Whitehall Bible Fellowship Church Sermon Podcast: Recent Episodes
Whitehall Bible Fellowship Church
Sermons from Whitehall Bible Fellowship Church in Whitehall, Pennsylvania. For more information, check out http://www.whitehall.church.
While the religious leaders rule to cast out the blind man from the synagogue, Jesus warns them of God's verdict on them.
The formerly blind man gets grilled by people who already made up their minds about Jesus. A life changed always sticks out from normal.
Jesus healed a blind man. Jesus used the miracle to point out the spiritual blindness of His opponents.
A fundamental aspect of Christianity is that those who are given are also to give. It is better to give than to receive.
Jesus declares His divinity by claiming His eternal pre-existence. Before Abraham was, I AM.
We act like our physical fathers and our spiritual fathers. Are you acting more like God or more like Satan?
Today, we baptize nine followers of Christ. What does the Bible say about believers being baptized?
Pastor Tim preps us to think on Jesus being true bread from heaven as we look at the Old Testament passage Exodus 16:13-30
Pastor Tim preps us to think on Jesus being true bread from heaven as we look at the Old Testament passage Exodus 16:1-12
This Easter, we look at the resurrection of Jesus as an example of what each of us can experience by becoming born again. Jesus told Nicodemus "you must be born again." Even the high-brow religious elite are not good enough to enter heaven. God's Spirit is moving, ready to bring you to life spiritually. Jesus died and rose again so that by His power and grace, you too can come to life though you were dead in your sins.
We survey the whole New Testament to find that the cross is God's expression of love for us. God demonstrates His own love towards us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
The next greater thing Jesus did after the wedding wine miracle was to enter Jerusalem's Temple and drive out the moneychangers and the critters. While John puts this in chapter two, the other Gospel writers told this story at the end of their accounts, on Palm Sunday. This Temple cleansing shows us that humanity has a constant need for cleansing.
Jesus' first miracle was at a wedding. The moment got Him thinking about the cross: His love for mankind, this couple's love for one another. To foreshadow the life and fullness He'd give us at the cross, He fills the wedding party's empty glasses with water turned into the best wine.
Jesus calls Philip to follow Him. The first thing Philip does is to invite his own friend, Nathanael, to meet Jesus too. Nathanael at first is skeptical, but then Jesus shows him a glimpse of His glory. Nathanael is hooked -- he believes that Jesus is the son of God, the king of Israel. Jesus wants to show us greater things too, but He is waiting for us to have the faith to see Him at work.
John the Baptist prepared the world to meet Jesus. He clearly testified that he himself was not the Christ, but the one coming after him was greater than he because that One existed before him. Now Jesus is younger than John by six months. However Jesus, being the Word, existed from the beginning (1:1-3).
Jesus reveals the whole scoop about God. Other leaders before and after Him told us bits and pieces, but Jesus pulls back the curtain to tell us everything because He Himself IS everything.
Jesus graciously came into the world to bring mankind into friendship with God. However, left to our own, mankind simply does not want to receive Jesus. God, therefore, steps in to bring life to our dead and rebel soul so that we have a changed heart that wants to receive Christ as our Savior.
John the Baptist was sent by God to point us to Jesus, the Light. He did all he could and trusted God that people would believe in Christ through his efforts. We, too, are sent by God to bear witness to how God has worked in us through Jesus.
Jesus is the Word, the Life, and the Light. These are three repeating themes in the Gospel of John. Here, we think about what those themes mean about Jesus - and what they mean for us.
Paul gets in the middle of the tension between Philemon and Onesimus in order to ease the situation and help the healing process. He even offers to personally restore financially the harm that Onesimus brought to Philemon as a way to defuel the flames of this emotional confrontation.
As Paul continues to appeal to Philemon, the host of the church and a slavemaster, he appeals by way of reason, not rule. He does not abuse, or even use, his power. Instead Paul uses ideas and logic. He reasons with Philemon logically. Christians today will do well to follow this pattern of calm reason rather than emotional appeal or power plays to get their way. Logic unites. Power creates resentment.
Paul is trying to get Philemon to free his runaway slave, Onesimus. Paul chooses not to command him, but rather appeal to him for the sake of Christian love. We too need to release those with whom we have grudges and animosities.
Philemon was the host of his church, he welcomed the congregation to worship in his home. He was rich and influential in his city. He was a slavemaster. This letter of the Bible exists as a principles-based apologetic for emancipation of slaves. The hope of verses 1-7 is that no matter how far we have come in the faith, there is still room to grow and God still has greater work to do in us.
The new year is often a time when we think about making improvements in our lives. With the Lord, we are always growing or should be!
When Christmas is over, its not the end of special. Christmas is the beginning of all that God wants to do in humanity. He sent us His Son that first Christmas, the message and love of Jesus is continually at work.
Jesus did not begin in the manger or in the womb. Micah tells us that this baby born in Bethlehem was coming and going from long ago, ancient days. Jesus handcrafted the events of His birth while in eternity past. He then revealed the plans for those events to the prophets hundreds of years before He carried them out at the fullness of time.
A lot of times we feel like Jesus is up in heaven and we are stuck down here, so how are we supposed to feel close to Him? God tells us in the Bible that we are seated with Christ in heaven. Salvation is secure. Our future is already accomplished. It is a done deal. In our passage, Paul prays that the eyes of our hearts would be opened to this high hope of our connection to God. That we would feel the presence of God.
Sometimes we do not want to experience the presence of God in our lives because we know that His glory is going to create different pains as we grapple with our unworthiness. Endure the pain and come clean with the Lord. There will be joy in the long run.
Solomon was drawn away from God by his many unbelieving wives. What turns your heart away from loving the Lord?
God wants the Christian life to shine as a picture of what God can do in anyone that comes to believe. Marriage is a HUGE part of most people's lives. So the health of your marriage is a HUGE witness to those not yet in Christ. This book, Song of Songs (or Song of Solomon) is incredibly helpful both as an analogy of our pursuit of God and as a literal guide to the pursuit of your spouse.
Life apart from God is miserable. You might remember that time in your life. You might still be in that time of your life. Ecclesiastes is the book of the Bible for you! Punchline: you will love having God in the center of your life!
Solomon shows his honor for the Lord by building the Temple, the central expression of the worship of Yaweh God in the kingdom of Israel. To fear the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
Solomon begins his reign as king. Wisdom directs him as he rules for the good of his people. The effect of this discerning king is happiness, peace, and provision for all as well as God receiving glory through a life well lived.
Solomon is meant to become king. His older brother Adonijah set himself as king before their father David died. When God wants something and obstacles come, do we lose heart and stop pursuing His will? Or do we pray and press on for His sake?
Solomon had a messy start. As a child, his family was incredibly dysfunctional. You too may have had a past, but in Christ you have a different future.
Solomon is remembered for his remarkable wisdom. Wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge to a particular situation. It is one thing to know what is right. It is another, to act on that knowledge when needed. Where did Solomon get that wisdom? From the same place YOU can get it: from God.
God is not a kill joy, He is a loving and concerned Father that yearns for the best in all His children. The abuse of alcohol, drugs, and tobacco are a detriment to the health of our body and soul. It robs us of our potential and it steals our precious and limited time. God wants us to live on purpose and therefore strongly warns us against the pit that is substance abuse.
What does God say about the forces at work in this world which we humans are not able to see or observe? God and His angels, Satan and his demons, all are out for your soul. The first work for your good. The later work to destroy you and those around you.
God wants His children to live in harmony with one another. No divisions. No animosities. Peace. Love. Justice. Mutual Concern.
The issue of immigration is a polarizing one today in the world. How should Christians treat immigrants, asylum-seekers, and even people here without legal status?
God cares about my sex life because He designed me and all humanity for His glory and for our pleasure. Pursuing sex in God-honoring ways brings me greater fulfillment, my spouse greater pleasure, and the world greater stability.
Guest speaker, Pastor Dan Allen, encourages us on sharing our faith with those who need to be saved.
God wants His followers to balance justice with mercy as we interact with others. We would rather be shown mercy when we do wrong and enact justice when we have been wronged by someone. God wants us to live in balance.
We are made in the image of God. Humanity has dignity and we must treat each other with kindness, respect, and love.
God does not want you to have a crummy marriage. He wants it to thrive. He wants you to work out problems. He wants you and your spouse to enjoy intimacy and solid communication.
How should we treat eachother when we disagree on some issue? God has called us to love and patience. We should embrace and welcome one another even if we disagree.
You could do all the right things and God would not be pleased with your good activities. He is really looking for pure motives and love for others. Tend to your attitudes and then think about what to do.
Jesus is God. The God of the Old Testament and the Jewish people is Jesus. For anyone to call themselves God, it is blasphemy... unless its true. Who is Jesus to you? Answering that will be the most important thing you'll ever do.
Jesus is the lifeblood running through our soul that empowers us to do anything fruitful and lasting. If you want to grow, abide in Him. If you want to make a difference, connect with Him. Apart from His, we can do nothing.
Jesus is our source of growth. The Father cares about our outcome; He refuses to let us stay stuck in the mud of sin and so He raises us up out of it. He wants us bearing fruit for this vine, so He prunes out fruitless pursuits so we can focus on building character and kingdom impact.
Jesus opens wide the rooms of heaven for any to come. But Jesus is the only way to get there. He includes any, but He excludes any way but Himself.
Jesus is the rightful leader of God's people. His voice speaks love and strength like no one else.
Jesus is bread from heaven. Believing in Him is to find satisfaction from our spiritual hunger.
Paul urges Timothy to come quickly because his end is close and he is all alone. He reminds Timothy that the Lord will rescue us out of all of our troubles and bring us safely into His kingdom.
Paul feels that he is at the end of his life. He takes the opportunity to survey his ministry in order to encourage Timothy to remain devoted to the Lord.
Its hard to keep going when you see others quitting. Paul encourages, no, charges Timothy in the sight of God to keep at it and fulfill his ministry.
With all the messy role models out there from the previous passage, Paul encourages Timothy to look to grounded role models to follow.
We can be focused on all the problems around us or we can be focused on furthering the mission of God in the world. Paul tells Timothy to have nothing to do with troublemakers, but instead, to live for the purposes of Christ.
Conflict is inevitable. How do we enter conflict on godly footing and how do we conclude conflict with personal holiness and a restored opponent.
For people that love God and His Word, it is important to use it constructively. It is easy to get so passionate for it that we end up tearing others down through quarrels about certain words in the Word.
Heaven is our home! God is faithful! No matter what happens here, it is all temporary. So we need to feel boundless despite our circumstances because God and His message cannot be bound by anything or anyone.
Paul warns Timothy about the easy choice to abandon the Lord. Many have done so. Two of them: Phygelus and Hermogenes left to escape pain and go after newbut false teachings. One remained however. Onesiphorus profited himself and Paul by staying near and refreshing Paul in his imprisonment. So we have to decide will we leave when things get tough -or- will we devote ourselves even at the hardest moments?
The Gospel is a powerful promise. God has brought life and immortality to light in the Gospel. The Gospel is that you did not nor could not do anything worthy of eternal life, but God gave it to you at His own expense despite the fact that you did not deserve it. Eternal life is your gift at the expense of Jesus' death.
Paul encourages Timothy, his son in the Faith, about the family nature of the church. Because we are a family, God challenges us to remain faithful and continue building on our family's long legacy within our generation.
As we begin the new year, let's take inventory of our spiritual life. Are you growing in your character? Are you deepening your participation in God's mission?
Jesus is the rightful king of Israel, and of the world. God foretold 1,800 years before the birth of Jesus that Judah would never lack a king "until He, to whom it belongs, arrives." Genesis 49
Jesus was born at the darkest time of year because He is light to the darkness. He exposes our sin and our need of rescue. We just need to follow that light out of our self-made prison cell.
The punchline of Judges is that humans will run to anything except God. The Good News is that God loves and pursues us. He never gives up His caring mission of rescuing us from ourselves.
Judges concludes with two heart-wrenching stories illustrating how far the people were from God. Both feature a Levite as a key character, signifying that even the priestly class of wise sages did not have the heartbeat of God within them. The lesson for us is that our hearts could be far from God and we could be excluding God from our lives and decisions, but the consequence is a total breakdown in society and in our own moral fiber. Instead, let us focus our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith!
The story of Samson is the story of a man empowered by God with incredible strength. But he used that strength for his own selfish purposes. He enhanced his feats, but not his character. He was vindictive and jealous. He was strong versus men, but his weakness was with the ladies. We need to learn from him, lest we stray from our divine mission like he did from his.
The account of Jephthah shows us the need to guard what we say and how we say it. Both he and those around him hurt each other in their negative words. Let us show one another, and the lost, the love of Christ by speaking encouraging words.
Gideon started off well, but pride and the lure of worldliness caused his legacy to fall flat. How is the world's gripping you?
Gideon has some real doubts in God because of his difficult circumstances. God works within that doubt to bring Gideon to a place of deeper faith... faith that succeeds.
The story of Barak is a story of faith, or rather, of doubt. Barak did not want to step up alone, he wondered if God would be with him. So instead of Barak receiving the honor of victory, God gave the honor to a woman who acted on faith even when no one was around to notice her.
Judges opens its series of stories with three men: Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar. Each show us a bit of how God empowers people to serve Him.
The book of Judges paints a picture of what happens to a civilization when it forgets God. We can look at them or we can turn towards ourselves and ask whether we need to grow in our fervency for Christ.
The book of Judges opens with work the Israelites need to finish. Some step up to serve, others sit back and cozy up to their idolatrous neighbors. Today, we have a very different task than they did, but a task that remains incomplete. What lessons can we observe for our remaining work?
Christians need to be always changing, always growing. Where do you need to grow today?
God has given us a great gift for growth: His Church. Being together with the church is a means of Christian maturity.
God Takes Back the Humble Sinner. God is Pleased When We Depend on Him. God Provides for Those Who Know Him.
God welcomes us into His presence. Its then a matter of if we will come to Him and seek His face.
What awesome things has the Lord done in your life? What awesome things is He up to now?
Jesus knows what it feels like when someone close stabs you in the back. He is there to help you through it and bringing healing to you.
Is it a lovely thing to be in the presence of God? This Psalm invites us to fall in love with the Lord all over again.
God is involved in your life. He knows you. He is with you. He crafted you. He wants a deep friendship with you.
God deserves both our worship and our witness. How are you speaking up about Him in your community? How are you speaking up to Him about your gratefulness for Him?
Mankind is so very loved by God. The Psalmist reflects on the immensity of the universe and the even greater immensity of God, then turns to to the smallness of man and how God crowns man with glory and honor despite human smallness.
God skillfully designed and fashioned a beautiful world all for the purpose of speaking to mankind about Him so that we might find Him and find life in Him.
Even when it seems as if there is nothing good in this world, God is in control and He is working His plan for ultimate good. We need to trust Him, be still and wait for Him, and strive to be changed by Him.
Psalm 46 welcomes us inside a safe relationship with God despite the ongoing problems of life.
Psalm 29 invites us to consider the strength of God who sits over the earthly strongholds we face.
Jesus commissions the Twelve AND the Church to proclaim forgiveness in His name to all peoples.
After His resurrection, Jesus appears to the Twelve in the Upper Room on the evening of Easter Sunday. He calls them to embrace truth rather than remain fearful, frantic, or depressed.
Two of His disciples were on their way to Emmaus mid-day on Easter. They meet Jesus but do not recognize Him. He explains from the Scriptures why He had to die and rise again. Only at the end do they recognize that He is the risen Jesus.
Jesus died and rose again in order that God could accept you as sinless. You are just in His eyes by faith in what Jesus did.
With Judas and Peter falling in their unique ways during the arrest of Jesus, the Lord shows us how to find strength during our own temptations.
In the upper room, Jesus warns His disciples of the temptation of pride and the inevitable fall if we give in to pride.
Jesus initiates the ordinance of communion with His disciples on the night He is betrayed.
In the previous sermon, Jesus laid out the events preceding His return. Now He challenges us to stay ready for His second coming.
Jesus prepares His followers for the difficult days ahead, leading up to the great day of His return.
Jesus takes the occasion of a widow making her gift to God to talk about generosity, sacrifice, and worship.
In one last attempt, the religious leaders try to stump Jesus. He shows His wisdom and at the same time, shows us a glimpse of what our eternal existence will be like.
The conviction that Jesus brings to people can drive us to receive Him, but often people react to that conviction by silencing it however they can.
Jesus is confronted by the authority of the chief priests. While Jesus teaches in the Temple, He is invading the space and routine of the religious class. Their response is to lay a trap for Jesus in a trick question.
When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, He used the events of the day to illustrate to us, His followers, how He deserves our entire heart, not just a piece of it.
Despite the adversity he faced, a blind man seeks a touch from the Lord. Jesus is quick to answer him in his need. Like this poor man, we are in need and the Lord will reward our persistent faith-filled requests.
Jesus encounters a young man that thinks he is pretty good with God. What must I do to have eternal life? the young man asked Jesus. Jesus says yield to Me. Yield you self-righteousness and sel-reliance. Yield your own plans to follow His plans. Ultimately, the answer is not anything the young man or you could do, but Jesus Himself will lay down His life and be raised on the third day to rescue we who are helpless.
The Triune God sent the Son. Not the Father, not the Spirit. So why? We look at several reasons it was the Son sent from heaven.
Prayer is how we stay close with the Lord. It is not about getting what we want, but rather it is about how to become what God wants us to be.
Prayer is how we stay close with the Lord. It is not about getting what we want, but rather it is about how to become what God wants us to be.
Jesus healed 10 men but only one returned to thank Him. It makes us wonder about ourselves... are we more like the 9 ingrates, or do we bring Him the thanksgiving He is worth?
Jesus asks us to do some hard things. The good news is, He has already given His followers enough faith and strength to do all that He has commanded.
Jesus calls His followers to forgive each other when the offender repents. We should not cause or encourage each other to sin. Rather we should guard our own hearts and call each other to account when sin is committed. When one turns back to truth and asks for our forgiveness, it is our God-given privilege to release them and treat them as if they had never harmed us.
One of Jesus greatest stories was that of Lazarus and the Rich Man in which He warns us of the two very different eternal destinations for all mankind. This great sorting relies entirely on whether we live this life with God or whether we live it apart from Him.
If you want Jesus to be your savior, He needs to also be your Lord and Master. Here in Luke, Jesus invites us to chase Him with relentless passion. Are there things drawing your attention away from your one Master?
What do a sheep, a coin, and a boy have in common? They all go lost in three stories Jesus shares. His point is that when missing things get found, we all celebrate! It is the same way with God and His people when a lost person is found and restored to God.
A genuine disciple is one who presents himself to his new master teacher and renounces all his old way of life.
Jesus takes the invitation to a party as the opportunity to entice people to a greater party around the heavenly table.
Using four different word pictures, Jesus describes His kingdom to us and invites us to enter with Him.
When Jesus heals on Sabbath, the religious come at Him with Law. Jesus shows that Law is important but love is essential.
Jesus warns His generation and ours that an unrepentant life will end in disaster. He wants us all to return to God through Him.
Jesus calls us to be peacemakers, but also to understand that we will not always enjoy peace with those who despise our faith. In these times, we are to follow Him no matter the cost to our friendships.
In His discussion about our attachment to possessions, Jesus wraps it up with the event of His return. If we are watchful for His return, our focus will not be on accumulating.
Jesus moves from our worry about our wants in the last passage to our worry about our needs in this text. Why are we so prone to be anxious about mere things when the God of the universe is our Father and knows exactly what we need at all times?
Jesus did not descend from heaven to supply our every desire, but to save us from eternal separation from God. He invites us to invest in a spiritual realm since these earthly possessions will not last forever.
We face various fears that all stop us from doing the hard thing, the right thing. Jesus does not want us to keep our fears from speaking up about Him. Face your fears and live for Him!
It is way too easy to put our trust in ourselves rather than trusting in our gracious God for our spiritual outcome. Jesus in this passage calls very religious people to abandon self and believe in Him.
It is really easy to stop believing in unseen truths of God. We can take our eyes off of God and put them on seen things like signs and images and miracles and people. Jesus warns us to hold fast to Him while the world offers us enticing, but empty distractions.
People in the days of Jesus, and our day as well, dismiss Him for all sorts of reasons. In this text, the Pharisees accused Him of casting out demons in the power given by Satan. This accusation is bold but is quickly disproven by the calm logic of the Savior.
Jesus answers several of our question about prayer. What should we pray? How should we pray? Why should we pray?
In the interaction of Mary, Martha, and Jesus, we see that He values spending time together higher value than working for Him. Our God is a dear friend!
Jesus shows us the high demands the holiness of God has for us. In this, though, He shows us the heights of His love in rescuing us as the good Samaritan rescued the wounded Jew.
Jesus sent the 70 and He has sent us as well. We need to feel the joy and duty of this sending mission.
There is a cost for following the Lord and there is a cost for NOT following Him. In the message, Jesus asks us to to count the cost.
In four consecutive interactions, Jesus identifies the half-hearted faith of His followers. The question for us today is where is our faith right now? Are we expectant or complacent? Are we eager to understand or disinterested? Are we climbing over others or serving them? Are we in a big family of faith or interested in our little club?
Jesus has a unique conversation with two Old Testament saints, Moses and Elijah. His disciples do not know what to make of it but the Father identified Jesus as THE One to listen to.
Jesus Himself had to die before He could be raised. It is no mistake, then, that we too must die (die to self, and die to our love affair with the world), so that we can rise in the next life.
We need to have a firm answer to this question as we approach God - who is Jesus? God will not allow a vague answer. Jesus is the Christ, the son of God.
In the feeding of the 5,000 we see Jesus compassion as well as His burden to feed our faith.
Jesus wants us to tell the world about Him! Our God is passionate about sending. He sent His Son and His Son sends us!
Jesus is able to bring life and hope where death and hopeless reside. In this passage, Jesus heals a young girl and an older woman, both of whom were in dire situations. Jesus is right there for us today too!
Jesus goes out of His way to rescue one person in dire circumstances. He can calm our stormy hearts, too.
We all assume that, of the four soils of which Jesus spoke, we are certainly the good soil. The point of the sermon however is to really challenge us to think of how we receive His Word into our way of life.
On this Easter, we want to look at the depth of the forgiveness of God and a call to love Him in tangible ways.
- What pleases the Lord? How can we please the Lord?
- What did Jesus do that pleased the Lord? (v10)
- What was the Lord pleased to do for Jesus? (v10)
We sometimes wonder if Jesus mission really worked. Even John the Baptist wondered about Jesus. Even in moments of doubt, Jesus is there to bring courage to us.
Luke contrasts two reactions to Jesus. One is a gentile centurion who humbles himself and trusts Jesus can heal a servant by just speaking from a distance. The other is of a town of His countrymen who react to His raising a dead boy to life by fearfully praising God.
Jesus does want us to be able to hear the positive constructive criticism from others about our lives. We should want to give and receive feedback so that this good tree can bear good fruit.
Jesus invites us to love in extreme, counter-intuitive ways. He calls us to love our enemies even though they treat us in hostile ways.
Jesus invites us to forsake all that the world craves: riches, food, experiences, and respect. Instead, we are to crave Him and He will reward us one day if we do so.
Jesus called the Twelve to be disciplers. He has called us too! What can we observe from this passage that shows us how to disciple others?
Jesus Himself is our rest. Anything or any practice that robs our joy in Him is destructive, unhealthy, and the enemy of God.
Questioned about His lack of religious observance, Jesus shows us that He did not come to put a patch on broken and dying religion, but rather He came to bring humanity something new, deep relationship with God.
This unique story is the only one capturing Jesus as a child. During His entry into manhood, Jesus travels to the Temple with His parents for Passover. He learns to obey His parents and learns from the Scribes and Teachers.
Simeon and Anna have waited a very long time for the Messiah. When Jesus is brought to the Temple by His parents, these two prophets unleash glorifying praise and honor Jesus.
Jesus shows us, through His birth, the beauty and majesty of the nature and character of God. God, while sovereign, chooses to be humble. God extends grace to the least likely by human standards. God is worthy of our reverent awe and constant praise!
John the Baptist is the town crier that prepares all Israel to meet their King and Savior. Luke uses the birth of John the Baptist in much the same way to prepare us for the birth of our Savior.
Mary needs counsel and friendship after her big news. She is comforted and encouraged by Elizabeth and together they process what is happening to the both of them. We too need those kinds of friendships, people who will listen and people that will speak into our lives.
God is ready to send Jesus to earth. Going on ahead of the Lord, Gabriel visits Mary to prepare her for her important task of being the mother to our Savior.
It is fitting for such a noble entry as that of our Lord Jesus, to be introduced in regal display. Hence God prepares for Jesus to be born by preparing His forerunner, John. In this message, we will look at the circumstances surrounding the birth of John the baptizer.
Jesus calls Levi (Matthew) to be one of His disciples. At that time tax collectors were viewed as sell-outs to the Roman empire by proper Jews. When Levi was called, he joyfully threw a party in honor of Jesus and invited all his friends: other unacceptables from society.
Paralysis today is a nearly incurable spinal injury that prevents the victim from moving and feeling. In the time of Jesus, it was entirely untreatable. This paralytic man had no hope of being restored, until one day when Jesus came to town. His friends carried him to Jesus and lowered him through the ceiling so that he could have a divine encounter. Jesus heals his injury, but also gives him something we all need, a healing in the soul.
Leprosy is an incurable and deadly skin disease that forced victims out of their community. In Jesus day, a man with leprosy came seeking cleansing. Jesus touched him, spoke with him, and healed him instantly.
Jesus calls His first three disciples, fisherman named Simon, James, and John. In calling them, He calls them and us to not only be disciples, but also to make disciples.
Jesus began teaching and healing in Capernaum. Luke outlines the events after the pattern in Luke 4:18, the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah 61.
Jesus was rejected by the people that knew Him best. Sometimes we are so familiar with Him and His teachings that we get a ho-hum attitude about Jesus.
Jesus was tempted to sin just like we are. How He withstood gives us insight into how we too can overpower our temptations.
Jesus identifies with us in many ways in this passage. He is baptized to connect with us. He is approved by Father and in Christ we are approved by the Father as well. He enters the human world through a genealogy in order to identify with us.
After he writes of the birth of Jesus, Luke now begins to tell the story of these two cousins grown up, John and Jesus. What was the purpose of John and his ministry? How did his preaching affect the people of Israel leading up to the public entrance of Jesus?
As we begin the Gospel of Luke, Luke introduces us to the main character, Jesus, as well as why he wrote the book.
Is it all up to us? To be convincing and winsome enough that someone would make a decision to trust Christ? NO! The Holy Spirit is the one that empowers believers and awakens recipients to follow Christ.
Jonah is regretting that he was part of Gods plan. Are there reasons we hesitate to join the mission?
When God forgives and restores us, He does so in order to send us into someone elses life to help them.
There are times when we know what God wants us to do and we do not want to obey. Do we run away or do we follow Him despite the difficulty?
God has promised His exiles deliverance from their adversity. As Daniel looked forward to the end of Babylonian captivity, let us look forward to the return of our Lord Jesus when He will make all things right!
In four major stories from Daniels life, God shows us how exiles need to be fearless as they represent Him to the world.
God wants us to use the opportunities to influence others for His Gospel. With God no chances are by chance!
We have seen how we need to throw ourselves into our community. What times do we need to pull out from practices and mindsets of our community?
God sent the people of Judah and believers today into exile in Babylon. In Jeremiahs prophecy, God prepares us to get involved in our community. He wants us to shape it for the good.
In the closing of this letter by Peter, we are drawn to notice the family of God in network together. By application, we need to develop a stronger love and collaboration with other believers in our lives.
Our enemy, the devil, is seeking to ruin your life and testimony. Thank the Lord, we have His power and grace to overcome and prevail.
Peter encourages the Christians to follow their elders and to deal humbly with one another. God is opposed to us in our pride, but He gives grace to us as we are humble.
Peter encourages the elders of our churches to care for the flock of God, His cherished people.
Our faith needs to go into action - thru resigning sin, loving believers earnestly, inviting believers to your home, and using your spiritual gifts.
God wants the world to see what difference He can make in their lives. He uses us as His surprise showcase of transforming grace.
Our appeal to God for a clean conscience can only be granted through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
Jesus makes His appeal to people imprisoned by their own sin through the mouths of faithful witnesses like us.
God wants us to live for Him in such a way that we bless each other and our community with our actions and with our words of hope.
Husbands are called to understand and honor their wives. Insodoing, we benefit them, ourselves, our Lord, and the world.
God has counter-cultural words for our marriage relationship. Wives have tremendous influence over their husbands; God wants them to use that influence in a God-honoring and soul-winning way.
Christ invites us to follow His example of suffering. In this way we display His good news to the world through our lives.
How we treat our employer and fellow workers matters to God. God calls us to act like Christ no matter how we are treated.
God wants us to know that our stance towards our government matters. Our attitudes and words about our president, governor, legislature, and judiciary are a witness for Christ or a detriment to Him.
God calls us to take the fight to our own flesh. Too many christians give themselves a pass and posture their battle against the world. The world is in need of rescue, our flesh is in need of vanquish.
Psalm 24 tells us that the earth belongs to the Lord and everything in it. In this message, we will see how this verse relates to world missions.
What is our vision for the church in the realm of outreach to the community? Both for 2015 and beyond we have several visions for outreach.
What is our vision for the church in the realm of inreach to the congregation? Both for 2015 and beyond we have several visions for inreach.
Jesus is not just the gentle Babe lying in a manger. He is also the victor King returning to enact justice in a wicked world. He will come back to make all things right. His return is cause for celebration in the hearts of His people.
Jesus is born as a human to express His great desire to be present with us. What should we do with His presence?
Christmas is not the beginning of Jesus. He has always existed from all eternity and He is equal with the Father. Christmas is our celebration that God came down to earth to be with us.
We who believe enjoy the honor of being part of the family of God, but those who reject are destined for their stubbornness and condemnation.
God wants to encourage His followers by showing us how
He looks at us. We are choice and precious, stones of
His temple, and holy priests.
The Word of God gives us further confidence that we are indeed saved and guaranteed heaven.
Being saved is great cause for joy. God wants us to be glad and take heart that we are His.
Peter continues the same thought about our salvation, but now focuses on the guarantee of our salvation. One of the things many Christians worry about is whether they can so royally mess their lives up that God would take away their eternal life. Peter is here to encourage us that there is nothing that can thwart God from guarding and preserving you.
Peter writes to us to let us know that how to live for the glory of God. In his opening words, he shows us how it came to be that we are saved. The triune God is the source, the reason, for our salvation. Let Him have all honor for His miraculous work.
Jesus sets a pattern for discipling His followers. A disciple is always growing, always deepening their trust in God and friendship with God. Jesus did this with His twelve; His church likewise, does this with disciples today.
God has welcomed us into an extraordinary life, not a life like we were used to before we believed, but an adventure of faith. We often do not experience it because we are content with what we have got.
When at first, God seems unfair and unresponsive, we meditate on His character and come full circle. God is always in control. He is lovingly working out His master plan for our good. We need to respond to His character.
Habakkuk wants to know if God will punish the Babylonians for invading Judah. The answer: God is always watching; His justice will be satisfied.
The prophet Habakkuk is struggling with the sin of his people and the inactivity of his God. What should we do when God does not answer our prayer? How can we feel His presence and enjoy His sovereignty when He is quiet?
Paul wraps up the letter to the Galatians challenging them to live by the grace of God rather than by our own works.
When we follow the Spirit, He transforms our character into Christlike love and nobleness.
Why do some many of us try to vanquish sin in our our strength? God is ready to win if we would only trust Him.
Paul now turns to the Christian life with this discussion of flesh and Spirit. We are clearly not saved by our effort. But how about maturity of faith? We grow in faith by yielding to the wisdom and direction of the Holy Spirit.
Paul takes us through a comparison of legalism and faith using the example of the two sons of Abraham, Ishmael born a slave and Isaac born free.
We find some leadership principles from the heart Paul had for his congregation in Galatia.
Because we have been set free, God does not want us to return to our previous slaveries. Stand firm in His grace and relish His love!
Jesus transitions us from slaves of sin into sons of God. We know this because of His Spirit in our hearts.
We have a new identity now in Jesus Christ. We are sons of God and all equal in the eyes of God our Father.
God wrote the Law with a purpose: to show us our sin and its cost AND to show us our need for a Savior.
God is pleased to bless the believer most precisely and dramatically through the gift of Himself rather than any other gift He gives. God uses Jesus, His death and resurrection, to bless all who trust in Him.
Those who rely on the Law for earning righteousness are under the curse of God. Instead, the righteous live by faith in what Jesus has done for them.
Our attention moves from salvation-by-faith to now maturity-by-faith. Works do not get the believer anywhere, but the person that trusts in God matures by seeking His work in their heart.
We no live for ourselves, but for Jesus. This life of faith centers in surrendering to the will of God rather than serving our own desires.
When it comes to it, keeping the rules does not work because we all break the rules and sin. Only faith in Jesus can make us right before God.
Keeping the Gospel focused and simple is our first task as Christians. Satan so craftily gets our focus on things other than Jesus and we mistakenly add rules and measurements to the Good News. Paul challenges us to keep the Gospel simple and pure.
Paul goes to the defense of the pure and simple Gospel message. A false message of salvation by works had been spreading throughout the Church at that time. In this text, we find a passion that will drive us to continue defending the simplicity of faith in Jesus and His Good News.
Paul and friends meet with the Jerusalem church leaders to collaborate on vision for the movement. None of us our islands to themselves. We, like Paul, must work with the people of God in serving our community. We submit to the team. We confirm the value of our contribution to the Kingdom in hearing from other faithful Christians around us.
Paul looks at his own life and testimony and each step of the way, it shows that the Gospel is from God and not the invention of man.
Paul is worried about deserters and distorters of the faith and defends the true Gospel against a fake gospel being spread.
In dealings with those we conflict with, we are to humbly serve them even when we feel they do not deserve it. In so doing, we show ourselves to be children of God.
David, in his unresolved conflict with Absalom, is the perfect example on why dealing with the pain of disagreement is so important.
The new self that Jesus gifts to His followers strengthens and motivates us to be kind, tender-hearted, and forgiving to one another. We can resolve conflicts rather than letting them fester.
All relationships are reconcilable because or broken friendship with God was restored by Jesus at the cross.
Jesus is taken to the temple by His parents to be dedicated to the Lord. Two servants of God, Simeon and Anna, came to honor Him and praise God.
God helps Joseph understand the circumstances he is in through a dream. In this dream, all the attention is on the Son to be born, Jesus our Savior.
Jesus has a great message for us to hear: He is powerful enough to rescue us from our past mistakes and sins.
Jesus is able to transform any life, even the person ready to end it all because of emotional despair.
God shows up in very ordinary circumstances, even doing laundry. God directs His people to divine appointments with those who need a word from God.
Jesus tears down walls of racial and cultural division in the hearts of the messenger and the recipient.
God did a great work to bring a Eunuch from Ethiopian into the family of God. He used Scripture and His messenger, Philip. God has great power installed in His Word. The Bible changes hearts and minds. We need to know the Word so that it can change our lives and the lives of others.
The last marker that precedes all revival in human history is the Gospel preached. God will never move the church forward without the church boldly and gladly announcing His Good News through Jesus.
In the work God does to bring revival, He always involves His followers. He empowers them to serve and speak to the community to draw people to faith in Jesus.
Before God unleashes His revival on the community, He always leads His people to work as a harmonious team. We need to be work well together for God to move in our neighborhoods and region!
Before God unleashes His revival on the community, He always leads His people to their knees in prayer. We need to be praying for God to move in our neighborhoods and region!
We need to stay in close friendship with God the Father if we are to be a strong witness for Him in this world.
Jesus continues His message preparing the disciples for His departure. He tells them and us that in order for us to withstand defeat, discouragement, and loss of witness, we must stay close to the Holy Spirit and respond to His urgings and counsel.
As Jesus prepares His disciples for His departure, the center of His teaching urges them and us to stay close to Jesus. All of life calls upon us to remain close to God in order to succeed against discouragement and temptation.
Ruth, Boaz, Naomi, and the whole community rejoice in the birth of a son. God shows us from this story that those who wait on the Lord and trust His plan will always become satisfied.
Boaz redeems Ruth from her calamity in a way that pictures the redemption of our souls by Jesus.
Boaz is fired up to resolve the tension of Ruths situation. He goes to the one man that can help her. However, this no-name, self-absorbed man turns the blind eye to Ruths distress. Boaz however is quick to help. What legacy are we leaving with our choices?
Ruth and Naomi craft a plan to win the heart of Boaz. How hard are we working to accomplish great things for ourselves, others, and our church?
Ruth demonstrates her commitment to family by working hard to make the family work. How much energy do we put in to our relationships?
Boaz had eyes to notice someone in need. Are we watching for individuals or groups that need ministry from Gods church?
Naomi returns to the community of faith. Along with her is her daughter-in-law Ruth. We see her the value of community, a place where we can bear our souls to one another.
Naomi invites her two daughters-in-law to join the community of faith. One responds half-hearted and then abandons. The other responds determined and devoted. How ambitious is our response to the Good News of Jesus?
What are the detriments of living a life disconnected from a community of faith-filled believers? In this installment of Ruth, we see what happened to Elimelech and Naomi when, in order to save their lives, they move away from the people of God.
What is the task of a christian in fulfilling the God-given mission of the Church? We are each members of the body, with distinct roles that only we can fill. Let us serve!
What should our approach to the world be? How does the early church influence the world?
God has us in His grip at all times. He is committed to bringing about a completed work in our character and lives. Nothing is going to thwart His plan!
Sometimes we hold back in our relationship with God, felling like we are a servant, or unwanted, or tolerated. Just the opposite is really true. God loves us and changed the course of the universe just to bring us into His family!
Christians may or may not be aware of the Holy Spirit of God within them, but He certainly is in them and is radically changing their lives, making them more like Jesus.
Jesus has declared us right with God because of what He accomplished on the cross. When God looks at believers, they are totally pure and whole because He sees Jesus in us.
Jesus frees us from the authority the Law has over us by killing us with Him on the cross. Now that death ends the marriage between us and the Law, we are now free to be joined with Jesus. We are really free from the judgment of the Law.
We have been graced with freedom over our sin. Jesus, through His death in our place for our sins, has rescued us from our old slave-owner: sin. Pastor Ruth leads us through Romans 6:12-23.
Easter Sunday and we are beginning a look at things that really but invisibly happened when we first believed in Jesus. Today we see that we were really dead and in Jesus we are now really alive.
In the Gospel of Matthew, the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday illustrates His kingliness. It calls us to recognize Him for His kingly role in our lives.
God deeply cares about the eternal destination of mankind. Jesus, in fact, comes to the earth to seek and save the lost. If the Father and Son so desperately loves people, we too ought to pour our efforts and compassion into our relationships with them.
If God matters (and we showed that in the sermon last week), then listening to Him matters. Giving attention to the Word of God is what makes us more like God in our character, behavior, and compassion.
What Matters Most in this life? God. A friendship with God. Time, energy, passion, and love invested in your friendship with God. Making God known in your sphere of relationships.
We have seen from Hosea that God loves us in an endless way. Now we want to see the same principle from the New Testament in the first letter of John.
God loves us in a way that is consistent and unshakeable. He loves us through thick and thin. And even as we stumble, He always lovingly invites us to return.
God has laid out His love and desire to welcome us back into His family. Now what will we do with it?
God shows us His love by buying us off the slaveblock from our old taskmaster, sin. We were used and abused by sin and death and God graciously rescued us.
God continues to show his love for His Bride through the story and prophecy of Hosea. He has a tender, affectionate love for His people. He romances and allures us with the purpose of stirring our affections for Him.
God uses the marriage of Hosea and Gomer to teach His people about how He brings about their discipline and repentance. The severity of His discipline is in direct proportion to our stubbornness.
God is a covenant maker with us. He makes and keeps His promises. Despite us and our flagrant inconsistency He remains faithful.
Wisdom from God is inviting us to chase her. Will you take the opportunity or end up in calamity? What do you intend to overcome in 2013 by Gods grace and wisdom?
We look at 10 Old Testament prophecies regarding the birth of the Messiah and how Jesus fulfills every one of them.
In the angelic announcements to Mary and Joseph, God reveals the nature and purpose of Jesus in His Incarnation. We look at the Gospels of Matthew and Luke to find Jesus, His character, His activity.
Yes God saved us from our foolish old lifestyle. But He also saved us with new ends in mind. He saved us to do good and to be fruitful.
God has rescued us from the foolish lifestyle we have lived so that we can make wise and God-honoring decisions.
The work of the pastor is people. Urging and shepherding the hearts of diverse people from diverse starting points... older, younger, male, female, workers... we all need shepherding so God supplies pastors.
What does God look for in a church elder? What is the task of a church elder? In this portion of Titus, Paul teaches us about the character and work of elders.
As we prepare thinking about how to plant churches in our region, we begin a study of Titus. In this book, Paul is writing to a young church planter, Titus, who he leaves in the island of Crete to establish the churches of that region.
Martin Luther called out the church for teaching a method of salvation opposed to the gospel of Scripture. Jesus did the same in His day. We need to be ready for change that speeds the gospel and not oppose changes just because they are different.
The Bible calls all Christian believers priests and saints. Despite the labeling that churches give to some people over others, God honors all believers with these precious titles.
It is by the grace of God that anyone can become saved. He lovingly intervenes in our warring rebel heart. He brings us to life when we had been dead in sin. He gives us faith so that we receive Jesus.
We look today at three of the Solas of the Protestant Reformation. Today, Scripture Alone, Christ Alone, the Glory of God Alone.
Pastor Aaron leads us through the Great Commission which Jesus gave the Church to fulfill.
Pastor Dave Gundrum, director of Church Extension for the Bible Fellowship Church, updates us on the work of planting churches and leads us in understanding our role of ministry in the church.
We need to constantly examine our spiritual trajectory and look for areas of improvement. We need to be close with God in all regards. Never become complacent and think that youve arrived.
Pastors worry about their congregations. In this text, Paul shows his church what he is worried about in them.
Paul presents the amazing experience he had with God and goes on to talk about how God graciously kept Paul humble through it.
God has chosen our leaders. He want to use them to help us be closer with Him, stronger in faith, and more useful in the world. We need to follow our leaders and trust that they have our good at heart.
Pastor Aaron Smith leads us through the Scriptural invitation to give to the work of the Lord financially.
Pastor Richard Ruth leads us in the biblical concept of giving because Jesus gave Himself for us.
God wants us open up our affections towards one another and towards Him. Otherwise, we open ourselves up to the worldview of unbelief. We should never close ourselves off from each other.
We are on mission with God to change hearts. He actually appeals to people through our mouths. What a great privilege.
The promise we have is that though this body is wasting away from age, illness, temptation, worries, persecutions, and earthly life we have eternity and imperishability in store awaiting us in heaven through Jesus Christ. With this hope in mind, let us live for Him!
We are strongest when we abandon the idols that claim to give us power and humbly depend on guidance and strength which the Lord supplies.
Trusting the Spirit of God to take the Scripture and impress them on your heart is the confident hope of the Christian. The Spirit far exceeds merely trusting in your own whits to figure out our Faith.
We are Gods means of spreading His truth throughout the entire world. Are you making Him known in every place?
When someone repents of their sin, the Church lovingly releases them just like God already forgave the person. Sin needs to be exposed. It needs to be repented of. It needs to be forgiven. Our forgiving each other communicates our committment to the Gospel of Jesus.
Paul shows his tender heart for his congregation in this text. Let us shepherd well the people God has brought into our lives.
When all seems lost and your drained of all strength, God is there to comfort, revive, and restore joy to your life.
The resurrrection of Jesus gives life to the church planting mission of the local church.
What does it matter in this century that Jesus rose again from the dead? We will find five aspects of our lives that are radically changed because Jesus died and rose again.
Easter confuses everybody. The women go looking for a dead body and find two angels and news of a risen Savior, the disciples are disbelieving of the women and their news, the angels are dumbfounded that everyone rejects the truth of Jesus resurrection.
Jesus entered His capital, Jerusalem, on Palm Sunday triumphantly. Or did He? Lets look at His triumphant entry from the Gospel of Luke.
God is looking for holiness in His people. Let us stop our love affair with our former slavemaster, sin. Let us chase hard after God and serve Him only!
What is heaven going to be like? John pulls back the curtain on what Christians have to look forward to in our eternal home.
It is our mission to spread the new of Jesus to every nook and cranny of this world. But how do we do it?
God has done everything to accomplish our salvation. We have nothing to do with it except to benefit from His gracious act.
How lost is lost? How bad is bad? As we see the total sinfulness of man, we magnify the intensity of the love God has for us.
The greatest behavior that we can attain as a human is frankly more of an attitude than an action. That is, to be gracious towards people, doing good to them regardless of whether they deserve good or not.
How do we know Jesus is God? Why should we put Jesus on the same level as God, the Father?
God inconvenienced the world in order to give us His Son, Jesus. We have forgiveness, peace, and grace because of the gift of Jesus.
Jesus followers heard the Good News that he had come back to life after being killed on the cross. But they said nothing because they were afraid. What lame excuses do we have for not sharing the good news of forgiveness and eternal life?
Jesus dies on the cross, paying for the sins of mankind. We know He succeeded because when He cried it is finished and died, the curtain in the Temple was torn from top to bottom. We can now have bold access to God through Jesus.
Jesus walks the gauntlet of injustice as He approaches the cross. Here we see how our God handles wrongs against Him and how are to handle the wrongs against us. Also we see the purpose of His sufferings as we compare this text, Mark 15, with the prophet of old, Isaiah, in his foreshadow in chapter 53.
Now that Paul intervened in this conflict between Philemon and Onesimus, he planned to follow-up to ensure that the relationship had moved forward for the longterm.
We serve a Lord who stuck to His plan despite easy opportunities to give up. Jesus stuck to His task of dying for the sins of His people. His disciples abandoned their task and one, Peter, even denied His Master. Do we stick to our task or are we so easily led astray?
This Thanksgiving Eve sermon takes us to the time that David brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem and praise ensued. Asaph and David taught the people this song of thanksgiving in 1 Chronicles 16
As Jesus culminates His earthly ministry, preparing for the cross, there are three reactions the people had to His message. First there were those so angered by His incredible claims that they reviled Him. Second, there was one who betrayed Him. Third, there was a woman who honored Him publicly. Where do we fall in this threefold spectrum?
Jesus wants us to know what to expect in the final days of mankind on this earth. He explains in Mark 13, the events surrounding His return and our departure to heaven.
Jesus is not weak and unsure of Himself. When attacked about His teaching, He happily and boldly defends it, making His opponents look foolish. His teaching is defensible... it works in your life when practiced.
Jesus tells the story of the wicked vine-growers. In it, He teaches us what it cost God to rekindle a friendship with humanity. We wanted nothing to do with Him and He went to the great length of sending His only Son, Jesus, to bring us home.
BFC Director of Missions preaches on 2 Corinthians 5:14-21 during our 2011 Missions Conference.
Jesus enters Jerusalem where He will be betrayed, killed, and raised from the dead. What is the Christians role in making this great news known?
Jesus invites us to reprioritize our life so that He is on top and posessions are insignificant. Do you idolize stuff?
Jesus cares very deeply about the integrity of the family unit. Husbands and wives caring for each other deeply and parents investing into the lives of their children.
Jesus teaches on heaven and hell and the truth is who is in and who is out may really suprise us.
Why do we always want to elevate ourselves above others? Jesus in this text calls His disciples and us onto the carpet to challenge our desire for esteem, fame, glory, and power.
Here, the author shares two stories where Jesus addresses our partial view of spiritual realities versus the full perspective He desires in us.
Jesus turns His attention the nations. Will Jesus show concern and compassion for those outside the faith community? Will He shatter man-made prejudices and embrace outsiders, making them insiders?
In this passage, Jesus is put on the spot for not following customs and traditions of the religious leaders. He immediately turns it back on them by asking why they cling to traditions and ignore the comman of God. How about us? What traditions do we follow religiously and elevate to the status of the Bible?
In this portion of Mark, Jesus illustrates the relation of Provision with Faith. How much faith do you have to see God working?
How did Jesus handle rejection and what are we to do when we are persecuted because of our faith in Jesus?
When we think God will do this little thing, He overdelivers on our miniscule expectations.
Jesus faces off with religious people in six different ways in this text. While they are about status quo, unwritten rules, and keeping face... Jesus is about showing grace and friendship with God. Which are you more like?
In this message, Pastor Tim shows us that our spiritual growth is all because of the graciousness of God.
In this message, Pastor Tim lays out the fact that justification is given to fallen men and women as a free and undeserved gift of God because of His grace.
In this sermon, Pastor Tim illustrates the Common Grace of God toward all humans regardless of their position in Him.
Jesus demonstrates both His might in healing and His might in message. How has He shown you His strength?
Jesus begins His earthly ministry with speed and passion. What was His mission? We will discover that as we read from the Gospel of Mark, the first twenty verses of the book.
God wants us to wrestle with the question of who is in charge of the decisions of our lives. In this message, Richard Ruth, Pastor of Visitation here at Bethany BFC, presents James 4:1-10.
Where did the practice of communion come from? Why is it important that Christians observe this ritual?
When we face difficulties, is it because God is upset with us? Is it because He isnt taking notice of us? Or is it that God wants to mature us and part of the way He does that is through difficulties?
When life is gone and the joy of life is zapped, Jesus brings life back from the tomb. We celebrate Easter by beginning this new series "Up From the Ashes".
I. God Saved and Calls Us to a Calling (v9a) II. God Freely Planned the Gift of Forgiveness (v9b) III. God Reveals His Plan in His Son, Jesus (v10a) IV. God's Purpose for Us is Full Life (v10b)
Palm Sunday is a day filled with irony. Jesus rides into Jerusalem hailed as king. Yet only five days later the same crowds scream "kill Him!" There are several reactions to Jesus in the event of Palm Sunday, well ask your reaction to who Jesus is. Well talk together about why Jesus was so ambitious to walk the lonely trail to the cross.
How can the church take care over such a busy, full ministry and ensure no one falls through the cracks?
God lays out His strategy for maintaining order within the church as it relates to gender roles.
The peace that we have throughout the adversities of life will inspire the lost to look for help in Jesus Christ.
Paul shares with Timothy and us how to use your story of salvation to change the lives of others around you. How can you help shape and mold the faith of friends and family?
Jesus expects His Church to stand up for the truth He has set forth in His Word. When people begins straying from its plain teaching into speculations and begin dividing the Church through teaching error, we are to gracious, yet firmly set them straight and explain to the Church what the Word says and how the individual or group has erred. By doing so lovingly, we build the congregation up and advance the work of God in the world.
In this sermon, we introduce First Timothy with the exact center of the book. In it, Paul brings glory to God through His work in the Universal and Local Church. Join us in a look at church.
We want to join Jesus in His mission of transforming lives in this world. Our church believes this involves starting churches in the Lehigh Valley region in communities where there is no Gospel-preaching, Bible-believing church.
Jesus Family, the Church, is worth your time and energy. She is worth caring about. Each individual is worth your brotherly love, compassion, prayer. Spend yourself for the sake of this body of fellow believers!
Jesus really takes our holiness serious. God wants us to live right and pure in a world full of sin. When we fall short, He used loving discipline to continue the process of spiritual maturity in our soul.
In our text last week, the author was making the case that Jesus is worth living for. Now he turns the attention of the readers to the countless men and women who in fact did live for Jesus in the past. Their faith got them through the difficulties they faced. He now tells his readers and us that our faith will get us through the difficult seasons of our lives.
Jesus is worth living for. He died to give you life. There are countless life-altering benefits to following Him through thick and thin. Also, there are consequences for abandoning Him.
On this Sunday before Christmas, we look at the body that God prepared for Jesus. The fancy word is Incarnation. Jesus is fully God and yet He became a human. This week before His birthday, have you experienced what He came to earth to accomplish?
God showed Moses how the Tabernacle should be built. It was an imitation of the real tabernacle in heaven. Jesus brings us in to the real dwelling of God, no imitation.
In this section of Hebrews, the author compares and contrasts the former arrangement God had with mankind with His new covenant which He established through the sacrifice of His own Son, Jesus.
In the words of Jesus I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. The same is seen here Hebrews 7-8.
There is significant danger to the churchgoer; temptation can easily lead to abandoning our Lord. Be warned, God does not take well to being maligned.
Jesus is the high priest of our faith who sympathizes with our weaknesses and help in our times of need.
Jesus is the only one who can put our restless souls to rest. No longer must we worry about our standing before God. No longer must we feel the need to earn His love and acceptance. In Jesus we have found rest for our souls.
We have got a real tendency to elevate people above what is appropriate or realistic. In other words, we like making idols for ourselves. The writer of Hebrews exposes his audience to their idol, Moses. Moses was a servant of God, but we have Jesus the Son of God. Hebrews 3
Jesus became a flesh-and-blood man like all of us so that He could walk in our shoes, go thru our struggles, and fight the good fight. He did all this to offer Himself as a sacrifice for our sin and to know how to help us when we are tempted.
There is a lot of fascination with angels.. both today and 2,000 years ago. Hebrews makes the case that no matter how interesting angels are to you, Jesus is so much more worth your affections and attention.
God spoke to us in His Son, Jesus Christ. We will see the quality of the message and the superiority of the messenger. Join us for our study of Hebrews.
Jesus invites His disciples to actually make disciples out of others. This calling begins when He called His first disciples. He said come follow Me and I will make you fishers of men. How do we make disciples?
What is the end goal of a disciple? If I decide to be a follower of Jesus, what is He going to end up doing in my life?
What does someone who follows Jesus do with their life? How do they live? What are the anthems of their days?
Jesus uses a unique process to turn rebellious sinners into lovers of God. It is called discipleship. In this message, we look at why and how Jesus made his disciples and how He makes disciples out of us.
Jesus uses a unique process to turn rebellious sinners into lovers of God. It is called discipleship. In this message, we look at why and how Jesus made his disciples and how He makes disciples out of us.
What do you do when no one is watching? Do you act on your beliefs or do you do whatever pops into your mind? Faithfulness and Self-Control are the Holy Spirits tools for training us to stand on principle rather than give in to sin all the time.
Be kind, Be Good. It sounds so elementary. It sounds like something you would say to a preschool child learning to interact with other children. What we will find about kindness may surprise you. And what we will see about goodness will certainly inspire you. Biblical kindness and Biblical goodness are pretty hard attitudes to develop.
God invites us to throw away our addiction to the clock and to learn patience. We will look at five different ways that we need to learn patience.
How can I be peaceful and gentle and still be me? It seems like an afront to who we are as people for God to ask us to be something that we arent. Lets talk about gentleness and peacefulness together.
The first fruit of the Spirit that we will look at is Love. How do I demonstrate love to others?
Our long-range vision as a church is to grow our congregation to 300 and then send out church planting teams to start Bible-believing churches across the Lehigh Valley and beyond.
What is the Christian view of government? Should we seek to change the world through the use of political means? Lets see what God tells us HIS view of government is with hopes of altering our view to be in line with His.
What legacy are you leaving for the next generation? How will you be remembered? Will you be imitated? Samuel left many eternal legacies, but in some ways no generation after him followed some of his example. Is this his fault, their fault? Well talk about it in this message.
Sometimes, the person of God has to be the lone voice of truth. Being the bearer of bad news is tough, but God calls us to stand with Him for what is right.
As Samuel leads the people of God through times of transition, they call out for a human king to lead them instead of allowing God to be their king. In this message, we will see why humans want visible human kings, the problems with replacing God with humans, and how God still uses human kingship in His plan of redeeming this world out of sin and into prosperous godliness.
Do you listen to God? Are you listening for His leading and direction for your life. In this first message on the life lessons of the prophet Samuel, we will consider how to listen to the awesome voice of God.
We wrap up our series with a look at how God views peace within the Church and peace with unbelievers.
Celebrating Mother's Day and honoring our moms, today we see in God's Word the contribution our moms make to our families.
As we continue what a peaceful home looks like, in this message, we see the role of peaceful parents
Jesus' death and resurrection makes peace between God and man, but also between irreconcilable humans. Where all seems hopeless in nurturing a peaceful and joy-filled home, Jesus makes peace.
Jesus made peace between mankind and God through His selfless death on the cross AND through His resurrection from death.
Palm Sunday, Jesus rides into Jerusalem as the victorious king. Is He King in your life?
The Bible is the story of Jesus Christ from cover to cover and through every page. In the beginning of this mini-series called It Speaks of Me, we will be introduced to the idea that every story in the Bible points us to Jesus. Every Old Testament story foreshadows the coming Messiah, Jesus.
People tend to address behavior. Stop doing wrong! But Jesus confronts the root problem of our behavior: He goes for the heart. Our true problem as humans is our sinful nature. Our heart is a idol factory. Jesus can bring real healing to the heart, not just patch the negative symptoms.
We are really good at judging and labeling each other. Jesus calls us to task and invites us to address our own problems before we begin trying to help others overcome their sins.
All the religions of the world promise to bring someone closer to God and to make the person like God. Where many promise, Jesus delivers. Jesus here promises to train us to be like Him. So where are you on your journey with Jesus? Are you being made like Him?
Are you spiritually blind? Jesus warns us about being so close to God that we don't actually have God. The religious leaders of Jesus' day fell into this subtle problem. They in fact had all the frills of religion and no real friendship with God. We, though we may be in a saving friendship with Jesus, may still fall victim to the subtlety of spiritual blindess.
Are you judgemental or critical of others? Jesus continues His message of calling people out of their natural inclinations and into a life of peace, hope, and significance. He invites us to have hope that God can change the people we have lost hope in.
God wants us to not hold back but to give it to 'em. When our enemies hate us, we love them. When they hurt us, we pray for them. When they steal, we do not demand it back. We are then most like our Father in heaven.
The way people look at life, its all about accumulation and acclamation... its all about me. But Jesus begins His teaching ministry by inviting us to look at life backwards of the status quo. You're blessed if you're poor, if you're hungry, if you're sad, if you're hated. Let's join Jesus in looking at the world backwards.
There wasn't much time for Jesus in His birth or in His teaching ministry. Before we judge the people of His day, how much time do we make for Him in our lives?
What do Christians have in common with each other? We are brothers and sisters, adopted into God's family. So what practices should we have to communicate our unity?
God has lifted the requirements of observing the Law from Christians having sent Jesus to die on the cross to pay the penalty of our sin. If the Son has set us free, we are free indeed. Now how do we live in this freedom?
The point of human history, the central figure of Scripture, the one rescue from sin, the one friend thru life, and the Head of the Church and its affairs is Jesus, the Lord of the Universe.
There truly is power in prayer. Prayer doesn't change God's mind, but it does declare our dependent need of Him. What is your prayer life like?
An important essential of a healthy Biblical church is the leadership by multiple elders. Elders teach, secure the doctrine, shepherd the souls of the congregation, and lead the function of the body.
We are required by God to help this world in the name of Jesus. It communicates God's compassion for hurting people but it also points people towards the Savior. Let us be busy about meeting physical needs.
One of the major themes of Acts is that the Church is empowered by the Holy Spirit to do the work that the Lord Jesus commissioned us to do. We are never left to our own devices to get His job done. So in Acts 2, the Spirit comes for the first time to fill and remain in God's followers. Let's see how we are empowered by the Spirit!
Jesus commissioned His followers to be witnesses for Him throughout the whole world. The Twelve began this essential ministry in Jerusalem and we are completing it as we speak.
God's Word has a lot to say about money, or more accurately, it has a lot to say about our attitudes towards every aspect of life. Are you content? Are you happy? Are you well provided for? The average American is richer than 80% of the world, yet we are never satisfied. We need to learn to be content. God's Word will show us the way!
God has made peace with us through Jesus Christ. We were His enemies because of our sin, but Jesus removed our guilt by being punished in our place. Because of this truth, we also are able to live in peace with each other. We also have peace during the problems of life. We also can have peace in our affections: we no longer need to love sin. Let's examine our God of Peace.
What a great and high hope we have! That Jesus is coming back to this world to take us to our new home with Him! But we need to ask ourselves, how eager are you for that day? Is that day just a nice fringe benefit and your real concern is this world and your busy life here?
What is the point of our life on earth? We are here to know Jesus in a deeper and fuller way. We need to commit every day to take steps in furthering our spiritual walk and growing in His grace.
Now we see how far a humble attitude calls us to go. We are called to abandon all vestiges of self and self-identity. We are now owned by Jesus and our identity is in Him and our self-worth comes from knowing Him as Lord and Savior and Friend.
Since I need to be busy working out this faith of mine, how should I serve? With what attitude and motives should I minister? In this section of our text, Paul gives three examples of the proper motives for ministry. Lets serve and serve rightly!
Now that I'm saved, what do I do? What does God want me to do with my life? Let's talk together about working out this faith that we are experiencing!
Paul calls us to be selfless like Jesus our savior. We need to think of the needs and wants of others before we think of our needs and wants. We need to care for others more than we care about ourselves. This is radically different than our natural tendencies, but it is what God calls us to. Let's be selfless like our Savior.
Paul describes why he is not troubled by his present circumstances. Though he was in prison and his life hung by a thread according to the pleasures of the Roman Emperor, Paul resolved to live for the Lord or die for the Lord. His happiness came from being in the will of God. Our lives often run on empty because we are so full of self and selfishness. Only when we are empty of self-ambition can we have the joy of the Lord be our strength.
God always cares about WHY we do WHAT we do. We can be great things for His Church, but if we have selfish motives, God will not honor, bless, or reward our efforts. Why do you serve Him?
The power of the church is in prayer. In the opening section of Philippians, Paul lays out the reason for prayer and the content of prayer that can radically change our prayer lives.
As Pastor Tim introduces his philosophy of ministry, he will share what God lays down as the call of a pastor within a local church from 1 Timothy 4.