Growing Gracefully: Persecution
Awake Us Now
Jesus makes it clear to His followers - if we follow Him, we WILL be persecuted, just as He was persecuted. When that happens, we are not to despair, but to rejoice - "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven." (Matthew 5:10) Persecution is a confirmation that we truly are following the Living God!
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Questions - Week 22: What Did Jesus Tell Them?
Awake Us Now
Pastor gives us a look at the story, “On the Road to Emmaus,” found in Luke 24:13-27. We don’t know the actual location of Emmaus, nor do we know the names of those walking with Jesus in this story. The story takes place later in the day on the day of Jesus’ resurrection. Those Jesus walks with do not recognize Him. They are trying to figure out everything that had happened with Jesus and thinking about what the women had said about Jesus being alive and about the disciples having gone to the tomb and found it empty. Then Jesus begins to explain the scriptures to them concerning...
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Kings & Prophets: From Solomon to Jeremiah - Week 15
Awake Us Now
This is the final week in our study of 400 years of Kings and Prophets from Solomon to Jeremiah. King Josiah • Young King seeks God • Spiritual cleansing of Jerusalem • Book of the Law discovered • Reform beyond Judah • Passover observance - King Josiah gives an order to all people to observe God's Passover. This had not been celebrated according to what was written, not even in the days of the judges, nor in the days of any of the kings of...
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Growing Gracefully: Sing!
Awake Us Now
We see singing and songs throughout the Scriptures. Singing connects us with the heart, with one another, and with God!
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Growing Gracefully: Infilling
Awake Us Now
Everyone who is a true disciple of the Lord Jesus has the Holy Spirit. But does the Holy Spirit have us? It is one thing to know the Living God and to know Jesus as Savior, but it is another thing to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit on a regular, daily basis!
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Growing Gracefully: Awake
Awake Us Now
God charges His disciples to "be awake" in all times and all situations. We are especially charged to be awake to God's Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20), the reality of spiritual warfare, and the signs of the times.
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Growing Gracefully: Prepared
Awake Us Now
Almost two thousand years ago, John the Baptist called people to repent and prepare for the coming Lord. Today, we are still called to have repentant hearts that receive and extend the forgiveness of the Living God, and to prepare fruit for Him in our lives!
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Growing Gracefully: Holiness
Awake Us Now
Holiness is a gift, offered to us in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. But once God has made us holy, we are then called to pursue holiness in our lives!
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Questions - Week 21: Why Do You Believe He Is Risen?
Awake Us Now
Happy Resurrection Sunday - Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Today’s question is “Why do you believe He is risen?” Pastor starts today’s class with a personal testimony in which the Bible changed the direction of his life at the age of 15. Christianity stands or falls on the resurrection of Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:14 “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” Pastor shares the Evidence Trail of Jesus’ Resurrection on the bases of writings from believers, unbelievers, recorded data, and old and new studies. The Evidence Trail...
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Kings & Prophets: From Solomon to Jeremiah - Week 14
Awake Us Now
Last week we ended our study time looking at a great king of Judah, Hezekiah. Today we start with one of the worst kings of Judah, Manasseh, Hezekiah’s son. Manasseh reigned from 697-642 B.C. His story is found in 2 Kings 21:1-18 and 2 Chronicles 33:1-20. Manasseh reigned 55 years. He reigned longer than any other king and did more damage than any other king. He did evil in God’s eyes. It is a disgusting and tragic story. He destroys everything good his father had done. King Manasseh ⁃ Apostasy and Idolatry - 2 Chronicles 33:33 ⁃...
info_outlineThis is the final week in our study of 400 years of Kings and Prophets from Solomon to Jeremiah.
King Josiah
• Young King seeks God
• Spiritual cleansing of Jerusalem
• Book of the Law discovered
• Reform beyond Judah
• Passover observance - King Josiah gives an order to all people to observe God's Passover. This had not been celebrated according to what was written, not even in the days of the judges, nor in the days of any of the kings of Israel and Judah. Josiah made sure the celebration was carried out according to what was written in the Book of the Covenant. He, like David, was a man after God's own heart. He reads the scriptures and applies them and a time of revival begins. We read in 2 Kings 23:25 "Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the LORD as he did - with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses."
• Death at Megiddo - A prophetic word comes from Huldah telling Josiah of the judgment that is coming from God against the people, but that because Josiah's heart was repentant he would not see the judgment that would come. During this time there was great international upheaval between Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon. 2 Kings 23:29 "While Josiah was king, Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt went up to the Euphrates River to help the king of Assyria. King Josiah marched out to meet him in battle, but Necho faced him and killed him at Megiddo." Jeremiah and the nation were devastated by the loss of king Josiah. Then Josiah's 3 sons reign. None were the king that their father was. They returned to the old ways for faithlessness to God.
Josiah's 3 Sons
• Jehoahaz - 2 Kings 23:31-33; 2 Chronicles 36:1-3 - reigned 3 month doing evil in the eyes of the Lord. He was imprisoned by Pharaoh Necho of Egypt, who was the one who had killed his father. Jehoahaz dies in Egypt.
• Jehoiakim - 2 Kings 23:34 - 24:7; 2 Chronicles 36:4-8 - reigned 11 years and did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He was an evil and inefficient ruler. Constructed a new palace and Jeremiah denounces him for ignoring the people and ignoring God. Jehoiakim rejects Jeremiah and even burns the first copy of the book of Jeremiah. (Jeremiah 36:23) The city of Jerusalem is overtaken in 605 BC by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and many of the people are deported to Babylon. (Daniel was one that was taken - Daniel 1:1-2). When Jehoiakim dies he is given the "burial of a donkey." Jeremiah 22:13-19. Johoiachin, his son reigns for 3 months doing evil like his father and was taken captive by Babylon - 2 Kings 24:8-16; 2 Chronicles 36:9-10
• Zedekiah - 2 Kings 24:17 - 25:21; 2 Chronicles 36:11-21; Jeremiah 39:1-10 - reigns for 11 years and he did evil in the eyes of the Lord. Zedekiah breaks the treaty with Babylon (Ezekiel 17:18). He looks to Egypt for deliverance but didn't receive any. The false prophets encouraged him in his evil ways. Jeremiah warns Zedekiah of coming suffering and prophecies. But Zedekiah does not change his way and Jerusalem falls to the Babylonians and Zedekiah dies in a tragic way. Jeremiah 39:6-7.
And so ends our study with the nation, the city of Jerusalem a the Temple destroyed in 586 B.C.
Interestingly enough the Temple would once again be destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. in the same month, on the same day. This was a day Jesus predicted because they did not recognize Him and had rejected Him.
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