Good morning, everybody! Today, we continue in our worship series called ‘Fully Engaged’—looking at the power of a committed life. And we started with our scripture that’ll be our theme for this entire series. Do you remember? It’s from 2 Chronicles 16:9a and it says (follow along with me)… “The eyes of the LORD search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him….” So, God looks over the whole world to find those fully committed to him—fully engaged with him. And God’s gives...
At the end of this appointment year, I’ll be coming up on my 20th anniversary in ministry—20 years since my first appointment. And one important lesson I’ve learned over the past 20 years is this: There is absolutely nothing I can do to make you grow spiritually! Did you know that? I can’t make you grow! I can encourage you, I can try to inspire you, I can do my best to provide an environment in which you can grow … but, I can’t make you grow! You see, nobody...
I want to teach you a basic biblical principle today that’s one we’ll talk about throughout this time together. It’s called … THE GREATNESS PRINCIPLE. If you think about all of the great people you’ve known throughout your life, more than likely each one of them had a guiding principle that led their lives. Even Jesus did. But, let me give you some other examples first, so you’ll get a feel for this… Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – The Principle of Non-Violence… Mother Teresa – The Principle of Compassion...
Folks, as we move to the very last chapter of Hebrews, we continue to be blessed by a God who loves us! Let me remind you of what we’ve learned together this summer. What has God done for us in the past? What is God doing for us today? And what will God be doing for us in the future? Our God is a God who has given us… HIS WORD … and JESUS as the perfect Messenger… REST … as only God can give… Jesus as a HIGH PRIEST...
As we begin today, let me ask you this: DO YOU HAVE A SERVANT’S HEART? If we are growing in our discipleship—as followers of Jesus Christ, we will be growing in this area of our lives… Howard Snyder says in his work called Decoding the Church, “The purpose of the church is not to help people be religious; it is to help them live like Jesus Christ seven days a week.” — Howard Snyder, Decoding the Church And, folks, quite frankly … that’s exactly what Jesus was trying his best...
