We are living in perilous times. The apostle Paul warns Timothy that the last days bring people who look godly on the outside but are rotten on the inside. They say the right things, lift their hands, and quote scripture, but they deny the power of the Holy Spirit. These are not strangers. They creep into our communities and our homes. We must learn to recognize them and turn away.

Not everything around us is false, though. We have been given true examples to follow. The evidence is in the lives of faithful people who have suffered, endured, and kept going anyway. Scars are not lies. When we look at those who have gone before us and see that God delivered them through hard times, not around them, we find reason to trust the same road ourselves.

Continuing is not a flashy calling. It is not the kind of word that fits on a banner or gets people excited. And yet it is the very thing Paul urges us to do. We grow weary sometimes. We wonder if the gospel is working. We hear voices telling us we are on the wrong path. But the challenge is simply this: keep going in what we have learned and been assured of.

There is a great sadness in those who are still searching. The imposters, the deceivers, the ones chasing something they cannot name, they will not find it outside of Jesus. They are caught in a long, tired loop of wanting and disappointment. God desires better for them. He desires that all people come to the knowledge of the truth.

So we press on together. God is a deliverer, and his power is given to those who say yes to his Spirit. We encourage one another to continue, because none of us should be left to assume the others are fine on their own. Like travelers on a long road through a dark wood, we are each other’s company and each other’s strength, until we are presented faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.

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This sermon is taken from Ephesians. The first three chapters tell us the divine blessings that make the worthy walk described in the last three chapters possible.

The believer is chosen, predestined, adopted, accepted in the Beloved, redeemed and forgiven by the shed blood of Christ, participants in the final gathering together of all things in Christ (both Jew and Gentile and heaven and earth), and all of this is experienced “in Christ,” in the heavenlies.

The person who has experienced these blessings “in Christ” is equipped to live a worthy walk.

Eph. 4 calls the believer to walk in unity, in holiness, in love, and in hope and courage. We walk in unity as we walk in humility, meekness, patience, and forbearance in love.

These are the attitudes that make a worthy walk possible.

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Jesus had a reason for instructing his followers to celebrate the Lord’s Supper. We know there is something special about this service and that Jesus is present to minister to us in a special way, but exactly how Christ is present is a mystery. We may not fully understand the mystery, but we know that we are in need of something that Jesus offers us in Communion, grace and mercy, the Christ who came and the Christ who is coming again.

Psalm 22 describes David’s deep distress and suffering and foretells the suffering of Christ. The Psalm is the cry of a heart that is feeling lost and abandoned. And this is how both David and Jesus felt, but the heavenly Father had abandoned neither of them. The Father is not far away even though we feel alone. We need to see that while this Psalm begins with a lament – a picture of a suffering Savior – it ends with a song of victory

Jesus came to gain victory over his enemies. His death and resurrection delivers people from captivity to sin, the devil, and death. Christ is risen from the dead and He is able to bring to us the victory he won on the cross and in his resurrection.

Christ suffered greatly for us. We will suffer too. But we are also alive in the midst of suffering because Christ is risen from the dead. In the Lord’s Supper we celebrate the life Christ’s death and resurrection brings to us. The best of Jesus met the worst of humanity and Jesus was the victor. He was surrounded by men acting like animals, He experienced terrible suffering, and in the end, He won the victory. As we take these emblems this morning, let us remember not only Jesus’ suffering and death, but the reasons for it and the resurrection that followed, for there we can find victory.

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I Corinthians 12:31 introduces chapter 13, saying, “and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.” Charity is a requirement to honor Christ and bless others. Chapter 13 presents Christian charity–its importance, description, growth in it, and its permanence. Then chapter 14 begins, “Follow after charity” (KJV).

Jesus was a GREAT LIGHT in a dark world (Matt. 4:13-17). One way people “saw” or sensed this light was through Christ’s love. Jesus went to Heaven, but He had told His followers they were to be the light of the world (Matt. 5:14-16). “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matt 5:16).

Faith without works is dead (James 2:14-17). Love without works is dead (I John 3:17-18). Works without love is dead too (I Cor. 13:1-3).

Paul wrote, “But we urge you, brethren, that you increase {in love} more and more” (I Thess. 4:10 NKJV). Christians who confess and repent, who pray for grace, will grow. Love is essential for our spiritual health and for our mission on earth.

And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all (I Thess. 3:12 NKJV).

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Two of the most important questions facing people of Jesus’ day and today are, “Who is Jesus?” and “What does He want me to do?” John records seven “I am” statements used by Jesus to reveal who He is.

John 6 records a sign (the feeding of the 5,000), a sermon (in which He states, “I am the bread of life”), and then shows how this teaching was a stumbling stone to many of Jesus’ followers. The many parallels between the feeding of the 5,000 and the manna in the wilderness seem intended to show that Jesus is the source of abundant life in the wilderness of this earthly life.

Jesus calls us to feed on Him by coming to Him in faith, believing that He is able to satisfy our hunger and emptiness. A community of believers who are living by Jesus’ words of life can be a place of abundance even as all of creation longs for the promised land of the new heaven and new earth.

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Approved workers understand that they need to be living out a therefore response to the Gospel (vv 8-10).

Approved workers recognize that the way to life is through union in Christ – a union that dies, lives, and endures with Him (vv 11-13).

Approved workers avoid the teaching, influence, and behavior of unapproved workers like Hymenaeus and Philetus (vv 14-21).

Approved workers have learned the core competencies of flight, pursuit, and joint effort (vs 22).

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Genesis 50 looks back and ahead. A major focus is leaving a legacy. At the end of his life, Joseph was satisfied. He had lived his life in such a way that he had no regrets. It hadn’t been easy and he had suffered much along the way, but he had lived well, and he was satisfied with his life.

After the lengthy period of mourning for Jacob, Joseph’s siblings were afraid Joseph would retaliate against them for their sins against him. They had never asked for forgiveness, so maybe they still felt guilty. But in all of this Joseph maintained a Godly attitude. He had not forgotten, but he had forgiven.

At the end of his life, Joseph requested that his bones be taken to the promised land. He knew that Egypt was just a temporary home and the land of Canaan was where they belonged.

Joseph is known for loving and being loved by his father. He is known for his thirteen years of much suffering from the time of being put into the pit until he became ruler of Egypt. He is known for his capacity to forgive. He is known for having no sin recorded against him.

We can live a good legacy by living well. Living well requires living intentionally rather than in reaction; telling stories that communicate the truth of our lives and God’s work; being a Godly example for people to follow; building relationships; apologizing when we are wrong; focusing on things of eternal value; finishing well.

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I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Matthew 16:18

The Holy Spirit is given.

The gospel transcends all cultures. Jesus equips his church by giving the church the necessary gifts: Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, Teachers.

Jesus is looking for a pure bride so the Holy Spirit exposes sin in the church.

Jesus gives the church the power to persevere. The gospel will not be stopped.

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Psalm 68 – God shares His victory and strength with His people.

Ephesians 4:7-13 – Jesus shares His victory with the church, and gives it grace and gifts to equip the saints.

II Timothy 2:1-7 – We need to lean on Jesus for the strength to be steadfast.

Steadfastness looks like: enduring hardship, staying unentangled, remaining obedient to the Gospel, and working faithfully in hope of harvest.

When we’re feeling weak, we should continue to wait on Jesus for strength. We should also be willing to share our struggles with people in the church; not all of the grace we need comes directly from Jesus to us.

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Jacob’s deathbed prophecies are recorded in Genesis 48-49. The Jews believed deathbed blessings had special powers. These prophecies were prophetic in their own way but didn’t change the future. First Jacob blessed Joseph’s two sons, after which he blessed his own sons.

The applications of the story of Jacob’s deathbed prophecies are:

Our choices and lives matter. We should live thoughtfully and wisely.

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