The Living Word

Pastor Danny is working through the story of a ship caught in the winds of a fierce and powerful storm. Sometimes life can feel like that. We can make one wrong choice and then another and then suddenly we're caught in the middle of a storm with no end in sight. No matter how far you have gone down a reckless path, you can repent and turn to God for aid and he'll save you. He'll lead you out of the storm and to the safety of dry ground. So if you're caught in a storm right now and you're sinking, cry out to God!

Pastor Danny is going to bring us into the heart of a shipwreck today, when the ship that Paul was on encountered a hurricane force wind and was thrown off course and ultimately destroyed. The lesson for us is that life can often be like a shipwreck. We can encounter hard things in life and be blown off course, but when our course intersects with the rocks it can all be destroyed. In the middle of the storm, we keep our eyes on Christ and follow His lead. He will lead us to safety and away from the rocks.

Jesus did everything that He could to make salvation acceptable to everyone, and it is to anyone no matter who they are. Whether the poorest of the poor or the wealthiest on earth. Anyone can repent and call on the name of Jesus to be saved. Unfortunately, all to often people allow pride to stand in their way. They stumble over the idea of repentance. Pastor Danny says that receiving the gift of Christ comes with the requirement of repentance and that keeps people from accepting the truth. Don't let that keep you from Christ today.

Today Pastor Danny will bring us into Paul's trial where the people he is brought before are decked out in all the wealth, majesty and power of the world. Paul on the other hand stands before them scarred, bent over and pitiful. Paul said that if we only have hope in Christ for this world we are to be pitied above all. But we have this hope, a hope not of this world but a hope of heaven. A hope of a kingdom beyond earthly heavens and princes and sharing that hope makes us a hero too.

Pastor Danny shares with us today what it is that our job as Christians is and it's to share the truth of the Gospel of Christ. It's not so complicated and it's not so stressful. All we have to do is share the good news that we have been given and from there we simply trust God to do His work in people's hearts. Jesus said that the kingdom of God is like a sower who spread his seed on every type of soil. We follow in his footsteps and share the word with everyone we meet.

Have you ever been afraid of the dark? Maybe you were just as a kid, but you've grown out of it now. Maybe you've never been afraid of the dark, but you still wouldn't walk down a dark alley late at night. Fearful things lurk in the dark and because of that the dark is a dangerous place to be. But Pastor Danny tells us today that God has qualified us to share in the inheritance of His holy people in the kingdom of light. We get to share in the light which drives away evil and every fearful thing.

We cut off people's ears all the time with our words. Even right words, if they aren't said in love, can miss their mark. We've all done it. Pastor Danny will share today his stories of when his words have missed their mark, because the motive of his heart wasn't love. What do we do when that happens? When Peter cut off the servant's ear it was Jesus who healed him. We need to apologize to that person, but then also bring our hasty and hurtful words to Jesus so that He can heal the hurt that has been done.

If satan knew what the cross really meant, he would've changed his tactics. There might not even had been a cross. But satan didn't understand and neither did the well read religious leaders of the time. Are you aware of what the cross means? Do you know today that it is your only source of salvation? That's the truth. Jesus died on the cross to defeat satan's power over you. His death means that you get to live in freedom.

Giving up traditions is really hard. It's something that is ingrained in us, it's what we know and what we find comfort in. And this is one of the issues that the Jews faced in this new culture of Christian living. What were they supposed to do with the religious traditions that they had been practicing all their lives. Today, Pastor Danny will explain why it was important for followers of Christ to examine and potentially change their way of thinking. And how the decisions they end up making have an impact on the apostle Paul and his ministry.

Jesus was lovingly long winded. He knew that the time He had here on earth was very limited. He had much wisdom from the Word of God that He wanted to share. In today's message, Pastor Danny describes a event in which Jesus talked and taught for an entire night. He was passionate and steadfast. He wanted to encourage new believers to remain true to the will of God in their lives. He wasn't talking just to hear himself speak, He had a purpose and He was driven to fulfill that purpose by sharing His knowledge.