May 18, 2025
Growing in Godly Character – A Gentleness Genealogy
Series: Galatians
We inherit traits passed down from our parents. Some of the ways we are like our parents come from genetics; we actually inherit physical features or traits directly. Other ways we resemble our parents come from learned behaviors gleaned from all the time we’ve spent together over the years.
In some ways, this mirrors what happens on the spiritual level as well. There are things we inherit spiritually when we come to believe in Jesus as our Savior, in particular, the Fruit of the Spirit. These 9 elements of spiritual fruit are ways in which we reflect the nature of Christ. But, that’s not the only way we grow in Christ-likeness. Just as with our earthly parents, we also grow to resemble our Savior by way of learned behavior.
This message looks at a few different examples of gentleness in Scripture to help us see that this is part of our spiritual genealogy: 1) Jesus is Gentle with Us; 2) Paul Chose Gentleness with Those in the Church; 3) Walk in a Manner Worthy of the Lord.
We need to be gentle, just like Jesus & Paul.
Galatians 5:23
May 18, 2025
To watch the video of this message, click here.
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- May 18, 2025Growing in Godly Character – A Gentleness Genealogy
May 18, 2025Growing in Godly Character – A Gentleness GenealogySeries: GalatiansWe inherit traits passed down from our parents. Some of the ways we are like our parents come from genetics; we actually inherit physical features or traits directly. Other ways we resemble our parents come from learned behaviors gleaned from all the time we’ve spent together over the years.In some ways, this mirrors what happens on the spiritual level as well. There are things we inherit spiritually when we come to believe in Jesus as our Savior, in particular, the Fruit of the Spirit. These 9 elements of spiritual fruit are ways in which we reflect the nature of Christ. But, that’s not the only way we grow in Christ-likeness. Just as with our earthly parents, we also grow to resemble our Savior by way of learned behavior.This message looks at a few different examples of gentleness in Scripture to help us see that this is part of our spiritual genealogy: 1) Jesus is Gentle with Us; 2) Paul Chose Gentleness with Those in the Church; 3) Walk in a Manner Worthy of the Lord.We need to be gentle, just like Jesus & Paul.Galatians 5:23May 18, 2025To watch the video of this message, click here.
- May 11, 2025Make Your Mama Proud
May 11, 2025Make Your Mama ProudSeries: Mother's DayFew things please a parent more than to see their child succeeding, making wise choices, and doing right things. Unsurprisingly, many of the same things that please parents also please God. Like our earthly parents, our Heavenly Father wants to see us learn and grow in doing the right things. One of the things God wants to grow in us is wisdom. Wisdom is the right application of knowledge. It is the ability to correctly use truth, knowledge, experience, insight, or common sense.In Proverbs 23;15-25, Solomon seeks to provide wisdom and insight into life and conduct. What stands out are 5 things a wise heart does: 1) A Wise Heart Uses Right Speech; 2) A Wise Heart Has a Right Focus; 3) A Wise Heart Makes Right Choices; 4) A Wise Heart Listens to Right Counsel; 5) A Wise Heart Results in Gladness & Rejoicing.Cultivate wisdom in the core of your being.Proverbs 23:15-25May 11, 2025Mother's DayTo watch the video of this message, click here.
- May 4, 2025Growing in Godliness – Being Faithful is Being Fruitful
May 4, 2025Growing in Godliness – Being Faithful is Being FruitfulSeries: GalatiansWhen you think of someone who is reliable and trustworthy, who is it that comes to mind? A good friend, your spouse, a coworker, another family member? I hope we all have people in our lives who we regard as dependable, people we could count on in any sort of situation. Someone who is trustworthy, reliable, and dependable is someone we would call faithful. Of course the one we rightly think of as the ultimate example of faithfulness is God. But, God desires for us to be faithful as well.In a personal letter the apostle John wrote to a dear friend we see a fine example of functional faithfulness. There are two areas of faithfulness that John commends Gaius for: 1) His faithfulness in following God’s Truth, and 2) His faithfulness in caring for others.We need to faithfully follow God’s truth and faithfully care for others.Galatians 5:22May 4, 2024To watch the video of this message, click here.
- Apr 27, 2025Growing in Godly Character – How Good is Good Enough?
Apr 27, 2025Growing in Godly Character – How Good is Good Enough?Series: GalatiansGoodness as a part of the Fruit of the Spirt, is not a matter of how good we have to be to get into heaven. It is about the goodness of Christ showing through our lives and impacting the lives of others. It is God calling and equipping us to demonstrate His goodness to others.As we seek better understanding of this aspect of the Fruit of the Spirit, I thought it might be helpful for us to ask & answer 3 questions about goodness together this morning: 1) What is Goodness According to God? 2) Can I Really Show God’s Goodness to Others? 3) How Can I Grow in Goodness?God wants His goodness to grow in you as you share it with those around you.Galatians 5:22Apr. 27, 2025To watch the video of this message, click here.
- Apr 20, 2025Viewing Life Through the Empty Tomb
Apr 20, 2025Viewing Life Through the Empty TombSeries: EasterIf someone asked you to prove that Jesus was resurrected from the dead, could you do it? Jesus’ resurrection must be true, because if it’s not, then the whole Christian faith collapses. Thankfully, Scripture gives us plenty of evidence that Jesus was truly raised from the dead. But, there are a couple of critical questions we need to ask ourselves: First, do we believe it's true? And second, am I living like it's true?Our study takes us to Matthew 28:1-15 where he provides ample 1) Evidence for Christ's Resurrection. After a detailed look at the evidence, we'll turn to consider our answer to the question, 2) How Should Christ's Resurrection Affect our Lives?Jesus died for your sins and rose again to offer you forgiveness and eternal life. He died for us; let's live for Him.Matthew 28:1-15Apr. 20, 2025Easter SundayTo watch the video of this message, click here.
- Apr 13, 2025Faulty Expectations?
Apr 13, 2025Faulty Expectations?Series: EasterPeople have a number of differing expectations of Jesus – Who they think He is, what they expect Him to do for them, and so on. By the same token, God has expectations of us too – how we ought to strive to live and care for others.On Palm Sunday it’s common for us to focus on Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the week before His crucifixion. We’re going to look at that event and consider some people’s faulty expectations of who He was and what He was going to accomplish. After that, we’re going to examine 2 other episodes from early in that week to help us understand what God expects of us.God wants us to grow the spiritual fruit of unwavering faith, believing prayer, and intentional forgiveness.Mark 11:1-25Apr. 13, 2025Palm SundayTo watch the video of this message, click here.
- Mar 30, 2025Growing in Godly Character – Concerning Kindness
Mar 30, 2025Growing in Godly Character – Concerning KindnessSeries: GalatiansIn Scripture, the subject of kindness is translated many ways: grace, loyalty, faithfulness, love, mercy or goodness. An act of Biblical kindness typically finds one person in a position to give help to someone else who is unable to help themselves or to reciprocate. Often, the kindness given is linked to a covenant established between the individuals.For a wonderfully clear example of kindness I want us to turn to the Old Testament book of 2 Samuel. In 2 Samuel 9 we find an account from the life of Israel’s King David, a time when he showed unexpected kindness to someone he had never met.Rather than simply reading the account and discussing it, let's try entering into the story a bit by hearing about it from the perspective of person who received that kindness.Show the same sort of kindness to others which God has shown to you.Galatians 5:22Mar. 30, 2025To watch the video of this message, click here.
- Mar 23, 2025Growing in Godly Character – Patience is Worth the Wait
Mar 23, 2025Growing in Godly Character – Patience is Worth the WaitSeries: GalatiansPatience is the 4th element in Paul’s list of the Fruit of the Spirit, found in Gal. 5:22-23, and probably one of the less popular ones. The first 3, love, joy, and peace, are things that we desire to have. Patience? Maybe not quite as much. It’s not that we don’t think patience is important, it’s just that it’s so hard to be patient sometimes.In the epistle of James we find believers who were being oppressed and treated unfairly by rich land owners in their communities. They were struggling in many ways and through many circumstances, but James encourages them to be patient. In James 5:7-11 the author intermixes his 3 points: 1) We Are Called to be Patient; 2) Patience is Possible Even When Facing Problems; and 3) We Need to Confront Our Lack of Patience.God gives us patience to persevere through all of life’s problems.Galatians 5:22Mar. 23, 2025To watch the video of this message, click here.
- Mar 16, 2025Growing in Godly Character – The Peace of God’s Presence
Mar 16, 2025Growing in Godly Character – The Peace of God’s PresenceSeries: GalatiansImagine a lighthouse on a rocky outcropping. All around a storm rages, lightning flashes and thunder roars. Enormous waves crash against the cliff below the lighthouse, sending wind whipped spray all the way to the top. It is dark, and loud, and violent. Not exactly a picture of peace.But, imagine we are able to open the door and enter the lighthouse. Inside we find the lighthouse keeper seated at a table with a steaming cup of soup in front of him. He holds a spoon in one hand and a book in the other. There is a smile on his face as he reads, warmed by the crackling fire in the hearth across the room. His dog naps on the floor, curled up near a padded chair. It’s cozy & dry. Despite the chaos and turmoil outside the lighthouse, inside there is peace.This image illustrates the Biblical idea of peace. True peace is not the absence of conflict, trouble, or “storms” in life. True peace allows us to be calm and content, even while the storm rages. It is the calm assurance of God’s protection, provision & grace.Peace is God’s gift to His children. It is the third element of the Fruit of the Spirit which we find in Paul’s list from Gal. 5:22-23. As we look into peace this morning I want to take us to John 14, where Jesus says that He will leave His disciples with peace, even though He is going to be leaving them very soon. There are two primary things which God's peace provides us with: 1) God's Peace Gives Us Comfort; and 2) God's Peace Gives Us Confidence.God’s peace provides us with the comfort and confidence we need to face life.Galatians 5:22March 16,2025To watch the video of this message, click here.
- Mar 9, 2025Growing in Godly Character – Full of Joy
Mar 9, 2025Growing in Godly Character – Full of JoySeries: GalatiansLife has a way of throwing challenges at us. It can be hard to feel much joy when things in your life are just going wrong.I imagine that’s how the disciples were feeling as they spent what would be their final hours with Jesus. They were beginning to understand that He was going to leave them by way of death. This caused them grief and fear. But, Jesus tried to help them see that their grief was only going to be temporary – their passing grief would give way to lasting joy that only Jesus can bring!In John 16:16-22, there are 3 things which contribute to our Joy in the Lord. First, we see that 1) Jesus Cares About What Concerns Us. Next we find that 2) Jesus Fully Knows the Future. And finally, we acknowledge that 3) Jesus Can Totally Transform Our Lives.Only Jesus can give us true, lasting joy!Galatians 5:22Mar. 9, 2025To watch the video of this message, click here.
