Posts Tagged ‘Answers’

WHY DO I NEED TO BE SAVED?

Posted in Church, Preaching messages, tagged Answers, Belief, christian, church, Craig Anderson, faith, inc, international network of churches, jesus, passion for the lost, plenty valley church, salvation on February 14, 2015| Leave a Comment »

SALVATION FAITH # 3AM That’s a great question! Lots of people never actually ask that question, but if you hang around Christians long enough, then somewhere you will hear about being “saved”. It’s a term that doesn’t come into the vernacular of regular folks unless you’re talking about being saved from the surf or a burning building; but saved from… er hell? – That’s different! It’s about understanding the human condition. You will have a world view on that. You will have a perspective of how you see the world and people. Consider this from a bible perspective just for a moment …. Humour me!

There’s a lot of evil in the world, like ISIS for example. Or even the brutal slaying of Jill Meagher
The concept of judgement falls easily onto the human mind. We all feel comfortable with the concept that such evil will be judged and should be judged. In most movies the bad guy gets it in the end – right?
Now importantly, recognise the natural tendency of human pride. The tendency of us all to say, “I’m alright though. I’m good!” We see ourselves as being naturally on the side of good. We often say, “He’s a good guy, or she’s a really good person.” Jesus actually says, “There is none good but God.” (Matt 19:17) Probably we really mean that a person has a soft heart or a proud heart rather than a good heart/bad heart. Even as Christians we use this terminology frequently, but what we mean is that person has a soft heart as compared to a proud heart.
Judgement is universal. The truth is God is perfect and no wrong will go unpunished. God is infinite in His capacity to know all and see all; and He is just which means He cannot overlook any wrong doing. Being just, He will reward all wrong with punishment and all good with reward.
Now the trouble is, we have all (Rom 3:23) Come on! You surely must admit you have told the occasional lie – right? You have used the Lord’s name in vain? You have committed adultery in your mind at least? Stolen anything at all in your life? I could go on… So if God is just and holy then you and I will be judged. Therefore you need saving!

The most commonly held belief in Australia is this…. There is a God. (78%) These people mostly believe God judges by their own standards. So really evil people will go to hell (Belief in hell 29%) People such as Hitler, murderers like the bloke who killed Jill Meagher, rapists, paedophiles, and terrorists. All the rest, including me of course, will go to heaven (belief in heaven). At almost every funeral in Australia, we see the use of church facilities or a chapel with a priest, pastor, or religious leader speaking and giving the assumption that the dear departed is in heaven now, with their life described in glowing terms. Of those who die though, only 17% of those Australians had actually attended church. Perhaps even less had a faith in Jesus Christ. For some people there is a discovery. A light goes on. It’s the light of the gospel. I am a sinner. I need to be saved. God gives that revelation. The vehicle by which people receive that revelation is the gospel. The motivation is Grace (God’s love). He way we receive it is Faith. Saving faith. Look how it happened to Peter in the bible… Matt 16:1-4, 13-18 Matthew 16:1-4 Amplified Bible (AMP) 16 Now the Pharisees and Sadducees came up to Jesus, and they asked Him to show them a sign (spectacular miracle) from heaven [attesting His divine authority]. 2 He replied to them, When it is evening you say, It will be fair weather, for the sky is red, 3 And in the morning, It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and has a gloomy and threatening look. You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. 4 A wicked and morally unfaithful generation craves a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. Then He left them and went away. Matthew 16:13-18 Amplified Bible (AMP) 13 Now when Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, Who do people say that the Son of Man is? 14 And they answered, Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. 15 He said to them, But who do you [yourselves] say that I am? 16 Simon Peter replied, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 Then Jesus answered him, Blessed (happy, fortunate, and to be envied) are you, Simon Bar-Jonah. For flesh and blood [men] have not revealed this to you, but My Father Who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter [Greek, Petros—a large piece of rock], and on this rock [Greek, petra—a huge rock like Gibraltar] I will build My church, and the gates of Hades (the powers of the infernal region) shall not overpower it [or be strong to its detriment or hold out against it]. Peter spoke up and said, “Jesus, you are the Christ, (which means Messiah) the son of the Living God.” He had been following Jesus for about 2 years. So he had plenty of time to observe and understand who Jesus really was. (In surveys conducted by Billy Graham Evangelistic Association they discovered that people hear the gospel about an average of 3.5 times before they come to faith.) He received a revelation of Jesus, that Jesus said came to Peter directly from heaven, from the Father God. Who do you say Jesus is? He referred to himself as the son of God. (John 19:7) That is either true or false. If it’s true then we must believe it. If it’s false then Jesus was either insane, a lunatic, or He was lying deliberately. Any historian worth his salt would say Jesus teachings were profound and enlightening and do not exhibit the marks of a lunatic at all. To claim that He deliberately lied is also a stretch considering His moral teachings and the strength of His influence across history. This choice of Jesus as Lord, Liar or Lunatic is a simple one. Which will you choose? Jesus said that Peter’s statement was such a profound and important one that He would build His church on this same revelation, that Jesus was the Son of the living God. Your salvation depends on what you believe about Jesus. If you believe He is the Son of the Living God, if that truth and revelation has come to you from above and you are convicted by it then you are saved. There are sceptics and Jesus dealt with them in the early part of the chapter. He spoke of the Pharisees and those who seek a sign. Many people look for proof of who Jesus is. He said he would not give them proof then and there because they would only be given the sign of Jonah. Sceptics look for proof. Seekers look for God. This is the example of the proud heart and the soft heart. The sceptic asks for proof on his own terms, but if you are talking to God surely proof comes on His terms not ours. The sceptic says “if you will do this… then I will do that” Is any proof really ever enough? The answer is no. Jesus said the wicked seek a sign. Jesus simple asks – “Who do you say I am?” What do you say? DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. Do you consider yourself to be saved? 2. Who do you believe Jesus really is? 3. What did Jesus say He would build His church on the revelation that He is the Son of the living God? 4. When a sceptic seeks a sign – are they really looking for proof? 5. Discuss the proud heart verses soft heart idea.

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TRUST AND FAITH

Posted in Church, Equip the Saints, FAITH, tagged Answers, Belief, believe, christian, church, Craig Anderson, faith, inc, international network of churches, plenty valley church, trust on January 17, 2015| Leave a Comment »

FOUNDATIONS OF FAITH #3PM

FAITH AND TRUST

Understanding faith is a lifetime journey, yet it is so simple. Jesus spoke about faith over and over again and marvelled that His disciples often had so little faith, as if that was so astounding. Here’s what Jesus says about the simplicity of faith.

Matthew 18:3 (AMP)

³And said, Truly I say to you, unless you repent (change, turn about) and become like little children [trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving], you can never enter the kingdom of heaven [at all].

What is faith? Do you have faith? Is the faith you have that the chair you’re sitting on is going to hold you up and not collapse any different from the faith one has in God?

Faith is the confident assurance that God is who He said He is. Faith is the knowledge, spiritually received, that what God said is true and you can rely on it. Faith is actually given to you by God himself.

Romans 12:3 (AMP)

³For by the grace (unmerited favor of God) given to me I warn everyone among you not to estimate and think of himself more highly than he ought [not to have an exaggerated opinion of his own importance], but to rate his ability with sober judgment, each according to the degree of faith apportioned by God to him.

God designed you and me to use faith and to walk in faith as we interact with Him. One of the most important ingredients in faith is trust. You can have faith in God when you trust Him. That trust must be in the same manner as a little child trusts, as we see from the verse we first read. What is trust? The bible word for trust in the old and new testaments means to flee for refuge to a safe place, to be confident, to be sure, to rely with inward certainty.

Do you trust God? Would He ever let you down?

Here’s some examples of trust.

One day, while my son Zac and I were out in the country, climbing around in some cliffs, I heard a voice from above me yell, “Hey Dad! Catch me!” I turned around to see Zac joyfully jumping off a rock straight at me. He had jumped and then yelled “Hey Dad!” I became an instant circus act, catching him. We both fell to the ground. For a moment after I caught him I could hardly talk.

When I found my voice again I gasped in exasperation: “Zac! Can you give me one good reason why you did that???”

He responded with remarkable calmness: “Sure…because you’re my Dad.” His whole assurance was based in the fact that his father was trustworthy. He could live life to the hilt because I could be trusted. Isn’t this even more true for a Christian?

Tim Hansel, Holy Sweat, 1987, Word Books Publisher, pp. 46-47.

There is no situation I can get into that God cannot get me out. Some years ago when I was learning to fly, my instructor told me to put the plane into a steep and extended dive. I was totally unprepared for what was about to happen. After a brief time the engine stalled, and the plane began to plunge out-of-control. It soon became evident that the instructor was not going to help me at all. After a few seconds, which seemed like eternity, my mind began to function again. I quickly corrected the situation.

Immediately I turned to the instructor and began to vent my fearful frustrations on him. He very calmly said to me, “There is no position you can get this airplane into that I cannot get you out of. If you want to learn to fly, go up there and do it again.” At that moment God seemed to be saying to me, “Remember this. As you serve Me, there is no situation you can get yourself into that I cannot get you out of. If you trust me, you will be all right.” That lesson has been proven true in my ministry many times over the years.

James Brown, Evangeline Baptist Church, Wildsville, LA, in Discoveries, Fall, 1991, Vol. 2, No. 4.

A television program preceding the 1988 Winter Olympics featured blind skiers being trained for slalom skiing, impossible as that sounds. Paired with sighted skiers, the blind skiers were taught on the flats how to make right and left turns. When that was mastered, they were taken to the slalom slope, where their sighted partners skied beside them shouting, “Left!” and “Right!” As they obeyed the commands, they were able to negotiate the course and cross the finish line, depending solely on the sighted skiers’ word. It was either complete trust or catastrophe.

What a vivid picture of the Christian life! In this world, we are in reality blind about what course to take. We must rely solely on the Word of the only One who is truly sighted–God Himself. His Word gives us the direction we need to finish the course.

Robert W. Sutton.

Blind sailor gets healed http://youtu.be/pi-8ILvRBOM

Would you go sailing with a blind sailor? Would that seem dangerous to you?

What about sliding into a bobsleigh and careering down the icy track reaching speeds of 160 kms per hour – with a blind driver?

Blind Bobsledder Steve Holcomb – http://youtu.be/5KvwdEsrqEY

A lot of people trust themselves and yet find it hard to trust God which doesn’t seem to make sense! God is trust worthy, no doubt, because He is perfect and cannot lie. Yet many times we don’t trust Him because we doubt that He loves us completely. We think that God would ignore us, or forget us, or treat us as we deserve because of our failures.

So God encourages us to trust Him many times in the bible.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (AMP)

Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths.

Having faith in God means putting your whole trust in Him, even when you don’t see how it’s going to work. Even when it seems crazy to trust Him, even if you can’t see any way that things could possibly work out, you’re going to trust in Him and rely on Him – that’s trust. Here’s a great example from the bible.

Matt 14:24-31 (AMP)

24 But the boat was by this time out on the sea, many furlongs [a furlong is one-eighth of a mile] distant from the land, beaten and tossed by the waves, for the wind was against them.

25 And in the fourth watch [between 3:00—6:00 a.m.] of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea.

26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified and said, It is a ghost! And they screamed out with fright.

27 But instantly He spoke to them, saying, Take courage! I Am! Stop being afraid!

28 And Peter answered Him, Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.

29 He said, Come! So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water, and he came toward Jesus.

30 But when he perceived and felt the strong wind, he was frightened, and as he began to sink, he cried out, Lord, save me [from death]!

31 Instantly Jesus reached out His hand and caught and held him, saying to him, O you of little faith, why did you doubt?

Imagine Peter stepping out of the boat. Imagine what thoughts he would have to overcome in his mind to place his foot down onto the water to step out of the boat.

Now it’s your turn to walk on water. God hasn’t changed. He’s the same yesterday today and forever. So ask Him to call you onto the water and get ready to step out.

What are you going to do this year that you have never tried before?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What things that happen to people cause them to loose trust in others?

2. What kind of things happen to people that they blame God for?

3. Are these examples of God not caring for us?

4. How can we trust God? Is He trustworthy?

5. Discuss what trust as a little child looks like.

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BORN TO BELIEVE

Posted in Church, Equip the Saints, Preaching messages, tagged Answers, believe, christian, church, Craig Anderson, faith, inc, international network of churches, just shall live by faith, live by faith, plenty valley church on January 10, 2015| Leave a Comment »

FOUNDATIONS OF FAITH # 2 am

Assumptions

All scripture is divinely inspired and without error. Please see our teaching on this at this podcast.
James 1:22 Amplified Bible (AMP) 22 But be doers of the Word [obey the message], and not merely listeners to it, betraying yourselves [into deception by reasoning contrary to the Truth].

Understanding Faith is the great journey of the Christian life. From the very beginning of the journey to know God, the Christian uses faith to obtain the very first promise of receiving forgiveness and obtaining eternal life. Then the new life lived with God in relationship requires that faith is active and growing throughout the whole of the Christian life.

Four times in the scriptures God says “The just shall live by faith.” To live by faith means that faith is the primary ingredient in our walk with God. The essential nature of faith comes evident when we discover that as created beings God made man to have faith and use faith to participate in His world through relationship with God.

In Habakkuk where we find the first mention of the just shall live by faith there is an interesting footnote by a biblical commentator:

“Habakkuk 2:4 – There is a curious passage in the Talmud [the body of Jewish civil and religious law] which says that Moses gave six hundred injunctions to the Israelites. As these commands might prove too numerous to commit to memory, David brought them down to eleven in Psalm 15. Isaiah reduced these eleven to six in [his] chapter 33:15. Micah (6:8) further reduced them to three; and Isaiah (56:1) once more brought them down to two. These two Amos (5:4) reduced to one. However, lest it might be supposed from this that God could be found only in the fulfilment of the law, Habakkuk (2:4 kjv) said, “The just shall live by his faith”” (William H. Saulez, The Romance of the Hebrew Language).

What does it mean to live by faith?

It means that your success in life in which you meet and know God and conduct a supernatural relationship with Him is made possible only by having and using faith. The verse has the understanding that one’s life comes out of and proceeds from faith. How else might someone live? By human knowledge, by the senses, by making every decision and choice about life through the natural man’s resources of the five senses.

2 Corinthians 5:7 – For we walk by faith [we regulate our lives and conduct ourselves by our conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, with trust and holy fervour; thus we walk] not by sight or appearance.(AMP)

For example, do you trust in God’s provision? Each and every day we make choices after considering the information concerning our resources. Do I have enough money? Will my decisions and my feelings be regulated by what I see in my bank account? Or will they be regulated by what God has promised to me and every believer? A promise such as Phil 4:19 – “My God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in Glory” can bring confidence and hope to your outlook. Faith is the knowledge that the promise is trustworthy and you can count on it. It carries more weight than the 5 senses information of what’s in the bank.

Each and every day, as a Christian believer, God has designed that we live by faith. It’s normal and natural for this “animal” to live by faith. Like a fish breaths water and a mammal breaths air, a Christian uses faith to exist and prosper in this supernatural life we have. We are not created to live life attached to the umbilical cord of sense knowledge alone. We are created to function and prosper by using faith to know God’s word and His will and function accordingly. It’s by nature a life lived supernaturally.

Just imagine you wake up tomorrow morning and you have a tummy ache. What’s your first thought? This is uncomfortable! I don’t want this pain and discomfort! Now what’s your next thought? (This will be the test of live by faith or live by natural knowledge.) I imagine that a majority of Christians reach for the medication bottle first, and to be honest, I would probably do that many times, unless it’s severe and then I make the faith step of talking to God about it. Asking in prayer for divine intervention is the first step in living by faith. But listen to this: if you’re living vitally connected to Jesus and filled with His word you will know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit and no plague can come near your dwelling. What’s more, nothing shall by any means hurt you. So the first reaction to a tummy ache from a man or woman of faith is: “Get off me pain!! You have no right or place in me!!” And then get on with your day whether the pain goes immediately or after several hours the mind is rested and content in God’s activity being set in motion and His will has been accomplished. All is set right and from now on I am not dictated to by feelings or what I see but I am resting in the promise and kindness of God.

All day every day you and I make decisions and experience feelings that spring from knowledge. Is that knowledge mere sense knowledge, or are we making decisions and experiencing feelings that spring from supernatural knowledge of Gods’ promises and provision? That latter experience is living by faith and my main thought that I want to get across today is that God created and designed you to operate in this faith life, not to be hamstrung and hobbled by living entirely out of the 5 senses and experiencing only natural knowledge.

God has faith. Heb 11:3 By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.(NLT) God created all things by faith. God created something from nothing and fashioned it not by skilful hands but by His words. God operates exclusively by faith.

We are created in His likeness. Gen 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” (NLT)

Human beings are created in the likeness of God. We are created to be like God, that is, to have a spirit and be in union with God knowing and understanding His will and His way. Listen to how Jesus describes this… John 15:4-8 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. 5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. 6 Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. 7 But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! 8 When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father. (NLT)

Hebrews 11:6 Amplified Bible (AMP) But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out]. When we meet Jesus and receive this new life in Christ, of course we want to please Him, Right?

Living this life with God is glorious and exciting. It’s filled with challenges and God is interested in seeing you grow in faith because then you are becoming closer and closer to the intended design. Live by faith not by sight.

So how shall we respond to this message? Choose to live by faith. Get into God’s word and think deeply on it. When making any decision, consider first – “what do I know about what God says to me about this?” Make faith decisions. Consider the promise first before the sense knowledge dictates the outcome. Use faith for all the little things so that your faith grows and when the big things come along you are prepared.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What kind of information comes to us through our five senses? give some examples.

2. What kind of information comes to us by faith from God?

3. What do you think Paul is trying to say in 2 Cor 5:7?

4. Is it hard to make decisions out of faith rather than what we see by our own five senses?

5. How would you build your reliance on faith?

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LOVE CONQUERS

Posted in Equip the Saints, Preaching messages, tagged all too much, Answers, christian, church, Craig Anderson, help, inc, international network of churches, jesus, lost hope, love, love conquers, love never fails, love overcomes, love wins, overcoming, plenty valley church, winning on November 9, 2014| Leave a Comment »

LOVE CONQUERS #1AM

Love is the greatest force on earth. At times when we feel that love has gone or been defeated, it rises again to overcome indomitable forces. All love comes from God. God is love and human love is the shadow of divine love. God’s kind of love is a selfless love, a love that is given expecting nothing in return. A love bestowed upon mankind undeserved. A love poured out without reservation and independent of the worthiness of the recipients.

Love endures long and is patient and kind; love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or vainglorious, does not display itself haughtily. It is not conceited (arrogant and inflated with pride); it is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly. Love (God’s love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking; it is not touchy or fretful or resentful; it takes no account of the evil done to it [it pays no attention to a suffered wrong]. It does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but rejoices when right and truth prevail. Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening]. Love never fails [never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end]. (1 Corinthians 13:4-8 AMP)

When your day seems like it couldn’t get any worse; your greatest hope is love, because Love Conquers anything and everything. Are you facing a firestorm of conflict and broken relationships? Are people speaking against you and saying outright lies to condemn and vilify you? Then Love is waiting for you and Love Conquers. This Love of God, so freely available to your heart, will fill you so that you can overcome anything and everything that comes your way. Jesus has given you the supernatural power to love the bitterest of enemies. His love in you will always conquer.

Jesus came into this world to save sinners. We did not deserve His love, but He came anyway. He came to give His life as a ransom for many. He had to endure the anger and bitter hostility of man against Him as He suffered and gave up His life for us that we may find hope and a way of salvation. Mankind is so broken by sin and so blind and often people cannot see that God even exists; yet God reaches out to each and every person with His great love to seek and to save those that are lost. Man was lost, so utterly lost. We were born into sin, there is no person on earth that walks in righteousness every day. We were so lost and nothing could save us, we had no hope, but love conquers and God made a way purely by love to rescue mankind and provide a way of escape from death and judgement. The cross is the story of Love Conquers.

My wife’s father is 83 and last week he received Jesus as his saviour. After so many years of belligerently opposing God and refusing to listen to the message of God’s love; now in his final days his defences all gone and hardened mind broken down, he responded like a little child and asked Jesus to forgive his sins and come into his life. He is saved today because Love Conquers. Is there a loved one you long to see come to Christ? Know this, that love conquers. There is no one so hard, so tough, so unreachable that love cannot breakthrough. You can rely on Love, you can hope in this all conquering love.

Whatever you face, love conquers, no matter how terrible and bleak the future seems, Love Conquers. No mountain is too high for love to climb; no valley so deep love can’t find the way; no fear so dreaded that Love can’t bring the flood of courage that brings you through. Love, God’s love, will make you conquer!!

As Jesus began His ministry he faced solid opposition from day one. One day in the temple He cured a man with a withered hand. A act of love, yet He was accused of healing or effectively “working” on the Sabbath. In other words He was accused of sin. The religious leaders who were supposed to be helping people and leading them to God were so often mired in self-righteousness and judgementalism so that people were put off knowing God. Jesus kept on loving and giving in the face of blind opposition and evil intent. He never gave up because Love Conquers!

Jesus kept on sharing the good news of God’s love, for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever would believe in Him would not perish but have everlasting life; yet he faced opposition at every turn. He was accused of being a glutton and a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners. These were the very people He wanted to reach out to and heal and show them a way of righteousness, but He was condemned by ignorant and wicked men.

Is your mountain that you face the thoughts in your mind? Are you so burdened with an inner struggle with your own thoughts that you are way past being just troubled, but really you are stuck! Love Conquers. This message is for you. There is no trouble so big that God’s love can’t meet that challenge. There is no difficulty so huge that God’s love cannot lead you through and out the other side to a place of life and peace. You can reach out to God and receive His love. It is a conquering love. To conquer the really massive things, the insurmountable things, the impossible things. All our hope is in His great love. It works!!

11 If you then, evil as you are, know how to give good and [a]advantageous gifts to your children, how much more will your Father Who is in heaven [perfect as He is] give good and [b]advantageous things to those who [c]keep on asking Him! Matt 7:11 (AMP)

Later at Jesus’ trial, they spoke outright lies to condemn Him saying He made Himself out to be king and threatened to tear down the temple. At these times He remained silent and did not answer His accusers. Pilate said, “I find no fault in this man.” Yet the crowd screamed for His blood. The unrighteousness of man was never more brazenly displayed as when the people of Jerusalem cried out to Pilate, “Crucify him” over and over again. This was their Messiah, the one who was prophesied to come for centuries. Yet they rose up in anger and called for His blood. “His blood be upon us” they cried, fully taking responsibility for death of the saviour. He was bound and lashed with the stroke of a whip. That whip that was a devilishly ingenious tool of ultimate torture, which flayed the skin to the bone with its lead pieces tied into the leather thong. Over and over they stroked Jesus till His whole torso was a bloody mess of broken skin and muscle exposed.

Yet He did not cry out for release, because Love Conquers. With every lash stroke the temptation was to give up, to say “that’s enough”; to want to the angels to come and rescue Him from this murderous torture. But the more man kept punishing the saviour of the world, the more He kept on going with enduring such contradiction of sinners against himself.

2 He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Just think of Him Who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds. Hebrews 12:2b-3 (AMP)

They nailed His hands, His feet, to the cross. In acute agony He cried not for release and not against his tormentors, but to ask for their forgiveness, “They know not what they do.” He said, because Love conquers. And love conquered the power of sin in mankind.

16 For I will not contend forever, neither will I be angry always, for [if I did stay angry] the spirit [of man] would faint and be consumed before Me, and [My purpose in] creating the souls of men would be frustrated. Isaiah 57:16(AMP)

Finally they raised the cross and lifted high the Son of God. They continued to mock Him. “Save yourself.” they cried, “if you be the Son of God!” Such dishonour, such venom, was it not enough for Jesus to say, “Enough, away with them.”? No, He endured, He continued in love because Love Conquers and love conquered the unrighteousness of man.

Are you facing a diagnosis of death? Is your doctor and medical tests saying all the wrong things about your future? Remember Love Conquers, Jesus took the stroke of the whip on His back so that by faith you can say, “By His stripes I am healed”.

Even I His dying moments one man, a thief, railed against Jesus and mocked Him. He still continued, could any man be His strength and support at this horrendous hour, no; none stood with Him, He was completely alone. He endured the savagery of the cross and the utter rejection of His own creation because of sin and He never flagged, but kept on going with grace and love because Love Conquers.

Love never gives up. You can count on love. If Jesus went to the cross and died for you when all the while you knew not how great His love was or even had the desire to receive Him, then how much more will He come to your aid now that you have yielded your life to Him?

10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, it is much more [certain], now that we are reconciled, that we shall be saved (daily delivered from sin’s dominion) through His [[g]resurrection] life.

11 Not only so, but we also rejoice and exultingly glory in God [in His love and perfection] through our Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom we have now received and enjoy [our] reconciliation. Rom 5:10-11 (AMP)

What are you facing today?

A mountain of debt? A tumult of conflict? A wasteland of doubt? A symphony of mental anguish? An unbelievable diagnosis of pain and sickness?

Then be persuaded, be convinced, be consumed by the courage of love. Love is your answer. Love will carry you through.

LOVE CONQUERS THE HARDEST HEART

LOVE CONQUERS THE GREATEST OFFENCE

LOVE CONQUERS HATRED AGAINST YOU

LOVE CONQUERS THE DEEPEST SORROW

LOVE CONQUERS THE MOST DIFFICULT JOURNEY

LOVE CONQUERS THE LONGEST DELAY

LOVE CONQUERS THE SADDEST NEWS.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. The bible says, “God is Love”. What does this mean to you?

2. What is the biggest challenge you are facing or have faced?

3. What is God’s best outcome for you in that Challenge?

4. You can rely on God’s love to see you through, how can you receive that love?

5. How can you love one another with God’s love to give support to each other in conquering the difficulties?

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TIME TO COME HOME

Posted in Church, Preaching messages, tagged abundance, Answers, Belief, christian, church, Craig Anderson, Father's Love, God's Love, healing, inc, international network of churches, jesus, love, LOVE OF THE FATHER, plenty valley church, prodigal, prodigal son, restoration, wholeness on September 6, 2014| Leave a Comment »

LOVE OF THE FATHER #1 AM

Today is Father’s day and this month is the theme LOVE OF THE FATHER. I want you to know that this month we are not talking about bad fathers, we are going to celebrate the great fathers in the house. Today we celebrate all the fathers. Each Sunday we will be speaking about the Love of our Heavenly Father; how strong it is, how unending it is, how much we need it. When any person receives a revelation of the Love of the Father, they will find healing, they will find wholeness, they will find acceptance, and they will find their rightful place in life. But first we need to talk about separation.

STORY

I have four sons and as pastor I have had the privilege of marrying them to their sweethearts. One of the most emotional times I have ever experienced was conducting my first son’s wedding. I think I cried more than the mother of the bride! One of the biggest hits that I wasn’t prepared for was the moment when, after the reception was over, the first son drove away with his new bride to begin their new life together. I broke down. It was a real sense of loss, a sense of – this boy is now out of my life forever. Twenty-one years of raising him and now he’s gone.

I remember way back to the time when Chris was pregnant with our first child. I began to think about what we were in for being a parent. I asked myself the question, “Will I be a good parent? Will I be able to provide for my family? Will I be able to raise my children with wisdom?” The responsibility seemed daunting.

It is a big change when you move from manhood to Fatherhood. Fatherhood now means you’re responsible for more than just yourself and your wife; you are now bringing a new life into this world, and you are responsible for their welfare and success and there seems to be a lot of things that can go wrong. The child you’re raising can make choices too. That child can choose to do wrong, they can choose to walk away; and although you want the very best for them, as a father you cannot always control the outcome.

When your son or daughter walks away, that’s a pain that no father can bear. Let’s look at the pain of one father in the bible. Luke 15:11-24.

¹¹To illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: “A man had two sons.¹²The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die.’ So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons.

¹³“A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. ¹⁴About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. ¹⁵He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. ¹⁶The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything.

¹⁷“When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! ¹⁸I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, ¹⁹and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.”’

²⁰“So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. ²¹His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.^[b]’

²²“But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. ²³And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, ²⁴for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began. (NLT)

Sometimes sons or daughters walk away. The pain of that experience for a Father is intense. It’s a nightmare for the Mother too, and she worries overtime about what will happen to them. The Father will question himself, was I a good parent? Was I firm enough? Did I give them enough wisdom and instruction? Did I train them up to face life?

Let’s look at the Father in this story. He is gracious, he lets the son go, even though he knows full well that it’s a foolish move; but there’s some things you’ve got to learn the hard way. There’s two really powerful thoughts in this story. The father saw the son coming home “a long way off” – that proves he was waiting and watching for him to come, there was hope. Secondly the father ran to meet him. This speaks of passion, acceptance and joy.

No matter what you have done in your life, no matter what mess you got yourself into, no matter how stupid you were, no matter how many people hate you and reject you; there’s a heavenly Father who is waiting for you to come home. There’s someone who loves you unconditionally. Look and see and feel the Father’s heart today as you watch this Father stand at the farm gate waiting for the lost son to come home. There’s hope in that father’s heart for restoration and moving right back to full sonship. Did he deserve it? – No! But here’s the power of the Father’s love: He made a way for you to come back and find forgiveness.

When you have “come to your senses” like this prodigal son; God’s love for you is total acceptance! His generosity is complete with restoration to full sonship, inclusion in the family and bountiful provision. This great story illustrates the LOVE OF THE FATHER. All that is required to receive that love is the attitude the Prodigal Son had – he came to his senses, or as it says in another translation, “he came to himself” it’s that realisation that I cannot make it on my own, I need the Father. Consider the restoration from the father which we will unpack in coming weeks. He gave the Son the robe which speaks of righteousness – being in right standing or right relationship with God. He gave him the ring which speaks of sonship and authority. Not a hired hand but a full son of the father. He gave him sandals which speak of provision because servants have bare feet but sons have sandals provided. He gave the son a fatted calf which speaks of the sacrifice that is pleasing to God and the highest form of celebration. Not only that but it shows the preparation of the calf over time as though the father was expecting the son to one day return. As we unpack these ideas later I am praying that you will experience from God a revelation of His righteousness, His gift of sonship, His provision and His joy of celebration over your salvation and acceptance by the Father.

This story is dear to God’s heart because he lived through it in times past.

Listen to this passage, Gen 3:22-24

²²Then the Lord God said, “Look, the human beings^[e] have become like us, knowing both good and evil. What if they reach out, take fruit from the tree of life, and eat it? Then they will live forever!” ²³So the Lord God banished them from the Garden of Eden, and he sent Adam out to cultivate the ground from which he had been made. ²⁴After sending them out, the Lord God stationed mighty cherubim to the east of the Garden of Eden. And he placed a flaming sword that flashed back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.(NLT)

Imagine the pain of God the Father as He forced Adam and Eve to leave the Garden of Eden on that tragic day when Adam chose to disobey God and brought upon himself the result of sin – separation from God. However a plan was in place from before the foundations of the earth that God’s Son, Jesus Christ, would choose to come and die on the cross and receive the judgement due to us all. By standing in our place He suffered and died for us that we may be pardoned and be forgiven if we too would come to ourselves and realise our great need of God.

The LOVE OF THE FATHER is life changing and healing. He has made a way for you and me to come home to Him, to be forgiven and completely restored to full sonship. Of course we don’t deserve it, but so great is His love to save and forgive and heal that if we will only turn to Him we can receive everything.

Will you begin the journey today?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Why did the son leave and take his inheritance money?

2. What was it that made him come to his senses?

3. Do you think many people come to their senses like that?

4. What did the Father restore to him when he arrived home?

5. How much of those things do you feel you have received from God yourself?

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YOU HAVE ENORMOUS POWER

Posted in Church, Equip the Saints, Prayer, Uncategorized, tagged answered prayer, Answers, Belief, christian, church, Craig Anderson, faith, Holy Spirit, inc, international network of churches, jesus, love, love prays, passion, pay the price, plenty valley church, power in prayer, pray, PRAYER, spirit of faith, spring breakthrough on August 23, 2014| Leave a Comment »

LOVE PRAYS #2PM

YOU HAVE ENORMOUS POWER

STORY – Read Josh 10: 6-15

Joshua 10:6-15 Amplified Bible (AMP)

⁶And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal, saying, Do not relax your hand from your servants; come up to us quickly and save us and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the hill country are gathered against us.

⁷So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and all the warriors with him and all the mighty men of valor.

⁸And the Lord said to Joshua, Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hand; there shall not a man of them stand before you.

⁹So Joshua came upon them suddenly, having gone up from Gilgal all night.

¹⁰And the Lord caused [the enemies] to panic before Israel, who slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon and chased them along the way that goes up to Beth-horon and smote them as far as Azekah and Makkedah.

¹¹As they fled before Israel, while they were descending [the pass] to Beth-horon, the Lord cast great stones from the heavens on them as far as Azekah, killing them. More died because of the hailstones than the Israelites slew with the sword.

¹²Then Joshua spoke to the Lord on the day when the Lord gave the Amorites over to the Israelites, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, be silent and stand still at Gibeon, and you, moon, in the Valley of Ajalon!

¹³And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the nation took vengeance upon their enemies. Is not this written in the Book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of the heavens and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.

¹⁴There was no day like it before or since, when the Lord heeded the voice of a man. For the Lord fought for Israel.

¹⁵Then Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.

Joshua represents the new generation. He is a man who has been prepared for leading under the leadership of Moses. Now his turn to walk the stage of life has come. Joshua is about 80, yet he has the stamina of any young man.

After the children of Israel cross the Jordan and conquer Jericho, they falter briefly at Ai then keep going. One city decides to surrender to Israel instead of being killed. Gibeon and its King make peace with Israel and say we will become your servants. They would rather be living servants than dead heroes!

But the surrounding kings are outraged that Gibeon would surrender and five kings and their armies decide to go up and wipe out Gibeon, just to teach them a lesson. So the Gibeonites call out to Joshua and say, help us!

Joshua immediately gathers his army and leaves where they are. Straight away Joshua hears from God.

Lesson 1. Be about God’s business and you’re going to hear from Him in prayer. God is wanting to encourage you that He is with you. Over and over again in the bible God is committing to us that He is with us, and this is because we are about his business.

The Gibeonites go up to Joshua on day one to tell him they are about to be attacked and Joshua travels all night from that time to arrive early the next morning to attack the five kings with their armies.

He fights all day against them, and God is with him to overcome so much that God sends hailstones down to kill the enemy and the hailstones wipe out more than the sword. The miracle here is that the hailstones don’t fall on the Israelite army!

Lesson 2 What God is doing for you behind the scenes will ensure your victory, so don’t sweat the dark clouds with hail because God’s got something powerful in mind.

Joshua realises that he is not going to have enough time to overcome all the enemies in the day before the sun goes down, so he prays the boldest prayer ever prayed on earth. Sun stand still! And God answers him with a massive miracle.

Lesson 3 Never underestimate the power you have in prayer.

You may easily say – Yes but that’s Joshua. I’m me and that’s different! However God is looking for great men and women of God to rise up and have faith. God is no respecter of persons; that means He has no favourites. We let ourselves off the hook too easily, by saying; I can’t do that and self-disqualify. But God’s word clearly says to all believers. Mark 11:23 Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! and does not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him.

Joshua has been awake all of day one, then travels through the night to attack the kings at dawn. Then he fights that day; so that’s 30 hours so far that Joshua and his men have been awake until about midday (Sun was stayed in the midst of the heavens). So now he asks for another day (12 hours) of sunshine so at the end of the battle Joshua and his men have been sustained approximately 42 hours.

Lesson 4 when God is moving don’t slack off in prayer. Keep going until the victory is complete.

At the close of the story we see Joshua bring all his top leaders together and place their foot on the necks of these defeated kings. What was that all about? The power of visualisation. The next 100 battles for these leaders was going to be fought out with the image firmly planted in their minds – this is how it turns out for me when God is on my side.

Lesson 5 Use your imagination to see the outcome you want in prayer. Prayer and walking with the Holy Spirit uses the language of dreams and visions.

Prayer changes things and you need to know that you have massive power in prayer when you believe. Learn to wage war in the spiritual realm by understanding your authority over all the power of the enemy.

Ephes 6:12 For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.

Luke 10:19 Behold! I have given you authority and power to trample upon serpents and scorpions, and [physical and mental strength and ability] over all the power that the enemy [possesses]; and nothing shall in any way harm you.

Prayer is not a function of time but it is a function of authority. The factor of time comes into play when we need to spend time with God and His word so that we receive faith building revelation about who we are and what he has promised. We have a big job on our hands to reach the lost people of our city. It’s vital that we have faith and stand in our authority and pray so that the enemy’s power is broken and the Grace of God is released to touch the multitudes in this city.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. How often do we think that our prayers won’t really change things?

2. If that is the case who benefits from that kind of thinking?

3. Do we often search for physical and emotional proofs of the prayers being answered?

4. What things would encourage you to continue in prayer until an answer comes?

5. Would it encourage you to hear of prayers being answered for those in your circle of friends?

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EVERY WORD IS A SEED

Posted in Church, Equip the Saints, Soul Winning, tagged Answers, Belief, christian, church, Craig Anderson, EVANGELISM, Fire, fire of god, inc, international network of churches, love, LOVE REACHES OUT, love the lost, passion, passion for the lost, plenty valley church, SEED, SEEDS on July 12, 2014| Leave a Comment »

LOVE REACHES OUT #2PM

EVERY WORD A SEED

In 1996 Two members of this church and I travelled to China to preach the gospel. It was my second trip to China. That was a tough job as we didn’t speak Chinese. But we had thousands and thousands of gospel tracts. So as we went from city to city doing what was illegal in that country, we placed tracts in letterboxes, on car windshields, on top of walls, in bicycle carry baskets etc. until we got rid of about 5000 every night. Then one night we got caught, the police interrogated us and detained us under house arrest in our shabby motel for two days. Finally they deported us with stern warnings.

Still in spite of being caught we distributed multi thousands of gospel messages in the language of the readers. I wonder how many people read a tract and heard the gospel and found Jesus Christ? In China today, this is what is happening: The Nation has 1.3 billion people living there, The Christian population of this strongly communist nation is approximately 12% or 163 million. There are now more Christians in China than in the United States, and the growth rate is 5% per annum.

EVERY WORD IS A SEED

VIDEO TESTIMONY – JULIE MELLOR

When you leave a bible, a tract, a testimony, a conversation with someone who is not saved; it is a seed and that seed has power to grow.

EVERY WORD, EVERY ACT OF KINDNESS IS A SEED.

Mark 4:26-29

²⁶Jesus also said, “The Kingdom of God is like a farmer who scatters seed on the ground. ²⁷Night and day, while he’s asleep or awake, the seed sprouts and grows, but he does not understand how it happens. ²⁸The earth produces the crops on its own. First a leaf blade pushes through, then the heads of wheat are formed, and finally the grain ripens. ²⁹And as soon as the grain is ready, the farmer comes and harvests it with a sickle, for the harvest time has come.”

One night in Brisbane we were witnessing on the street and we approached an aboriginal man who unleashed a tirade of swear words at us. Just then two plain clothes police came along and arrested him for indecent language and took him away. We could have thought that that was strange and the event was over, nothing was accomplished. However one of our team, Brian, was of aboriginal decent and he happened to come across this man some weeks later and asked, “What was all that about?” The first man explained that his four year old son had just died and he felt anger and pain and blamed God. Brian explained what we were trying to say that Jesus is the answer to this kind of pain and this man received Christ as his Lord and saviour. Sometimes your attempts to share your faith may seem fruitless, but every word is a seed and it may bear fruit later.

Drop seeds into conversations, if people react negatively don’t feel you have to argue the point. Spend time with hungry open people. If people are belligerent and offensive just keep the conversations brief and do acts of kindness.

My neighbour across the street was resistant to the gospel, I began sharing with him 12 years ago. He followed a religion practiced by Native American Indians. I would take him meals my wife had cooked. Sometimes I went over and mowed his lawn. He would get mad and say stop mowing my lawn and try and pay me back with a box of chocolates. So when I knew he was away I would mow his lawn anyway. If he never came to Christ I would still love and serve him – it would not matter if he thought I was just a sucker doing his work for him; to me it was a seed of love. However recently when he became very sick we visited him in hospital and shared the gospel with him. We prayed for his healing and he also prayed to receive Jesus as his saviour. His response was amazing!

EVERY WORD, EVERY ACT OF KINDNESS IS A SEED.

In my very first outreach I organised as a new Christian, I ran a coffee night at uni where I was studying. It was a Friday night and I had about half a dozen Christian friends from church come along and we served free coffee to students and shared our faith with them. At the end of the night I was a bit disappointed as no one seemed to get saved. Being a new Christian I was really into instant results!! Later as I was chatting to one of the friends from Church, Vincent Bonici, He said he had prayed with a guy called Rob and led him to Christ. Get an address? No! How can I find him to help him grow in God? I don’t know God will look after him I guess. I was a bit annoyed. All I knew was Rob was a mechanical Engineering student and he was Malaysian born. I waited outside the Mechanical Engineering building every lunchtime for weeks to try and catch someone who looked like Rob. Guess what? I found him! Later he came to church. Now he’s an INC pastor in Adelaide Hills. But the story doesn’t end there!

Rob led a friend to Christ who is Mark Hands, later Mark became part of our youth ministry in Brisbane (as did Rob) and later again Mark became the principal of one of the INC Christian schools and now has a Christian business and coaching ministry at the Gold Coast. Mark led Andrew to Christ who became a big part of our youth ministry in Brisbane also. These are just the ones we know about….. I wonder who has been saved and touched by God’s love through all these people who have experienced major life change because of the coffee night that I thought wasn’t very successful.

EVERY WORD, EVERY ACT OF KINDNESS IS A SEED.

What are you going to do this week to reach out to people who need Jesus?

Sometimes we have all given up trying to share about Jesus because we got a negative response or we just thought it’s all too hard. One time I when I was new Christian I drove past a man who I knew was a father of my school mate loading up a trailer with furniture at his office. I heard he was going bankrupt. It was midnight and I was tired and I sped off home. God prompted me to go back and tell him Jesus loved him, but I was too tired and it was late. The next day he committed suicide! It took me a long time and many tears to get over that one.

Listen to the Holy Spirit and try real hard to obey Him.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Have you ever felt like giving up when it comes to sharing your faith?
Have you ever thought your sharing about Jesus was a complete waste of time?
After hearing some of these stories and learning about seeds from God’s word do you think any differently now?
Will this change the way you approach sharing your faith?
Did you ever think how many lost opportunities you have missed?

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ARE YOU GOIN’ WHERE I’M GOIN’?

Posted in Church, Equip the Saints, Soul Winning, tagged Answers, Belief, church, Craig Anderson, heaven, hell, inc, international network of churches, jesus, jesus is the only way, lost, lost people, love, passion for the lost, perishing, plenty valley church, preach the gospel, reality of hell, share your faith, tell others, witnessing on July 6, 2014| Leave a Comment »

LOVE REACHES OUT #1AM

In this life, how do you see yourself? As a pilgrim? As a foreigner journeying through to a better and eternal future? ^a Or does this world so fill your vista that you hardly think of eternity? Listen to this amazing verse: Eccles 3:11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He also has planted eternity in men’s hearts and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy], yet so that men cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.

Ultimately what matters is people. Everything else is temporary. 2 Cor 4:18 Since we consider and look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are visible are temporal (brief and fleeting), but the things that are invisible are deathless and everlasting. All your stuff that you worked so hard for, all the possessions, the house, the cars, the clothes etc. will all vanish in a puff of smoke one day; and all you have left is you and your loved ones.

What will you be doing in a million years from now? Seriously! If you say, “I’ll be in heaven.”, then how glad are you about that? You could be in the other place. Eternity is such a long time!! It’s all a bit hard for the human mind to comprehend; right?

What we have been learning in the messages preached all year is that God loves you so much and His magnificent loving kindness has come and rescued you, redeemed you and set you free. It’s a natural step to see that God loves each and every person on the planet and some know that and some don’t know that yet. John 3:16 For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.(AMP)

All around us are precious people who are perishing. In Australia, we are an especially heathen bunch. Although 61% write on the census that their religion is Christian, only 13% attend any kind of church monthly or more often and of those we can only guess the percentage that is born again. Some estimates of the Born Again population are as low as 5%. Perhaps attending church is a poor measure of whether a person is born again. We should rather choose the measure that one of the greatest preachers in history used: “Have you no wish for others to be saved? Then you’re not saved yourself, be sure of that!” ― Charles H. Spurgeon. What’s our percentage now?

As you look around at your loved ones, work mates, neighbours, do you consider their eternal destiny? Does it drive you to prayer and cause you to consider how to share the answer to life with them? If not, then let’s look at the scriptures and see the convincing reality of what lies before us in heaven and hell.

Hell is real

Luke 6:19-31

19 There was a certain rich man who [habitually] clothed himself in purple and fine linen and [m]revelled and feasted and made merry in splendour every day.

20 And at his gate there [n]was [carelessly] dropped down and left a certain [o]utterly destitute man named Lazarus, [reduced to begging alms and] covered with [[p]ulcerated] sores.

21 He [eagerly] desired to be satisfied with what fell from the rich man’s table; moreover, the dogs even came and licked his sores.

22 And it occurred that the man [reduced to] begging died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.

23 And in Hades (the realm of the dead), being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far away, and Lazarus in his bosom.

24 And he cried out and said, Father Abraham, have pity and mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.

25 But Abraham said, Child, remember that you in your lifetime fully received [what is due you in] comforts and delights, and Lazarus in like manner the discomforts and distresses; but now he is comforted here and you are in anguish.

26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who want to pass from this [place] to you may not be able, and no one may pass from there to us.

27 And [the man] said, Then, father, I beseech you to send him to my father’s house—

28 For I have five brothers—so that he may give [solemn] testimony and warn them, lest they too come into this place of torment.

29 But Abraham said, They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear and listen to them.

30 But he answered, No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent ([q]change their minds for the better and heartily amend their ways, with abhorrence of their past sins).

31 He said to him, If they do not hear and listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded and convinced and believe [even] if someone should rise from the dead.

Rev 21:8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars–their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.(NIV)

Matt 13:49-50 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (NIV)

Rev 14:11 And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no respite (no pause, no intermission, no rest, no peace) day or night—these who pay homage to the beast and to his image and whoever receives the stamp of his name upon him.

All these verses clearly show that eternity without salvation is horrifying and inconceivably worse due to the fact that it goes on for ever and ever without respite.

General William Booth founder of the Salvation Army church movement was quoted as saying as he trained his preachers and Christian workers. “If I could, I would dangle you over hell for 5 minutes to see the cries of the damned.” People without a Knowledge of God and even some Christians find this truth so shocking that they fall into wrong believing saying that God could not be as cruel as to send people there forever, or that God will give people a second chance. Some have believed in a purgatory, where people work off their sins and eventually make it to heaven; but all these ideas are false.

Listen again to William Booth – “Not called!” did you say? “Not heard the call,” I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear Him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father’s house and bid their brothers and sisters and servants and masters not come there. Then look Christ in the face — whose mercy you have professed to obey — and tell Him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish His mercy to the world.”

When you hear these pleading words, do you think that’s how they spoke in an era long ago, or do you think that’s outdated language and form that doesn’t work today; or is it just that we have fallen so far from biblical truth in our generation that we fall for soft wishy washy beliefs about God that are not supported by scripture?

Heaven

Heaven on the other hand is awesomely wonderful. Imagine infinite joy! Life with a capital L.

Rev 21:4-5 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”

Rev 22:3-4 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

John 14: 2-3 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

Matt 25:20-21 And he who had received the five talents came and brought him five more, saying, Master, you entrusted to me five talents; see, here I have gained five talents more.

21 His master said to him, Well done, you upright (honorable, admirable) and faithful servant! You have been faithful and trustworthy over a little; I will put you in charge of much. Enter into and share the joy (the delight, the [c]blessedness) which your master enjoys.

Convinced that people without Christ are going there?

One error I find many Christians fall into is that somehow good people will get into heaven. They believe that most people around them are going to make it somehow because God is loving and merciful. This view is dangerous especially to those around them who are not born again yet. Let me ask you a very simple question. If there was any way at all that a person could make it to heaven on their own, did Jesus need to come and die on the cross?

Jesus Himself stated very clearly: John 14:6 Jesus said to him, I am the Way and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by (through) Me.(AMP)

Jesus was moved by the plight of broken people. His heart for lost people will become our heart too if we walk with Him. Look at His reaction in the gospels Matt 9:35-38 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news (the Gospel) of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and every weakness and infirmity. 36 When He saw the throngs, He was moved with pity and sympathy for them, because they were bewildered (harassed and distressed and dejected and helpless), like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then He said to His disciples, The harvest is indeed plentiful, but the laborers are few. 38 So pray to the Lord of the harvest to force out and thrust laborers into His harvest.

What should be our reaction? Perhaps some may be so deeply concerned that they become a certified bible carrying, tract giving, bible bashing preacher to everyone around them, and it isn’t very fruitful. That’s overboard and that’s not love in action. The sad thing is that many Christians are the opposite, there’s almost no evidence of witness in their lives, it’s like they want to enjoy the benefits of salvation and not care that all manner of people around them are perishing.

So how are we to live?

Recognise the truth that faith in Christ alone saves a person from eternity in hell.
Decide to pray for those people in your world who do not know Jesus yet, that God will have mercy on them and show them the truth.
Love people, serve them and share your heart with them at every opportunity.
Trust that the Holy Spirit will lead you to people and will give you the words to say.
Share your testimony and the God stories that give evidence of God at work among us.
Invite as many people as you can to join you church or UC group or a family picnic or a night at the movies or the church trivia night etc. etc.

This month we are focusing on the “How To” of sharing your faith. We will be equipping you with practical help to know how to share your faith, what to say to people who are far from God and how to begin a great conversation about your testimony and how God loves the person you’re speaking to. In all our Urban Connect groups we will be helping you to learn skills about sharing your testimony, and what the gospel message is that we need to share with people.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Do you think Spurgeon’s measure of whether a person is born again or not is a fair one? (Whether you care that others are lost)

2. How do you see non Christians?

3. What about people of other faiths, are they lost too? (Acts 4:12)

4. If Jesus really is the only way to heaven, why do so many other faiths exist?

5. If Jesus really is the only way to heaven how should we live?

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BROKEN LIVES MADE WHOLE

Posted in Church, Equip the Saints, Preaching messages, tagged Answers, broken humanity, broken lives, christian, church, Craig Anderson, DEPRESSION, down and out, God's Love, inc, international network of churches, jesus, loneliness, love, love unconditional, mental health, plenty valley church, unconditional love on June 8, 2014| Leave a Comment »

LOVE UNCONDITIONAL #2AM

WHEN YOU TRULY KNOW GOD LOVES YOU TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY, YOU ENTER INTO A LIFE OF STRENGTH AND VICTORY WHERE YOU EXPERIENCE HIS GRACE AND PROVISION AND ABUNDANT LIFE.

Humanity is broken.

We live in the lucky country, but many struggle with low self-esteem, depression, loneliness, rejection, sickness, financial trouble and substance abuse.

Jesus is the answer, He is the hope of every person who puts their trust in Him. Yet we often see God as far away, aloof, non-caring, too busy running His vast universe to ever notice me let alone care for me. Yes, they have heard that Jesus loves them, but does that cliché answer their current pain? Often as I talk to people who have not met Jesus yet they see God as a judge who will punish them for their wrongs. They see God as the rule maker and the fun taker. While 70% of Australians believe there is a God, most have never experienced His powerful healing and rescuing love.

How do you see God? Deep down in your heart where your inner thoughts reside, how do you think God sees you? I once saw God as if He were a person busy at His desk and with piles of papers on the desk and He seemed oblivious to my presence. Or does He seem like a loving Father with arms outstretched waiting for you to jump right up onto His lap?

Mental illness is very common. One in five (20%) Australians aged 16-85 experience a mental illness in any year. The most common mental illnesses are depressive, anxiety and substance use disorder. These three types of mental illnesses often occur in combination. Almost half (45%) Australians will experience a mental illness in their lifetime [1].

Suicide in Australia

Every day, at least six Australians die from suicide and a further thirty people will attempt to take their own life [5]. While suicide accounts for only a relatively small proportion (1.6%) of all deaths in Australia, it does account for a greater proportion of deaths from all causes within specific age groups. For example, suicide is the leading cause of death for young people aged 15-24 [6]. Australians are more likely to die by suicide than skin cancer.

Men are at greatest risk of suicide but least likely to seek help. Attempted suicide is also an important issue with estimates that in Australia over 60,000 people a year attempt to take their own lives, the majority being women.

Depression

Depression has a high lifetime prevalence – one in seven Australians will experience depression in their lifetime [1]. Depression has the third highest burden of all diseases in Australia (13.3%) [3] and also third globally [8]. Burden of disease refers to the total impact of a disease measured by financial cost, mortality, morbidity and other indicators. The World Health Organisation estimates that depression will be the number one health concern in both the developed and developing nations by 2030 [8].

Rates of depression are slightly higher in women with depression, affecting one in six (17%) compared to one in 10 (10%) men experiencing depression in their lifetime. http://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/docs/Factsandfiguresaboutmentalhealthandmooddisorders.pdf

God loves everyone equally. His love is complete. He is a loving heavenly Father. However you must receive it to experience it.

WHEN YOU TRULY KNOW GOD LOVES YOU TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY, YOU ENTER INTO A LIFE OF STRENGTH AND VICTORY WHERE YOU EXPERIENCE HIS GRACE AND PROVISION AND ABUNDANT LIFE.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (ESV)

1 John 4:9-11 ⁹God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. ¹⁰This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. ¹¹Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. (NLT)

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect (^[a]free, large, full) gift is from above; it comes down from the Father of all [that gives] light, in [the shining of] Whom there can be no variation [rising or setting] or shadow cast by His turning [as in an eclipse]. (AMP)

If He put His Spirit inside us what does that say?

I stood at the altar 35 years ago and said to Chris, I choose to live with you until one of us dies. It’s a big deal to live with someone. You probably couldn’t live with just anyone! However God says, I want to make my home within you!

John 14:23 Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them. (NLT) AGAPE love. The love that gives expecting nothing in return. This love not conditional from God’s point of view, but it is from ours.

1 Cor 6:19 Do you not know that your body is the temple (the very sanctuary) of the Holy Spirit Who lives within you, whom you have received [as a Gift] from God? You are not your own, (NCV)

See God as the perfect parent.

Matt 7:11 If you then, evil as you are, know how to give good and advantageous gifts to your children, how much more will your Father Who is in heaven [perfect as He is] give good and advantageous things to those who keep on asking Him!(AMP)

God’s first priority is for us to receive His love. If someone truly knows that they are loved by God then insecurity, fear, unbelief is smashed. God is on your side, He has made provision for your every need through the cross.

As you receive His love you will be set free from insecurity, low self image, fear, low expectation etc by receiving a revelation that God’s love so big and so complete! John 10:10 I have come that they will have life and life abundant. Deut 28:13 I will make you the head and not the tail. Above and not beneath. Ps 17:8 You are the apple of His eye. Rom 8:31 If God be for you who can be against you?

How then can one experience such love and acceptance and favour?

Meditate on these scriptures. (Also read 1 John 3 & 4)
Imagine the cross and see His love poured out for you as He died for you.
Watch the face of the heavenly Father as He turns away from Jesus when He became Sin for us. Jesus complete rejection and judgment that was meant for us.
Thank Him for this love.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Have you ever prayed for a revelation of God’s love? – Why not do it right now?

2. Love means doing the highest good for another. Describe what God did for us through Jesus Christ.

3. There are 5 love languages; Touch, words, gifts, acts of service and time. What’s your love language?

4. Do you feel loved if the love expressed to you is not in your love language?

5. Can you acknowledge God’s love for you even if you may not be feeling loved?

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HE LOVES ME; HE LOVES ME NOT.

Posted in Church, Preaching messages, tagged Answers, Belief, christian, church, Craig Anderson, God's Love, inc, international network of churches, love, plenty valley church, the love of God, unconditional love on May 31, 2014| Leave a Comment »

LOVE UNCONDITIONAL #1AM

FEELING LOVED?

How big is God’s love for you? So high, so wide, so great, so deep is God’s love for you. Ephes 2:4-6 But God—so rich is He in His mercy! Because of and in order to satisfy the great and wonderful and intense love with which He loved us,

⁵Even when we were dead (slain) by [our own] shortcomings and trespasses, He made us alive together in fellowship and in union with Christ; [He gave us the very life of Christ Himself, the same new life with which He quickened Him, for] it is by grace (His favour and mercy which you did not deserve) that you are saved (^[a]delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation).

⁶And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together [giving us ^[b]joint seating with Him] in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed One).

So often we judge God’s love by our own human viewpoint. We feel that God doesn’t love us when we suffer loss or go through tough times. When we take this view that God doesn’t care or doesn’t love us then we lose faith, we cannot believe that God will answer our prayer. We feel lost, alone, separated from hope and we doubt ourselves, sometimes we even go to the place of self-hatred thinking that if God doesn’t care for me, then I must be worthless. Why do you need this message about God’s love for you? Let me tell you it is the biggest key for a full and overcoming life as a Christian.

We need a revelation of God’s unending, unyielding, unconditional, unqualified, unlimited, unbeatable LOVE for you and me. When we get this revelation, we smash unbelief and doubt. We soar in confidence that God works all things together for good to them that love Him and are called according to His purpose. We say goodbye to a low self-esteem and walk around knowing He watches over us. His eye is on the sparrow, so much more is His every thought about you and for your good.

Key verse for the month – Isaiah 49:15-16 Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, they may forget, yet I will not forget you. ¹⁶Behold, I have indelibly imprinted (tattooed a picture of) you on the palm of each of My hands.(AMP)

Ps 103:14 For He knows our frame, He [earnestly] remembers and imprints [on His heart] that we are dust. He gets how hard it is for us in this sin soaked and selfish world, He was in all points tempted like as we are, so He is an high priest who can be touched by the feelings of our weaknesses.(Heb 4:15)

HE CARES – always and at all times. Receive it! Meditate on it!

But, you say, why did I suffer? Why did I go through so much trouble?

Romans 8:31-37

³¹What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? ³²Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? ³³Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. ³⁴Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honour at God’s right hand, pleading for us.

³⁵Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?³⁶(As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”^[o]) ³⁷No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.(NLT)

STORY

The death of Stephen

⁵⁴Now upon hearing these things, they [the Jews] were cut to the heart and infuriated, and they ground their teeth against [Stephen].

⁵⁵But he, full of the Holy Spirit and controlled by Him, gazed into heaven and saw the glory (the splendor and majesty) of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand;

⁵⁶And he said, Look! I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing at God’s right hand!

⁵⁷But they raised a great shout and put their hands over their ears and rushed together upon him.

⁵⁸Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him, and the witnesses placed their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.

⁵⁹And while they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, Lord Jesus, receive and accept and welcome my spirit!

⁶⁰And falling on his knees, he cried out loudly, Lord, fix not this sin upon them [lay it not to their charge]! And when he had said this, he fell asleep ^[g][in death].

This story contrasts the cruelty of religion with the love of God. Who would choose to be Stephen? Perhaps the first Christian Martyr. Was there a wife left grieving? Or children left without a father? We will never know, but what we now and what God wants us to see about this tragic event is what Stephen experienced at this time.

Those who stoned Stephen basically committed murder because they did not like what he believed! Religion is cruel and hate filled. Religion says, “You must do this and this to be accepted” Religion says, “You have no right to challenge the status quo.” But in the midst of this hatred and violence the love of God shone through. Stephen experienced all the following:

An opportunity to share the gospel with a large number of people
An overwhelming sense of God’s presence and protection – 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit and controlled by Him, gazed into heaven and saw the glory (the splendour and majesty) of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand; ⁵⁶And he said, Look! I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing at God’s right hand!
The act of forgiveness for his assailants
The initiation of Saul’s conversion.

Do you think Stephen felt abandoned by God? No, in no way. When he reached heaven and began his experience of eternity he could see the eternal significance of what took place that day. Saul’s later conversion, millions experiencing the power of the word of God through Paul’s writings. The church scattered by the mounting persecution so that it invaded all the known world. Spreading out far and wide.

When you think back over your life do you look at the tough times and ask God where were you? Perhaps we will never know the whole picture in this life about why things happen, but we know this, All things work tether for Good to them that love God and are called according to his purpose.

How can I convince you about His unending love for you? Do you want life on your terms or God’s terms? Can you say you are smarter than God and know what is best for you and for His plans and purposes? Humility allows us to fully trust God knowing His ways are perfect and all His ways are just. His love for you is unending and fully complete. He that spared not his only son, will he not with Him freely give us all things?

What Now you say?

How can I receive a revelation of this amazing love?

Meditate on these scriptures. (Also read 1 John 3 & 4)
Imagine the cross and see His love poured out for you as He died for you.
Watch the face of the heavenly Father as He turns away from Jesus when He became Sin for us. Jesus complete rejection and judgment that was meant for us.
Thank Him for this love.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Is it necessary to feel God’s love?

2. Can you feel your mother’s love right now? What about if you think about all that she has done for you? Is it getting a bit easier now?

3. If God wants the best for you, how can you cooperate with that?

4. What was the main point in this message concerning the story of Stephen’s death?

5. Can you trust God when things seem to be going the wrong way for your perspective?

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craigmanderson

Christian World View

Posts Tagged ‘Answers’

WHY DO I NEED TO BE SAVED?

TRUST AND FAITH

BORN TO BELIEVE

LOVE CONQUERS

TIME TO COME HOME

YOU HAVE ENORMOUS POWER

Joshua 10:6-15 Amplified Bible (AMP)

EVERY WORD IS A SEED

BROKEN LIVES MADE WHOLE

HE LOVES ME; HE LOVES ME NOT.

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