March 19, 2017 |
Mark 15:33-39 |
crucifixion, jesus
In this sermon, we will be looking at the fourth of His last sayings, the word of despair. We will consider Christ’s questioning cry, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Have you ever cried out to God like Jesus did? Have you ever felt forsaken and alone? Have you ever felt distant from God? Have you cried, “God, where are you?” We all feel lonely at times. We all want acceptance. We want to be accepted and approved. But instead, we often feel rejected and alone. The truth is, if we would rightly understand how our sins have separated us from our Creator, we would cry out with a deeper feeling of despair than we’ve ever felt. It was for this, that Christ took on our despair, that we might receive in exchange, His oneness with God.
In the gospel of Mark, Jesus cried out in despair to God as He experienced the extravagant exchange that it cost Him for our reconciliation. We can understand the cost of this extravagant exchange.
March 12, 2017 |
John 19:16-27 |
crucifixion, jesus, relationships
Have you ever wondered whether God cares? Especially asking, “Does God care for me?” I’ve heard some say, “I’m sure God has better things to do than care about my little problems. Shouldn’t He be busy solving world hunger or peace on earth?” What do you think? Does God care for the details of your little life? Or is He too busy running the universe? In this third word from the cross, we will realize how much God cares for us. He cares for the big stuff and He cares for the little stuff too. There’s no detail too small for His loving care. In the third saying of Jesus from the cross found in the gospel of John, Jesus revealed the loving care that He had for His mother. We can know the loving care that Jesus has for us.
March 5, 2017 |
Luke 23:32-43 |
crucifixion, gospel, salvation
Last words – we will all someday speak them. The seven last words of Jesus on the cross were recorded in the four gospels. In the gospel of Luke, Jesus responded with a promise of salvation to the criminal hanging on the cross next to Him, who had called on Jesus to remember him. In Christ’s response to the criminal on the cross, He revealed the promised salvation He has for us. How can we respond to Christ’s promised word of salvation?
February 26, 2017 |
Luke 23:34 |
crucifixion, jesus
“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
In the gospel of Luke, we have the record of Christ’s first word on the cross and it was a word of forgiveness. It was a prayer to His Father, that He would forgive those who were crucifying Him. In this prayer, Jesus revealed the boundless forgiveness He has for us.
February 19, 2017 |
2 Timothy 2:2 |
discipleship, life on life discipleship
Our desire is to be a disciple-making church. Pastor Gary laid out the strategy we have been working on for the past year to be a church full of disciples who are making disciples through our Life On Life Discipleship process. We are following the pattern established by Jesus to pour his life into a few people who then turned the world upside down with relational and strategic relationships, one on one, over the years. The the apostle Paul instructed Timothy in this pattern as well in 2 Timothy 2:2, saying “what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.”
February 12, 2017 |
Matthew 28:18-20 |
disciple making, discipleship
Disciple making begins with being a witness for Christ, sharing the gospel and inviting others to attend church with you. But why don’t more Christians witness? Recent statistics state that “86% of people who visit were invited by a friend or relative.” Yet, “only 2% of church people have invited an unchurched person to church with them.” What kind of a disciple are you? Do you want to be a disciple who makes disciples?
In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus commissioned his disciples to be disciple-makers. We call this the Great Commission. Christ made being a disciple and making-disciples inseparable. If you want to be a disciple of Jesus, you will be a disciple-maker. In Christ’s Great Commission, he taught them how to make disciples. We can obey Christ’s call to be disciples who make disciples.
[Note: Pastor Gary was visiting the Rocky Mount campus, Eastgate Community Church, this Sunday. This campus did not have the ability to record video of his message, so only audio is available for this sermon]
February 5, 2017 |
Matthew 16:24 |
discipleship
Full Transcript Available
In the book of Matthew, Jesus described what it meant to answer the call to come after Him and be one of His disciples. We can answer the call to be a disciple of Jesus.
January 29, 2017 |
Luke 5:1-11 |
finances, financial freedom, vocation
Full Transcript Available
Do you want to be free from financial worry and stress? Why do we want to be financially free? Will it lessen our anxiety? Yes. Will it reduce our stress? Yes. But life has a way of causing us to have worry and stress anyway. Following biblical principles for financial freedom will help, but it won’t solve all of your problems. Nor is it a method of becoming wealthy for the sake of your own comfort and pleasure. God doesn’t want us to be a slave to the lender. He wants us to be free to serve the Lord. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus called Peter to follow Him, turning all that he was and all that he had over Christ. Peter obeyed and followed Christ. We can turn all that we are and all that we have over to Christ and be set free to fully follow Him.
January 22, 2017 |
2 Kings 4:1-7 |
debt, finances
Full Transcript Available
Americans are awash in credit card and consumer debt! We are tempted by ads like, “Buy now, pay later.” Or “Now you can own anything, any time, anywhere!” Do you feel overwhelmed and trapped by debt? Maybe even a little ashamed? The truth is that your financial condition says a lot about your spiritual condition. There is a way out. God wants you to be debt free, so that you are free to be what He has called you to be.
January 15, 2017 |
Luke 15:11-24 |
debt, finances
Full Transcript Available
Jesus told a parable that illustrates how our spiritual condition and our finances are linked. We know this story as the parable of the Prodigal Son. This parable is often taught to warn us against rebellious living or illustrate the love of the Heavenly Father and both of those applications are correct and useful. But in this sermon, we look at this story from a different angle and see that it gives us both a warning and a proper perspective on how to handle money. Here’s a man who learned lessons on financial freedom the hard way.
