Author: Tim

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Sermon Audio: Fear Not, Just Trust
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 1:26-38
Duration: 27:23
Size: 18.8 MB

Fear Not, Christmas
Fear Not, Just Trust
Luke 1:26-38

This morning we are moving to the next chapter of the Christmas story and it’s here we are first introduced to Mary.

But before that she was just a young lady, with all the dreams and aspirations that young ladies 2000 years ago had.

And really there are only two options, either Mary was a Virgin or someone other than Joseph got her pregnant before the wedding.

One wouldn’t think that finding favor with God would be something that you should be afraid of. But listen to what finding favor with God entails for Mary,

We have seen how the Catholic Church has virtually dietyized Mary and so in an effort to not appear pro-Catholic we do what is normally done with other pregnant teenagers like her, we prefer that she not come to church.

God was willing to trust Mary because Mary was willing to trust God.

Mary Needed to Trust God with the Details
Can you trust God with the details of your Christian life? The everyday, how you fit your Christian commitment into the real world?

Mary Needed to Trust God with the Immediate Results
She willingly gave up her reputation and her plans for the future in order to be obedient to God.

Instead of leading an army, he came preaching grace and forgiveness. He told others to turn the other cheek and to go the extra mile.

Finally, Mary Needed to Trust God with the Ultimate Results
If only Mary could have seen the difference that her Son would make through history, with sins forgiven and lives changed.

I don’t know your story, but if God has called you to follow him, then God has called you to trust him.

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Sermon Audio: Fear Not, Just Believe
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 1:5-17
Duration: 27:46
Size: 19.0 MB

Fear Not, Christmas
Fear Not, Just Believe
Luke 1:5-17

If the obligation to attend church on Christmas Eve or Christmas day gives you the willies you have ecclesiophobia.

But the story didn’t start when the Angel appeared to Mary, no the story began half a year earlier and 100 kilometers away.

In the King James Version, Elizabeth is called Mary’s cousin but the word in the original Greek was much broader than that and simply meant someone who was related to you, somehow.

From the beginning this was to be a very special birth and a very special child.

This is the first time the words “Don’t be afraid” are mentioned in the Christmas story, so let’s dive in a little deeper and see why the angel told Zechariah not to be afraid.

The first lesson is Prayer Delayed is Not Prayer Denied.

I wonder how many times Zechariah and his bride had questioned whether God even heard their prayers.

We don’t grieve because our loved one is in heaven with God, we grieve because they are not here with us.

The second thing is that an Answered Prayer May Have Multiple Ramifications.

And, he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God. He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah.

Answered Prayer May Have Unforeseen Consequences.

That new job that you want, it may bring extra hours, more responsibilities, more travel away from home that wouldn’t have been there in your old position.

And if you know the story, then you know the part that I alluded to earlier, that John’s preaching eventually cost him his life.

Zechariah was told to not be afraid of the answers to his prayers and each one of us need to understand that when our prayers are answered, that we need to trust God to have control.