Episodios

  • The Heart of Christ - Broken
    Jul 25 2024
    John 11:17-38WELCOMECAMP! RECAP SERIESBROKENWHAT BREAKS THE HEART OF JESUS?SORROW (John 11)He was weeping with those who weep. He wasn’t weeping because of the end of Lazarus, because the end of Lazarus was going to be resurrection. He was weeping because of the sorrow of Mary and Martha. This is the empathy, the sympathy, the tenderness, the kindness of Christ manifesting itself in that setting.John MacArthurIDOLS (Matthew 20, and Acts 17)41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side 44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”Luke 19:41-4416 Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.Acts 17:16As Paul sailed to Athens from the sea near Berea, he came to a city he had probably never been to before, and like any tourist, he was ready to be impressed by this famous and historic city – which, hundreds of years before, was one of the most glorious and important cities in the world. But when Paul toured Athens, he was only depressed by the magnitude of the idolatry he saw all around.David GuzikJesus here showed the heart of God, how even when judgment must be pronounced, it is never done with joy. Even when God’s judgment is perfectly just and righteous, His heart weeps at the bringing of the judgment.David GuzikSIN (Matthew 26)DOES MY HEART BREAK FOR THE THINGS THAT BREAK THE HEART OF CHRIST?I asked the Lord to give me love - His love for souls in sin;Instead He gave me weeping eyes,A broken heart within. I asked Him why He gave me tears,He took me back in timeTo when my Savior lived on earth,When He was in His prime. I saw Him go to where His friendWas lying in a grave;The sisters and their friends were grieved -What love to them He gave. You see my Savior standing thereWas also grieved that day,He wept great heaving tears with sobsTill those who saw could say: "Behold we see now how He loved."His tears revealed His heartHis love was evident through tears -I saw God's point in part. And then He took me to the day The people hailed their KingWhile Jesus enters to their cheersThe children run and sing. But when He saw JerusalemStretched out before His eye,His soul was moved with grief for them;It moved His heart to cry. Oh, as I read those solemn wordsI feel that they are sweetFor in them I behold His loveSo perfect and complete. To one more place He took me now,At midnight I beheldThe Son of God bowed down with griefIn deepest sorrow held. I heard His weeping, strong and deep,But through it I discernedHe prayed for me - it melted me,His love for me I learned. With tearful joy I thanked the LordFor answering my prayer,For giving me His love for souls -His tears, His heart, His care.Christina Joy Hommes Christina Joy Hommes14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.Hebrews 4:14-16THE TEARS OF JESUS OF JESUS REVEAL HIS DEEP LOVE FOR USIn our pain, Jesus is pained; in our suffering, he feels the suffering as his own even though it isn’t — not that his invincible divinity is threatened, but in the sense that his heart is feeling drawn into our distress. His human nature engages our troubles comprehensively. His is a love that cannot be had back when he sees his people in pain.Dane C. OrtlundTHE TEARS OF JESUS LEAD HIM TO PRAY FOR USIt is not only that Jesus can relieve us from our troubles, like a doctor prescribing medicine; it is also that, before any relief comes, he is with us in our troubles, like a doctor who has endured the same disease.Dane C. Ortlund31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.Romans 8:31-34THE TEARS OF JESUS INVITE US TO BE NEAR TO HIM16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace,Hebrews 4:16aTHE TEARS OF JESUS MOVE HIM TO DO SOMETHING WE DON’T HAVE THE POWER TO DO16 Let us then with ...
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    55 m
  • The Heart of Christ - Grace & Mercy
    Jul 23 2024
    “5Now the LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD.6And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”-Exodus 34:5-7 “We have a domesticated view that, for all its doctrinal precision, has downsized the glory of Christ in our hearts.”- Dane C. Ortlund. “All things have been delivered to Me by My Father and no one knows the Son except the Father nor does anyone know the Father except the Son...” Matthew 11:27 “...no one knows except the Father and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal him.” Matthew 11:27 “5Now the LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD.6And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.” Exodus 34:5-7 mercy is God not giving me what I deserve (i.e. punishment) and grace is God giving me what I do not deserve (i.e. blessings) “Who He is, is not the same as what He does. Often, when we seek to define or relate to Jesus, we think of what He has done for us. This, however, is only a partial glimpse of Him. What he does comes from who He is.”- Dane C. Ortlund “It will be seen that mercy in God is not merely His pardon of offenders, but His attitude to man and to the world genuinely, from which His pardoning mercy proceeds.”-Bible Hub App “The LORD, the LORD God...”Exodus 34:6. “This name- Yahweh (the LORD) - was the same name for God that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob knew; this was no new revelation of God. God presented Himself as the eternal, immutable God.”-Enduring Word App Mt Moriah: Abraham and Isaac (Gen 22) “Take now your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love...and offer him there as a burnt offering.” Genesis 22:2. “And Abraham said, ‘My son God will provide for Himself the lamb. So, the two of them went together.” Genesis 22:8 God provided the sacrifice for Abraham Forgiveness is on display “Take now your son, your only son Isaac...” Genesis 22:2 God provided His own sacrifice “you shall not give any of your children to offer them [by fire sacrifice] to Molech [the god of the Ammonites].”-Leviticus 18:21 “[I] will provide for [myself] the lamb for the offering.” Genesis 22:8 It is a foreshadow of the mountain where God the Father would offer his only Son and this time, the Son would die the Lambs death Golgotha: Jesus (Mark 15) “Golgotha and the ancient site of mount Moriah may be the same area. In other words, Jesus may have been crucified near Moriah or at its summit.”-Jon Coursin “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”- John 3:16-17 The fact the He gave, is grace. That we do not perish, is mercy “It embraces a profound sacrificial love that transcends and persists regardless of circumstance.”- Wikipedia “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved). And raised us up together and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace, you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”- Ephesians 2:4-10 The heart of God the Father and God the Son is a heart of mercy and grace
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    55 m
  • The Heart of Christ - Gentle and Lowly
    Jul 11 2024
    28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”Matthew 11:25-30 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.2 Peter 3:18You can “know” honey in two distinct ways: you can know the exact chemical makeup of honey; or you can taste it. Both are ways we can “know” honey. But only the latter is the knowledge by which honey is experienced.Jonathan EdwardsHe [Jesus] is a person. Not just a historical figure, but an actual person, alive and well today. He is to be related to. Trusted, spoken to, listened to. Jesus is not a concept. Not an ideal. Not a force. Growing in Christ is relational, not a formulaic, experience. Dane OrtlundGENTLE AND LOWLYWHAT IS AT THE CORE OF THE HEART OF JESUS?Many know Jesus through the things he did, said or simply that He once lived on this earth, but few know the HEART of Jesus; Jesus at the core.What Do Americans Believe About Jesus? (Barna Research)The vast majority of Americans believe Jesus was a real person. (92%)Younger generations are increasingly less likely to believe Jesus is God. (44%)Americans are divided on whether Jesus was sinless (52%)Most Americans say they have made a commitment to Jesus Christ (55-70%)People are conflicted between “Jesus” and “Good deeds” as The Way to heaven (60%)A wife may tell you much about her husband — his height, his eye color, his eating habits, his education, his job, his handiness around the house, his best friend, his hobbies, his Myers-Brggs personality profile, his favorite sports team. But what can she say to communicate his knowing gaze across the table over a dinner at their favorite restaurant? That look that reflects years of ever deepening friendship, thousands of conversations and arguments through which they have safely come, a time-ripened settling into the assurance of embrace, come what may? THAT GLANCE speaks in a moment his loving protection more clearly than a thousand words? In short, what can she say to communicate to another her husbands heart for her? It is one thing to describe what your husband says and does and looks like. It is something else, something deeper and more real, to describe his heart for you. So with Christ. It is one thing to know the doctrines of the incarnation and the atonement and a hundred other vital doctrines (beliefs). It is another, more searching matter to know his heart for you. Dane OrtlundJESUS AS RULING KING?King Jesus pictureThen Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”John 18:37Human nature dictates that the wealthier a person, the more they tend to look down on the poor. The more beautiful a person, the more they are put off by the ugly. And without realizing what we are doing, we quietly assume that one so high and exalted has correspondingly difficulty drawing near to the despicable and unclean.Dane OrtlundJESUS AS SPOTLESS AND HOLY?Spotless lamb picture39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.”Luke 7:39JESUS AS TEACHER?Teacher-Jesus pictureSeeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 And he opened his mouth and taught them,Matthew 5:1JESUS AS A COSMIC FORCE?Cosmic-Jesus picture16 For by[f] him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Colossians 1:16-17JESUS AS SAVIOR?13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. Matthew 16:13-17Christ = Christos: “anointed”; the messiah, son of GodWHO DOES JESUS SAY HE IS?2 Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples 3 and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” Matthew 11:2-318 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a ...
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    46 m
  • HELP! - The Problem of Suffering and Evil
    Jun 27 2024
    Psalm 119:65-72“Why do we suffer in this world if God loves us so much?”THE PROBLEM OF SUFFERING AND EVILQUESTIONS LEAD US TO JESUS.QUESTIONS ARE NOT NEW9 What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.Ecclesiastes 1:98 God said to Satan, “Have you noticed my friend Job?There’s no one quite like him—honest and true to his word, totally devoted to God and hating evil.”9-10 Satan retorted, “So do you think Job does all that out of the sheer goodness of his heart? Why, no one ever had it so good! You pamper him like a pet, make sure nothing bad ever happens to him or his family or his possessions, bless everything he does—he can’t lose!Job 1:8-912 God replied, “We’ll see. Go ahead—do what you want with all that is his. Just don’t hurt him.” Then Satan left the presence of God.Job 1:1211-13 Three of Job’s friends heard of all the trouble that had fallen on him. Each traveled from his own country—Eliphaz from Teman, Bildad from Shuhah, Zophar from Naamath—and went together to Job to keep him company and comfort him. When they first caught sight of him, they couldn’t believe what they saw—they hardly recognized him! They cried out in lament, ripped their robes, and dumped dirt on their heads as a sign of their grief. Then they sat with him on the ground. Seven days and nights they sat there without saying a word. They could see how rotten he felt, how deeply he was suffering.Job 2:11-13 Three things we CAN do when others are suffering:Step into their sufferingEmpathize with their sufferingDon’t try to fix their sufferingAnyone who has spent time with a suffering friend knows how hard it is to remain present without trying to give answers. It is excruciating to suffer silently with a friend who must rebuild life piece by piece, without any certainty about the outcome. Our instinct is to investigate what went wrong and identify a solution. Then we imagine we can help our friend eliminate the cause and get back to normal as soon as possible. Knowing the cause, we will at least know how to avoid the same fate ourselves. We would rather give a reason for the suffering — be it right, be it wrong — than to accept the mystery at the heart of suffering.Theology of Work, Commentary13-20 “Still, if you set your heart on God and reach out to him,If you scrub your hands of sin and refuse to entertain evil in your home,You’ll be able to face the world unashamed and keep a firm grip on life, guiltless and fearless.You’ll forget your troubles; they’ll be like old, faded photographs.Your world will be washed in sunshine, every shadow dispersed by dawn.Full of hope, you’ll relax, confident again; you’ll look around, sit back, and take it easy.Expansive, without a care in the world, you’ll be hunted out by many for your blessing.But the wicked will see none of this. They’re headed down a dead-end road with nothing to look forward to—nothing.”Job 11:13-20As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”The disciples regarded this man as an unsolved riddle. They showed no interest in helping the man, but in discussing the cause for his condition. Jesus will soon show a different way. He won’t dwell on the theological puzzle, but on actually helping the man.David Guzik3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. John 9:1-3Jesus shifted the question from, “Why is this man suffering?,” to, “What can God do in spite of this suffering?”WE WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO FIND TRUTH IN SUFFERING IF WE DON’T KNOW WHAT THE TRUTH IS.“THIS ISN’T HOW IT’S SUPPOSED TO BE.”We were made for God11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.John 9:1-3You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they can find peace in you.Augustine of HippoWe chose to separate from GodA THEOLOGY OF SIN (We need to understand the magnitude of sin)10 as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one;11 no one understands; no one seeks for God.12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.”Romans 3:10-12The confession of evil works is the first beginning of good works.Augustine of HippoWhen a man is getting better he understands more and more clearly the evil that is still left in him. When a man is getting worse he understands his own badness less and less.C.S. LewisA THEOLOGY OF SUFFERING (We need to understand the purpose of suffering)7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus[a] offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from ...
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    1 h
  • HELP! - "How do I continue to walk with God when it feels like He's not with me?"
    Jun 20 2024
    Psalm 22:1-5This psalm begins abruptly, with a disturbing scene: someone who knows and trusts God is forsaken, and cries out to God in agony.David Guzik“How do you continue to walk with God when you don’t feel His presence and it feels like He isn’t with you?”THE WALL.What is The Wall?What is important here is to note that the trials we encounter each day are not the Wall or “dark night of the soul.” Trials are traffic jams, annoying bosses, delayed airplay departures, car breakdowns, fevers, and barking dogs in the middle of the night.Peter ScazzeroJOHN OF THE CROSS PHOTO*continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.Philippians 2:12b-13Wilderness seasons don’t purify us from sin, Jesus already did that. It’s done. It is finished.“DARK”How do we know we are in “the dark night”? Our good feelings of God’s presence evaporate. We feel the door of heaven has been shut as we pray. Darkness, helplessness, weariness, a sense of failure or defeat, barrenness, emptiness, dryness descends upon us. The Christian disciplines that have served us up to this time “no longer work.” We can’t see what God is doing and we see little visible fruit in our lives.Peter Scazzero“NIGHT”weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.Psalm 30:5“SOUL"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest.Psalm 22:1-2We're going on a bear huntWe're going on a bear huntI've got my binocularsI've got my binocularsI'm not scaredI'm not scaredOoh, look at that tall, wavy grassIt's so tallWe can't go over itWe can't go under itWe're just gonna have to go through itSwish, swish, swish, swishThe Kiboomers“DO I TRUST GOD?”10 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. 11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.Philippians 4:10-14When we make it through the wall, we no longer have a need to be well known or successful, but to do God’s will. We have now tasted what it means to live in union with the love of God through Christ in the Holy Spirit. Peter ScazzeroFor the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.Deuteronomy 2:7When you accept the fact that sometimes seasons are dry and times are hard and that God is in control of both, you will discover a sense of divine refuge, because the hope then is in God and not in yourself.Charles SwindollGoing through “The Wall” helps us un-learn:Pride: They have a tendency to condemn others and become impatient with their faults. They are selective in who can teach them.Avarice: They are discontent with the Spirituality God gives them. They never have enough learning, are always reading many books rather than growing in poverty of spirit and their interior life.Luxury: They take more pleasure in the spiritual blessings of God rather than God Himself.Wrath: They are easily irritated, lacking sweetness, and have little patience to wait on God.Spiritual Gluttony: They resist the way of the cross and choose pleasures like children do.Spiritual Envy: They feel unhappy when others do well spiritually. They are always comparing.Sloth: They run from that which is hard. Their aim is spiritual sweetness and good feelings.Going through “The Wall” helps us learn:How to be needy.“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.Matthew 5:318 Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”[d] 19 Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. 20 Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21 being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. Romans 4:18-21How to be okay with mystery.“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,”declares the Lord.9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.Isaiah 55:8-9 If you understand, it is not God you understand.Augustine of Hippo The way of Jesus cannot be ...
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    58 m
  • HELP! - "Why do we have unanswered prayers?"
    Jun 13 2024

    Matthew 26:36-44 “36 Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, ‘sit here, while I go over there and pray.’ 37 And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 then he said to them, ‘ My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.’ 39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.’ 40 And he came to his disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, ‘So, could you not watch with me one hour? 41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak,’42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, ‘My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.’43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.44 So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again.”WHY DO WE HAVE UNANSWERED PRAYERS?[a pic i need to still send][side by side pic.see attachment]The Greek word for agony used here means “to be engaged in combat.”If what is possible? If salvation for man is possible by anything other than the cross, let this cup pass.”-Chuck SmithThe cross declares that there is only one way by which man can have forgiveness of sins and approach God, and that is through the death of Jesus Christ.”- Chuck SmithSome prayers would never be offered if people would only think. A little reflection would show us that some things that we desire were better left alone. We may moreover, have a motive at the bottom of our desires that is not Christ like; a selfish nature that forgets God’s glory and caters to our own ease and comfort…there must be mingled with acceptable prayer, the holy salt of submission to the divine will.”-Charles Spurgeon.“You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures” James 4:3.Prayer is not really intended to get my will done on earth. Prayer is intended to get God’s will done on earth.”- Chuck Smith.And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.”"Christ was not delivered from his sufferings, yet he was strengthened and supported under them. And that was equivalent”-Matthew Henry."trading of the heart with God”-Charles Spurgeon#1 prayed persistently.
    #2 prayed submittedly.“Do you not know friends, that we often impute to the Lord conduct we would be ashamed of in ourselves. When God tells you to call upon Him, He does not mock you. He means that He will deal kindly with you”-Charles Spurgeon.1. We will assume the role of prayer answerer.2. We will believe God to be different than he is.3. We will see prayer as self-servingWhen the question of unanswered prayer comes up we should do what Jesus did:
    #1 Persist “He went away and prayed for the third time saying the same words again” Matthew 26:44“Guard against persistence of unbelief-repeating prayer with attitude that God never heard us the first time”-David Guzik “The delays of prayer are not needed to change God, but to change us.”- David Guzik#2 Submit “Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will” Matthew 26:39 “And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross” Philippians 2:8.

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    50 m
  • HELP! - "How do I keep my mind/flesh from giving into temptation?" - Aaron Smith
    Jun 6 2024

    15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
    1 John 2:15-17Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
    2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
    4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
    6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was [a]pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves [b]coverings.
    8 And they heard the [c]sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the [d]cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
    9 Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”
    10 So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
    Genesis 3:1-10Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
    4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”
    5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:
    ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’
    and,
    ‘In their hands they shall bear you up,
    Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ”
    Matthew 4:1-613 Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful. 14 For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 16 If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
    21 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good.
    Romans 7:13-21 14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
    James 1:14

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    45 m
  • Pillars of The Church - Kingdom Community
    May 30 2024
    Philippians 2:3-16“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility, value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Do everything without grumbling or arguing so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.”Vision - Help People Know GodMission - Practicing The Way of JesusPursuing the PresenceTransformational DiscipleshipKingdom CommunitySacrificial MissionKingdom Community doesn’t stand alone, and the house doesn’t stand without it!“Between the death of Christ and the Last Day, it is only by a gracious anticipation of the last things that Christians are privileged to live in visible fellowship with other Christians. It is by the grace of God that a congregation is permitted to gather visibly in this world to share God’s Word and sacrament. Not all Christians receive this blessing. The imprisoned, the sick, the scattered lonely, the proclaimers of the Gospel in heathen lands stand alone. They know that visible fellowship is a blessing. They remember, as the Psalmist did, how they “walked among the crowds of worshipers, leading a great procession to the house of God, singing for joy and giving thanks amid the sound of a great celebration!” (Ps. 42:4). - BonhoefferIt is how we startedOur triune God created all life to exist in communal order to work toward Kingdom Community.2. It is how we are testedWithout community, we are incapable of Practicing the Way of Jesus.We were created for the life of Jesus to live inside of us.3. It is how we are to be foundCommunity is found where Faith is found, and Faith is found where Community is found.“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Hebrews 10:19-25 Faith plus community created endurance.“For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” Matthew 18:204. It is how we are sustained “The light of the early church illuminated the path of humankind in one short flash. Yet its spirit and witness stayed alive even after its members had been scattered and many of them were murdered. Again and again, through history, similar forms arose as gifts of God, expressions of the same living Spirit. Witnesses were killed, and fathers died, but new children were and are born into the Spirit again and again.” - Eberhard ArnoldThrough the kind of community that Jesus prescribes to us, no external force can extinguish the flame of the Gospel.When we were called into God’s family, we were also called to belong to Him in eternity with one another.“He is our peace.” Eph 2:14 Christ was sent to be the mediator.“For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him, you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, ...
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