SERMON SERIES:
Being the Church in the 21st Century
|
|
At times it can be tough to show love to the people in Our Worlds, especially when we have to show "tough love!" But as we'll see exemplified by the Apostle Paul today, it's vitally important that we recognize when and how to do just that. In this sermon, Pastor Willie continues our series of Being The Church as he takes us through II Corinthians 13:1-10 and shares with us how to "take the gloves off!" |
|
Have you noticed that we're drawn to people who are sold out and full of passion? But, when then is it so hard for us to commit to what we know to be right? Could it be that we are not willing to become foolish enough? In this sermon Pastor Paul talks about how we discover helpful common traits between those who are willing to become Fools for God that may help us become a little more passionate, maybe even a little more foolish.
|
Have you ever wanted to be strong, either physically, intellectually, financially, spiritually, etc.? Superheros are pretty popular these days, and they make us want to be victorious in these areas. In this sermon Pastor Willie talks about the Apostle Paul's life and how it seems to follow the outline of many superhero books and movies.
|
Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there and those of you who are or have been mothers to children who aren't your own! You show incredible love! The Apostle Paul is also one who demonstrated incredible love, for the Lord and His church. In this sermon, Pastor Willie talks about how Paul's love should cause us to look at our own commitment to the Lord and the people in Our Worlds.
|
|
We live in the Age of Information, the "truth" is easily accessed...or it it?! The Apostle Paul emphasizes the importance of avoiding false teachers, and their teaching. In this sermon Pastor Willie shows us the illustrations that Paul uses to imitate life.
|
Have you noticed that things in life are pretty messy right now? There was a church planter who gave his congregation a challenge to bless their mess, and we see a parallel here. Jesus is returning soon and He's giving us the same command. In this sermon Pastor Paul takes us back into our series Being the Church in the 21st Century and he explores II Corinthians 10 to show use three tools that, if and when used wisely, will bless your mess!
|
The Apostle Paul concludes this passage on generosity by emphasizing one of God's absolute laws: 'Sow sparingly and reap sparingly; sow generously and reap generously.' In this sermon Pastor Willie talks about how when we give we are blessed, we receive what we need, and most importantly, God is glorified!
|
|
'Generosity' seems to be a reoccurring theme these past couple weeks and that's because it's SUPER important! We need to be generous, but we also need to know what that looks like and who the credit goes to. In this sermon Pastor Paul talks about giving God the credit, leaving no room to be discredited, and how being generous boosts our relational credibility.
|
Did you know that there's more to an offering than just money! While the Apostle Paul was in Macedonia, he collected a relief offering for the poor; however, he had bigger blessings in mind for the Corinthians (and us) through this offering. In this sermon Pastor Willie talks about the principles of giving.
|
Have you ever had someone encourage you? It's an amazing feeling isn't it!? And when you feel encouraged you want to encourage others! In this sermon Pastor Willie talks about how encouragement is infectious and how the Apostle Paul and Titus are a great example of how we can encourage those in Our Worlds!
|
|
We took a break from II Corinthians, but now we're back! Jesus has given each of us a ministry to those in Our Worlds. However, we need to be careful in how close we get to them and be aware of the impact those individuals can have on us. In this sermon Pastor Willie talks about the things we need to remember so we can be IN the world, but not OF the world!
|
Do you remember complaining about how hard something was and then your dad would look at you and say, "I never said it was going to be easy." This statement is just as relevant to our Christian walk. In this sermon Pastor Willie talks about the hardships that the Apostle Paul endured for the sake of Christ. The key word there is 'endured,' because while the Christian walk is tough, it is the toughest walk that you will ever love.
|
If you're a parent, been around kids, or even when you were a kid, you probably heard or uttered those words, "Do I have to!?" And typically it's said in a high pitched whiny voice. In this sermon Pastor Willie talks about how a lot of times we say the same thing to God. He gives us direction, shows us His plan, and we respond with "Do I have to!?" The Apostle Paul challenges us to instead say, "God, I WANT to!"
|
|
Do you remember riding in the car with your parents and asking "Are we there yet?" every couple of minutes. We do that because we have our destination in mind and we want to reach it. In this sermon Pastor Paul talks about how sometimes we get too comfortable where we're at on this earth and we forget that we haven't reached our final destination yet, and . God understands, but He wants us to long for more, He wants us to realize that we're Not Home Yet.
|
It's safe to say that we've all had what we would consider our "fair" amount of difficult circumstances. However, we haven't always handled them in the correct way. Even the Apostle Paul had his "fair" share of difficult circumstances, but he didn't focus on what he DIDN'T have, instead he REJOICED in what he DID have! In this sermon Pastor Willie tells us how the Apostle Paul was able to do this and teaches how we can do the same!
|
Have you ever worked really hard to make an agreement with someone so that it benefits them the most? In the Old Testament, God made a covenant with His people that was pretty glorious. But as we see in our sermon today, Pastor Willie talks to us about God's new covenant; one that the Apostle Paul affirms is GLORIOUS and far superior to the old!
|
|
Do you remember these words, "Dinner's ready!" and you would hurry to the table your mom had prepared for you. In this sermon Pastor Willie talks to us about a similar table. But this table wasn't prepared by you or me, or even your mom, it was prepared by Jesus. Jesus prepared the table for us when He died on the cross and He's waiting for us to join Him at the table. This is a very special occasion, so we need to be ready! Are you ready?
|
We often find ourselves going over our plan for our lives over and over again and it stresses us out! We ask ourselves, "What am I supposed to do with my life?" "What's my purpose?" So often we forget that God's plan is bigger than ours, and He already has it all worked out. In this sermon Pastor Paul talks about how when our life's purpose is to make God's plan happen, the people in our world WILL find new life in Jesus, and we will find peace doing what He's called us to.
|
Has someone ever done something to do that was wrong? Intentionally or unintentionally? How did you respond? Someone in the Corinthian Church caused Paul a great deal of pain and needed to be disciplined. In this sermon Pastor Willie talks about how Paul responded; he accepted and forgave him. The Apostle Paul set the example for us, now we have to choose.
|
|
Have you every been on the receiving end of criticism? How did you respond to it? The truth is, when we misunderstand each other, the wounds can go very deep! The Apostle Paul was no exception to this and received a lot of criticism from the Corinthians. In this sermon Pastor Willie tells us how Paul chose to respond to it, and teaches us how to choose our own responses.
|
The book of II Corinthians isn't just the Apostle Paul's second letter to the church at Corinth, it's also where we continue to learn about how to be the church in the 21st century. Pastor Willie kick off the continuation of our series Being the Church in the 21st Century, by talking about God's uncomfortable comfort.
|
|
