Sermon Central
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Shapes Of Faith
Contributed by Justin Steckbauer on Jan 16, 2024 (message contributor)
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1. Structure For Christian Living In Colossians 3
Contributed on Jan 16, 2024
Creating a structure out of Colossians 3 as a guide for Christian living
“One spring our family was driving from Fort Lauderdale to Tampa, Florida. As far as the eye could see, orange trees were loaded with fruit. When we stopped for breakfast, I ordered orange juice with my eggs. "I'm sorry," the waitress said. "I can't bring you orange juice. ...read more
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2. Put Off The Old, Put On The New: Tips For Christian Living In Ephesians 4
Contributed on Jan 27, 2024
I want to live a true, real Christian life. I hope you do too. So we’re going to search out in the scriptures some of the most practical teachings we can find. We’re going to look at the dos and the don'ts and hopefully we’ll find a better understanding of what faith looks like.
What does it mean to be worldly? “The Bible defines worldliness by centering morality where we intuitively know it should be. Worldliness is the lust of the flesh (a passion for sensual satisfaction), the lust of the eyes (an inordinate desire for the finer things of life), and the pride of life ...read more
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3. Winning Your Spiritual Battles: The Armor Of God As A Guide
Contributed on Jan 29, 2024
It says in verse 10, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” Verse 10 is the end goal. If we obey all the instructions in verses 11-20, we will have the solution, which is to "be strong in the Lord."
"John Paton was a missionary in the New Hebrides Islands. One night hostile natives surrounded the mission station, intent on burning out the Patons and killing them. Paton and his wife prayed during that terror-filled night that God would deliver them. When daylight came they were amazed to ...read more
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4. How To Live By The Spirit's Leading: The Spirit Vs. The Flesh In Galatians 5-6
Contributed on Feb 5, 2024
If you do allow the Holy Spirit to lead your life, then you naturally won’t want to gratify the desires of the flesh. But, if you allow the flesh to lead your life, then you will naturally begin to gratify the desires of the flesh. Live by the Spirit's leading!
I recall an episode of Star Trek Voyager that always hit me very hard. It was called Timeless. The Voyager was a spaceship that had ended up far, far from home, and it was slowly making it’s way back through unknown territory. It reminds me of us, as Christians, lost in the wilds of this fallen ...read more
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5. What Is Biblical Love? How To Walk In The Way Of Love
Contributed on Feb 12, 2024
Biblical love is willing to say a hard truth to someone in love, knowing that we may lose the friendship, but loving their soul more than their companionship. That’s real love. Niceness is a joke and a sham, compared to the glory of agape love.
Dave Simmons shared in his book about being a dad a time when he and his two kids went to a mall, and the mall had a petting zoo there. He had given each of his children, Brandon and Helen a quarter to enter, and then went to continue shopping. Soon he saw his daughter hadn’t gone in. He went to ...read more
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6. Eternity Written In The Human Heart: Where Is Home In A Fallen World?
Contributed on Feb 24, 2024
Sometimes as Christians we feel as though we’re caught between heaven and Earth. We long to be in heaven with God. We long to escape the flesh, to be free from the evils of this world. Yet we know we have a job, a duty to minister to this world and be salt and light to the world.
My fiancé and I went to see The Chosen in theaters this weekend, season four, episodes 4-6. And we really enjoyed it. It was very powerful. Particularly I really enjoyed episode 4. You have Jesus seeing the faith the centurion who doesn’t even need Jesus to come to his house to heal his son, ...read more
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7. Built Up In The Fullness Of Jesus Christ
Contributed on Mar 4, 2024
Speaking the truth in love we’re to grow up into Him who is the head, to reach the stature of the fullness of Jesus Christ. In other words, come into a place of maturity that is marked by spiritual fullness in Jesus Christ.
"In March of 1981, President Reagan was shot by John Hinckley, Jr., and was hospitalized for several weeks. Although Reagan was the nation's chief executive, his hospitalization had little impact on the nation's activity. Government continued on. On the other hand, suppose the garbage ...read more
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8. The Pilgrimage Road Of Faith: What Does It Mean To Walk By Faith?
Contributed on Mar 6, 2024
This road can only be walked by faith. It can only be walked in deep connection to God through Jesus Christ. We’re going to press toward the goal on this road.
How do we walk the road of faith? It's completely different than walking as a man of the world. So, we become like toddlers who are unable to walk, and we must learn to walk. How does that work? God walks before us, in front of us, holding our hands, and teaches us to walk by faith. He does ...read more
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9. The Return Of Jesus: A Shining Sun In Our Christian Sky
Contributed on Mar 12, 2024
The word tells us not to grieve for the dead in Christ like the rest of the world. Because though the world doesn’t have hope, we have an eternal hope. It’s bright and it’s shining, it’s strong and consistent, much like Earth’s sun. It shines day and night. Whether we see it or not, it keeps shining
When talking about a vision from God, we have to understand that we can't take it at the same level as scripture. It's a testimony, a vision, something we test against the word of God and prayer. But I sensed God asking me to share a bit of this testimony. I had a vision from God when I ...read more
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10. Seven Spiritual Gifts In The Body Of Christ
Contributed on Apr 15, 2024
I have a body with hands, shoulders, feet, knees, eyes, ears, and all sorts of different parts. They do not all have the same function, do they? My feet do very different things from my hands. Yet they are all part of my body. They work together, not against each other.
When examining the human body, there are numerous systems all working at the same time to regulate, protect, strengthen, and heal the human body. There is the respiratory system which brings oxygen into the body and expels carbon dioxide. The brain communicates instructions to the rest of the body. ...read more
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11. A Fish Out Of Water
Contributed on Apr 15, 2024
“But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.” -Romans 7:6
My wife Chelsey and I went for dinner for my birthday last night, and the restaurant was super noisy. I was already feeling a bit sensitive on my birthday as many of us do, and it got stressful for me. Many of the people were drinking, and carrying on, having a good time, or so it seemed. And I ...read more
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12. Hope Again: Going From Broken To Soaring In The Storm Of Life
Contributed on Apr 18, 2024
Have you experienced a season in your life when you were broken and weary? Did it seem to go on and on? Did it seem to never end?
My wife and I were traveling to see a musical in Charlotte, Mi Saturday. We’ve often felt a divine connection with the bald eagle. I recall numerous times when God would use the bald eagle to give me a nudge in the Spirit, or give me a sense of hope for the future. I saw eagles talon locking over ...read more
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13. Being Transformed From Glory To Glory: 7 Transitions In The Christian Life
Contributed on Apr 23, 2024
I think God gave us the caterpillar and the butterfly to tell us about ourselves. To tell us that we need a transformation to become all we’re meant to be.
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 But we all, with unveiled faces, looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” -2nd Cor 3:17-18 We as ...read more
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14. 14 Stages Of The Pilgrimage Journey Of The Christian
Contributed on May 24, 2024
We’re going to piece together the different pictures we created into a depiction of the Christian life from the moment we first find salvation in Jesus, to the moment we pass into the next life.
Growing up my mother’s favorite New Year’s Eve tradition was to start and finish a puzzle. The puzzles were big and difficult. We would race against the clock, trying to complete it by midnight. Even though we were all working together, the puzzle would take hours to finish. We watched the clock ...read more