April 16 2017 Easter - The Foundation For Happiness

EASTER, THE FOUNDATION FOR HAPPINESS

Col. 1:14 – Christ bought our freedom with His blood.

John 10:10 – Jesus said, “I come to give you life to the full.”

Matt. 28:5 - He is not here, He has risen.

Psalm 146:5 – Happy is he whose hope is in the Lord.

Happiness is Possible:

1. Because Christ can free you from guilt.

Eph. 1:7 – By the death of Christ we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven.

Col.2.14 – He has cancelled every record of the debt

we owed. Christ has done away with it by nailing it to the cross.

Rom 8:1 – There is no condemnation awaiting those who belong to Christ.

2. Because Christ can free you from worry.

I Peter 1:2 – God’s Spirit has been at work in you heart through Jesus Christ. May God grant you increasing freedom from all anxiety and fear.

Ph. 4:13 – I am ready for anything through the strength of Christ who lives in me.

3. Because Christ can give you purpose.

Eph. 2:10 – We are God’s work of art, created in Christ Jesus to live the good life as He meant for us to live it.

Acts 20:24 – Life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus.

4. Because Christ can give you a home in heaven.

Col. 2:20 – Christ has set you free from following the world’s ideas of how to be saved by doing good and obeying various rules.

Rom 4:4 – You don’t earn the right to heaven, no, for being saved is a free gift. If a person could earn it by being good, then it wouldn’t be free, but it is.

Rom. 6:23 – The free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ.

A Prayer That Leads to Happiness: Dear God, I believe Jesus Christ was who He claimed to be, Your Son, and that He proved it by rising from death. Jesus Christ, thank You for dying for me on the cross. I want You to forgive my sins and I want to know You personally and experience the freedom You offer. As much as I know how, I ask You to come into my life and be my Lord and Savior. Amen.

February 28 2016 The Word Of Substitution

THE WORD OF SUBSTITUTION

Matthew 27:39-49

Verse 46 – My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?

What does it Teach Us?

1. That God is Holy.

Revelation 4:5 – Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God almighty, who was, and is and is to come.

Habakkuk 1:13 – Your eyes are too pure to look on evil, you cannot tolerate wrong.

2. The setting is loneliness.

Hebrews 2:18 – Because He himself suffered being made like His brothers in every way, He is able to help those who are being tempted.

Proverbs 18:24 – But there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother.

3. The cross speaks about lostness.

Verse 46 – Why has Thou forsaken Me?

• Sin alienates.

Isaiah 59:2 – Your evil has separated you from your God and your sins have caused Him to turn away from you, so He does not hear you.

• Sin causes distress.

Psalm 38:4 – My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear.

• Sin condemns.

Romans 6:23 – The wages of sin is death.

2 Corinthians 5:21 – He made Him, to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.

4. The cross speaks about lessons for living.

Verse 46 – My God, My God.

Job 13:15 – Though He slay Me, yet I will trust in God.

Mark 16:7 – Go tell His disciples and Peter.

How Should We Respond

1. Turn from sin to Christ.

Romans 3:22 – We are mead right in God’s sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins.  And we all can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done.

2. Live in a state of gratitude.

Romans 5:11 – Now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God, all because of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us, making us friends with God.

3. Remember what Christ has done when tempted.

1 Peter 1:18-19 – God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors, He paid for you the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.

4. Tell others the good news.

December 21 2014 What Difference Does Christmas Make?

WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES CHRISTMAS MAKE?

John 3:16 (LB)  "For God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son..."

Because Jesus came at Christmas ...

1.  MY PAST CAN BE FORGIVEN

Romans 3:23-24 (LB)"All of us have sinned... yet now God declares us `not guilty' of offending him IF we trust in Jesus Christ who freely takes away our sins."

2 Corinthians 5:17 (Ph)"If anyone is in Christ, he becomes a new person altogether; the past is finished and gone, everything becomes fresh and new."

2.  MY PRESENT PROBLEMS CAN BE MANAGED

Philippians 4:13 (GN)"I have the strength to face all conditions by the power Christ gives me."

Romans 8:32 (Ph)"... God gave us his own son - can we not trust such a God to give us ... everything else that we need?"

3.  MY FUTURE CAN BE GUARANTEED

Hebrews 2:14-15 (GN) "... Jesus became like us ... (to) set free those who were slaves all their lives because of their fear of death."

Three Christmas Gifts to you from God

1. Ephesians 1:4-7 (GN)"Let us praise God for the FREE GIFT he gave us in his Son... we are set free, our sins are forgiven."  
2. John 14:27 (LB) (Jesus) "I am leaving you with a GIFT; peace of mind and heart... so don't be troubled or afraid."  
3. Romans 6:23 "... the GIFT of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord."

Have you accepted these gifts?

August 17 2014 Grace - The Message Of The Church

Grace: The Message of the Church 

Psalm 145:8 – The Lord is gracious and compassionate; slow to anger and rich in love.

WHAT IS GRACE?

• God’s gift to you.

Romans 3:24 – But by the free gift of God’s Grace they are all put right with Him through Christ Jesus who sets them free.

• A gift received by faith.

Ephesians 2:8-9 – For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.

Romans 4:16a – People receive God’s promise by having faith. This happens so the promise can be a free gift.

• It’s available to everyone.

Romans 10:13 – Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

• It comes through Christ.

John 1:17 – The law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:15b – Many people have received God’s gift of life by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ.

Galatians 2:21 – Don’t treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need for Christ to die.

• It brings eternal life.

Romans 6:23 – The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Isaiah 30:18 – The Lord longs to be gracious to you.

HOW WILL I RESPOND?

March 31 2013 Power To Enjoy Life

POWER TO ENJOY LIFE
Philippians 3:10 - I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection.

What Can Christ Set Me Free From?

1. Guilt over my past.

Ephesians 1:7 - By the death of Christ we are set free, that is our sins are forgiven.

Colossians 2:14 - He has cancelled every record of the debt we owed. Christ has done away with it by nailing it to the cross.

Romans 8:1 - There is no condemnation awaiting those who belong to Christ.

2. Worry about your future.

1 Peter 1:2 - God’s Spirit has been at work in your heart through Jesus Christ. May God grant you increasing freedom from all anxiety and fear.

Philippians 4:13 - I am ready for anything through the strength of Christ who lives in me.

3. Living without a purpose.

Ephesians 2:10 - We are God’s work of art, created in Christ Jesus to live the good life as He meant for us to live it.

Acts 20:24 - Life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus.

4. Earning your way to heaven.

Colossians 2:20 - Christ has set you free from following the world’s ideas of how to be saved by doing good and obeying various rules.

Romans 4:4 - You don’t earn the right to heaven, No, for being saved is a free gift. If a person could earn it by being good, then it wouldn’t be free, but it is.

Romans 6:23 - The free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ.

A Prayer That Leads To Freedom:

Dear God, I believe Jesus Christ was who He claimed to be, Your Son, and that He proved it by rising from death. Jesus Christ, thank You for dying for me on the cross. I want You to forgive my sins and I want to know you personally and experience the freedom You offer. As much as I know how, I ask You to come into my life and be my Lord and Savior. Amen