217church - Audio

As Jesus speaks to his disciples and is preparing to go to the cross, he drives home the need to serve relentlessly as a Christ follower. We are to contain our pride, consider others first and compassionately act.

When the prodigal son leaves there is much grief in the house, but when he is ready to come home, the Father receives Him back with open arms. We are to embody and represent the love of Jesus to a world that has lost purpose. We do this through adopting, forgiving, believing and sacrificing.

As we enter 2014, God is about to double the blessing for His people as we pursue Him passionately. In the parable of the talents, Jesus tells of two men that double the investment of the master, but one is unfaithful and does nothing with the resources entrusted to him. God wants us to replace pride with humility, pleasure with purity, and greed with giving.

God hardwired us to love and our responsibility is to obey him. As Christ followers we are to practice a lifestyle of generosity. When we walk with Jesus we discover God is love, He gave it all , He wants our love and obedience and the Tithe is God’s portion.

After their greatest victory, the people of experience defeat because of disobedience and selfishness. If we are to follow all Jesus has for us and hold nothing back, we must practice humility, repentance and accept God’s favor.

After Joshua and the Israelites cross the Jordan River, the next generation of leaders must renew their covenant with God. In order to be a next generation leader we need confidence, a mark, approval and God’s provision.

The people follow God’s instruction and cross the Jordan River with confidence and clarity. In order to initiate vision in our lives, we must learn to consecrate ourselves, Believe in faith and Obey with urgency.

Joshua points the Israelites with specific instruction how He is giving them safe passage into the promise land. His strategy was is use the unexpected, give us the advantage and test our commitment to the covenant.

As Joshua delivers the message to the leaders in the camp that they are about to cross the Jordan, they begin to diligently prepare for what is next. If we are to prepare for all God has for us we must simplify, anticipate, and expect God to act on behalf of those who do not know Him yet.

After wandering in the desert for forty years, Joshua is appointed by God the new leader of the nation of Israel. God speaks to him and encourages him that there is no turning back, no limits, no doubt and no excuses for the vision he is about to lead. We must be a courageous church.

The church in Acts is growing rapidly and we discover God’s plan for the church is multiplication. We see an example of what it means to live in a Gospel centered community that serves, learns, invites, cares and eats together.

As Paul writes a letter to his beloved friend Philemon, he shares with him how Onesimus has been restored in his usefulness for the kingdom of God. Paul makes an appeal for Onesimus like Jesus makes an appeal for us. God expects us to serve. In order to serve we must see each other’s value, sympathize with pain, and then seize the opportunity.

Change is a part of life. It is inevitable. As the disciples say yes to following Jesus, they go through some of the most drastic changes in their lives. In the midst of change, there is a lot to worry about. Shortly after following Jesus, they see a crowd coming towards them, Jesus finds a hillside and begins to preach. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus spends some time speaking to those who have a hard time worrying. Jesus assures them and us today of 3 things. In the midst of change we need to stick to what we know, seek to bring Him glory, and draw near to Him through the process.

The book of Proverbs has much to say about how to have a healthy family. The family is the backbone of our culture and we need to develop best practices that lead us to health. We must practice the Gospel, love, peace and training if we are to lead our families well.

The book of Proverbs has much to say about how we should use our words. We are to be those sent to breathe life and share the blessing of the Gospel. We must use words thoughtfully and truthfully. We are to be encouragers, spurring each other on towards our mission in Jesus.