The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector is a surprising story full of plot twists and rich spiritual truths. In Luke 18:9-14, Jesus tells a story that in many ways is an optical illusion. The way things appear may not always be the way things truly are. Jesus drew a contrast between two … Read more
In Mark 7 we see Jesus and the Pharisees go toe to toe over traditions. Some traditions can be good and some can be stuffy or empty. The problem is that the Pharisees elevating man-made traditions ahead of God’s actual commands and as a result they have become hypocrites whose hearts are far from God. … Read more
Do you intimately know Christ, and can you recognize when He’s speaking to you? That gives Him the ability to reveal things to you and change you. If you have responded to the prompting of the Holy Spirit and surrendered your life to Christ, so you could be born again, then you’ve already heard him … Read more
Hebrews 7:25, and Romans 8:34 both mention that Christ is currently interceding for us. To intercede is to intervene on our behalf. Christ brings you and your needs to the father as our mediator. Of course, Christ knows exactly what we need, but there is a lengthy prayer recorded in the gospel of in John, … Read more
Many of us are familiar with the prayer that Jesus gave us in Matthew 6:9-13 which we often call “The Lord’s Prayer.” By following the 6 categories of this model prayer, we can talk with God each day about the things He indicated He wanted us to visit with Him about when we pray: praising … Read more
This Sunday Steve Bardell shared a great message and personal testimony with us about faith in the face of fear that the enemy can use against us. Fear is a common issue that all of us deal with and so did many figures in Biblical history. How does our faith allow us to overcome fear? … Read more
We are continuing our “Powerful Prayers” sermon series by looking at the prayer of Jabez found in 1st Chronicles 4:9&10. Jabez boldly asks God for four main things: (1) blessings, (2) enlarged borders, (3) having God’s mighty hand upon him, (4) keep him from harm and pain. God graciously grants Jabez all that he requested. … Read more
As we look at Solomon’s prayer dedicating the temple in 1 Kings 8:22-53, on thing that quickly stands out are the many requests that God would hear and forgive the people. No matter what their situation might be, that if they realign themselves to God, that He would be merciful. As the text unfolds we … Read more
On Sunday we launched our new series on “Powerful Prayers.” The first person we looked at was Hannah who prayed for a child and then prayed again rejoicing over what God had done. If you’ve ever wanted something so desperately that you shed tears praying for it, then you have something in common with Hannah. … Read more
I’m sure that many of you have seen a comedy movie about a wedding disaster. We all laugh and cringe because we know what is supposed to happen and we can see how far off the mark things are heading. As we begin looking at the events surrounding the birth of Christ we see a … Read more