Direct from the Mic: Recent Episodes
Centre Church
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Matthew 24:6: And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
God knows the beginning from the end. When you are in a difficult situation and you don't know where it ends, or what it could mean, remember that God is in it with you.
Romans 12:2: And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Renewing of your mind. This is seeing things differently. Changing your perspective.
Psalm 32:8: The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.
Every battle fought and won, is a battle in the mind.
Ephesians 6:12: For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, authorities, powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
- BUT Jesus has come that we might have life, and life in abundance.
Colossians 2:13-15: God has made us alive with Christ. He forgave all our sins, canceled the charges which condemned us; nailing it to the cross. Having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
- Recognise your authority in order to withstand attacks from the devil.
James 4:7: Therefore submit to God (His will, His way and His word). Resist the devil and he will flea from you.
- Do not give in to fear, temptations, bitterness, strife, unforgiveness, anger etc.
Weapons of warfare:
- Holiness
- Love
- The Word of God
- Repentance
- Resistance
- Praise and thanksgiving
- Prayer
- Joy and laughing
- Declaration
God is known by many names in the Bible. One of these names is ‘Jehova Rapha’ in Hebrew, which means ‘God who heals’, or ‘God who restores.’
We must remember that it is God’s will that we are healed. God is a good God, He does not want us to be sick or unwell. Pray and believe for your healing, wherever it’s needed. God hears you.
John 10:10 - Jesus said He came to bring life so we would have life in abundance.
Grace is not something we can earn through works. It has been given to us for free, in the form of Jesus Christ. It’s not based on our love for God, but based on the love He has for us.
John 10:9 - it’s that simple.
It is wise to plan ahead for your future. Where do you want to see change in your life? Think spiritually, financially, mentally etc.
A way we can set goals is by using the S.M.A.R.T format.
S = Specific. Very detailed, not vague.
M = Measurable. Able to track your progress.
A = Attainable. Realistic, not impossible.
R = Relevant. Aligns with God’s word.
T = Time-based. When do you want to meet this goal?
Heb 4:14 - Commit it to God. Allow the Lord to direct your steps.
There are three steps to sowing and reaping a harvest:
- Sow the seed
- Wait
- Reap the harvest
Blessings come in God’s time and in His way. When you pray, don’t be discouraged if an answer or outcome doesn’t come straight away. Have faith, stand on God’s Word and it will be done.
If you ever wondered about your identity, remember that our identity is in Christ Jesus!
Identity: To establish
Establish: To set as permanent
Persevere with God, set your God identity at permanent!
In a time of such uncertainty, have faith that God will always meet our needs.
When we apply our faith, He will supply our every need and will multiply what we have.
2 Corinthians 9:10
God will never fail.
Proverbs 3:5-6: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
God has perfect timing. When you pray and are believing for something, whether that be change or manifestation etc. it is easy to place a timeline on when we expect this change to come. We also may have an expectation on how it will come. This is putting God in a box.
In the period between believing and receiving, we can fall into doubt and feel frustrated that it has not come to pass. But all that will be done, will be done in God's time and in His way.
Another hard hitting sermon by James Alexander.
If you are struggling with fear, have a listen to this message to see how we can replace fear with faith and why it is so important to do so.
2 Timothy 1:7 -For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
John 14:27 - Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Romans 8:37-39 - Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Matthew 5:8
We've all heard that God is coming back for a glorious church. One that is pure, without spot or wrinkle.
How do we prepare for this?
- Know how to exercise our faith. We are responsible for developing our faith. We can seek guidance and training from our pastors. Ultimately, it is up to us to seek it. 2 Corinthians 5:7
- Be confident in our identity in God. We are children of God, made in His image. Heirs of God, joint heirs with Jesus Christ.
- Be confident in our authority. Luke 10:19 - Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
- Know how to effectively use our weapons of warfare. Not physical weapons, but spiritual weapons. 2 Corinthians 10:3-4, Ephesians 6. The Word of God is an offensive weapon. Living and powerful declarations etc. Heb 4:12 - living and powerful and sharper than and two edged sword. We can speak the Word out into our lives, declare His blessings.
All of which are required to be an effective warrior.
Last of all, we need to make sure we are right with God. Living pure and holy lives.
Pure in heart - Matthew 5:8. This is accomplished by being in His presence all the time.
How do we hear what the Holy Spirit is saying?
- Give Him the priority He deserves (prayer, reading the word, meditation etc.)
- Be vigilant of what God has done
- Ask Him to reveal things to you
- Take regular time off social media
Our lives are very busy, with distractions around us every day. Such makes it easy to give God the backseat.
Remember to recognise what God has done in your life. Take your focus off of what is happening in the world and direct your attention toward God’s word.
If you’re struggling with hearing from the Holy Spirit, ask Him to teach you how to hear. Take time to read the word. It doesn’t matter where in the bible you begin, the Holy Spirit will eventually reveal something to you.
1 Kings 19:11-12 – Still small voice.
It doesn’t always happen straight away and it often requires practice. Gary Clements once said to put yourself in the shoes of the Service Leader. Think about the atmosphere. What do you see? What do you hear? If you were going to give a word, what would you say?
We need to realise that we are the sons and daughters of God, seated WITH Jesus Christ. God demonstrates His power through us. It’s one thing to be born again, and baptised. We also need to be baptised in the Holy Spirit and fire - Matthew 3:11, Hebrews 1:7.
When we are fired up, it’s noticeable. People can see it on you, the passion and excitement are tangible and can be felt by those around you. It’s associated with God’s presence.
Last of all, build yourself up. Remind yourself that the Holy Spirit likes you. The Holy Spirit likes being around you. It doesn’t matter where you are, or what you’ve done. God can bring you back and reignite the fire.
In Ephesians, Paul writes to a young church that is fired up and passionate for God. In the first chapter, Paul explains our redemption through Jesus Christ; “our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places”. This is to encourage them and to help them know who they are in Christ Jesus.
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
Therefore, equip yourself with the full armour of God. Remember that we are overcomers, conquerors. We are blessed in the city and in the country, blessed going out and coming in. We are the head and not the tail, above only and not beneath.
And finally, pray. Some call this the 7th piece of armour. The most important.
While we are called to serve, we should be careful that we don’t burn ourselves out. Take time to rest, and remember that we can rest in Jesus. Recharge. We are easy targets when we are tired and weak.
We are called to move forward push out darkness with light, fear with faith, hate with love.
Most people would have heard of Jesus, and they would likely have heard that “He is our Saviour”. But what has He saved us from? Many have heard of heaven and hell, but what does Jesus’ sacrifice really mean?
Through His sacrifice, he has redeemed us. In this context, it means to regain possession of something in exchange for payment. Jesus regained possession of us at the price of being lashed 40 times with a whip which was designed to lacerate and tear the flesh of the victim, by wearing a thorn crown which was pressed into his skull, and having His hands and feet and nailed to a cross which would be stood on Golgotha.
Why would He need to do this? Well, before we were under the old covenant, also referred to as the curse of the law (read Deuteronomy 28) where an annual sacrifice was required to atone for the sins of God’s people.
This is no longer required through Jesus’ sacrifice. Pastor Lisa gives us a deeper understanding of what this means for us in this Sunday’s message. Have a listen!
Discernment: A decision making process in which an individual makes a discovery that can lead to future action.
Matthew 24 – We live in times of deception, be careful that you are not deceived. “You will hear of wars and rumours of wars... These things will come to pass but the end is not yet.”
Nothing can be taken at face value, especially in a time where information is free flowing, often unfiltered.
Romans 4:17 – “God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did.”
Luke 24:30-32 – Jesus’ disciples, who He had spent years with, didn’t recognise Him until he was revealed to them. There are truths in front of us that we fail to recognise, until we have a revelation of it. Revelation beats information, every time. Revelation is a greater understanding of truth revealed.
Just as Jesus was revealed to his disciples, there is truth being revealed to us each and every day. We just need to discern it.
We have entered a new time and are about to witness the greatest show on earth! The feelings you have now will subside and strength, faith, joy and peace will flood our souls!
We are sons and daughters of the Most High God. Heirs of God and joint Heirs with Jesus Christ . We have more power in us than all the powers of darkness because the Greater One lives inside us.
Luke 10:19 | 1 Peter 2:24 | Colossians 1:13-14 | John 8:36
Deuteronomy 30:19 - Everything we do on this earth is a result of choice. God gave us free will; the choice is ours. So what will it be? Life, or death? Blessing, or cursing?
Galatians 3:13 - Jesus Christ has redeemed us from the curse. It is up to us to take hold of that.
3 John 2 - Prosperity preaching has been given a lot of flack over the years. But let’s think about how God would see this; we are His children, would God want us to be in prosperity, or in poverty?
Poverty is part of the curse detailed in Deuteronomy 30, we do not need to live in poverty as Jesus has redeemed us from the curse. Believe this, have faith that God is true to His word.
Habakkuk 2:4 | Romans 1:7 | Galatians 3:11 | Hebrews 10:38
We need to be a church that is agile enough to move with the Holy Spirit.
A church that doesn’t wait or hesitate; when we hear God, we move. One that is continually deepening their relationship with God, filled with the manifest power and tangible presence of Jesus Christ. A church where people have a deepening connection with God that is getting stronger every day.
Acts 1:4-8 - Be baptised with the Holy Spirit, be His witnesses.
We must be acutely aware of the times we are living in. We need to be hearing clearly and accurately what God is saying.
Acts 1:9 - “While they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight”
As He left, He shall return. His coming will not be done quietly, but will be seen and heard around the earth.
Revelation 1:7 - “Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him.”
Matthew 24:27 - “As the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”
Read through to verse 31. Also see Revelation 9:15, 19:19 and 19:11-16
Giving of thanks, praise and worship to God is something we bring as a gift to God.
- God says it's His will that we give thanks in every situation - 1 Thessalonians 5:18
- God's Word says to praise Him, in fact He says "let everything that has breath praise the Lord - Psalm 150:6
- Psalm 95:1-7 is a call to worship, and verses 8-11 are are a call to obedience. Worship and obedience to God are linked. They are linked by faith and surrender.
Worship is a heart attitude, it is surrendering to God (spirit, soul and body). Worship is a lifestyle.
Holiness is the essence of what God is. Everything about God is holy, so in order to get a revelation or understanding of His holiness, we need to know who God is and what He is like.
7 attributes of God:
- God is Light - 1 John 1:5
- God is Love - 1 John 4:8-11
- God is Justice and Judgement - Deuteronomy 32:3-4 & Genesis 18:25
- God is Anger and Wrath - Nahum 1:2 & Revelation 22:18-19
- God is Mercy and Lovingkindness - Psalm 51:1 & Psalm 106:1
- God is Grace - Hebrews 4:16
- God is Power - Psalm 93:1-4
Centre Church Vision:
Building a faith filled church where people are passionate about living Christ centered lives, and in seeing God’s Kingdom expressed in our nation and beyond.
Faith filled: Hebrews 11:6 "but without faith it is impossible to please Him"
Passionate about living Christ centered lives, and in seeing God’s Kingdom expressed in our nation: James 2:17 "faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead"
The glorious church is filled with the manifest power and tangible presence of God.
The Glorious Church is:
- Without spot or wrinkle - Oneness of faith
- Holy and without blemish - Filled with the Holy Spirit
- Without wrinkle - Renewed and refreshed
God created Adam to reign in life, and He gave him dominion over the earth. Adam was also given the power of choice. When he sinned, death reigned on the earth. This had nothing to do with us, we just inherited it.
We have become very good at pointing out each others faults, but we should look at each other through the lens of grace - as the righteousness of God. We also need to look at ourselves this way. rather than allowing condemnation to reign, we need to re-program our minds to believe that we are free in the righteousness of God.
Romans 8:15-19
There are 2 different mindsets or spirits that we can have in our approach God:
- Slaves in bondage / Spirit of slavery
- Adopted children / Spirit of adoption
There is a difference in the way a son serves their fathers (acts of love) and how a slave serves their masters (acts of duty).
Listen to the newest message from James Alexander, where we learn to understand the true abundance of the grace of God.
The start of any year is often a time to reflect on where we were, compared to where we want to be. Remember:
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Count it all joy. James 1:2
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We MUST walk by faith. Isaiah 46:10, Revelation 22:13
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We have the power of the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8
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We're in blood covenant with God.
A blood covenant is a serious thing, and has been used for centuries. Often it was made between two individuals or tribes, where both had something the other needed. A blood covenant was sealed when the blood of two individuals was mingled. In Old Testament times, God entered into a covenant with Abraham and as God couldn't 'bleed', a substitute was used (a lamb or heifer). But it wasn't a perfect substitute, therefore needed to be repeated.
When Jesus died on the cross, the blood of God and man was mingled, because Jesus was both God and man. Never again would a sacrifice have to be made.
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God has given us authority. Luke 10:19
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His Grace is Sufficient for us. Corinthians 12:9-10