Podcasts about like abraham

This sermon addresses the modern difficulty of simply trusting and following established paths of faith. Through an exploration of the early church and the life of Abraham, we discover that true maturity often requires setting aside our need to uniquely innovate and instead committing to faithful imitation of proven models.Scripture ReferencesHebrews 5:11-14Hebrews 6:9-20Romans 4:20Genesis 11:31Acts 7:2-4Key PointsThe Calling of the Church: The church is called to imitate the examples of maturity and faithfulness that came before it, not to constantly reinvent the wheel.The Struggle to Follow: The author of Hebrews expresses frustration with the early church because they have become "spiritually dull and indifferent." They are still relying on basic teachings when they should be mature enough to teach others.The "But We Need Our Spin On It" Mindset: A major obstacle to maturity is the modern tendency to accept a proven truth or model but insist on customizing it or adding a personal "spin." This often weakens the effectiveness of the original truth.The Example of Abraham: Abraham is considered the father of faith, not because he was perfect, but because his faith grew stronger over time. Romans 4:20 says, "Abraham never wavered in believing God's promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God."The Delay in Haran: The story of Abraham's journey to Canaan reveals a crucial point about obedience. He received the call to go to Canaan, but stopped in Haran and stayed there until his father died. His father, Terah, became a form of baggage that delayed his obedience. God often waits for us to leave our baggage behind before moving us forward.ConclusionTrue spiritual maturity involves a willingness to follow without needing to be the innovator. It requires leaving behind the "baggage" of our own preferences and cultural conditioning. Like Abraham, our faith is proven not in instant perfection, but in a lifelong journey of growing trust and increasingly radical obedience to God's calling.Calls to ActionExamine your life for areas where you are insisting on your own "spin" rather than simply obeying God's word.Identify the "baggage" or comfortable stopping points (like Haran) that might be delaying your obedience to God's calling.Commit to imitating the faithful examples of mature believers in your community. Support the show*Summaries and transcripts are generated using AI. Please notify us if you find any errors.

This message tackles the modern difficulty of trusting and following established paths of faith. Through an exploration of the early church and the life of Abraham, we discover that true maturity often requires setting aside our need to uniquely innovate and instead committing to faithful imitation of proven models.Scripture ReferencesHebrews 5:11-14Hebrews 6:9-20Romans 4:20Genesis 11:31Acts 7:2-4Key PointsThe Calling of the Church: The church is called to imitate the examples of maturity and faithfulness that came before it, not to constantly reinvent the wheel.The Struggle to Follow: The author of Hebrews expresses frustration with the early church because they have become "spiritually dull and indifferent." They are still relying on basic teachings when they should be mature enough to teach others.The "But We Need Our Spin On It" Mindset: A major obstacle to maturity is the modern tendency to accept a proven truth or model but insist on customizing it or adding a personal "spin." This often weakens the effectiveness of the original truth.The Example of Abraham: Abraham is considered the father of faith, not because he was perfect, but because his faith grew stronger over time. Romans 4:20 says, "Abraham never wavered in believing God's promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God."The Delay in Haran: The story of Abraham's journey to Canaan reveals a crucial point about obedience. He received the call to go to Canaan, but stopped in Haran and stayed there until his father died. His father, Terah, became a form of baggage that delayed his obedience. God often waits for us to leave our baggage behind before moving us forward.ConclusionTrue spiritual maturity involves a willingness to follow without needing to be the innovator. It requires leaving behind the "baggage" of our own preferences and cultural conditioning. Like Abraham, our faith is proven not in instant perfection, but in a lifelong journey of growing trust and increasingly radical obedience to God's calling.Calls to ActionExamine your life for areas where you are insisting on your own "spin" rather than simply obeying God's word.Identify the "baggage" or comfortable stopping points (like Haran) that might be delaying your obedience to God's calling.Commit to imitating the faithful examples of mature believers in your community. Support the show*Summaries and transcripts are generated using AI. Please notify us if you find any errors.

Some of my favorite moments in our kids growing up years have been story-telling time. I remember one time after we told the Bible story about the book of Genesis, I said to my daughter, "And Honey, do you remember who the first Mommy and Daddy were?" And she said, "Yep! Eve and Steve." Okay, good, so much for my Bible teaching. I said, "Do you remember who their boys were?" She said, "Yep! Cain and Mable." There we go again. Well, back to the drawing board for Bible stories. But I do think the Bible is exciting, and I wanted my children to think so. So I tried to make the telling of the stories as exciting as possible. So, each night I would take the story to sort of a cliff-hanger point and I'd leave it there, often to loud protests. But even when they objected, they were ready to listen the next night. You know, when you don't tell the whole story, you keep folks interested. I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Chapter at a Time." If you are in need of God's guidance today, would you walk with me into the life of Abraham for a minute? God's got a great story line for Abraham's life. He's going to have him leave his home, he's going to have him go to Canaan land, and he's going to eventually promise him that that land will be his. Then he's going to promise that He's eventually going to have a son, and that son's going to become a great nation, and He's going to give that son to him miraculously. But did He tell him that all at once? Oh, no. God only gives Abraham the story a chapter at a time, like I used to tell my kids stories. Just real quickly, as we march through his life in our word for today from the Word of God, Genesis 12:1-2, "The Lord said to him, 'Leave your country. Go to a land I will show you. I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you.'" He sure doesn't give him very many details. He just says, "Leave and go to this land." Well, that's what Abraham does. He goes on what information he has. Chapter 12, verse 7: He's in Canaan. God appears to Abraham and says, "To your offspring I will give this land." Now he finds out that there's going to perhaps be some children. And then he finds out that it's going to be the land of Canaan that God was talking about. In chapter 15 and verse 4, God goes on to say that it's going to be to a son that will come from your own body. "You're going to have a son!" Then finally, He leads him in Genesis 22, to the offering of that son, willing to sacrifice him. And after he has shown that willingness, God gives him blessings that are unprecedented. Notice the pattern of God's leading. You might need to know this right now to understand what He's doing in your life. He shows you what you need to know to take the next step. Then, after you do just that next step, He'll show you what you need for the next step. It's an unfolding scroll...a little at a time. It's like me telling that story to my children. Because I didn't give them the whole story, they were eager to get back to my lap the next night. The old hymn writer said, "We cannot see what lies before, and so we cling to Him the more." See, the plan is the easy part for God. He could give you that in one blueprint right now, but you would walk away with that under your arm and not need Him, not depend on Him, and not be back in His lap. God wants to build trust in Him in a day-to-day relationship. And so He shows us the story a little at a time. Like Abraham, your mission is to take the step He shows you today from His Word; not to worry about the whole big picture. There's another reason He doesn't show it all to us. If He did we might either run from it or run to it and we'd ruin it, like jumping ahead of the book and wondering why the chapter didn't make any sense. But if God's will unfolds a day at a time, then it just seems natural when we get to it. So, act on the chapter the Lord is revealing to you right now, and then return to His lap tomorrow for the next exciting episode.

A powerful reminder from Pastor Tommy Boring, “Qualified by Grace” centers on Colossians 1:10-20 and the truth that salvation is not earned by our works, merit, or goodness. We are made worthy only through the grace of God and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This message turns hearts toward the Father and gives thanks for His eternal plan of redemption. Before the foundation of the world, God had a plan to save sinners. Because of His great love, He sent His Son so we would not have to face eternal separation from Him. As Pastor Boring emphasizes, salvation was never about what we can do for God. It has always been about what God has done for us. The sermon highlights the call to walk worthy of the Lord, grow in spiritual fruit, and increase in the knowledge of God. Though the flesh wars against the things of God and becomes a hindrance in our lives, believers are reminded that there is something greater living within them through the power of the Holy Spirit. One of the central truths of this message is that we were spiritually helpless and unqualified on our own. Pastor Boring shares the powerful illustration of the thief on the cross, who had no good works, no achievements, and no earthly qualifications. His only hope was Christ. Jesus simply said, *”Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.”* That same grace still saves today. The message explains that God qualified us through Jesus Christ. He paid the sin debt we could never pay and redeemed us through His blood. Our righteousness could never earn heaven, but Jesus made a way where there was no way. Pastor Boring also speaks about the inheritance awaiting the children of God. Through Christ we become heirs and joint-heirs, promised an eternal home where there is no sorrow, sin, pain, or graveyards. Like Abraham who looked for a city whose builder and maker was God, believers are reminded to keep their eyes on a heavenly country. This sermon also warns about the reality of spiritual darkness. Sin blinds people from seeing their need for a Savior, and many remain trapped under the power of darkness without realizing it. Yet through salvation, God delivers us, translates us from darkness into the kingdom of His dear Son, and makes us new creatures in Christ. The invitation closes with a simple but important question. The issue is not whether God can save. The question is whether you have truly been made His. If your heart is not where it needs to be with God, today is the day to prepare to meet Him. #QualifiedByGrace #TommyBoring #Colossians1 #SavedByGrace #JesusChrist #BiblePreaching #KingJamesBible #Salvation #Faith #ChristianSermon #GraceOfGod #BornAgain #Gospel #JesusSaves #ChildOfGod #Redemption #Heaven #BloodOfJesus #WalkWorthy #TruthOfGod

This powerful exploration of faith challenges us to move beyond a superficial understanding and embrace what it truly means to walk by faith in a culture saturated with unbelief. Drawing from Hebrews 11 and the story of Joshua and Caleb in Numbers 13-14, we discover that faith isn't about denying reality or pretending problems don't exist. Instead, biblical faith acknowledges the giants in the land while choosing to trust in God's character and promises anyway. We learn that faith is anchored not merely in Scripture as words on a page, but in the very person of God himself—His faithfulness, His goodness, His unchanging nature. The message beautifully addresses the wounds many of us carry from misapplied faith teaching, reminding us that a walk of faith isn't a perfect walk. The heroes of faith in Hebrews 11—Noah, Abraham, Moses, David—all had significant flaws and failures, yet God commended them because despite their struggles, they continued to trust Him. Faith pleases God because it says, 'Even when I don't see, even when I don't understand, I choose to trust You.' This isn't about having more faith, but about placing our faith in the right person. Like Abraham who left everything without knowing his destination, we're called to step out based on what God has spoken to our hearts, understanding that faith is an outward demonstration of an inward relationship with our Creator.

Romans Vol. 1 - Coming Under Grace Abraham's life shows us that the Bible is ultimately about God's grace, not simply moral lessons about better behavior. Yet Abraham still serves as an example of obedient faith, trusting God's promises even when they seemed impossible. Sermon Preached by Chris Lewis on May 10, 2026 Foothill Church exists to glorify God by living as disciples of Jesus who make disciples of Jesus. https://foothill.church Learn about our For the Sake of His Name 2-Year Discipleship Journey: https://foothill.church/FTSOHN

God's promises often come with a waiting period. Like Abraham, you might face impossible odds and long delays, but doubt cannot cancel what God has spoken. Discover how to hold fast to your faith and trust that what He said, He will absolutely do today.

Blessing is a major theme in Scripture, appearing over 500 times. The Hebrew barak and Greek makarios point beyond material wealth to a life flourishing in God's will. God's desire to bless is ultimately revealed in Jesus Christ, who breaks every curse. In Deuteronomy 28, obedience brings blessing and disobedience brings hardship, as seen in Israel's exile. Yet hope remains: Isaiah 40–66 promises restoration, pointing to the Messiah and a new era of righteousness— “the year of the Lord's favour” (Isaiah 61:2), calling people from captivity to expectation.1. Move Past Your Past Into a New Future (Isaiah 62:10; 2 Corinthians 5:17)“Pass through the gates” calls for a decisive break from the past and a step into God's promises. Like Abraham and the disciples, following God means leaving the old behind. In Christ, we are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), so stepping into blessing requires releasing past regrets and embracing a renewed mindset—looking forward with faith and openness to growth.2. Prepare for What's Ahead (Isaiah 62:10; Isaiah 40:3–4)“Prepare the way” points to inner transformation: the low are lifted, the proud humbled, and the broken restored. God uses seasons of preparation—often through waiting—to shape character and readiness, as seen in Joseph's life. These seasons are purposeful, not wasted.3. Focus on What Needs Building Up (Isaiah 62:10)“Build up the highway” calls for intentional growth—deepening faith through prayer and Scripture, strengthening families, stewarding resources wisely, and investing in community. Both personal and shared spiritual growth create a pathway for greater impact.4. Remove Obstacles to Blessing (Isaiah 62:10; Ephesians 4:22–24, 31)“Remove the stones” means addressing what hinders growth—unforgiveness, sin, and harmful influences. Scripture calls us to put off the old self and embrace the new, clearing the way for freedom and God's work to flow.5. Engage in God's Big-Picture Mission (Isaiah 62:10–11; Acts 1:8)“Raise a banner for the nations” shifts focus from personal blessing to global purpose. God's people are called to share the message of Christ, carrying hope to others. Blessing is meant to overflow into mission.Conclusion: Taking Hold of New BlessingsIsaiah 62:10 outlines a clear pathway into God's blessing: move forward from the past, prepare the heart, build what matters, remove obstacles, and embrace God's mission. God desires to work both in and through His people, leading them into greater purpose and fruitfulness. Stepping into these blessings requires intentional decisions and faith, trusting that God's plans are good and that He is leading into a future marked by growth, impact, and His favour. 

In Matthew's very Jewish-oriented account we have seen Jesus lauded as the coming King, we have seen the builders reject the cornerstone, and today we will see the Lamb of God who brings a greater Passover and a greater deliverance. Like Abraham's firstborn, the Son of God is offered to God as a sacrifice, but he also the substitute offered so that we might live. A Jewish audience would have heard and understood all the parallels to Psalm 22, and recalled from Isaiah that the wounds of the suffering servant bring healing. Thankfully, his crucifixion is not the end. Jesus rises from the grave, just as he had said. Matthew 26 – 1:06 .  Matthew 27 – 13:43 .  Matthew 28 – 23:58 .  Psalm 70 – 27:24 . :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by Bobby Brown, Katelyn Pridgen, Eric Williamson & the Christian Standard Biblefacebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

Your faith is a bridge to the miraculous. Like Abraham, see it, say it, and walk in it until the impossible becomes your testimony!

Read OnlineJoseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home…” Matthew 1:19–20In Jewish tradition, righteousness meant living in full conformity with God's covenant. This included keeping the Law of Moses, but also having faith in the Lawgiver—God. One does not become righteous by external observance of the Law alone, but by faith in God. Recall that “Abram put his faith in the LORD, who attributed it to him as an act of righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). Saint Paul explains that Abraham was righteous because “He did not doubt God's promise in unbelief; rather, he was empowered by faith and gave glory to God and was fully convinced that what he had promised he was also able to do” (Romans 4:20–21). Noah was also identified as righteous, because “Noah walked with God” (Genesis 6:9).Today, we honor another man Scripture defines as righteous: Saint Joseph. By calling him righteous, the Gospel associates him with these fundamental Old Testament figures who lived by faith, but it also elevates Joseph above them all, given that his faith bore witness not to the Old Testament Covenant, but to the Messiah. His fidelity to God's call to care for and protect his immaculate spouse and the Christ Child, even at personal cost, is an inspiring witness. It shows us that righteousness is ultimately expressed in sacrificial love and trust in God—trust that brings forth the Savior of the World.Joseph's righteousness is expressed not in words but in actions. He listens to God's angel in a dream and responds with complete trust, taking Mary into his home and embracing his role in the mystery of the Incarnation. Joseph's faith is especially manifested by the fact that what the angel revealed to him and asked him to do was confounding. He was asked to believe that his spouse became pregnant “through the Holy Spirit” and that her Child “will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). Joseph's response manifested faith, courage, and generosity: “When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home” (Matthew 1:24).Joseph emulates the response we must all make to God. Like Abraham, whose faith was tested when God asked the unthinkable, Joseph's faith informed and guided his human reason with the mystery of God's Wisdom. Like Joseph, we are often called to trust God when His plan surpasses our understanding. Whether it involves our vocation, a trial, or an unexpected turn in life, Joseph's example teaches us that faith allows us to see with God's eyes, guiding our reason to respond with trust and obedience. Imitating him takes courage, but like Joseph, we must hear God say to us, “Do not be afraid.” Walking by faith, not by sight, takes courage, fidelity, and resolve.Today's Solemnity especially highlights Joseph's vocation as husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Though he was a carpenter, the primary way he fulfilled his God-given responsibilities was to care for his wife and Child. He did this by providing for them and protecting them, fleeing to Egypt to escape Herod's wrath, and later to Nazareth, far from his hometown of Bethlehem. His fidelity to God's will, especially in taking Mary as his wife, likely brought confusion and misunderstanding from his extended family and associates. Yet Joseph accepted this earthly shame with grace, choosing obedience to God over the opinions of men. For him, God's will came first, and his faith in action was the source of his righteousness.Reflect today on the vocation and mission God has given to you. No matter your calling or life's circumstances, there will always be tests and trials. The true test of our righteousness is not found in the avoidance of trials, but in the way we face them with faith and trust in God. If the Father in Heaven would permit Saint Joseph, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Christ Child to face earthly struggles, then we can be assured of the same. Today, Saint Joseph teaches us how to respond to those trials. Ponder those difficulties that you tend to avoid or complain about, and imitate Saint Joseph by seeking God's mysterious will and following it with all your heart. Saint Joseph, you were righteous because you believed in God's mysterious plan and acted upon it with unwavering faith. Pray for me, that I may imitate your example in my life's vocation. May I never run from my duties, but embrace them with courage, humility, and trust in God's will. Saint Joseph, pray for me. Jesus, I trust in You.Source: Free RSS feed from catholic-daily-reflections.com — Copyright © 2026 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. This content is provided solely for personal, non-commercial use. Redistribution, republication, or commercial use — including use within apps with advertising — is strictly prohibited without written permission.

What happens when we stop waiting on God and try to take control ourselves?In the story of Sarah and Abraham, impatience led to a decision that still echoes through history. Like them, we often want answers and solutions now. But God's way is often the waiting way—and His best work happens in the waiting.When we surrender our “Ishmael moments”—the messes we create in our own strength—God offers His “Isaac promise.” Like Abraham, you are blessed to be a blessing. Every day we hear two voices: our own desires and God's still, small voice. Which will you follow?What are you waiting for today? Trust that God is working—even while you wait.

Rooted in 2 Corinthians 5:7—“For we walk by faith, not by sight”—and the example of Abraham in Hebrews 11, this message centers on one clear truth: I orient my life around the promises of God and I move. Like Abraham, who obeyed without knowing where he was going, we are called to trust God's Word as our guide, draw near to Him, and step forward in faith toward the better homeland He has prepared.

John 15:9-17,As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. 17 These things I command you, so that you will love one another.Christianity is unlike every other religion in a lot of different ways, but one of the biggest differences is that Christianity is not really a religion at all, but it's a relationship.Maybe you've heard that before — ‘Christianity' is more than a religion, it's a relationship. I first heard that phrase years ago during some training about how to share the gospel. In my context at the time, pretty much everybody claimed to be Christians, and that actually made spiritual conversations harder … and really short — because if you started the conversation by asking, “Are you a Christian?”, most people would say Yes. But they were saying Yes to a religion.They were saying that they theoretically believed a few things, tried to behave a certain way, and checked the “Christian box.”But ‘Christianity,' according to the Bible, is much more than all that! At the very center is one's relationship with God — it's a relationship created by God, broken by our sin, and then restored by Jesus for those who believe.So a better way to start a spiritual conversation was to ask someone what they thought of Jesus himself — What do you think of Jesus Christ?What if I asked you that this morning? What would you say?There are a few good and true things that might come to mind — Jesus is Lord; He's King; He's the Savior of the world; He's the Treasure of my heart — all these are true (and they're all relational).But maybe one of the most biblical answers that doesn't come to mind right away is that Jesus calls us his friend.What do you think of Jesus Christ? He calls me his friend. Don't you want to be a friend of Jesus?The goal of this sermon is to tell you how. Looking at this passage in John 15, we're gonna answer the question: How do you become a friend of Jesus?There are three ways. First is this …1. He calls you his friend. (verse 15)This is the first thing we need to see, and it's the most foundational. What we need to understand is that being a friend of Jesus is not a self-declared title. We don't get to ‘up and decide' that we're friends of Jesus anymore than we get to decide that we are friends of LeBron James (the second greatest basketball player of all time). Now you can try to do that, but I don't think you'll get very far … if you flew to Los Angeles, drove to LeBron's neighborhood, and walked up to his gate. You hit the buzzer and say, “Hey, it's [me], I'm a friend of LeBron.” No chance you're getting in. Because the person you say you're a friend of has to claim you as their friend. That's what makes verse 15 so amazing. Look at verse 15. Jesus says:No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. And Jesus just tells us this — we didn't even ask for it — Jesus just tells his disciples, and he tells us, I have called you friends. And by itself, we might not be impressed by this … because we all have our own ideas of friendship, informed by our own experiences. So I'm glad that Jesus doesn't leave the meaning of friend up to us, but he fills it out. He puts it in color. More to the MeaningHe tells us that a friend is different than a servant. And this is where we need to pause for a minute. Jesus says he doesn't call us servants anymore, although we are still his servants. In fact, being a “servant of Jesus” is the most common self-designation of the New Testament writers. The apostle Paul says this about himself five times, and also James, Peter, John, and Jude. They all refer to themselves as servants of Jesus — and they were … we are. So here in verse 15, Jesus is not eliminating the reality of our servanthood, but he is deepening the relationship from his point of view.We are servants and friends — and so how do we hold these together? This was a big question for me … because I talk to Jesus everyday and felt like I needed to sort this out. So consider it like this:When we describe who we are, we rightly say we are servants of Jesus, but when Jesus describes who we are, he says friends. That's the way it should be: We say to Jesus, “I'm your servant.” Jesus says to us, “You're my friend.” And the reason why Jesus says that is in verse 15. It's because a servant doesn't know what his master is doing. A servant has no right to know. A servant just does what he's told.But a friend gets let in on what's going on. And that's one way to think about the whole Farewell Discourse in these chapters. That's what Jesus has been up to on this longest Thursday night ever. He is making known to the disciples all that the Father has made known to him. And he's doing this because he wants to, not because the disciples deserve it. This is verse 16:“You did not choose me, but I chose you.” Jesus, on his own initiative, chose to reveal himself to the disciples.Like Abraham and MosesIn theological terms, this is special revelation: Jesus has revealed God to his chosen disciples. And this is fascinating: because what Jesus does here fits with the ‘friend-of-God concept' in the Old Testament. In the whole Bible, before John 15, there have only been two people who were called friends of God: Abraham and Moses. In Isaiah 41:8, God says of Abraham:But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend; you whom I took from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest seas … I have chosen you ...He hears in that special choosing.And back in Exodus 33:11, we read about how God would speak to Moses at the Tent of Meeting, and verse 11 says, Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.We hear in that revelation.So if we were putting together a theology for friendship with God from the Old Testament, we'd say that Abraham and Moses were called friends of God because they had this special access to God: God chose them and revealed himself to them. And in John 15, Jesus says we're his friend on the same basis — because he specially revealed himself to us. And that's where we are in this new location of redemptive history. This is where Jesus has brought us. To be a Christian means that, like Abraham and Moses, Jesus has brought us on inside. He has let us in on the mind of God! We can know God's thoughts! Because Jesus tells us. And that's why he calls us friends.That's the first and most foundational way you become a friend of Jesus. He calls you his friend.How else do you become a friend of Jesus?2. You abide in his love. (Verse 9)This is clear in verse 9. Jesus says in verse 9: “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.”Now Jesus has already told us to abide in verse 4. In verse 4 it's, “Abide in me.” Here in verse 9 it's “Abide in my love.” Those are not two different things — Jesus is just saying the same thing two different ways. To abide in him is to abide in his love. And for the first time in this Gospel, he tells us something about his love that is truly astounding.It starts with that the Father loves him — and Jesus has been saying this the whole time: John 3:35 — “The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand.”John 5:20 — “For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing.”John 10:17 — “For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life…”One of the clearest messages in this Gospel is that God the Father loves God the Son. It's an eternal, powerful, perfect love beyond human comprehension. We can only marvel … before the foundations of the world, in all of eternity past, in the pure joy of the Holy Trinity, the Father has loved Jesus! We know that. And we also know that Jesus loves us. That's the glorious truth that emerges so clearly in the Farewell Discourse. For last several weeks, we've been hearing from Jesus how much he cares for us. In fact, at the beginning of this long Thursday night, back in Chapter 13, verse 1, John introduces this section by telling us that Jesus, “Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.” Jesus loves us — we know that.So these two things: We know the Father loves Jesus. And we know that Jesus loves us. We know this before verse 9, but in verse 9 this is new: Jesus tells us that he loves us as the Father has loved him. The two things come together. We learn that Jesus's love for us is patterned after, and flows from, the Father's love for him. That eternal, powerful, perfect love the Father has for Jesus is how Jesus loves you and me. And look, let's be honest. We don't really know what that means. We can't comprehend this. It's too much. We can't fully understand this love, but we must abide in it. Jesus says so. Remain in this love. Stay put in this love.Daily Assurance of His LoveIf you do — if you just stay put in the love of Jesus — you will never go wrong. Jesus tells us this, but our own experience often points in same direction.Over the years, I've learned that I get my wobbliest when I lose sight of Jesus's love for me. I'm convinced that the most critical need in my daily experience as a Christian is to be assured of the love of Jesus. I think this is an aspect of how the Spirit ministers the realness of Jesus to us, and I learned this from the apostle Paul … Because in Ephesians Chapter 4, Paul prays for the church — for us — that, according to the riches of God's glory, that God would strengthen us with the Spirit's power to comprehend the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge. That's what Paul says. Paul prays that we comprehend more and more the incomprehensible love of Jesus. That is God's power in our lives.And in my own life, it works out like this … the more I am assured of Jesus's love for me and how much I don't deserve it, then the more I am humbled and filled with joy, and then the more I am poured out in love for others, and then the more I magnify the glory of God. That's my testimony. Any kind of meaningful fruit in my life has come from abiding in the love of Jesus. I know I'm no good for you apart from that. I'm no good for my wife, for my children apart from that. We are all no good for anybody apart from the love of Jesus. Stay put in that love. How to Stay PutBut how exactly? How do I stay put in the love of Jesus? Well, Jesus tells us in verse 10:“If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love.”That's simple enough. And we've already seen some of this back in Chapter 14: that our obedience to Jesus demonstrates our love for Jesus — We learn here that our obedience to Jesus is what it means to abide in him.In other words, abiding in the love of Jesus means we do what Jesus says. And this is not fine print we're supposed to ignore. It's right there, right beside the abiding. If we keep his commandments (if we do what he says), we will abide in his love. These two always come together: salvation and discipleship. And we need to make sure to get this right in how we give Jesus to others. Sometimes, I think in an effort to make Jesus seem more appealing to people, Christians can emphasize his love but downplay his moral demands … as if his moral demands are not part of his love. We gotta understand that Jesus telling us how to live is part of his love for us. He saves us to lead us, not to leave us to ourselves. This is why true faith in Jesus always includes repentance from sin. Faith and repentance are two sides of the same coin. Every time we turn to Jesus, we are turning from something else. And that is always good news. It's always the best thing you can do. And if you're concerned that obedience to Jesus is a burden, just look what he says in verse 11. He says, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”The real question is: Do we want the joy of Jesus, or are we gonna keep chasing the lesser joys of this world?If we want the joy of Jesus, abide in his love, which means doing what he says, which means … he calls us friends. See how this comes together? Verse 10: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love.”Verse 14: “You are my friends if you do what I command you.”Abiding in the love of Jesus (and doing what Jesus says) are one thing — and that's how you become a friend of Jesus.Now, the third way you become a friend of Jesus …3. You love his other friends. A couple of weeks ago we talked about what's in view when Jesus mentions his commandments. It's not just the quotations of Jesus in the Gospels, but the commandments of Jesus are really the entire biblical testimony. It's the whole hog of God's moral will revealed in Scripture which is summarized in love — love for God and love for neighbor. The Bible teaches us to show kindness and goodwill to all people (Matthew 22:37–40; Romans 13:9). This is called neighbor-love. It's all background and baseline to what Jesus says here, and it's important to keep in mind because it helps us understand that the love Jesus is talking about in verse 12 goes a level deeper.And this is one you gotta see. So everybody find verse 12 for a minute and help me out. Chapter 15, verse 12, Jesus says:“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” Our Supernatural LoveSo Jesus has narrowed the object of love and the kind of love it is. The object of love is not all people everywhere — he's not talking about neighbor-love. He's talking about one another.As we've seen back in Chapter 13, this is love for fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. And as for the kind of love we have, Jesus says, is the love he has for us. Which, remember, is the love that the Father has for him.This is dense, but track with what Jesus is saying: Jesus loves us as the Father has loved him. Jesus tells us to love one another as he has loved us! Which means: the love of Jesus for Christians becomes the love of Jesus between Christians. This is next level. The love we share as brothers and sisters in Christ is love that finds its source in the Holy Trinity. It is supernatural love. It literally is not of this world. And that's why divisions in local churches, among Christians, should grieve us. So often it's because we've adopted the world's way of thinking.Framework for DivisionTo help here, let's step back for a minute and I want to give you a framework for how to think about division overall. Think about it in three tiers: there's disagreement, then dispute, then division.Disagreement is simply when we think differently about something (happens all the time). Dispute is when the thing we disagree about merits formal mediation (we need to deliberately talk it out). Division is when you cannot find either agreement or acceptance, and so parties must separate.Got those three categories? Y'all wanna know why our world is so polarized? It's because in our world, every disagreement is automatically a division. Our world just flattens the whole thing. Because why not? Life is more comfortable that way. Where there is no bond of love between people, you don't put up with discomfort — that's the world's way of thinking. And so often — not all the time — but often, when there are divisions in the church, it's because we have adopted the world's mindset. We think our disagreements have more power than the love of the Trinity that we share. We Are a ChurchThis is why the polarization of local churches should grieve us. And it's why we don't do it here.Over the years, we've had people divide from our church because we're not woke and because we're not MAGA. Which is true. We are neither. Because we're a church. … a church.And that means, yes, we stand firm with moral clarity: Abortion is murder. Every human is created in God's image and has wonderful dignity. Marriage is between a man and woman. There are only two sexes, male and female, and they're different. If one's highest allegiance is to anything other than Jesus it's idolatry.None of that's political. They're just facts according to the Word of God, and we believe them like we believe in oxygen.That's part of what it means to be a true church — and it means that we are friends of Jesus. The love we share is Jesus's love for us, which is sacrificial, verse 13 — it's love sacrificial enough to endure disagreement. To bear with one another, forgiving one another as the Lord has forgiven us (see Colossians 3:13).To be a friend of Jesus, it means you love his other friends.Don't you wanna be a friend of Jesus? First, he's gotta call you his friend.Second, you abide in his love (do what he says).Third, you love his other friends.And all these things are true of us only by the power of the Holy Spirit. And that's what brings us to the Table this morning — because where else do friends go?The TableWhat we do here when we eat the bread and drink the cup is often called communion. It's because we are together sharing in our common union to Jesus. We are, at the same time, remembering the death of Jesus for us, and that it's his death that brings us together and keeps us. We are brothers and sisters together of Christ. He calls us friends.And if that's you, if you've trusted in Christ, we invite you to eat and drink with us. His body is the true bread. His blood is the true drink. Let us serve you.

Title: Grieve In Hope Text: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 FCF: We often struggle despairing over death. Prop: Because God will raise His children to life and bring all His elect to Him when He returns, we must not grieve without hope. Scripture Intro: CSB [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. In a moment we will read from the Christian Standard Bible starting in verse 13. You can follow along in the pew bible or in whatever version you prefer. Paul has turned to teaching. He is seeking to build what is lacking in the faith of the Thessalonians. He spent the first three chapters defending their visit and the experience that these Thessalonian believers had in receiving the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit. But now, he turns to application for them. The rest of the book is designed to fulfill his benediction prayer. That they would become blameless in holiness. He revealed at the beginning of chapter 4 that God's will for His people is that they become more and more holy, different, set apart. He has already addressed two areas in their life that they can be holy. First, their sexual ethic and second their love for other believers. Today, Paul will broach the topic… of death. How can we be different than the world when it comes to the concept of death? Please stand with me to focus on and give honor to the Word of God as it is read. Invocation: Most gracious and loving Lord. We thank You that You are sovereign over life and death. That not even a bird falls without your knowledge and will. Although death is not an original part of your creation, and although it has always been a punishment for sin, it does not have power over You and Your will. Though Satan is said to wield its power, he does this by Your will and by Your permission, so that all things are according to Your immutable and sovereign decree. We thank You for these truths because they help us to establish a proper understanding of death so that we can be a people who are holy because we are filled with hope. Transform us Lord by Your promises and power, we pray this in Jesus' name, Amen. Transition: [Slide 2] “Our friends bring us to the grave and leave us there, but God will not.” Anonymous “At the close of every obituary of His believing children God adds the word… henceforth!” A.W. Tozer “We are more sure to arise out of our graves than out of our beds.” Thomas Watson “The resurrection and the judgment will demonstrate before all worlds who won and who lost. We can wait.” A.W. Tozer Ponder these wonderful words as we consult the text of scripture today. I.) The dead in Christ will be raised first, so we must not grieve without hope. (13-16) a. [Slide 3] 13 - We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, concerning those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. i. The CSB is unlike many modern translations of this verse in that it does not include some sort of conjunction to begin this verse. ii. Either “but” or “now” are appropriate. But deciding on which is difficult. The CSB leaves it untranslated to accommodate both options. iii. Either way, Paul is clearly moving to a new topic, but we should not think for one moment that Paul's words here have nothing to do with what he's been saying since the didactic shift in the letter which began in chapter 4. iv. Paul is certainly still teaching about God's desire for His children to become more and more holy. To be more and more different. v. Up to this point in the letter, in almost everything he has written Paul has continued to say, “as you know”, or “as you remember”, or “as you witnessed”, or “as we commanded you…” 1. Most of what Paul has said in this letter has been things that the evangelists clearly taught the Thessalonians while they were in Thessalonica. 2. But Paul opens this section expressing his desire that they not be uninformed. 3. This is the first time in the letter where Paul is about to instruct them on something that either he and his companions did not give to them, or something that the Thessalonians had somewhat misunderstood as proven by the report from Timothy. 4. Paul doesn't want them to be ignorant of this teaching or misinformed. vi. The expression, “those who are asleep” is a euphemism for people being dead. 1. This is a fairly common expression at this time to refer to someone who has died. It is similar to our expression “passing away.” It is a euphemism to soften the blow of the reality. 2. Whatever they got wrong or do not know concerns those who have died. vii. Paul hopes that by sharing this teaching with them that they will not grieve death the same way that those outside the church grieve death. viii. And then he specifically calls out how unbelievers grieve death. They grieve without hope. 1. The common view in the first century was that once you were dead, you stayed that way. There really was no returning from death. 2. Theocritus, a Greek writer and poet once said, “Hopes are for the living; the dead are without hope.” 3. And although there were few who believed that the soul did endure beyond death – there was certainly no returning or resurrection. 4. And even those who did believe in the soul's enduring past death, would not have hope in any way according to Paul's perspective. ix. So, Paul wants them to be different. To be set apart. To be holy in the way they grieve those who have died. x. That is his application. xi. But so far, it lacks a reason. It lacks the doctrinal foundation to expect this conclusion. xii. Why should the Thessalonians grieve differently than unbelievers who grieve without hope. b. [Slide 4] 14 - For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, in the same way, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. i. Paul states this with a conditional “if” clause, not to question whether or not the Thessalonians believed this, but as a rhetorical device. 1. If I said, “if we aren't fools, we will trust the Lord.” I'm not actually suggesting that we are fools. It is a rhetorical expression designed to move the audience to adopt a belief. 2. In a similar way, Paul says “if we believe that Jesus died and rose again” which should generate a hearty amen from his audience. Why? a. The core of Christian doctrine must include two key concepts of Jesus' life on earth. b. That He died and that He rose again. c. Obviously, there is much more to it than that – but these two truths form the crux for every redemptive discussion and argument that has ever been had in the church and against those outside it. d. Jesus died. Jesus, The Second person of the Godhead, died. He was truly human because gods don't die. But Jesus did. e. Jesus rose again, the man Jesus of Nazareth came back to life at the will of God, by His own authority, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. He was truly God because no human comes back from the dead. f. The promises made to Jesus in the covenant of redemption, are then applied to His bride in the covenant of grace. g. What does this mean? h. That what Jesus has been rewarded with by fulfilling His covenant obligations to the Father – has been applied to us by grace. 3. So, since this is such a rudimentary teaching of the gospel which they should heartily accept, then they must see the next thing Paul teaches as an obvious and true teaching. 4. So, what is that teaching? ii. Paul says that in the exact same way that Jesus died and rose again, so also, through Jesus' redemption, the dead will be raised to life and will be brought with Jesus when He returns. iii. Paul already mentioned in chapter three that Christ will bring all His saints with Him when He returns. iv. So how do the dead eventually join the living and how do we come WITH Jesus when He returns if the dead are dead and we are alive. Death and life form a chasm that cannot be easily crossed, right? c. [Slide 5] 15 - For we say this to you by a word from the Lord: We who are still alive at the Lord's coming will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. i. Paul is clearly teaching something new here as he begins this with the assurances that what he is about to say is directly from Jesus' mouth. 1. Scholars debate ad-nauseum as to what exact reference Paul is making. 2. There doesn't seem to be an exact one to one teaching in the gospels from Christ's lips. 3. Some say that this is a collected tradition of Christ's teachings. a. But that is unlikely because that is true of everything Paul taught. b. Why would he call it out here specifically as a word from the Lord? 4. Some say that this may have been something that Christ taught Paul directly when he was “caught up into the third heaven” during his time in the Arabian desert after he was converted in the city of Damascus. a. The obvious difficulty here is that if this is true, there is no way to verify it. b. Paul alone was caught up, no one was with him. 5. So, although there is no one to one, perhaps we should look for something that looks close to what Paul says here. 6. [Slide 6] The closest thing we have is in Matthew 24:30-31. Let's look at that together. a. We see a correlation here to what Jesus said and now what Paul says in this verse and the next. b. Still in this text Christ Himself does not overtly teach that the dead in Christ be raised up. c. So how would Paul arrive at this interpretation assuming he is referencing this teaching of Christ? i. Paul, as we might recall, was a Pharisee. ii. A Pharisee believes in miracles, the resurrection, and a strict interpretational philosophy concerning the Word of God. iii. And as we learned in our study of Acts, most of the practices and teachings associated with the Pharisees Party are actually compatible with the Christian church. iv. A Pharisee's interpretation of Christ's words about gathering His elect from the four winds, would include both the living and the dead. Because it must. All the dead have a future resurrection. To life or to second death. 7. And perhaps this is what is going on in Thessalonica. a. Perhaps Paul taught these words of Jesus to the Thessalonians and either he was not able to fully explain it, or they misunderstood and thought either that the dead in Christ would miss Christ's return to rule on earth and be raised up later for the final judgment, or perhaps even more dire, they assumed that the dead in Christ would miss everything. Meaning they would not be in the New Kingdom at all. b. This would be a blend of the pagan view of the finality and hopelessness of death with the concepts of Christianity. c. The second option in particular would be a good explanation for why the Thessalonians were grieving without hope. d. If you die before Christ returns – you miss out on the Eternal Kingdom entirely? e. Oof. It makes Paul's later words “to live is Christ and to die is gain” a sad joke. 8. So, Paul wishes to correct this by further explaining the words of Jesus. ii. [Slide 7] He explains that not only will God bring the dead believers with Him in the same way Christ was resurrected, but also that the living will not go before them. The dead don't have to catch up to the living. iii. This is already cause for rejoicing. iv. But there is, no doubt, the lingering question of how. v. How will it be possible for Christ to come with all His saints and yet the living not precede the dead in joining Him in the air? What is the sequence of events? vi. Now Paul quotes Jesus' words and adds a bit of teaching. d. [Slide 8] 16 - For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel's voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. i. Paul explains that Jesus Himself will descend from heaven, keeping the prediction the angels made when Christ ascended, that he would return in the same way he left. ii. But this time a shout of command, the archangel's voice and the trumpet of God will accompany His return. iii. This seems to be a very public return. Not a quiet and secret one. iv. This seems to be a return in victory. v. In that moment as the Lord descends, the dead in Christ will rise from the dead. vi. Now Paul doesn't elaborate on the resurrected bodies being new bodies. He doesn't give us the mechanics of resurrection. This isn't the problem he is addressing. vii. It is merely the fact of the resurrection of dead Christians that Paul is pointing out. And the timing of that event is concurrent with the Lord's return. viii. The shout, the archangel's voice, and God's trumpet will literally raise dead Christians to life. e. [Slide 9] Summary of the Point: So, Paul desires to convey two concepts of truth regarding those who have died in Christ and their fate in reference to the second coming of Christ. The first point he makes is that the dead in Christ will not be left out. In fact, they will be resurrected. The shout of victory, the voice of the archangel, and the trumpet of God will announce the coming of Christ the Victor, and as He taught, He will gather His elect from the four corners of the world. And the dead in Christ… will rise. Because sleeping believers will not be left out, and will be resurrected at Jesus' return, we should not grieve their passing without hope. Transition: [Slide 10 (blank)] So, the dead in Christ will be raised at Jesus' return. But what is the second point that Paul makes to encourage believers to not grieve their deaths without hope? II.) The whole Bride of Christ will be snatched up to meet and always be with Him, so we must not grieve without hope. (17-18) a. [Slide 11] 17 - Then we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. i. Paul now turns his attention off of those who have died in Christ and focuses on those who are still among the living. ii. Those who are alive when the Lord returns, who are left will then be caught up together with those who were formerly dead. iii. The word caught up means to be snatched. The idea is not one of action by the one being snatched. It simply happens to them. The Lord comes and snatches up His own from the four winds. iv. All of us are going to meet the Lord in the air… together. v. And it is at this very moment that all of the bride of Christ will assemble together with their Groom and no matter what eschatological system you adhere to, all of them teach the same thing that Paul says here. vi. From that moment on, the bride will never be separated from the groom. vii. We will be with Christ locally and in glorified bodies, forever. viii. So not only will the dead rise at Christ's return, the living will be snatched up with them to meet Christ in the air and be with Him from that moment onward. b. [Slide 12] 18 - Therefore, encourage one another with these words. i. The word “therefore” encompasses the entire teaching that Paul has just relayed. ii. What is that in quick summary? 1. The dead in Christ will not be left out. 2. In fact, they will rise first and then with the living, we will all be caught up to meet the Lord in the air and come with Him when He returns to judge and set up His eternal Kingdom. 3. And from the moment we all meet Him in the clouds – we will never be apart from Him again. iii. Therefore, we do not have to grieve with no hope for those who die. iv. Because we will meet them again, and they will not miss out on the blessings of the eternal kingdom, nor do we have to fear death as though we will miss the kingdom ourselves. v. This is truly a comfort and a peace to us. vi. Death then, has truly lost its sting. vii. Death has died in the death of Christ. viii. Let us rejoice that He has freed us from the tyranny of sin and the finality of death. ix. We are the ones who live. Because Christ lives in us. c. [Slide 13] Summary of the Point: And so, Paul brings a second point. Not only will the dead in Christ rise first, but then we all, as one bride, will be snatched up together with Christ in the air and never be separated from Him again. Therefore, we must be holy and not grieve like unbelievers do without hope. There is always hope in Christ. Conclusion: So, what have we learned today that informs and corrects our beliefs and guides and shapes our lifestyles? Basics of Faith and Practice: [Slide 14] Paul seeks to correct a misunderstanding in this passage. He does so with new teaching designed to bring comfort and encouragement to the Thessalonian church. Paul teaches that when Jesus returns, at that event the dead in Christ will be resurrected. Not only will they rise, but together with the living, all the elect from the four corners of the world will be snatched up into the air to meet Jesus as He descends. And from that moment, in the air, all the saints of God will never be separated from Christ. With this new information, there is no reason to grieve the death of a believer without hope. Indeed, death is gain for the believer. So, what does all this mean for us as 21st century Christians? 1.) [Slide 15] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must affirm that the dead in Christ will be raised at Christ's return. a. Paul is the champion of this teaching, as he writes about it in several of his letters. b. But this teaching is not merely Pauline. c. John, Peter, the writer of Hebrews, and Jesus Himself talk about a resurrection for all people including believers. d. John specifically talks about, what he calls, the first resurrection in Revelation 19. This is when those who have suffered for the name of Christ will be raised to life at Jesus' return. e. All of this tells us that those who are genuine believers, who have received Christ and been united to Him by faith, when they die, it is not the end. When they die, they won't miss anything the Lord has planned. f. Instead, they will be resurrected when the Lord returns and join all the living believers who will be snatched up to be with Christ. g. John says, blessed is the one who participates in the first resurrection, because the second death has no power over them. h. Blessed indeed! i. Hallelujah! What a Savior! 2.) [Slide 16] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must affirm that all of Christ's Bride will be snatched away together to be with Christ forever. a. Not only will dead believers be raised for the glorious coming of Christ – but living believers will no longer be parted from their company or the company of Christ, from that moment on. b. Humanity has known one constant since we were forced from the garden of Eden. c. The constant of death. d. Everything, everyone… dies. e. And no one… NO ONE comes back from death. f. In the scriptures we are told of a few people who were resurrected from death and a couple people who did not die at all. g. But these are the exceptions that prove the rule. h. Everyone dies. And no one comes back from death. i. But Christ's death and resurrection changes all of that. j. Christ is called the firstborn of the resurrection. He kept the covenant of redemption and was rewarded with the blessings of keeping that covenant, which included His resurrection and ascension to be Lord of all. k. And those who are united to Him by the covenant of grace, are also inheritors of His rewards. l. We too, will be resurrected. m. And because of that, all those who have died in Christ will join us in the air when Christ returns. n. They won't miss a thing. o. When Christ comes as a groom for His bride, the dead and the living will go to Him. Even death will not prevent His bride from going to Him. For He will snatch us up. p. In what is probably the biggest mic drop moment in human history… A shout of command will sound. The voice of one of the seven archangels will cry out. And God's royal trumpet of victory will resound. And everyone who belongs to Christ… will go to Him. q. And here is the kicker. r. From that moment on… We will never know separation from each other or from Christ… EVER AGAIN! s. Hallelujah! What a Savior! 3.) [Slide 17] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don't naturally do or aren't currently doing?” We must be holy in how we view death. a. This is the overarching principle that we must observe in this text. b. Paul is not establishing an Eschatological system. He is trying to comfort believers who, ultimately, have an inaccurate understanding of death. c. Indeed, they see death as final. They see no hope in death. d. And so, this one application of being holy in how we view death has two specific applications that comprise it. e. One practice we must stop and one practice we must start. f. [Slide 18] De-Exhortation: “What actions should we stop doing” or “What behaviors do we naturally practice that this passage tells us to stop doing?” We must stop fearing death if we are genuine Christians. i. We don't desire death. Survival is a natural instinct that God has programmed into all creatures. ii. We don't wish to die, and the threat of death is powerful. iii. Death hanging over us changes the way we live. iv. We don't take unnecessary risks. There is a reason that peace protesters do their protesting on safe soil and not at the front lines of war. v. A healthy survival instinct is good and natural. vi. But, our culture has come to worship death. vii. What I mean by that is that death is a vengeful god that we all try to placate. viii. We offer up our unborn children to it in exchange for comfort and financial peace. ix. We give our money to it to preserve our looks and our bodies. x. We give our time and energy to it to exercise and hold it at bay. xi. The general view of death by westerners is that we should do everything we can to make sure it doesn't come looking for us. xii. This should NOT be how Christians view death. xiii. We should form our view of death based on what the scriptures teach us about it. xiv. And what do they teach? 1. Death has lost its sting because of what Christ has purchased for us. 2. When we are absent from the body in death, we are present with the Lord in life. 3. For us to live is Christ but to die is gain. 4. Death is not the end for any man, all will be resurrected. 5. And ultimately it is not the first death that any man should fear. It is the second death that must be avoided at all costs. Any who join the first resurrection, will not be harmed by the second death. 6. All of Christ's bride will be alive and meet Him in the air when He returns. Meaning the dead in Christ… will be raised. xv. Christians do not seek death. We still take steps to preserve our life. xvi. But not at all costs. And not if it forces us to abandon or disobey our King. xvii. Therefore, Christians view death as the last great trial that God has for all of us. The last great suffering that we must endure, before we will suffer… no… more. xviii. Death then… is merely a hurdle in the race that our King has set out before us. And when He jumped over it… He knocked it down. He has made it a guarantee for all His elect, that they will not stay dead. xix. We don't fear death. But we look with faith and hope at what awaits us behind death's door. xx. And the second part of having a holy view of death is… g. [Slide 19] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don't naturally do or aren't currently doing?” We must grieve the death of believers, with hope. i. This passage in no way teaches us that we must not grieve the death of believers. ii. There is a big movement in evangelical circles to replace funerals of believers with memorials celebrating the life and promotion of someone to glory. iii. I believe that this is, unfortunately, a slight overcorrection on our part. iv. It is entirely appropriate to grieve the death of a believer. v. How do I know that? vi. Jesus wept over Lazarus… even though He knew that in a short time He Himself would raise Lazarus from the dead, and would eventually raise Lazarus again when He returned. vii. Even though we know that death is merely a door we must go through in eternal life, it is entirely appropriate for Christians to mourn their loss of another Christian. viii. We can, and should grieve the death of Christians. ix. Why? x. Because death is not natural. Death is a symptom of sin. Both in the world and even in the one who died. Physical death is a constant reminder that mankind… is fallen. xi. We grieve death as a billboard showing us that this is NOT the eternal state. THIS ISN'T HOW IT IS SUPPOSED TO END. xii. But we do so with hope. xiii. Hope of what? xiv. The resurrection and future eternal Kingdom of God. xv. In this way we can celebrate that one day we will see these dead believers again and then, when we see them again, we'll also be with Jesus and we will never be absent from either ever again. xvi. So we grieve the loss of believers… but with hope that this is merely goodbye for now. 4.) [Slide 20] Refutation: “What lies must we cast down” or “What do we naturally believe, or have been taught to believe, that this passage shows is false?” We must deny the doctrine of soul sleep. a. Seventh Day Adventists and Jehovah's witnesses take this passage and neglect to do any historical analysis at the idea of sleep. Instead, they read into this a doctrine that is nowhere taught in the scriptures. b. The doctrine of soul sleep. c. Well what is soul sleep? I'm glad you asked. d. Soul sleep is exactly what it says. The idea is that the soul of dead believers enters into a spiritual sleep where their souls unconsciously wait until the Lord returns. e. Then they will be awoken and rejoined with their bodies. f. Unfortunately, this is not taught in scripture and actually there are some teachings in the scripture which refute this teaching. g. The scriptures teach that although the body dies, the soul endures consciously in a specific location. h. No matter what the Disney movies say - You can't keep the dead alive in your heart. They aren't looking down on you and watching over you. And they aren't a spirit visiting you either. i. The scriptures teach us that the only spirits that are active in this world are angels, devils, and God. All spirits of men are ushered to a place called, Sheol, hades, hell, or the realm of the dead. j. And as the New Testament Scriptures teach – those held there have no way out. k. And as the Old Testament Scriptures reveal, when a witch, who normally contacts an evil spirit who is a medium between the living and the dead, was successful in conjuring a real spirit from such a place– SHE WAS SHOCKED! She wasn't expecting the spirit of a once living human. She was expecting something else entirely. l. In one sense, the old pagan notion is true. No one escapes from death. m. But Jesus did. And he took all His people with Him. n. The Apostles' Creed tells us that Jesus descended into hell. o. 2 Peter tells us that He did this to preach to the captives. Meaning that Christ went to the realm of the dead to proclaim His victory over death. He then led all the Old Testament saints out of the place called paradise and took them to heaven with Him. p. This is why Paul says that we are absent from the body and present with the Lord. q. Those who are in Christ inherit the blessing of skipping the realm of the dead to be with God until they are resurrected and reunited with their bodies. r. Which means… that the idea of soul sleep is inconsistent with the scriptures. s. The scriptures clearly teach us that when we die, what sleeps is our bodies. Not our souls. Our souls, consciously join God in heaven, or consciously endure torment in Sheol. t. And all the dead consciously await the day when body and soul will be reunited. The first resurrection to be perfected and to reign with Christ and the second resurrection to be judged and cast into the lake of fire which is the second death. 5.) [Slide 21] Comfort: “What comfort can we find here?” or “What peace does the Lord promise us in light of this passage of scripture?” Jesus will not lose a single sheep that the Father has given to Him. a. If God is absolutely sovereign over life, death, and the redemption of souls… do we expect Him to allow us to slip into death and through the grasp of Christ? b. Can God be surprised by the death of one of His children? c. If Death did not keep His Son from Him – what makes us think that death is some unfortunate accident He did not expect or even plan for us. d. Every person is appointed to death once. Then to face judgment. e. And Jesus said, that of all the sheep that God gave to Him, He will not lose even 1. f. Death cannot separate us from the love of God. Indeed, death is gain for those who believe. g. Hallelujah! What a Savior! 6.) [Slide 22] Evangelism: “What about this text points us to Jesus Christ, the gospel, and how we are restored?” Without Christ, you have no hope in death. There is only despair since death is a door to eternal death. a. Let me make this abundantly clear. b. For believers, death is a necessary door on the path of eternal life. c. We are resurrected with Christ's return and the power of the second death will not touch us. d. But for you who are not a follower of Jesus – friend, this life is the best you have. There is nothing else for you. e. When you exit this life, your existence becomes one of temporary conscious torment for your soul. f. And this temporary torment will only be interrupted by the sudden reuniting of your body and soul. But your eyes will open and behold the Lion of Judah upon His throne in all His glory. g. The same King that you rejected in this life, that you mocked, that you ignored, that you said you believed in but never served – that same Jesus will preside over your hearing. h. He will call for the books which record all the works of your life whether they are good or evil. i. They will all be laid out before you. j. And though you were a kind, generous, loving person… none of these good deeds will be enough to make up for what seems like an endless list of counts of treason against a holy God. k. The scriptures tell us that everyone who is judged by their works will be found guilty. l. Your brief reprieve from torment, to face judgment, will then be over. And you will be cast into what the scriptures describe as the second death. The lake which burns with fire. And so you shall remain in conscious and eternal torment for all eternity. m. Why? n. Because the body that you were reunited to, was made to endure such agony without ever being consumed. o. My friends… without Christ – you have NO HOPE in death. There is only more death. p. I beg you. I plead with you. I appeal to you friend. Turn from your sin. Forsake it. And cry out to God for mercy. That He might apply the benefits of Christ's obedience to you. That you might be His child. q. If this is your desire today – I'd advise you to stop someone, anyone here today and seek their counsel on how to be God's child. [Slide 23 (end)] Let me close with a prayer by the Puritan Richard Baxter. Send forth your convoy of angels for my departing soul, and let them bring it among the perfect spirits of the just. Let me follow my dear friends that have died in Christ before. And when my friends are crying over my grave, let my spirit be with you in rest. You who numbers the hairs of my head, number all the days that my body lies in the dust. Hasten, O my Savior, the time of your return. Send forth your angels, and let that dreadful, joyful trumpet sound. Do not delay, or the living could give up their hope. Do not delay, or this earth could grow to be like hell, and your church by divisions be crumbled to dust. Do not delay, or your enemies could take advantage of your flock. Or pride, hypocrisy, sensuality, and unbelief could prevail against your remnant, and when you came you might not find faith on the earth. Do not delay, lest the grave should boast of victory. O hasten that great resurrection day, when your command will go forth, and none will disobey. That day when the sea and earth yield up their hostages, and all that sleep in the grave awake, and the dead in Christ arise. That day when the corruptible seed that you sowed comes forth incorruptible. I entrust myself not to a grave, but to you. My flesh will rest in hope, until you raise it to the everlasting rest. Return, O Lord! How long? Let your kingdom come! Your desolate bride says come, for your Spirit within her says come-the one who teaches her to pray with groanings which cannot be expressed. The whole creation says come, waiting to be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. And you yourself have said, surely I come. Amen, even, so come, Lord Jesus. We pray this in His name… Amen. Benediction: May your eyes see the king in his beauty That you might view a land that stretches afar; Like Abraham, who looked to a city, Whose architect and builder is God. Until we meet again, possibly in the clouds, go in peace.

Believers can know, by faith, that our sins are forgiven, we are born again, our eternity is guaranteed, and we are being conformed to the image of Christ. The post Rescued, Part 5: Faith Like Abraham appeared first on Reston Bible Church.

Worship means different things to different people. It's a religious thing. It's singing songs.  It's a concert with a light show. It's well, who knows what.  But the question we need to ask ourselves, is what exactly does worship mean to God?   We All Worship Something Well it's great to be with you again this week and we are starting a new series on the programme that I've called, "Worship as a Way of Life". When we hear the word "worship", well, what does it mean? And people who don't have any particular faith in God, it's something, well, those religious people over there in churches or in temples do. Maybe it's candles and incense or something that happens over there somewhere not something that I do. And for some Christians, well, that's what we do on Sunday morning at church before the sermon, we sing songs – that's our worship time. I guess both of those would be true in part, but the notion of worship, from where God sits, is so much bigger and broader than that – not some religious ritual, not just some musical event. When we worship someone or something, we put it above all other things – we pay homage to it. In fact, it directs our lives – we'll sacrifice other things, even though those things are very dear to us, for the sake of the person or the thing that we worship. We all worship something – I mean, I used to worship money and success and recognition. It was the thing that my whole life was centred on and ordered around. I sacrificed my health, my family, my rest, everything for these things that I worshipped and actually, when you look back on it, I was really worshipping myself. We can all look at our lives and ask, "what's at the centre of the life? I mean, what's right up there at the top? Who or what do I worship?" And we know the answer to that when we look at the sacrifices we make for that thing and ask ourselves, really and truly, who or what am I making these sacrifices for? What's at the centre of my life – is it career, is it my family? I mean, honestly ask ourselves, "what is at the centre of my life?" Look at the sacrifices and that's who or what we are actually worshipping. Now we all have different elements to our lives. Obviously, we need to make some sacrifices sometimes. The whole thing of being a parent is sacrificing for our children. And sure, some times at work we have to make sacrifices. But if we get those out of balance – I mean, you see parents who self-actualise through their children; through their children's dancing or through their children's academic achievement and all of a sudden it's completely out of balance. Some people sacrifice their whole lives to their jobs and lose their families – I know what that's like. And so there is a balance and there is a right way of sacrificing to different things but if we take just one thing and get it out of whack, day after day, month after month, we sacrifice and sacrifice and this one thing rises above all of those other things, then chances are that's what we are worshipping. The notion of sacrifice is an essential part of worship – it's not new. The very first time that worship is mentioned in the Bible is in Genesis, chapter 22 and verse 5. Abraham was promised by God a son and ultimately, after many, many years he had that son, Isaac, but Abraham had to go through a lot of trials and a lot of uncertainty over a quarter of a century before finally, in his old age, this son, Isaac, was born to him. And so not surprisingly, when Isaac finally arrives, Abraham dotes on this kid – I mean, absolutely dotes on him – because here was the fulfilment of God's promise. He never thought it would happen – he never thought he would have an heir, but God was faithful and God gave him his son, Isaac, with his wife Sarah. But God saw that Abraham was starting to put Isaac before God, Himself and so He called on Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. Can you imagine that - to take him and put him on an altar and put him to death? What an incredibly painful thing to do? And on that morning when they journeyed to where God had called them – out to that place – Abraham said to his servants, "Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we'll come back." Can you imagine the tussle that was going on in Abraham's heart? Is God first in my life or is Isaac first in my life? Do I put Isaac before God? Is it God or my son? See we think we are worshipping God sometimes but when we look at our lives and ask some hard questions like 'How do I spend all my time? How do I spend my money? How do I spend my energies? How to I spend my passions? Where are my dreams? Like Abraham we can get a real shock. Let's read on, the rest of the story – pick it up at Genesis, chapter 22 and verse 6. "Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son, Isaac and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on, Isaac spoke up and said to his father, Abraham, "Father," "Yes, my son," Abraham replied, "The fire and the wood are here," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" Abraham answered, "God Himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on. When they reached the place that God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son, Isaac and laid him on the altar on the top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took his knife to slay his son. But an angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, "Abraham, Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said, "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God because you have not withheld from Me your son; your only son." What God was doing here was testing Abraham's heart. Who do you worship, Abraham? Who do you put first in your life? And at the end of this, both God and Abraham knew the answer to that question. "Now that I see you fear God because you have not withheld from Me your son; your only son." Can I ask you quietly, yet deliberately – who or what do you worship? When it comes to the crunch, the one thing on this earth that is most important to you, would you be prepared to lay it down for the Lord your God? All your hopes and dreams and future and life and career – everything – is God exalted above all those other things in our lives? Worshipping God is about adopting a "God above all" position in every part of our lives. Singing songs of worship is great but do we bow down our lives before God? Do we put God before anything or anyone else in our hearts? Do we worship God? When you look at the Ten Commandments – look at the very first one in Exodus, chapter 20 verse 2, it says: I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt; out of the land of slavery. You will have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them and worship them for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God. Now, would the first Commandment be about singing songs? No! The first Commandment is about who we put first – it's about "whom" we worship. The question is do we worship God with our lives?   The Heart of Worship The heart is an important place. One of the most common things that's talked about through the Scriptures is the heart - in fact, it is mentioned five hundred and thirty four times. Several times Jesus made the point that who we are on the outside is a reflection of what's going on in our hearts. In Matthew, chapter 12, He says, For out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. And then again in Matthew, chapter 15, Jesus says, "But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart and these are the ones that make a man unclean, for out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander - these are what make a man unclean." See for me, here is the biggest danger in thinking about worship. "Well, I go to church most Sundays, we sing songs, therefore I worship then I go home." It's kind of like saying, "well, I live in the same house and sleep in the same bed as my wife or husband. I peck them on the cheek in the morning before I go to work. Once a week I make sure I tell them 'I love you', therefore, I love them." See how crazy that is? I mean, my wife isn't interested in a ritual. She wants to know, does my husband love me with all his heart and do I see that reflected in the way he lives and acts toward me? That's why Jesus, when He was asked, "What's the most important of all the commandments, answered, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all you soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." In other words, with what's going on inside you and with what you do. This is the first and the greatest commandment. Worship is something that comes from the heart – it's an overflow of what's happening inside us - it lives there first and foremost, and then it's reflected on the outside in our lives. If we just "do" worship once a week, it's a sham. I mean, I've been there, standing in church, singing songs, mind wandering off somewhere else – that's not worship - that's not what God is looking for any more that a quick peck on my wife's cheek is really loving her. Worship comes from the heart – King David knew that. Listen to what he writes in Psalm 24: The earth is the Lord's and everything in it – the world and all who live in it because He founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters. Who may ascend to the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who doesn't lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. See, David is saying here – God created the heavens and the earth and He owns them all and if I want to ascend to the hill of the Lord, which meant, "go to the temple and worship Him", I have to have clean hands and a pure heart. A heart and a life that declare, "I put Jesus first." Look again at Psalm 27, where David writes: One thing I ask of the Lord and this is what I seek – that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and seek Him in His temple. My heart says of You, 'Seek His face'; Your face Lord I will seek. See what's going on here for David? Something is happening in his heart – there's a desire; there's a besottedness; an overwhelming urge just to be with God. I was away recently, travelling with the ministry for almost two weeks. The ministry that God's got me involved in is such a blessing and such a delight but each time I have to leave my wife, for me it's an incredible sacrifice. You see, I love her; I want to be with her. When we go out together, more often than not, we are wandering down the street or through the shopping mall, hand in hand. There's a closeness and a desire; we want to be together. That in a sense is what's going on in David's heart for God. "God, I just want to be close to You. I want to dwell in Your house all the days of my life and gaze on Your beauty and seek You in Your temple. My heart says, 'seek His face', and Your face Lord I will seek." There it is – there's the heart of worship - a holy desire after God Himself – not His blessings, just God. Now sometimes we feel like we have wandered off and we feel dry and we feel like we don't have that desire. We all go there some days, so stick with me because later on in the programme we are going to pray for the Spirit of God to light that flame in our hearts – the heart of worship.   Choosing What is Better We are talking today about making worship a way of life – not just some ritual – not just a few songs that we sing on Sunday. So far what we have seen is worship is about sacrifice and there are two parts to that – what happens in our hearts and how that's reflected in our lives. We are going to talk a whole bunch more about that next week; connecting our faith with our day to day life realities. But I just want to kind of introduce that today with a story of two women, Mary and Martha. If you've got a Bible, grab it and open it up at Luke, chapter 10, verse 38. This is what it says: As Jesus and His disciples were on their way, He came to a village where there was a woman named Martha, who opened her home to Him. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet, listening to what He said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations she had made. She came to Him and asked, "Lord, don't You care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself – tell her to help me?" "Martha, Martha," said the Lord, "You are worried and upset about many things but only one thing is needed – Mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away from her." I don't know what your life looks like, but mine truly has more things in it than I have time to get through. This ministry, Christianityworks, is not just about writing and recording radio programmes – it's all sorts of things. It's seeing radio stations; producing material to go with messages; administration; fund raising; managing people – lots of things. Not to mention home and family and church and friends and rest and relaxation. The danger for me, as with many other people, is you get so busy with the urgent things that we don't have time for the important things. And the important things that we tend to squeeze out of our schedule are relationships. Spending time with people; with family; with our wives and husbands (that's why so many marriages fall apart)and spending time at the feet of Jesus (that's why so many people end up drifting away from God). We delude ourselves – "well, I'm out there; I'm busy; I'm serving God. That's what God wants from me - that's the most important thing. If I don't do all this the world is going to cave in." I'm not suggesting that we become spiritual couch-potatoes and do nothing. But have a listen to what happens here – Jesus comes to the house of Mary and Martha. Now Martha is rushing around cleaning and cooking, because they have a guest after all – the Son of God has come to visit. And her sister, Mary, is just sitting at Jesus' feet, listening – her heart being moved and changed and strengthened and encouraged. She's worshipping Him! Martha says, "that's not fair – she should be helping me." So what does Jesus answer? "Absolutely! Mary, get off your backside; stop being so lazy; go and help." No! He says, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about so many things, but only one thing is needed - Mary has chosen what is better and it won't be taken away from her." Just one thing – a relationship with Jesus! Just one thing – listening to the Word of God! Just one thing – worshipping Jesus! Looking and listening and being overcome with the desire just to sit at His feet. That's the heart of worship – it's a heart to want to bow down and just be with Jesus. The first Commandment of the Ten in Exodus, chapter 20 is about worshipping God before all other things or people or idols or anything else in our lives. When Jesus is asked, "what's the most important thing?" Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind. Are you dry? Are you saying, "I want to do that but I just can't – I feel like God's a million miles away? I hear what you are saying but I don't have that desire in my heart." If that's you right now, we are going to pray. We are going to ask God in the name of Jesus, that He would change that. Come on – let's pray together. Father, You know each one of us - You know where we are - You know the things we go through - You know how we get distracted like Martha with all the cooking and the cleaning and the stuff we have to do in life. Father, forgive us for doing that and forgetting what it is just to sit quietly at Your feet, to listen and to look and to desire and to enjoy You. To have this desire like David, Lord, to just spend time in Your house the rest of our days enjoying Your beauty. Father, forgive us for getting so busy that we have forgotten to do that. And Lord You know that we can't worship You in our own strength. We can't somehow, conjure this up in our hearts. Father, we believe that worship is a gift from You.We believe, Father God, that when we came and accepted Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, You put Your Spirit inside us, that You Yourself have come to dwell in us. Father, we have wandered in these lowlands; in these murky swamps for far too long. We ask that Your Spirit would spark the desire in our hearts. We ask that Your Spirit would give us a heart for worship. And Lord as you change our hearts by Your Spirit, we pray that that will be reflected in our lives. But first Lord, start with our hearts - change our hearts, O God, that we may truly be people of worship. Father, we ask this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Don't get me wrong. I love to go to church and to sing songs and to lift up praises and worship to God. It is one of the most wonderful things – to join together with the people of God in worship. But you know, if our hearts aren't right; if our minds are wandering; if we truly haven't established an intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ, before we walk into that, how can we worship God? This isn't a guilt trip. I believe God is calling each one of us to come back to Him with a heart of worship and just the smallest bit of faith and just the smallest bit of desire is all that God needs to enliven our hearts and our spirits and our minds and our souls to worship Him. To God be all the glory for ever and ever. Amen.

How do we respond to God when he calls us to his mission? We might believe that we have to have a significant résumé or education to be useful to God's purposes. Or we might feel that we have no part in his mission to be worshipped as the only God among all the nations. However, the story of God's call on Abraham challenges us differently. Like Abraham we have to consider how we respond to God's call. This message from Genesis 12:1–3 helps us see God's supply to us in his mission. 

The Advent season invites us into a journey of hope, beginning with understanding what biblical hope truly means. Unlike cultural definitions that suggest wishful thinking, biblical hope represents earnest expectation of good based on God's character and faithfulness. Simeon's story from Luke 2 demonstrates this perfectly - he had received a promise from the Holy Spirit that he wouldn't die before seeing the Messiah, and he waited with confident anticipation rather than passive resignation. Waiting is inherently difficult for humans, especially in our fast-paced world where multitasking has become the norm. However, our brains aren't designed for multitasking - they rapidly switch between tasks, causing mental fatigue and making stillness feel uncomfortable. Yet waiting is the very thing that transforms us when we approach it correctly. Simeon wasn't passive in his waiting; he was actively led by the Holy Spirit and positioned to recognize God's movement. Three essential truths emerge about hope: it's a choice we make rather than a feeling, it must be anchored on something unchanging (Jesus rather than circumstances), and it's fundamentally a relationship with the faithful God who keeps His promises. Like Abraham, who didn't consider his physical limitations but trusted God's supernatural ability to fulfill promises, we must shift our focus from natural circumstances to our supernatural God. This Advent season challenges us to choose the one thing that matters most - Jesus Himself - making this Christmas centered on Him rather than the busyness and distractions that typically consume December.

Sermon Summary: Joshua – Session 11 (Ending the Year Right)   God Calls His People to Possess What He Has Given As the land is divided in Joshua 17–18, God reminds Israel that the inheritance already belongs to them—but they must rise up and take possession. Delayed obedience, fear of opposition, or spiritual passivity keeps believers from fully walking in God's promises. Incomplete Obedience Leads to Future Struggles Some tribes failed to fully drive out the Canaanites, choosing compromise instead of obedience. What is tolerated today often becomes a snare tomorrow. God calls His people to remove what competes with devotion, not manage it. Faith Requires Action, Not Excuses When tribes complained about limited territory, Joshua challenged them to get up and do the work. God had already given them power, but they had to act in faith. Blessing follows obedience, diligence, and courage—not passivity. The Lord Is Our True Inheritance The Levites received no land because the Lord Himself was their inheritance. This points to a greater truth for believers today: our ultimate reward is not earthly security but life with God. Like Abraham, believers are called to live as pilgrims, prioritizing spiritual inheritance over temporary comfort. God Is a Refuge for the Guilty and Broken The cities of refuge reveal God's mercy. Long before sin occurred, God provided a place of safety. These cities foreshadow Jesus Christ as our refuge, where sinners can flee for forgiveness, protection, and restoration. Salvation Must Be Received, Not Ignored A refuge only saves those who run to it. Jesus is God's provision for sin, but each person must choose to enter. Trusting in goodness, effort, or delay is dangerous—Christ alone is the safe place. A Call to Renewed Commitment As the year closes, the sermon challenges believers to: Be honest with themselves Reject spiritual sluggishness Recommit to disciplined faith Place God first without reservation The message closes with hope: when all hope seems lost, the Lord shows up. God remains faithful, and those who trust Him will find safety, purpose, and victory in Him.  

Stepping into the unknown can feel unsettling, especially when God calls us to leave what is familiar and secure. Abraham’s journey in Genesis 12 reminds us that faith often begins without full clarity—only a promise and a calling from God. Like Abraham, we are sometimes asked to trust before we see the outcome, to move forward despite fear, and to depend fully on the Lord. Courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to obey God even when the path ahead is unclear. As we learn to trust God’s faithfulness, He strengthens us to take bold steps of faith into what He has prepared. Main Takeaways You’ll learn why obedience to God often requires courage before clarity. Discover how Abraham’s response to God models faith in uncertain seasons. Understand why fear does not disqualify faith—but can deepen dependence on God. Reflect on how courage grows when we trust God’s promises over our fears. Be encouraged to step forward in faith, trusting that God guides every unknown. Bible Verse References Genesis 12:1 – https://www.biblestudytools.com/genesis/12-1.html Matthew 14:29 (Peter walking on water, referenced) – https://www.biblestudytools.com/matthew/14-29.html Your Daily Prayer Heavenly Father, You know the places in my life where fear and uncertainty hold me back. Give me the courage to trust You fully and follow where You lead, even when I don’t know what lies ahead. Help me release what You are asking me to let go of and step forward in faith, believing Your promises are sure. When fear rises, remind me that You are faithful and always with me. Strengthen my heart to walk boldly in obedience to You.In Jesus’ name, Amen. Want More? Subscribe to Your Daily Prayer for daily encouragement rooted in Scripture. Leave a rating or review to help others discover the podcast. Visit LifeAudio.com for more Christ-centered podcasts. Explore faith-building articles and devotionals at Crosswalk.com and Christianity.com. Relevant Links & Resources Study today’s Scripture passages at:BibleStudyTools.com – https://www.biblestudytools.com Christian living and spiritual growth resources:Crosswalk.com – https://www.crosswalk.comChristianity.com – https://www.christianity.com Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Everyone of us is getting older a day at a time, and there is no stopping the process. People do what they can to preserve their youthfulness, but the passing years still sweep us along until one day it occurs to us we're getting old. How we handle this revelation is one of the most important keys to productivity and happiness in life. Many people don't like to talk about getting older because It reminds them that in the end they'll die. So they live in a constant state of denial, meaning they refuse to let their conscious mind think about such things, while their subconscious mind tries to cope with growing amounts of anger and fear by itself. In Genesis 25:8 a wonderful statement is made about Abraham. It says, "Abraham breathed his last and died an old man and satisfied with life, and he was gathered to his people." The picture is that of a man who's at peace with God and is satisfied that he has accomplished his purpose in life and is not afraid of what's ahead. Like going to sleep, he simply let go and moved on, and there would be few blessings more precious in life than that. Like Abraham, we need to adjust our perspective on life so that we don't have a negative view of getting old, and when it comes time for us to move on, we too will be satisfied with life and gathered to our people. To receive a free copy of Dr. Steve Schell's newest book Study Verse by Verse: Revelation, email us at info@lifelessonspublishing.com and ask for your copy at no charge!  Also check out our website at lifelessonspublishing.com for additional resources for pastors and leaders. We have recorded classes and other materials offered at no charge.

✨ Faith isn't blindness; it's sight beyond sight. Like Abraham and Moses, faith helps us see the invisible hand of God when life makes no sense. When others see impossibility, faith sees promise. Walk today with eyes of faith, and watch the unseen unfold.This devotional was aired on Radio HCI Today via the WeLove Radio App.

A Sermon for All Saints' Day St. Matthew 5:1-12 by William Klock What does it mean to be “blessed”?  In today's Gospel we hear St. Matthew's telling of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount—or the beginning of it, at any rate.  Blessed is this person and blessed is that person.  But what does it mean to be blessed?  And what's Jesus really getting at with this list: being poor in spirit, mournful, meek, merciful, and so on?  And who is the promise of blessing for?  This past Monday I found myself listening to a sermon by one of these woke, “exvangelical” guys whose ministry is about walking people through the deconstruction of their faith.  If you haven't come across it yet, “deconstruction” is a trendy euphemism for apostasy.  You throw away all the bits of Christianity that you can't harmonise with the secular world, leaving behind a gospelless gospel—like the security blanket I had as a toddler.  I wouldn't get rid of it, so my mom slowly cut it down, a little bit at a time until all I had was a little bit of fabric I could hold.  It wasn't a blanket anymore, but for some silly reason I still found security in it.  These folks do that with the gospel.  This preacher was preaching on the Sermon on the Mount and he started out by holding up Mohandas Gandhi as the one man who followed Jesus better than anyone else in the Twentieth Century.  Gandhi heard these words of Jesus and faithfully followed him.  Never mind that he was also a devout Hindu.  This preacher reduced the Sermon on the Mount to a bracing ethic.  It's Jesus teaching us how to be good and, through that, how to make the world a better place.  It doesn't really matter, he said, if you're Christian or Jewish or Muslim or Buddhist.  Jesus just wanted people to live this way and in doing so, we'll know the blessings of a better world.  He took the gospel and turned it into law.  And not even a good law.  The Old Testament law—the torah—has a lot more gospel to it than I think we often realise.  At its heart was that first and greatest commandment: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.  The God who reveals himself in the scriptures.  Not Zeus or Jupiter.  Not the gods of Gandhi's Hindu pantheon.  Not Mohammed's corruption of the biblical God.  Only the God who has made himself known through the law and the prophets, the evangelists and apostles, and most of all through his son, Jesus the Messiah.  Without love for him, no amount of loving your neighbour as yourself will truly heal the hurts of the world.  There is no blessing apart from him—and, more specifically, apart from loving him with all our being. Why?  Because it was our rejection of him that brought sin and death into the world in the first place.  Idolatry—whether it's the worship of false gods or the worship of ourselves—idolatry is the first sin from which all the others and all the world's misery cascade.  This is why God's gracious plan to set his creation to rights began as he reestablished our relationship with him. If we look to the scriptures we see that blessing comes through being in relationship with the God of Israel.  Specifically—because “relationship” is such a squishy modern idea—specifically blessing comes through being in covenant with him.  Think of Abraham.  The Lord established a covenant with him.  The Lord promised Abraham a family and a land and great name.  In a word: blessing.  In return Abraham was to trust him—to live by faith and to give the Lord his allegiance.  And, centuries later, when the Lord delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt, consider what he did.  He revealed his glory by defeating Pharoah, his army, and his gods.  He revealed his glory in signs and wonders the likes of which no one had ever seen.  And then he met his people at Mt. Sinai.  He made them a promise: to make them great, to give them a land, and most important of all, to live in their midst.  Their end of the covenant—their promise to God—was embodied in the law.  Like Abraham, they were to live by faith and obedience and to give him their full allegiance—to love him with all their being and to love their neighbours as themselves.  And not just for their own benefit.  The Lord had a greater purpose.  He wanted the nations not only to see his glory, but for them to see the blessing that comes through living in fellowship with him. And so, before he died, as Israel was encamped in Moab and ready to cross the Jordan River to conquer Canaan, Moses assembled the people and reiterated the covenant.  “If you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, if you carefully do all his commandments, the Lord will set you high above the other nations…Blessed shall you be in the city and blessed shall you be in the field.  Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb…and blessed shall be your basket and kneading bowl.  Blessed shall you be when you come in and blessed shall you be when you go out.”  And Moses reminded them that this was no mere “duty”.  This was no mere exchange of works in return for a declaration of righteousness.  This was grace.  Through Moses, the Lord reminded the people of all he'd done for them.  He'd rescued them from Egypt.  He'd defeated Pharaoh.  He'd done signs and wonders.  Their clothes had not worn out.  He'd provided every last morsel of food that they'd eaten for forty years.  All so that they would know that “I am the Lord your God”.  In other words, to reveal his love, his grace, his glory, and above all else his faithfulness—to enter into relationship with them and to give them every reason to have faith in him and to give him their allegiance.  To keep the law was to live by faith in the character and promises of God—to love him in return for his love. And this theme rings through Israel's history and Israel's scriptures.  This is what blessing means in the biblical economy.  Think of David's words in Psalm 1: “Blessed is the man that hath not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, not stood in the way of sinners, and hath not sat in the seat of the scornful.  But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law will he exercise himself day and night.  And he will be like a tree planted by the waterside, that will bring forth his fruit in due season.”  The prophets use this same language of blessing when they rebuke Israel for having strayed from the Lord.  Blessing isn't just some nebulous idea of things being good—as a lot of people use it today.  Blessing is about creation—and humanity—being set to rights.  If you want to picture “blessing” in your mind's eye, picture Adam and Eve, in the garden, all their needs provided, as they faithfully steward God's creation and live in his immediate presence.  Brothers and Sisters, that's blessing.  David wasn't posting #blessed on Instagram with a picture of his pumpkin spice latte next to the fireplace.  For David it was #blessed with a picture of the tabernacle radiating the visible presence of the Lord in the midst of a people serving and loving and taking care of each other. This is what we've got to have in mind as we listen to Jesus begin to preach his great sermon in Matthew 5.  And we have to remember that it wasn't the reality that Israel knew.  This is why the people were so desperate for the Messiah.  The world is not as it should be.  Israel was most definitely not as it was supposed to be.  They wanted to know God's blessing—not just in the sense of material prosperity—above all, they longed for his presence.  And so, Matthew writes, “Seeing the crowd, Jesus went up the hillside and sat down.  His disciples came to him.  And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Do you want to see God's kingdom, to know him as Father, to know creation set to rights, your sins forgiven, and your tears wiped away?  This is the way.  And it's not a set of ethical guidelines.  Too often we think of it that way.  It's character.  It's a mindset.  It's the character and the mindset of men and women who know desperately that the world is not as it should be.  But not just that.  Gandhi knew well enough that the world is not as it should be.  This is, first and foremost, the mindset of people who know the world as it should be is centred on the living God who created and sustains all things and us living joyfully, lovingly, and faithfully in his presence.  This is the mindset of people who have that image of Adam and Eve in the garden walking with the Lord in the cool of the day in their mind's eye and the longing of their hearts.  It's the mindset of people who have that image of tabernacle full of God's presence in the middle of a people who love him with all their being and their neighbours as themselves. And so it's the mindset of men and women who are not only outraged over sin and evil and longing for God's justice to fall on the people who have done them wrong.  It's the mindset of men and women who know that they've done wrong themselves—who know their own poverty of spirit.  Of men and women who mourn not only the sinful state of the world around them, but who also mourn their own sinfulness and the contributions they've made to the world's sick and sorry state.  It's the mindset of men and women who are meek, because they know that pride and selfishness do nothing more than deepen the world's darkness—who know that pride and selfishness are rooted in the very idolatry that drives God to the margins.  It is the mindset of men and women who, knowing the injustice and the unrighteousness of this broken world, hunger and thirst for God's justice and righteousness.  They long for his return as king to bring an end to evil and to rule with justice, because they know that we can never fix the world on our own and in our own power.  It is the mindset of those who are have known God's mercy and are therefore merciful themselves.  Of those who understand the ugliness of sin and idolatry and run from it, who are pure in heart.  It's the mindset of men and women who know the story and know of God's grace and how he loves sinners and desires above all else to be reconciled with them, and so they themselves become peacemakers and reconcilers. I don't think Jesus' list here is by any means exhaustive.  He preached this sermon more than once.  I expect he preached some version of it just about everywhere he went and it was a little different every time, which is what we see in the parallel passage in Luke's Gospel, where the list of beatitudes is shorter and a little different.  Jesus is describing a mindset using characteristics that resonated with his fellow Jews in that specific time and place.  These were the attitudes needed to counter the problems that infected First Century Israel.  Notably, these are all characteristics deeply rooted in Israel's prophetic tradition.  And I can't help but wonder if he learned this mindset, this character from his mother.  She sang her song, the one we call Magnificat and sing at Evening Prayer, when Elizabeth blessed her on hearing the news she was pregnant with the Messiah.  I wonder if Mary sang that song to Jesus when he was a boy, because we can hear echoes of it in his beatitudes: “My soul doth magnify the Lord and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.  For he hath regarded the lowliness of his hand-maiden.  For behold, from henceforth all generations shall call be blessed.  For he that is mighty hath magnified me and holy is his name.  And his mercy is on them that fear him through all generations.  He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.  He hath put down the mighty from their set and hath exalted the humble and meek.  He hath filled the hungry with good things and the rich he hath sent empty away.  He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed, forever.”  Can you hear the echoes? But that's not the end of Jesus' beatitudes.  There are two more and I think they give us the key to how this works.  In verses 10-12 he continues: “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of justice [or righteousness—the Greek word means both and there's no easily drawn line between justice and righteousness], for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people slander you and persecute you and say all kinds of wicked things about you falsely because of me.  Celebrate and rejoice!  There's a great reward for you in heaven.  For that's how they persecuted the prophets who went before you.” And as we read that we should start to realise that while Jesus is talking about “them”, what he's also doing is outlining his own vocation and ministry.  Jesus would stand weeping over Jerusalem, mourning the unfaithfulness of his people and the judgement that was hurtling towards them like a freight train.  He would let himself be arrested and then stand, unresisting and refusing to retaliate or even to defend himself as he was mocked and spit on and beaten to within an inch of his life.  He would, beaten and bloodied, carry his own cross through the streets of Jerusalem and out to Golgotha.  His clothes would be stripped from him by the soldiers.  And as he breathed his last and died, one of those very soldiers would declare, “Surely this man was the son of God.” We think that when God comes to set the world to rights he'll send in the cavalry.  Most of the Jews in Jesus' day thought the same thing.  The Messiah would come like David, riding at the head of a great army to crush the heads of the Gentiles.  But instead the Messiah went humbly to Calvary.  He let sin and death rise up to their full height and strike him down so that when he rose from the grave three days later, he crushed the serpent's head and overturned the victory of sin and death. Brothers and Sisters, this is how God takes his throne and sets the world to rights.  This is how Jesus becomes Lord.  This is how blessing comes.  In poverty and meekness, bringing mercy and making peace.  And giving his life for the sake of his enemies.  Because any other way would simply perpetuate the very things you and I have done to get the world into the mess it's in. And now that Jesus has done it, our calling as his people is to keep doing it.  As St. Paul says, we're to have the mind of the Messiah.  This mindset has always been the mindset of the faithful people of God and it will be until the mission is one day done.  I suppose if he wanted to, God could simply save his people from their bondage, set the world to rights, and set them free to live in it, but that's not how he does things.  From the beginning he created Adam and Eve to bear his image—that means to be his stewards, to act as the priests of his temple.  And so when he delivered Israel from Egypt, he showed the people his glory and gave them reason to love and trust and obey him.  He established a covenant with them.  He took up his dwelling in their midst so that they would be his light in the midst of a dark world—so that the nations would see and come to give him glory.  He made them stewards of his glory and his grace.  And, Brothers and Sisters, in Jesus he has done the same for us. I started slowly reading through Ephesians this week—which might give you a hint of things to come—and the first thing I was struck by in the very first chapter was how, over and over, Paul proclaims the glory of God that has been revealed in Jesus and the Spirit—and that is also revealed in us.  I couldn't help but think how Jesus goes on after the Beatitudes: “You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world.  A city can't be hidden if it's on top of a hill…That's how you must shine your light in front of people!  Then they will see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.  This is what we see at the end of Revelation: the nations seeing the glory of God revealed in Jesus and his church and streaming to the New Jerusalem to worship him.  Brothers and Sisters, God's glory revealed in us, because he's made us new, and God's glory revealed by us, as we go to live and to proclaim his new creation. It is no easy task, but it is the only way to know and to make known God's blessing.  We go out, knowing our own poverty of spirit, but also the riches of God's grace.  We go out meek and mourning, but also knowing the joy of being coheirs with the King.  We go out hungering and thirsting for justice, but we do so having experienced mercy ourselves.  We go out to battle, paradoxically, with the intent to reconcile.  And as we do this, we also transpose this Messiah-like character into the key necessary to meet our own culture.  In a world of ugliness where truth is now defined as whatever we want it to be and politicians try to win our loyalty with lies and appeals to our greed, we go out knowing that blessed are those who hunger and thirst for truth, beauty, and goodness.  In a culture obsessed with consumption and debt, we go out knowing that blessed are those who are satisfied with the riches of God.  However we do it, Brothers and Sisters, our calling is to go out into the world as light in the darkness, knowing and confident on the one hand that Jesus is Lord and has won the battle, but also going out with the same humility of spirit that took him to the cross.  Knowing that when God rides out to war to set the world to rights, it's not with the cavalry, but to the humility of Calvary.  So, too, must it be with us. Let us pray: O almighty God, you have knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of your Son Christ our Lord: Give us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come to those inexpressible joys that you have prepared for those who truly love you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting.  Amen.

By Neil Crane - In this message we'll look at two specific instances faith in Abraham's life. One an example of tremendous faith and the other an example of lack of faith. From those two instances we'll review several takeaways that will hopefully help us to continue to strengthen our faith.

Who is Melchizedek? In this message, Pastor Jarod asks, Are you living the high life? Not a life of comfort or pleasure, but the high life Jesus invites us into as our eternal High Priest. Through Hebrews 6 and 7, we see that Jesus didn't become High Priest for Himself, but for us — to bless, intercede, and lead us into a life marked by rest, faith, and devotion. Like Abraham, who trusted God through Melchizedek, we're called to live with the same faith — to serve, to give, and to walk in hope. Jesus is still “MelchizedKing,” still priesting, blessing, and building His church today. ____ Partner with New Tribe: Give | https://newtribe.church/give/ ____ Connect with New Tribe: Website | https://newtribe.church/comeexperience/ Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/newtribechurch Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/newtribechurch YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/newtribechurch

This week in our Courageous Faith series, we’ll explore how Abraham and Sarah trusted God’s promises even when they couldn’t see the outcome. Their story calls us to live in light of God’s goodness, greatness, and calling—with eyes fixed on His future for us.

This week in our Courageous Faith series, we’ll explore how Abraham and Sarah trusted God’s promises even when they couldn’t see the outcome. Their story calls us to live in light of God’s goodness, greatness, and calling—with eyes fixed on His future for us.

I remember standing in the Judean desert one hot afternoon, the kind of heat that presses down on you until your breath itself feels heavy. i remember one August in the mid of summer it reached 125 F. was very Hot and Dry with no wind. The desert has a way of stripping away illusions. In the West, you often imagine spirituality as something decorative, beautiful church buildings, air-condition, some churches i visited so freezing cold inside the church, full of inspiring worship music, or even neatly organized devotional books. But in the Middle East, faith was born in the desert. The wilderness was not decoration; it was the proving ground of trust. The barren landscape taught the early followers of God that survival itself depended on Him. The Aramaic word for today is ܢܣܝܘܢܐ (nesyona), meaning “test, trial, or proving,” from the Semitic root (ܢܣܝ) NSY, which carries the sense of being lifted up and examined to reveal what lies beneath. This word does not mean temptation in the sense of being seduced to sin, as many Western readers imagine, even the translation in the Lords prayer do not put us in temptations is a wrong english translation, the Aramaic word (nesyono) meaning "test, trial or proving" and not exactly temptation, but rather a test of character an opportunity for faith to be proven genuine. In early Syriac Christian writings, nesyona was the word used for the challenges that believers endured, not as punishment but as refinement, like gold tested in fire. Like Abraham in Genesis 22 wanted to sacrifice his son Isaac on Mount Moriah the Old testement word is (nesyono), i made a compete lecture about it in Twins Biblical Academy. Scripture itself illuminates this beautifully. In Matthew 4:1, we read: “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted [tested] by the devil.” In Aramaic, this would have been nesyona a testing that revealed the strength of His obedience to the Father. Likewise, in James 1:2–3, we are told: “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials [peirasmois in Greek, nesyone in Aramaic] of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” To an Eastern mind, trials were not interruptions of life but the very soil in which faith was meant to take root and grow. For your life today, the wisdom of nesyona speaks a liberating truth: your trials are not random punishments, nor are they meaningless disruptions. They are moments when your trust in God is being drawn out, revealed, and strengthened. Every trial that comes and every hardship will direct you to walk back into your path, like the paths of righteousness in the desert. Just as the desert pressed Israel to depend on manna and water from the Rock, your struggles press you to lean not on your own resources but on the living God. Instead of asking, “Why me?” the better question is, “What is God revealing in me through this nesyona?” The wilderness, though harsh, is where faith matures into steadfastness of trusting your creator. So when you face trials whether they are disappointments, hardships, or seasons of uncertainty remember that God is not absent. He is present in the testing, refining your heart, shaping your character, directing your path and preparing you for fruitfulness that could never grow in comfort alone. For more treasures of Aramaic words, biblical culture, and discipleship insights, visit www.twinsbiblicalacademy.com

In Genesis 12:10-20, Abraham faces a severe famine and chooses to seek refuge in Egypt rather than trust God's promises. Fearing for his life, he deceives Pharaoh by claiming Sarah is his sister, leading to her being taken into Pharaoh's household. When God afflicts Pharaoh with diseases, the truth emerges, and Abraham is sent away with wealth despite his deception. This story reveals Abraham's failures of doubt, deception, and bringing harm instead of blessing, yet also demonstrates God's unfailing reliability, redirection, and mercy. Like Abraham, we often trust in our own 'Egypts' rather than God, but He remains faithful to His promises despite our shortcomings.

God calls us to lay it all on the altar. Like Abraham and Isaac, real faith means trust, surrender, and freedom in Jesus. In this sermon, we're reminded that when we trust Him fully, the Lord always provides.

In Genesis 12:10-20, Abraham faces a severe famine and chooses to seek refuge in Egypt rather than trust God's promises. Fearing for his life, he deceives Pharaoh by claiming Sarah is his sister, leading to her being taken into Pharaoh's household. When God afflicts Pharaoh with diseases, the truth emerges, and Abraham is sent away with wealth despite his deception. This story reveals Abraham's failures of doubt, deception, and bringing harm instead of blessing, yet also demonstrates God's unfailing reliability, redirection, and mercy. Like Abraham, we often trust in our own 'Egypts' rather than God, but He remains faithful to His promises despite our shortcomings.

September 24, 2025 Ezek. 25:12-26:21; Ps. 109:1-21; Prov. 24:1-2; Heb. 11:8-16

Abraham and Sarah's faith journey- God called Abraham and Sarah to live in a foreign land, dwelling in tents. Like Abraham and Sarah, we are called to live as strangers and pilgrims, remembering that heaven is our home. Part of the journey of faith is learning to trust the promiser when it's hard to see the promises.

God invites us to get out of our comfort zone and follow the fullness of life. Like Abraham, we must leave our place, people and identity to receive His inheritance. Connect with us to receive more encouraging content!Website: https://www.manantialchurch.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/manantialchurchFacebook: https://facebook.com/manantialchurchInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/manantialchurchInstagram Pepe Olivares: https://instagram.com/pastorpepeolivares

Listen in as Dr. Chris Winford shares a message.

“Then God said, ‘Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” — Genesis 22:2 (NIV) Have you ever felt God calling you to do something that didn’t make sense? In today’s devotional, Laura Bailey unpacks Abraham’s radical obedience in Genesis 22 and what it teaches us about having unwavering faith when life feels uncertain. From trusting God’s provision to surrendering our own plans, we’re reminded that stepping out in faith leads to God’s blessings, promises, and purpose. ✨ Highlights Why Abraham’s obedience in Genesis 22 is a model for trusting God amid uncertainty How God’s provision of the ram foreshadows Jesus as the ultimate sacrificial Lamb The connection between Abraham’s faith and God’s promise to bless all nations Encouragement to say “yes” to God’s calling, even when it defies human logic Living a life of surrender and experiencing the blessings that flow from obedience and faith

Did you know that Abraham had to change the way he thought in order to receive his miracle? Learn how to shift your thinking in today's devotional.----Pre-order your copy of the Rhythm of Rest today:https://www2.fccga.com/storeSubscribe to the Faith in the Morning Newsletter:https://www.kerrickbutler.com/subscribe

In this message from Pastor Finu, we explore Romans 4:13-25 and the kind of faith that stands firm when life feels impossible. Abraham's story shows us that righteousness is not earned through works or law but credited through faith in a God who raises the dead and creates what does not yet exist. Faith is not blind optimism but trust in God's character and promises, even when reality looks hopeless. Like Abraham, our failures do not define us, God's faithfulness does. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, we are credited with righteousness and invited to rest in the assurance of God's grace. What if faith is not about trying harder, but about letting go and trusting the One who always catches us? Sermon: Faith Works Without You Series: Romans Speaker: Finu Iype Full Service: https://youtu.be/YdyDqJbHMHI Apple Podcast: http://thisisvillage.church/podcast/apple Spotify Podcast: http://thisisvillage.church/podcast/spotify Your Next Steps: http://thisisvillagechurch.com/nextsteps Village Kids Online: http://villagekids.online Give: https://thisisvillagechurch.com/give Website: https://thisisvillagechurch.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VillageChurch/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisisvillagechurch/ X (Formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/thisisvillage TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisisvillagechurch

Faith Like Abraham

The Challenge of Romans 6Sinclair Ferguson's Devoted to God highlights the difficulty of Romans 6, reminding us that even Peter admitted some of Paul's writings are hard to understand (2 Peter 3:15). Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones once said he would preach Romans when he fully understood chapter 6. The challenge comes from extremes: some argue baptism saves, others claim perfection in righteousness, and our temptation might be to take all this as mere rhetoric that Paul does not really mean it. We might want to say that Romans 6 teaches that once someone is baptized, then they have the Spirit.Adam and Christ: Our Historic IdentityRomans 5 sets the stage by contrasting Adam, who plunged humanity into sin and death, with Christ, the Last Adam, who brings life and justification. Condemnation is a legal verdict of guilt and death, while justification is God's declaration of righteousness in Christ. Our identity rests in one of these two historic figures: either under Adam's curse or under Christ's life-giving righteousness. These figures set a real historic precedent that orients us. We are either in the status of a rebellious sinner or the status of a victor in Christ. Paul emphasizes that being united to Christ reorients us entirely. It is by the Spirit that we want to conform to Christ, live for Christ, and be slaves of Christ's righteousness.Baptism as a Sign of Christ's TriumphBaptism is not a magical act but a sign of God's promise and grace already at work. Like Abraham receiving circumcision in weakness, baptism testifies to God's faithfulness, not our strength. Paul uses vivid imagery: baptism pictures Christ's death, burial, and resurrection, showing that we, too, have passed through the belly of hell in Him. A striking illustration is the shark tunnel at SeaWorld. When you go through this exhibit, you notice danger all around, yet we pass through untouched. In baptism, God pictures that Christ has gone through death and hell for us, and we emerge unscathed in Him. It is a means of grace that communicates a community, and individuals in that community have passed through certain death unschathed.Living as New Creatures in Christ in the Covenant of GraceRomans 6 exhorts us to live out this new reality. We are no longer slaves to sin but slaves of righteousness, set apart as God's people. As we are grounded in the precedent of Christ's victory, we have a new life in our saviour. Yes, we feel the domain of death still holding us, but we are at the same time empowered by God's grace. We know that we struggle in this age because exhortations against sin remind us that the battle is ongoing. Baptism is a sign to the community that our identity is secure because we are grounded in Christ, united to our redeemer by His Spirit, as we take hold of him by faith. Our identity is secure, and we need to believe that we are new creatures in Christ. Baptism is a communal sign of this new identity, both for us and for our children, that we belong to God's covenant people. Our comfort is this: in Christ, we have triumphed over death and judgment, and we live as those oriented toward life, victory, and resurrection in Him. Consciously, we are called to give ourselves over to the new man and push through the struggles of this age. We need to rehearse the truth that we are new creatures in Christ, grounded in a victorious precedent and walking in Christ.

Summary In this sermon, Dr. Michael Easley teaches from Romans 4 to remind us that salvation is never earned by works, signs, or laws—it is given by God through faith. Paul confronts Jewish objections that Abraham's righteousness depended on circumcision or the Mosaic Law. Instead, Paul demonstrates that Abraham was justified long before receiving any outward sign. This truth is foundational: righteousness comes only by faith, not through religious rituals or lineage. Paul explains that the law was never meant to save but to expose our sin and reveal our need for grace. God's grace is His undeserved favor toward us even when we deserve His wrath. Abraham believed God's promise, and that faith—not his works—was credited to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6). For believers today, this means we can trust God's promises fully. Our salvation rests not on fragile human performance but on the solid foundation of Christ's finished work. Like Abraham, we are called to walk in faith—not to crawl across life's “ice” with fear, but to trust the One who secures our steps. Takeaways: Abraham was justified by faith before receiving any outward sign. Circumcision and law-keeping do not save—faith alone does. God's promise always precedes human effort or religious ritual. The law reveals sin and wrath; grace provides forgiveness and life. Salvation is secure because it rests on God's promise, not our performance. Our only response to God is trust in Christ's finished work. To read the book of Romans, click here. Click here for other Michael Easley Sermons.

Send us a textAbraham's faith came before circumcision, before the Jewish identity was established—a critical insight that reshapes how we understand salvation. This revelation forms the foundation of our discussion as we explore what it truly means to be justified by faith alone.We dive into the radical nature of God's grace, examining why humans persistently try to insert themselves into the salvation equation. "What part of 'not of yourself' do people not understand?" one participant challenges, highlighting our natural resistance to accepting salvation as entirely God's work. This tendency traces back to our fallen nature—the desire to "be like God" that began in Eden.The metaphor of sheep and goats provides a powerful illustration of divine election. Christ's sheep hear his voice and follow him not because they've made a wise decision, but because they belong to him. As one speaker notes, "Not a single soul that the Father gave to Christ will He fail to bring home." This truth offers profound security while acknowledging God's sovereignty in salvation.Perhaps most sobering is our examination of Christ's words, "I never knew you." These may be the most terrifying words anyone could hear, revealing that salvation isn't primarily about our knowledge of God but about being known by Him. Those truly saved are those Christ has always known as His own.We conclude with the beautiful doctrine of justification—how Christ's perfect obedience is credited to believers. Through faith, we receive his righteousness as if it were our own. Like Abraham, who trusted God despite seemingly impossible circumstances, we're called to a faith that looks beyond present limitations to the God who always fulfills His promises.Ready to deepen your understanding of salvation by grace through faith? Subscribe now and join our community as we continue exploring the transformative truths of Scripture that set us free from works-based religion.Support the show

Send us a textFaith alone justifies—a cornerstone truth that many believers struggle to fully embrace. This powerful exploration of Galatians 3:6-8 reveals how Abraham's simple belief in God's promises secured his righteousness long before circumcision entered the picture. The timing is crucial: Abraham was declared righteous at 75 but wasn't circumcised until 99, demolishing any notion that external religious rituals contribute to salvation.Like Abraham, we're prone to adding requirements to God's freely given grace. Whether it's baptism, speaking in tongues, or moral performance, our human nature gravitates toward earning what can only be received as gift. When Christ proclaimed "It is finished" on the cross, He meant exactly that—the work of salvation was completed in full, with nothing left for human hands to accomplish.The discussion takes a fascinating turn when examining Jesus' statement that "Abraham rejoiced to see My day; he saw it and was glad." Through eyes of faith, Abraham glimpsed Christ's redemptive work centuries before it occurred. His willingness to sacrifice Isaac on Mount Moriah (later associated with Jerusalem where Jesus would be crucified) foreshadowed God's ultimate sacrifice, revealing how faith sees what physical eyes cannot.This teaching distinguishes between intellectual acknowledgment and genuine saving faith. Even demons "believe" in God's existence, but true faith involves complete trust in Christ's finished work. God's sovereign choice to save His elect flows from His nature, not external obligation. He saves whom He wills, not because He must, but because He has chosen to do so from before the foundation of the world.Struggling with adding conditions to salvation? Remember Abraham's simple faith and Christ's complete work. Your justification rests not on what you do, but on what has already been done for you. Believe this truth, and let it transform your understanding of God's amazing grace.Support the show

In the final message of the Three Kings series, Pastor Torry Sheppard closes with the story of Solomon, the king whose reign began with unmatched wisdom and blessing but ended in compromise and sorrow. The sermon, titled “What You Don't Steward, Sours,” explores the danger of mishandled blessings and the call to use God-given resources, influence, and opportunities for kingdom purposes.When Winning Isn't EnoughPastor Torry begins by naming a universal experience: achieving something you deeply wanted—only to discover it doesn't fulfill you. Whether it's a promotion, a major purchase, or even success itself, many of us know the strange letdown of getting what we wanted and still feeling empty. He illustrates this through golfer Scottie Scheffler's candid admission before the British Open that, despite being the world's number one, golf ultimately doesn't satisfy the deepest parts of his heart.This echoes Solomon's haunting words in Ecclesiastes 2:10–11:“I denied myself nothing my eyes desired… Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done… everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind.”If Solomon—the wisest, wealthiest king in history—could admit the futility of pleasure and success, we must wrestle with the same question he and Scheffler asked: “What's the point?”Solomon's Splendor: Humble BeginningsTo understand how Solomon ended up disillusioned, Pastor Torry takes us back to where it began—in humility. In 1 Kings 3, newly crowned Solomon travels to Gibeon, the most sacred worship site in Israel, to seek God's help. In a dream, God invites Solomon to ask for anything he wants. Rather than riches or power, Solomon requests wisdom to lead God's people well.This reveals a profound truth: Solomon saw himself as a steward. He recognized that the kingdom wasn't his—it was God's. And because Solomon sought God's kingdom first, God granted him not only wisdom but also wealth, honor, and peace.For a time, Solomon's priorities were clear: everything he built—especially the temple—pointed to the greatness of Yahweh. Under his leadership, Israel flourished, and even the Queen of Sheba was left breathless at the wisdom, wealth, and glory on display.But as Pastor Torry notes, Solomon's story doesn't end at Gibeon. Over time, his focus drifted. His success became self-serving. The humility that brought him to worship slowly gave way to pride.The Blessing Paradox: A Pattern Through ScriptureThis shift reflects what Pastor Torry calls “The Cycle of Blessing.” It begins with humble dependence on God, which leads to divine empowerment, then to great impact, and eventually to tangible blessing—resources, influence, and success. But often, those very blessings become dangerous when they lead to pride, self-reliance, and ultimately, spiritual drift.This isn't unique to Solomon. Pastor Torry points out that this cycle shows up repeatedly throughout Scripture. We see it in King Saul, who began in humility but ended in rebellion. We see it in David, whose heart for God drifted into sin. And we can see it in ourselves if we're not careful.And this is the paradox: blessings are meant to build God's kingdom, but when misused or hoarded, they sour. From this observation, Pastor Torry provides two guiding truths: Kingdom blessings are for kingdom purposes.What we don't steward, sours.”Crossing the Lines: Solomon's Slow FadeSolomon's decline wasn't sudden—it was a slow, subtle fade. Pastor Torry highlights how Solomon violated the very warnings God gave in Deuteronomy 17: kings must not accumulate excessive wealth, multiply wives, or rely on military power for themselves.Yet Solomon did all of these. He built a palace that cost more and took longer than God's temple. He amassed chariots and gold as symbols of power. He married hundreds of foreign wives who drew his heart toward their gods.The man who once wrote, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” now lived as though he were the exception to God's commands. This wasn't ignorance—it was willful misalignment.How to Break the Cycle: Gratitude and SurrenderPastor Torry then shifts to Solomon's closing words in Ecclesiastes 12, where the weary king offers hard-earned wisdom:“Remember your Creator… Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.”Two practices emerge:Gratitude – “Remember your Creator.” Gratitude humbles us. It reminds us that everything we have—wealth, influence, opportunity—belongs to God. It anchors us in the Giver rather than the gift.Surrender – “Fear God and keep His commandments.” Worship is more than a song; it's offering back to God what is most precious. Like Abraham in Genesis 22, true worship is openhandedness—a willingness to live generously and obediently with what God entrusts to us.Conclusion: Which Part of the Story Are You Living?Pastor Torry closes with three invitations:To the blessed: If you've been given much, remember your Creator. Use your resources for God's purposes and expand His kingdom.To the striving: If you're chasing “more,” stop. There's no finish line when “more” becomes your purpose. Fulfillment is found in living for something bigger—God's kingdom.To the disappointed: If success has let you down, find hope in surrender. Real purpose begins when you live for the King, not yourself.Wherever we find ourselves, Solomon's hard-won wisdom still rings true: “Remember your Creator. Fear God. Keep His commands.” When we live this way, blessings remain blessings—they don't sour.

In this powerful message, Pastor Marcus Mecum dives into Genesis 21:1-14 and reminds us that our mistakes don't have to define our future. Abraham made a mistake when he tried to force God's promise on his own terms, but God still kept His word.Your miracle and your mistake can't live under the same roof. At some point, you have to decide which one you're going to feed.

In Matthew's very Jewish-oriented account we have seen Jesus lauded as the coming King, we have seen the builders reject the cornerstone, and today we will see the Lamb of God who brings a greater Passover and a greater deliverance. Like Abraham's firstborn, the Son of God is offered to God as a sacrifice, but he also the substitute offered so that we might live. A Jewish audience would have heard and understood all the parallels to Psalm 22, and recalled from Isaiah that the wounds of the suffering servant bring healing. Thankfully, his crucifixion is not the end. Jesus rises from the grave, just as he had said.Matthew 26 – 1:06 . Matthew 27 – 13:43 . Matthew 28 – 23:58 . Psalm 70 – 27:24 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by Bobby Brown, Katelyn Pridgen, Eric Williamson & the Christian Standard Biblefacebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

"One Year of Saying Yes: A Journey of Faith and Restoration" Join Cherisse as she celebrates the one-year anniversary of Rhythms That Restore! In this heartfelt episode, she reflects on her unexpected path to podcasting, the false narratives she had to overcome, and how God has faithfully guided every step of this journey. Cherisse shares the powerful lesson that has transformed her life: "He is enough, and therefore I am enough." Like Abraham, Moses, and other biblical figures who felt inadequate, she discovered that God doesn't need us to be enough—He simply needs our "yes." She reveals how this podcast began from a place of curiosity and developed through divine connections, including her mentorship with podcaster Wren Robbins and the invaluable support of her friend Liz Krol. This anniversary episode, coinciding beautifully with Holy Week, explores how saying "Here I am, Lord" with open hands creates space for God to work in extraordinary ways. Cherisse shares how Psalm 91:1 has been her anchor throughout the year, reminding her to dwell in the shadow of the Almighty. Whether you're wrestling with feelings of inadequacy, searching for purpose, or simply needing the reminder that God meets us in our weakness, this celebration of faithfulness will inspire you to take your next brave step forward. Connect with Cherisse:  Instagram@RhythmsThatRestorePodcast  Visit cherissehixson.com to explore our newly launched website! Sign up for our weekly emails to receive thoughtful reflections and invitations to upcoming events directly in your inbox. These aren't just another notification—they're designed to be a moment of refreshment in your busy day, something you'll want to print out and keep by your Bible and journal as a guide for your quiet time with God. Follow along on Instagram @cherissehixson01 for daily encouragement and updates on future rest retreats and gatherings. Thank you for being part of this community seeking rest, renewal, and a deeper walk with Jesus.