Sermons – Temple Baptist Church of Rogers, AR
Pastors: Wade Allen, John O'Connor, Ron Fields, David McEuen
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Listening to God’s Voice in My Life
When the people of Israel came to the edge of the Promised Land, God instructed Moses to re-state the Law and the terms of the Mosaic Covenant before the people entered into the land. As Moses is nearing the end of his instruction, he tells the people that God will bless them if they are careful to obey all that God had commanded but also warns them what will happen if they choose to ignore God's commandments and turn away from Him. In today's study, we'll examine whether God responds to our obe
How Much Longer?
This morning, we take a break from our sermon series to hear from Bro. Bryan Risner, one of our BMA Global missionaries to Romania. Bro. Bryan and his family have been on the field for seven years now and in that time, they've built relationships, shared the Gospel, planted multiple churches and continue to see God do amazing things among the people of Romania. Listen as Bro. Bryan shares of God's continued faithfulness in their ministry and reminds us of the need to keep praying, keep trusting
Preparing Me for God’s Purpose in My Life
Many of us know Moses as the leader of the people of Israel but his story doesn't begin there. God was at work in Moses' life long before He was raised up to deliver the people of Israel and usher them into the Promised Land. God was at work in his life at his birth, He was at work in His life when Moses was in the home of Pharaoh and He was at work when Moses fled to the land of Midian. In today's study, Bro. Ron Fields shares how God was working out His purpose for Moses every step of the way
Discarding the Influence of God’s Presence in My Life
Each one of us has a spiritual malady. We all suffer from the effects of being "in the flesh" and subject to the "fleshly" desires that draw us away from God and away from His plan for our lives. By His grace, He transforms us through the power of His Holy Spirit as we daily spend time with Him in His Word. But what if we neglect this practice? What if we turn aside and fall into sin again? How will it affect your relationship with God? How will affect your daily tasks? Find out the answers to t
Finding Significance in God’s Purpose for My Life
In the Old Testament, the people of Israel were divided into twelve tribes. God gave each tribe a portion of the Promised Land to live in and be their own, save one--the tribe of Levi. This tribe was set apart to minister before the Lord in the tabernacle and on behalf of the people. Each person within the tribe had a role to fill. No job was the same but each one was essential. In a similar way, God impacts the world today through His children and has appointed each one with a specific task--a
Unveiling the Reality of God’s Presence in Our Lives
For our new sermon series, we’re going to be looking at some lessons from the life of Moses. Unlike an expository sermon series which would begin at the beginning of the Book of Exodus and work its way through the text, we will be looking at Moses’ life from a topical point of view. The…
Behold the Lamb in Old Testament Prophecy
As we continue our series today—Behold the Lamb of God—we’re going to be looking at one section of prophecy in the Book of Isaiah concerning the coming king of Israel. But this king that Isaiah prophesied about was not a king “full of power with a sword in his fist,” he was a king that…
Behold the Lamb in Old Testament Law
For the next several weeks, we’re going to be focused on the redemptive story of Scripture that was fulfilled through the incarnation of God the Son in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, who was born into this world as a baby and grew to be a man who would die on the cross to…
The Teachings of Christ about How to Live
For the past several weeks, we have been looking at the teachings of Christ on various topics—from prayer to spiritual warfare to hypocrisy to personal property. In each of these areas, Jesus taught His disciples how they were to think, act and speak. In this last section of teachings, Jesus is seeking to motivate His…
The Teachings of Christ about Personal Property
So, as we dive into the twelfth chapter of Luke again today, we’re going to spend some time thinking about Jesus’ teachings concerning the areas of greed, jealousy, drunkenness, gluttony, laziness and pride. Doesn’t that sound like fun? In all seriousness, some of the issues that Jesus brings up in our text today may not…
The Teaching of Christ on Genuine Faith
In the twelfth chapter of Luke, the gospel writer packs these first twelve verses with a ton of theological content dealing with issues such as hypocrisy, eternal judgment, the reality of hell and the unforgivable sin. In this message, Pastor Wade looks at each of these and more to develop some cohesion within these topics…
The Indictment of Christ on the Jewish Leaders
Just after Jesus warned the people to "be careful lest the light in you be darkness," Luke records a strange encounter Jesus had with the Pharisees. After being invited into one of their homes, Jesus astonishes the Pharisees by choosing not to wash His hands prior to the meal. Why did Jesus' actions elicit such a strong response? Why does Jesus then proceed to condemn them for their self-righteous nature? Pastor David sheds light on this and more in today's sermon.
The Rejection of Christ Intensified
The focus of the message today is a series of teachings and encounters with many who would consider themselves as the enemy of Jesus—people who were hurling false accusations and unfounded theories on who He was. These accounts of the rejection of Jesus are interspersed with snippets from those who received Him in a positive…
The Teaching of Christ on Prayer
In this portion of Luke’s Gospel, the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. They had seen Him model the need for prayer, but they apparently did not know how Jesus was praying when He went away to pray. So, Jesus provided them with a pattern for prayer—not necessarily to quote verbatim, but to…
The Worship of Christ Emphasized
In this story of the two sisters who loved Jesus, we see this love demonstrated in two very different ways. Martha was the consummate hostess— abounding with the gift of hospitality. In many ways (it seems), Martha found her since of worth and identity in what she was able to do for the Lord Jesus.…
The Love of Christ Exemplified
The Parable of the Good Samaritan is one of the most well-known teachings of Christ from the Gospel of Luke. While we are probably all aware of the specifics of this parable, it is important to interpret this parable on two levels—the straightforward teaching and the symbolic teaching of the parable. On the surface, this…
The Mission of Christ Delegated
Just like the seventy-two in Luke 10, we have also been commanded to carry out the mission of Christ. While the specific details of this mission may not transfer to our modern setting, the principles behind these instructions inform us as to how we are to reach the world for Christ—through prayer and dependency upon…
Will We Follow Christ or Make Excuses?
There are two sections in our text today that have a related theme—when given the opportunity, will we follow Christ or make excuses? In the first section (v 51-56), Jesus went again to the region of Samaria with the good news. Unlike His first encounter with the Samaritans (John 4), the people did not receive…
Called to Witness
Perhaps nothing is more vital to our participation in God’s plan to grow His kingdom than our calling to be His witnesses. As we examine in Acts 1 the last words that Jesus gave to His followers before He ascended to the Father, we see that it clearly shows His purpose for leaving us in…
Called to Disciple
This morning, we will be focusing on a topic that I have given much of my life to thinking about. I’ve spent years working to develop effective processes and tools for its implementation. It’s been said that “a person needs to invest about 10,000 hours in a skill in order to master it.” In the…
Called to Engage Our Community
As we continue to look at the various ways in which God calls believers to walk in the fullness of all He desires for His church, we begin to shift our focus from the internal community of the body to the broader community in which we live. How has God called us to interact with those who are "on the outside"? Or in other words, How has God called us to engage our community? Pastor David shares God's purpose and plan for engaging our community.
Called to Minister
As we consider this idea of being called to minister/serve, I want to look at Mark 10. As we will see in a few minutes, being a servant in God’s economy is not a demotion. In fact, Jesus told His disciples that the one who wanted to lead needed to be a servant and slave…
Called to Experience Community
In light of all this, we want to see that the position we hold in Christ and our membership in His body (this local church) is not something that we should treat casually. We all have casual friendships with others but when it comes to our connections in the church, there should be a deeper…
Called to the Word
According to Carey Nieuwhof, when people go shopping for a church, 86% choose a church based on the quality of the preaching—they want to be fed. Thom Rainer says that “being fed” is another way of saying that they want the church to cater to their “desires and preferences.” We know that the preaching of…
called to worship
Our goal in this series of studies is to unpack what it means to be called—specifically what God wants for those who have responded in faith to the inward calling of the Spirit. As a result of our calling, we must follow in the steps of Jesus—being conformed into His image and having the same…
Rise Up & Go
For better or worse, our lives are filled with moments. Some are minor but others are far more significant; life-changing moments that we look forward to most of our lives such as a wedding, the birth of a child, or a graduation. These moments carry a measure of expectation and uncertainty of what lies ahead or if circumstances will be all that we hope or dream. Thankfully, the Bible is not silent about what we should do when it comes to facing these moments. Listen to Bro. David as he shares Go
God’s HESED to The Returning exiles
The psalmist encourages us to give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His steadfast love, compassion, goodness, lovingkindness, grace and mercy never ends (Psalm 107:1). After this encouragement to give thanks to the Lord, the psalmist mentions four different groups of people who are returning from exile. We looked at the first of these four groups a few weeks ago, but since I missed the past two weeks, we will be looking at the other three groups today. Just like we saw with the first group
God’s HESED to Those in Despair
We will be continuing our study from Psalm 107 today—focusing in on the concept of the Lord’s HESED to those who have been exiled from the Promised Land. The concept of restoration is a big part of Psalm 107. In this psalm, the author declares that the restoration is available through God’s HESED even to those in despair.
God’s HESED to Those He Restores
For the next six weeks, we will be studying through Psalm 107 with a particular focus on the steadfast love (HESED) of God. This Hebrew word is one of the most difficult words to translate because of the depth and breadth of its meaning. This Hebrew word carries the sense of an enduring connection that brings life and all good things into a relationship. In Psalm 107:1, HESED is translated thirteen different ways in English Bibles—love, favor, grace, mercy, kindness, goodness, loyal-love, compas
Passion Week: Simon Peter’s POV
My goal today is to focus on some of the events from the last half of the week, but I hope to do this by seeing these events through the eyes of one of Jesus’ closest followers—Simon Peter. Throughout the Passion Week, Simon Peter seems to be involved in everything that is happening—which is sometimes good and sometimes not so good. As we consider all these things that he said and did during these last few hours of Jesus’ life, I hope to be able to portray not only his words and actions but also
Palm Sunday
Jesus knew when, where, and how we was going to die. Which meant that Jesus would have been intentional with the time He spent on this Earth. And you have to think that the closer that He came to this week, he’d really be intentional with who He spent with and what He said and did. Today we are going to explore the time he spent Zacchaeus, as well as, His actions on Palm Sunday.
Practical Instructions for Living by Faith
In this final section of our study, we will be dealing with some practical instructions for the Christian life. The author addresses several topics in this passage—such as not growing weary in living for Christ, but persevering; living a life of peace, holiness and grace, not allowing bitterness to take root in your heart; and avoid sexual immorality and any instant gratification.
Pain of Discipline when Living by Faith
In every generation Christians face opposition that works against lifelong perseverance in following Jesus. Sometimes the “hostility of sinners” is expressed verbally and socially. Sometimes matters escalate to financial hardship, physical harm, imprisonment, and even death. But God gives us strong reasons to run with endurance the race of faith laid out in front of us: the abundant testimony of those who ran ahead of us; the courageous example and loving self-sacrifice of faith’s founder and pe
Essential Components of Living by Faith
Last week, we finished up Hebrews 11—the Faith Chapter. So, today we will be studying from Hebrews 12:1-2. In order to discover what the Bible is teaching us from this passage to be able to apply these truths to life, I will be utilizing our six interrogative words—who, what, when, where, why and how. The first thing we see in verse one is the word “therefore.” So, as always, anytime we see the word “therefore,” we need to remember all that the author has just written and consider what is coming
Divine Covenant for Those Living by Faith
We have been walking through what is commonly known as the Faith Chapter—Hebrews 11. Before we get to today's passage, I want to take just a few minutes to think back on the last three weeks of study from chapter eleven. The chapter begins by defining what faith is. The author states: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” He goes on to explain: “For by it the people of old received their commendation.” The rest of the chapter focuses on those people
Demonstration of Living by Faith – Exodus
In Deuteronomy 34:10-12—the epitaph to the Books of Moses—an unidentified author closes this section of Scripture with the final events of Moses’ life that included a sort of eulogy, or obituary, for Moses. R. Kent Hughes wrote: “To all Jews, Moses was the greatest of all men... He was Israel’s greatest prophet. God communicated directly to him... This is why his face was luminous when he descended Mt. Sinai with the Ten Commandments. He was Israel’s greatest lawgiver. Virtually everything in th
Demonstration of Living by Faith – Pre-Flood
In our passage today from Hebrews 11, we will begin to observe the ways in which these "Heroes of the Faith" lived their lives. The three men mentioned in this passage are part of the same family—a family of faith, but as we examine the correlating passages in Genesis 4-6, we will be able to contrast these three men with men with another family—a rebellious one. In each case, legacy and heritage played a role in the ultimate outcome.
Explanation of Living by Faith
Last week, we noted that “the grand key for perseverance is faith. Knowing this, we are set up for the greatest exposition of the subject of faith found anywhere in Scripture—in chapter 11.” (R.Kent Hughes) So as we move into the eleventh chapter of Hebrews this morning, we will begin our exposition with a definition for faith. After that, we will take a few minutes to consider some of the “people of old” that are not mentioned by name in the remaining portion of the chapter. And then, finally,
Challenge to Persevere in Living by Faith
The message last week was one of the most difficult passages that I have ever tried to exposit in my 34 years of preaching! The crazy thing is that the previous paragraph—verses 19-25—is one of my favorite passages in all of Scripture! We cannot pick and choose what we like or what we want to believe in the Bible, because “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped
Consequences of Not Living by Faith
As we continue our study in the Book of Hebrews, we have come to a section of Scripture that can easily be misunderstood. In order to understand our text, I think it is important for us to understand a particular theological term. What is apostasy or an apostate?
Confidence in Living by Faith
As we approach this section of the Book of Hebrews, I want to pause to once again notice the “therefore” at the beginning of our text, Hebrews 10:19-25. In light of all that has been written in the first nine-and-a-half chapters, we must now conform our thoughts and behaviors with the teachings on faith that follow this "therefore." As we consider these seven verses, I’d like for us to ask ourselves two main questions: why do we have this confidence that the author speaks of? And what should we
Distracted
Join us this morning as Pastor John O'Connor explores the dangers of living lives that are distracted.
Anticipating Advent – Love
This month, we have focused on the themes of Advent—hope, peace, joy—and today we will be looking at love. It is difficult for us to understand the love that God has for us... the love that He demonstrated through the gift of His Son, but God’s love is a theme we find throughout Scripture. As we’ve considered these themes of Advent, we have focused on the writings of the Prophet Isaiah. These prophecies of the promised Messiah were written over 700 years before their fulfillment. We will look ag
Anticipating Advent – Joy
As we enter into this third week of our Advent studies, let’s pause for a moment to remember that advent refers to the coming of or arrival of the Messiah. While looking at the prophecies that foretold of His coming, we have seen several, overarching themes that have arisen. The first week, we talked about hope, and that hope is to be found in nothing other than Jesus Christ. The second week, we considered the concept of peace, and determined that only Jesus is able to provide us with real lasti
Anticipating Advent – Peace
If I were to ask for a show of hands, I wonder how many of you could honestly say that your life could be described as peaceful... We sing the words—“Silent night. Holy night. All is calm, all is bright. Round yon virgin, mother and child. Holy infant so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly peace. Sleep in heavenly peace.”—but do we even know what peace looks like? As we continue our sermon series—Anticipating Advent—today, we will once again be looking at the writings of the Prophet Isaiah. In Is
Anticipating Advent – Hope
The sermon series that we are starting today is a four-part series called “Anticipating Advent.” Today, we will be looking at the concept of HOPE as it relates to the prophesied arrival of the Christ child. Over the next three weeks, we will look at PEACE, JOY, and LOVE respectively. The Bible reading plan that I am inviting you to join will follow along with these same concepts.
Therefore, Be Different
In this final, synoptic study of Romans 12, we will reflect on some of the major themes from this chapter over the past ten weeks in an effort to see clearly what the Scripture means when it tells us to not be conformed to this world, but be transformed—be different! Transformation is a process! It starts with a decision to offer our lives to the Lord. Then the Lord works in us—humbling us and teaching us how to serve others within our giftedness. As we serve Him by serving others, it is His des
Therefore, Be Compassionate
Over the last two weeks, we've been taking a closer look at the final section of Romans 12. In this instruction, Paul gives several ways in which the believers at Rome (and by extension, to us as well) are to overcome evil with good. In light of the love and compassion that God has shown us who are in Christ Jesus, how are we supposed to treat those who oppose us and persecute us? Today's message from Romans 12:19-20 gives us the answer.
Therefore, Be Understanding
Last week, I began our study through this last section of Romans 12. We focused in on the idea of blessing those who mistreat and malign you. We considered two ways that Paul encourages us to overcome evil with good. In today’s message, we will continue to discover what it means to overcome evil with good as we look at Romans 12:16-18.
Therefore, Be Considerate
Just as Paul challenges believers to love with authenticity in verses nine through thirteen, he is now challenging believers to overcome evil with good in verses fourteen through twenty-one. These two phrases—let love be genuine and overcome evil with good—serve as bookends to this section dealing with the characteristics of true believers. Starting in today’s study and continuing to the end of this series, we will be considering specific steps that we must take in order to overcome evil with go
Therefore, Be Generous
In this morning’s study, we are concluding this section of Romans 12 that is focused on genuine, authentic love. In today’s text, we learn that to genuinely love means to be generous with what God has blessed you and be gracious when others try to bless you. It also means that we should be generous in opening our lives and our homes to others and be gracious to accept invitations from others.
Therefore, Be Devoted
As we look at this next verse of Scripture in Romans 12, we want to take time to discover its unique characteristics and teaching, but we also want to see how it fits into the totality of teaching here in this passage. In order to do that, we need to take a moment to look at the immediate context of verse 12 to discern the characteristics of genuine, authentic love.
Therefore, Be Diligent
Today we are continuing our sermon series "Therefore" in the book of Romans Chapter 12. In Verse 11, Paul encourages us to live with diligence, to live with a fervent spirit, to serve the Lord. Our call to diligence doesn't mean we just need to go do any stuff. In reference to verse 11, this call on our lives is the consistent and persistent effort to pursue God's will and fulfill our responsibilities with a right attitude. We are going to explore how we can achieve that in our personal spiritua
Therefore, Be Gracious
"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see." It is good to rejoice over God's gracious salvation and give thanks for His grace extended to us in Christ Jesus. But is that all we should? How deeply should God's grace affect us? Pastor Ron shares how grace transforms our character and changes the way we treat those around us.
Therefore, Be Impactful
As an individual member of the body of Christ, a believer is the vessel by which God graciously reaches out to mankind through his/her words and actions. This is God’s charis (grace), charisma (spiritual gift, singular) or charismata (spiritual gifts, plural) at work in and through the believer. God does not want believers to live their lives under their own power, but always in dependence upon God and the outworking of His grace. When we choose to live in His power and under His control, the im
Therefore, Be Ordinary
In our sermon last week, we focused in on how God wants His children to be different—we said “peculiar”—not conformed to the standards of this world but offering our lives completely to Him as holy, pleasing, living sacrifice. In some ways, the peculiarity of living a life for Christ can—in some demented way—meet this desire in us to be extraordinary. In fact, it is not uncommon for people who consider themselves to be completely sold-out to God to become proud of their perceived holiness. We ma
Therefore, Be Peculiar
We’re starting a new sermon series today entitled: “Therefore, Living in Light of Truth.” This series will be walking through the text of Romans 12, but to understand this passage we must take the previous chapters into consideration. The Oxford English Dictionary defines this expression as “drawing knowledge or information from; taking (something) into consideration.” Romans 12 is exactly that—practical conclusions based on previous statements. Our sermon outline today only has two points, but
What if you’re angry with God?
Why do bad things happen to good people? Why would God allow things like this to happen? Why didn’t God stop it from happening? If God really loves me, why is He allowing me to go through such pain? If you find yourself dealing with some of these questions, then I hope to be able to provide you with some steps to help you work through these feelings. Dealing with anger against God is a process; but unless you begin taking deliberate steps toward healing, you will continue to wallow in your anger
Four Keys for Making Anger Productive
In today's message, we will read once again from Ephesians 4 where Paul tells us to get angry, but get angry without sinning. Being created in God’s image, there are injustices in this world that should cause us to get angry. Anger is not wrong—only anger that is out of control is wrong. This morning, we will look at a few of Paul’s letters and a few proverbs to help us discover four keys for making anger productive, not destructive.
Anger: Addressing the Root Issues
In your group studies this past week, you discussed some of the triggers that cause you to get angry. If your group was like ours, the list of potential triggers is a long one! But rather than addressing things that are triggers this morning, I want us to focus in on some of the root issues behind those triggers. There is a reason that people talk about getting to the “root of the problem” or the “root issue.”
Anger: Productive or Destructive?
Anger is an emotion that can be used for great harm or great good! In itself, anger is neither positive or negative—neither productive or destructive. It all depends on how somebody uses it. In this study, we will examine the source of anger and what anger is designed to stimulate to bring about a better end. We’ll also take some time to think about the dangerous side of anger and why it can be so destructive.
DISCIPLESHIP-Is it really my responsibility?
In Ephesians 4:13, it says that we should strive to grow up in Christ "until we all attain to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." In today's study, I want to take a few minutes to look a little deeper into this subject of discipleship, what it means to be a follower of Christ and what it means to disciple someone.
God Desires His Children To Repent
A month has passed since the people of Jerusalem decided to restart the work on the temple in Jerusalem, but some of the elders among them were disheartened because this new temple paled in comparison to Solomon’s temple. Haggai encourages them to continue in this work. Another two months passes and the Lord spoke to Haggai about another problem that needed to be addressed—unrepentant sin!
God Disagrees with His Children because of Their Choices
This series through Haggai, while short, packs quite a punch! In today’s study, we will examine the events in Jerusalem after the return of the exiles which led up to Haggai’s prophetic utterances. The Lord sent Haggai to rebuke the returning exiles for their disobedience to God’s instruction and all-around selfish behavior. Haggai will also reveal the consequences for this bad behavior. We also have daily choices that are indicative of our priorities. The goal of this study is to help us see th
God Disciplines His Children because of Their Rebellion
The southern kingdom of Judah had endured over 300 years of rebellion among its people. There were only a few kings who attempted to obey the Lord since the time of David and Solomon—most notably Hezekiah and Josiah. God—who is “merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Ex 34:6)—has been pushed to His limit and it is now time for His children to experience some consequences for their generational rebellion. The Lord announced this judgment to His pr
Ultimate Purpose of Christ Repeated
In today’s text, we find an interesting mixture of events that highlight the limitations and failings of Jesus’ disciples. This segment begins with the disciples being unable to cast a demon out of a young boy; then they are unable to grasp Jesus’ teaching about His impending betrayal and crucifixion. Just after that, the disciples argue over which one of them is the greatest; and then John is rebuked for His elitist attitude toward others. As we consider these events and the dysfunction of the
Divine Glory of Christ Manifested
Throughout this section of our study through the Gospel of Luke, Jesus’ power and authority has been on display. In our study last week, Jesus confirmed the testimony of Peter proclaiming Him as the Christ, the chosen one of God. In today’s passage, we will witness additional confirmation that Jesus is the Christ, but we’ll also be given a glimpse into some of the struggles that we have when we attempt to worship Him and what we need to do differently when we come before Him in worship.
Cost of Following Christ Unveiled
We are continuing in our study through the Gospel of Luke today and the passage that we will be studying is the heart of all we’ve been looking at these past few months. Week after week, we have considered the question, “Who is Jesus?” In today’s passage, we receive a definitive answer to this question and several more. So, let’s get right to it today and look at these four questions regarding the “Cost of Following Christ.”
Provision of Christ Experienced
Luke 9:1-2 Jesus, "...called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal." This is the first time his disciples have been sent out on their own to proclaim the message of the Kingdom. Upon their return, Jesus gives a dramatic display of provision that is meant to convey to them (and to us) that Christ will not only supply the power and authority needed to minister effectively, but He i
Mission of Christ Delegated
In our message today, we’ll consider four things that Jesus did to (or did for) the apostles to be able to carry out the work of the ministry. It is important to consider this question first: What is the work of the ministry? In his commentary on this passage, Darrell Bock suggests, “The two fundamental [aspects] of ministry evident in this passage cross the temporal boundaries between our era and that of the text. Preaching God’s Word and performing deeds of compassionate service complement eac
Compassion of Christ Extended
There is a passage toward the end of the Gospel of Luke that I believe gives us great insight into the character and disposition of our Lord Jesus. It is a passage that always challenges me. It challenges the motivation of my heart and it challenges the way I look at people and situations on a daily basis. The passage in Luke 19 gives us a glimpse into the love that Jesus had for His people. Luke 19:41-42 says, “And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, ev
Supremacy of Christ Recognized
When we are thinking about God—the Father, Son or Holy Spirit—and the spiritual conflict that rages in the spiritual dimension beyond our five senses, we must not think of Him as a superhero trying to defeat a supervillain whose power rivals or maybe exceeds His own. He is God Almighty! There is nothing and no one whose power and authority rivals that of Jehovah God. We see this to be true in the next passage we will be studying today in Luke 8. This is the second section of a group of miracles
Humanity/Divinity of Christ Revealed
In this portion of our series through the Gospel of Luke, we are focusing on “The Person and Power of Christ.” Jesus has demonstrated His power through miraculous signs and wanders (Luke 7:21-22), but nothing so far (not even raising the dead) compared to the power and authority He demonstrated to His apostles there on the Sea of Galilee. When we consider His power and dominion over all creation, why do we struggle to trust Him with the details of our lives? Sometimes, it is God’s will for us to
Kingdom Teaching of Christ Prioritized
This portion of Scripture has three teaching sections and an encounter with Jesus’ family. The primary teaching is commonly referred to as the Parable of the Sower, but I prefer The Parable of the Soils. Jesus taught this parable to the crowd that was following Him from town to town. Later, His disciples asked Him to further explain the meaning of this parable. Jesus explained it citing that the disciples had “been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God.” After these two teaching sectio
Genuine Faith in Christ Demonstrated
As followers of Christ, we are often referred to as “People of Faith.” How do we know that the faith we say we have is genuine? Faith is insufficient if it is faith in the wrong thing. Someone can be truly sincere in their faith and yet still be sincerely wrong. So again, how do we know that our faith is genuine? In our text today, we will first see a demonstration of genuine faith in Christ and then we will take a few minutes to consider some of the implications of this event in regard to our p
Prophecy of the Christ Confirmed
Many of Jesus’ followers were first disciples of John the Baptist. John played a unique role in the pronouncement of the coming Messiah—the Christ. John had been preaching that the kingdom of heaven was coming soon, but even he did not fully understand what that would look like. Having been thrown into prison by Herod the tetrarch (Luke 3:19-20), John was unable to go to Jesus himself. When he heard all that was happening through the ministry of Jesus, John sent some of his disciples to Jesus to
Power of Christ on Display
Jesus, having just given His ministry manifesto in Luke 6 in the Sermon on the Plain, is now demonstrating His love and power to those who were beginning to follow Him. In this passage, there are two miraculous healings that take place—first was the servant of a Roman centurion and second was the only son of a widow. In each instance, Jesus demonstrated His authority thereby confirming His authority to teach as He did in Luke 6, but the motivation to perform these miracles seems to be two-fold—t
The Cast of the Crucifixion
As we take a few minutes this morning to consider the sacrificial death of Jesus upon the cross, I want us to consider how each group/individual responded to Jesus in that moment—on that day when He was crucified. I think we might be surprised to see how things really haven’t changed—almost two-thousand years have come and gone and people are still responding to Jesus in the same way! We’ll be considering most all the characters that are part of the crucifixion narrative in the gospels of Luke a
Paul’s Ministry Legacy
“No one leaves a legacy by accident. You must live life on purpose and come up with a plan to protect your legacy and make sure the baton is passed to the next generation” (ramseysolutions.com). What changes do you need to make in your life that will help ensure that you will leave the kind of lasting legacy that brings honor to the Lord? I believe that these things were in the mind of the Apostle Paul as he was writing this second letter to the Corinthians. These people were a portion of his le
Paul’s Ministry Impact
As we look at this next to last section of 2 Corinthians, we considering Paul’s Ministry Impact. Paul has been defending the validity of his ministry among the Corinthians in these final chapters of his letter. In today’s passage, we will try to see the product of his labors, but with every point we will make, we will see that the process is not yet finished. The ministry is still a work in progress.
Paul’s Ministry Obstacles
Over the past two weeks, we’ve been able to learn first-hand about some of the hardships that Paul experienced during his life and ministry. In an ironic twist, Paul validates his ministry among the Corinthians by boasting of all his hardships and weaknesses. As we move into our study of chapter 12, Paul lets us know that he’s not finished boasting... not quite yet. He has one more experience that he wants to share with his brothers and sisters in Corinth—an experience that was so spectacular th
Paul’s Ministry Memoirs
Memoirs provide a historical account of a person’s life. They are written from personal perspective—first-hand knowledge—and are often autobiographical. This last half of 2 Corinthians 11 definitely feels like Paul’s personal memoirs—from his pedigree, to his agony, from his exploits, to his anxieties—Paul gives us a window into his life in these verses. It is my goal this morning to become more deeply aware of who Paul was, what he went through for the cause of Christ, and how he viewed himself
Paul’s Ministry Credentials
There were issues surfacing in the church at Corinth that greatly concerned Paul. Because he saw himself as a spiritual father/mentor to them, he was compelled to deal with the situations in a way that would honor God and bring about the desired results—to advance the true, unadulterated gospel of faith in Jesus Christ alone.
Paul’s Ministry Ambition
As we continue on in chapter 10, we’re going to see how Paul continues to defend his ministry by communicating his motivation for ministry. We will take time to reflect specifically on Paul’s ministry ambitions—but not ambition as we have come to know it today. Paul’s ambition for ministry was focused not on himself or his achievement, but on his inadequacies and his ability to deflect all the glory and praise to God rather than keeping it for himself. As we walk through this passage, I hope tha
Paul’s Ministry Ideology
Our goal today is to begin to understand Paul’s ministry ideology. In other words, why did Paul do the things he did? What principles guided his words and his behavior? Why was he motivated to write this letter? Why did these issues in the church at Corinth seem so egregious/appalling to Paul that he had to address them? Why does Paul feel the need to defend himself and his ministry? We can begin to answer these questions when we have a clear understanding of his ministry ideology!
Generosity-The Disposition of This Grace
When we give—when we are being generous—what is our disposition? What’s going on in our mind? Why are we being generous? Are we doing it for what we can get out of it? Do we have any ulterior motives? Or are we giving out of obligation (aka guilt)? Are we concerned about what others think about us? Are we giving to be praised and admired by others? Any and all of these reveal our disposition toward generosity. In our text today, Paul gives us some guidelines for how we should give when we displa
Generosity-The Implementation of This Grace
As we continue this section of our series on the topic of generosity, today we’re going to look again at how generosity is a display of God’s grace; and then, we’ll look at some of the logistics for the collection of this offering to learn how we too should be handling the Lord’s money.
Generosity-The Manifestation of Grace
Paul’s encouragement to give generously to fellow believers in need would be an opportunity to manifest the grace of God they had experienced in their lives. It was a chance for them to pay it forward!
Empty Words
How often do you find yourself promising you'll do something, and then immediately walking away and forgetting you promised? We live in a culture that rewards the talk, but not the walk. Today we are going to be studying from James 2:14-26, looking at the effect that empty words have on not only those that we are saying them to, but also the effect that is has on ourselves. Let your words be the precursor to His work.
HEROD–The Wicked One
Herod was a cruel and diabolical man. He was incredibly jealous and hopelessly suspicious of everyone. He was threatened by everyone and everything, and so he spent his entire life plotting the murder of people. There are accounts of multiple times when he killed someone (or groups of people) because they were somehow seen as a threat to him. His victims even included one of his wives and several of his own children. Herod had a lust for power, a constant suspicion, and an insane eagerness to av
MAGI–The Wise Ones
Some of you are thinking... Christmas is over! Why are we still talking about Christmas? Well, the nativity narrative includes events that occurred after the birth of baby Jesus. So, this week and next, we’re going to be looking at the final two characters in the Cast of Christmas—the Magi and King Herod.
JOSEPH–The Faithful One
We do not know everyone who knew the reason for Mary's sudden departure to go stay with her relatives near Jerusalem, but we assume that Joseph was aware of what was going on. But what was happening with Joseph during these three months that Mary was gone? What was he thinking? How did he feel? I cannot answer these questions definitively, but we can deduce some aspects of the situation back in Nazareth based off of what we learn in Matthew 1. Joseph, Mary’s betrothed, had made a difficult decis
MARY–The Favored One
While waiting for her wedding day, an angel appeared to Mary to explain what was about to happen to her. When the angel spoke to her, he said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you.” Mary was a recipient His grace. God pursued her with His grace! So today, we’re going to focus in on the interaction Mary had with the angel, Gabriel, and with her cousin, Elizabeth, from Luke 1. We will look specifically at Mary’s character and the struggles that she experienced—social, mental and emotion
PROPHETS–The Foretelling ONes
Before the world began... before mankind was created... before we ever chose to disobey God in sin... God had a plan to reconcile mankind to Himself. He knew that we would sin, and so, He provided a way to be made right in His presence. That way was, is, and always will be Jesus Christ. That was God’s Plan A and there was no Plan B! So, throughout the recorded history of the Bible, God chose to use people who were willing to yield their lives to Him to pronounce the truth of His Word concerning
Joy in the Midst of Difficulties
One of the great struggles for people in their spiritual journey is trying to understand why so many bad things happen in the world today. The prevailing thought is that if God is a god of love, then all these bad things should not be happening. But since they are happening, people often conclude one of two things: either (A) God doesn’t exist, or (B) God doesn’t love. Both of these conclusions are wrong because they ignore the foundational teachings from the Word of God. Evil exists in the worl