COMMITTED to train men and women
to have minds for the Lord Jesus,
hearts for the truth, and
hands that are skilled to the task.

"disciple" Tagged Sermons

THE TRUTH ABOUT LIES…

There is more than one reason for this state of affairs. But mostly it comes down to not knowing how to participate with God in ways that allow truth to alter our very way of PERCEIVING AND UNDERSTANDING OUR OWN LIFE.
“It costs a man just as much or even more to go to hell than to come to heaven. Narrow, exceedingly narrow is the way to perdition!” Soren Kierkegaard
“To depart from righteousness is to choose a life of crushing burdens, failures, and disappointments, a life caught in the toils of endless problems that are never resolved. Here is the source of that unending soap opera, that sometimes horror show known as normal human life. The cost of discipleship, though it may take all we have, is small when compared to the lot of those who don’t accept Christ’s invitation to be a part of his company in the way of life.” Dallas Willard, “The Spirit of the Disciplines”
Transformation is about changing our very character – not our environment, not the people around us, not even our behavior – it is about changing who we are from the inside out.
OUR WILL WAS NEVER DESIGNED TO BE ABLE TO FORCE OUR HEART TO CHANGE.

REDISCOVER OUR FOUNDATION

The Apostle Paul established this church about A.D. 50-51, when he spent 18 months there on his second missionary journey. We can find these details in Acts 18:1-17. During his 3rd missionary journey, about 5 years later, he stayed in Ephesus for about 3 years, and during this time he received disturbing reports concerning problems among believers in Corinth. He wrote a letter which we know as the lost first letter to this church at Corinth.
Shortly afterward, a delegation sent by a member of the church at Corinth (Chloe) reported to Paul that there were divisive factions in the church. Paul did not immediately respond. Then another delegation from Corinth arrived with a letter asking Paul certain questions (1 Corinthians 7:1 and 16:17). The first thing Paul did was sending Timothy to Corinth to help correct the problems there. (1 Corinthians 4:17). He then also wrote the letter that we know as 1 Corinthians, expecting it to reach Corinth before Timothy would arrive. (16:10)
If we would analyze this letter carefully, we find that Paul responds to 10 separate problems;
• A sectarian spirit
• Incest
• Lawsuits
• Fornication
• Marriage and divorce
• Eating food offered to idols
• Wearing the veil (head covering)
• The Lord’s supper
• Spiritual gifts
• The resurrection of the body
How does the Apostle Paul address all these problems at once?
He reminds the church that they have to rediscover the true foundation, which is Jesus Christ, as a counter to all human boasting.
WE learn that no matter what local church we attend, believing that there is one without problems between individual members would be at best naïve, at worst, deceptive.The question is not if a Bible preaching, Holy Spirit led church can have problems, but rather, HOW CAN SUCH PROBLEMS BE SOLVED AND THE INDIVIDUAL PEOPLE AND THE LOCAL BODY AS A WHOLE LEARN FROM IT AND BECOME BETTER, NOT BITTER.
The purpose of our church is summarized in a single sentence based upon two key Scriptures:
1. A Great Commitment to the GREAT COMMANDMENT
2. A Great Commitment to the GREAT COMMISSION
What does it mean to love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind? When we deviate just 5% from this commandment and love anything more than God, we are on dangerous grounds. The temptation is always present to love and protect our ministry or people we feel God has given us. Or to love my reputation and my position more than I love God. Or I love a certain program more than I love God.
There is a fundamental flaw in such thinking. WHY?
Because no human being, no program, no ministry, no reputation, no calling, can DO WHAT ONLY GOD CAN DO.
When a program starts making disciples after themselves, it needs to shut down, period. Changing leadership is not the answer, because the culture in a certain ministry has its root in the spiritual place. People begin to think what they have heard or observed, even if it is contrary to Scripture.
This is very important to know, because when our commitment to the program is greater than the commitment to the Lord Himself and his established authority, everything breaks down. Now all we want to be involved in is our program.
The Apostle Paul had to deal with that in in Corinth, and I had to deal with that in our church. While such corrections are painful and easily can be misunderstood or misinterpreted, they are absolutely necessary.
In this church, we always want to be committed to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. As a family, some of us need to rediscover our foundation and ask the Lord to bring those Biblical truths to our remembrance daily.

I Also Send You

What a week it has been for those who followed Jesus and those who came to the temple in Jerusalem to celebrate Passover. Three full days have passed since the masses demanded that their King should be crucified. The Romans, as prophesied in Scripture long ago, did the gruesome task and killed the Prince of Peace, not knowing that with it they would zeal their own fate as a nation.
We need to understand that Jesus work on the cross was finished just prior to giving up His Spirit into the Father’s hand. There was no more punishment to be paid for our sins. IT IS FINISHED.
Letting Jesus body hang on the cross for a longer time period or to be thrown on the garbage dump WAS SOMETHING THE HEAVENLY FATHER WOULD NEVER HAVE ALLOWED TO HAPPEN TO HIS SON. The work was done. And it is here where two disciples, secret disciples, stepped in and asked for the body of Jesus from Pilate.
Mary Magdalene is the person from whom Jesus cast out 7 demons. She was the first person mentioned to be at the tomb which was at that time already empty. When the angels asked the question: WOMEN, WHY ARE YOU WEEPING? She did not reply because of GRIEF.
Mary recognized the risen Lord when He called her by name. She recognized HIS VOICE. A typical characteristic of a sheep in relation to the shepherd. In other words, John did not write these words of God on paper that people might believe the right things, that they might be orthodox, or that their theology might be sound.
He did not call Jesus Master or Teacher or Messiah. Thomas called Him Lord, which is the same word translated from the GREEK Old Testament YAHWEH. Thomas confessed that Jesus was Yahweh, His God, standing before him in the flesh. Thomas confessed the deity of Jesus Christ. Jesus never rebuked him for it.
Listen, there is a more important purpose, a purpose beyond coming to the knowledge of the truth of Christ.
“…and that believing you may have life in His name”.
That’s exactly what Jesus said earlier, found in John 10:10b
“ I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”