The book of Philippians has a common theme of Joy throughout the book. We all face anxiety and worry in this life but what do we do when we experience those things. Paul instructed the church at Philippi on how to handle those emotions in chapter 4.
As Christians we can tend to get fascinated in learning about the end times which is a good thing. However, we can sometimes focus on the wrong things and instead we need to know what we are to do while we are waiting for the Lord's return. Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 3 what we are to do while we are waiting.
In Acts 19 the Apostle Paul makes a return trip to Ephesus and encounters twelve disciples where he asks them if they had received the Holy Spirit since they believed. I believe if the Apostle Paul were here today he would ask that same question of some Christians today. There was something lacking in the disciples that led to that question being asked. Oftentimes there are Christians who don't have an understanding of the Holy Spirit and His role in the life of the believer. While the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is not necessary for salvation, it is needed to be an effective witness in the world today.
When we feel like we hit rock bottom we can handle it in one of three ways. We take a look at Jeremiah 38 and see that we can either stand in faith, fight, or give up. As believers we should only do one of the three.
This week we discuss how you can be in the will of God and opposition still come to make you feel like you hit rock bottom. Despite the opposition we face we can look at the example of Paul and Silas in Acts 16 and in the moments of trials we can pray and praise.
There may have been a time or two in our lives we felt like we hit rock bottom. What do we do when we hit rock bottom? There is always hope because as Jesus prayed for Peter that his faith would not fail him, Jesus has prayed for us. Peter may have faltered, but his faith did not fail him. There is a sifting we all will go through but we must seek the Lord during that sifting.
Matthew 20:20-28, Luke 12:51-53, Matthew 19:16-30
John 6 is a chapter that can be overlooked when reading the dialogue between Jesus and the disciples. Jesus had more than twelve disciples and John 6:66 tells us that "many" walked away and walked with Him no more. How different is the interaction in John 6 in comparison to the modern culture of the church. Many followed Jesus for what He could do for them, but Jesus wanted them to enter into communion with Him. To believe and trust in Him. When the disciples walked away Jesus asked the twelve if they were going to walk away. Simon Peter answered Him, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Within this episode we take a look into the parable of the lost sheep because there was more than one disciple that walked away from Jesus in John 6 but yet Jesus does not go after them. Could it be that maybe the way we have been taught to view the parable of the lost sheep is not saying what we have been hearing over the years.
Last week we talked about how Jesus described the times of the end of the age where events will take place. This week we go over how Paul describes the condition of man in the last days. We have been in the last days since Christ's ascension, but perilous times happen when the the condition of man grows worse. We are seeing the hearts of man played out right before our eyes as Paul described in 2 Timothy 3. Even though man may get selfish we as the church must remain in love.1 Timothy 4, 2 Timothy 3, Acts 20
There are different natural disasters and events taking place in our country and throughout the world. As Christians we can find ourselves getting alarmed or frightened by the things we see or hear about, but Jesus tells us to not be troubled. Christ warned us that these things would happen in the last days. This message is a reminder as God's children to not be troubled.Matthew 24, 1 John 2:17-19