Sunday Sermons

Sunday Sermons

By Central ChurchReligion & SpiritualityChristianity
Download on the App Store

Sunday Sermons episodes

  • Lost and Recovered
    Unexpected Week #3


    Lost and Recovered


    Genesis 41-42


    Joseph got it all back, and then some


    3 Things Joseph lost and recovered:


    1. Joseph lost his position. But he got it back, and then some!


    When we lose our position, we put ourselves in the prison of self-pity


    Self-pity always leads to self-doubt, and self-doubt always leads to negative self-talk


    “Therefore, Pharaoh should find an intelligent and wise man and put him in charge of the entire land of Egypt. 34 Then Pharaoh should appoint supervisors over the land and let them collect one-fifth of all the crops during the seven good years. 35 Have them gather all the food produced in the good years that are just ahead and bring it to Pharaoh’s storehouses. Store it away, and guard it so there will be food in the cities. 36 That way there will be enough to eat when the seven years of famine come to the land of Egypt. Otherwise this famine will destroy the land.” Genesis 41:33-36


    Joseph’s suggestions were well received by Pharaoh and his officials. 38 So Pharaoh asked his officials, “Can we find anyone else like this man so obviously filled with the spirit of God?” 39 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has revealed the meaning of the dreams to you, clearly no one else is as intelligent or wise as you are. 40 You will be in charge of my court, and all my people will take orders from you. Only I, sitting on my throne, will have a rank higher than yours.” 41 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the entire land of Egypt.” Genesis 41:37-41


    2.  Joseph lost his covering. But he got it back, and then some!


    So when Joseph arrived, his brothers ripped off the beautiful robe he was wearing. Genesis 37:23


    Guilt says that’s what you did, Shame says that’s who you are  


    Your past may be what you did, it may be what happened to you, but in Christ, it’s not who you are


    Then Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and placed it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in fine linen clothing and hung a gold chain around his neck Genesis 41:42


    Joseph lost his robe but he got back robes!


    3. Joseph lost his dreams. But he got it back, and then some!


    Never let somebody who’s not pursuing their dream, talk you out of the dream that God put in your heart


    One night Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him more than ever. 6 “Listen to this dream,” he said. 7 “We were out in the field, tying up bundles of grain. Suddenly my bundle stood up, and your bundles all gathered around and bowed low before mine!” 8 His brothers responded, “So you think you will be our king, do you? Do you actually think you will reign over us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dreams and the way he talked about them. 9 Soon Joseph had another dream, and again he told his brothers about it. “Listen, I have had another dream,” he said. “The sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed low before me!” Genesis 37:5-9


    The dream that God has placed in your heart will always bless and benefit other people


    Since Joseph was governor of all Egypt and in charge of selling grain to all the people, it was to him that his brothers came. When they arrived, they bowed before him with their faces to the ground. 7 Joseph recognized his brothers instantly, but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them. “Where are you from?” he demanded. “From the land of Canaan,” they replied. “We have come to buy food.” 8 Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they didn’t recognize him. 9 And he remembered the dreams he’d had about them many years before. He said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see how vulnerable our land has become.” Genesis 42:6-9


    The Lord says, “I will give you back what you lost”  Joel 2:25
    35 min
  • Preparing for the Palace
    Unexpected Week #2


    Preparing for the Palace


    Genesis 39 and 41


    What would you be willing to do if you absolutely knew God was with you?


    God is with you and He’s greater than anything that you're going through.


    Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the entire land of Egypt.”  Genesis 41:41


    “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. 9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9


    One night Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him more than ever. 6 “Listen to this dream,” he said. 7 “We were out in the field, tying up bundles of grain. Suddenly my bundle stood up, and your bundles all gathered around and bowed low before mine!” 8 His brothers responded, “So you think you will be our king, do you? Do you actually think you will reign over us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dreams and the way he talked about them. 9 Soon Joseph had another dream, and again he told his brothers about it. “Listen, I have had another dream,” he said. “The sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed low before me!” Genesis 37:5-9


    Meanwhile, the Midianite traders arrived in Egypt, where they sold Joseph to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Potiphar was captain of the palace guard. Genesis 37:36


    You don’t know a better route than God


    Embrace the phrase- I’m getting ready


    When Joseph was taken to Egypt by the Ishmaelite traders, he was purchased by Potiphar, an Egyptian officer. Potiphar was captain of the guard for Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. 2 The Lord was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did as he served in the home of his Egyptian master. 3 Potiphar noticed this and realized that the Lord was with Joseph, giving him success in everything he did. Genesis 39:1-3


    And Potiphar’s wife soon began to look at him lustfully. “Come and sleep with me,” she demanded.8 But Joseph refused. “Look,” he told her, “my master trusts me with everything in his entire household. 9 No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God.” Genesis 39:7-9


    Potiphar was furious when he heard his wife’s story about how Joseph had treated her. 20 So he took Joseph and threw him into the prison where the king’s prisoners were held, and there he remained. Genesis 39:19-20


    If we can't steward the prison, why would God trust us in the palace? 


    But the Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the Lord made Joseph a favorite with the prison warden. 22 Before long, the warden put Joseph in charge of all the other prisoners and over everything that happened in the prison. 23 The warden had no more worries, because Joseph took care of everything. The Lord was with him and caused everything he did to succeed. Genesis 39:21-23


    Some time later, Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer and chief baker offended their royal master. 2 Pharaoh became angry with these two officials, 3 and he put them in the prison where Joseph was, in the palace of the captain of the guard. 4 They remained in prison for quite some time, and the captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, who looked after them. 5 While they were in prison, Pharaoh’s cup-bearer and baker each had a dream one night, and each dream had its own meaning. 6 When Joseph saw them the next morning, he noticed that they both looked upset. 7 “Why do you look so worried today?” he asked them. Genesis 40:1-7


    When we lose our compassion for other people, more than likely we've lost our connection to Jesus


    And they replied, “We both had dreams last night, but no one can tell us what they mean.” “Interpreting dreams is God’s business,” Joseph replied. “Go ahead and tell me your dreams.” Genesis 40:8


    Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer, however, forgot all about Joseph, never giving him another thought. Genesis 40:23


    Two full years later, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing on the bank of the Nile River. Genesis 41:1


    Pharaoh sent for Joseph at once, and he was quickly brought from the prison. After he shaved and changed his clothes, he went in and stood before Pharaoh. Genesis 41:14


    “It is beyond my power to do this,” Joseph replied. “But God can tell you what it means and set you at ease.” Genesis 41:16


    Since you absolutely know God is with you, what are you going to do?
    39 min
  • Promoted Not Punished
    Unexpected Week #1


    Promoted not Punished


    Genesis 37:2-28


    Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the entire land of Egypt.” Genesis 41:41


    This is the account of Jacob and his family. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he often tended his father’s flocks. He worked for his half brothers, the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah. But Joseph reported to his father some of the bad things his brothers were doing. Genesis 37:2
    11= Imperfection, Judgment, Disorder


    Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children because Joseph had been born to him in his old age. So one day Jacob had a special gift made for Joseph—a beautiful robe. 4 But his brothers hated Joseph because their father loved him more than the rest of them. They couldn’t say a kind word to him. 5 One night Joseph had a dream, and when he told his brothers about it, they hated him more than ever. Genesis 37:3-5


    If you want to be great, you have to be able to handle hate


    For John the Baptist didn’t spend his time eating bread or drinking wine, and you say, ‘He’s possessed by a demon.’ 34 The Son of Man, on the other hand, feasts and drinks, and you say, ‘He’s a glutton and a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners!’ 35 But wisdom is shown to be right by the lives of those who follow it.” Luke 7:33-35
    To get to the mountain, you often have to walk through the valley
    When Joseph’s brothers saw him coming, they recognized him in the distance. As he approached, they made plans to kill him. 19 “Here comes the dreamer!” they said. 20 “Come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns. We can tell our father, ‘A wild animal has eaten him.’ Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!” Genesis 37:18-20


    But in that coming day no weapon turned against you will succeed. You will silence every voice raised up to accuse you. These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the Lord; their vindication will come from me. I, the Lord, have spoken! Isaiah 54:17
    But when Reuben heard of their scheme, he came to Joseph’s rescue. “Let’s not kill him,” he said. 22 “Why should we shed any blood? Let’s just throw him into this empty cistern here in the wilderness. Then he’ll die without our laying a hand on him.” Reuben was secretly planning to rescue Joseph and return him to his father. 23 So when Joseph arrived, his brothers ripped off the beautiful robe he was wearing. 24 Then they grabbed him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it. Genesis 37:21-24


    Then, just as they were sitting down to eat, they looked up and saw a caravan of camels in the distance coming toward them. It was a group of Ishmaelite traders taking a load of gum, balm, and aromatic resin from Gilead down to Egypt. 26 Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain by killing our brother? We’d have to cover up the crime. 27 Instead of hurting him, let’s sell him to those Ishmaelite traders. After all, he is our brother—our own flesh and blood!” And his brothers agreed. 28 So when the Ishmaelites, who were Midianite traders, came by, Joseph’s brothers pulled him out of the cistern and sold him to them for twenty pieces of silver. And the traders took him to Egypt. Genesis 37:25-28
    37 min
  • The Perils of Pride
    7/31/22 - I’m A Work In Progress - Week 8
    The Perils of Pride
    Proverbs 16:18


    “‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: carnelian, chrysolite and emerald, topaz, onyx and jasper, lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created, they were prepared. You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. Through your widespread trade, you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings. By your many sins and dishonest trade, you have desecrated your sanctuaries.” -Ezekiel 28:12-18
    • Pride is giving ourselves the credit for something that God has accomplished. 
      • The two types of pride:
      • Outward pride
      • Inward pride
      • Satan poisons our lives with pride, one drop at a time. 
        • 8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. -1 Peter 5:8-9


        7 symptoms of pride:
        1. Fault-finding
        2. A Harsh Spirit
        3. Superficiality
        4. Defensiveness
        5. Presumption Before God
        6. Desperation for Attention
        7. Neglecting Others
          8. Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. -Proverbs 16:18 


          9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” -Luke 18:9-14


          9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you -John 15:9-12
          • Humility is the antidote to pride
          • While pride divides, humility unites.
            • Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! And His ultimate act of humility was obedience to death on the cross.  Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. -Philippians 2:1-11


            5 Strategies Towards Humility:


            1. Thankfulness


            2. Confess your sins regularly


            3. Accept humiliations


            4. Don’t worry about status


            5. Listen to others
            • God is God and I am not.
              • Reflect on this: (Reflections slide)
              1. What areas in my life have been poisoned by pride?
              2. God, forgive me for my pride. Please help me to understand fully who You are and help me to trust You completely, so that I may be humble before You and others.
                3. 40 min
              3. Peacemakers 101
                Peacemakers 101


                James 1:19-21


                The Maker knows how it works


                “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.” James 1:19  


                “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” Matthew 5:9


                “If it is possible, as long as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” Romans 12:18


                Living at peace with others is best for ourselves, our representation of Jesus, and our relationship with God


                23 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. Matthew 5:23-24


                19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. James 1:19-21


                1. Have the Word planted in you  


                22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. James 1:22-25


                QUICK TO LISTEN


                21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. James 1:19-21


                2. Quick to meekness


                5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5


                Quick to see the good


                3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:3-5


                Quick to own our part


                SLOW TO SPEAK


                27 The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint, and whoever has understanding is even-tempered. 28 Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues.  Proverbs 17:27-28


                3. As Christians, we do not have freedom of speech.


                29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29


                45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. Luke 6:45


                When we know who’s paying, we’re mindful of what we’re saying


                SLOW TO BECOME ANGRY


                19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. James 1:19-21


                orgē: anger, movement or agitation of the soul, impulse, desire, any violent emotion, but esp. anger


                We’re slow to anger when we loosen our grip


                4. To be humble before God is to be patient towards people.


                We’re quick to make peace with others when we know God has made peace with us


                “If it is possible, as long as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” Romans 12:18


                23 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. Matthew 5:23-24
                45 min
              4. I Can Cast My Cares
                I’m a Work in Progress - Week #6


                I Can Cast My Cares


                1 Peter 5:7


                “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Matthew 6:25


                “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs Matthew 6:31-32


                Worry and Anxiety come from three places:
                a. The Past


                b. The Present


                c. The Future


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


                Some people find their identity in their anxiety


                We are created in God’s image


                We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5
                Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:2


                Repent comes from the Greek word metanoia, which means change your mind
                I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13


                Jesus majors in the supernatural


                Jesus in us gives us the strength we need to cast our anxiety unto Him
                3 min
              5. Morning Mercies
                I’m a Work in Progress - Week #5


                Morning Mercies


                Lamentations 3:22-23


                For great is Your mercy toward me, And You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol. Psalm 86:13


                So the Egyptians made the Israelites their slaves. They appointed brutal slave drivers over them, hoping to wear them down with crushing labor. They forced them to build the cities of Pithom and Rameses as supply centers for the king.  Exodus 1:11
                • Sometimes, what you escape to is eventually going to be what you have to escape from
                • God often delivers us through a process
                • When you get set free, there is always a celebration
                  • “If only the Lord had killed us back in Egypt,” they moaned. “There we sat around pots filled with meat and ate all the bread we wanted. But now you have brought us into this wilderness to starve us all to death.” Exodus 16:3


                  Then the Lord said to Moses, “Look, I’m going to rain down food from heaven for you. Each day the people can go out and pick up as much food as they need for that day... Exodus 16:4


                  Then the Lord said to Moses, “I have heard the Israelites’ complaints. Now tell them, ‘In the evening you will have meat to eat, and in the morning you will have all the bread you want. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’” Exodus 16:11


                  The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. 23 Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. Lamentations 3:22-23


                  I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh.” John 6:51


                  Prayer focus
                  God, may I never lose sight of the wonder of your mercy. 
                  29 min
                • A Reality Check
                  “A Work in Progress” - Week 4


                  A REALITY CHECK


                  Revelations 3:14-22 (NIV)


                  Christ Is faithful even when we are faithless!


                  14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. ~Revelation 3:14


                  Christ is not interested in those who fake it.


                  15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ~Revelation 3:15-16


                  4 characteristics that we see from the Laodicean Church:
                  • They were complacent.
                  • They had lost their drive.
                  • They had lost their fire.
                  • They had lost their vision.
                    • There is no one farther from the truth in Christ than the one who makes an idle profession without real faith.”


                    17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. ~Revelation 3:17-18


                    For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. ~1 Timothy 6:10


                    Christ desires repentance to deepen our relationship.


                    When we walk through fires of temptation, tribulation, and persecution. God is using the fire to “test” our faith to forge, refine, and purify it. (See 1 Peter 1:3-7)


                    19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. 20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. ~Revelation 3:19-20


                    21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ~Revelation 3:21-22


                    3 Core Components that can set the stage and keep our heart tender, ready, and alert for His calling:
                    1. Surrender: Acknowledge your brokenness
                    2. Ask God in
                    3. Look for Gold
                      4. 45 min
                    4. Trust Issues
                      I’m a Work in Progress Week #3


                      Trust Issues


                      Proverbs 3:5-6


                      Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your path straight. Proverbs 3:5-6


                      Even when we’re out of control, God is still in control


                      Often times, God puts things in our life not to restrict us, but to protect us


                      The area of our life that is most out of control is most likely the area of life that needs to be submitted to God


                      Then Joshua secretly sent out two spies from the Israelite camp at Acacia Grove. He instructed them, “Scout out the land on the other side of the Jordan River, especially around Jericho.” So the two men set out and came to the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there that night. 2 But someone told the king of Jericho, “Some Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 So the king of Jericho sent orders to Rahab: “Bring out the men who have come into your house, for they have come here to spy out the whole land.” 4 Rahab had hidden the two men, but she replied, “Yes, the men were here earlier, but I didn’t know where they were from Joshua 2:1-4


                      Before the spies went to sleep that night, Rahab went up on the roof to talk with them. 9 “I know the Lord has given you this land,” she told them. “We are all afraid of you. Everyone in the land is living in terror. 10 For we have heard how the Lord made a dry path for you through the Red Sea when you left Egypt. And we know what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan River, whose people you completely destroyed. 11 No wonder our hearts have melted in fear! No one has the courage to fight after hearing such things. For the Lord your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below. Joshua 2:8-11


                      Before they left, the men told her, “We will be bound by the oath we have taken only if you follow these instructions. 18 When we come into the land, you must leave this scarlet rope hanging from the window through which you let us down. And all your family members—your father, mother, brothers, and all your relatives—must be here inside the house. Joshua 2:17-18


                      Meanwhile, Joshua said to the two spies, “Keep your promise. Go to the prostitute’s house and bring her out, along with all her family.” Joshua 6:22


                      People know your name but call you by your sin. God knows your sin but calls you by your name


                      The men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab, her father, mother, brothers, and all the other relatives who were with her. They moved her whole family to a safe place near the camp of Israel. Joshua 6:23


                      This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham: 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (whose mother was Tamar). Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Ram. 4 Ram was the father of Amminadab. Amminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Salmon. 5 Salmon was the father of Boaz (whose mother was Rahab). Matthew 1:1-5


                      Jesus doesn't just love people that are a mess, Jesus came through people that are a mess
                      37 min
                    5. Fear is Contagious
                      I’m a Work in Progress Week #2


                      Fear is Contagious


                      2 Kings 6:8-18


                      Fear is forgetting that God is in control


                      When the king of Aram was at war with Israel, he would confer with his officers and say, “We will mobilize our forces at such and such a place.”  -2 Kings 6:8


                      The enemy's got a plan for us and his main weapon is fear


                      But immediately Elisha, the man of God, would warn the king of Israel, “Do not go near that place, for the Arameans are planning to mobilize their troops there.” 10 So the king of Israel would send word to the place indicated by the man of God. Time and again Elisha warned the king, so that he would be on the alert there.  -2 Kings 6:9-10


                      God's plans are greater than the enemy's plans


                      God reigns... God is supreme... God is in control


                      There is a spiritual fight for our focus. And where we focus will determine how we feel


                      The king of Aram became very upset over this. He called his officers together and demanded, “Which of you is the traitor? Who has been informing the king of Israel of my plans?” 12 “It’s not us, my lord the king,” one of the officers replied. “Elisha, the prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel even the words you speak in the privacy of your bedroom!”  13 “Go and find out where he is,” the king commanded, “so I can send troops to seize him.” And the report came back: “Elisha is at Dothan.” 14 So one night the king of Aram sent a great army with many chariots and horses to surround the city.   -2 Kings 6:11-14


                      The reason the enemy is trying to intimidate us is because he knows what God can initiate through us


                      When the servant of the man of God got up early the next morning and went outside, there were troops, horses, and chariots everywhere. “Oh, sir, what will we do now?” the young man cried to Elisha. 16 “Don’t be afraid!” Elisha told him. “For there are more on our side than on theirs!” Then Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes and let him see!” The Lord opened the young man’s eyes, and when he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses and chariots of fire. 18 As the Aramean army advanced toward him, Elisha prayed, “O Lord, please make them blind.” So the Lord struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked.  -2 Kings 6:15-18


                      Lord, help me not to fear by reminding me that You are near
                      35 min

                    About Sunday Sermons

                    From the publisher's feed

                    Our mission is to connect people to Jesus and each other. NO MATTER who you are, where you’ve been, what you’ve done, what’s been done to you or when it happened, JESUS LOVES YOU and you can meet him…