Dig Deeper - Week 3: Temptation & Testing
Awake Us Now
We take a look at Matthew 6:13, a portion of The Lord’s Prayer. “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” However, we read in James 1:13 “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;” So are these two verses contracting each other? Or are we misunderstanding something. So let’s look at the original words used in this Scripture. 1. Peirazō - verb meaning to test/try or tempt - two very different meanings 2. Peirasmos - noun...
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The Living One - Week 3: They Were Clueless
Awake Us Now
The way of the Messiah leads to the cross, and that is the measure of the love of God. But we discover that many (including Jesus’ disciples) were clueless! This message takes a look at the events of Palm Sunday, and how Jesus had repeatedly predicted his crucifixion and His resurrection on the third day. However, “they were clueless.” Let us not be clueless!
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The Living One - Week 2: Why Reject Him?
Awake Us Now
Today’s question is an exploration of why people reject Jesus. What is it that causes people to doubt Him? Why do people turn their backs on what God is offering to everyone through Christ Jesus? Pastor Dodge examines these assumptions and counters them with the truth of the scriptures.
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Questions - Week 14: Why Am I So Tempted?
Awake Us Now
Common questions on this age old topic: ⁃ Why is sin so tempting? ⁃ Why do I do things I don’t want to do? ⁃ How can I conquer temptation? ⁃ Where can I find strength to resist? ⁃ Why is this so difficult? Genesis 3:1-7 - First sin in the Bible. But prior to sin, Adam and Eve were in a time of blissful innocence. A perfect creation, perfect relationship with God, perfect relationship with each other. No death, no sorrow, no pain, but that...
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Kings & Prophets: From Solomon to Jeremiah - Week 5
Awake Us Now
Pastor begins with a brief overview of Solomon’s divided kingdom. Judah was in the south with two tribes ruled by a descendant of David, Reheboam. Israel in the north with ten tribes was ruled by Jeroboam (1 Kings 11-14) 931-910 BC. God had said that Jeroboam’s kingship would be blessed if he followed the Lord, but he chose the exact opposite path. In today’s class we will look closely at three incidents with Jeroboam. In 1 Kings 12:31-33 we read some of the first things he did that were against God, everything Jeroboam did was counterfeit, just like what the enemy always tries to...
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The Living One - Week 1: Did He Really Live?
Awake Us Now
This teaching compares non-Christian writings of Tacitus, Josephus, Suetonius and Pliny from the first and second centuries to the New Testament writings. The evidence is clear and calls us to recognize we are sinners in need of a Savior, The Living One!
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Big Questions - Power... When the Holy Spirit Comes
Awake Us Now
Pentecost, the gift of the Holy Spirit to believers, is all about the power of God -- the power to live a new life, the power to give glory to the Living God, the power of faith that transforms us and that beckons to others to come to God as well!
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Big Questions - My Witnesses... To the Ends of the Earth
Awake Us Now
It is easy to get distracted by other things — some of them perhaps important things — but Jesus makes it clear to His followers that our primary task is make disciples. To that end, we are to be His witnesses, "even to the ends of the earth."
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Dig Deeper - Week 2: The "Submission" Passage
Awake Us Now
Today’s class is a study of Ephesians 5:21-33. A group of verses that are controversial, often attacked and many times misunderstood. Ephesians 5:21-22 “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, [submit] yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.” In the original Greek text the second [submit] word is not there. There is not a verb in this sentence and so in traditional Greek practice, you take the verb from the previous sentence and insert it into the next sentence. Please note that this is really important - because what this is saying is,...
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Big Questions - Obey... Everything I Have Commanded
Awake Us Now
Obedience is not optional - it is command from Jesus Himself. But we are not saved because we obey; rather, we obey the Lord because He has saved us!
info_outline“If someone dies, will they live again?”
Three Basic Views
1. Oblivion - there’s nothing more after this life. But Near Death Experiences (NDE's) are challenging this view.
2. Reincarnation - a view held mainly in the eastern world.
3. Afterlife - there is something beyond the grave, that our lives do not end when our bodies die. This is also at the heart of the biblical message.
Will All People Die? The answer is “No!” The Bible teaches in 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 that there will be one generation that does not, the one alive when Jesus returns. The Bible teaches a resurrection.
What happens when I die? A personal look using the Bible’s Testimony:
1. Life - God is the author of life. Genesis 2:7, Ecclesiastes 3:11
2. Death - is a reality because of sin. Genesis 3:19, Romans 5:12
3. Paradise - with Christ when we die. Luke 23:43, Philippians 1:23. But this is not our destiny.
4. Raised - The dead will be raised. Our destiny and future is to be bodily raised with new bodies that are glorified. 1 Corinthians 15:22, 1 Thessalonians 4:16
5. Judgement - For unbelievers it is a time of judgement, for believers their sins were judged at the Christ so that we do not need to suffer the punishment for our sins. For believers the judgement is a time of reward. 2 Corinthians 5:10, Hebrew 9:27 A believer’s life is to be lived as a thank you note to God.
6. Forever - believers will live forever in a new heaven and a new earth in new bodies with no pain, death or suffering. 2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:4. Our destiny is to live forever! That is why it is so important that we receive what God offers us: salvation, life, forgiveness, and assurance through faith in Jesus who died for us, rose from the grave and will return at the end of time.
For believers, death is not to be feared with dread, it is instead an assurance that there is more and that the best is yet to come. John 11:25 “Jesus said to her, ‘I’m the resurrection and the life. The one who believe in me will live, even through they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?’”
Do you believe what Jesus said to Martha? Will you respond to the gift God desires to bring to everyone, life forever with Him? He desires all to be saved through knowledge in the Lord Jesus Christ.
1. Sin - all have sinned and need a Savior and need to repent
2. Sorrow - realize we have sinned against a holy God, our Creator, and desire to repent. God is good and gracious and desires all repent and admit we are sinners responding with sorrow and trusting our Savior
3. Savior - the only One who can deliver us from death and the grave and a horrible future. He is the only who can give meaning to life today and meaning forever. We have a future beyond the grave.
What happens when I die? Jesus’ response to that question is, “I am the resurrection and the life, do you believe this?”
Follow up questions to consider:
⁃ How would you answer the question; “What happens when I die?”
⁃ Do you believe the Bible’s testimony about life beyond the grave? Why or why not
⁃ Are you trusting the Lord Jesus for your eternal destiny?
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