Valley Vineyard Church: Recent Episodes
Valley Vineyard
We are seeking to be authentic followers of Jesus.
We believe He has offered us a better life and we are seeking to live it for His cause.
We believe we are all learners. We are all in a “process” and should be learning from one another, from the Bible and directly from the life of Jesus.
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By Your Spirit You have given me power and authority to accomplish Your will and to fight the battles before me. Forgive me for my passivity. You have called me to fight through prayer and obedience to bring a bit of heaven to earth.
As we wait we will be tempted to take shortcuts or try to change our circumstances. See the story of Abraham and Sarah Genesis 12:1-4, 15:1-6, 16:1-6, 21:1-5 As we wait we need to remember: What God is doing in us is more important than the things we are waiting for.
Endurance in Greek is HUPOMONE Luke 21:19 Stand firm and you will win life. 2 Corinthians 4:7-12 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
2 Corinthians 5:9-10 So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
Psalm 43:2
WHEN. not if
THROUGH. He wants you to get through the fire.
TEST. A process intended to reveal the quality, performance, or reliability of something or someone before putting it into widespread use. An ordeal to see if you are the real deal!
FIRE. It has transforming power. Pancake batter becomes pancakes! Romans 8:28
Water-based Christians: some believers cannot accept that a loving God would test us with fire. See Deuteronomy 4:24; Psalm 66:10; Hebrews 12:29; Matthew 3:11 and John 15:5-6.
Mark 4:35-41 (NIV)
Throughout our lives we will all experience storms that will test our faith. Storms come because we live in a __fallen__world. Storms come because of our own__sin____. Storms come because we have an evil _enemy_who wants to destroy us. The storms of life reveal our own nature. Hebrews 11:1,6 We may be living with __false____assumptions. We may be living with a lack of ___faith/trust______. The storms of life reveal the nature of God. In the midst of the storm, we can experience his _presence_ in the midst of the storm we can experience his _correction__ in the midst of the storm we can experience his _love__ What are some of the false assumptions you have struggled with in regards to the character and nature of God?
In what areas of your life are you tempted to respond with fear rather than faith?
What valuable lessons have you learned from past storms?
Take a few moments of silence and ask God why faith is so important and pleasing to him.
The greatest sin of the past century is the loss of a sense of sin.
Two things have caused this: moral relativism and secular psychology
James 1:14-15 "...but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full grown, gives birth to death."
High School age children were asked to identify which was worse, not recycling or pornorgraphy. The majority said that not recycling was the greater evil!
1 Corinthians 10:13 "No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful, he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it."
Why does God allow temptation? Temptation exposes your heart in order to build your character.
Hold to the PROMISE Believe God for the PROVISION Take stock of your PROBLEMS Determine to learn God’s PRINCIPLES
Hebrews 3:8 "Do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the wilderness…"
Deuteronomy 13:3 "…you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul."
Joni Earikson Tada “Love Jesus more, obey Jesus more.”
PROMISE Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."
2 Corinthians 1:20 "For no matter how many promises the God has made, they are ‘yes’ in Christ."
Mark 11:24 "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe you have received it, and it will be yours."
The Wilderness: no milk, no honey, no water, no food, no home, enemies
PRINCIPLE
Hosea 4:6 "My people are destroyed from a lack of knowledge."
Matthew 28:19 "Therefore go and disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."
James 1:25 "But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do."
The PROMISE comes with PROBLEMs to help us learn God’s PRINCIPLEs
We confuse unconditional love with unconditional blessings
John 15:1 "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the Word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit of itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me."
Don’t be afraid to touch people. Recognize that people need touch. When the Spirit is moving, He will lead us to touch others.
In the Old Testament we have Genesis 2:7ff Then the LORD formed a man from the dust of the ground…he took one of the man’s ribs and made a woman from the rib…
In the Gospels: Jesus touched Peter’s mother-in-law He touched the blind man A woman touched His garment He touched the untouchables
Luke 4:40 At sunset people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying His hands on each, He healed them.
James 1:19
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry…
Become the kind of person that is a good listener. Jesus was a very good listener.
Romans 10:14-15
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
We need to recognize that we follow an incarnational God and are called to be an incarnational body.
EXTEND: The Body of Christ in Action, see Matthew 9:35-38 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
Today is not only ALL IN Sunday when the youth join us in the main service, but it is also Promotion Sunday when we celebrate the kids that are moving up from children's ministry into youth group AND the graduating youth.