Way Church, Prince George VA

A hot-air balloon goes up as you give up the weight that holds you down.  That's how it is when for a Christian. Christianity is more about giving up and less about going up. Going up is the result of giving up. When we give up, we go up.  When we go up, we look back and realize that it took giving up to go up.  Paul was willing to give up what he had in order to help Onesimus.  As he gave up, he found himself going up.  Here we are, almost 2,000 years later, reading a letter about what Paul was willing to give up.  This one statement captures Paul's heart:  "If he has wronged you at all, charge it to my account." Philemon 18  In this letter, Paul makes an appeal, set's an appointment and shares his appreciation.  It was all about helping someone who could do very little for him in return. 

A hot-air balloon goes up as you give up the weight that holds you down.  That's how it is when for a Christian. Christianity is more about giving up and less about going up. Going up is the result of giving up. When we give up, we go up.  When we go up, we look back and realize that it took giving up to go up.  Paul was willing to give up what he had in order to help Onesimus.  As he gave up, he found himself going up.  Here we are, almost 2,000 years later, reading a letter about what Paul was willing to give up.  This one statement captures Paul's heart:  "If he has wronged you at all, charge it to my account." Philemon 18  In this letter, Paul makes an appeal, set's an appointment and shares his appreciation.  It was all about helping someone who could do very little for him in return. 

Ethnicity Paul is a Jew speaking to Gentiles (a region of mostly Celtic Gauls) about how salvation, through Jesus Christ, works for all people. The emphasis of this letter comes because a group of Jews (historically known as the Judaizers) were teaching these Gentile Christians to live according to the Jewish Law and follow Jewish customs. Paul is calling them back to embrace the new ethnicity they embraced called "the way." Paul does not have to stop being a Jew to be a Christian and the Galatians do not have to stop being Celtic Gauls to be Christians.

Description:Week 3

 Text: 2 Corinthians 6:1–3, 11–18; 7:1, 12–16 Topic(s): Love, Openness, Reconciliation
 Big Idea of the Message: Paul rejoices that the Corinthians have been reconciled following his first letter.

 Application Point: Pursuing reconciliation must be a conscious and deliberate effort; it just won't happen on its own.


From Doug Small's Book, “Prayer, The Heart of it All”

Text: 2 Corinthians 2:5–17; 3:12–18; 5:11–19 Topic(s): Forgiveness, Grace, Gospel, Christ Big Idea of the Message: As ambassadors of Christ and his good news, being able to reconcile the old and new covenants is essential to our effectiveness. Application Point: The reconciled life is marked by words and actions of grace and forgiveness.

We are comforted by the comforter (The Holy Spirit) and we become carriers of comfort to connect with our community.  When we share comfort with others we strengthen believers and attract unbelievers. 

This is a lesson from I Corinthians 12 about how to serve in the Body of Christ.

Communion is about us, as a body of believers, coming equally together to remember how Jesus sets us free from our sins. 17Now in giving this next instruction I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better, but for the worse. 18For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part, I believe it. 19For there also have to be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you. 20Therefore when you come together it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper, 21for when you eat, each one takes his own supper first; and one goes hungry while another gets drunk. 22What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What am I to say to you? Shall I praise you? In this, I do not praise you. 23For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread; 24and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”25In the same way He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. 27Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy way shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28But a person must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29For the one who eats and drinks eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not properly recognize the body. 30For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number are asleep. 31But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world. 33So then, my brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34If anyone is hungry, have him eat at home so that you do not come together for judgment. As to the remaining matters, I will give instructions when I come. - 1 Corinthians 11:17-34

When this is our main goal, we are able to stay free from legalism and liberalism. The first is a doorway that leads to sins of judgmental self-righteousness. The second is a wide open landscape of sinful activities. Either way, both lead to sin. So, when we lean into the Lord for relationship we live within the law and have freedom at the same time.

This is a lesson take from Doug Smalls boom titled, “Prayer; The Heart of it All”.

1 Corinthians 6:1-11 1Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? 2Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to form the smallest law courts? 3Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life? 4So if you have law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no account in the church? 5I say this to your shame. Is it so, thatthere is not among you any one wise who will be able to decide between his brothers and sisters, 6but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers? 7Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather suffer the wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? 8On the contrary, you yourselves do wrong and defraud. And this to your brothers and sisters! 9Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, 10nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor those habitually drunk, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. 11Such were some of you, but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. Topic: Church Conflict Big Idea: We should deal with confronting other believers with our hands fully extended. An open hand is a symbol of welcome and release. An extended hand shows honesty, the right attitude, navigation from the Holy Spirit, and decision. Series Ideas and Talking Points: Honesty: It's great to use the word "honest" when speaking about a healthy confrontation in the United State. As a culture, we struggle with the idea of healthy conflict. However, it is our biblical responsibility to confront each other (Matthew 18:15-20). The Corinthian believers were not handling conflict among themselves. Rather, they were using the Roman court system. Attitude: The single and best way to influence others is with an exemplary attitude. The world's way of dealing with conflict is about "looking out for number one" and having that statement refer to the individual saying it. As Christians, Jesus is number one and we should always look to His guidance. When we do, we will have an attitude of grace and mercy toward one another. Navigation: We should have the Holy Spirit as our internal navigator rather than our emotions. The world is lead by their emotions and they make their own set of rules. Their way leads to destruction. Paul gives examples in the passage. Our way leads to life and it should be lived as an example. Decide: God guides and leaves it up to us to decide. His ways are an invitation to a possibility. This is not the easy way. This is the way of the Lord. Our choice to be Christians is a choice to pick up our cross and follow Jesus Christ.

Romans 12:1–21; 13:1–14; 14:1–21 Topic: Love, Unity, Fellowship, Honor, Ethics CATCH THIS: Our foundational life in Christ influences everything we do. Apply it this way: Be transformed every day and grow in every way.

Text: Romans 3:21–31 Justification by faith to propitiation; 4:1–25 Abraham was justified by faith; We are justified 5:1–11 Topic: Justification, Atonement, Salvation, Forgiveness, Faith Big Idea of the Message: All of humanity is shown grace and given salvation through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Application Point: Jesus paid the price for our sin, and we should therefore live our lives forever changed by this act of love.

4 Things To Live With In A Marriage Did you know that Guinness Book of World Records has General Hospital has the longest running daytime television show? My grandmother used to watch it with absolute dedication. When I was a 12 year old kid I would come home and watch it with her. I sure am glad that my mother is a marriage and family therapist because I could’ve gotten my understanding about love from that show. My mother wrote an article and noted the fact that we should “wake up without make up“ in a marriage. She was referring to how people would get out of bed in a soap like General Hospital looking perfect. Some people take that mentality into their marriage and shouldn’t. Love can be messy and it’s hard work. Look at the way Paul describes marriage in the Bible: “Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be released. Are you released from a wife? Do not seek a wife. But if you marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Yet such will have trouble in this life, and I am trying to spare you.” ‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭7:27-28‬ ‭NASB So, if your single and you like it that way, it’s good! Enjoy every moment of this message by being encouraged and knowing what you don’t have to deal with on a daily basis. If you’re married, I’m looking forward to teaching you how to enjoy a beautiful mess. If you’re not in a relationship and you hope to be in one this message is perfect for you! If you are married, I hope this message helps you to learn how to love an imperfect person with the perfect love of God. Marriages have to Deal with a messes (M-E-S-S) made up of misunderstandings, evaluations, stuff, situations!

There is a complex problem that most American marriages have to face, figure out and forge through. It is a cultural problem. When two people from the same culture get married they will have problems to deal with but culture is not the primary one. In American marriage, this comes to the forefront the morning after the two say “I do.” All of a sudden they are living together and they have to face the fact that they are two very different people who do not understand their roles. They have to figure it out. It takes forging together and making their own identity.

This is a message about speaking in tongues.

This is a message about speaking in tongues.

STARTING OVER |||| New Experience “Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the Prophets wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Because I said to you that I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And He said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”” ‭‭John‬ ‭1:45-51‬ ‭NASB‬‬ Experiencing Jesus moves us to more. More begins with a mindset shift, openness to change, revelation of the situation, and education ongoing.

Scattering beyond our comfort zone “Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death. A nd on that day a great persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” ‭‭Acts‬ ‭8:1‬ ‭NASB‬‬ In the last lesson we looked at how the church moved into Judea. We saw how God changed the Saul and Peter. For Saul, he had a radical transformation to conversion. For Peter, he had a change in the way that he saw conversion. They both came to understand salvation by grace through Christ alone. In this lesson, we are going to see how God used Philip in Samaria. This lesson comes from Acts 8. Before we go into the lesson, it’s important that we understand something that happened back in the Old Testament. The northern kingdom of Israel split off from the southern kingdom of Judah. This split caused a Civil War with the people of God. The capital city of Judah was Jerusalem and the capital city of Israel was Samaria. When the Romans came in to occupy the territory they called Judah, “Judea.” Also, they called the former region of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, “ Samaria.“ The Jews of Judea did not want to have anything to do with the people of Samaria. What I just explained is the basic root of the problem. Although there is more to it than that, that is the basic essence of the problem. The fact that Philip went into Samaria to do ministry is a huge deal! I know that Jesus had already gone into the region and met with a woman at a well. During that time he explained the whole thing. But, this was still a big stretch for a Jewish man to go into Samaria and tell them the way to salvation. We are going to learn about doing ministry beyond our comfort zone. B-E-Y-O-N-D

In the mid 1990s there was a movie called Trueman hit the theaters. It was a movie about a man had lived his entire life on a set. His life had a script that was written out and he lived his whole life according to that script. Until, one day when he realized that he was living on a set and he set his mind to rising above his set. This world’s system is set on earthy ways. People live there whole life according to the set way of this world. Until, they set their minds on operating at a higher level. In Christ, we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to overcome this world. Col. 3:1-4 1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

From Start to Finish; a message about knowing your location and moving forward. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13, 14 NASB) We should understand five areas when we consider what we will resolve in 2013 and reach for in 2014: Relationships, Repetitions, Rational, Realities and Rests.

God is very serious about family unity. The Prophet Malachi writes “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse” (Malachi 4:5, 6) The direct meaning of this passage is debated but the fact remains generations must connect.

Isaiah 40:31 “But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.” The true definition of spiritual health is walking (living in a relationship) with God. At times, we embrace the example of Adam and walk away from God.  There are other times when we embrace the example of Enoch and walk with God.  Sometimes we feel like Noah walking alone with God.  If we can simply walk with God, we will walk in spiritual health.

This podcast is all about making sure that you have the right team around you. You will discover how old the four writers of the gospels in the New Testament had different personalities and perspectives and they Used them to create a synergy.

This is a podcast about living a whole life. There are some people who just seem to get it! Don’t you want to be one of those people? I truly believe that this podcast will help you get to that place! “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭3:14-21‬ ‭ESV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/59/eph.3.14-21.esv

“The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others, while they long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you. Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!”

Pastor Brett Cooper shares insight and experience on how to break unhealthy cycles in our lives.

Join Pastor Brett Cooper as he shares 3 important keys to a healthy prayer life.