Sermons

The Bible says submit to God and resist the devil. Sometimes we can be an enemy to ourselves. This message speaks about what happens when we embrace the values of a fallen world and have thoughts and plans that do not line up with God. We must resist the temptation to be other than what God has called us to be. The question is, “how do we humble ourselves”? Humility says not my plans, not my strength or wisdom. We finally acknowledge that we cannot live this Christian life on our own. True humility comes when all self effort dies! His life must become our life, His plan becomes our plan. That's when the power of God comes upon us! Humble yourself and He will lift you up.

Fear and dismay is a common condition to all of us from time to time. We must recognize them for what they truly are and know that God has given us a remedy to defeat them so they will not take us down. Fear comes when we are opposed by something of superior strength to our own strength. Dismay comes when we look inside ourselves and come to the conclusion that we are not strong enough to fight the battle. God is faithful and He will not allow us to be tried above what we are able to bear. He will make a way of escape. We need a divine deliverance not human strength or human effort. We are delivered by the power of God! It will always be all of Him and none of us.

Often we live our lives defeated because of a label someone has placed on us or an image of failure that we have placed upon ourselves. In ourselves there is no way to remove this image, but God has spoken an overcoming word to us — chosen. He believes in us and with this knowledge wants us to walk in confidence and power.

This message is for those who wage a secret and hidden battle with despair. There are times and seasons when we can experience a wave of hopelessness and apathy and we are not able to point to a reason for this. There is a faint-heartedness that can come to the heart of a believer and there can be barely a heartbeat of faith or joy as we sink under this oppression. There are three aspects that open the door to despair: unbelief, pain and an incorrect understanding of the Father's love when we are being chastened by Him. For the Christian despair will not be our permanent condition. For God gave us a remedy and that remedy is the Cross of Christ! We were created for better things and Christ resides in us to break the power of despair. Despair will not have the last say in your life!

God has appointed us for a specific work to glorify His name. Wisdom and knowledge can become corrupt without the heart of God. Solomon prayed for the tools to do the job but never asked God for His heart. He set the stage and was responsible for a spiritual decline. If we don't have the heart and mind for truth we will lose focus of the plans and purposes of God. If you are bored with the things of God there is something terribly wrong. Get back to the prayer closet and ask God to help you. A perfect heart and a willing mind has a simple focus on the work of God to glorify His name, strengthen the church and save souls.

God uses fasting to align ourselves to His purposes. Many times we fast out of want, which leads to desperation, but lasting results come from a desperation which leads to a desire for God. Through scripture we will learn about three types of fasts — for people who are looking to be called in to the ministry God has for them, for those who know their calling but are in the place of waiting for God's direction, and for those who are in their ministry but wanting advancement in effectiveness of ministry.

That which satisfies the deepest longings of our heart is the living waters of Christ. Each of us is invited to drink and pass this cup of salvation. The question is, “What do we do with this cup of salvation?” This message points to examples in history where people were given a great opportunity to serve God but became self indulgent. The self indulgent church has nothing in his heart for his brother. It gravitates to the things of the world and its possessions, instead of living for Christ. There is a final warning to the self indulgent church to turn away from their sins and become charitable to the poor. There is a time when a sentence is written against those who were supposed to be a testimony in the earth. Recognizing and honoring truth is not enough, we must embrace it and walk it out! In one minute everything can change and only those who have the compassion of God for humanity will stand!

God wants us to move from a life of self-satisfaction to one of reaching out to others. He promises blessings in our lives as we fast or give up our own gratification. These promises found in Isaiah 58, will allow us to hear from God, bring healing to the broken areas in our lives and will keep us in a strong relationship with Him.

Have you ever asked yourself why do things have to change? We are all resistant to change especially when it involves what we perceive to be hardship or loss to ourselves or someone we love. There is nothing in us that wants to gravitate toward difficulty. In the western world we have formed a Christian theological perspective that avoids difficulty, which results in an anemic Christianity. When we get a word from the Lord that sometimes doesn't make sense to the natural mind, we must be careful to who and what we listen to. There are well meaning people all along our journey that will unknowingly try to break your heart of obedience. God call us to a radical obedience where we will go where you lead us no matter what the cost! When we learn to walk in the ways of God and follow the voice of God the miraculous is released in our lives. Are you willing to respond to the Lord with, “here I am Lord, send me?”