Praise God that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for us, so that we can follow Him into the presence of our Heavenly Father! We know the cost of our salvation, but Jesus deemed us worthy. In today’s message, Pastor Bill teaches about this incredible sacrifice. Before we begin, have you accepted this gift from God? You see, Jesus loves you. Even though He was completely innocent of all sin, He took your place on the cross some 2,000 years ago and only asks for your heart in return. Will you give it to Him?

If you’re a Christian, you’ve been translated from the kingdom of darkness and brought into the Kingdom of Light because you are a new creation in Jesus. As Pastor Bill continues his teaching series through the book of 2 Peter, he’ll be encouraging you to add to your faith, the divine attributes of Jesus. The Lord shows unconditional love and is patient and kind. Could this be said of you? You’re called to be an ambassador of Jesus to this dark world… when they look at you, do they see Jesus?

Many of the Apostles when introducing themselves in their letters to the churches, would refer to themselves as bondservants to the Lord. Today, Pastor Bill will be reminding you that the idea of being a bondservant wasn’t just for the Apostles, but for the whole church as well. As bondservants, we renounce other masters and give ourselves totally to Jesus. Being a bondservant of Christ isn’t a horrible burden because His “burden is light” and you have been set free from sin!

As Pastor Bill continues his teaching series, he’ll be explaining how Jesus endured suffering for an eternal purpose, and how the church as well will have to endure suffering at times for eternal purposes. We cannot completely comprehend the reasons for our suffering on this side of eternity because we aren’t sovereign and eternal. What we do know is that Christ experienced the same suffering as many people today who know the bitterness of isolation, pain, and anguish and we can draw strength from Him.

Today, Pastor Bill will be reminding you of the amazing grace that God has poured out on His people. Peter himself was in desperate need of grace, especially since the last thing he did before Jesus went to the cross was deny Him three times! This is a perfect example of grace, in that Peter was absolutely not deserving of Jesus forgiving him and restoring him after the resurrection, yet Jesus sought out Peter immediately to encourage him. When you fall, run to Jesus, not away from Him!

Does this describe you? Is Jesus impacting what you think and what you do? Pastor Bill says today, that if Jesus is not impacting our lives, then we could be on the way to Hell. Do we think that we're saved, or are we really saved? Knowing about God leads to Hell. Knowing God leads to Heaven. That one word makes a world of difference. If the fruit of our lives doesn't point to Jesus, then something’s wrong. Let's allow Jesus to impact our decisions, how we treat others, and what we do. Let's let Jesus change us.

Are you an idol maker? Are you recreating God in your own image? Pastor Bill declares today that the problem with recreating God is that he’s not the one we face when we die. We'll face the God of the Bible and be judged according to His standards, not ours. We don't have the authority to dictate what God thinks or what He does. He doesn't bow to our ideas about God. If we're smart, we'll bow to the God of the Bible. Instead of making up our own god, let’s get to know the one, true, living God.

Who are you going to stand before when you die? Who will judge your life, God, or your friends? Today, Pastor Bill made a great point when he said that we need to live with eternity in view. If there's a choice between pleasing people or pleasing God, please God. Pleasing God may require us to disappoint some friends or family who don't see eternity yet. Pleasing God may mean we’re persecuted. If we endure to the end, we'll see God's glory. Let's keep Heaven in mind as we go through each day here on Earth.

Why should you go to church? Are you just another face in the crowd or did God give you a job to do? Pastor Bill, today, explains how churches are supposed to work. We're all supposed to ask God to direct us to minister to someone at each service. We're supposed to participate in what the Holy Spirit wants to do in people's lives. Ministry like this doesn't happen if we watch church from our homes or skip going altogether. Let's allow God to use our spiritual gifts to impact someone this Sunday.

Do you look at your suffering like Jesus looked at His? Jesus said to the Father, "not My will, but Yours be done." In his message today, Pastor Bill teaches us that being like Jesus is not always easy. In fact, life can be tough at times. But God has a purpose for our suffering. He’s working on us to make us more like Jesus. With this mindset, we can endure suffering until God removes it. We must view our lives from God's bigger perspective. Let's bow low before Him and pray “Not my will, but Yours be done.”