In John 14:12 Jesus said we would do greater things.

God is moving all around the world. Zach Santmier shares testimony on miracles he witnessed in Africa, greater works than what Jesus did, and journey into deeper faith in the power of the Holy Spirit. 
Just as the Spirit moves, heals, restores, delivers, and casts out demons in Africa, He wants to do the same thing in our community.

Children and Champions
February 27, 2022

MAIN IDEA: Receive it like a child. Pursue it like a champion.

I Am A Child
God’s amazing grace determines my place in His heart.
Romans 8:16-17 (CSB) The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children, and if children, also heirs…

1 John 3:1 (CSB) See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children—and we are!

Galatians 4:4-7 (CSB) When the time came to completion, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then God has made you an heir.

Activation Exercise
Receive Your Identity
John 16:13-15 (CSB) When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will not speak on his own, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare to you what is to come. He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. Everything the Father has is mine. This is why I told you that he takes from what is mine and will declare it to you.

The Treasure
February 27, 2022


MAIN IDEA: Following the Holy Spirit requires forming new priorities.


Access
We’ve been given radical access.
Luke 17:20-21 (NKJV) ​​Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.”




Decisions
We’re free to cultivate a faith mindset or settle for an unbelief mindset.



Priorities
How can we experience a shift in priorities?
1. Realize the Father delights in granting this gift.


2. Recognize the value of this gift.
Matthew 13:44-46 (NKJV) “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, 46 who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

3. Shift from a settler mindset to a searcher mindset.
Matthew 7:7-8 (NLT) “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”



Activation Exercise
1. INDIVIDUAL EXERCISE: Write a prayer, sharing your heart with the Holy Spirit
Express your gratitude for Who He is and that He lives inside of you
Humbly confess if you haven’t made learning to follow Him your priority
Profess your desire to learn how to hear Him and obey.


2. GROUP EXERCISE: Break into groups of 3-4, answer the following question and take turns praying for one another.
What are you hoping to get out of this series?






Discussion Questions:
What are you hoping to get out of this series?
In your experience, how have you experienced the leading of the Holy Spirit? If you are able, share a time in your life when you clearly experienced the Holy Spirit leading you in a particular way.
“Whether or not we experience the Holy Spirit’s guidance is up to us.” Respond to this statement. Does this sound like a heavy responsibility or exciting opportunity? Why?
What are some practical ways you can begin learning to follow the Holy Spirit?
What does it mean to prioritize learning to follow the Holy Spirit? Practically, what does it mean for your own life? What are some obstacles to it? How can you overcome these obstacles?

Direction

Series: Invitation

February 13, 2022

 John 14:6 (CSB) “I am the way and the truth and the life.”

Jesus reveals the goodness of eternal life.

• John 14:2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you
• Revelation 7:16-17 They will no longer hunger; they will no longer thirst; the sun will no longer strike them, nor will any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb who is at the center of the throne will shepherd them; he will guide them to springs of the waters of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
• John 14:23 Jesus answered, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him
• Psalm 27:4 I have asked one thing from the Lord; it is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, gazing on the beauty of the Lord
• Psalm 16:11 You reveal the path of life to me; in your presence is abundant joy; at your right hand are eternal pleasures.
• 2 Chronicles 5:13-14 The trumpeters and singers joined together to praise and thank the Lord with one voice. They raised their voices, accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and musical instruments, in praise to the Lord: For he is good; his faithful love endures forever. The temple, the Lord’s temple, was filled with a cloud. 14 And because of the cloud, the priests were not able to continue ministering, for the glory of the Lord filled God’s temple.
• 2 Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
• John 14:6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus reveals the way to access eternal life.

• John 14:6 (CSB) “I am the way and the truth and the life.”

• We gain access to it through faith in HIS SACRIFICE
  • Mark 10:45 the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
• We can continually experience it through the HOLY SPIRIT
  • John 14:16-17 I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever. 17 He is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive him because it doesn’t see him or know him. But you do know him, because he remains with you and will be in you.
• We can walk in it daily by learning to TRUST AND OBEY
  • John 14:21 The one who has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. And the one who loves me will be loved by my Father. I also will love him and will reveal myself to him.

Everyone is free to choose which direction they will take.

• What does it mean to experience eternal life here and now?
• How did Jesus make the way into eternal life? How does Jesus model the way we can experience it?
• What are the practical, everyday things we struggle with that make it difficult to live in the Father’s presence? How can we discover a way to do this, even when we live such busy and often-interrupted lives? What is one of your main daily challenges to living this way?
• As a group, spend some time praying for one another. Ask the Lord to reveal His heart for each other. Listen for the Holy Spirit. Speak His words of encouragement and blessing over one another.

MAIN IDEA: The Father wants me to walk the victory Jesus provided.


Total Victory
Jesus’ resurrection power overcomes every obstacle and brings transformation.
Sin & Sickness

Spiritual Realm


Key Principle: Everything Jesus took to the cross has been redeemed; every power that tried to keep Him in the grave has been vanquished!

Shared Victory
We walk in resurrection power.

Key Principle: What is actual in the spiritual realm is potential in the visible realm. We are in the business of manifesting it.

Battle Cry
It’s time for God’s people to walk in victory for the sake of a suffering world.

Change our expectations

Recognize our responsibilities

Learn to actualize the possibilities

Scriptures for Further Encouragement
 The following passages are all selected from the Letters of Paul. You can reflect on them, pray through them and ask the Holy Spirit to apply them to your own heart. These particular passages were chosen because they powerfully reveal the victorious life that Jesus died and rose again to give us. They help reveal the resurrection power we have through the indwelling Holy Spirit!
Romans 6:4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Romans 6:5-11 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:14 sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
Romans 6;22-23 having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:1-4 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh
Romans 8:5 those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit
Romans 8:11 if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

“I am the good shepherd.” John 10:11, 14

John 10:10-13
10 A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand, since he is not the shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep, leaves them and runs away when he sees a wolf coming. The wolf then snatches and scatters them. 13 This happens because he is a hired hand and doesn’t care about the sheep.
“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life…”

Series: Invitation
January 16, 2022
Sanctity of Human Life Sunday

John 8:12 (CSB) Jesus spoke to them again: “I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows me will never walk in the darkness but will have the light of life.”

MAIN IDEA: The Father wants our lives to bring light to a dark world.

Enlightened by Grace
God meets our pain and confusion with grace when we come in faith.
For the post-abortive
For the unmarried
For the questioning

Enlightened by Truth
A culture that doesn’t defend life is lost in darkness.

A Few Scriptures Supporting Life
Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
Psalm 100:3 “Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.”
Isaiah 44:24 “Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: ‘I am the Lord, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself.'”
Isaiah 64:8 “But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.”
Psalm 127:3-5a “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them!”
Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in your mother’s body I chose you. Before you were born I set you apart to serve me. I appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”

A Few Abortion Facts
Life begins at fertilization.
A child’s heart beats at 21 days. It is audible at 8-10 weeks gestation
Six weeks after fertilization, brain activity begins
Between five and seven and a half weeks, development of hands and feet occurs.
More than 60 million abortions have taken place since legalization in 1973
Based on available state-level data, approximately 887,000 abortions took place in the United States in 2019, up from approximately 872,000 abortions in 2018.
In 2019, approximately 19% of U.S. pregnancies (excluding spontaneous miscarriages) ended in abortion.
When weighing an abortion decision, women say they expected or experienced judgment (33 percent) or condemnation (26 percent) from a church far more than caring (16 percent) or helpfulness (14 percent).
1 in 4 women have had an abortion
More than four in 10 women who have had an abortion were churchgoers when they ended a pregnancy (attending monthly or more)
Only 1.5% of abortions are due to rape and/or incest

Enlightened for Action
The Father invites us to live the truth that every life matters!

Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

Embrace the truth that every life matters.

Support the truth that every life matters.

PRAY for laborers who will bring change until every life matters.

Discussion Questions:
In the sermon, Adam talked about the importance of grace and truth when discussion abortion. Why is it so important to extend and receive both?
In your experience, is this a topic that drives the priorities of most Christians? To what extent should it drive our priorities and practices? Why?
In your experience, does the church discuss the issues surrounding sanctity of human life too little, too much or the right amount? Why do you feel that way?
What do you think the church can and should do to stand for life in our culture?
What could your Community Group do?
What could your family do?

Satisfaction

Invitation

January 9, 2022

Exodus 3:5-15 (NLT)

5 “Do not come any closer,” the Lord warned. “Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground. 6 I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” When Moses heard this, he covered his face because he was afraid to look at God.

7 Then the Lord told him, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them… 10 Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt.”

11 But Moses protested to God, “Who am I to appear before Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?”

12 God answered, “I will be with you. And this is your sign that I am the one who has sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God at this very mountain.”

13 But Moses protested, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?”

14 God replied to Moses, “I am who I am. Say this to the people of Israel: I am has sent me to you.” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you. This is my eternal name, my name to remember for all generations.”

John 6:35  (CSB) “I am the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “No one who comes to me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in me will ever be thirsty again.”

I’m not designed to live unsatisfied.

C.S. Lewis: “The Christian says, 'Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exists. A baby feels hunger: well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim: well, there is such a thing as water. Men feel sexual desire: well, there is such a thing as sex. If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not prove that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing. If that is so, I must take care, on the one hand, never to despise, or to be unthankful for, these earthly blessings, and on the other, never to mistake them for the something else of which they are only a kind of copy, or echo, or mirage. I must keep alive in myself the desire for my true country… I must make it the main object of life to press on to that country and to help others to do the same.”

We need to pay attention to our feelings!

Satisfaction is always closer than I think.

Matthew 7:7-8 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”

The Father is inviting me to influence my world from a place of satisfaction and abundance, not inadequacy and lack.

Discus