Sunday Sermons

MAIN POINT:

"To overcome anxiety we cast it on the One who is willing and able to carry it."

KEY VERSE:

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” – 1 Peter 5:5-7

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"Will you try to carry your fears? - OR - Will you be willing to cast them on the one who cares for you?"

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

1 Peter 5:5-7, Philippians 4:6-7

SUMMARY:

As a society, we’re more anxious now than we’ve ever been. If fear is caused by our belief in a future potential loss, then anxiety is the present emotion caused by that uncertainty. We carry it around like a software virus. It slows us down and quietly keeps us from operating at our full potential.

MAIN POINT:

"We may not be able to completely remove fear, but we can overcome it."

KEY VERSE:

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…” – 1 John 4:18a

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"Do you want to be controlled by fear, or overcome it?"

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

1 John 4:18a, Romans 8:31, 35, 37-39

SUMMARY:

Fear is an emotion caused by belief in a looming potential loss. It’s based in the future. The source of our fears is usually something we’re going to lose or we’re afraid we won’t have in the future. Since we can never really know what’s around the corner, is it even possible to live without fear?

MAIN POINT:

"The resurrection changes everything."

KEY VERSE:

Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” – John 20:29 (NIV)

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"What does the resurrection change for you, today?"

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

John 11:25b, 14:6b, 20:1-8, 24-29

MAIN POINT:

"When you confront me about a gap I’ve created, I will tell you the truth."

KEY VERSE:

“Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.” – Acts 5:4 (NIV)

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"Will you commit to tell the truth when you’re confronted about a gap you’ve created?"

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

Acts 5:1-11

SERIES DESCRIPTION:

We have expectations in every relationship. What happens when our experiences don’t match those expectations? It creates a gap. What we choose to put in the gap determines the quality of that relationship.

MAIN POINT:

"A spider is an agreement you have made with a lie that needs to die in order for you to experience freedom in Christ."

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"What is the agreement you have made with a lie? What's your spider?"

KEY VERSE:

“For the mindset of the flesh is death, but the mindset of the Spirit is life and peace.” –Romans 8:6

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

John 10:10, 1 Peter 5:10

SUMMARY: When you decide to follow Jesus, old habits and behaviors don’t always automatically disappear. You may pray for guidance, deliverance, and make promises to do better, but you find yourself back in those old ways of living. You’re not alone. This week we invited author and speaker, Carlos Whittaker, to share his own personal stories about how to find freedom in Christ by finally killing the spider.

MAIN POINT:

"When I’m convinced I will not be able to fulfill an expectation, I will tell you AHEAD of time."

KEY VERSE:

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." – 1 John 1:9 (NIV)

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"Who do you need to proactively confess to?"

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

1 John 1:5-9

SERIES DESCRIPTION:

We have expectations in every relationship. What happens when our experiences don’t match those expectations? It creates a gap. What we choose to put in the gap determines the quality of that relationship.

MAIN POINT:

"If what I experience begins to erode my trust, I will come directly to you about it."

KEY VERSE:

“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.” – Matthew 18:15 (NIV)

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"Who do you need to go directly to today?"

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

John 1:14

SERIES DESCRIPTION:

We have expectations in every relationship. What happens when our experiences don’t match those expectations? It creates a gap. What we choose to put in the gap determines the quality of that relationship.

MAIN POINT:

"When I observe other people assuming the worst about you, I will come to your defense."

KEY VERSE:

“A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends.” – Proverbs 16:28 (NIV)

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"Whose defense do you need to come to?"

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

Proverbs 16:28, 26:20, 22

SERIES DESCRIPTION:

We have expectations in every relationship. What happens when our experiences don’t match those expectations? It creates a gap. What we choose to put in the gap determines the quality of that relationship.

MAIN POINT:

"As trust goes, so goes the relationship."

KEY VERSE:

"It (Love) always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." – 1 Corinthians 13:7 (NIV)

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

"WHO are you assuming the worst about…that you can choose to start believing the best about?"

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:

Matthew 22:36-40, John 13:34-35, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

SERIES DESCRIPTION:

We have expectations in every relationship. What happens when our experiences don’t match those expectations? It creates a gap. What we choose to put in the gap determines the quality of that relationship.

MAIN POINT:

To experience God in all his fullness and live a fruitful life, you must remain in the Word and be filled with the Spirit.

CHALLENGE QUESTION:

if you were to look at the soil of your life, what would it be? 1) Hard 2) Shallow 3) Cluttered or 4) Fertile?

KEY VERSE:

“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit.” – John 15:4-5 (NIV)

SCRIPTURE PASSAGES:

Mark 4:1-20, Ecclesiastes 3:1, Luke 8:15, Matthew 7:18, Galatians 5:19-23; 25, Ephesians 5;18, Acts 1:8, Acts 2:38, John 5:4-6

SERIES DESCRIPTION:

We all want to experience God more—to know Him, to feel His presence, to see Him working through us—but we’re not always willing to go to the “dirty areas” in our life: to learn what we need to learn, to do what we need to do, the work to clear away the things that hold us back. For us to experience God in a life-transforming way, we have to actively prepare the soil of our hearts so that God’s principles, promises, and power can take root and grow.