2010-09-16 - Why can't we be friends? Preached on 2003-01-26 Conflicts -Who are having problems? 1 John 4:20 - To love God, is to love our brothers Three reason why we can not 1. Lack of spiritually (half-hearted) Genesis 4:1 - God wants us to give your best - First reaction: Anger and downcast - Relationships - best to God, best to others How could being close to God change things for you? 2. Selfish Jacob and Esua Genesis 25:27-35 - Only do things you like to do - Waiting for them to come to you - You make the first moved 3. Jealous/Anger Genesis 37:1 - How is jealousy effecting you relationship? - Focus on all the blessing you DO have - Pray for them |
2010-09-27 - Waking Dead - Storing Up The good man brings good things out of the good stored in his heart Out of the overflow of the heart, his mouth speaks - Luke 6:45 Jesus from the fullness of grace we have all received one blessing after another - John 1:16 Paul: I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you - Ephesians 3:16 Caring for our hearts isn't selfish - it is how we begin love We care for our hearts for the sake of others What will you bring to others to others if your heart is empty? You can not love without your heart, you can not love well unless your heart is well How you handle your heart is how you will handles theirs Love others as you love yourself - Mark 12:31 If you dismiss your heart, you will end up dismissing others Perfection of your heart will raise that same standard for them Caring for your heart is also how you protect your relationship with God Your heart is where that life flows into you - John 7:37-38 We love ourselves for God's sake - he considers our hearts the treasures of the kingdom |
2010-10-12 - Dealing With Your Heart (Part I)
QUESTIONS
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2010-10-16 - Giving (Part II)
QUESTIONS
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2010-11-11 - Contagious Christian - Starting Spiritual Conversations It is not enough to merely have high impact (HI) and close proximity (CP) We have got to talk about our faith and put the spiritual concepts of the gospel into everyday words People won't figure out the gospel out on their own - Romans 10 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways - Isaiah 55:8 Watching the life of a Christian (even a contagious one) won't be enough Someone has to articulate the gospel Must take the initiative and steer the the conversation toward spiritual topics This book contains a limited number of examples - meant to spur our thinking Must start with the heart-felt assurance that the gospel is good new my life and for others If you need a firmer foundation:
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2010-11-22 - Mission - Heart of Christ Reading Luke 19:1-9
Jesus' love had a clear and defined purpose - to restore a broken relationship between the lost and God To have the heart of Christ means to seek and to save what is lost It is beyond:
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2010-11-23 - Mission - Expectation of Christ Reading Luke 19:11-27 Parable of the 10 minas God has given us a lifetime of opportunities and blessing with the expectation that they would be utilized to the fullest Consider the most important goal of life according to Jesus - salvation for all It is the motivating force behind everything Christ did Even to the point of dying for it - Matthew 20:28 The gospel must first save me, but then through me, save others Capitalism and Communism does not give us the answers No philosophy or religion can meet the needs God wants to the world more than you do When God wants something accomplished, he can move mountains to do it He sacrificed his own Son for saving man Our God is wildly happy when someone is saved - Luke 15 If we claim to know God, then we most certainly will share with in his attitude |
2010-12-30 - Baptism into Christ (part II) Ephesians 1:3-10
Galatians 3:26-29
Infant Baptism? Colossians 2:11-12
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2011-01-05 - Holy Spirit (part II) Ephesians 1:13-14 - The Spirit is God’s mark of ownership on his children and a “deposit” of the Ephesians 3:14-21 - We are strengthened with real power through the Spirit who dwells within us. We Ephesians 4:29-32 - How do we “grieve” the Holy Spirit? Why is anger and anger-related sin so |
2011-02-12 - Discipleship - Kansas City (part II) The Standard of a Disciple Luke 9:18-26
Luke 9:57-62
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2011-10-05 - Genesis 5 - Genealogies (part I)SummaryAdam's line was: Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech and Noah. Noah's sons were Shem, Ham and Japheth. ObservationsGenesis 5:2 - He created them male and female and blessed them Personal ApplicationThe challenge for me is simple: To finish the race [Acts 20:24] with great faith and perseverance. But not just to get by but to have a relationship with God that shines before others. When people talk about me, do they stop and mention my relationship with God like the Bible does with Enoch? What does God say about my faith? |
2011-10-12 - Genesis 12 - The Call of AbrahamSummaryGod told Abram, "Go. I will make you a great nation. You will be a blessing." In Egypt Abram lied about Sarai and Pharaoh was cursed. ObservationsGenesis 12:1 - Leave your country, your people Personal ApplicationI value comfort but it is not the same comfort that comes from God. When I look at my heart, I am slower to change then I used to be as a younger Christian. This should not be. What is stopping me from changing? Would I being willing to move again for God? |
2011-10-13 - Genesis 13 - The Cowboy Conflict SummaryAbram journeyed with his nephew Lot. Their servants argued, so Lot went to Sodom, Abram to Canaan. The LORD promised Abram the land. ObservationsGenesis 13:7 - So there were quarrels Personal ApplicationI have been very quarrelsome at work recently - there is a lot that frustrates me right now. I need to relax and count my blessings. It is not worth broken relationships or loss of life. |
2011-11-29 - Gratitude (part II) Gratitude must be seen in our prayer life
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2011-12-22 - Day 19 - Powerful Prayers 1 Chronicles 17:15-22
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2012-01-23 - Ministry - Unless You Change Matthew 18:2-4 Deeply rooted in the mature of adults is a strong sense of resistance to change. Even when we feel deeply discontent with our lives, we are more willing to stay in the familiarity of our misery than to venture into the untested waters of change. Fortunately, Jesus, in his desire to put us out of our misery, makes it clear that for a Christian to make it to heaven we must keep on changing. We must choose to grow even if it is challenging, difficult, tiring, confusing or scary. Why this strong direction? Because there is just so much about our hearts, character, habits, lives that the Lord wants to change! Too many souls will be lost if we stop growing. Jesus gives us the secret to change in the same verse - humble yourself. Thank God we live in a kingdom where the Lord rushes to help the humble. He will send the word, wise advice from a disciple, a protecting angel, and a physical blessing, all to the humble. It seems that we have two choices: Be humbled or get humbled. Questions:
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2012-03-05 - Blessings In Christ (part I) Studying through the blessing of Jesus: 1. Access to God's Grace - Ephesians 2:8-18 2. We are adopted by God - Ephesians 1:5 3. We get an Inheritance - Ephesians 1:11 4. We are elected saved - 1 Peter 1:2 5. We become a child of God - John 1:12 |
2012-03-06 - Blessings In Christ (part II) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 6. We get a heavenly citizenship - 2 Timothy 4:18 7. We become a servant - Romans 6:22 8. We are heirs of God, joint heirs with Jesus - Romans 8:17 9. We become a new creature - 2 Corinthians 5:17 10. We become priests - 1 Peter 2:9 |
2012-03-07 - Blessings In Christ (part III) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 11. We are reconciled to God - Romans 5:10 12. We are Sanctified - 1 Corinthians 6:11 13. We are accepted in the Beloved - Ephesians 1:6 14. We are Baptized into the body of Christ - 1 Corinthians 12:13 15. We are buried with him - Romans 6:4 |
2012-03-08 - Blessings In Christ (part IV) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 16. We have put on Christ - Galatians 3:27 17. We have eternal life - John 10:28 18. We have peace with God - John 14:27 19. We became a friend of God - John 15:15 20. We get in the Lamb's book of life - Revelation 21:27 |
2012-03-09 - Blessings In Christ (part V) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 21. We receive imputed righteousness - Romans 4:6 22. Our names are written in heaven - Luke 10:20 23. We are given a blessed hope of Christ's returning - Titus 2:13 24. We are seated in heavenly places - Ephesians 2:6 25. We have fellowship with the trinity - 1 John 1:3 |
2012-03-10 - Blessings In Christ (part VI) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 26. We have a mansion in heaven - John 14:2 27. We are born again with a spiritual re-birth - John 3:3-6 28. We have received an anointing - 1 John 2:27 29. The Holy Spirit will live with us now and forever - John 14:16 30. We've been sealed by the Holy spirit unto the day of redemption - Ephesians 4:30 31. Our bodies become the temple of the Holy Spirit - 1 Corinthians 6:19 32. We are forever forgiven - Luke 7:48 |
2012-03-11 - Blessings In Christ (part VII) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 33. We are justified in God's sight - Romans 5:1 34. We are redeemed - Revelation 5:9 35. Indwelt by the Holy Spirit - Romans 8:9 36. We have an advocate with Christ - 1 John 2:1 37. We now have the possibility to have victory over sin - Romans 6:14 |
2012-03-12 - Blessings In Christ (part VIII) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 38. We become Christ's ambassadors - 2 Corinthians 5:20 39. We are blessed with spiritual blessings - Ephesians 1:3 40. Our every need will be supplied by God - Philippians 4:19 41. Given an inner strength to accomplish necessary things - Philippians 4:13 42. A good work has been done in us - Philippians 1:6 |
2012-03-13 - Blessings In Christ (part IX) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 43. The Lord becomes our helper instead of our judge - Hebrews 13:6 44. We get abounding grace - 2 Corinthians 9:8 45. We get eternal love - Romans 8:38-39 46. Everything that happens to us will be for our own good - Romans 8:28 47. A promised faithfulness regardless of our faithlessness - 2 Timothy 2:13 |
2012-03-14 - Blessings In Christ (part X) Continue studying through the blessing of Jesus: 48. A promise given to be able to resist temptation - 1 Corinthians 10:13 49. We are made kings - Revelation 1:6 50. We became saints - 1 Corinthians 1:2 51. We have been delivered from the power of darkness - Colossians 1:12-13 52. Our hearts are unblamable - 1 Thessalonians 3:13 53. We get the power of a sound mind - 2 Timothy 1:7 |
2013-03-18 - Prayer of the Righeous - God is Preparing a Place (part II) John was given a glemce of what heaven would be like in Revelations:
Heaven is a place full of blessings Jesus referred serveral times to our reward in heaven No eyes have seen, no ears have heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared - 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 No one can stop us from going to heaven but ourselves Do you think of God as one who wants nothing more than to bless your life? |
2014-03-04 - Heart to Heart time with our kids Fathers, start spending more “heart to heart” time ATTENTION Get their attention, ask important questions like:
Make a little one-on-one time with Dad AFFIRMATION Kids, as well as adults, want the approval and praise from their dads They want their father’s "blessing” in their lives. God: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased” - Mark 1:11 It is important that you communicate to them, “You are my son (daughter) and I dearly love you. I am very pleased with you.” Anytime you greet them or talk to them, your countenance, the look in your eyes, and your tone of voice either says, “You are a delight to me” or “You are an irritation to me.” You should praise them privately, one-on-one, and publicly in front of others. “That is awesome! You are really good at that,” needs to come from your lips as their biggest cheerleader. Regardless of your past, step up to do this now! AFFECTION Father pours out His unconditional love on us (Romans 5:5), and so should we to our sons and daughters. Interact with them in ways that make them fully see, hear, and feel your love. not only the discipline of a father but also his warm affection and tender love. Boys who feel loved by their dads are bolder, stronger, kinder to others, and more secure Girls who feel valued by their dads are more radiant, less desperate for a boyfriend, and more careful whom they marry. So invest in them, take them places, flood them with tender affection, leaving no question in their minds about your genuine love for them. |
2014-05-31 - Genesis 24 - Search for the Bride of Isaac (part II)SummaryEliezer met Rebekah by the well exactly as he had prayed. ObservationsGenesis 24:12 - Please give me success today ApplicationI do not have the dependant prayer I need to have. I have many failures because I depend on myself and do not ask God. |
2015-02-10 - The To Do List Jeshua and Zerubbabel joined his fellow priests in rebuilding the alter of the God of Israel - Ezra 3:2-3 Ask yourself what tops your list of things to do, if spending time with God is not, then it is time to make an adjustment Their actions created a buzz - they insisted on rebuilding the alter before rebuilding the city wall "Can't that wait?" "Don't these guys understand the danger we face?" Jeshua and Zerubbabel understood without God's protection, their enemies would destroy them, wall or no wall They remembered what happened to the previous wall builder - they forgot to include God and their wall came tumbling down Does anything on your to do list come before spending time with God? When you make time with GOd your top priority, you invite blessings on all the other items on the list. |
2015-03-10 - All Good Things You rule over everything - 1 Chronicles 29:12 David understood that although he had worked hard, God was the source of all his accomplishments King David realized no one, whatever his station in life, ever receieves anything good apart from God David died at a ripe old age, having enjoyed long life, wealth, and honor - 1 Chronicles 29:28 God loves hearing you declare him as your source of all good things Allow others to see God at work in your life and open yourself to additional blessings |
2015-03-27 - Help Lord to Moses: Gather 70 men and they will bear the burden of the people along with you - Numbers 11:16-17 Moses had reached the point of burnout and no more to give So much so, Moses said: "Just go ahead and kill me" - Numbers 11:15 God sent help his way When you allow others to help you bear your burdens, you receive great blessings for yourself and for those who help you Allow your brothers to share your burdens so that you can keep moving forward |
2015-04-08 - Conditional Blessing You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you - 1 Samuel 13:13 Full blessings from God depends on our obedience Saul, Israel's first king, fell flat on his face Samuel had given Saul clear instructions - Go ahead to Gilgal and wait me me - 1 Samuel 13:8 He foolishly decieded to play the role of a priest and perform sacrifices in a way that clearly violated God's law Saul squandered his chance at greatness because he lacked the courage and wisdom to obey Live according to his Word and you put yourself in a prefect position to receive all he had for you and your family |
2015-04-09 - Where Credit is Due They realized this work had been donw with the help of our God - Nehemiah 6:16 Nothing keeps a man's feet on the ground like remembering that everying blessing he has comes from the hand of God Nehemiah understood the importance of giving God the credit in all things Order of events:
Nehemiah knew when he gave God the credit that the swiftness of the rebuilding project would be a warning to Jeruslem's enemies There is no self-made men - only men who recognize the God who made them What good thing is God doing in your life right now? Have you given him the credit?
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2015-04-24 - Vows I will give the Lord whatever comes out of my house to meet me - Judges 11:30 As it would happen, the first to leave his house was Jephthah's daugther The Bible contains hundreds of God's conditional promises of blessings Jephthah's vow went terribiy wrong when he tried to set his own conidtions for blessing rather than appoarching God in faith Have you felt that you needed to offer God something to receive his promised blessing? You can't buy what God already wants to give you. |
2015-05-01 - On Track Get up! Why are you lying on your face like this? - Joshua 7:10 This tragic event illustrates the terrible ripple effect of sin God gave crystal clear instructions ofr the invasion of Jericho He promised the Israelites a crushing victory over the city and in return they would put aside for Him all the gold, sliver, and other valuable they would seize during the raid Achan paid no attention to God's instructions His sin had removed God's hand of blessing from the Israelite army and three dozen innocent soldiers died in the reulting unheaval Even sin that might be reguarded as secret affects you and those closest to you Where do you most feel the tug to stray? |
2015-05-22 - Infectious Enthusiasm Phinehas has turned my anger away from the Isrealites by being as zealous among them as I was - Numbers 25:10 Phinehas had seen the immorality going on around him and could not stand idly by and allow his people tp defile themselves Neither could he allow God judgement to continue without trying to bring it to an end His last straw momenet was when he witnessed his Hebrew brother shamelessly taking a Midianite into his tent Phinehas' zeal kicked in and passionately executed the man From then on, he showed his willingness to take a stand and the people of Israel were spared and decendants received God's blessings - Numbers 25:12-13 When you are enthusiastic about your relationship with God, you are bound to affect the people around you |
2015-06-15 - Motives Matter Motives can be everything The Bible insists that God sees not just what we do but also why we do it Example: Balaam spoke blessings on the Isreal three times but he was denounced in scripture as an evil man Joshua tells us that the only reason Balaam didn't curse Israel was because God made hime speak blessings - Joshua 24 Balaam was considered a false teacher who:
Do you obey God from the heart? Do you find yourself doing the right thing for the right reasons? |
2015-07-06 - Effects of Jealous Saul had a spear in his hand and suddenly hurled it at David intending to pin him to the wall - 1 Samuel 18:11 Jealousy is the emotion we feel toward someone who has something we believe we should have KIng Saul jealous toward David, who did nothing but serve the king faithfully Saul grow angry with him because of his growing popularity Saul promoted David to army commander where he excelled, defeating the Philistines Jealousy took over and and Saul went insane and it his life's goal to kill David Being jealous steals the joy and contentment the Lord wants us to experience Who is most likely to make you feel jealous? Rest content in the knowledge of God - He has mapped out a life of blessing specifically for you |
2015-07-11 - Share the Joy Jethro was delighted when he heard about all the good things the Lord had done - Exdous 18:9 Paul: "be happy with those who are happy" - Romans 12:15 Jethro, Moses' friend, celebrated with the people of Israel: "Praise the Lord, for he had rescued you from the Egyptians - Exodus 18:10 He immedidately blessed those around him with words of praise The same thing can happen when you share in another's joy over God's kindness and blessing
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2015-07-15 - Don't Rock the Boat They incited a rebellion against Moses, along with 250 other leaders - Numbers 16:2 Korah was a strong man who organized a corp of leaders with the intention of usurping Moses' authority and installing his own very of the preisthood He forgot what happened to Aaron and Miiam when they challenged Moses' leadership - Numbers 12 Korah was a special leader but he wanted more than what God had given him God removed them from their positions and removed them from the earth altogether Some of God's greatest leaders have been willing to rock the boat but they also have a strong grasp of respecting authority When we submit to those in authority, we demonstrate a key condition for God's blessing: humility! |
2015-07-26 - Obey and Wait This only a simple thing for the Lord - 2 Kings 3:18 "You first, God" approach to obedience often means missing out on his blessings and maybe a miracle or two Israel march against Moab but the soliders had run out of water Eliaha spoke to God and would provide water under one condition: they were to dig ditches in the valley and wait for God to act Their choice was to laugh and ignore the command or obey and wait for a miracle Jehoshaphat and Joram acted in faith and obedience - received more water than they knew what to do with When God commands you to do something that seems humanly unreasonable, do you act immediately or wait for him to act first? |
2015-07-31 - Submission Jesus returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them - Luke 2:51 It is easy to ignroe the yield signs God puts up for us We enjoy God's blessing and protection when we heed the warning signs As the Son of God, Jesus knew his identity He understood that to grow into a perfect man of God, he needed to honor his earthly mother and father Everything Jesus did, said, and thought sprang from the fact that he had yielded his own will to his Father - John 5:30 Jesus built his life on a solid foundation of submission What foundation have you build your life on? |
2015-08-18 - Receiving God's Promises Issac's wife was unable to have children and the Lord answered his prayer with twins - Genesis 25:21 In those days, a married couple without children for a long period of time was considered to have shameful lot Would he give up? Would he father a child with another woman? Would a child come when they were old? His heart was set on something and he got on his knees and prayed God delivered not only once but twice It took 20 years but Issac recived God's blessing in God's way |
2015-08-20 - Balanced Approach You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing youe unfailing love - Micah 7:18 The Bible is largely a book about finding balance - between God's hattred for sin and his desire to completely forgive the sinner Micah understood this balance Challenges:
Opportunites:
Repentant hearers had hope for better things ahead Are there people in your life who need to see both sides of God's nature? |
2015-08-22 - Costly Unbelief You will see it happen with your own eyes but you won't be able to eat any of it - 2 KIngs 7:2 God generously give to those who are willing to ask him and beileve him for what they need Nothing keeps God from blessing people quite like unbelief Samaria's people suffered a terrible famine follwoing the Aramites invasion The desparate king sent his officer to ask Elisha to do something Elisha said within one day there would be more than enough flour and barley for everyone - 2 Kings 7:1 The king's officer just couldn't believe it even if the Lord opened the heavens He was dead wrong and when it came down, the officer could not enjoy any of it In what areas of your life do you need to take God at his word? |
2015-09-06 - Place in the Body Be sure to carry out the ministry the Lord gave you - Colossians 4:17 Church on Sunday morning, do you recongnize that God has a specific purpose and ministry for you that day? Don't miss out on the blessing you can receive when you assume your place of service in the body of Christ Archippus' ministry was apparently important enough to the apostle Paul that he encouraged the young man to make sure he got the job done:
God has given you a particular ministry and the gifts it takes to effectively carry it out. Are you pursuing your role in the church with all of your heart? |
2015-09-13 - Alert and Ready Take this young man to the commander. He has something important to tell him - Acts 23:17 Bible counsels us to alert and ready to move when God gives us a message of blessing, teching, or warning Paul's nephew saved his life because he remained alert and ready to act on what he knew Paul was chosen to speak his message of salvation to "the Gentiles and to kings" - Acts 9:!5 As Paul waited in jail for his opportunity to speak to Caesar, his nephew alerted him and his guards of a plot against his life When you remain alert and step out in faith at the opportune time, the Lord can use you to alter the course of history |
2015-09-30 - To Go Ahead I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race - 2 Timothy 4:7 Paul contemplated his own end, he knew:
He felt at peace with his imminent death and did not see his life as his own - 2 Timthoy 4:6 Nothing in this life can compare with what awaits you in heaven as a follower of Jesus Christ |
2015-10-02 - Take a Shot Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit - 2 Kings 2:9 Prophet-in-training Elisha achieve greatness because he had the faith to ask for a blessing when he had the opportunity Three times Elijah told him to stay behind, three times he said I will never leave you - 2 Kings 2:2-6 Elijah asked Elisha what he wanted, he didn't hesitate - double portion of his spirit Elisha got exactly what he requested When we need God's empowerment, take your shot and for it in faith |