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The Incredible Power of Corporate Prayer

Series: Pray Like Jesus 1/12/14

(Luke 22:39-46)
I recently read an article online that said, “It is rare to hear of a church holding a prayer meeting any longer, and even rarer to hear of a church with a regular monthly or weekly prayer meeting...corporate prayer...is...in danger of extinction.... The corporate body of Christ in the Western World... seems to be suffering from prayerlessness” (Scott Roberts, What Keeps Us From Corporate Prayer).

Jesus tells us that when the church gathers together in prayer, it has the power to move heaven and impact earth in a manner beyond what is possible when we pray alone.

So if we want to see God move mightily again, if we want to see things change in our lives, our homes, our church, our community and our nation, we need to return to the practice of corporate prayer that was central in the ministry of Jesus and the early church.

Personal Prayer

Series: Pray Like Jesus (Luke 22:39-46) - 1/6/14
This was one of the most crucial moments in Jesus’ life, and it was also a pivotal moment in the lives of his disciples and the purpose of God’s kingdom. It was a moment of intense spiritual warfare. It was a time above all times that the disciples should have been praying, but instead they were sleeping. And if we would be honest, there’s a lot more of ourselves in the disciples than we would like to admit. The spirit is willing but our flesh is weak.

In contrast to the disciple, Jesus submitted the weakness of his flesh in prayer. He fought the spiritual battle in prayer, and he won the victory in prayer, so that he could do the will of the Father.

As we see Jesus praying in this passage, it teach us several powerful lessons on prayer.

Don’t Miss The LIGHT Because of the Darkness

12/22/13
 (Luke 2:8-14; Matt. 2:13, 16-18)
There are two sides of the Christmas story. You have the incredible, light-filled appearance of the angels to the Shepherds, announcing good news of great joy for all people because a Savior is born. And just miles away in Bethlehem, you have the terrible and senseless murder of innocent children. How do you reconcile these two sides of the Christmas story? In truth these two sides are the Christmas story. They are the reason for Christ coming into the world. Matthew, quoting the prophet Isaiah, summarized the meaning of Christmas this way: “These people who live in darkness will see a great light. They live in a place covered with the shadows of death, but a light will shine on them” (Isa 9:1–2).
   
Jesus came into this world precisely because of the depths of darkness and death that prevails in our experience. Maybe you circumstances are somewhat different than the stresses Mary and Joseph experienced or the tragedy that occurred in Bethlehem, but you none-the-less know the deep sorrow of loss, maybe you have gone through a divorce or lost a loved one, or feel lonely.
The Christmas story speaks to us today as much as it did 2000 years ago. It reveals three critical truths about Christ’s coming into the world, that brings good news of great joy to all people, that brings light into our darkness.

Don't Miss Christmas Again

12/15/13 (Luke 2:7, asst)
Many people this year and every year miss Christmas. Not because they are hospitalized, or stationed abroad in the military. It’s not that they won’t celebrate the holiday, but that they simply have no idea what they are celebrating. But that really is nothing new, the Bible tells us of some folks who missed the very first Christmas, as well.

Today we are going to look at some of these people and see why they missed Christmas. As we consider them and the spirit or attitude that caused them to miss Christmas, we see that it still lives on in the hearts and lives of many today, who continue to miss what Christmas is all about--the fact that Jesus came to be our Lord and Our Savior.

Left Behind

Series: Signs of the Times 12/1/13
(Matt 24:36-42)
In this passage, Jesus deals with the stark reality that when He returns, there will be people who are not spiritually ready. They will be left behind.

Do you ever remember a time as a child when you were left behind, perhaps at the grocery, a restaurant or a store? Can you remember the terrifying feeling of panic that flooded your soul at the moment you realize your parents were gone and you had been left behind? It is a horrifying feeling to be lost, separated, or left behind. I don’t think we can even begin to imagine what it would for those remaining when they realize the rapture has occurred and they have been left behind to endure the great tribulation that will come upon the earth.

There are several truths that Jesus tells us about the rapture, that I believe should help us make sure that we are not left behind.

What to Do If You Are Left Behind

Series: Signs of the Times 12/8/13

After the rapture, when Jesus removes His church from the earth, a period of seven years will follow, which Jesus described as the “great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matt 24:21). It will be a time when the anti-Christ will rise to power, a time of great famine, and horrible plagues that decimate huge segments of earths population.
It will be a time so horrific, that Jesus says, “men’s hearts will fail them for fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of heaven will be shaken” (Luke 21:25-26).

The question that we must ask this morning is what do you do if you are left behind, if you miss the rapture and remain on earth to endure the Great Tribulation? My prayer is that no one hearing this message will be left behind, but the reality is that could be a real possibility for some, and in that event what should you do. You’ve got to have a plan. In this message we will explore several things to remember if you miss the rapture.

Be Ready

SERIES: SIGNS OF THE TIME (Matt. 24:45-51)
In no uncertain terms Jesus makes it plain that He is coming again. The only uncertainty for us is that we do not know the day nor the hour. In fact, in verses just before the passage we are looking at today, Jesus says that the conditions on earth when He returns are going to be similar to the days of Noah (v 37-39). What was it like in Noah’s days? It was “business as usual.” People were going through their daily routines - eating, drinking, gettting married, carrying on with life. Though Noah preached to them for 120 years, warning of the impending judgement, they willfully chose to ignore his warnings. They just didn’t believe God’s Word, and they were unprepared when the flood came.

When Christ returns, many will be going about their life, and will be completely unprepared. Jesus compared His return to the coming of a thief in the night. A thief will not call and make an appointment in advance. He comes when we do not expect him. Jesus’ point is that we need to be ready at all times, and in this passage He defines for us what it means to be ready for His return.

The Rapture

Series: Signs of the Times 11/10/13
The Bible is filled with promises of the Second coming of Christ.
Almost a half of the OT books (17/39) are dedicated to the 2nd Coming of Christ. In the twenty-seven books of the NT, there are 318 references to the 2nd Coming. The 2nd Coming is the most spoken of event in Scripture.
In fact, the Scripture speaks of the Second Coming eight times more than it spoke of the First Coming. If the Lord has placed such prominence on the 2nd Coming then certainly it should hold a place of equal prominence in our hearts and our minds as well.

When we speak of the 2nd Coming of Christ, it actually involves two comings of Christ. The Rapture is when Christ comes in the clouds to take His church out of this world to be with Him. The Return, is when Christ returns with the church, at the end of the 7 year tribulation period, to defeat the anti-Christ, overthrow evil and then establish His thousand year reign on earth (Rev. 19:11-16).

To Boldly Go Beyond

BEYOND 10/20/13

Our personal spiritual growth is directly tied to the expansion of God’s cause around the world. Paul understood that as believers grew spiritually it would result in growth both locally (what Paul calls our activity among you) and globally (the regions beyond). If we are truly growing spiritually, then it should result in reaching out to our neighbors, our friends, our family, our community.
And it will also result in a concern for and commitment to reach the regions beyond, the world.

I want us to grasp in our spirit today that like Paul, God has called all of us to go beyond – beyond our concern, beyond our culture, beyond our comfort zone.

Christ's Soon Return

SERIES: THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES 10/13/13
There is an increasing interest in the theme of the end of the world in movies, with only four in 1950, to more than 75 in the period from 2000 to the present. Now most of these movies have little or no biblical basis, but Hollywood only produces what sells, and that indicates that our culture has an intensifying interest concerning the possibility of the end of the world.

I find it interesting that the converse seems to be true in the church. It would seem to me if the world is interested in the end times, the church ought to be preaching about the end times, so the world can hear God’s version instead of Hollywood’s version, but that is not the case.

The Bible promises over and over the return of Christ, and warns of the end times. This is not some story that Hollywood made up. This is the Word of God, and it will come to pass. Peter’s reason for writing His letters is to remind us what the prophets have said concerning the 2nd coming of Christ, and to stir us up to think about these things again. This morning we need to be reminded that Christ is coming, the end is near, and we need to be prepared.