For the past five weeks, we have been in a series called Patriarchs, Prophets, and Priests, in which we’ve looked at the lives of people from the Old Testament to discover the lessons that their lives can teach us. Today is the second part of a message we started last week about Daniel called Character Counts.

Daniel was operating in a culture that valued politics and pandering, but he didn’t do that. He was a man of character who let the quality and ethic of his work speak for themselves. Last week, we talked about clarity, one of the ways that Daniel’s character expressed itself, and this week, we’re going to talk about two more aspects: commitment and courage.

We’re continuing our “Patriarchs, Prophets and Priests” series this week, exploring the lives of the Old Testament saints of God who helped to form the foundation of our faith and applying important lessons to our lives. This week, we’re going to look at Daniel. He is likely best known for not being eaten by lions, but there is a lot more to learn from Daniel’s life.

As we zoom in a little further, we’re going to talk about Daniel’s character. We have become a society that is more interested in charisma than character, and we have developed social media tools that allow people with charisma to promote themselves to consumers of their content who have no ability — or even interest — to verify their character. For believers, we should be focused on deepening our character and developing wisdom.

In our “Patriarchs, Prophets and Priests” series, we’re looking at the Old Testament heroes of the faith and finding the lessons we can learn from their lives. So far, we’ve talked about Noah and Jeremiah, and this week, we’re looking at the life of Job, a man who is famous for suffering with grace and patience. Job was respected and loved, but as a result of a conversation between God and Satan, he went through a terrible trial that tested his faith and integrity.

Most of us will never go through anything even approaching what Job went through, but each of us has gone through — and will go through again — difficult trials that test our resolve in ways we never thought possible. This week, we are exploring three common temptations that we may face in addition to the trial, making it more difficult and more dangerous to our faith and future. As we do, we’ll also see how we can stand strong against temptation and stay true to the Lord.

We’re continuing our “Patriarchs, Prophets and Priests” series this week, looking at the lives of Old Testament heroes of the faith to learn the lessons we can learn from them. Last week, we talked about Jeremiah’s unqualified calling and explored the fact that he was very young when God called him. As expected, he was scared to death, but God assured Jeremiah that He would with him.

This week, we are looking at Jeremiah’s unrelenting faithfulness. Once Jeremiah accepted the call of God, he had to be faithful to carry it out. He challenged priests and kings to their faces, telling them things that they did not want to hear, and there is not a single recorded instance that shows him failing to do everything God told him to do. The same is true for us. As we step out and step up to answer God’s calling on our lives, we must be faithful to do it — even when it gets tough.

As we continue our series called “Patriarchs, Prophets and Priests,” we’re looking at the men and women of the Old Testament who formed the foundation of our faith. We’re learning the events of their lives and the lessons they can teach us. Knowing the entire Bible is from Jesus and points to Him, we are also trying to identify the types and shadows of Christ we see throughout the OT.

Last week, we looked at the life of Noah, one of the patriarchs — or fathers — of the faith, and this week, we’re looking at a prophet and priest named Jeremiah. While we explore the lessons that Jeremiah’s life can teach us, please remember that these are not stories or works of fiction; they’re accounts. These people actually lived, and many of them are verifiable through other historical records.

All scripture is inspired by God and given to us for a purpose — not just the verses about Jesus or those that appear in the New Testament. All 66 books are important. They seem like stories, but they are accounts of actual people and their actual experiences, and the Bible teaches us that those experiences have been recorded, preserved and transmitted to us to teach us what to do and what not to do.

We ignore these passages to our peril, and we need to hear about Abraham and Samuel, Elijah and Eli. We need to know about Deborah and Jael, Moses and Jonah. To help us, we’re kicking off a new series today called “Patriarchs, Prophets, and Priests,” in which we will spend time learning about the major players throughout the Old Testament to determine how those people and their experiences represent or foreshadow Jesus.

We don’t have to be defeated, doomed and depressed another day of our lives. The gospel of Jesus Christ still has the power to change lives, but those who have been going to church for years may be asking, “Why isn’t this working?” It’s because Christians have been mirroring the feelings of the world around us rather than relying on the Bible for strength and stability.

We want to do everything else with everyone else, and as a result, we don’t study the Bible or put it into practice like we should. Instead of allowing Satan to continue to steal the Word from us, we need to lock it down and let grow. This week, Pastor Mark Stroud from Kingdom Rock Family Worship Center explains how we underestimate the Word of God and offers nine steps to make it stick in our lives.

According to the Bible, our mission as believers is to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and teaching these disciples to obey all of the Lord’s commands.

As we carry out this mission, God has given us unique gifts, talents and responsibilities, and He encourages us to know and understand that He is always with us — no matter what we do or where we go. This morning, we’re going to unpack what it means to “live on mission,” so we can fully trust God and do what He has called us to do.

This is the time of year that people talk a lot about freedom. Most of these discussions revolve around political freedoms and civil rights, but there is a freedom that the Bible talks about that really has nothing to do with any of those kinds of external freedoms. It’s the kind of freedom Jesus was talking about when He said, “If the Son sets you free, you are truly free!” Truly free. That’s true freedom.

True freedom is the kind of freedom that can exist no matter what form of government you live under. It is a freedom on the inside that supersedes any lack of freedom on the outside, but the opposite is true as well. f you are lacking in this freedom on the inside, it doesn’t really matter what kind of political or civil rights you have on the outside. Today, we’re going to talk about four aspects of true freedom the Bible offers to everyone.

If you have attended more than one service at Covenant Life, you have probably heard us talk about The Jericho Project. As a matter of fact, if you’ve just driven near the church campus, you have likely seen the banners that we have about The Jericho Project. You may know about its existence, but you may not know exactly what it is.

This week, we’re going to talk about The Jericho Project — what it is, what’s the connection to Jericho, how we’re going to carry it out and how you can get involved. We’re also going to share some exciting news. Our hope is that, by the end of today’s service, you will be able to give a clear, memorable answer to others who may ask about The Jericho Project.