God has blessed Southpointe with an opportunity - an opportunity He has entrusted us with to "bring the Southpointe area and all places we serve into a life changing encounter with the Kingdom of God."

a. Enjoy the moment.
b. Consider how God would have you play a key role in getting us started in the campaign.
c. PRAY and Commit to LISTENING TO what God wants you to do in this season.

1. The Riches of Grace – Saving, “Sane-ing,” Sufficient
2 Corinthians 8:1, "And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches."

2. The Power of Grace - Hilarity instead of Hoarding
2 Corinthians 8:2-3, "In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. 3 For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, 4 they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people."

3. The Privilege of Grace – Investing in the only lasting Kingdom
2 Corinthians 8:4-7, “the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people. 5 And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us. 6 So we urged Titus, just as he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. 7 But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving."

4. The Person of Grace – Jesus Himself
2 Corinthians 8:8-9, "I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. 9 nFor you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich."

"Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." Galatians 6:7-10

1. Three Principles of sowing and reaping
a.). You Reap WHAT you sow
b.) You Reap LATER than you Sow
c.) You Reap GREATER than you sow
2. Two areas each of us need to apply this truth.
a) You sow and reap in yourself:
“The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from that Spirit will reap eternal life.” v. 8
b) Second place you sow and reap is in the lives of other people:
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” v. 9-10

Five Pillars of Spiritual Development:
1. Hear the Word
2. Read the Word
3. Study the Word
4. Memorize the Word
5. Meditate on the Word

3 Reasons the Gospels can't be Legends:
1. Counter Productive Content
2. They were written way to soon after the events happened
3. The literary style makes it impossible for them to be legends

"I have been reading poems, romances, vision literature, legends, and myths all my life. i know what they are like. I know none of them are like this. Of this gospel there are only two possible views. Either this is reportage... or else, some unknown ancient writer without known predecessors or successors suddenly anticipated the whole technique of modern novelistic realistic narrative” CS Lewis

“I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” -CS Lewis

“Spend your time and energy in training yourself for spiritual fitness.”
1 Timothy 4:7

a. Are you hungrier for God than ever before?
Psalm 42:1 "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.

b. Are you governed more and more by God's Word?
2 Timothy 3:16–17: "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

c. Am I becoming more and more loving?

d. Are you more and more aware of your sin?
1 Timothy 1:15

e. Are you more and more willing to forgive others?
Ephesians 4:32

Colossians 2:13-15: "And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in Him."

Romans 8:38-39: "For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."

1. God did something astounding
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.

2. In the birth of Jesus God did something life changing
v. 21-23 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
John 3:3

Verse 5: "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God."
Verse 7: "You must be born again."

Conversion is more than Bible knowledge.
Conversion is essential.
Conversion is a miracle from God.
Conversion makes a nice person into a new person.

Micah 5:2-5 “2 But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be RULER over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” 3 Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor bears a son, and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites. 4 He will stand and SHEPHERD His flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD His God. And they will live securely, for then His greatness will reach to the ends of the earth. 5 And He will be our PEACE”