- In this powerful message, guest speaker Terry Law - founder of World Compassion, Terry Law Ministries - shares his perspective of how God uses [His perfect] timing as a cornerstone for His work in our lives. God is never early and He is never late - He is always right on time. With this in mind, our challenge is first to accept God’s timing for the issues and goals we have for our lives. Then, we need to seek the wisdom to know when it is time to wait on God and when it is time to act. If we can learn to do this, we will see God work in powerful ways in our lives and the situations that we face.

- In the final message of this series, Pastor Doug reminds us that grace is the key ingredient in our lives; grace is what makes everything else seem better. Our acceptance of grace - undeserved favor from God - makes us a different person. God’s grace comes through the sacrifice of Christ and manifests itself in His overwhelming forgiveness for all of our failures. As God works in even the negative circumstances of our lives to extend grace to us, it doesn’t always feel like grace, but His interest is always in our spiritual health and destiny. Our challenge is to live in such a way that we give grace to those around us, in the same way that grace has been given freely and liberally to us.

- In the 2nd installment of this series, Pastor Doug focuses on the prophecies that show the end of the age is drawing near. After being questioned by His disciples about the end times and how they could know that that His return was imminent, Jesus taught them about the nation of Israel being reformed and how the generation who sees that will not pass away before the end comes. In both this and other end time prophecies, it is clear that the nation of Israel and its status serves as the indicator of God’s pattern and plan. We - both individually and as a nation - need to be prepared for what God has in store for us in His kingdom, which shall have no end.

- As one year closes and a new one begins, it is a perfect time to take inventory of our lives and see where we stand in terms of what is important to our spiritual health. What has God already accomplished in our lives and what sort of fruit should that be producing in us? What is still lacking that we need to work on? In this opening message, Pastor Doug explains how all signs point to these being the very last days of the age of Grace, which began when Christ was born. As the Millennial Age approaches, it is more important than ever that we live our lives in preparation for what lies ahead. The purpose of the prophecies on this topic is not to scare us; rather, it is to create an expectation of what is to come and to help motivate us to prepare for it.

- The Humanity of Jesus

One of the keys fully appreciating the love of Christ for us is to understand that - in his incarnation - He became fully human (while still being fully God) for all time. He lived and was tempted as a human, and died as a human. He was born into a family tree that can be traced more than one thousand years prior to His birth, and which continues even to this day as we become believers in Him. In his ancestry, there are all types of rogues and unlikely characters, similar to the family trees that each of us come from. As we look as Christ’s lineage, we can even more fully appreciate that He lived a life very much like any one of us, yet triumphed over sin and death on our behalf by living a sinless life, fully demonstrating His incredible love for us.

- Divine Espionage

In God’s ultimate lawfulness and fairness, the penalty for our sin needed to be paid; in His ultimate grace, He chose to pursue a plan where He paid the penalty on our behalf. Satan knew that something was going to come out of the nation of Israel that would overthrow his earthly powers, but he was spiritually blind and he wasn’t sure what or who he was looking for. In the fullness of time, right under Satan’s watchful eyes, God sent Christ to be born in a manger and to be despised among men as He carried out the redemptive mission for which he was sent. Through His loving sacrifice, we too can lead lives of purpose that are hidden in God, safe from the plans that the enemy has for us.

- The Descent

In his message titled “The Descent,” Pastor Doug describes how God planned from the very beginning of time to draw close to us by sending His Son to live among us and redeem us through His sacrifice on the cross. His love for us is so complete that He spared nothing to have an intimate relationship with us. If we want to understand what God looks like, who He is, and what he would do in our situation, all of the answers can be found in Christ, who set aside everything He had to accomplish His redemptive mission.

- In this message, Pastor Randy reminds us that too often, we get so caught up in our own situation that we forget about God’s Kingdom..His business. In our prayers, we often try to bargain with God, promising Him our commitment if He will just deliver us from a situation we find ourselves in. Or, we ask God only for things that directly benefit ourselves: in short, we are selfish. In this way, we are getting things backwards. If, like Jabez, we pray for God to increase our influence for Him and make that the center of our desires, God will hear and answer that prayer. And, in equipping us to serve Him, He will touch every area of our lives.

- In the final message of the series, Pastor Doug encourages us to embrace the freedom that comes from having the penalty and the power of sin canceled in our lives. As Galatians 5:1 says: “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.” We can use our freedom to walk out our salvation - it becomes a journey, a life-long process. God can rescue us from a vain, wasted life as we discipline ourselves to build Godly character and produce good works that validate our faith and relationship with Him. In truth, we can be free forever. This can be ours. Believe in it, desire it, then exercise discipline to do it. Through this process, you will find delight; desire fulfilled is sweet to taste.

This week's memory verse:

You are of God little children, and you have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.

1 John 4:4 (KJV)

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- Even though we have received salvation, it can seem like we’re stuck in neutral and getting nowhere in our lives - obstacles seem to be everywhere we turn. In this message, Pastor Doug points out how this was the same situation the Children of Israel faced as they remained in the wilderness; they were ready to go into the Promised Land, but obstacles lay in front of them. The Jordan River, muddy and deep, stood between them and their inheritance. To enter in, Israel had to take a step of faith and move directly toward their inheritance. When they did, the waters parted for them. If we combine our desire for good things with faith and discipline, we can achieve the delight of living fulfilling, fruitful lives.

This week's memory verse:

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.

1 John 4:4 (KJV)

Click Here to View Sermon Outline