David and the Heart of God - Week 3: Fame & Injustice
Awake Us Now
Scripture: 1 Samuel 18. Today we look at the cost of fame, the discouragement of injustice, and we will see what we can learn from David on how to navigate through them. In our text we read of David’s progression of fame. He was a natural leader, a brilliant tactician, and widely acclaimed for his accomplishments. While David increased in popularity, Saul became very angry and he began to keep his eyes on David. Saul saw David as a threat to his throne and begins to want David killed, even throwing his own spear at him several times - but David escapes. David is an honorable man and...
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Dig Deeper - Preview
Awake Us Now
Dig Deeper Preview: Why does Jesus have two family trees shared in the Bible? Today’s class is a special preview of the upcoming Tuesday Bible Class series: Dig Deeper. Why does Jesus have 2 family trees? 1. One in Matthew 1:1-16 2. One in Luke 3:23-38 And they are different. So let’s look a little deeper. The major accepted answer has been that one tells the genealogy of Jesus’ mother, the Virgin Mary, and the other the genealogy of His step father, Joseph. There is evidence to support and suggest that that is the case. ...
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David and the Heart of God - Week 2: The Battle
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Scripture: 1 Samuel 17-51, Ephesians 6:10, 2 Corinthians 10:4, 1 Corinthians 15:57. Today’s story is the most familiar, famous and well-known battle in the Old Testament - David and Goliath - but is there still something we can learn from a story we know so well? This is a battle between Goliath and the Philistines and the Israelite army. Goliath challenges them every day for 40 days: “send a man to battle me, if I kill him you become our slaves and if your man kills me we will become your slaves.” 40 days are significant in the Bible - it is a time of preparation and renewal that at its...
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David and the Heart of God - Week 1: The Anointing
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Scripture: 1 Samuel 16. There are many Biblical characters of faith in the Bible, but none with as many Old Testament chapters devoted to them as David. Abraham - 14 Chapters Joseph - 14 chapters Jacob - 11 chapters Elijah - 10 chapters David - 66 chapters (and this does NOT include the Psalms written by him!) Our story takes place around the year 1025 BC. We read in 1 Samuel 13:14 that God is going to replace the Israelite’s first king, King Saul. In 1 Samuel 13:14 we read about Elijah telling Saul the following, “But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man...
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Christmas Message 2025
Awake Us Now
Merry Christmas! The Christmas story from Luke 2 may be a story that is new to some of us and to others it may be very familiar. We are going to look at the part of the story that is about the shepherds. Luke 2:8-9 we read, “And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.” Did you know that being a shepherd in Jesus’ day was one of the lowliest jobs one could have? They were in the fields all the time, they smelled like sheep and...
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Rescued by Truth: Week 52
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A difficult and challenging message, this week we address the reality of hell. Hell is not a topic of regular conversation, yet the reality of hell is true. Therefore, it is essential we understand the consequences of our beliefs, our actions, and our behaviors, and that we understand what the future holds. The Bible teaches we have only two destinies: With God (heaven) - or - Apart from Him (hell). Which destiny are we living for?
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Two Year Gospel Study Week 104
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The Gospel of John Week 26 Scripture: John 20:19 - 21:25. Today’s study will conclude our two year study of the Gospels with a dramatic and amazing ending. We begin with John 20:19, it is the first day of the week (Sunday) and the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly Jesus was standing among them saying “Peace be with you.” This is a phrase in English that sounds so common, like “have a good day.” But in Hebrew it carries much more meaning. Shalom (peace) more than just an absence of conflict or warfare, it refers to all creation - it...
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Merry Christmas
Awake Us Now
Merry Christmas!
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Christmas Message
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Merry Christmas!
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Christmas Eve Message
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Merry Christmas!
info_outlineIn Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus states that He has been given "all authority on Heaven and on Earth," and with that authority gives us our marching orders - make disciples of all nations, baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy spirit, and teach them to obey everything He has commanded. But this isn’t just about His command, this is about God’s faithfulness and His desire for us to experience that faithfulness.
Let’s begin by contrasting genuine faith with mere religion:
⁃ Relationship vs. Religion
⁃ Knowledge of God/Knowing God vs. Information/Knowing ABOUT God
⁃ Trusting in God vs. Believing only certain things
⁃ Obedience because we trust God vs. Acceptance of only certain things
We are to keep on growing in faith - to know and experience Him - to follow and obey Him. In our verses today, His desire is that we not only obey, but that we teach others to obey Him. He gives us the command to “Make disciples,” and to encourage us He gives us the promise of His faithfulness “to the end of the age.”
Jesus opens today’s teaching with “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”
- Authority of Jesus: Why? because of His death and resurrection, His sacrifice on the cross and His glorious triumph AND His obedience to the Father. Thus we live in His authority, living by faith in the power and authority of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus continues, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations.”
⁃ Priority of Discipleship: Note that He didn’t say make church members. He didn’t say make Christians. He didn’t say make converts. He said make disciples (followers of Jesus) - build up each other in the faith.
Jesus goes on with, “baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
⁃ Unity of God: three, yet One.
And then He says, “and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
⁃ Necessity of obedience: we are not saved by obedience, but when we know Him and are empowered but the Holy Spirit, our desire is to obey Him.
Then Jesus closes with, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
⁃ This is His assurance! His promise! And this gives us strength, hope, power, encouragement and peace, because God is faithful. God is good but above al else He is faithful and God can be trusted no matter what is happening in our lives.
Pastor goes on to share a very powerful and very personal story centered on his grandfather. It is an amazing story of God’s faithfulness. (Grab a tissue…)
Our good God is calling us to walk with him, to know him more and more, to experience the fullness of His presence, His Holy Spirit and His astonishing love in Jesus ,our risen and returning Savior, the One to whom all authority has been given, the One who tells us, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you..” And we can do this because He ends this Great Commission with this great promise, “ And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
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