What Does God Want for Christmas? Your Heart

On Christmas Eve, we finished our series about what God wants from us this Christmas. We can give him all that he asks, but if we give it grudgingly, we are holding back from him what he wants the most: our hearts.

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What Does God Want for Christmas? All of You! (Romans 12:1-2)

In our final week of combined services, Rev. Daryl Hope of St. Stephens brought the message. After all God as done--"In view of his mercy," as the text says--what is a reasonable gift to bring to God. It's all of us: our bodies and our minds, to be changed and transformed and to know him.

It was a wonderful four weeks of services with our brothers and sisters from St. Stephens. We really experience the presence of God as he met with us as we united together for worship. We are so grateful to Rev. Hope and St. Stephens for hosting us and being our guests these four weeks. It has been an honor and a blessing to worship with you.

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What Does God Want for Christmas? Spread the News!

It was our third week of combined services with St. Stephens Baptist Church. This time, we met at St. Stephens, and after a wonderful time of worship (and before a great meal), we spoke about Jesus' command to the church before he ascended to heaven: make disciples. If we ask God what he want for Christmas, he might answer with: "Can I get a witness?"

Jesus promises power to the church to be his witnesses everywhere and to everybody. Let's join together and tell the world what we have seen and heard.

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What Does God Want for Christmas? Obedience & Thanksgiving

This Sunday we welcomed the St. Stephens Baptist Church family into our building to worship, take the Lord's Supper, and to eat together. Rev. Daryl Hope, pastor of St. Stephens brought the message. It was a powerful call for us to live our lives in joyful thanksgiving to the Lord, obeying him out of love, because he first loved us.

Psalm 116:12: "How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me?"

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What Does God Want for Christmas, week 1: Unity

This was the first week of our four weeks of combined services with St. Stephens Baptist Church, a primarily African-American congregation here in town. We have the pleasure of worshiping in their building as they led us in worship this past Sunday, and then I had the pleasure of bringing the message.

The question of all the Sundays leading to Christmas is, "What does God want for Christmas?" We answered this Sunday in both action and in word: He wants unity.

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Kingdom in Our Midst, part 5: Built on the Rock

We finished our Sermon on the Mount series Sunday with a look at the parable of the two builders. It's so simple, preschoolers can be taught the story and its principles by heart. Yet it serves as an important test for us as we finish our study. Are we going to hear and walk away unchanged or are we going to practice the gospel of the Kingdom, building our lives on the Rock, Jesus Christ?

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Kingdom in Our Midst, part 4: Recognizing the False Kingdom

The Kingdom of God is right here within our grasp, but it is unseen to the eye. A counterfeit kingdom, spread by false teachers and the Father of Lies, is also hidden, disguised as the real thing. How can we avoid false teaching and keep to the "narrow path," the way of Jesus?

Jesus answers that question as he warns his listeners not to be deceived.

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Kingdom in Our Midst, part 3: The Narrow Road

Are most people going to heaven or hell? Has God answered that question? Some might point to Jesus' "narrow road" in Matthew 7 and Luke 13 and say that He has. But what is Jesus really saying about the narrow road? What should we do about it?

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The Kingdom in Our Midst, part 2: There for the Asking

We have become accustomed to instant information. Google (and Siri, etc.) provides the answer to any question that might float into our minds. Amazon and other online retailers provide what we need with a quick search and a few clicks (or just by asking "Alexa").

Jesus promises that the Kingdom of God is not too far removed from this idea. The resources of the kingdom are "at hand," there for anyone who will ask, seek, and knock. And we can be sure that our Father will not trick us but rather care for us. And in conclusion, Jesus makes a surprising (but familiar) statement about what this means for our responsibilities to one another as citizens of the kingdom.

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Kingdom in Our Midst, part 1: Three Warnings About Judging Others

"Judge not."

These might be the most famous words of Jesus in our current society. People use this phrase as if Jesus was really saying, "Anything goes. Do what you think is right and keep to yourself." There's a whole other blog post that is needed to dismantle this interpretation, but most of us know that's not what Jesus meant.

So what does Jesus mean here? What is Jesus' warning here about judging others?

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The Worry-Free Life, part 4: Living the Worry-Free Life

What keeps you up at night? What occupies your mind or churns your stomach? Worry is a burden that we all deal with. Jesus speaks with compassion toward us when as he tells us how to be free of the burden of worry and rest in the care of our Father.

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The Worry-Free Life, part 3: The Misery of Mammon

In story after story--whether it's the story of individuals, of churches, or of nations--Jesus' words have proven to be true: You cannot serve both God and Mammon. What does it mean to serve "Mammon"? How do we escape the misery of serving Mammon instead of the Lord?

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The Worry-Free Life, part 2: The Eye Test

How are your eyes? Need glasses? For those of us who need help, we know what it's like to have bad eyes. As Jesus was teaching about money, he made a comment about good and bad eyes. What does it mean to have good or bad spiritual eyes? What does that have to do with our possessions?

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(Note: The recording started a little late)

Prayer in the Kingdom of Heaven, part 6: The Battle

Prayer awakens us to the reality that we are in the midst of an unseen battle that is just as real as the world we can see and touch. Jesus warns us to be alert to the battle and to trust God to shepherd us and deliver us from the enemies that threaten us.

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Prayer in the Kingdom of Heaven, part 5: What (Forgiveness)

Confession is an essential part of prayer. Jesus teaches us in the Lord's Prayer how to ask God for forgiveness. It is the only part of the prayer on which he comments later. What does God expect of us in our confession of sin and request for forgiveness?

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Prayer in the Kingdom of Heaven, part 4: What (Daily Bread)

If "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" is our "Pledge of Allegiance" to God's kingdom, then "Give us this day our daily bread" is our "Declaration of InDependence"

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Prayer in the Kingdom of Heaven, part 3: What (the Kingdom)

Ever had someone offer to drive you somewhere and you answer, "Nah, I'll meet you there"? It's hard to let others drive you places. You have to trust their ability to drive and that they are taking you somewhere you want to go.

Part of our daily prayer is to surrender control to God, our allegiance and our will to His kingdom and purpose. What does it mean to have allegiance to God's kingdom? What is Jesus really teaching us to do with this daily prayer?

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Prayer in the Kingdom of Heaven, part 2: Who (Matthew 6:9)

The two most important questions when it comes to prayer are...

- Who is is that we are praying to?

- Who are we as we pray?

Both answers are addressed in the first sentence of the Lord's Prayer...

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Prayer in the Kingdom of Heaven, part 1: Where and How

We had a good week of worship, with a report from our youth camp experience this year, so the message was a little shorter this week.

We began our look at Jesus' teaching on prayer in the Sermon on the Mount by looking at where Jesus told us to pray and how we ought to approach prayer.

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Heaven's Life Now, part 13: Unseen (Matt. 6:2-6, 16-18)

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)

Faith is grown by meeting our unseen Father in secret ways for the reward only He can give.

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Heaven's Life Now, pt. 12: Purity of Purpose (Matt. 6:1, 5:8)

After calling us to a greater righteousness--heart righteousness that is a gift of God--Jesus warns us at as Matthew 6 begins not to "work our righteousness" for the eyes of people. Those things that form righteousness in us, spiritual disciplines like prayer, fasting, and giving, must be directed to God in order for them to be profitable. So Jesus tells us to "take care" (be careful!) so that we're not doing these things for ourselves or others rather than for God. This week we asked three very important questions we all should ask with regard to how we work out our faith...

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Heaven's Life Now, part 11: The Tough Road to Completion (Matt. 5:38-48)

The Christian life can be simple. We often say we believe in Jesus, but do we really believe Jesus? Are we willing to change our minds as a result of what he teaches? Today, we look at three of his most difficult commands: "Do not resist an evildoer," "Love your enemies," and "Be perfect." We will try to understand these teachings, choose to believe, and look at what we need to change in order to obey.

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Heaven's Life Now, Part 10: Weighty Words (Matt. 5:33-37)

When Jesus taught his disciples not to swear, he wasn't talking about cussing. It was about the words we use to emphasis that this time, you can really trust what we say. When we use oaths, we are saying that when we don't, there's a chance we're lying. Why not simply tell the truth? Why drag God's name and other things we can't control into our promises?

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Heaven's Life Now, part 9: True Faithfulness in Marriage

What do you do when you are dissatisfied in marriage? Jesus warns us that two common "escapes" are sinful and destructive...

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Heaven's Life Now, part 8: The Priority of Peace (Matthew 5:23-26)

Heaven is a place where all things will be perfectly reconciled to God and one another. If we want to taste heaven's life now, we must make peacemaking a priority. It is a priority to God.

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VBS 2017

Our VBS was last week, and we had a great time. Check out the video!

Heaven's Life Now, part 7: A Warning About Anger (Matthew 5:21-22)

We all deal with anger to some degree. It's so common that we often think it's harmless or even a sign of our righteousness. But Jesus gives a strong warning against anger in the Sermon on the Mount. Are we going to heed this warning? Are you willing to change your thinking about anger? Are you willing to banish anger from your life?

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Guest speaker: Tee Uzoigwe

Tarvoris "Tee" Uzoigwe joined us on Sunday, June 4, while our pastor was in Kobuk, Alaska, with our mission team. Tee is the Baptist Student Minsistries (BSM) leader at UAPB (University of Arkansas - Pine Bluff).

Here is the message that he brought from the book of Deuteronomy, titled "What Does the Lord Require of You?"
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Heaven's Life Now, part 6: A Greater Righteousness (Matthew 5:17-20)

Everything Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount led to this little passage of Scripture that is one of the most misunderstood and misquoted in the Bible. It's also the basis for the rest of the Sermon. What do we need to know in order to understand this central teaching about Jesus' relationship with the Old Testament?

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Heaven's Life Now, part 5: Salt and Light

This week, we recognized our graduating seniors, and we spoke about a question that all of us face: what is my life going to be about? Jesus was speaking to that question as he moved from the Beatitudes into the next part of the Sermon on the Mount. "You are the salt of the earth," he said. "You are the light of the world." What does it mean for us to be salt? What does it mean to be light? What is our job as salt and light?

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Also, our Mothers Day sermon had some technical difficulties, but is available to listen to here. We finished up the Beatitudes with "Heaven's Life Now, part 4: For the Ones in the Middle":

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Heaven's Life Now, part 3: For the Frustrated and the Forgotten

All of us have had someone in authority over us who scarred us in some way: a distant parent, an unreasonable boss, a bullying commanding officer, a brutal coach. These people often get into our heads and change the way we see ourselves, evaluate ourselves, and live our life. Often we project these attributes onto our understanding of God, whether we realize it or not.

Jesus was dealing with that same problem when he spoke to the crowds. The religious leaders put a heavy burden on the people, but did not help them to carry it. Jesus told them that God was not like the priests, scribes, and Pharisees. He's not like your distant or perfectionist parent, either, or your unreasonable boss. God is not One who points down at all; He is a God who lifts us up.

Today, we look at the picture Jesus gave of God described in these three Beatitudes:

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy."

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Heaven's Life Now, part 2: Good News for the Needy

The person who seems to offer nothing to God can still inherit everything.

This week, we looked into the first two Beatitudes...

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Heaven's Life Now, part 1: The Gospel Jesus Preached

Are you missing the gospel that Jesus preached?

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A Walk to the Cross, part 7: The Resurrection

Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:27-29)

 How is it a blessing to believe in the resurrection?

 That is the question we answered this Easter Sunday...

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A Walk to the Cross, part 6: The Cross

We know that we can learn from Jesus on how to live, but today as we look at the cross, we see that we can learn from Jesus in the way He died.

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A Walk to the Cross, part 5: The Walk to Calvary

Walking to the cross, Jesus said, "Don't weep for me; weep for yourselves..."

Why did He say that?  What can it mean for us today?

This week, we looked into Luke 23:28-31...

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A Walk to the Cross, part 4: The Trial

Greed betrayed Jesus; Jealousy condemned him, but a coward sent him to the cross.

Today we profile the cowardice of Pilate, and take a hard look at the insidious coward in each of us...

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A Walk to the Cross, part 3: The Arrest

How are we supposed to relate to this world?  When Jesus' enemies came for Him in the night of His arrest, we saw three different 'groups' of people who answered the question in different ways.  His enemies wanted to be friends with the world, his friends feared the world, but Jesus overcame the world.  As we look at this story, we again look to how we can be like Jesus, who overcame the world and brings us victory...

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A Walk to the Cross, part 2: The Garden

If we're not careful, we can read and hear about the crucifixion story and just react by feeling sorry for Jesus.  But Jesus is not just a pitiful figure, and He is our example as well as our Savior, especially in the way he laid down his life.  In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus revealed his humanity, and we can learn from this story how to follow His example and really become like Jesus.

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A Walk to the Cross: The Full Extent of His Love

We start our "Walk to the Cross" with Jesus at the Last Supper.  This message was part of a Lord's Supper service that integrated the ordinance of the Lord's Supper with hymns and teaching.  The music breaks and the time for the taking of the bread and cup have been removed.

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Colossians 3:18-4:6: Life in the Kingdom

The picture of unity from Psalm 133 is a picture of being soaked, which is reflected in the passage from Colossians 3:16: "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly..."  What does the Word-soaked, Spirit-soaked, life look like in our families?  at work?  alone in prayer?  in interactions with non-believers?  Today we look at what living in the kingdom looks like in everyday life?

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Colossians 3:12-17: United in Christ

The idea of equality really began with Jesus, but today's version of equality is usually competing groups fighting to be recognized.  Christians recognize equality not in order to fight for rights but to discover unity in Christ.  How do we truly become unified as the Bible teaches?  Colossians 3:12-17 teaches us how it happens...

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Colossians 3:1-11: Be Transformed

God didn't save us so that we would serve Him dutifully.  He has seated us in a place of favor and fellowship.  What we do in response should be done freely out of love.  So what if that's not true?  How do we change our "want-to" when it comes to living for the Lord?

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(This message is special to me, because it was after this message that my son Joseph came forward to make public his decision to follow Christ.  What an exciting Sunday!)

Colossians 2:6-23: Jesus Is Enough

When we accept God's invitation to grow to maturity in Christ, we also face a danger from those who would steal us away from the life Jesus provides.  This is the path to captivity, and it often sounds like good religious teaching.  The path to maturity is based on love and trust; the path to captivity is based on rules, pride, and shame.  Always trust that Jesus is enough!

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Colossians 1:24-2:5: Purpose of the church

If something's worth is determined by what someone will pay for it, the church is the most valuable thing of all, because it was paid for by the blood of Christ.  If someone pays a high price for something, it means they have a specific purpose in mind.  What did God have in mind when he purchased you and me?

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Colossians 1:15-23: All Things By...For...To... Jesus

This is one of the great passages of Scripture about who Jesus really is.  If you want to understand God's purpose for your life, you need to understand God's purpose for Christ.

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Colossians 1:1-14: Praying for Understanding

What is the most important thing to know in life?

What is the core reality that guides your outlook on life and worldview?

Jesus is the truest reality.

Jesus is the truth that is most real.

This week we began a series on the book of Colossians, which teaches us that everything else is secondary to Jesus.

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FBC 2017: What Will We Become?

What is it that Jesus wants from his church?  What are we to become as Christians?  As the church in Stephens?  It's time to re-focus for a new year...

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The Second Advent, part 5: A Promise Kept

We finished our three-year walk through the story of the Bible on Christmas Day.  What will it be like when Jesus comes again?  

This sermon has been delayed in being posted, but it's an important one!  I hope you are blessed.

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