1. INVESTING IN THE GOOD LIFE IS NOT ABOUT ________________. Proverbs 23:4-5 (NLT) 4Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich. Be wise enough to know when to quit. 5In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle The word investment implies a return on […]
THE GOOD LIFE IS: A life under the Son, which leads to fellowship with others. Really knowing God means you know His heart. Loving God, in return, means we obey. Love requires generosity. 1 John 1:5–7 (NLT) 5This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there […]
THE EMOTIONS I FEEL, THE LOVE I HAVE, THE VALUE I SEE IN MY CHILDREN IS A FRACTION OF HOW GOD SEES YOU AND ME. Ephesians 2:1-10 (NLT) 1Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. 2 You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying […]
REVIEW: The Holy Spirit is… …not an invisible force. He is a person who can be grieved, lied to, insulted, etc. …not a lesser part of the trinity, but rather fully God and an equal part of the trinity as the Father and Son are.Last week: Love is primary in Galatians 5, and the all […]
JOY INTRODUCTION This series is about the Fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. o They are attributes developed in our lives after we receive Christ. o The Holy Spirit lives […]
KINDNESS THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT: KINDNESS Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT) But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! • We should be kind to others. We all know it. The Bible instructs us to […]
KINDNESS 1. UNDERSTANDING BIBLICAL KINDNESS STARTS WITH UNDERSTANDING GOD. The Luke 15 story of the Prodigal Son • Notice the heart of the father: o Toward the younger son, he is full of compassion (kindness). He ran to his son and embraced him. o The father celebrated the son’s repentance. He gave mercy and restored […]
FAITHFULNESS Cultivate Series Purpose: Learning how to partner with the Holy Spirit in our lives to grow godly spiritual fruit. o It is important for us to remember that we can’t grow in the fruit of the Spirit without the Spirit! Today we are talking about faithfulness. Galatians 5:22-23 22But the fruit of the Spirit […]
FAITHFULNESS REVIEW: We have been in a sermon series called “Cultivate” where we’ve been talking about the fruit of the Spirit—the qualities of God that the Holy Spirit produces in your life to make you more like Jesus. • Definitions of cultivate:1 o prepare and use (land) for crops or gardening o try to acquire […]
God knows that we need self-control because we are prone to stray outside the boundaries He has intended for us. James 1:14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Galatians 5:16-17 16So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires […]
DEFINITION OF SELF-CONTROL: • “restraint exercised over one’s own impulses, emotions, or desires.” 1 • “the virtue of one who masters his desires and passions” 2 THE IMPORTANCE OF DENYING OURSELVES: Luke 9:23 … Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. Matthew 5:29 If […]
DEFINITIONS OF SELF CONTROL: • “restraint exercised over one’s own impulses, emotions, or desires” 1 • For the believer: o 1466 /egkráteia (“self-control, Spirit-control”) can only be accomplished by the power of the Lord.2 o Accordingly, 1466 /egkráteia (“true mastery from within”) is explicitly called a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:23).2 o “Physical […]
Abide with Christ Today we are talking about ABIDANCE. Misunderstandings about what abidance means: Just have more Faith Read my Bible more (start a Bible reading plan) Pray more (start a prayer journal) Abiding in Christ means doing more for Jesus Abidance means that I don’t need to do anything… that I just simply sit on […]
Make Room for God’s Peace Why do you think God chose to reveal Jesus to shepherds first? God has always used the weak things of this world to confound the wise. 1 Corinthians 1:27 (NIV) But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world […]
THIS WEEK: MAKE ROOM FOR GOD’S PEACE The example from the Christmas Story: Luke 2:8-20 (NIV) – And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. […]
God’s purpose revealed over time: God provided Mary with the big picture of His plan to save the world. God didn’t give Mary all of the details how or what it would take. God places people in her life to affirm her Purpose of God. The shepherds come to see their Savior. Simeon & Anna […]