The Living Word

Today Pastor Danny dives into what Hebrews has to say about Jesus. Jesus is greater than any who came before. He’s a greater messenger than the Angels who spoke to the prophets. He’s the final word of God. He is the word of redemption. He is the word of hope and everything in all the earth is held together through His word. That’s a Word that you can trust. You can trust the Word that holds everything around you together. You can trust the Word that comes directly from the father in heaven.

Isn’t it amazing that we follow a God who not only shares with us the fundamentals of the faith but He also allows us to see glimpses of the mysteries as well. Today Pastor Danny‘s going to talk about angels according to Hebrews these beings are heavenly beings that are sent to serve us as we live here on earth. Sometimes we can’t see them but sometimes they appear like humans. These celestial beings assist us as we fight the fight of faith. They are working on our behalf on the earth.

In our flesh it’s easy to become bitter and resentful towards others, especially when they’ve done something bad against us. That was the case between Onesimus in Philemon. Pastor Danny and the apostle Paul will give us some insights into what we need to do in those situations. Forgive as we’ve been forgiven by God. That might seem impossible but consider the spirit that lives in you who has gone to such great lengths to forgive us. You can forgive because he has.

Today Pastor Danny will be taking us through the apostle Paul’s letter to Philemon. Paul shares about meeting a runaway slave called Onesimus and we’ll see how in the midst of running, he in advertently ran right into Paul. Initially you might think of that is a happy coincidence, but in actuality it was a divine appointment. What “coincidences” will happen in your life today that are actually moments that are ordained by God? We need to keep our eyes open or we might miss God at work right in front of us.

If we believe that God has put us here for a reason, well what is that reason? Maybe right now you’re asking God what your purpose is? Well Pastor Danny shares with us today that we’ve already got some really good guidelines for things that we can do right from Scripture. Those things aren’t what save us and they aren’t religious duties, but instead our deeds display evidence for us and those around us that Jesus is doing the work in us. What’s more is that we get to be a part of building the kingdom as we go.

Good deeds don’t get us into good standing with God. That’s only through the work of Christ. But as Pastor Danny shares with us today, when Jesus dwells in us there will be evidence. That doesn’t mean that we’re perfect but it does mean that there will be an observable difference in our lives. What that looks like is more than church attendance or cleaning up or outward appearance. God’s character is going to shine through us in the good deeds that come from our relationship with the Lord.

How do you read scripture? As a story of God‘s unyielding love going to the most extreme lengths to restore us to a place of relationship with him? Or do you see it as a book of rules? A series of hoops to jump through in order to gain favor with God. Well Pastor Danny will make it clear that there’s nothing that we can do to earn that connection with God or cleanse us from our iniquity. Jesus alone makes away for us and that’s the message of the Gospel. Praise God!

Do you get Jesus bumps whenever you think about the good news of the Gospel? Pastor Danny looks at the letter to Titus today and gives us a glimpse at the absolute marvel that the mercy and grace of God is and Jesus being fully God and fully man laid down His life on the cross, through no fault of His own to reconcile each of us to Him. No work on our part could ever save us. Without that gift we would be utterly hopeless, but more than that he makes heirs and gives us honor due to Him.

Not everyone in the Bible is a saint as you've probably already discovered. In fact, the common theme throughout the lives of many Biblical characters is the exact same, they're human and they mess up. Only Jesus was perfect. Today, Pastor Danny will share some of the sadder details of a few of Paul's comrades. While we might not know the whole story we can learn from the mistakes those people made and then we can do our best to continue to follow Jesus. Especially when the road gets hard.

When you have a moment, take a look at yourself in the mirror. Look at the shape of your face, the color of your eyes, maybe even count the hairs on your head if you are feeling really ambitious. Look at your hands, your fingertips, the movement of each finger, every part of you is designed just for you by God. No one shares every single characteristic you have and all of you, all of every person, is known by God. You're not random. You're loved. Pastor Danny asks you to think on that as you join him for today's message.