. It is God's love letter that tells us WHY we were created. Man is arrogant enough to suggest how life began, but everything man says is pure speculation and hypothesis, because as God reminded Job, nobody was around to see it!
CHAIN REACTION If God had delegated creation to me, I would have done things differently. I would have created a world where there is no disease or accidents or, terrorism, birth defects, or killer weather. But wait--God did create a world like that didn't He? But he also created something extremely powerful: Human choice. He gave mankind the option to be cruel and unkind, or to be loving and kind. He didn't create us as zombies or robots who would automatically bow before Him and love Him. When mankind chose to sin, we unleashed a horrible chain reaction of natural and accidental evil into the world.
GONERS Do you realize everything we see around us is temporary? All the mansions, all the skyscrapers, all the money, all the fame will soon be gone. But when you know Jesus you are in a permanent relationship. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 4:18, "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."
SEEING PAST THE PAIN Job used his tears as telescopes to look ahead to what God had in store for him. Even in his pain, Job confessed his belief in the goodness of God. He believed he would meet God and that God would forgive his sins. As we join Job on his journey in this lesson, notice his temptation, testimony and trust.
DISQUALIFIED Job expressed his frustration at not being able to talk to God as an equal. He cried out for an umpire, a mediator. He needed someone to negotiate with God so His rod of punishment would be withdrawn. Too many people think they don't need this spiritual mediator. They think they can find God on their own. But if you've ever committed one sinful act, or had one sinful thought in your life, you have disqualified yourself from being a mediator with God.
THE INSOMNIAC During Job's time of testing, he suffered from the insomnia of despair. If you've ever lost a night's sleep worrying about something, maybe there's something you can learn from this message. We're going to consider the reasons for insomnia and then we?re going to talk about the remedy for it.
HOW TO HANDLE AN INSULT Job was the target of hostility from his friends, but he refused to direct hostility back toward them. When someone insults us, our human nature screams out to say, "Yeah? Well, the same to you and more of it!" Job refused to become bitter about his friends' false accusations. He said, "I'm not going to treat you the way you treated me. I'm going to treat you the way I want to be treated."
THE REWARD God can take the most terrible situation imaginable and make something beautiful out of it. Our God is an awesome God and I'm glad He is in control. Whenever you go through tough times, you can either look for the junk or you can look for the joy. And in the end, God rewarded Job's persistence and patience.
FALSE CHARGES Whenever we suffer, we immediately look for someone to blame. If we can blame our suffering on our parents, our spouse, our co-workers or society in general, we can justify our bitterness, and it prevents us from moving on to becoming whole. And God gets blamed for a lot of suffering today. But in spite of his pain, and his unanswered questions, Job never charged that God was wrong.
THE HEDGE Satan is always trying to breach God's hedge of protection. Unless God had allowed Satan to test Job, he never could have touched Job. When our faith is firm and we pass the test, God establishes the hedge even stronger than it was before.
ALL-WEATHER FAITH What kind of faith do you have? Is it a fair weather faith? As long as things are good, you're okay with God? Or do you have a foul weather faith--when a crisis comes you go running to the Lord? Jesus said that the Heavenly Father makes it rain on the just and the unjust alike, so make sure you have an all-weather faith.
SAFE HARBOR We are attached to Jesus by a lifeline of faith. A lifeline is not that crease in the palm of your hand. A lifeline is not a phone call you make on a television quiz show. A lifeline is our faith connection with Jesus Christ who is already in heaven. Sure, there are waves and storms out here, but there is safety and security in the harbor. Jesus, our anchor has been firmly established there, so it's our job to hang onto hope.
EASY TARGET We all have problems. Some are big problems and some are small problems. Do you know the difference between a big problem and a small problem? A big problem is anything I'm going through and a small problem is anything you're going through. It?s like minor surgery--it's never minor when it's on you! If you isolate yourself from others, you become an easy target for the devil's discouragement.
A RUNAWAY TRAIN If you let your mind run away, you can start entertaining all kinds of thoughts about bad things that could happen. As you look toward the rest of this year, is there a feeling of fear of what might happen? As you look toward the next couple of years, is there uneasiness in your spirit? That feeling didn't come from God. God is not the author of fear. The devil is the sinister minister of fear. He knows that if he can keep you in fear, you'll be ineffective as a Christian.
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST There are no beauty contests when it comes to God's love. There is nothing you can do to earn God?s love. He knows me for who I really am, and He still loves me--warts and all. I think that's one reason why the animation movies "Shrek" and "Shrek 2" are so popular. Fiona was once a beautiful princess who lost her beauty. But ugly old Shrek loves her for who she is on the inside, not on the outside. And in a way, his love makes her beautiful. That's the kind of love Jesus has for you.
PIECES OF A BROKEN HEART Hope is what gives people the reason to go on even when their hearts are broken. I thought, "That's exactly what Jesus does. He gives out hope to everyone who encounters Him." Jesus claimed that He has power to heal a broken heart. He said, "He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted." (Luke 4:18 NKJV) Has your heart been broken? Has there been such pain and disappointment that you've wondered, "What's the use?" Jesus is willing and able to heal your broken heart, but you've got to be willing to give him all the pieces.
40-YEAR-OLD BABIES The greatest tragedy in the church today is there are thousands of people who claim to be Christians, but they are stuck in a level of spiritual immaturity. They are spiritual babies. We all love babies. We love to ooh and ahh over them. But there's nothing attractive about a 40-year-old baby.
TO INFINITY AND BEYOND We are finite people. It's hard for us to even grasp the concept of an eternal God. Our lives are defined by beginnings and endings. But God didn't have a beginning and He'll never have an ending. When the Bible says God is infinite, here's the plain meaning: God isn't limited by time or space. He doesn't wear a watch. He's never been late--or early. God doesn't occupy any space, yet He occupies it all. He's never had to stop and ask for directions because He's never been lost.
AS THE WORLD TURNED Don't be surprised when you encounter skeptics who mock and ridicule you because you believe in the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. This isn't some fantasy doctrine that has been dreamed up in the past 100 years by nutty American preachers. Since the beginning of the creation, God has been moving this world toward an event that will serve as the culmination and climax of His dealing with mankind.
THE PRODIGAL PIG You see, a pig returns to its mud because it is the nature of a pig to love mud. Don't be surprised when you see some people start attending church, and seem to clean up their lives, only to go running back into the same old filthy, sinful lifestyle. Their nature was never changed. A counterfeit Christian is like that old pig. The lesson of the prodigal pig is this: You can clean a person up on the outside, but unless their inner nature is changed, they will always return to sin.
FOOL'S GOLD Our faith is more precious than gold, but counterfeit Christians possess a false faith--it's like fool's gold. Their faith may appear to be real on the surface, but when it is put to the test it is found to be fake. When a counterfeit Christian faces the heat, they generally give up on God--because their faith is not genuine. But when a genuine Believer endures painful trials, their faith stands the test.
RESCUE PARTY God loves you so much He organized a search and rescue mission just for you. He sent His only Son all the way from the riches of heaven to seek you and save you. God loves you more than you can ever imagine.
SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE In Old Testament times, there were false prophets, and Peter warned there would be false teachers in the church. There were false teachers in the church 2,000 years ago, and they are still around today. A comparison and contrast of false teachers and faithful teachers.
SEVEN-IN-ONE Pastor David Dykes explains wonders 5-7 of the Seven Wonders contained in Bible. Most people will never see all seven of these natural wonders, but anyone with a copy of the Bible can experience the seven wonders of the Word of God. When you get a firm grasp on the Bible and start applying it to your life, you'll find Jesus on every page.
THE LIFE-CHANGING BOOK Pastor David Dykes explains wonders 1-4 of the Seven Wonders contained in Bible. The Bible is the supernatural Word of God; people who read it and obey it have an experience like the dawning of a new day. It changes their lives.
SCARY SUBJECT? Give me a home anytime rather than a tent! That's what the Bible promises us. This body is susceptible to pain, weariness, and hunger. Our resurrection body will be like the body of our Lord. In heaven there will be no pain, no sorrow, no sickness and death. That's why death isn't a scary subject for a follower of Jesus Christ.
HE'S GOT MY VOTE The future of America is at stake in every Presidential election, but the future of the universe doesn't depend on who is sitting in the White House in Washington. It all depends on Who is sitting on the Great White throne in heaven. The election spoken of in the Bible is the act whereby God elects men and women to be His children. It is a Divine Election for salvation. And it is possible to be absolutely sure about this election.
A SOLID BASE When the ancient Egyptians built the great pyramids, they had to start with a perfect foundation in order to build up toward the pinnacle. The same is true about spiritual growth. An examination of the seven layers of spiritual health.
CLAIM TICKET God?s promises are certain, they are conditional, and they reveal His character. There are over 7,000 promises God has made to you in the Bible. How many of them have you claimed for yourself? God offered these precious promises to you, but they are worthless unless you claim them.
LIKE A DEER IN HEADLIGHTS It's interesting to notice the different ways animals respond to light. When a cockroach is exposed to the light, it goes scampering toward the nearest darkness. Deer often freeze. Moths fly right toward the light. People respond in different ways, too. You may be running from Jesus. Or you may be frozen by fear or doubt. But God wants you to turn from your darkness and run into the God's light.
DEATH & TAXES When the Bible says "It is appointed for men to die once" it is speaking of the absolute certainty of death. We live in a day of uncertainties. Nations rise and fall, the stock market goes up and goes down, spouses leave, jobs are cut back. Someone said the only two certain things are death and taxes. But there are many folks who have figured out how to avoid paying taxes, but nobody except Jesus figured out how to cheat death. It's the only true certainty.
DELIVERY Loneliness hurts. It's not uncommon to feel so lonesome you could cry. But the key to overcoming loneliness is to seek to bring other people out of their loneliness. In so doing, you will be delivered from your loneliness. Sometimes all it takes it a word or gesture of kindness.
HEARTS When the Bible speaks of the heart, it is referring not to the fist-sized muscular pump in your chest, but to the moral and intellectual control center of your life. In the Bible there are a little over 1,000 chapters, and the word "heart" appears almost 800 times. That means the Bible has something to say about the human heart in nearly every chapter!
A TANK FULL OF GRACE The God of all grace offers you an unlimited supply of His wonderful grace. But unless you receive His grace by faith, you'll sputter and stall spiritually. You may run out of gas, but you never have to run out God's grace!
THE GRIP THAT KEEPS ON GRIPPING When you are worrying about something, you can't be praying about it. But when you are praying about something you can't be worrying about it. Too many Christians make the mistake of getting on their knees and telling God about their problems; then they get up and keep on carrying the burden themselves. Like the old song says, "Take your burdens to the Lord and leave them there."
LEARNING TO FLY Some of you may think God is harsh toward you right now because He's stirred up your nest. Maybe God knows you've been stuck in your comfort zone too long. God loves you so much He is stirring up your life and He may be getting ready to push you out of your nest of complacency. Or you may have already been pushed out and it seems as if you're plummeting toward a hard landing. Don't worry God will be there to catch you. It may be terrifying at first, but God knows what He's doing. Who cares? God cares--like an eagle coaxing its young to fly.
THE BEST-DRESSED LIST Can you really dress for success? It all depends on your definition of success. If success to you is working harder and harder to advance farther and farther in your career so you can buy more and more toys--then, yes, the way you dress will affect that. The Bible's definition of success is this: finding and following God's will.
FLOAT LIKE A BUTTERFLY... Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never fly! Instead, God allows us to experience struggles, pain, and suffering because He wants us to be able to float above our circumstances like a beautiful butterfly.
THE GREAT GIVEAWAY Have you discovered the secret of God's strength? If you do, the rest of your life can be the best of your life. Here's how: Pray like never before, because God's clock is winding down. Show love to others so deeply that you welcome strangers into your life. Give your life away to others--but do it in God's strength.
THE MODERN COLISEUM Although Christians aren't being thrown to the lions, our contemporary "crowd" still heaps abuse on everyone who is a fully devoted follower of Christ. They just use different weapons. Instead of spears, fires, and wild animals, the crowd today employs ridicule and scorn to make fun of Christians.
OBEDIENCE REQUIRED There's something miraculous about God's truth. If you don't USE it you LOSE it. You can't put God's truth in your pocket and save it for a rainy day. When you hear it, you must act on it. Ask God to show you areas of your life where obedience is required.
LIFE ISN'T FAIR We expect life to be fair. We can't understand why good people suffer, and bad people seem to be getting all the breaks. We want to say, "It just isn't fair!" No, life isn't fair, but God is good. And when it seems like your life is out order?when life malfunctions, there are four ways to respond.
GOD ALWAYS ANSWERS PRAYER Not only is God listening to what we say to others, His ear is attuned when we talk to Him. He always answers prayer. Sometimes people pray and don't get the answer they want so they wonder, "Is God really listening to me?" He is always listening, but that doesn't mean He will always grant your requests. I've said many times: When you ask for something and the request is not right, God answers: No. When you ask for something and you aren't right, God answers: Grow! When you ask for something and the timing is not right, God answers: Slow. But when you ask for something and the request, the timing, and you are right, God answers: Go!
JESUS' KILLER Imagine the shock of bearing all our sins to Jesus' entire system?a sinless, holy man being defiled with the humiliation of every murder, rape, robbery, and lie every committed. It was the foul rottenness polluting His pure personality that killed Him?not the nails. Have you ever seen the significance in the fact that Jesus only survived the cross for six hours? It was common for crucified men to linger for many days before they died. The two criminals crucified with Jesus had their knees broken so they would die, but Jesus was already dead. If you were filling out a death certificate for Jesus and it asked for the cause of death, don't write "crucifixion." Don't write "Roman Execution." The true cause of death was carrying our sins. The strain of carrying that load overwhelmed His entire system and that's what killed him.
WE CAN'T ALWAYS DO WWJD The question, "What would Jesus do?" doesn't work in every situation. First of all, we may not know what Jesus would do in any given situation. He was always doing the opposite of what people expected. In addition, if we knew what Jesus would do, that doesn't mean we could do what Jesus would do. For instance, when Jesus saw his disciples out on the Sea of Galilee, He simply walked out on the water to meet them. If you're fishing out on the lake and I'm standing on the shore, and I want to join you, I know the answer to "What Would Jesus Do?" But that certainly doesn't mean I could do what He did! The only time we can be 100 percent sure we can ask and answer the question WWJD? is when we are suffering.
THE SECOND MILE Are you a one mile worker? Are you a single mile student? Do you do only the bare minimum that is expected? Or do you go the second mile and leave the mark of excellence on your work? People will always remember second-mile work.
CHRISTIAN ACTIVISM A study of four biblical statements representing four different dimensions of life. In all these relationships, our response should be God-directed.
LIBERATION Right now, some of you are in bondage. You may chained to your past, or by your problems, or by your pain. You're still bleeding from some emotional or relational beating that you endured. You may think, "Well, when God sets me free, then I'll praise Him." No! Start praising Him NOW and you'll find that the chains slipping away. Pardon me for using so many song lyrics, but I can't help but remember the great lines in the old song from the group Truth that says, "For the chains that seem to bind you serve only to remind you that they drop powerless behind you when you praise Him" Have you discovered the liberating power of praise?
HOW TO BE POLITICALLY INCORRECT In America today, it's okay to be religious and to talk about God in vague terms. But if you start talking about the blood of Christ, or that Jesus is the only way to heaven--watch out, you are going to be in trouble. As I've predicted for years, we have arrived at a time where Bible-believing Christians are labeled as mental Neanderthals because we oppose such liberating ideas as same-sex marriages. But that's the way it's always been. One of the early Christians, named Stephen, had the audacity to stand up and say that Jesus was alive and standing at the right hand of God, and what did they do? They stoned him to death.
RELIGIOUS HYPOCRITES A religious hypocrite is someone who talks about praying but seldom prays. They talk about how the Bible is the Word of God, but they seldom read it or carry it to church. People who don't go to church often use the presence of hypocrites to keep them away. When someone says to me, "I don't go to church because it's full of hypocrites," I usually respond, "Well, come on anyway, we've always got room for one more!"
BEAUTIFUL MUSIC Every quartet has a lead singer who carries the melody line. In much the same way, faith leads the way in the Christian life, Hope is the first tenor, love is the baritone and the Word is the bass singer.
THE BIBLE'S IMPERFECT PEOPLE I love to read about the great characters of the Bible, because the Bible doesn't try to cover up their mistakes and sins. Noah was a great man, but he got drunk and laid around naked--two of his sons had to cover him up. When he woke up he cursed his other son for looking at him naked. Abraham was a great man, but when he visited Egypt, he lied and said Sarah was his sister instead of his wife. Jacob was a man of faith, but he had history of dirty deals. Moses did some great things, but he murdered a man. King David, a man after God's own heart, committed adultery and murder. Even the big fisherman writing this letter denied he knew Jesus and cursed in front of a teenage girl. The Bible is about real people who made tons of real mistakes.
PERSONALITY Being holy makes you different, but it doesn't make you weird. To be holy, you don't have to shave your head and carry a huge cross around in the streets. Or you don't have to take a vow of chastity, poverty, silence, or move to a monastery. Being holy means living such a God-filled life of kindness and gentleness that your life becomes winsome to others. Consider the lifestyle of the most holy man who ever lived. Jesus hung out with drunkards and prostitutes. He told stories. He made people laugh. He was without sin, and he never compromised His Divine nature, but He had the kind of personality that the scriptures say "the common people heard him gladly." The only people who didn't like Jesus were the uptight religious leaders who were more interested in an external kind of holiness that was displayed by the way they dressed and the kind of food that ate or didn't eat.
IT'S THE SAME TODAY AS YESTERDAY I've often been asked the question: How were people in the Old Testament time saved? How would you answer that question? You may be tempted to say, "By obeying the Old Testament Law." If you think that, you'd be wrong. Nobody could obey the law. And what about Noah and Abraham? They lived and died before the Law was given through Moses. Here's the correct answer: People in the Old Testament time were saved in exactly the same way we are today--by grace through faith.
GOD'S COFFEEPOT When you're being tested it's important to remember God set a limit to what Satan could do in testing Job. In the same way, our trials may come from Satan, but they are filtered by God. When I make coffee every morning, I put a paper filter in the coffee maker. I don't want to have the coffee grounds in my cup. It's good to know that all of your trials have to pass through the filter of God's grace, and the filter of His mercy, and the filter of His omnipotence.
PERMANENCE I like the world "permanent." So many things in life aren't permanent. I have pants that claim to be permanent press, but I doubt they'll still have their crease in a hundred years. Ladies go the beauty salon and get a permanent on their hair. Ladies how long does a permanent last? There's something new called permanent cosmetics in which lipstick or other cosmetics are surgically applied to the face--see if that's permanent in 1,000 years. Permanent markers aren't really permanent either. But our home in heaven is as permanent as God Himself. You can rejoice that you have a permanent home in heaven. Jesus said, "In my Father's house there are many rooms. I am going there to prepare a place for you." (John 14:2) There is no inheritance tax, and no probate court can ever take it away from you. Your title and name have been recorded in the Lamb's Book of Life in heaven. That's a great reason to rejoice!
HOMESICK FOR HEAVEN The word "home" is a powerful word. It means so much more than a house or an apartment where you live; it's a place dear to your heart. Have you ever lived somewhere or visited somewhere and you seemed "out of place?" In your heart you felt a longing and a tugging to return home? We call that homesickness. As you grow closer to Jesus through your relationship with Him, the more out of place you will feel in this world. You'll find yourself becoming homesick for heaven, and the pleasures and allures of this world become less and less appetizing.
THE TANGLED WEB WE WEAVE The word "tolerance" has undergone the same change. Tolerance used to mean, "respecting the beliefs and practices of others without agreeing with them." The new use of the word tolerance means that I must not only allow but I must accept the beliefs and practices of those with whom I disagree. This new tolerance came to be in a postmodern world where objective truth no longer exists. There are only subjective opinions and if someone's truth differs from your truth you must accept it as being as valid as your truth; if you don't, you are intolerant.
A BROKEN COMPASS When a person continually ignores the dictates of his conscience, the conscience can become faulty. You can take a perfectly good compass that is pointing north, and you can hold a magnet next to the compass, and the needle will rotate and no longer be a reliable guide. The same thing happens to your conscience when you expose it to repeated sin--it no longer is reliable guide. Your conscience doesn't become ruined instantly, it happens gradually.
UNEXPECTED GOD Many people think God's ways are so mysterious they are beyond our understanding. Perhaps the phrase "God moves in mysterious ways" was coined because in the Bible, God often did the unexpected. For instance, instead of using Moses when he was 40 years old, God waited until Moses was 80--that's moving in a mysterious way! Instead of using Gideon's army of 32,000 soldiers, God told Gideon to whittle his ranks down until only 300 soldiers remained--that's pretty mysterious. God seldom acts or moves the way we think He should. Instead of having the Messiah, the King of the Jews born in a great palace, He was born to a peasant girl in a barn. Instead of having the Messiah placed on a great throne of gold, God had the Messiah nailed to a cross of wood. Unexpected? God specializes in the unexpected.
EASE ON DOWN THE ROAD Have you ever been excited about an opportunity and suddenly found the door closed? The worst thing you can do is to camp out at that closed door. Don't quit--keep on moving, and God will direct your paths. But what about "waiting on the Lord?" Waiting is not a passive experience. Waiting on the Lord is acting like the waiter or server in a restaurant who takes your order and brings your food. Waiting on the Lord is asking God, "May I take Your order? Is there anything else You need?" God doesn't tip--but His retirement benefits are out of this world!
AN EYE FOR AN EYE? Jesus taught we should not be the kind of person who seeks to get even. In Matthew 5:38-39 He said, "You have heard that it was said, 'eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also." "An eye for an eye" may sound cruel, but at the time this Old Testament law was given, it was merciful. Human nature demands if someone blinds you in one eye, you want to kill them. The Old Testament law taught limited revenge. If they broke out your front tooth, you should limit your revenge to breaking out their front tooth. But someone said "An eye for an eye would leave the whole world blind" so Jesus introduced the concept of grace--not responding in anger, but giving people what they need--forgiveness. It was a revolutionary concept, and it still is. Forgiveness is expensive, but it's not nearly as expensive as seeking revenge.
BROKEN CHINA IS VALUABLE To us, a broken dish is worthless, or a broken television is no good, but to God, brokenness makes a vessel more usable. God uses broken things. The little boy brought the five loaves and two fish to Jesus and He broke them in order to feed thousands. When Mary brought the spikenard of perfume to anoint Jesus, the vessel had to be broken before the fragrance filled the room. And the body of Jesus had to be broken before we could be forgiven. My personal prayer continues to be that God will use my life to give Him glory, and I realize I must be broken for Him to do that.
PEEL ME A GRAPE "God helps those who help themselves" it is seldom spoken in kindness and usually spoken as a harsh statement challenging someone to get up from their pity party and get to work. This is a half-truth because the Bible does teach God won't bless laziness. Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 3:10-12, "We gave you this rule: 'If a man will not work, he shall not eat.' We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy, they are busybodies (lazy-good-for-nothings). Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ, to settle down and earn the bread they eat." Let's imagine that you need a job to feed your family. You should get on your knees and ask God to give you a job, but then you shouldn't get up and sit by the phone and just expect some employer to call you out of the blue and offer you a job. Don't do anything until you pray, but then get out and knock on doors and put in applications. That's what Jesus meant when He told us to ask, seek, and knock. We've all met slackers who created the need for such a biblical misquote. Laziness is part of our sinful nature. Some people would love to just lay around and have God put food in their mouth and then massage their jaws to chew it, and tickle their throats so they'll swallow it.
THE MONEY PIT Let's face it: It's not money people love--it's the things that money buys--all the stuff. When your life is driven by a desire to have more and more stuff, you can suffer from what I'm calling possession obsession. Americans are notorious for spending money they don't have to buy things they don't need to impress people they don't even like! This obsession with getting more and more is what the Bible warns against. Paul writes in verse 9 that people who are driven by a desire to get rich fall into a trap. It's the money trap--and there are many money myths that catch people in the money trap.
HARD LESSONS Sometimes when a toddler stomps his foot and says, "No!" Parents laugh and say, "Isn't that cute?" But it's not cute, it's dangerous. When your children willfully disobey you, and you spank them, you are teaching them an important life lesson: They are not a law unto themselves. Someone (parents) has moral authority over him and there are unpleasant consequences to disobeying authority. If your child doesn't learn that lesson they will have trouble in school, trouble at work, and trouble with the law. Most kids only need about four or five real spankings in their life to get the point--although it took many more than that for me. There are some things a child can learn through the seat of his pants that otherwise he would have to learn later in life at the cost of much greater suffering.
SPIRITUAL SOAP Salvation is like a bath. What a bath does to your body, salvation does to your soul--it cleans you up on the inside. But as we walk in a dirty world, our spiritual feet get dirty, and we have to stay in His Word to stay pure and clean. The Bible says Jesus makes His church holy by "cleansing her by the washing with water through the word." (Ephesians 5:26) God's desire is that we be holy and pure. Soap is good for cleansing the outside of the body, but doesn't get below the skin into the heart.
NOT ASHAMED! When you meet the living Christ, you won't have to TRY to be a witness; you'll naturally BE a witness. That's what happens when you know Jesus. You won't be ashamed to tell the whole world how much He means to you. That's what the disciples did, and because of that, it wasn't the end, it was just the beginning!"
WHAT HAPPENED TO JESUS' BODY? This planet is littered with the graves and tombs of millions of people-some are famous tombs, but most are obscure. The pyramids in Egypt are really tombs, the Taj Mahal in India is a mausoleum, and the Ming Dynasty Emperors are buried in massive tombs, with each complex covering almost 100 acres. Millions of Muslims visit the tomb of Mohammed in Medina each year. But there is no tomb of Jesus, no burial shrine. We don't know if the tomb I showed you was really where He was buried or not?because wherever it was, He was only there for three days. Today, we don't visit some holy site and say, "That's where the body of Jesus is." Because no one has ever produced the corpus delecti--the body of Jesus. One of the greatest proofs of the resurrection is the fact that nobody has ever produced the corpse of Jesus. The Romans couldn't be convicted of murder in an American courtroom today because there is no corpse. Even if you're a skeptic, you've got to answer the question: What happened to the body of Jesus?
LIKE A RAGING WILDFIRE God's judgement against sin is like a raging wildfire?nothing can stop it. The only way you and I can escape it is to stand where the fire of God's judgement has already fallen. And the only safe place is to stand at the cross of Jesus, where God's judgement against sin has already burned.
PARADISE FOUND When the thief on the cross prayed His prayer of faith, Jesus responded with a three-fold promise. He said, "Today, you will be with me in paradise." He didn't say, "tomorrow" or "in three days" or "in forty days when I ascend" or "next year" or "in a thousand years." He didn't say, "after you've been baptized" or "after you've gone through catechism" or "after you've spent a few years in purgatory." No, He told Jason, "TODAY, you'll be with me." The great part of this promise for us is the moment a Christian dies they can be with the Lord in paradise. The Bible doesn't teach the doctrine of limbo, or purgatory, or soul sleep. We are told when a Christian dies they are "absent from the Body and present with the Lord." (2 Corinthians 5:8) If you've trusted Jesus, then the moment you die, you can claim that part of His promise, "Today, you'll be with me in paradise."
EXTREME MAKEOVER As a boy, when I read in the Bible that Pilate had Jesus "scourged" I didn't understand that word. I remember asking my Pastor, Brother Fred, what that word meant. He could have replied it meant to "be beaten" and he would have been technically correct. Instead he gave me an answer I'll never forget. He said, "David, that was when a cruel Roman soldier turned the bare back of Jesus into hamburger meat." Don't forget--at any moment during His torture He could have escaped. He could have said, "God these people aren't worth this kind of pain and suffering. He told Peter He could have called 12 legions of angels to rescue Him. But He didn't--because He loves us.
I'LL TAKE "GRUDGITIS" FOR $1000 ALEX... Judas never came crawling to Jesus begging Him to forgive him--Jesus just forgave him. Do you have a Judas in your life? You may feel as if you have been betrayed and hurt by someone. They have abused your trust and wounded you in a way that is still painful even though it happened years ago. What are you waiting for? Do you want them to crawl and beg you to forgive them? Do yourself a favor--forgive them anyway. Nothing will make you more miserable than carrying about a bitter spirit of unforgiveness. Arthritis is pretty painful, but there's something worse than arthritis: Grudgitis. When you harbor unforgiveness it makes your food taste bad, it keeps you from sleeping well, and it will send you to an early grave.
HANDING IT OVER If you can come to the place in your prayer life when you say, "God I take my hands off my life. I remove my plans and I'll do what you want me to do" then you'll be able to trust God's plan for your tough circumstance.
DON'T QUIT! Satan wants to sift you to bring your imperfections and flaws to the surface. But Jesus is praying for you, your faith won't fail. So even if have failed the Lord before, don't quit, run back to him and He can still use you.
ARE YOU A JUDAS? Judas represents all the people who have the outward appearance of being a follower of Jesus, but they have never been cleansed from within. These are people speak the correct religious jargon, they give their money to their church, they attend the services, but they have never been cleansed from their sinful condition. Don't be too quick to condemn Judas. He serves as a warning to us all that we can be close to the things of Jesus, yet in your heart be as spiritually dead as Judas, for God reveals all of us has a Benedict Arnold and a Judas inside of us. His name is Adam, Old Adam, Nature, Sinful Nature. He would like nothing more than to betray Jesus for money or fame. He would like nothing more than to hand Jesus over to his enemies.
YOU WERE WARNED When you read the words of Jesus, you are going back to the future. Although He spoke these words almost 2,000 years ago, He spoke of an event that hasn't yet happened--His return to this world. Will you be ready? You cannot say it's unexpected, because the signs are everywhere. In verse 34 Jesus warned the worst thing that could happen would be for the Day of His return to come on a person unexpectedly, like a trap.
CATACLYSM Many of the ancient Greek philosophers, especially the Stoics, taught that like a wheel, history repeats itself. Some said each cycle lasted 3,000 years. They really believed "What goes around comes around." But the Bible doesn't teach History is like a circle. The Bible teaches all of history is moving in a linear direction toward one final cataclysmic event.
WHY DOES GOD BOTHER WITH MANKIND? Do you know why God created mankind? He wanted to have some people with whom He could relate?somebody He could talk to and walk with. In Genesis we read after God created man and woman, He walked with them in the garden of Eden in the cool of the evening. He wanted to have a fellowship with them. After they disobeyed God's orders, their sin ruined that fellowship. On the evening they sinned, God came walking through the Garden and Adam and Eve hid from Him. In Genesis 3:9 God asked the first question recorded in the Bible. "Where are you?" He knew where they were, He just wanted them to admit why they were hiding. At that point, they fell out of their relationship with God. Since that time, God has been bringing men and women back into a right relationship with Him. He still wants to walk with you and talk with you on a daily basis. But some people are still hiding from God.
GETTING THROUGH TOUGH TIMES If you are going through a tough time, I have a Word for you. It's found in Psalm 34:18: "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." God never says your heart won't break. He never promises your spirit won't be crushed. But He says, "I'm aware of your pain. I know what you're feeling. I care. I'll help you through it." You may be battling cancer right now. Some of you are still grieving because someone you love has died. Others of you are out of work--you need a job. Some of you are dealing with children who are behaving in a way that makes you wonder if someone exchanged babies with you when they were born. Some of you are tired from being the primary care giver to a sick loved one. I could go on for hours...and I still might not name your tough circumstance. But God knows, and He cares.
WHAT WILL WE LOOK LIKE IN HEAVEN? Jesus said we'll be LIKE the angels, but He said we ARE the children of God. Does that mean we'll all look and act like little children in heaven? Is God going to be operating a day care in heaven? No, it means we'll have the same simple, carefree attitude of kids. When you were a kid, life was so simple it consisted of just getting up, getting dressed, and eating the food placed in front of you. Somebody else was handling all the details of your life. In the same way, I believe heaven will allow us to be kids again--God's children. There will be no deadlines, no funerals, no hospitals, no wars, no arthritis, no Alzheimer's. You won't have to spend time worrying about your kids and grandkids--you'll BE a kid! As Isaiah says, "the former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind." (Isaiah 65:17)
REJECTING A PARDON What is God really like? He is good, He is patient, and He is loving. But He is holy and today you must consider Jesus' warning: If you reject God's Son, you will receive God's judgement. Imagine for a moment you committed a capital crime and were convicted and sentenced to receive the death penalty. You're on death row, and the date of your execution is approaching. Just a few hours before you are scheduled to receive a lethal injection, the prison warden enters your cell and says, "I have good news for you! The governor has decided to grant you a full and free pardon. Here, this is a copy of your pardon." Then imagine you look at the warden and laugh and say, "I don't believe you. Besides, I'm guilty. No thanks." Then you tear up the pardon and toss it back in the warden's face. You would be a fool not to accept such an offer. The only recourse for the warden would be to carry out your execution.
FALSE WISDOM There's a standard everyone uses to determine what is truth or error and your basis for truth is either man's wisdom or God's Word. The Bible calls man's wisdom the "wisdom of this world." Some people have chosen to reject the Bible as an outdated book of fairy tales and myths. They have designated their source of authority to be what some other person has said or written, or in most cases, their source of authority is their own intelligence.
ARE YOU A SPIRITUAL THOROUGHBRED? A donkey isn't a thoroughbred horse, it's a plain, ugly animal. A horse is a magnificent animal; it has a coat that shines in the sun, beautiful large eyes, and a flowing mane that ripples in the breeze. It has long graceful legs that gobble up the miles of a journey. Take a look at a donkey on the other hand. Nobody would ever call a donkey beautiful. They have floppy ears that are too large and their hair looks disheveled. They make a braying sound that always makes us laugh. In Jesus' day, horses were the Ferraris?donkeys were the pickup trucks. You may be thinking, "God doesn't need me. I'm certainly no spiritual thoroughbred. Emotionally, and spiritually, I'm more like an old donkey than a graceful horse." Congratulations! The Bible says, "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong-so that no one could boast before Him." (I Corinthians 1:27)
SPIRITUAL ATROPHY If you lie in a hospital bed for a week without exercise, you'll lose your strength. Atrophy occurs when muscles aren't used. That's why physical therapy, exercise, and rehabilitation are so important after you have been hospitalized. It's true of your muscles and your mind. It's also a spiritual truth. If you don't use God's resources you may lose them. If you aren't actively doing business for God, you may lose the ability or the desire to do business for God. Are you investing time for God? Are you obeying the truth He has given you? Are you taking advantage of those opportunities to serve Him?
DESPERATELY SEEKING SOMETHING Zacchaeus had an itch in his heart all his wealth couldn't scratch. He probably didn't even know what he needed. He just knew he desperately needed something. When he heard Jesus was in town, he was hoping Jesus might have the solution to his problem. He didn't know it, but he was looking for God.
YOU ARE A UNIVERSE OF ONE You may think that in the larger scheme of the entire universe you aren't very important. In comparison to the enormous universe, our planet is just a small rock circling a minor star. And you are just one of 6 billion human beings sharing this rock. In spite of this, you are of such importance to God, that when you call out to Him, He pauses to help you! The mighty sun burning 93 million miles away provides the gravitational pull that keeps all the planets in orbit, but that same sun will warm your face on a cold day as if it had nothing else to do at that moment. The awesome God who keeps the entire universe running will stop and answer your cry for help as if He had nothing else to do. God isn't distracted by the millions of other voices. He always has time for you.
A SINGLE PURPOSE At the beginning of His ministry, large multitudes crowded around Jesus because they were amazed by His miracles and wisdom. After all, when you see that a man can feed five thousand people with five biscuits and two sardines, you follow Him because He's your fast food source. When you learn He can heal any disease, you've got your own walking, talking HMO. And teaching? Why go to college, when you can go out into a beautiful grassy field and listen to this Rabbi? But Jesus didn't come to heal, teach, or to do miracles. He came to die.
THE RICH YOUNG RULER To me this is one of the saddest stories in the Bible. Jesus didn't ask everyone He met to follow Him. He said that to the original twelve disciples--and He invited the Rich Young Ruler to follow Him. Who knows what might have been? He could have become the 13th disciple. If he had only followed Jesus today, we might be studying the gospel according to Benjamin! There was only one thing he lacked, but it was a big obstacle. Would you buy a car if the salesman said, "It's a good car, only one thing is missing--the engine." What is the one thing in your life that may be preventing you from following Jesus? "The saddest words of tongue or pen are these four words: What might have been?"
WHO IS YOUR AUDIENCE? When you are preparing to come to church, are you thinking more about who will be there to see you than you are about connecting with God? Do you choose what you're going to wear based on what other people will think about you? I know you can't believe it, but some people actually come to church because they think it will help them in their business, or in politics, or will improve their social standing. Answer honestly: Why do you attend church? Jesus warned about this kind of behavior in Matthew 6:5, "But when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men." Worship does involve an audience. But it's an audience of one.
UNANSWERED PRAYERS? I've known people who have quit praying because they didn't seem to get an answer. If I walk into a room and flip the light switch, I expect the light to come on. If it doesn't, I don't curse Thomas Edison and say electricity is a lie. I start looking for the problem. Maybe the light bulb is burned out, or a breaker has been thrown, or the power is out. If it seems your prayers aren't answered, don't quit praying?start looking for the reason. It may be the wrong request, or you may have unconfessed sin in your life, or the timing may not be right. God always answers prayer. But He answers prayer in different ways.
NOBODY KNOWS THE DAY When Jesus returns, He won't come as gentle Jesus meek and mild--He will come as the all-powerful King. He came the first time as the Lamb of God to bear the sin of the world. But when He comes again, He will be the mighty Lion of the Tribe of Judah! The Bible says nobody knows the day or the hour of Jesus' return. You can't know the exact date, but it's possible to discern the season, the general time. Jesus predicted when world conditions match those during the time of Noah and Lot; we should start paying attention, because God's Judgement will happen soon. Two important conditions existed during the days of Noah and Lot: Extreme immorality and wickedness.
ARE YOU A SPIRITUAL LEPER? Too many people today are living in denial. They don't want to admit their need because they look around and they can usually find someone worse than themselves. Because we live in a spiritual leper colony called America, there are plenty of chances to think, "I'm not so bad. I've never robbed a bank, I've never murdered anyone. I'm not a drug pusher or a child molester. In fact, I'm better than many of those hypocrites who go to church!" Before Jesus can help you, friend, you must quit fooling yourself and admit you have a problem, but that's not enough, you must cry out to Jesus. All the twelve-step programs agree the first step for recovery is to admit your problem. But that's not enough, you must seek help. Before you can have a relationship with Jesus you must say, "I am a rotten sinner! Jesus, have mercy on me! Help me Jesus!
WHY WE CAN'T FORGET OUR PAST SINS Forgiveness is not a feeling or an emotion--it is a choice. It is your decision not to want to punish that person for what they've done to you. Our forgiveness should be a reflection of the forgiveness God offers us. He places our sins behind His back and remembers them no longer. If you actively choose to continue to remember what that person has done to you, you haven't truly forgiven them. When God forgives us, He doesn't keep bringing up our sin--but the devil keeps trying to make us aware of our own sin and the sins others have committed against us. That's why the Bible calls him the accuser of the brothers.
YOU KNOW? The Bible teaches many religious people will be surprised on Judgement Day. These are people who go to church, give their money, and speak the right religious jargon. Some of the most staggering words to ever proceed from the lips of Jesus are found in Matthew 7: Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom of heaven?Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evil doers.'" (Matthew 7:23) If you stood before Jesus Christ right now, could He say, "I know you?" Do you have a personal relationship with Him, or do you just have an occasional habit of being religious?
THERE IS NO ALZHEIMER'S IN HELL Life is tough by itself, and sometimes people wish they could erase their memories like they erase a video tape. That's why so many people commit suicide: they want to erase the memories. There is no Alzheimer's in hell. Everyone will have a crystal-clear memory. Hell will be a place of eternal remembrance and regret. Have you ever bought something on a whim and later regretted it? It's called "buyer's remorse." Fortunately, you can take a lot of things back for a refund or an exchange. In hell there will be what I call "invitation remorse." It won't be over something you did, but it will be remorse over something you didn't do: accept Jesus.
REAL WEALTH The main reason God gives us worldly wealth is to test us. He wants to see how well we manage that kind of wealth. Jesus speaks of another kind of wealth. He calls it "true riches." If you are trustworthy with a little, God knows you can be trusted with a lot. If you prove to be trustworthy with worldly wealth, God can trust you with true riches. True riches have nothing to do with money. They include spiritual blessings like peace, security, and strength that are so valuable they can't be bought at any price.
THE "OLDER BROTHER" SYNDROME Sometimes church members who have been around for a long time get jealous when a church starts paying attention to new people. That's the "older brother" syndrome. You can recognize an older brother Christian because they are quick to grumble and complain. You want to say to them, "Come on in and join the party!" But they'd rather be miserable and stand on the outside with their arms crossed, a sour expression on their face...The funny thing is these are some of the same people who will go to a college football game and lift their hands in the air and shout "Touchdown!" Or, lift their claws, or hook 'em horns, or bend over and whoop-and they are happy when they do it! But they're afraid things are going to get out of hand in church. Vance Havner used to say, "Some people are so afraid of getting out on a limb that they never get near the tree!"
HAVE YOU RUN AWAY FROM GOD? Through the years, I've known hundreds of Prodigals. They are teenagers and adults who had a loving relationship with God, but they allowed restlessness and reckless living to enter their lives. They walked away from God's blessings and they ended up a mess. Some of them are still there, others have come back home to their Father. That's the good news: you can come back home. You don't have to wait until you reach the pig pen either. At any time, you can decide to return to the blessing and fellowship with your Heavenly Father...If you have wandered away from God and allowed sin to take control of your life, it's not hopeless.
WHEN YOU START HOME, I'LL MEET YOU MORE THAN HALFWAY Jesus said God runs to meet us when we decided to return to Him. Some of you have drifted out of fellowship with God. You have walked away from the presence of your heavenly Father. Whenever you choose to sin and disobey God, you are leaving His holy presence. Do you sense God is far away from you? God didn't walk away from you; when you sinned, you walked away from him. But God is a loving heavenly Father who is longing for you to return. He is looking for you to return to Him. Wayward and backslidden child of God, He has a message for you today. With tender words of compassion He is saying to you: "When you start home, I'll meet you more than halfway."
A LOST SOUL IS FOREVER You can lose your mind, and it's not as tragic as a lost soul. You can lose your character, and it's not as bad as a losing your soul. Death will heal the loss of a fortune, or a loss of health or a loss of a mind-but a lost soul is for eternity. We are all like a lost lamb at one time in our lives. Jesus can never find you until you admit you are a lost sinner. That's the bad news, without Christ we are lost. But the good news is Jesus searches for us in order to save us.
WHAT KIND OF FASHION STATEMENT ARE YOU MAKING? Today, the image of the cross has lost its horror. The true message of the cross is death. How many of you are either wearing a cross today, or have a cross on your Bible? How nice. But what if we began to sell little miniature models of an electric chair in our bookstore, would you wear one? Or what if someone made a syringe of poison and started offering it as jewelry to wear? Can't you hear someone walking up to you saying, "I love your electric chair, where did you get it?" Or would you say, "Have you seen my James Avery lethal injection syringe?" Today, the cross has become benign--a piece of harmless jewelry. In Jesus' time, it was a horrible, agonizing tortuous mode of execution. It was the noose, the electric chair, the lethal injection of His day. In the time of Jesus when you saw someone carrying a cross it meant one and only one thing-they were as good as dead.
REASON vs. EXCUSE There is a difference between a reason and an excuse. There are times when we may have a legitimate reason for what we do or don't do. An excuse is actually the skin of a reason stuffed with a lie...They are alibis that become lullabies. Our culture has refined the art of making excuses.
"WHO? ME? PROUD?" Someone once said pride is the only disease that makes everyone sick except the one who has it. In the Catholic list of the seven deadly sins, pride used to be called vanity. The Dutch painter, Bosch, painted a picture of each of the seven sins and for pride and vanity, he painted the picture of a woman looking at her face in a mirror held by the devil. We can see pride and vanity in others, but we are usually blind to it in our own lives.
YOU CAN'T SCARE A DEAD MAN When you are carrying the cross of Jesus, you have already died to self. You can't scare a dead man. When you're carrying the cross, it's a liberating experience because you don't have to be afraid of anybody or anything...The Bible says, "Perfect love casts out all fear." (I John 4:18) That's why Jesus wasn't afraid, because He possessed a perfect love for us. And we don't have to be afraid because of His perfect love for us. Jesus laughed in the face of the fear of death. When you are carrying the cross, you can laugh at any other threat, too.
A CHILDLIKE SPIRIT There is a difference between being "childish" and "childlike." The Bible warns us many times about the dangers of spiritual immaturity, but there are some wonderful qualities in children that are necessary for us to enter God's Kingdom. If you don't reflect these qualities, you'll never see it. There are three simple qualities describing a childlike spirit: a sense of awe and wonder, simple trust and a spirit of forgiveness.
HAVE YOU FOUND HEAVEN'S NARROW DOOR? You can choose to enter heaven's door today. Jesus said it's a narrow door. Think about that for a minute. It's so narrow only one person can walk through it at one time. In other words, you can't walk through heaven's door holding your daddy's hand, or your mother's hand. I thank God my parents told me about Jesus, but when it came time for me to give Him my life, I walked through that door all by myself. Some of you think because your grandfather was a preacher or your mother was a godly saint that you can walk through with them--but you can't. The narrow door to heaven says, "One person at a time, please."
THE HUMPTY DUMPTY SYNDROME We are all like old Humpty Dumpty ... Some of you know the problem: you've fallen and you can't get up. We live in a world of broken people. Life is fragile; it should be handled with care, because people break easily. All the self-help programs, and the religious rules can't fix the broken hearts, broken hopes, and broken homes of people around us. Jesus Christ was the only person who ever claimed to be able to heal broken hearts.
TOWERS AND TERRORISTS This is a message about terrorists and falling towers. Everybody still talks about that day; it was a day of tragedy and injustice. People were going about their business when they were suddenly and brutally killed. And what about the tower that fell suddenly? Towers remind us of strength and security--and when a tower falls and people are killed, we feel a little less secure. The initial reaction was shock; then we began to ask the inevitable questions: Why were those innocent people killed? Why did the tower fall? Where was God during all of that? Most of you think I'm talking about 9/11, and everything I've said does apply, but I'm really talking about 13:1. Luke 13:1. 2,000 years ago, Jesus talked about some innocent people who died at the hands of what could be called terrorists--and He talked about a tower that fell and killed people. In fact, the similarities between 13:1 and 9/11 are amazing. The same questions people are asking today were being asked 2,000 years ago. But more importantly, the answer Jesus gives is the same answer we need to hear.
THERE ARE ONLY TWO CHOICES Some people have the idea that Jesus is the great Uniter of the world's people, and that Christianity is a wonderful ethical system that will produce one world family where everyone lives in peace and harmony with each other. Actually, the words of Jesus are so radical they divide people into two groups. He said that there are only two eternal destinies: Heaven and Hell. In Matthew 25, Jesus said at the Judgement, people would be divided into two groups: sheep and goats. The Father would welcome His Sheep into heaven, and the goats would be sent to the hell. He didn't say there would be sheep and goats and squirrels and cows, only two groups.
KEEP THE FIRE BURNING Fire will only keep burning as long as it has fuel and oxygen, but when it runs out of either, it will go out. Now, God is eternal, but the power He provides us is not something we can just take for granted as always being there. We must tend the fire in order to keep it burning. There's a great lesson we can learn from the fire on the altar of the temple. God gave these instructions in Leviticus 6:12: "The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest is to add firewood and arrange the burnt offering on the fire."
ARE YOU A GOOD TIME MANAGER? Are you wasting your time on things that don't really matter in light of eternity? In this life, there are only two things we deal with that are eternal: The Word of God, and the souls of men and women. Think about it, the best way to spend your God-given time is by investing it in the Word of God or the souls of men and women. Are you a good time manager or are you involved in so many frivolous sideshows you can't focus on the main thing?
WOULD YOU BE READY IF JESUS RETURNED TODAY? There have always been people who have laughed at the idea of Jesus returning. The Second Coming is rich material for Leno and Letterman. It's nothing new. The Bible says in 2 Peter 3:3, 8: Scoffers will come in the last days saying, "Where is the promise of His coming? ... all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation." ... do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. To us, it may seem like 2,000 years since Jesus made His promise to return, but for the Lord it only seems like a couple of days. God's sense of timing is so different than ours. That's why we must wait patiently, actively, and expectantly. We must live each day as if He was going to return to planet earth today.
DO YOU WANT TO GO TO HEAVEN WHEN YOU DIE? Theoretically there are only three ways to get into heaven when you die: First, if you die before the age where you are accountable before God, before you are old enough to make the choice to sin, then we believe God takes his precious children to heaven. But if you are in this service, understanding my words, chances are you have already passed that possibility.
WORRYWARTS The challenges in life can be divided into two broad categories: those things you can't do anything about (like the weather); and those things you can do something about. Don't worry about the first category, because there's nothing you can do about those things. Don't worry about the second category, because if you can do something--do it, don't worry about it! Many years ago, I learned a little poem that has helped me overcome worry. It says, "For every evil under the sun, Either there is a cure, or there is none. If there be one, seek 'till you find it. If there be none, never mind it!" Jesus said, "Do not worry" because it's a waste of time!
LIVE AS IF YOU HAVE ALL ETERNITY You can chase the wind, but you'll never grab it. You can seek for happiness and purpose in accumulating wealth and possessions, but you won't find it. The truth is, life will never be trouble-free. The only stress-free people are in the cemetery! Job said, "Man is born for trouble as surely as sparks fly upward." (Job 5:7)
THE NATIVITY ELEMENTS It is possible to love nativity sets and to display them in your home every Christmas without ever stopping to understand what God was doing on the first Christmas. Pastor David Dykes recreates the Nativity scene and looks at the ten elements making up the Nativity. You'll learn a personal lesson from each of these parts of the overall picture. (1.) Mary; (2.) Joseph; (3.) The Stable; (4.) The Manger; (5.) Jesus; (6.) Animals; (7.) Angels; (8.) Shepherds; (9.) The Star; (10.) Magi
PERISHABLE SOULS I can never escape from the fact that God has the power to throw me into hell. Most of us know John 3:16 from memory. The scariest word in that verse is the word perish. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." "Perish" means to be thrown into hell. We talk about nonperishable food and perishable food. What's the difference? Perishable food spoils, it rots, it loses its quality. That's a pretty graphic picture of what happens to a person in hell but the spoiling process is stretched out over eternity.
POLITICALLY INCORRECT Some people assume Jesus was a nice, diplomatic gentleman who never said anything to upset anyone. In fact, He so infuriated the religious crowd they finally crucified Him. Jesus didn't just come to comfort the afflicted; He came to afflict the comfortable.
BRIGHT IDEA Have you ever seen a cartoon where a person gets an idea and a light bulb clicks on in their mind? That's what Jesus is talking about (Psalm 119:105). When the truth of God's Word fills your mind, there will be light.
MOVING ALONG ON YOUR JOURNEY Have you ever thought God wants to use your distress to cause you to seek Him? The sooner you seek Him and hear what He's trying to say, the sooner you can move on to the next stage of your journey.
WISER THAN THE WISEST If you asked someone who knows the Bible, "Who is the wisest man who ever lived?" They may reply, "Solomon." But as wise as Solomon was, someone else in the Bible surpassed his wisdom.
BIRTHRIGHT? You won't get into heaven because your daddy was a preacher or because your mother was a saint ... Being born in a Christian home doesn't make you a Christian any more than being born in a bakery makes you a biscuit!
JUST ASK Let's say you need a job. Pray and ask God for a job, but don't sit at home and wait for someone to come hire you. Seek His Will and plan for your life, and then go out and knock on many doors. That's why prayer involves an action plan. It's not about sitting and asking; it's seeking and knocking.
MAN'S GREATEST NEED We all have sinned and we continue to make mistakes and experience failure. Jesus recognized the greatest need a person has is forgiveness.
MARY & MARTHA Most people tend to be a Mary or a Martha. Christian women know what I mean when I say that. Generally speaking, Marys tend to be quieter and more contemplative and Marthas are highly driven, organized and outspoken.
LIFE'S BIG "IF" You may wonder, "How can I face the future without fear? I don't know what's going to happen!" Take a moment and write the word "LIFE." Circle the two middle letters. Life is full of "ifs." There is so much uncertainty. Pastor, what are we going to do IF there are more attacks on American citizens? What are we going to do IF our economy takes a nosedive? IF, IF, IF. My response is we need to do the same thing we would do IF none of those things happen. We need to completely place our lives in God's hands. We must keep on trusting God and work on developing an intimate relationship with Him.
SOFTEN THEIR HEARTS Because there is so much crime and hatred in our world, people have become cynical and skeptical. We are so afraid of being conned or scammed we don't trust any stranger anymore. That is a real handicap when we are trying to share the love of Christ with people. They think we have an ulterior motive. Before you can give people the Word of God, you must show them the Love of God to soften or open their hearts.
OPEN YOUR HEART How does the Lord "open people's hearts?" One way is by letting them see His love for them and the best way for people to know God loves them is when we don't just say, "God loves you," but when we show them.
MORAL MELTDOWN Most of us have computers and we are part of the new information highway carrying ideas and information around the world. But while we are seeing a technological surge in America, we are suffering from a spiritual and moral meltdown.
FORGET THE PAST As you and I walk along with Jesus, He brings us closer and closer to being conformed to His likeness: self-denial; and dying daily to our own feelings and desires. As we move along, He wants us to forget the past. We can't go back there. We must fix our eyes on Jesus and keep growing and progressing.
GETTING OLDER Have you grown older and forgotten God? It's like the older we get the more we forget our Creator and what He's like. Jesus said to enter the kingdom of God, we must simply receive it like a little child.
MOUNTAINTOP Why do people want to look at things from above? I don't know if I would feel close to God in a lawn chair at 11,000 feet but I do enjoy a good mountaintop experience. When you are on a mountaintop, you see how big the world is that God made and it makes you feels smaller. In the Bible, some important events took place on mountains. Perhaps you've had some mountaintop experiences. Nobody wants to come down from the mountaintop. Mountaintop experiences are wonderful, but you have to be sure you leave the mountain to go down in the valley with Jesus.
BREAKING NEWS The Transfiguration of Jesus is a preview of a coming attraction--the Second Coming of Jesus. It will be a powerful attraction, too, strong enough to raise the dead and to rapture living Christians. I'm not going to be around to read the Second Coming headline, because when Jesus comes, I'm going to be meeting Him in the clouds.
STICKER SHOCK Whether you're buying cars or cows, it's important to get to what we call "the bottom line." What is the "bottom line" of following Jesus? You may go into "sticker shock" when you discover it. Many people are only interested in the basic model of Christian living. They want just enough Christianity to keep them out of hell without intruding on their fun. You don't find the full cost of discipleship advertised very often these days. Few preachers discuss it because it is unpleasant; it doesn't fill pews.
LEFTOVERS A good cook can do amazing things with leftovers. We often consider it second-class food but God's leftovers are special! Some of you may feel like a leftover yourself. You've come through a tough experience and you feel like a second-class person. God has always used leftovers, remnants. There was nothing special about five biscuits and two fish but in the hands of Jesus, it became a feast. Some would have considered the twelve baskets of leftovers scraps or garbage but they fed the disciples. In God's hands, leftovers aren't garbage; they are delicious.
OVERPACKED We pack our suitcases to overflowing because we like having our precious "stuff" with us. But when we are loaded down with our own stuff, we often depend on our possessions rather than on God. Are you trusting God to provide your needs, or are you trusting your job, your bank balance, your securities portfolio, or your 401K to meet your needs?
THE P.O.T.D. One common thread running through these miracles in Luke 9 was that everyone was at the Point of Total Desperation. They were all "POTD." Do you need God's power? Do you want to see a miracle in your life? Then you've got to be "POTD" as well. What do you do when you get to the end of your rope? What do you do when your rope breaks?
UNIVERSITY OF AFFLICTION God knows suffering makes us stronger, and it makes us depend on God. I've often said the name of God's college is the University of Affliction, and although the tuition is steep, the classes and the degrees we receive are priceless. Some of you are enrolled right now in the University of Affliction.
DEMONIZED I think we can make the mistake of trying to determine whether our problems are demon-induced or not. Remember, we saw the Bible never uses the term "demon possession." We are all demonized in different ways. Any obsession, addiction, or impure habit is a demonic influence that must be addressed but you must admit it--name it--before you can deal with it. You can't just shift the blame to some "demon," because we are all ultimately responsible for all of our actions and reactions, but admitting your problem, naming the demon, is your first step toward wholeness with Jesus.
SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE From the cradle to the grave, each of us is a bundle of needs. What is your need? Do you need truth? It's found in the word of God. But if you don't obey it, you will lose the little that you have. Are you feeling lonely and isolated? Here's a great big family opening our arms to you saying, "Come just as you are" we will love you and accept you the way Jesus loves and accepts you. Or do you need that inner peace and tranquility so that, like Jesus, you can sleep soundly in the midst of the storm? Come to Jesus--He really is all you need!
THE SUBTLE ART OF DISTRACTION There is a something going on right now, invisible to the human eye, which makes it even harder to receive the Word of God. Jesus says Satan tries to "steal" the Word from you. Don't ever be surprised if you have trouble concentrating when you are reading the Bible or when you are hearing the Bible being taught. One the enemy's most effective strategy is distraction. At this moment, Satan would love nothing better than for you to be distracted by this building, or these screens, or the choir, or the people around you. Why? He is actively attempting to steal the Word away from you.
WORSHIP Have you been forgiven but you really haven't shown your love and worship to Jesus for His forgiveness? Worship always happens at the feet of Jesus. Worship is a preoccupation with Jesus, not some form or ritual. Worship is more concerned about giving something than getting something. Do you need to fall at the feet of Jesus today and kiss them and say, "Thank you Jesus for forgiving my horrible sins?"
DOUBTING THOMAS If you ever have doubts, you are in pretty good company. Sometimes those closest to Jesus expressed doubts.
HEALED Throughout my ministry, I've seen Jesus do the same thing. I've seen Jesus give a wayward rebellious son or daughter back to his or her parents. I've seen Jesus take a sorry, alcoholic husband, clean him up and present him back to his wife and children. I've see Jesus take a wayward wife and give her back to her family. Jesus is the business of healing broken relationships.
CHAIN OF COMMAND Just as the Roman centurion got his authority from a higher power, he recognized Jesus had access to higher authority--His Father in heaven. God has set up a clearly defined system of authority in our world. When God's chain of authority is followed, there is peace. When God's chain of authority is ignored, chaos and misery ensue.
SURVIVOR I have seen it happen hundreds of times. People can be going along fine in life until adversity suddenly strikes--and they find they are knocked off their feet and their foundation crumbles. This just serves to show them "something is missing." Forget the popular TV show--we are all survivors! You are wise if you will allow that collapse to motivate you to rebuild your life upon the foundation of the rock of Jesus, because there will be more storms. What might have been the worst experience of your life actually becomes the experience leading to a new and better life for you.
FRUIT LOOP Before you get this new heart, it is impossible to obey God and to please Him. It's like your heart is made of stone. But when He puts His Holy Spirit into your heart, you are regenerated, made alive. And you will find He even places the desire there for you to obey Him. Have you had a heart transplant? If you haven't, it's impossible for you to produce godly fruit, because you still have an old sinful, human nature dominating.
REMOVE THE SPECK There's nothing funny about sin. It's sad to see people who ignore their beams and look only at the faults of others. That's why we must constantly ask the Holy Spirit to convict us of sin, so we can confess our sin?but it is a beautiful sight to see someone with a clear eye gently and lovingly helping someone remove a speck from his or her eye.
LAW BREAKER These four laws are irrefutable. They cannot be broken. If you jump off a 50-story building, you don't break the law of gravity--you only demonstrate it. Do yourself a favor and observe all four of these simple but profound spiritual laws: Don't judge; don't condemn; forgive; and give!
LOVE & MERCY When we allow the Holy Spirit to empower us, we really can show kindness to others by demonstrating love to our enemies; by lending without worrying about the return; by showing mercy to those Jesus tells us in several places that when we practice kindness to others we are actually showing kindness to Him.
GRIN AND BEAR IT Like Jesus, we will be insulted, mistreated and unappreciated. When it happens, don't get upset and stew over it. Humble yourself and deflect the insult. Jesus said, "Don't let it get to you. Rejoice because that's how they treated the prophets!"
ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus is giving us some plain principles. These principles don't tell us how to become a Christian, they tell us how to live once we have decided to follow Jesus. He is telling us how to live a blessed, happy fulfilled life. He is warning away from the attitudes that destroy our lives; which set are you following?
STOP! IN THE NAME OF THE LAW... If you are caught in a religion that is just a bunch of rules and regulations, get out of it! Stop living a counterfeit Christianity and allow Him to teach you about His Sabbath rest; not a day but a lifestyle of resting in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
RELIGIOUS SNOBBERY The religious snobs of Jesus' day didn't like His teaching because it was so revolutionary. It was new. He said things they never heard before. His new teaching shocked and offended them. He did things they never saw before--he ate and drank with sinners! In our next passage--horror of horrors--His disciples picked and ate grain on the Sabbath. The religious leaders could not handle this new wine Jesus was offering. They were like the inflexible old wineskins. Their attitudes were "If it is new, it can't be true!" Every time Jesus said or did something new you could almost hear the sound of straining and stretching until "pop!"--so they killed the messenger instead of accepting the message.
TRUE CENTER Before Levi started following Jesus, his life revolved around his job. He was going to make a boatload of money because he was fixed for life in this lucrative occupation. When Jesus called him, he had to choose whether his life would revolve around making money or around pleasing and obeying Jesus. Let me ask you today: What or who is at the center of your life?
THE GREATEST NEED There are many needy people around us. Some need housing, others need food, and others need clothing. We see poor people who need money. We see sick people who need health. We see confused people who need peace of mind. So many needs surround us, we often feel overwhelmed. But the greatest need everyone possesses is the need for forgiveness. That's why the very best thing you can do for your friends is to bring them to Jesus, because He is the only one who can do anything about their greatest need.
SPIRITUAL LEPER In the Bible, leprosy is often used as a symbol for sin. While none of us have the disease of leprosy, we have been afflicted with a terrible malady worse than leprosy--a sin sickness. I believe there is a remarkable parallel between leprosy and sin. Four ways in which leprosy and sin are alike.
THE PITCH Personal evangelism is more than just getting to know people who aren't saved, although that is the first step. You must be willing to build a bridge of friendship with a person without Christ, but then you must walk across that bridge and tell them about the good news of Jesus. Give them a chance to trust Christ, that's putting your hook in the water. A good salesman calls this "closing the deal." But what you are doing is "closing the door of hell" for that person and opening the door of heaven.
FISHERS OF MEN Peter started following Jesus. Wherever Jesus went, Peter went. Whatever Jesus did, Peter did. It's a 24/7 lifestyle. Today, it means we constantly ask ourselves, "Would Jesus go here? Would Jesus do this?" Here's how Jesus expressed this call in Mark's account: "Come follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." (Mark 1:17) I like that phrase because it means Peter wasn't naturally a fisher of men; Jesus was going to make him into one. So many people are afraid of following Jesus because they feel unqualified. Relax. You are unqualified. The good news is that when you start following Jesus, He begins to teach you and to make you into the person He wants you to be.
THE GREATEST MIRACLE I am certain the most serious kind of sickness and disease in mankind is sin. This congenital moral cancer afflicts every one of us. If not treated by Jesus, it will result in eternal death. For millions of us, Jesus has touched us and healed us of this sin sickness and now we are whole. To me, that is still the greatest miracle!
I MEANT WHAT I SAID When Jesus returned to his "home synagogue" to preach, many of the people remembered him and looked forward to what he had to say. However, what he said almost got him thrown over a cliff. But what Jesus said was not an accident: He intended it. We can learn something from the response of the people in Jesus' home synagogue.
STONES INTO BREAD Some people wonder why Jesus even allowed the old devil to tempt Him. Didn't Jesus have power and authority to banish Satan from His presence? I believe He did. Just as Jesus cast out a thousand demons from one man, I think Jesus could have kicked Satan right out of the desert too. Why then, did He endure this temptation? I believe He did it to teach us how to overcome temptation. Just as He refused to call on His Divine Authority to turn the stones into bread, I believe He refused to zap Satan. Instead He met him and defeated him with exactly the same resources we have available today: The Power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. That's why Jesus quoted three verses from Deuteronomy. To show us how to do it.
THE WITNESSES There were four areas of witness when Jesus was baptized. Those four witnesses give a powerful testimony to answer the question: Who is Jesus? But there is another question to answer: "What is God trying to say to me?"
FREQUENCY Repentance before God is one of the most frequently recurring messages in all the Bible. No less than 969 times, God thundered, "Repent!" It was the first message Jesus preached. Matthew 4:17 says, "Jesus Christ came preaching, 'Repent! For the kingdom of heaven is at hand.'" The last message Jesus left with the church was a message of repentance. Some people think the Great Commission was His last message to the church, but almost 60 years after Jesus gave the Great Commission He gave this message to the church in Revelation 3:19 "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten, be zealous therefore and repent!"
LOST You may wonder, "How can I lose Jesus? I thought you believed in 'once saved always saved.'" I'm not talking about losing your salvation. I'm talking about losing a sense of fellowship with Jesus. Throughout this ordeal, Mary and Joseph never lost their relationship with Jesus. It was intact. What they lost was His presence with them.
INTRODUCTIONS The account of Jesus when he was introduced to Simeon and Anna, who were expecting the Messiah to come, and when they saw Him, even though He was still an infant, they recognized Him for who He was.
MIRACLES & MESSAGES The birth of Jesus was an amazing experience of God taking on a human form. A study of the miracles Mary pondered and the message God proclaimed.
TOLLBOOTH Throughout your life, you will find problems are lined up like cars at a tollbooth. When you get rid of one problem, and the gate falls down on an unpleasant episode of your life. You breathe a sigh of relief and then--ding! There's another problem (and others are lined up behind that one). The Christian life isn't devoid of problems but God gives us strength to cope with them.
LOVE Have you ever had an experience of worship like Mary's? Have you ever fallen so deeply in love with God that your heart is bursting with praise? That's God plan for each of us. The story of Mary and Elizabeth.
DESTINY Luke's description of the birth of Jesus is far more detailed than any other gospel writer. In order to help us grasp the fullest significance of who Jesus Christ was and what He accomplished, Luke takes us back to the very beginning of Jesus' life. He describes more fully than any other gospel writer the announcement of John the Baptist's birth and the announcement of Jesus' birth, then the birth of John and the birth of Jesus. By describing the origin of John and the origin of Jesus side by side he shows how their destinies dovetail in God's plan, but also how Jesus is vastly superior to his forerunner.
JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT... Maybe you think you've entered spiritual retirement and you've already done enough for God. Or perhaps you think you have already received the greatest blessings that you'll ever enjoy--think again.
BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED God may put you in a special place for a special purpose for a special time. Place, purpose and time! Esther didn't know why she became Queen, but God knew why. God may have you in a special place for a special purpose, for a special time and you don't even know what it is yet. Your job is to be faithful, be patient and honor God. Who knows, but that you have come into your position for such as time as this? Bloom where you are planted. Brighten the corner where you are, because God could have you exactly where he wants you and you don't even know it yet!
FACT OR FICTION? If at the end of this message you do not believe that the Bible is anything more than a collection of myths and legends, then you really don't have any hope for the future, because this business about heaven could be just a myth. If however, you believe, as I do, that this Bible is the totally inspired Word of God--and is totally without error--then I expect to see you continue to base your entire life on what we find in its pages. And you can be certain that your hope of heaven is sure!
THE SPIRITUAL HOKEY POKEY Some of you think you can live with one foot in the world and with one foot in the kingdom of Jesus. You have two lifestyles, one for church and one for the rest of the time. As we get closer to the end, this option will disappear, like a boat drifting away, and you have one foot on the dock and one foot in the boat, you are going to have to decide: Jesus or this world? The boat is moving away, and if you don't decide--splash!--you end up all wet!
KINGS & KINGDOMS Daniel chapters 10-12 make up one final climactic prophecy. It actually is a clarification and a simplification of the earlier visions Daniel received. In chapter 7 Daniel had a dream of four animals, each representing a kingdom. In chapter 11, there are no statues or animals. The prophecy is shared in a straightforward uncomplicated way. The angel makes it clear he is talking about kings and kingdoms.
BLOCKED PATH We also have an enemy who stands in our pathway of progress. We must understand the real battle takes place in prayer. We have a spiritual weapon with "divine power to demolish strongholds." Are you using this weapon? Prayer is where the real battle takes place when we get up off our knees, then we go out to enjoy the spoils of battle.
EZRA'S PRAYER Prayer is a relationship to God in which we bend our will to meet his will and we don't spend as much time asking God for things as we do confessing our sins and praising God. Rather than praying for our own needs we need to pray for the needs of others. What we see here is one of the greatest examples of how to pray and especially to confess your sins before the Lord.
TIMELINE Daniel's prophecy in Daniel 9 is neither a vision nor a dream. There are no strange symbols of animals or statues. It is a direct message to the prophet from God, delivered by the angel Gabriel. This is the same angel that appeared to Joseph and to Mary, as recorded in the opening chapters of the New Testament. The angel Gabriel was sent to the prophet Daniel to give him a clear and undisguised look into the future in answer to a prayer of the prophet.
WHERE THE PROBLEM LIES We need a revival in America in the deepest way. What's the answer to the teenage drinking and driving problem? Revival. What's the answer to violence and crime? Revival. What's the answer to fractured marriages where husbands aren't the spiritual leader of their home? Revival. The problem is not with the pornographer, the bootlegger, the casino, or the drug pusher. God never said anything about those folks repenting.
OUT OF EGYPT There was a time in Israel's history when they had a whole bunch of kings and they didn't do very well. In fact, they drifted far away from God. This message is directed toward people who have come out of Egypt. They are Christians and they have come to the place of growing as a Christian for a while but then in the middle of that, something happens and they get out of favor with God. This is a beautiful picture of it in the Old Testament.
PROPHECY FULFILLED This message should demonstrate to you the absolute reliability and infallibility of the Word of God. When we see things predicted in the Bible that have already come true, it gives us great assurance that those things yet to happen will also come true. An examination of Daniel's prophetic dream and how it came true.
IS THAT YOUR FINAL ANSWER? The most important question we can ask ourselves is, "Is my name written down in the Lamb's Book of Life?" But can we know for sure? Yes you can. That's why Jesus said to "rejoice because your names are written down in the Lamb?s Book of Life." He wouldn't be so cruel to tell us to rejoice over something you can't be sure about. Is your name in the Book of Life? Are you sure?
OUT OF THE FRYING PAN Daniel had a living, personal, relationship with the God of heaven. He carried on a conversation with the God of the Universe three times a day, and when he found himself in the pit, God was there! The satraps and their families didn't know God. And there was no peace for them, only agony.
THE WRITING ON THE WALL The story of Belshazzar's banquet while the enemy raged outside the city walls and an examination of the writing that appeared on the wall, written by the finger of God.
WOLFMAN Have you truly repented of your sins? There is a huge difference between regret over your sins and repentance. Some people say, "Ooh, I'm sorry I did those things." Or "I'm sorry I got caught." True repentance does what Daniel says: You renounce your sin and change your behavior. Too bad, Nebuchadnezzar didn't listen to Nebuchadnezzar's advice, just like some of you will walk out of here today, thinking you can get away with your sin.
FIERY FURNACE God is not some heavenly puppet, and your prayer is not some string you pull. God is the King of the Universe, and He always knows what's best. Why don?t you stop running from Him? Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were prepared to die! They could say, "Lord, even if I have to suffer, if my body ignites and my burning flesh fills the air with stench, I will go out trusting You. I will believe You, even if I don't get the answer to my prayer!"
THE BROKEN STATUE The image of the statue in Nebuchadnezzar's dream is still standing, because we are living in the time of man's kingdoms. But there was more to the dream! There was a stone--a rock that was cut out of a mountain without human hands. That rock came hurtling toward the feet of the statue and demolished it. It became dust and is blown away. What is that all about? Obviously, the rest of the Bible identifies that rock as Jesus.
THE FALL OF ISRAEL We are going to find that this "unconquerable" nation, God's people--the people with whom he had established a covenant--is going to fall. You'd think God would sooner fall from the heavens above than for these nations to fall. Not so, because these nations collapsed and fell. Actually, it is the fall of TWO unconquerable nations and then we're going to draw some parallels between them and the United States of America.
NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S DREAM Do you ever wake up in the morning after having dreamed all night and then you couldn't remember what you dreamed about? Dreams are strange things. Experts tell us everybody dreams, some people just can't remember their dreams. Out of eight hours sleep at night, on the average you'll dream an hour-and-a-half to two hours of those eight hours. Today we're going to be looking at a dream a king had 2,600 years ago that also had personal, national, and eternal significance.
PURITY It easy to trust God when things are going great, when all your bills are being paid, when your health is great, when everybody loves you and you love those around you, it's easy to trust God then. But you let the bottom fall out, and that's when the trial comes. Will you still trust God then? Well Daniel did. And you can, too. The greatest triumph of life is to stay pure in the midst of moral decay.
OUR PUNY BRAINS Paul says God is bigger than my brain or your brain. God is bigger than any person's ability to even imagine God, and if you think you have condensed God down to some little thought in your mind and you've got him figured out where he's convenient to you and for you, you've committed idolatry. God is saying, "I am the only wise God, and don?t limit who I am and what I can do."
CHERISH IS THE WORD Learn how to cherish your spiritual family. Remarks from the Apostle Paul about his love and compassion for the Christians in Rome.
LEPERS There are more recorded miracles Elisha's ministry than any other biblical character. A study of Elisha and the four Samarian lepers.
LEAN ON ME Sometimes people think that the Christian life is a playground. It's not a playground; it's a battleground. Life is tough. It's a struggle, even for the best of Christians, even for the strongest Christians. He says, "I'm in a struggle." And it is a struggle. That's why you need to share your burdens with one another. That's why we need to say, "Pray for me as I pray for you."
DOCTOR, HEAL THYSELF The problem with many American Christians is that to you Christianity is just such a personal thing; you don't ever want to share it. You have your ticket to heaven, you have your eternal fire insurance, and frankly, you don't really care whether anybody else goes to heaven or not. We're like a bunch of people using first aid on ourselves, when there are hurting people all around us. If you're content to hang on to the gospel and not share it with anybody else, you don't share the missionary heart of the Apostle Paul.
GET HEALTHIER! As I talk about our church today, I feel like a physician who is examining a very healthy person. When a physician conducts a physical examination, a person can be very healthy, but they never say you're perfect. They may say, you're doing great, but you probably need to drop your cholesterol a couple of points or lose a few pounds or exercise a bit more. They always have some words to encourage them to be healthier.
OPEN ARMS We're all so different. We come from different backgrounds, different convictions. But when we all love each other and open arms to all kinds of people, that's when the beauty of unity is seen. And God wants that here. And we can never stand and say to anybody, "You cannot come to the body of Christ." Because that's what Jesus would do. He opens His arms.
IMPACT Almost every day, I sing praises to the Lord, but I come together with you on Sunday. With one voice, we sing praises to the Lord. That promotes and enhances the unity of our church. When a lost person comes in the doors of this church, they sit down and they look around and see a thousand Christians in here singing praises to God. I want to tell you, that has an impact on them because with one heart and one voice, we are glorifying God together.
THE POWER OF GOD Elijah was a great prophet, but then he put his prophetic mantle on Elisha and Elisha said, "I want a double portion of the Spirit that has been on you." If you happen to count up the miracles Elijah did and Elisha did, you'll see that under the power of God Elisha performed about twice as many miracles as Elijah did. A study of the miracle of the lepers healed and enemies blinded.
RELATIONSHIPS That phrase "in the Holy Spirit" covers all three of those, righteousness in the Holy Spirit, peace in the Holy Spirit, and joy in the Holy Spirit. When you understand that, anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God (vertical relationship) and is approved by men. That's your horizontal relationship. That is the condensed essence of the gospel of the kingdom of God.
WALKING A TIGHTROPE A tightrope is a picture of Christian liberty. It's not just a wide valley you stroll through with no consideration of other people. On one side, if you're not careful, you will fall into legalism and go back to your list. On the other side, if you're not careful, you will fall into unrestrained license. But somewhere in between the two is the beautiful tightrope of balance, and the balance bar for a Christian is love. Love for God on one hand and love for others on the other end. And when you understand love is more important than liberty, you'll be able to walk the tightrope of liberty, and you'll enjoy the Christian life and you'll be a blessing to others.
TABOO OR NOT TABOO? There are things we face in life that do not fall neatly into the right or wrong categories. There are some things we're faced with, some areas of conduct that the Bible really doesn't address. That's what Paul is addressing.
ELISHA A study of four of Elisha's miracles: Parting of the waters, healing of the water, the bears, and water in the desert.
"SERMONIC SOMINEX" Sometimes people are so content, they just get into a spiritual rut, where nothing ever changes. A rut is nothing but a grave with both ends kicked out. God is trying to say to every one of us today, "Hey, wake up! The alarm has gone off." I know that part of the problem is with us preachers. There is so much Sermonic Sominex dispensed in churches today, it lulls people to sleep. Today, God is trying to say to Green Acres Baptist Church, "Wake up from your apathy."
DEBT AND TAXES What does the Bible say about debt? The Bible says you should never carry any more debt than you can successfully pay for. We live in such a materialistic culture it causes people to borrow money they can't repay. Do you know what the American culture says? The American culture says you need to buy things you don't need with money you don't have to impress people you don't even know. That's what gets so many people in trouble.
COMEUPPANCE The story of Naboth: A noble man and a good, citizen; Ahab: The vile toad who squatted on the throne of Israel and Jezebel: The wicked adder coiled beside the throne.
FAULT LINE God has drawn a moral standard, a line. "That's my boundary. That's my spiritual fault line. You better move your life to get in line with it." And too many Americans are saying, "No, I want to move God's line and change God's standard to fit my life." This is a recipe for destruction, because the Bible says, "There's a way seems right to a man, but the end thereof are the ways of destruction."
GOD REPAYS EVIL Sometimes when your enemies treat you wrong and insult you and hurt you and you try to get revenge and you try to do something about the situation, all you do is make a bloody mess of it. There are some of you right now, you've got that sword in your hand, and if you had the chance, you would get back at them. You would hurt those people who have hurt you. And if Jesus doesn't say anything else to you in this service, it may be that Jesus just tells you to put your sword away. Some of you just need to put it in the scabbard, because God is going repay evil.
DIFFERENCES What is it that makes you different, as a Christian, than somebody out there that's not a Christian? The fact that when you die, you're going to go to heaven? It ought to mean so much more than that. One of the main differences between a person who is a Christian and one who is not is how we relate to other people, especially to other people who don't like us, especially to people who mistreat us.
TO BE OR NOT TO BE Some people say, "When I get some of these problems in my life, that's when I'll rejoice, that's when I'll start enjoying life." The only time you're going to get rid of problems in your life is when you're in a cemetery. In life trouble is inevitable, but misery is optional. Think about that. You have a choice about whether you are going to be miserable about the problems in your life, and the way you deal with it determines whether you are miserable or not.
TRUE LOVE America is adrift without a moral standard, a moral anchor, and until we get back to the word of God, we're going to get further and further away from God's standard. True love says we hate what is evil, but we love what is good. That is love according to the Bible.
THE GREAT DEPRESSION If you are depressed or if you go through periods of depression, don't worry because even some of the greatest saints of God in the Bible went through periods of depression. That's where we find Elijah. Right after this great victory on Mt. Carmel we see him going through a time of depression.
ONE-MAN BAND One source of frustration in the church is that people are trying to do the wrong ministry, play the wrong instrument. That is tragic. But do you know what is even worse than that is having your instrument, but refusing to play it. Everybody in this church has been given a special gift that nobody else has, when you mix it with your personality and your own gifts and abilities. If you are just sitting there with your instrument, refusing to play it, there is a part of the symphony that is missing. You need me. I need you. We all need to be playing together. No person is a one-man band.
HE BROKE THE MOLD Have you ever heard somebody say about another individual, "When God made that person He broke the mold?" That is literally true of everybody in this room. There was one mold for you and nobody else is in that mold. My friend, you are not one in one million. You are one in 6-and-a-half billion. There is nobody else like you on the face of the planet, and there is nobody else like you in this body. You are a unique member of the body of Christ.
METAMORPHOSIS Just as a caterpillar metamorphoses into a butterfly, and just as a tadpole metamorphoses into a frog, God wants to take every one of us and he wants to metamorphose us into a different kind of person who thinks differently and acts differently. Our job is to repent.
TWO-FOR-ONE You can't separate your body and your soul and your spirit. God knows if you give your body to Him, the soul and the spirit is going to be given to Him. Sometimes people say to me, "Pastor, I'm not going to be in church this Sunday, but I'll be there in spirit." It's kind of spooky to me to stand up here and preach to a bunch of spirits in these pews. The truth is, you cannot do that. I know they mean they're going to be there in thought, but you can't separate your spirit from your body. That's what happens at physical death; the spirit departs from the body. You can't do it until then.
FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT When I see a tree with an orange hanging on it, that's an orange tree. Do you know what the fruit does? The fruit reveals outwardly the inner nature of that tree. The same is true in the Christian life. When there is fruit in your life what you are expressing outwardly is the inner character and nature of Jesus Christ. That's what the fruit of the Spirit is.
JUST A REGULAR GUY? Elijah was one of the most notable characters in the Bible. Not only do we see his miraculous ministry, but also the Bible tells us in the book of Malachi that before the Messiah comes, Elijah is going to return. What a powerful character he is in the Bible! A look at Elijah's ministry in two perspectives.
NOT DONE YET God has not rejected his people, the Jews. Today the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, and Christianity is embraced more by Gentiles (that?s who we are) than Jewish people, yet the Bible still says God is not through with the nation of Israel.
THE ACORN THAT FELL FAR FROM THE TREE Solomon sowed disobedience; he sowed compromise; he sowed little sins of setting up those little altars and before long the Bible says, "His heart had been turned from God." How different from his father, because although David was a man who sinned and fell, to the very end he still was a man after God's own heart.
WHAT IS THE DEFINITION? If I could ask you what you believe about salvation, you may not have a clear answer. But in Romans 10, we have the clearest explanation of what salvation is. A discussion about the two keystone ideas about salvation, the grace of God and our faith.
THREE TYPES OF FAITH Calling on the Lord has never saved anybody, but calling on the name of the Lord, who is Jesus, always saves. How can you do that? How can you have that kind of faith? I've noticed there are at least three different types of faith (probably more) I think everybody possesses one of three types of faith. Of course, the first two are defective, inferior faith, and they don't save anybody. The third one does.
AN UNQUALIFIED SUBSTITUTE God said, "East Texas is full of religious people, but that does not mean they are saved." They get a good sense of satisfaction out of being religious. What's wrong with being religious? Nothing, as long as it does not become a substitute for knowing Jesus Christ. You can brush your hair and there is nothing wrong with brushing your hair, but if one day you decide you are going to let brushing your hair stand as a substitute for breathing, in just a few moments that harmless act of brushing your hair will kill you, because you substituted it for something that was totally necessary.
WARNING SIGNS God's wrath has been revealed throughout history. It has been demonstrated or revealed throughout history. We have seen many examples of his wrath mixed with mercy and grace. Romans 1:18 says, "The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness." It's being revealed right now. Why does God show us some demonstrations of his wrath in history? To warn us. To teach us that one day God is going to judge sin.
THE INVALID MARRIAGE Isn't it interesting how God can take a mess and turn it into a message? Take the time to read Matthew 2 about the genealogy of Jesus. It says, "David, who was the father of Solomon, whose mother was Uriah's wife..." Not David's wife, not even Bathsheba. "Solomon whose mother was the wife of Uriah." A thousand years later when they wrote it down, God still did not recognize the validity of that marriage, because of the way it began. Even in spite of that God made something beautiful out of a mess. That's the business God is in. Look at our lives! God is in the business of taking mistakes and using us for his glory!
FREE WILL Have you ever thought about how through the centuries God has preserved the Jewish people and they have maintained their identity even though they have been scattered all over the planet Earth? Why? Because God preserved them. And that's what Romans 9-11 is all about. We'll start that section today. Looking ahead Romans 12 through 16--the last section of the book--is God's righteousness displayed in our practical duty. Starting in Romans 12 it is very practical because we are righteous in Christ, and this is how we ought to live.
AN EXAMPLE OF GRACE Did you know the story of David and Mephibosheth is also a story about Jesus and us? David was a king who showed kindness and grace to a crippled man and Jesus is the king who shows grace and kindness to all of us who are spiritually crippled.
SHARE AND SHARE ALIKE Those people out there without Christ are not going to break down the doors of this church to get here and learn about Jesus. Chances are the majority of lost people in East Texas you know somebody they know or you know them personally. We cannot be satisfied. We cannot be complacent until someone has shared with them like somebody shared with us.
WE THREE KINGS Each of us has three kings fighting for control (there are probably a lot more). In each of us, there is a King Saul, a spirit of jealousy, a spirit of envy, a spirit of anger that becomes so blinded that this is a true "rage-a-holic." Thank God, I think in each one of us there is the potential for a King David, a spirit of submission. It is the spirit of Christ of submitting to God?s given authority. And I also think in each one of us there is a "king-to-be" Absalom and he is the spirit of rebellion, the spirit of selfish ambition. Who I can become? What I could do if I were in charge? I could do a whole lot better if I was in charge of this outfit! Be careful, because those three kings are usually fighting for control of your life.
WHO'S AFRAID OF THE BIG BAD WORLD? The Bible says we have enemies in this world. It is the world, the flesh and the devil. We have enemies, but who's afraid of the big, bad world? The Bible talks about how our flesh needs to stay crucified. We understand we can resist the devil and he will flee from us. There are going to be many people who try to oppose us in the Christian life, but the good news is God is FOR us. That means you and I do not have to fear. We never have to be afraid of anything the world, the flesh or the devil can throw at us!
WOULDN'T IT BE GREAT... God is interested in making a whole family of people like Jesus. Some people say, "Well if we were all like Jesus, wouldn't it be boring?" No it would be pretty exciting. Wouldn't it be great to live in a world where everybody was loving and totally unselfish in their loving? Wouldn't it be great to live in a world where everybody was full of joy? Wouldn't it be great to live in a world where everybody was full of peace and patience and kindness? That's what God is doing. He's trying to make you and I more like Jesus. That is our destiny our destination and God has already predetermined to make us that way. So that's God's purpose. He chose us and then he changes us.
IDENTITY When David heard Goliath's threat, he knew the enemy was there before him and he said, "We have to do something about this!" Before you ever succeed in battle you have to identify who your giant is. Your giant may be your temper. It may be lust; it may be a financial problem; it may be some personal problem you have. Before you can ever conquer your giant, you have to identify your giant.
THE ULTIMATE GUARANTEE Have you ever bought a product and along with it you receive a guarantee or a warranty that says if anything goes wrong with it, you get your money back? Well Romans 8:28 is "God's Infallible Guarantee!" He says, "I guarantee if you meet my conditions that you're going to see all things become a part of his plan to produce good."
GOD'S PREPARATION OF DAVID It had to be tough on David knowing he was anointed the next king and here was Saul, whom the spirit of God had left. Here was a holy man in the presence of an unholy person, but yet he submitted to him and the Bible says he served him. How difficult that must have been. God was trying to prepare David. David was out in the field taking care of the sheep and wild beasts came. You and I know that by killing those wild beasts he knew that when a giant of a beast stood before him he could do it. But he also had to deal with another beast, a human beast named Saul. Throughout his life David was going to have to deal with difficult people sometimes in his own family. God was preparing him for that.
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR Are you aware there is something we may call the "perfect will of God?" There is something that has sometimes been called the "permissive will of God;" it's not God's perfect will, but he allows it and then he takes it from that point. God has a perfect will for your life and if you don't stay completely on track with that, there are some times that God will give you what you ask for. Israel wanted a king. God did not want them to have a king, but he permitted them to have a king and they got what they asked for. This is true in our lives sometimes when we seek that which is less than God's best.
MISERY God is real! If you make the mistake of robbing him in an offering and trying to use him for your own gain, you are going to experience misery but when you repent that's when God will be there to help you!
THE MEDIATOR Where is the Lord Jesus right now? He is actually here in the person of the Spirit. But did you know Jesus Christ was crucified, he was buried, he was resurrected, and he ascended into heaven and the Bible says right now he is seated at the right hand of God, the Father, and do you know what he is doing? He is interceding for me. He is interceding for you. The Bible says there is one mediator between God and man. It is the man, Jesus Christ! Isn't it good to know Jesus is praying for you?
THE OCEAN OF GLORY The Apostle Paul said if you take all of the suffering you've ever endured in this life, it is like a drop in the bucket compared to a vast, deep ocean of glory that's going to come. And so today, we're going to look into the future and talk about the future glory. Paul will give us three examples of why we ought to have hope and the words drawing these three together is the word "groan." First of all, he talks about creation groaning, then he talks about how we groan, and in the third example the Bible says even the Holy Spirit groans in us in prayer.
THE CHOSEN ONE You can rejoice because the Father lovingly chose us. It was His love that caused us to be chosen by him. Have you ever stopped and thought, "Why me? Why did God choose me to be his child?" It just pleased God to do so. It gave God pleasure to choose you to be his child. And when God does something he does it so he derives personal pleasure from it. That's why he did it.
SAMSON'S SPIRITUAL SLIDE Of course the story of Samson is a story you have heard all of your life. I don't know about you, but I always used to picture Samson as some huge, built-up, bulked-up, he-man! I mean a guy that looked like Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Incredible Hulk all put together. The more I studied the text, the more I am convinced he probably didn't look like that at all, because the source of Samson's strength was not his hair, the source of Samson's strength was not his muscles, the source of Samson's strength was the Holy Spirit of God, because of his commitment and his devotion. It is clear every time he did something requiring supernatural strength, it was the Spirit of God coming on him. A study of "the downward slope" of Samson's spiritual decline.
FRUSTRATION WITHOUT FAITH Paul said, "Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God." I call this frustration without faith. Surveys tell us most people in America believes in God. Most people in America really want to try and please God. But if they don't have faith it is just a constant frustrating experience, because most people think the way you please God is by ceasing to do "wrong things," stopping the sinful faults we all have, cleaning up our acts, or getting it all together. And the thing we learn in the book of Romans is we don?t have the power to do that!
NO SEPARATION Romans 8 is all about how to live in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. You start out with no condemnation in Romans 8--you end up with no separation--and in between you have all things working together for good for them that love the Lord. So I want to talk to you about how as spirit-filled Christians we can make four wonderful affirmations.
BE VIGILANT God takes the simple things of life and tests us. What was God trying to teach Gideon? What was he trying to teach the Israelites? The New Testament message is this "Be serious. Be vigilant, because our enemy, the devil, roams about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour." You and I as Christians like these three hundred faithful must be vigilant.
STILL STRUGGLING It is believed Paul was saved around 35 A.D. and we believe he wrote this letter to the Romans in about 57 A.D. That means he had been a believer for 22 years, and after 22 years of knowing Jesus Christ, and as a maturing Christian, he says, "I still have to deal with and confront sin."
CHOOSING TO BREAK THE RULES We become accountable when we know we are choosing to sin. When we know it's right or wrong, that's when the law has come alive and that's when as he says in Romans 7:9, "Sin springs to life and that person dies spiritually." Parents often ask me, "How old is a child when they reach the age of accountability?" I can't answer that because children develop at different stages, emotionally and spiritually, and this development is not always attached to a biological age. But it has been my observation most children reach that age around 7, 8, 9, 10, when they know what the rules are, but then they knowingly and willfully choose to break the rules. You've got to understand the Bible teaches we are sinners by nature from when we are born, but we also become sinners by choice when we choose to break the rules and that's when we are held accountable.
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? God reveals his will in a variety of ways. Is it okay for me and you to lay a fleece out before the Lord? Christians do it and I've done it but it is a dangerous thing to do. God spoke to Moses through a burning bush. Can you give me one other person in the Bible he spoke to out of a burning bush? You make a mistake if you go around to every bush and wait for it to catch on fire for God to speak to you. God spoke to Gideon through a fleece that got wet and then got dry. God blinded the apostle Paul on the road to Damascus and spoke to him in a voice. Are you waiting for God to do that? Who else did he do that to? When you study the word of God you find God spoke in a variety of ways and God has a variety of ways he shares his will.
FEAR VS. LOVE What's the difference between living under law and living released from law in a relationship with Jesus? There may be some people who put their children in a safety seat because the law says to do it and they're afraid that if they get stopped and their child is not in the correct seat, they may get a ticket. You know what motivates them? Fear of being caught. That's what it's like to live under the law. But I know this is true of all of you who have children. You know the reason you put your child in that safety seat is not because the law of Texas says to do it, but because you love that child. You do it because the very last thing in the world you'd ever want to happen to that child is for him to be hurt. This person does it out of fear--this person does it out of love. I obey the law of God not because I'm afraid, but because I love Jesus. Jesus said, "If you love me, you will keep my commandments."
YOU CAN'T HIDE I want to talk to you about the tragedy of "secret" sin. I put quotes around it is because no sin is secret. You just THINK it is secret. Achan thought what he did was a personal "secret" sin. I don't want you to think so much about Achan tonight and I don't want you to think so much about any other person who might have committed the kind of sin we are talking about tonight and covered it up. I want you to discover if there is any hidden secret sin in your life.
WHAT IS ETERNAL LIFE? You ask most people and they say, "living forever, existing forever." The only thing wrong with that is that some of you are so miserable right now in your life the idea of existing as you're existing right now forever--that's eternal misery. No, eternal life is not a quantity of life, it is not how long it is, it's how deep it is, how wonderful it is, how good it is. If you want to know what eternal life is, look at John 17:3 where Jesus says, "Now this is eternal life. That they may know you, the only true God, and know Jesus Christ whom you have sent." What is eternal life? It is knowing God; it is knowing Jesus Christ.
IN TRAINING When God tells us to do things sometimes in the word, we look at it and we say, "Why?" That's not the right response. We should just obey the Lord and not ask why, because God is trying to get us ready for even bigger and better things. Sometimes when God tells us to do simple things in the word of God, we want to look at and say, "Why would we do that? We want bigger and better things!"
RAHAB'S DECISION In this first story about the beginning of the conquering of the Promised Land shows us that God can strike a mighty lick with a crooked stick. In other words, God can use all kinds of people--anyone who's available to him. I want to go below the level of the actual historical story itself and talk about how what Rahab did is a beautiful picture of what all of us must do if we want to be redeemed, if we want to be part of the family of God, because this is basically what Rahab did. She was a part of the people who lived in the area around Jericho, but she made a decision. She said, "I no longer want to be affiliated with my past with these people of my past I choose to be a part of the family of God." If you want to be a part of the family of God you have to follow five steps.
SLAVERY The apostle Paul uses the issue of slavery to simply illustrate and demonstrate how sometimes people can be in bondage to sin, and then how we need to be in servitude to God. When you talk about slavery, the only image many of us have of slavery is antebellum slavery in the South, Uncle Tom?s cabin. But, that?s not really the historical backdrop against which Paul is writing. In the Roman Empire there were millions of slaves, and we would call these people indentured servants, bond slaves, people who were often so close to the family members we have many historical records of a slave literally being adopted into a family and becoming the legal heir of the leaders of that family. Paul said you used to be slaves to sin, now you are slaves to God.
TIMELINE A problem for a lot of people who name the name of Jesus as Christians is there hasn't been a lot of growth in their Christian life. If I could have a timeline up here, there would be a point in time when you were B.C. (Before Christ) but then there was a point of conversion where you passed from death unto life. The problem a lot of Christians have is they don't grow much beyond that point. There is no growth in grace, as the Bible calls it. They stay to close to the point of conversion.
GOODNESS SNAKES! From the very moment Satan slithered his slimy existence before Eve, there has been something sssinister and sssinful and ssscary about sssnakes! A study of the nation of Israel's rebellion against God and the swift punishment they received.
BORN AGAIN This text addresses Christians who have been born again and it describes what has happened to us. I'll remind you this is not about things that ought to happen to you. These are not things you ought to try to do. These are things that are true realities in your life if you are born again.
ADAM'S LEGACY Do you remember what happened to Adam when he sinned? He died immediately in his spirit, he died gradually in his soul, and he died ultimately in his body. Now, let me tell you what salvation is. It reverses it. Look at it. When you receive Jesus you receive life immediately in your spirit. Instantaneously, you are justified. Immediately, you receive life in your spirit.
THE VALUE OF GRACE As long as we are cruising along, we have everything under control and we can handle it. We are not depending on God. So, one reason God allows suffering is so we will depend on him. I didn't say God causes suffering, but he allows it. Here's another reason, because suffering shows us the value of God's grace. Sometimes, we think grace was just something way back yonder when we got saved. It was grace that brought about the forgiveness of our sins, but we forget that God's grace is active right now, present tense.
SPIRITUAL BOREDOM There are a lot of Christians who are wandering in the wilderness. You can tell you are wandering in the wilderness by the landmarks you pass by every day. Landmark number one is spiritual boredom, when the things of the Christian life don't excite you.
NOT ACTS The secret to living the Christian life is not trying to imitate Jesus. It is not trying to perform all these Christian acts in the strength of your flesh because Jesus said in John, 15:5, "Without me, you can do nothing." The secret to the Christian life is allowing Jesus simply to control every part of your life so his character is just displayed.
THE PATTERN I admire women and men who can take a piece of fabric, put it down on a table, and then can take a dress pattern and put the pattern down on the fabric and cut out along the dotted lines, and then sew it together, and have a beautiful garment. That's a miracle to me! I want you to know that I could never do that. What God is saying, "Upon the fabric of human suffering, I have superimposed my Biblical pattern, and if you will understand what I am trying to do, the result will be something beautiful if you just don't mess it up."
PAID IN FULL The difference between when Jesus died and the death of every martyr or every hero who ever died is this: Those people died and they are still dead. The thing about Jesus Christ is he died, he was buried, and he came back after three days. We wouldn't have Christianity to celebrate if there was not a risen Savior. He would be just a good man who died. We wouldn't be here today. We wouldn't believe this book. We wouldn't tell people how to be saved. It's the fact he's alive today! That was God's stamp: PAID IN FULL. He was delivered over for our sins and was resurrected for our justification.
JUST DO IT When somebody directs us to do something, before we take the first step, most of us want to know all the details. In fact, if Abraham had been like most of us, and God had spoken to us, we would have said, "Now wait a minute. I need to know who you are, God. What's your name?" Abraham didn't ask. We would have asked, "Now, Lord, we want to know exactly where it is you are going to take us. What is the name of the land you are leading us to?" Abraham didn't ask that. Later on, Abraham just kept on moving by faith until he came to this land that was going to one day be Israel.
MISSING THE TARGET Have you ever been in a relationship with somebody and it seemed like you could not please them? Some of you I'm sure have been and may be married to people like that. That's somewhat true of God, because if you try on the basis of your own behavior to earn God's approval or his glory, you?ll miss the target every time.
GUILTY BY NATURE You and I struggle with guilt, because we're guilty. The sooner you and I admit we are sinners by nature and by choice, and we are guilty, the sooner we can move on to receive the forgiveness of God. Paul shows us a reflection of our guilt in four areas.
THE BOTTOM LINE The question the writer of Hebrews asks is the question all of us ought to be considering: How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? Here's the bottom line! God is holy, and he must punish sin. We are sinful and in one way or another, we're going to have to deal with the punishment of God against sin.
WHO ARE YOU TRYING TO PLEASE? You can be religious, ritualistic, a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof, and people around you will look at you, and they will say, "Oh, what a fine, religious, spiritual person he or she is." And you'll receive the praise of men. Or you can choose to live Godly, and one day the only applause you will hear will be the applause of the nail-scarred hands and he'll say, "Well, done good and faithful servant." Let's just boil it down. Who are you trying to please? Are you into a religion or are you into a relationship?
JUDGING OTHERS Our judgment is not like God's judgment. Man's judgment is blind, not only to all the evidence, but we are blind to our own mistakes. We all have blind spots in our character that a lot of other people can see, but we can't see them. Paul says, "You are doing a dangerous thing when you judge other people because you may be guilty of the same thing." God's judgment is perfect. God's judgment is perfect! He has no flaws, no character deficiencies, so His judgment is perfect because His character is perfect.
FREEDOM The Exodus is not just an historical story about God delivering the children of Israel. It is a story about what has happened to every one of us who are children of God. We have been set free from the bondage the slavery of sin and that's the picture portrayed when the children of Israel come out of Egypt. A message about when God sets you free and the characteristics of this freedom and how he deals with us in much the same way he dealt with the children of Israel.
THE TEMPTING THOUGHT Did you know it is possible to commit sin without even doing an act? Jesus said in Matthew 5:28, "Anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." So many people have trouble with that verse, because they realize it is possible to commit what we call "mental adultery," or adultery in a person's heart. The difference between a tempting thought and a sinful desire is you could look at somebody of the opposite sex and say that person is nice-looking, but if you entertain thoughts about entering into a sexual relationship with that person, you begin to fantasize it and visualize it, then you can step over the line and you can commit adultery in your heart with that person, but it all began with a tempting thought.
THE LAMB A study of the Passover and how marvelously the Lord Jesus Christ fulfills the prophecy of the Passover lamb. Five of the details of the requirements for the Passover lamb
EVERY TEMPTATION I'm going to say something that may shock you out of your socks: Jesus had to deal with homosexual temptation. How I can say that? It's simple. Jesus dealt with every kind of temptation. He dealt with alcoholic temptation. Jesus dealt with the temptation to lie. According to Hebrews 4:15, Jesus is our high priest and he's the high priest who was tempted with ALL of our weaknesses. It says, "He has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet without sin."
TOTAL COMMITMENT Moses resisted all the compromises of Pharaoh. He said, "No, we're going to go! Not only are we GOING to go, we're going to go all the WAY! Not only are we going to go all the way we're going to take our FAMILIES with us. Not only are we going to take our family with us, we are taking all of our POSSESSIONS with us!" Where have you drawn the line? Do you say, "Well that's as far as I'm going. I'm a Christian, but I'm not going to go all the way with Jesus. I'm just going to stand on this side and make sure I have my ticket to heaven." or "I'm going to really get fired up, but I'm going to leave my family out of it!" If you have gone all the way and you say, "I'm going all the way with Jesus. I'm taking everybody I can with me and I'm taking everything I own, everything I possess, and it all is going to be offered to God. That's what total commitment is all about.
HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED... what the eternal destiny is of a person who is born and raised and lives and dies in a place where they never once have access to a Bible, they never hear about God, they never hear the Christian message? What's going to be their eternal destiny? What about a person who is faithful to another religion, say Buddhism or Islam all their lives? Is God going to excuse them? Is God going to excuse those people who never had access to the Bible?
A MATTER OF COMPARISON Some people think they are going to go to heaven by doing good deeds or acting righteously. I asked a retired lady in our church the other day how she was feeling. "Oh, I feel so great today." She said, "I led two Boy Scouts across the street." Some of you think you are going to heaven by helping little old ladies across the street, or by feeding the poor, or clothing the naked. You think you are going to go to heaven by doing all these good things. No, God's righteousness is humanly impossible. The very best thing I have ever done in my flesh compared to God's holiness and purity, looks like dirty, filthy, stinking rags before God. It's all a matter of comparison.
PERSISTENCE Some of the greatest things ever accomplished in this world have simply been accomplished because people refused to quit. A big oak tree is nothing more than an acorn that refused to give ground. It just hung on. There's great value in persistence.
CLASSIFICATION Let's say you own a secular bookstore and everything in your bookstore is classified as fiction and nonfiction. Where would you put the Bible? Would you put it in the nonfiction section with historical truth, or would you put it over here in the fictional section with the other fairy tales and mythology? If you were a librarian and your job is to classify all the books in the library, where are you going to put the Bible? That is a fundamental decision everybody must make.
THE APOSTLE PAUL Have you ever wondered what the apostle Paul looked like? While it is true we do not have any written eyewitness description of Jesus' physical appearance, we have a fairly reliable one for Paul the apostle. A pastor living in the second century (which means the 100s) who perhaps as a child had actually seen Paul, describes him: "A man small of stature with a bald head and crooked legs in a good state of body, with eyebrows meeting and nose somewhat hooked, full of friendliness for now he appeared like a man, and now he had the face of an angel." Can you just see this little man so full of energy? Before he became a Christian, he was full of energy for the wrong thing, but once he was tamed and changed by Jesus Christ, he used his energy for the right cause. Three ways Paul was changed by Jesus.
MOSES: A REGULAR GUY I think one of the reasons we can all relate to Moses is because he was called to God and gifted by God, yet he was very reluctant to serve God. That is the case for most of us.
LIFE LESSONS There are lessons we can learn from Joseph's life: Be positive in negative experiences. Wherever you are, you should do your best. Bloom where you are planted. Every experience in life is training and always be a blessing to those around you.
MICROWAVE CHARACTER We want microwave character. We want instant perseverance. We want God to shape us and change us and fix us right now. God is not in a hurry. If you are suffering or you know someone who is suffering, you ought to do what Joseph, the apostle, Paul, and Job did: Make the best out of it and say, "I will not let this make me bitter. I will let it make me better." And you'll let God take his time with you.
GOD USES IMPERFECTION Jacob was not the finest character you could ever meet. He was a liar, a cheat, and a swindler. His very name means "grabber." But Jacob was a part of God's plan. God can take failures and change them and then use them. For anybody who has ever made a mistake, God can still use you. For anybody who is not absolutely perfect, God can still use you, because God always saw what he knew Jacob could become rather than who Jacob was. That's the great thing about God's grace.
STOLEN BIRTHRIGHT The account of Esau's stolen birthright by Jacob and Rebekah and how greed and deception divided a family.
STOLEN BIRTHRIGHT The account of Esau's stolen birthright by Jacob and Rebekah and how greed and deception divided a family.
Nehemiah puts his plan to rebuild Jerusalem into action when he boldly asks for permission from the king to travel to Jerusalem to inspect the damage. (GABC Discover the Joy building program)
Nehemiah accepts the challenge to rebuild the fallen walls and burned gates in Jerusalem and begins with prayer and fasting. (GABC Discover the Joy building program announcement)
WILLING SACRIFICE Did you notice Isaac had to be a willing sacrifice? We don't know exactly how old Abraham was, but we do know he was a hundred years older than Isaac. Imagine Isaac is 16. Don't you think a 16-year-old boy can overpower a 116-year-old man? Do you think when Isaac was tied up with that rope and laid up on the altar, don't you think a 16-year-old old could have said, "Wait a minute! What are you doing, old man? Stop it!" No not only did Abraham trust God's plan, but Isaac also was a willing sacrifice. Always remember that about Jesus. They didn't murder Jesus. He was not a martyr. He willingly laid down his life! And that was God's plan all along.
IRONCLAD GUARANTEE When it comes to receiving God's promises, you'll either receive them by faith or you'll try to get the flesh in there and you'll try to make it happen. When God makes a promise, you don't have to make it happen he's going to make it happen.
BACKSLIDING I have discovered a lot of us start out getting fired up about Jesus and everything is going along fine for a while but we come to a place where we backslide and we get out of fellowship with God. That happened in the life of Abraham.
EVIDENCE The story of Noah and the catastrophe that struck the whole earth. There is widespread archaeological evidence that every culture has some story of a flood. We are not talking about some idle event that took place in a little corner of the world. Many, many cultures have stories about a flood dating back to this flood. There is geological and meteorological evidence. I have been told and read that if the polar caps of our planet melted, every square foot of land on earth would be submerged. When you think about it, the idea of a worldwide flood is not at all far-fetched. The spiritual reason behind the great flood.
TROUBLES The world began when God created the heavens and the earth. He created Adam then he created Eve. Perhaps you've heard the world's shortest poem entitled, "Troubles" and the poem goes "Adam had 'em." That's right. Adam had a lot of trouble. When sin entered his life, all the trouble began.
PRINCIPLES According to the Bible there are three principles that provide a structure to order in the church. (1) When you come together, everything should be done for the strengthening of the church; (2) God is not a God of disorder but of peace; (3) Everything should be done in a fitting and an orderly way.
THE TRUTH I believe there is a spiritual gift of speaking in tongues. However, I do think it is much misunderstood, abused and misused today. In fact, in my experience I would have to say I believe about 90% of what is passed today in speaking in tongues is not what the Bible teaches about it. A message about what the Bible has to say about speaking in tongues.
CORINTHISIZING The church at Corinth was located within a morally corrupt society. It was the worst society you could imagine. Immorality was rampant. There was a byword used in biblical times, where you would take the word, Corinth, and make a verb out of it and you spoke of "corinthisizing" someone. To corinthisize someone meant to take a moral person and despoil them, introduce them to an immoral lifestyle. Anywhere in the Roman Empire you took a good person and despoiled them, the word they used was corinthisized! That's how morally corrupt this place was. Paul tells this little church in Corinth, "More important than anything else, you have to have agape love." Paul's four observations on the limits of love.
HOW DO I LOVE THEE? Sometimes words we use don't have all the meanings we intend. In the Greek language the word "love" was translated with several different words in Greek. There was the word "storge", which meant "a patriotic kind of love." That would be the kind of love we would use when flippantly like saying, "I love ice cream!" There was another word for love that had to do with romantic love. It was the word "eros". Then of course there was a word that meant "a brotherly kind of love," "phileo". But the word used 1 Corinthians 13, is that beautiful word "agape," which means "unselfish love." The apostle Paul extracts this wonderful topic of love and like a beautiful diamond he looks at it and sees thirteen beautiful characteristics, facets of this diamond of love and he explains them, using thirteen different verbs.
THE MANY FORMS OF LOVE In the context of spiritual gifts Paul says you can have all the spiritual gifts you can imagine you can be gifted but still not exhibit love toward others and if you don't have love spiritual gifts are wasted. They are worthless. A message about agape love and what spiritual gifts are worth.
IT TAKES ALL KINDS The truth is throughout the history of the church, it has been known as a body that attracted all different kinds of people. You didn't have to have a certain kind of IQ; you didn't have to have a certain bank account; you didn't have to have a certain social standing. The church has always been, "Whosoever will may come." For that reason the church is made up of all different kinds of people and some are more prominent by the world's standards than others.
GROWTH = HEALTH Are any of you still wearing the same clothes you were wearing when you were five years old? Probably not. You can't get in them can you? Because something happened to your body. It grew. The problem for some of us is that it is still growing right? There is growth in a healthy body and in any body of Christ that is healthy and coordinated there will be growth. That's one way you know God is blessing the church, when there is growth, when he is adding to the body every day those people who should be saved. What should we do as a church? Let's claim the unity we already have; let's celebrate our diversity.
ONE GIFT DOES NOT FIT ALL Every Christian is a minister. That means you serve the Lord in the body through the gifts God has given you. Every Christian has one or more gifts and no Christian who has all of the gifts, because that would make that person a church in and of themselves. So, no Christian has all the spiritual gifts. The Bible also teaches there is no gift that EVERY Christian has. We are also going to learn that gifts without love are useless. This is just a reminder of the definition of spiritual gifts.
USEFUL GIFTS A gift is something you don't deserve and that?s the nature of grace. If somebody gives you something because you deserve it, that's not a gift--that's payment. You've earned it! And a gift is something you are given that you don't deserve. None of us deserves spiritual gifts. God just says, "I'm going to give you this so you can serve!"
DO YOU WANT FRIES WITH THAT? The problem with so many of us is we treat prayer like a fast food drive through. We pull up, roll down our spiritual window and say, "I'll take the Full Meal Deal, number one, and supersize it, dear Lord if you would." We pull up to the window and expect to pay our money, get our stuff and go on our way and that's the way we treat prayer. "Lord, give it to me quick." "I want it right now." Let's just keep on going. That's not the kind of prayer the Bible talks about. The Bible talks about spending much time in prayer persistence in prayer praying over and over and over. One reason some of our prayers are not being answered is we just stop too soon.
THE SLAP THAT REFRESHES Has this ever happened to you? When you read a passage of scripture that you have read time and time again and suddenly, it just reaches out and grabs you by the lapels and slaps you in the face like one of those Aqua Velva commercials and you just get a wake up call and you say, "Whoa!" When that happens, it is a sword you can use to dispel fear, anxiety, depression and anything the devil is shooting at you.
CHAIN MAIL When Paul wrote this letter to the church at Ephesus, he was in prison and there was a Roman soldier right beside him, guarding him. So as he is dictating this letter he looks at the Roman soldier and he looks at the pieces of equipment he is wearing and he says, "You know, that's a picture of how we ought to be equipped and armored as believers." So he takes a physical truth of literal armor and he relates spiritual truth.
TOO UNWORTHY TO ARGUE WITH The devil accuses us to ourselves and although accusing us before God has no power because of our Advocate, some of you are still listening to the devil's lies. He tries to make you feel unworthy and rotten. He slips up to you and he whispers in your ear and tries to make you feel unworthy. Don't argue with him. It takes two people to argue. Whenever he accuses you of being unworthy, just agree with him. Say, "Devil you're right. I am unworthy. I don't deserve the love and forgiveness and grace that I received. I'm not worthy of it, but I have accepted it by faith."
A BRAND NEW DAY When you get up tomorrow morning and go to work, what kind of difference would it make in your job if when you arrive at your workplace you said to yourself, "Today I'm going to work for Jesus"? I'm going to treat my boss as if my boss is Jesus. I'm going to treat my company as if my company belongs to Jesus." Your boss may not even be a Christian or your workplace may not even be a Christian-based company but your attitude can be, "I want to serve the Lord in my situation." That will make a tremendous difference.
THE PARENT TRAP Does the time ever come when a parent begins to take a deep breath and breathe a little easier feeling like now their kids are doing okay? I have discovered that as a parent, no matter how old your children are, you still feel a sense of responsibility for them. The difficult thing about being a parent is that suddenly you become a parent and you don't have any previous training. It's different from other skills.
ROLL OUT THE BARREL I know it is tough being a teenager and it's tough to be the PARENT of a teenager. Mark Twain gave some advice on raising teenagers, "Things run along pretty smoothly until your kid reaches age 13. That's the time you need to stick them in a barrel, hammer the lid down nice and snug and feed them through the knothole. And then about the time he turns 16 you'd better plug up the knothole." It is part of the sense of humor of God that he has arranged it that parents would be going through middle age at just the time when they have teens in their home.
TRADE IN Your wife is not a possession. She is a part of you. That's what the word "partner" means. The Bible says you are to treat her the way you treat your own body. Instead of thinking of your wife as a new automobile, think of her as your hand or as your arm. She's an extension of who you are. She's a part of you. For you to get rid of her and trade her in on a new model would be like you saying, "I'm going to cut off my arm and go to the hospital and get another arm."
SINKING SHIP For every seven couples who get on board the good ship Matrimony, one of those couples will jump overboard, but two of those couples will stay tied to the mast, lashed to the deck. They are not happy, not enjoying the ride, but because of religious or social reasons they stay in that marriage. Only about four out of seven couples say they are enjoying the cruise, so two out of seven marriages are at extreme risk in America today.
IGNORANCE IS MISERY Men and women are different and if you don't try to understand some of those differences, you'll have trouble in marriage, or in the workplace, or in relating to people of the opposite sex. Some guys just don't want to learn; some women don't want to learn. They think ignorance is bliss. No. In marriage ignorance is absolute misery if you don't understand the special, unique differences between you and your spouse.
THE CHAOS-KILLER Jesus is our model for submission, because He was the greatest submitter who ever lived. Without submission to authority, there is chaos, anarchy and heartache.
BUMPY RIDE? In the end Jesus Christ is victorious and no matter how you get from where you are to where you are going, know in the end that Jesus Christ wins. Because of that you can say, God I thank you that you are good and whatever is happening to me is going to work out for your glory and for my good."
SINGING PRAISES TO THE LORD How can you tell if you are filled with the Holy Spirit? According to Ephesians 5:19-21, there will be a spirit of adoration in your life. You?ll be singing praises. The fullness of the Spirit leads to a heart and a mouth and a life full of praise.
ALL THAT YOU CAN BE The filling of the Holy Spirit is God receiving more of your surrender, not you receiving more of the Spirit. When you come to Jesus Christ, you receive all of God that you will ever receive. He doesn't give the Holy Spirit like a down payment here and then an installment here and there. All you ever receive of God you receive at the point of salvation. You may grow into more surrender.
REWARDS The foundation of salvation is Jesus Christ, but we are all building a superstructure of Christian service, some using gold, silver, precious stones, that means it really lasts, it's permanent, some using wood, hay and stubble, that means it's perishable, temporary. But when we stand before the Lord, he'll try it with the fire of his eyes and he'll pass out rewards. Some of you are thinking you don't want any rewards. That's the point. If you're serving the Lord for rewards, you won't get any but if you're serving the Lord because you love him and because you obey him, you can't help but get rewards. He is the one determining it--not you.
THE STAGES OF GRIEF Studies tell us the most painful death experience and the most intense grief comes from the death of a spouse, followed closely by the death of a child and then by the death of a parent. Studies have also determined the grief that accompanies suicide is unique among any other kind of grief experience. As we talk about grief today, and the stages and categories, these are not hard and fast. Different people's grief experiences will be as different as their own personalities. But it's good for you to understand that you CAN survive grief and move forward after being devastated by the death of a loved one.
THE FORK IN THE ROAD Jesus said there are only two destinies at the point of death: Hell or Paradise. Some of you are probably wondering how a loving God could send people to hell. Most people don't even believe in hell. According to the Gallup polls, 68% of Americans believe there is a heaven--almost 7 out of 10 people. But only 43% believe there is a hell. People deny the fact there is a hell. And if there is a hell, why would God send people there?
PUNCTUATION MARKS Reports of near-death experiences have confused a lot of people. Many of us want to know the same thing: what happens at the point of death? In the Old Testament, even Job asked the question everybody wants to know: If a man dies, shall he live again? Death is not a period; it is a comma.
THE WISE CHOICE The Bible does not expressly forbid the use of alcohol or wine, because they didn't have alcohol as we know it today. But I think total abstinence is the wisest choice for a mature Christian.
LINE IN THE SAND I'm going to make a profound statement at the beginning and I'm going to tell you it's profound because if I didn't tell you, you wouldn't recognize it as being profound: The will of God for every child of God is to be in the will of God. (I said you wouldn't recognize it as being profound.) It is the will of God for every child of God to be in the will of God and there is a line is drawn down everybody listening to me today--either you are on one side of the line or the other. You are either in God's will right now or you are out of God?s will one or the other.
MORE VALUABLE THAN MONEY What would you do if every night at midnight someone deposited $1,440 into your bank account with the stipulation that you had to spend it all in 24 hours or it would be gone? Wouldn't you enjoy that? Sure! I imagine you would make sure that every day you spent all $1,440. The truth is better and it is this: Every day God deposits 1,440 minutes into your life and you have to spend them wisely or you will lose them.
EVIL AHEAD We are living in evil days, even secular columnists point that out. I was reading an editorial from the New York Times awhile ago and the editor was talking about how our American culture reads like a modern day soap opera. He said, "If someone had written down in a book the things that would happen in America, nobody would have believed it." The truth is somebody has written all of it down in a book and it is called the Bible. The sad thing is, many people do not read it.
EXPOSURE If you want to have the fruit of goodness, righteousness and truth in your life, the way to do it is get close to the light! Spend time next to the Light, because he is goodness he is righteousness he is truth. That's why it's important to have a quiet time. That's why it's very important every day for you to spend personal quality time with God in prayer and Bible study. That's why you need to come to church and have a Bible study group to be a part of be involved in discipleship because you are exposing yourself to the light and the only way that you and I can shine out there in the darkness is if we stay close to the light who is Jesus.
CHEAP IMITATION Wherever God has something genuine, the devil has his cheap imitation. Satan takes God's pure agape love and offers a cheap imitation to the world. A lot of people think that they are in love or they think they know what love is and it's just a cheap imitation of the real thing. Agape love is never demanding, but perverted love is always dominating and demanding and controlling.
IT'S HAILING WORDS! The book of Revelation says during the time of the Tribulation there is going to be hail the size of a millstone (two thousand pounds). Softball-sized hail is scary. Millstone-sized hail is absolutely terrifying! I'm glad I'm not going to be here during the Tribulation, aren't you, born-again Christians? Hail is the same thing as raindrops but the difference is it is cold and hard and it damages. The words you speak can either be raindrops or they can be hail. When they are cold and hard they are like hailstones that destroy, but when they are kind and liquid they are like raindrops they give nourishment. The Bible says slander should not be a part of the lifestyle of a Christian.
RIGHTEOUS ANGER Is it always a sin to be angry? No. That's why the Bible commands us to be angry. Jesus never sinned, yet Jesus got angry--but he was good and angry! I want to show you how you can be good and angry; how to use the right kind of approach to righteous anger.
THE UNPARDONABLE SIN When a Christian lives the wrong way, we grieve the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. There is the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, the unforgivable sin, and there is a lot of confusion about what the unforgivable sin is. The unpardonable sin is finally and ultimately saying, "No" to Jesus, rejecting faith in Jesus Christ. That's the unpardonable sin, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. If you are a born-again Christian, you have not committed that sin and you can never commit the unpardonable sin, so just put your mind at rest.
CONQUER IT! Christians still have to deal with sin. When I was just beginning my ministry, an old preacher came to me and said, "David, remember this: Sin will take you further than you ever wanted to go. Sin will keep you longer than you ever wanted to stay, and sin will cost you more than you ever wanted to pay!" It is so true. Deal with sin. Learn how to conquer sin. The first thing to do is recognize that old man, that old sinful nature, still with you.
UNITY We do not create unity; it is something the Holy Spirit creates. We ought to protect it and strive toward it. I don't think as a church you ever come to the place where you say, "We have found unity." It is always striving for more and more unity. Does that mean unity in a church is that a sign nobody ever disagrees? That nobody has their own opinion? No, that's part of the diversity. You can disagree with me sometimes. Many times, and that's okay; as long as you love me and I love you and Jesus is our Lord, there can still be unity. I think churches have unity sometimes and unity is not even demonstrated until you get threatened from the outside.
MISUSE "Charismatic" is a good Bible word, but because some people have used it for something else, we have lost the true Bible meaning of the word. It is a word Paul uses most often for a spiritual gift.
SPIRITUAL HANDICAP I know some people who believe the truth right down the line. They are so orthodox, but they are like a gun barrel: They are as straight theologically as they can be, but they are just as cold and empty. You can believe correctly and still be mean as a snake. That's wrong. On the other hand if you are totally Christian in your activities and in your behavior if you love people and you are kind and forgiving, but you believe the wrong thing, then you will be spiritually handicapped as well.
FIRST STEPS We all have seen that beautiful sight of a child taking his first steps. They have that stiff-legged Frankenstein-kind-of-walk as they toddle and maybe fall, but they get back up and try it again. Then, they learn how to walk better as their balance and their equilibrium improves. There is a progression to walking. First, you crawl, then you stand then you begin to walk. That's a picture of the Christian life.
MIND-BOGGLING You will never understand God's love so, don't try to figure it out--just receive it. You don't have to figure something out before you use it and enjoy it. I don't understand electricity, but I'm not going to stumble around in the dark until I have it figured out! I'm just going to flip that switch and use it. And so it is with the love of God. This is what Paul prays for, that you will be strengthened, that Jesus will be your Lord, and you will understand how much Jesus loves you.
CHOICES If I were to give you a choice between suffering a little bit or being free from suffering, you would say, "I choose to be free from suffering. I don't want to suffer." I don't know anybody who has this attitude: "Man, I can't wait to suffer some more. I am looking forward so much to suffering this next week, I can hardly wait!" No. The mystery is that even though we suffer, it can bring glory to God and it can work out for good to us.
THE SECRET The secret of the Christian life is opening the door of your heart from the inside and just like a person walking into a building say, "Lord Jesus Come and live inside of me." It's not you trying to live the Christian life it's not you doing something for God; its Jesus coming to live in you and Jesus doing things through you. It's Jesus loving people through you. It's Jesus forgiving people through you. It is Jesus drawing lost people to himself through you. He never wanted you to imitate him; he just wanted you to contain him and to release him. That's what it means to be a Christian. I'm afraid so many Christians are going to stand before God on Judgment Day and are going to be disqualified because they did not understand that simple little truth that the Christian life is Christ in you.
RECONCILE To the Jew there were only two kinds of people: Jews and Gentiles. But when Jesus died, he made the two one, destroying the barrier. Are you reconciled with God? I hope so. But, are you reconciled to other Christians? Reconcile means "to agree." Every month most of you receive a bank statement in the mail and you are supposed to reconcile the amount in your check register with what the bank says. If those two figures don't agree, they are not reconciled and somebody is in trouble. What it means to reconcile with others is you agree with them. To be reconciled with God means you agree with God about your sinfulness and about how only God can save you.
THE ULTIMATE CLEANSER I don't claim to understand how Jesus' blood can cleanse me of my sins and I don't have to understand it, I just have to accept it. Sometimes we have a hard time even picturing how blood can cleanse. We know blood stains, but how can blood cleanse?
MORE THAN ENOUGH... As I stand looking out at the shoreline of the mercy of God into the ocean of the grace of God, looking at the skyline of the love of God, I think, "It is so wonderful to find something that there is enough of." Of all the sinners in the world, of all who have ever lived, there is more than enough grace, more than enough love, more than enough mercy for all of God?s creatures.
EQUALS Sometimes we look at a 50- or 60-year-old man who has never darkened the doors of a church in his life and is an awful scoundrel. We look at him and we say now it's easy for the child to have life, but it's so hard for this older man to receive life No, it's not. It takes exactly the same amount of grace to save a child as it does a 60-year-old scoundrel and it is just as much of a miracle when a child accepts Christ as when an old man accepts Christ.
THE OBJECT OF YOUR FAITH Paul said there's a kind of Christian that caused him to thank God when he thought about them. This is what I call a healthy Christian. There are two marks of a healthy Christian according to the apostle, Paul. Number one is faith in Jesus. You cannot be a Christian unless you put your faith in Jesus. But it is not your faith that saves you. It's your faith in JESUS that saves you. It's the object of your faith. You can have a ton of faith but if it is in the wrong thing, it won't help you a bit.
ENJOY YOUR SALVATION Today we are looking at the Holy Spirit. The first thing to notice is a sinner's path to salvation. How can a sinner like you and like me enjoy or experience true salvation? There's not much for us to do, because God has already done it all. Before the foundation of the world, God chose you. He selected you and said, "You are going to be one of mine." In other words, before the world was even created, you were in God's mind and heart.
SPONTANEOUS PRAISE What was it about salvation that made the apostle Paul break out into spontaneous, exuberant praise? He began to understand what had happened to him. If you could catch a glimpse, if your spiritual eyes could be opened to who you are in Jesus and what has happened to you in Jesus, you would also break out in spontaneous praise and adoration.
GROWING OR SHRINKING? A lot of Christians are like a wasp. When a wasp first comes out of the egg, it is larger at that time than at any time in its life. It continually shrinks in size until it dies. When a lot of people are first born to the kingdom of God--when they are first saved--they are so excited, it seems like they are closer to God at that moment than they are at any other time. That's a real problem. Ephesians is a book about how to grow as a Christian, how to increase your intimacy with God. It's not how high you jump when you get saved; it's how straight you walk when you come down. This book is a guide book for growth.
FIRST AND LAST The very first promise in the Bible is found in Genesis 2:17 where God said to Adam and Eve "Eat of all the trees in the Garden that you want to but don't eat of this tree, and the day that you eat of this tree, I promise you shall surely die!" That's the first promise and that's the promise that got us into trouble. Sin! But the last promise of the Bible is Jesus said, "I am coming soon."
NEW JERUSALEM Let's talk about heaven as John describes it, the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven to a new heaven and a new earth. Don't try to place it anywhere on planet earth now, because the Bible says clearly the old heaven and the old earth were passed away. We have no frame of reference with which to compare it so you just have to imagine it's absolutely new, because that's what Jesus says "Behold, I make all things new."
THINGS TO COME Have we ever lived in a world and do we live in a world right now where all the governments of the world are upon the shoulders of Jesus? When the Security Council of the United Nations meets in New York do they fall on their knees and say, "Lord Jesus, this is your world and what do you want us to do"? Of course not. That hasn't happened yet--but it will! Why do you think Jesus told us to pray in the Lord's Prayer, "Thy Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven"? I believe the Bible teaches the time will come when Jesus will live and reign on Earth and we're going to reign with him!
DUALITY A lot of people get confused about the dual aspect of the return of Christ because some say, "I thought the Bible says that when Jesus comes back he's going to come back like a thief in the night, suddenly, silently, secretively." What we are studying today and elsewhere in the Bible says when he comes, he'll come in mighty power and every eye will see him. Which one is it? because it certainly can't be both. It IS both, because when Jesus comes to rapture the church?which could happen at any moment--he literally won't come to planet Earth. The Bible says we'll meet him in the clouds and all the true Christians will be caught up to be with Jesus. We'll be in heaven from that time all the way during the Tribulation and that's when he is coming silently, secretively, like a thief in the night but at the end of this Tribulation he will come like we are talking about today. This is when he is coming in power and might and majesty and every eye will see him.
HERE COMES THE GROOM! There's going to be a marriage made in heaven and a wedding in heaven--and you and I are going to be there. In fact you and I are going to be part of the wedding. Do you know what's going to be different about this wedding in heaven? In heaven, the focus is not going to be on the bride--the focus is going to be on the bridegroom--Jesus!
COMING APART AT THE SEAMS What we see in chapter 18 is not the fall of religious Babylon; it is the failure of economic Babylon. "Babylon" is a godless world system led by the Antichrist. The first thing we see is the cause of the destruction. Why is this future commerce system going to fall? Our world is definitely moving toward a unified economic system. If they could, those in high places would make the entire world a one monetary system one system of exchange, because, let's face it when you are trying to do business in another country, you have to consider the fluctuating exchange rates and there are people who keep talking about the "New World Order" where economically there will be one monetary system. This scripture envisions a time when that has already taken place under the leadership of the Antichrist. However, the time is going to come when it is going to absolutely fall apart.
SELF-DESTRUCTION The last thing we can know about this false religious system that is going to be operating during the time of the Tribulation is it will be betrayed by the Antichrist. That's the amazing thing. God won?t have to destroy it. The Antichrist will destroy it.
THE SEVENS The main part of this message deals with the strategy of judgement. The seven-year period of Tribulation follows a chronological framework of the three series of sevens. There were seven seals, seven trumpets and now we come to the third series of sevens: The seven bowls (or vials) of wrath that are going to be poured out. What are these seven bowls of wrath?
THE 144,000 Earlier in our study of Revelation we were introduced to these 144,000 individuals. Who are they? Throughout history there have been many groups who have claimed to be this 144,000. When we studied about them before, I told you they are 144,000 Jewish evangelists who go about during the time of Tribulation preaching the gospel of the kingdom. We studied that 12,000 of them come from each of the 12 twelve Jewish tribes, and while the Antichrist and the false prophet are spreading their doctrine around this world, these 144,000 Jewish evangelists are spreading all over planet earth the gospel of the kingdom of God.
PLAN A When Jesus died on the cross it was not God's afterthought. It wasn't a "plan B" It was something God planned from the very foundation of the world. The Lamb was slain from the foundation of the world. The Antichrist is going to blaspheme God. He's going to stand on the earth and stand in the temple in Jerusalem and shake his fist at God and say, "God, if you are God destroy me right now. There is no God! Worship me instead!" He's even going to blaspheme those who are in heaven.
HE'S WORSE THAN PEOPLE THINK Some people have the weirdest ideas about Satan. They really Satan is some guy in red longjohns down in Hell with a pitchfork and a whip cracking a whip over people shoveling coals into some furnace. The Bible says Jesus, said Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels but he is not there yet. The Bible calls Satan, "The Prince of the Power of this Air." Jesus calls him, "The God of this world." The Bible says he roams about seeking whom he may devour. You see that's where he is right now but the time is going to come when he is going to be cast out of his access to heaven.
THE TEMPLE REBUILT Somebody needs to tell Indiana Jones he will never find the Ark of the Covenant, because it is in heaven. How did it get there? I don't know but the Bible says there it is! The beautiful thing about the temple is that this temple in heaven is the dwelling place of the power of God but the glorious news about the temple is this all of this is in the future. The temple John measured at the beginning of the book is going to be in Jerusalem; the temple we see at the end of this chapter is in heaven but right now there is a temple of God.
SWEET & SOUR I could go on and on and on about the sweetness of the word of God but, there is more to the word of God than the sweet promises of God. There is the distasteful reality of the judgement and the wrath of God.
REACTION How do you think people on earth are going to react judgement after judgement after judgement after judgement? Thousands of people are killed. There are signs in the sky. There is environmental damage there are all kinds of disasters happening. What do you think is going to be the reaction of mankind?
LET THE JUDGEMENT BEGIN! In the Bible there is a highly organized strata and structure to angelic organizations. We don't get all the details about it, but anytime you read the words "principalities and powers" that's a word that means ranks of order, both the good angels and the fallen angels. In Ephesians chapter 6 when it says, "We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers." Have you ever wondered what those words meant? It means against the organized, structured ranks of demons. God's angels are organized with archangels and the other angels we are talking about. So these seven trumpet angels appear and they are going to be the ones who blow these trumpets to announce judgment on the earth.
YOU DO NOT WANT TO BE LEFT BEHIND! What?s it going to be like the first Sunday after Jesus raptures the church? We make jokes about it and say things like, "Mostly deacons will be there in church and most of the choir will be there," but I want to tell you the first Sunday after Jesus raptures the church, the church buildings are going to be PACKED, because there are going to be some people who know and have heard all about this and when it happens, they are going to realize they were counterfeit Christians and never were saved and now they have been left behind and what a terrible, terrible time it's going to be!
NEVER BEFORE TODAY... Has there ever been a time in the history of the world when it was technologically possible for there to be a one-world ruler? Never before today! But with communications and transportation it could happen today. Every time you hear somebody in government start talking about a global economy, global politics, or one-world government, they don't even know they are setting themselves up. I'm not saying everybody that says that is the Antichrist. All I am saying is the system is in place and many people want to see it happen.
PLEASURABLE Do any of you have a hobby where you create things? Maybe you do a little woodworking in your shop. And when somebody asks why, you say, "I just enjoy doing it." It's an awesome thought, but do you know why God created this planet? It just gave him pleasure. An angel said, "God, why did you create earth? Why did you create the heavens? Why did you create all of those people in Tyler, Texas?" God said, "It just gives me pleasure to do it. I enjoy the fellowship and the praise these, my creatures, give to me." I'll tell you what. When we get to heaven, we are going to know who is boss and who is worthy of praise!
THE CHURCH AT LAODICEA A deep theological question I have been asked is, "Was Jesus ever sick?" Some say because he was God in the flesh he never got sick; others say he never had the sniffles or He never had a headache or a cold. Did Jesus ever get sick? I don't know if he got sick during the thirty-three years he was here on earth. I'm not going to answer that question, but he does tell us there is one thing that makes him sick: Lukewarm Christians--compromising, side-stepping, lukewarm Christians.
THE GRIEF PROCESS How do you cope with the experience of a terminally ill loved one? Many of you may have experienced or are currently experiencing pain because someone you love is dying. That's the kind of pain that?s really hard to deal with but it is the kind of pain that just about every one of us will face during life.
THE CHURCH AT PHILADELPHIA Of all of the seven churches in Revelation, this is the only church of the seven that does not receive a rebuke from the Lord. This is what you might call a church that is really blessed. Philadelphia means "the place where the brothers love one another a place of brotherly love." This was a very small, insignificant community in Asia Minor and it was not nearly as important as Ephesus or Sardis or some of these other places, but this is the location of a group of believers although they only had a little bit of strength, God was blessing them and he was using them. If we want to be a certain kind of church of all of these seven churches, we as members of Green Acres Baptist Church we want to be like the church at Philadelphia.
THE CHURCH AT SARDIS I have never wrung a chicken's neck, but my mother had an expression, "The most active chicken in the barnyard is the one who just had its neck wrung." When you wring a chicken's neck, that chicken is dead, but it's out there flopping around and running around even though its neck is broken. It's dead but it's busy and that's true of a lot of churches. There's a lot of activity going on but the church is dead. That's what Jesus said about this church here at Sardis.
THE CHURCH AT THYATIRA Thyatira was a literal church in Asia Minor. This was a place well-known for the color purple, because they had a profitable business of dying cloth into the royal color of purple. Lydia, who became a Christian in the book of Acts, was from the city of Thyatira and she was known as a seller of purple garments. We don?t know much about the church. Of all these seven churches, this is the most obscure and unknown of all of them. I want us to learn three lessons from this church and apply them to our own lives.
THE CHURCH IN PERGAMUM The church in Pergamum is the third of the seven churches. So, let's look at this church at Pergamum and talk about that and think about what God wants to do for us. The title of the message is "Kicking Satan Off the Throne," because twice Jesus says Satan has his throne in Pergamum and Pergamum is where Satan lives.
THE CHURCH IN SMYRNA Smyrna was the center of emperor worship for the Roman Empire. If Romans had believed in Jesus, they would have put him up on a shelf in the Pantheon with all of their other gods: Jupiter, Zeus, Mercury, Mars, etc. But when Christians refused to name any other God than the one God of heaven they were called atheists and many of them were put to death. That's the kind of setting in which they lived and that's why Jesus said, "I know what you are going through."
THE CHURCH IN EPHESUS The city of Ephesus was one of the most important cities of the ancient world. Ephesus had a problem. It was the center of a fertility type of pagan religion. It was a religion that basically worshiped sexual reproduction. It was also home to one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. These Christians in Ephesus lived in that kind of a setting. Yet they were a church Jesus wrote to and said, "I praise you. You are working hard and you are not giving up. You are hanging in there. You are keeping on keeping on."
WHAT JESUS LOOKS LIKE When you see Jesus what do you think he will look like? Most of us have in our mind what we think Jesus looked like when he ministered for three years. Then we have in our mind what he looked like in his post-resurrection appearance when they recognized him but sometimes they didn't, how he could appear through walls. But the description in the Bible is not his earthly appearance, nor his post-resurrection appearance it is his post-ascension appearance, after he went back to heaven where he is right now. We're going to see what he looks like.
BLESSINGS & WARNINGS Revelation is the only book in the Bible that has a blessing promised at the beginning and a warning posted at the end. Revelation 1:3 "Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near." We all know we are blessed when we study and read God's word but this is the only book in the Bible that promises a specific blessing to the people who not only read it and hear it, but especially those who obey the things that are found in it.
PARALLEL The word of God, the Bible, is a total completion; it is a unit. It is not 66 disjointed books. There is a marvelous unity to the word of God that begins with the book of Genesis and ends with the book of Revelation. Even though they were written thousands of years apart, Genesis and Revelation are sister books. For instance, in Genesis we read about the creation of the first heaven and the first earth. The Bible says, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." In Revelation, the first heaven and the first earth pass away and we read about the creation of the new heaven and the new earth. That?s the parallel.
MESSENGERS As you study the word of God, you'll find that many times angels have told people to go and speak up for Christ. I told you earlier in this study that angels do not preach the gospel to lost people, because angels don't understand the gospel. They've never been lost; they've never been saved, and so, it would be wonderful it would be easier for us if God would just send evangelistic angels all throughout the world and preach the gospel, but he doesn't do that. We're the ones to preach the gospel.
PERIPHERY When you think about angels, I hope that you will only look at angels in your spiritual peripheral vision. When you look at a star at night, sometimes when you look right at that star, you cannot see it, but when you look to the side, you can see that star in your peripheral vision. Our focus should be looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. Be aware in your peripheral vision of the presence of God's ministering spirits. Today, wer are going to see how angels interfaced with the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. KEYWORDS: Angelic Assistance, Jesus Christ, Lord of Angels
MINISTERING SPIRITS The question often asked is, "If angels are ministering spirits and then we have God's blessed Holy Spirit what's the difference between the two? Why doesn't he just do everything through his Holy Spirit?" I'm not about to tell you I know all the mysteries of the scriptures. There is a certain mystery about the person of God and the reality of angels we can never figure out but as best I can determine, it seems like God's Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us as Christians. Angels never live inside of a person and the Holy Spirit ministers to us spiritually, whereas God's ministering spirits have been given the ability to minister to us even physically.
ANGELIC MISCONCEPTION I want to ask you throughout this study of angels to commit yourself to believe what God's Word says about angels, not what you read in a magazine article or what somebody says happened to them, but what God's Word says about it. I want to separate the fantasy from the facts. We're going to study five of the fantasies the world holds and compare and contrast them to the facts of the Word.
The apostle Paul lists his "credentials" he used to think were his ticket into heaven and compares them to garbage when it comes to knowing Jesus Christ. He realized those so-called credits were actually hurting him.
The greatest relationships in this life are lived in sacrifice with other believers. Timothy and Epaphroditus serve as examples of how ordinary men can live lives of service, exhibiting extraordinary humility and sacrifice.
Have you ever walked into a dark restaurant during the daytime and you can hardly see anything? And you sit down at a table and try to read the menu? But after a few moments your eyes become adjusted and you get used to the dark and it doesn't bother you anymore. Sadly, the same thing has happened spiritually in America. We've become accustomed to the darkness. Things that ought to bother us don't bother us anymore.
How is salvation a rags-to-riches story? The Old Testament says, "All our righteousness is as filthy rags." That means the best behavior you have ever done in your life is nothing but filthy rags compared to the holiness of God. I wouldn't trust the best five minutes I've ever lived to get me into heaven. But when I let go of those filthy rags and I say, "It's not my righteous, it's the righteousness of Jesus Christ." God says, "Here is all the riches of heaven for you." It is a rags-to-riches story for us.
The Bible says if we don't humble ourselves, God has a way of humbling us. The secret to joy is found when Jesus is first, others are second and you are last. If you have selfishness and pride in your heart, turn from it and repent. Ask God to replace your selfishness with love and to replace your pride with humility. Guard the unity God has created.
A study of how the Christian life is spiritual warfare. The Bible says you're a soldier if you're a Christian. Are you a good soldier of Jesus Christ or are you a deserter? Have you folded up your uniform and put it away, maybe put it on every Sunday morning or are you obedient to your Commander in Chief, the Lord Jesus Christ?
Would you be willing to miss heaven and be accursed forever from God so others around the world could be saved? Paul had that kind of a heart, because to live is Christ and to die is gain.
The apostle Paul's priority was advancing the gospel of Jesus Christ. What is that thing that you think about or talk about the most? Where do you invest most of your money and time? Whatever your priority is will determine how your entire life is directed. Three principals we can learn from Paul's life and apply to our lives.
Even though the apostle Paul was in prison, suffering, wishing he could be out preaching the gospel, he chose not to moan or complain. Instead he had an attitude of joy. Three things you can do to help you keep smiling during your storm.
When you're out of fellowship with God, the Devil has you right where he wants you and he accuses you, he abuses you, and he'll mess up your mind. The whole time, God's forgiven you, and he's already forgiven you and all you have to do is come to him, but until you do, the devil's making a fool out of you.
Someone said fellowship is just two fellows in the same ship and we're all in the ship of the Lord Jesus. We have entered into him and were in it together now, because I'm a believer and God is my father and because you're a believer and God is your father, we are brothers and sisters in Christ.
Are you going through a tough time? You don’t have to figure it out, you don’t have to understand. Just start rejoicing. Don’t rejoice in the difficult problems that are happening, rejoice in the Lord! Then realize you’re being tested and it’s going to produce more faith, then realize you must remain steadfast and cooperate with the tribulation, and then with a prayerful heart receive by faith the wisdom God wants to give you.