I came across a story stating that just a few days ago, Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza called off her engagement with a childhood friend. Their families have been friends for years. In fact, these two families have had some level of connection for over half a century. It would seem inevitable that the couple would be be married.
What interested me about this was the reason for their breakup. According to the article, nothing really dramatic brought it on. There was no deep, hidden secret that was revealed. It was simply this - they found themselves incompatible as fiances. They realized, fortunately before marriage, that their two lives simply did not fit together.
This morning beloved, I want you to think about that word, “incompatible”, and consider this: when Christ saved you, there was a line drawn in the sand; a door was shut that could never be opened again. Your new life in Christ is absolutely incompatible with your old life. These are two lives that simply do not, and cannot, fit together. You are an entirely new creation, and your relationship to sin can never be the same again. The words of Paul are unmistakably clear, “Old things have passed away, behold all things have become new” (2 Cor. 5:17). Thanks be to God, we are because of Christ forevermore incompatible with sin!
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Sermons
Here’s a little known fact about our own Pastor Ken…did you know that he thought about trying out for “Jeopardy”? Several years ago, a try-outs crew visited the Utica area. Lucy had said to him, “Why don’t you go?” But PK didn’t. He thought, “What if I succeed in the try-outs, but then I get on the show and then it really goes south?” The fear of, “What if I succeed”, only to later lose is something that we all struggle with in one way or another.
In our text, we’re going to meet a woman who was given a great blessing - a son. This was something she’d always wanted, and at the right time, the desire of her heart came to be. You could say she experienced success in this matter. But the story goes on from there, taking some turns that the woman was certainly not expecting. Not even the prophet knew what was to be in this instance. But God was at work all along, in the midst of success and loss. Our text will challenge us with this question: Can we trust God to be with us through all our losses and successes, and in the midst all the twists and turns of our lives’ stories?
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Sermons
Maybe you were expecting our next study in 1 Thessalonians. However, some events that have transpired in the past week have led us in a different direction for today.
We can start off by saying this - we’ve all got treasures in our lives that we take great care to protect. We have insurance policies on not only our physical property but also on our family members - which by the way, are our truest treasures. Perhaps we’re wondering today, can we trust Christ with our most precious possessions?
We’re going to meet Jairus today, who was faced with the imminent loss of his daughter. “Imminent,” he might say, “unless I can get to Jesus in time.” We’ll go with him on that agonizing journey as he tried to return as quickly as possible to his little girl with Jesus by his side. There are going to be some turns in the course of events that will really stretch Jairus. But through it all he, and we, will learn the answer to our question - with an emphatic yes, we absolutely can trust Christ with our most precious possessions.
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Sermons
We’ve all got them - stories that we’re not proud of. Whether it’s our first time going to summer camp, where we cried all week that we wanted to go home (no names mentioned, by the way), or that time we were given permission to borrow the family car and, well, we’ll just say it didn’t go quite so well. Or maybe you have a story in your past that is far darker, and you’d be fine if it never again sees the light of day.
Are we doomed to forever be haunted by our past? Is there any hope that we can be delivered? In our passage, we’re going to meet someone with a past. We’re going to see the opportunity she had to leave that past behind. Beloved, may we be encouraged to do the same. All of us, in one way or another, can leave Jericho behind and begin again.
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Sermons
As we begin this morning, I’d like to take you back to England in the year 1555. It was then that Nicholas Ridley was burned at the stake because of his witness for Christ. On the night before Ridley’s execution, his brother offered to remain with him in the prison chamber to be of assistance and comfort. Nicholas declined the offer and replied that he meant to go to bed and sleep as quietly as ever he did in his life.
Did you read that last line carefully? Wow! How is that even possible? It’s not because Ridley was some kind of a super-saint; it’s simply because he knew something of the priceless value of abiding in Christ. The assurance that our Savior affords us is unlike anything this world could ever offer.
Beloved, you’re most likely not going to be burned at the stake tomorrow. But for whatever awaits you, have you come to know the unmatched privilege that is yours as you abide in your Savior?
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Sermons
If you would like to go with our group to see the movie, “To Save A Life”, please let Pastor Geoff know by Monday, January 25th to get the discounted price of $7.50. It is the 7:10 pm showing at the Carousel Mall on Friday, January 29th.
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Announcements,
movie
This Sunday there will be an opportunity to donate to the relief effort in Haiti. We will be directing the collected money to two organizations. One is the Calvary Chapel of Port Au Prince, through the Calvary Chapel of Melbourne, Florida. They will be taking a trip to Haiti with supplies and aid for the church there. We will also be directing funds to Samaritan’s Purse, to help in their efforts to send aid. If you would like to make a donation to either one of these efforts, please indicate on an offering envelope which one you would like to use: CC of Port Au Prince or Samaritan’s Purse Haiti Relief.
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Announcements,
haiti
If you’re a part of the Calvary Chapel family for any length of time, you know that one of the hallmarks of the fellowship is verse-by-verse teaching through all the books of the Bible. That means when you come across a controversial passage, you’ve got no choice but to dive right in. We have here one of those passages before us.
No doubt about it, the word “submit” has gotten a bad reputation, but it is a word that is front and center in our text today. In fact, this word has been used by Peter in several places. He’s talked about submission of believers to the governing authorities, to cite one example. He’s shared how Christ is a fitting example of submission to God, even when it cost Him dearly. Now he’ll talk about submission of - here it comes - wives to their husbands, among other things. But, if we could simply suspend perhaps improper judgment for long enough, we might be surprised at the unmatched beauty that this concept truly holds, a concept that could dramatically transform not only wives and husbands, but all believers in whatever sphere they may be.
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Sermons
In Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, there is a tree: a sprawling, shade-bearing, 80-year-old American Elm. Tourists drive from miles around to see her. People pose for pictures beneath her, and there have even been posters made of her. Other trees grow larger, fuller - even greener. But not one is equally cherished. The city treasures the tree not because of her appearance, but her endurance.
You see, she endured the Oklahoma City bombing. In the midst of the destruction that day, no one expected that tree to survive. But then she began to bud. Sprouts pressed through, and green leaves pushed out. Life emerged even in the midst of death.
Beloved, if you are in Christ today, may you realize an awesome truth; you too will endure. You will survive, not because of anything you could do, but because of what Christ has already done in you. “The anointing which you have received from Him abides (and will abide) in you” (1 John 2:27). What then is left for us beloved, but to abide in Him?
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Sermons
I thought we had a good conversation today regarding the fruit of the Spirit. There was one question about whether the word “fruit” could really mean “fruits”. While I am no Greek scholar, the word (according to the NET Bible resources (net.bible.org)) it would appear singular. However, there is a footnote later that offers an alternate translation/punctuation form where a colon would appear after the word love. So, the verse could be rendered “But the fruit of the Spirit is love: joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness…”. The colon representation could then be interpreted as “the fruit of the Spirit is love which manifests itself in joy, please, etc…”.
I’m certainly not going to posit a doctrine based on a colon. However, I thought our discussion around this topic was on target. Without love, none of the other fruit really seem possible. Love is the ultimate core value for Christians to emanate to others. And its the core attribute of God.
Peace
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Band of Brothers,
Galatians
