Do you know what we are talking about today? I have a friend who only goes to church on Christmas and Eater. It's his tradition! He commented that I only knew 2 sermons! I assured him that we did talk about other things the other 50 Sundays! However, the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 says, Christ's death, burial and resurrection are of "FIRST IMPORTANCE." So, if you only come one Sunday a year, at least you've come to the most important one!!

Among the most violent known meteorological events are tornadoes. At the top and of the Fugita scale are F5 tornadoes. An F5 tornado has winds that reach between 260-320MPH. Sometimes life feels like an F5 tornado! In Ephesians 6:13 we are told to, "...stand your ground." How do you find strength to stand in the 300MPH wind storms of life? Putting on the spiritual armor is a biblical strategy to help you to stand in the battle of the flesh, the world and the devil.

Chasing my brothers through the house was a daily ritual. If I could catch them, I'd beat them to a pulp and leave them for dead! Hey, I was a big brother! The only room in the house that had a lock on the door was the bathroom. My brothers would make a beeline to the bathroom with me on their tail. If they could get there and lock the door, they would live to fight another day. However, if I could get my foot wedged into the door before they got it closed, I had the advantage. We have a formidable foe who attacks us daily and wants to get a foothold into the door of our lives and beat the pulp out of us! He is called a lion and he is looking for someone to chew up and spit out! Ephesians 6:10-13 shows us how we can stand against his attacks.

On Saturday nights at 9pm I watch a show called House Hunters Renovation. The premise of the show is a home-buyer buys a home that needs renovation. After the purchase is made, they demo (demolition) the parts they don't like and then renovate the parts they want to improve. The end product is usually a very beautiful home. In order to live a victorious Christian life, the Holy Spirit wants to demo our sinful nature and renovate our lives to create a beautiful "home." In Romans 6:15-23 the Apostle Paul shows us how this is done.

My daughter, Kelsey, can pretty much get whatever she wants from her dad. That being said, every now and then I had to remind her when she was younger, that the world did not revolve around her and that it's not all about Kelsey McNabb! In scripture, however, it is all about Jesus. The Old Testament was written to point us to Jesus and the New Testament's main focus is Jesus. As we focus on scripture it reveals truth to us concerning Jesus. As we "let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly" (Colossians 3:16), we will be so absorbed by the truth revealed concerning Christ that we will live a life continually dominated by the influence of the Holy Spirit.

If you have been in church very long, you are probably very familiar with Romans 12:1-2. You may even have these verses memorized. The Apostle Paul spends the first 11 chapters of Romans on intense doctrine about salvation. Now he gets practical. The first 11 chapters explain all that God has done for us through Christ. Chapter 12 begins with the challenge to give back to God all we are, in the form of a "living sacrifice." ​​​​​​​Being a living sacrifice includes four elements, which will be highlighted in this message.

Our emotions are built-in reactions to stimuli from inside and outside our body. Our emotions will be different according to our values and beliefs. As our values transform into kingdom values, our emotions will follow suit, but we will still need to learn to respond to our emotions themselves in a righteous manner by surrendering to the commands of Christ and the Holy Spirit’s leading!

In our battle between the flesh and the Spirit over and over again, we, as Christians, are called to be faithful, to be consistent, to be stable, to be strong, to be bold, and to be uncompromising against the attacks of the flesh. The attacks of the sinful nature are obvious (Gal 5:19-21). They are constantly thrown on our path to trip us up. The call of the New Testament is to remain stable. Philippians 4:1-9 tells us how to do this.

Spirituality is not something that happens instantly.  SALVATION happens the moment you invite Christ into your life. However, SANCTIFICATION (the process of being made more like Jesus), takes  a concerted effort of daily walking in the SPIRIT. The next section of Master Life is called "The Disciple's Personality." It's the idea of developing  Christlike character as you daily walk in the Spirit. Over the next 6 weeks we will unpack how to live daily in the power of the Holy Spirit!

"As you continue to abide in Christ, to learn of Him through His Word and prayer, and as you touch others in fellowship and witnessing, your life in Christ should continue to grow and expand. As the Fruit of the Spirit grows in your life, that expanding center which is Christ will begin to affect those around you. Your service and ministry to others will impact them and begin to produce fruit in their lives. Through ministry you expand your influence and your growth" (Master Life). A great example of ministering to others is found in Luke 10:25-37.