Lessons for Living (Audio)

Do you ever wonder why there have been such strenuous and sustained attacks on the Bible for many years? Even from those who claim to be members of Christ’s body, the Church? It’s clear that the Devil hates the scriptures because it has foretold his demise, as do those who – knowingly or not – are on his side. Pastor Mark will be teaching about the warfare all Christ followers are engaged in and the weapons that God has given them to use. He’ll also be discussing why God gave these particular weapons as well as the type of enemies you are to use them against.

Have you ever watched one of those nature shows where a couple of male deer or rams are trying to become the dominant male? They are literally butting heads. One of the striking things is that they don’t stop until one of them is clearly defeated – the attacks are relentless. Pastor Mark’s teaching today will remind you that Satan’s attacks on you are unyielding as well. You’ll be learning about the defenses that God has made available to you to protect yourself against the devil. You will also hear the ways that the world system cooperates with Satan, so you’ll learn how to beat that enemy, too.

It’s easy to not think about things like warfare because America isn’t in a conventional war at this time, and neither are her allies. Thus, thinking about things like military strategy or espionage don’t come quickly to mind for most people. The Bible, however, states that there is a conflict that has been going on for millennia and won’t soon end. Pastor Mark will be trying to get you to think about this spiritual warfare and its effect on your everyday living. He will tell you how to get on the right side of the battle and also how to defend yourself from the enemies that you can’t see with your physical eyes.

Have you ever gotten really mad at someone and then had to go back and apologize? Of course you have – everyone has done that. Did you ever think about the spiritual consequences of your anger? How the person you went off on may now think about Christians or about Jesus? Well, Pastor Mark will be teaching about the importance of not just not being angry but about how you live every aspect of your life. He will be teaching that because there are only two sides to the spiritual realm – God’s and Satan’s – that which side you choose to work for affects everyone you come into contact with.

There was a time in America when there was respect given to biblical principles. Even though the people may not have themselves been Christ followers, they respected the underlying principles of the Bible. Those days are long gone. The Bible and Christians are made fun of or scorned for believing what God says in His word. Pastor Mark will be teaching about this battle. He will also be talking about the entities behind the physical manifestation of the battle: God and Satan. You’ll become more aware of this part of your life, your role in it, and how to be on the winning side.

Hollywood has made it difficult for Christians, let alone unbelievers, to take the spiritual world seriously. The devil dressed in a red suit with a pitchfork and horns on his head? angels as cute little cherubs with bow and arrows or harps, floating on clouds? What a joke! In the Bible, when angels appeared to humans, the first thing they said was, “Fear not”. Doesn’t sound like people saw a cute cherub, does it? Pastor Mark will be teaching about the seriousness of the spiritual, unseen realm and the battle that has been going on since before time, and your – yes, your – place in it.

There’s a danger as you mature in your Christian experience to diminish the effect of the spiritual realm in your life. Sure, you have a prayer life and God answers those in one way or another. But it’s easy to forget that you have an enemy; a former master who wants to destroy the spiritual progress you’ve made. In Pastor Mark’s teaching today, he will be reminding you that you got to this point in your walk with Christ by trusting God and letting the Holy Spirit empower you against Satan’s schemes. And no matter how far you go with Jesus, you need His help every step of the way.

Have you reached personal perfection yet? Of course you haven’t – no one has. But, you might say, I’m a much better person than I used to be! That may be true. In fact, if you’re a Christ follower, that should be true. But you also know that you have a long way to go to reach perfection in God’s eyes. The reality, of course, is that you won’t be perfect in thought and action until you reach heaven. Pastor Mark’s teaching will be reminding you of that fact. He’ll also talk about other aspects of your relationship with God that you have: forgiveness and restoration.

When you were a child, did your parents warn you against hanging out with the “wrong people” or going to “bad places”? If you went against your parents’ advice, did you learn why your parents tried to warn you away? If you’re honest with yourself you probably answered, “Yes”. Pastor Mark will be teaching that God, as your Creator, knows what’s best for you – better than you will ever know. And because He loves you, He’s left you instructions for how best to live your life. You’ll learn some of what those dos and don’ts are today in addition to being cautioned against being tricked by a new breed of “bad person”.

There have been a lot of changes on the sexual scene especially in the last fifty years. The increasing prevalence of sex outside of marriage, the increasing acceptance of homosexuality and the rise of the “trans-“ movement can’t be ignored. The question for the Christ follower to these trends in the world is, how to respond to all of these things with a Jesus attitude? Pastor Mark will be covering what a biblical response is in his teaching today. He’ll also be talking about why these changes have come about as well as what the Bible has to say about what you see around you nowadays.