The Gospel According to Matthew - Week 10
Awake Us Now
In this section of Scripture, Jesus addresses common issues that all of us deal with.
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Questions - Week 24: Is the Shroud of Turin Genuine?
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The Shroud of Turin is a relic housed in the cathedral in Turin Italy and claimed to be the burial cloth of Christ. The Gospels give us some details: Matthew 27:59-60 ESV “And Joseph (of Arimathea) took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away.” Mark 15:46 ESV “And Joseph bought a linen shroud, and taking Him (Jesus) down, wrapped Him in the linen shroud and laid Him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. And he rolled a stone...
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Daniel: When Kingdoms Collide (2) - Mixed, Not Melted
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God calls His people not to blend in to society, but to stand out, to reflect the mercy and goodness of God, so that He may be exalted through all the nations!
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The Gospel According to Matthew - Week 9
Awake Us Now
Prayer is an amazing gift from God! We have His plea to talk with Him. Genuine prayer; not showy prayer, but rather simply experiencing the presence of our Living God, the Father. Other topics covered are Jesus’ teaching on fasting and possessions. Based on Matthew 6:5-24.
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The Gospel According to Matthew - Week 8
Awake Us Now
Pastor points out the Old Testament’s words, “Thus says the LORD,” and compares them to the words of Jesus in the New Testament that say, “But I tell you.” What does this tell us about who Jesus is? Pastor explores the “But I tell yous” as found in Matthew chapter 5 and we learn what Jesus calls us to. That call is to a changed heart, which can only happen when we come to faith in Jesus. God’s call is personal! He wants to change each one of us by the shed blood of Jesus, the Son of God.
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The Gospel According to Matthew - Week 7
Awake Us Now
In Week 7, we hear more of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Jesus calls us salt and light. What does He mean when He uses these words to describe how we are to be? As historians have looked at world history, more and more of them are coming to the realization Christianity changed everything. Jesus has had a greater impact on the human condition than anyone in all of history. What Jesus produces in people, changes them!
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Dig Deeper - Week 11: Two Pictures of the Messiah
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We will look at the two pictures of the Messiah found in the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). 2 Pictures of Messiah Reigning King Humble Substitute This double picture is what led some of the great Hebrew rabbis to suggest there might be two Messiahs that would come at different times and in different manners. And that then became the dominant tradition: Messiah will raise the dead Messiah will be victorious Messiah will reign in Jerusalem Messiah will bring peace If we look at the New Testament the early followers of Jesus believed this same thing about the Messiah....
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The Gospel According to Matthew - Week 6
Awake Us Now
We finish Matthew 4 on following Jesus, and begin the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 that opens with the Beatitudes.
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The Gospel According to Matthew - Week 5
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Week 5 of our Matthew study digs into chapter 4 on the Temptation of Jesus, His three temptations and the reality of an unseen spiritual world.
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Questions - Week 23: How Are Minds Opened Today?
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This message focuses on the question: “How are minds opened today?”, which is part of our ongoing series: “What’s the answer?” Pastor explores how people’s lives are changed and what changes their attitudes about God, about Jesus, the resurrection, and about the power of God’s Word. Pastor takes us through Luke 24:36-47, an encounter with Jesus that His disciples have with Him after His resurrection. Jesus tells them: “This is what I told you while I was still with you; Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets...
info_outlineScripture: Exodus 20:12, Ephesians 6:1-3, Lue 2:51, 1 John 3:1, Matthew 11:28-30
Do the ten commandments feel like just a negative list of “thou shalt nots?” Or like God’s trying to take away your fun, or trying to limit your enjoyment of life, trying to make you feel guilty?
Well, nothing is further from the truth. God is good and He is gracious! Today’s commandment doesn’t have a “shall not,” but it does have a promise:
Exodus 20:12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”
As it comes with a promise, God considers this an important command. Family is of primary significant importance. We even see that when the Living God took on flesh as Jesus, He came to a family. And we see Jesus obeying this command in Luke 2:51 “Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart.” Even the incarnate son of God was obedient to His parents. Clearly it’s important to our Creator but also important to our culture.
The Family Is God’s Design
Application:
⁃ Authority - by God’s authority He tells us to honor our parents. Mom and Dad are His representatives on earth to nurture and raise their children.
⁃ Act Honorably - Kids are told to honor parents but parents are told they are to act honorably, too, in a way that gives God glory, sharing faith with their kids, giving godly love and discipline and modeling honoring God.
⁃ Honor Them - we honor our parents no matter how old we are - that doesn’t end when we leave home, we are to honor them always - even as they age.
We live in a day and age where families are falling apart - where people are trying to re-design the family -
When families disintegrate so does the culture. What do we do to deal with dysfunctional families and homes? We go to God’s Word - the Bible - a book filled with dysfunctional families. One example we can learn from is the story of Joseph. His father had 4 wives, siblings had anger issues, there were rivalries, bitterness, jealousy and hatred between siblings. But what we learn is that Joseph broke the chain! He had 1 wife and raised a godly family.
There is hope for every situation in life because our God is a God who redeems the parental wounds of neglect, absence, abuse and withholding of nurturing.
Restoration is available:
⁃ It is God the Father’s heart to love - 1 John 3:1 “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!” By faith in Jesus we are the Father’s children. In Him is healing - in Him life is renewed.
⁃ Jesus’ invitation - No guilt - what is offered is an invite to hope. Matthew 11:28-30 Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” His invite is to come to Him - the one who forgives, gives strength, gives healing and gives hope. There is no limit to what God does. No limit to his grace.
⁃ Forgive and Release - the Bible gives a path to restoration and reconciliation in Colossians 3:13 we read, “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” One of the most important steps in healing, particularly from parental wounds, is to forgive. This doesn’t mean their behavior is justified - it does mean that just as we have been forgiven by the Lord we forgive those who have hurt or wounded us. Saying, “Lord, I forgive them as You have forgiven me” is an important healing step.
Forgiveness changes everything - and this too is part of this commandment to honor our parents - even if they were bad parents.
Honor makes a huge difference in our lives, the lives of our family members and even into our culture.
Lord may we recognize the goodness of our heavenly Father’s heart in this command. May we hear Jesus’ invitation to come to Him and may we forgive as we are forgiven.
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