Many people pray. Who we pray to and what we pray for makes all of the difference. As Paul writes to the church in Ephesus, he expresses his thanks to God for them following Christ and then he shares with them what he prays for them. What he prays is not for their safety or their prosperity, but for their full experiential knowledge of what they have in Christ – Hope and His Great Power! What would change in our lives if we received this type of prayer and prayed it for each other?
"faith" Tagged Sermons (Page 2)
When the ancient people of God were in crisis, surrounded by their enemy that could kill and capture them and the sea that could crush and drown them, God saved them by creating a path and spurring them to walk in faith through it. When we, the people of God, are in crisis today, we can trust that the one who spurred the world into motion can spur us to act justly, mercifully, and humbly as we walk with him.
Have you ever had a hard time believing God can use you? Have you ever been frustrated that you weren’t getting what you wanted or needed out of life? In Hebrews, we are reminded of the story of Sarah – how her faith in God and His promises stood firm through all of her mistakes and misconceptions, and the entire world was blessed through her.
As we learned last week, Noah listened to God and did what God commanded. In the New Testament, we learn that Noah “became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.” How do we become heirs of that righteousness? And what are the implications to our world when we receive and live that righteousness?
In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is giving insight into how His Kingdom is different than what the audience had known and experienced. In Matthew 6:33, He summarizes the action we must take in light of all these Kingdom Insights: We must seek first the Kingdom of God and God Himself and then respond in faith!
In Galatians, Paul passionately contrasts a life of Faith that leads to being filled with The Spirit versus a life in the flesh that keeps you a slave under the law. For us today, God’s plan is for us to live in freedom, in The Spirit, and no longer be slaves to our controlling religious striving. We must trust all that God has said and walk in Freedom as Sons and Daughters of God.
Things are not right in the world and in us. The Bible reveals the cause of this reality to be sin and the remedy to be faith in Jesus as Lord. This remedy is good news and is difficult for us to accept. In this second message from Paul’s letter to the Galatians we discover that, though hard to believe, the gospel in a word is Jesus.
Paul makes it clear in this text that the condition of our heart is what’s most important when we give financially. Our community has landed on the Biblical vineyard metaphor in regard to our 3 key priorities for this new ministry year, and our vision is that we all bear abundant spiritual fruit for the Lord’s glory and for our joy. This is an appeal to cheerfully respond to the opportunity to significantly invest in bringing the church’s vision to fruition, as we seek to be a community on mission together.
We don’t suffer without reason. Because, when we suffer, people see our hope amidst it and are intrigued. When they ask about the reason for our hope, we have an opportunity to share our faith in Jesus. Are you prepared to share?
In principio creavit Deus caelum et terram. Propterea sicut per unum hominem in hunc mundum peccatum intravit et per peccatum mors et ita in omnes homines mors pertransiit in quo omnes peccaverunt. Sic enim dilexit Deus mundum ut Filium suum unigenitum daret ut omnis qui credit in eum non pereat sed habeat vitam aeternam.