The Bible tells us repeatedly that we're to love one another. If you're like any other person, chances are you're well aware that it isn't always easy to love certain individuals. However, we're no less called to love such people. But why do we have to? As Pastor Mike will teach you in his message today, we're first and foremost called to love, because love is of God. In his study, you'll learn what it means to love others as Christ loves us, and how doing so transforms us into the very likeness of Christ.

When it comes to objective versus subjective and absolutes, it's imperative that we have a foundation to begin with. If you're a believer, you've probably already guessed that our foundation is none other than the Word of God. As Pastor Mike will teach you in his message today, having a solid understanding of doctrine is absolutely crucial as believers and followers of Christ. In his study, you'll learn the importance of taking in God's Word regularly so as to equip yourself with the knowledge you need.

Many of us are easily impressed by the charisma, gifts, and passion that can sometimes be found in other congregations. While there's nothing wrong with being encouraged or inspired by other bodies of believers, it's important that we use discernment. In today's message, Pastor Mike will teach you that regardless of passion, works, or otherwise, all is vain without Jesus at the center. In his study, you'll gain a better understanding of what it means to be a Christ centered Church.

When you become a Child of God, He’ll transform you from a natural state of being inward focused to being outward focused. You’ll find that He puts compassion and empathy in your heart towards others. You’ll find yourself wanting to serve and give of yourself in a way that defies logic. As Pastor Mike will explain in today’s message, this is one of the most obvious signs of God’s work in your heart. It’ll give you away as a Child of God and it validates your status as a part of His family.

If you aren’t spending time in prayer on a routine basis, your life and relationship with God will suffer. And the effects don’t end there – your relationships with other people will suffer as well. As Pastor Mike will challenge us in today’s message, spending that time is critical to living a life that’s full and meaningful. It’s in that time that God will draw your focus to what really matters and bring your weaknesses into the light, showing you how much you need Him to intervene in every moment of your life.

Our culture has taken a view of Christians as being simpletons who are too gullible and believe ancient fairy tales over proven facts. This is an ugly deception that has taken hold of their hearts. It comes from a place of pride. They’ve esteemed their own reason as being higher than God’s, and have tried to write Him out of the equation altogether. As Pastor Mike will explain in today’s message, to follow Jesus requires an intelligence that transcends the limits and understanding of modern science.

Sin isn’t worth it. Satan always makes it look so appealing. He knows he can’t take us out of God’s hands, so what’s the point? Why does he go to the trouble? As Pastor Mike will explain in today’s message, it’s all about his disdain for God. He knows how it breaks God’s heart to see His Children suffer under the weight of sin, and he loves to see that pain. Don’t let him have that pleasure. When you feel him drawing you into temptation, just run away and go straight to your loving Father.

If you claim to have experienced Christ but your life looks exactly the same as it did before, you need to make sure that it was really Christ you experienced. As Pastor Mike will explain in today’s message, when you come to faith in Jesus, you aren’t going to be perfect – at least not from man’s perspective. You’ll still fall into sin, but you won’t be okay with it - you won’t stay there. When Christ comes into your heart, He brings light to the ways that your life dishonors God and begins refining you into His likeness.

If we weren’t sinful and in need of saving, there was no reason for Christ to come to earth. This is a crucial step in coming to Christ. You have to acknowledge your status. You were born into a state of being against God. You served self above all others. You wanted to be your own god. As Pastor Mike will explain in today’s message, when you acknowledge your state of wickedness, then you’ll be in a place to believe in Jesus and what He came to do for lost men and women.

Holiness is not an end but a means of glorifying God. As Pastor Mike will warn in today’s message, there are some churches that push a doctrine of holiness as a way of maintaining salvation. They put far too much weight on our behavior and performance. Your salvation was secured by Christ on the cross. You are already holy because of what He did for you. Your life as a believer should reflect that inner holiness, but you don’t have to perform in order to keep it – Christ has given it to you eternally.