Our Sermons
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
A good understanding have all those who do His commandments.
His praise endures forever.
Psalm 111:10
Proverbs 22:6 ESV “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”
God’s plan is that children be a great blessing in a family. Sadly, in many homes, the children are terrorizing, exasperating and exhausting their parents. All young children act exactly as they have been trained by their parents or other care givers. As they get older children have additional influences that may affect their behavior, such as peers, television, social media, teachers, etc. God places primary responsibility on fathers to make sure their children are trained according to God’s Word. Mothers are not exempt from this responsibility, but God does hold fathers ultimately responsible. If you allow your children to disrespect or disobey you, that is your choice. Do not blame your children. They are just doing what they have been trained to do. Most parents tell their children to do right, but few seem to consistently train their children to actually do right. Training is much more than telling or teaching; it requires that the desired action be done over and over, until acting right becomes a habit. Training is making sure someone does something correctly until it becomes a habit. Do not be deceived into thinking that letting children have their own way will promote peace: yours or theirs. No peace will be found in a home where the instruction of the Lord is not followed (Isaiah 54:13). Children do not know what is best for them. That is why God gave them parents who are responsible for training them correctly. But if you have not achieved perfection in this area, God will still help you and your children. This is not meant to condemn, but to encourage. If your children are grown, just keep on loving them and praying for them. If you fell short as a parent, do not despair. God is merciful and gracious. So pray for your children and God will work in their lives.
Mark 9:23 NKJV “All things are possible to him who believes.”
No-limits people refuse to accept things as they are because they see them as they can be. Instead of saying, “It cannot be
done,” they rise up in faith and say, “All things are possible to him who believes.” No-limits people have faults and
failures like everybody else. The difference is, they walk by faith to the cliff’s edge believing that one of two things will
happen when they get there. Either God will put solid rock under their feet, or He will teach them to fly. In other words,
they plug into God’s unlimited power supply. The author of the book of Hebrews describes no-limits people like this:
“Who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised, who shut the mouths of
lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and
who became powerful in battle” (Hebrews 11:33-34 NIV). Notice, these people started out weak, but they became strong,
through faith. They possessed the kind of faith that disregards the odds, the obstacles, and the opposition, and declares, “I
am what God says I am, I have what God says I have, and I can do what God says I can do.” Their faith in God’s power,
promises, and ability, bypassed their intellect and reasoning. They believe there is nothing God cannot do based on His
promises. No mountain He cannot move. No situation He cannot change. There is no problem too big that He cannot
solve. There is no storm He cannot calm. There is no sorrow He cannot soothe. He is God almighty. Today ask God to
help you rise above your fears and make you a no-limits person!
Matthew 4:10 (NKJV) Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'”
The devil speaks all the time. You may not be able to stop him from speaking but you can make sure he does not have the last say. Devil can take advantage of our circumstances, feelings, and emotions to preach his sermon to us. He can bombard our mind with thoughts that are not consistent with God’s plan and purpose for us. But we have the responsibility and the capability to cast down all satanic imaginations and bring to captivity every satanic thought (2 Corinthians 10:4-5). Jesus Christ is our example. When Satan came to tempt Him (Jesus Christ) in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11), through the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, Satan did not have the last say. Jesus responded to Satan’s suggestions, by stating the stand of God’s word concerning each suggestion. Whenever Satan confronts you with his suggestion, his opinion, his deception and his lies, respond with the truth (God’s word). Do not allow him to have the last say in any situation concerning you. Satan is not a gentle man; so you must counter his temptations with violent faith based on God’s Word. But you must know the truth to be able to challenge his (Satan’s) lies. You must study “to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15).
1 THESSALONIANS 5:18 NLT “No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”
Bad things happen in life sometimes. There are times we do not understand what is happening or why. But we can always be thankful for many things: God loves us. Jesus died for us. Our sins are forgiven. Jesus has promised to never leave us. God is our Father and He is faithful. We have an eternal home in Heaven. In Christ, we are more than conquerors. We are redeemed from the dominion of darkness. We have access to divine healing and prosperity. We are joint-heirs with Christ. What we choose to focus on determines our attitude. While we may face problems, we do not have to let those problems become our focus. We can choose to give thanks and praise God for His goodness and faithfulness. Imagine how wearisome that will make Satan and his cohorts feel! Also, think of the pleasure it brings our Father God when we stay in faith and focus on Him, instead of being distracted by the stuff the devil does trying to steal our faith and joy. If you are always thankful, the bad things that do happen to you will lose their ability to really harm you and to determine the trajectory of your life. Giving thanks also reminds us of how much we do have. Human beings are prone to covetousness. We tend to focus on what we do not have. By giving thanks continually we are reminded of how much we do have. When we focus on blessings rather than wants, we are happier. When we start thanking God for the things, we usually take for granted, our perspective changes. We realize that we could not even exist without the merciful blessings of God. So, be thankful always!
1 Timothy 4:12 “Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.”
Why is it that the Christians of the first century were able to do so much damage, in a positive sense, in such a relatively short period of time (Acts 17:6)? And how is it that these first-century believers, without the tools, technology, and media that we utilize today, were still able to radically impact their culture? The short answer is they followed and practiced a radical, non-compromising Christianity that is not known by many in the twenty-first century. When we read about Christianity in New Testament books like Acts, we might classify it as something that was radical, over the top, and perhaps a bit on the extreme side. But to them it would have been nothing less than normal Christian living. They were different. Christians should differ from non-Christians in every realm, not just the religious realm. We should differ from non-Christians not simply because we show up at church on the weekend or attend a midweek Bible study. Rather, we should differ from non-Christians because we conduct our businesses differently, we treat our spouses differently, and we raise our children differently. Our values should be different from those of non-Christians. People need to see this difference in our lives, but all too often, it simply is not happening. If we want to impact our world like the first-century believers did, then we have to get back to the principles they applied. It starts with the Christianity they practiced. Christianity based on the unconditional love of God, great faith, uncompromising word of God, and demonstration of the Spirit and power.
2 Peter 1:4 NKJ “by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
The Bible says we are partakers of divine nature and have escaped the corruption in the world through lust. There are promises in the Bible for us to partake of, but how do we see ourselves? Many of the Israelites could not enter into the Promised Land, because they saw themselves as grasshoppers (Numbers 13:33). The Bible says they “limited the Holy One of Israel” (Psalm 78:41). If you are truly going to experience God’s will for your life, you need to see yourself the way He sees you. You have to see yourself through the realty of the redemptive work of Christ. You have to have a full knowledge of who you have become in Christ Jesus through His sacrifice if you are to partake fully of the promises and benefits of redemption. You have to see yourself the way God sees you through the finished work of Christ. God saw Gideon as a mighty man of valor, but he saw himself differently (Judges 6:12-15). Many Christians are in this same situation today, forgetting that our sufficiency is in Christ. In Christ we have been delivered from power of sin and authority of darkness (Romans 6:14, Ephesians 1:17, Colossians 1:13-14, Galatians 3:13, Hebrews 2:14-15). We are saints (1 Corinthians 1:30, 2 Corinthians 5:21). We are blessed in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). We are seated with Christ in highest place of power (Ephesians 1:19-23, Ephesians 2:6). The greater one lives in us (1 John 4:4). We have access to abundant life (John 10:10). We are joint-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). See yourself as God’s sees you!