If you had to choose a key verse from the Bible to explain what God desires in His people, where would your mind go? I think a strong case can be made for Habakkuk 2.4 “the righteous shall live by faith”. We should recognize that to be human is to have faith in something, but the object of that faith is what counts. We will explore what living by faith means for Christ-followers.

I think we all have questions for God. Why is there so much violence in the world? Why do Christian believers experience pain? Why does it seem so many people are trying to create division? This week we will begin a series on the 7th century BC prophet Habakkuk whose prophecy begins with similar questions. Ultimately he resolves to wait on a sovereign, holy, and good God.

The Spirit of God is not done with us when we are saved. In fact, that is where His ongoing work begins in our life to make us more like Jesus. What does the ongoing work look like? How do we participate in this work? God is at work in our lives both to will and to work for his good pleasure. Sunday we will finish our five-week series on “The Work of the Holy Spirit” exploring this process of sanctification.

Gifts of the Spirt

What better way to understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit than to examine what Jesus says about Him. In John 14-16, Jesus describes what the Spirit will do in the life of the disciple. I hope we better understand God’s Spirit as our Helper, Advocate, Counselor, and Comforter. May we be a Holy Spirit dependent congregation.

Before Jesus’s return to the Father, he promised that his followers would receive power to do greater things than he did through the Holy Spirit (John 14:25; Acts 1:8). However, many Christians live defeated lives. How can we live Holy Spirit-empowered lives and experience the power Jesus promised?

This week we begin a new series on the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Our temptation is to dampen His influence and rely on our own efforts. I pray that we increasingly become a church dependent on God’s leading and His sanctifying work in the body.

Having studied males and females within God’s design and within the family, we will take one more week to look at His plan for us within the church family. Again, in a time of cultural confusion, may we, the men and women of our church, cheerfully embrace our roles to God’s glory and for the hope of others.

We experience the most freedom when we embrace God’s good design and live within His framework. This week we will see God’s plan for males and females in marriage. Accompanying the sermon will be a testimony of God’s restorative grace and healing power.

One of the most obvious distinctions in life is that between males and females. That said, we live in a time when these fundamental categories are being destabilized in the name of freedom and, consequently, causing much pain. Over the next three weeks, we will re-examine God’s design for men and women. We will see that living within God’s order is actually the place of freedom and love.