Calvary Arlington

As we study Acts 12 we have the incredible story of Peter's prison break and a great reminder of the privilege and power of prayer.

Ministry in the church is not always one thing. There are seasons of fruitfulness, but also times of conflict. Growth seems to bring conflict naturally. Today as we look at Acts 11, we see both conflict and fruitful ministry and in both cases, we also see the Spirit of God at work in the young church.

As we have been going through Acts 10, we see God speaking and arranging things to bring the gospel message to this man Cornelius. The word of God has come in a vision, angels have been involved, the Holy Spirit has spoken directly, and human agency has also been involved. Now God is going to use His man, Peter.

God has to prepare Peter's heart for greater ministry.

Bill Sullivan teaches from John 15, encouraging the church to bear fruit for Jesus.

Pastor Chad Myhre unpacks this passage reminding us that having Jesus' perspective is crucial to facing every challenge of life.

As we look at the character of Cornelius we are reminded that even a "good" man needs Jesus.

Dan Bushy walks us through God's preparation for spiritual authority and Godly leadership in the life of Moses.

When we think of the gospel, we must never think that it is a static thing. It's not something we simply believe, but more like something we have been caught up in. It is in motion, it's like a train arriving, it's advancing to a destination. Day by day it is advancing until it will be fully accomplished at the end of the age. Everyone is invited to get on board. In today's lesson, we see the gospel advancing through miracles in Lydda and Joppa.

Chapter nine opens with a dark tone, as the church is being ravaged by this zealous Pharisee named Saul. But 31 verses later we see Saul converted and the church at peace and steadily growing. Like winter turning to spring, there are different seasons in life and in the life of the church. God is faithful in every season. And what we see is that He is at work molding and using individuals as He advances His Kingdom. He has now taken hold of this religious terrorist, once used by the enemy, now used for good.

Last week we read about the conversion of the Ethiopian Eunuch and what a great story that was as the Lord guided Philip to him and brought him to faith through an explanation of the word. Today we have the conversion of this radical religious zealot named Saul.

As we continue in chapter 8, we have the first in a series of three conversions. In chapter 8 we have this story of the conversion of an Ethiopian eunuch, in chapter 9 we have the conversion of the Pharisee Saul, and in chapter 10 we have the conversion of Cornelius the Roman centurion. They are three very different individuals and each of them are unique stories that demonstrate how God works in a variety of ways to call people to Himself.

Last week we ended with what seemed like a tragedy-the first martyr of the young church. But what we see today is that this has not only not stopped the advance of the gospel, it actually propels it.

While the believers had already faced persecution from religious leaders and dealt with some internal struggles, things were about to take a turn for the worse. The opposition they were about to encounter would be much more intense.

This story serves as a timeless template or pattern for how the church should manage the demands of a growing ministry.

The story of Ananias & Sapphira is one of the most alarming stories in the Bible. Their deception is dealt with by God, causing all who hear of it to be afraid as God purifies His church.

Last week we left off at verse 18 as the religious leaders gave a command to stop preaching in Jesus name. Today we see the response from Peter and John as well as the impact that this form of persecution had on the church. Let's just say, it didn't go as the religious leaders had hoped.

Peter and John were just following Jesus. They came upon this man who was in need of healing and in that moment were given the gift of faith and healing and Jesus healed the man. Now, they are going to get in trouble for it and be questioned by the authorities. And what we see is exactly what Jesus had told them. The Holy Spirit will speak. I will defend myself.

Today's message focuses on a miracle healing, but it's not just a single act, it's more than that, as Jesus heals and offers the hope of salvation through the Apostle.

How are we to understand that the Prince of Peace, Who's birth was announced with the prospect of bringing peace on earth, said plainly that He didn't come to bring peace, while at the same time the Bible promises that through Him we can have a peace that surpasses comprehension? Our apologies for the terrible recording this week.

We have seen how the outpouring of the Spirit was a setup for the good news and the offer of salvation. Peter has stood up, and preached to the crowd. Today we are going to look at the effect of the inspired word.

The Apostle Paul gives us a pattern to follow as we look for an open door of opportunity for ministry. (The Valdosta team report will be published separately)

As the Holy Spirit has now arrived during the feast of Pentecost, God has gathered a crowd of religious Jews together, so that they can hear the gospel. This is the first act of the Christian church, and so it gives us an example of God's priority–the message of Jesus.

As we look at Acts 2:1-13, we see the birth of the church of Jesus Christ. These 120 are already saved, already in relationship with Jesus, but something more is about to happen...something that will change them and change the world.

Rob McCrorie delivers an encouraging word from Romans 11 and Ephesians 4.

As we look at verses 9-26 here of Acts 1, we see some essentials: ‌We see the disciples being obedient to Jesus words. We see them have a priority of prayer. We see them move forward in faith.

The book of Acts describes the birth of the Christian church–how it began and how it grew for the first three decades after Jesus' ascension. It not only tells us how these things came into being, but gives us a model to follow.

As we close out these final three chapters of Ecclesiastes, God's purpose through Solomon's writing becomes more clear. Time is fleeting, the end will arrive sooner rather than later, live with that truth in mind and be guided by the wisdom of God.

As we continue this study in the book of Ecclesiastes, one of the things that I really appreciate about it, is how honest it is. Solomon is giving it his best shot… to understand life and purpose under the sun. The more we look at these lessons, the more we see the truth that he has uncovered… that life apart from God is futile, and wisdom, even great wisdom, does not deliver.

As we look at chapters 4-6 Solomon is continuing his observations and pondering of the the futility of man's labor under the sun. What is a man or woman's purpose under the sun, and is there anything beyond what we see under the sun? These are his real questions. They are real questions, important questions that people continue to have.

Solomon continues his study of the futility and meaninglessness of life under the sun and comes to some important conclusions.

The opening chapter of this book of wisdom seems mostly depressing as one considers the futility of life under the sun.

Jesus restores Peter to ministry with a threefold commission supercedeing Peter's earlier threefold detail.

What do you do when you don't know what to do next? Sometimes the right thing to do is to wait upon the Lord for His instructions.

Today we are looking at the story of the resurrection. It's not Easter Sunday, when we would normally look at this text, however it is appropriate every Sunday. In John chapter 20 we have the events of the first two Sundays and how four specific disciples interacted with Jesus.

As we continue studying John's gospel, once again we see God's hand in every detail of the events as they unfold… all for His glory and to call attention to Jesus the Savior.

Last week as we were looking at this passage, we focused on how Jesus was in Control of every aspect of the situation. He was in control of His person, the means of His death, the location, the declaration, and how all of this was evidenced by prophecy. We continue to see the prophetic aspects of what He is accomplishing, but as we look agin at the passage we see His compassion and the completion of His mission of love.

We are going to be looking at this passage in two parts. There are three things I want to look at specifically as we see Jesus in His last moments of earthly ministry. ‌ Today we are going to examine His Control . Next week we will look at His Compassion, and the Completion of His ministry. ‌ What I want to demonstrate first is that Jesus is in control. He is in control of His person, but then also we will see that He is in control of all of the circumstances (means of His death; location; the declaration; and all evidenced by the fulfillment of prophecy. ‌

Rob McCrorie teaches from Matthew 5:1-16 -A believers identity in God is crucial to producing kingdom character and kingdom influence.

As we continue following Jesus on the long night of His mock trial the Disciples are now out of the picture, we now have only Jesus, and those who oppose Him -the religious leaders of the Jews, the crowd, and the politicians. Each one is in essence a character study we can learn from, and each one gives us a warning about behavior that we should avoid.

Veteran missionary, Pastor Dan Bushy, teaches about the story of the tribe of Dan.

As the story of Jesus' arrest and trial unfold, Peter's trial gives a great lesson.

Today's lesson in John 17 concludes Jesus' teaching to the disciples directly and now we learn from His prayer… these, His last words before His arrest. ‌

Jesus continues with this, His final word to the Disciples before He goes to the cross.

As Jesus teaches His followers to love, He reminds them that they will experience the same rejection of hatred that He subjected Himself to.

As Jesus has introduced the concept of the unity of the abiding relationship of the Godhead, He now teaches about the need of the Disciples to likewise abide in Himself, the Vine, so that they would bear fruit for the Kingdom.

Pastor Wayne Taylor teaches from Philippians 2 about Jesus, The Wonder Of The World.

As we continue in John 14, Jesus is comforting the Disciples who are concerned about His departure.

The verses we are looking at today are some of the most powerful words in the New Testament. They are hopeful and important words… to the skeptic they may seem to be the most arrogant words ever uttered. They demand our full attention.

As we close chapter 13, there is a lot going on… Jesus is finishing His thoughts in regard to the example of how He has just served the Disciples by washing their feet, He is addressing the presence of his betrayer, and also, He begins what is called “The Farewell Address” as He prepares His friends for what is next.

Jesus loves and serves His Disciples, giving us a model to follow.