Author: Tim

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2019-09-15: Acts: Life In The Spirit — The Necessity of Obedience

Sermon Audio: The Necessity of Obedience
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Acts 5:25-32
Duration: 21:31
Size: 10.5 MB

Acts: Life In The Spirit
The Necessity of Obedience
Acts 5:25-32

If you know the story of the first man and woman in the Bible, you know that God gave them only one restriction: Don’t eat from one certain tree or you will certainly die.

I. Obedience Is a Moral Obligation
God’s commands were never designed to be kept outside of a right relationship with Him.

II. Obedience Produces Authority
In our lives, there is also a sense in which obedience fosters boldness or authority.

Nevertheless, there are times when we need to use the authority God has given us, and it may come out loud and strong.

III. Obedience Demonstrates Our Faith
The apostles and the early believers had faith in Jesus, and they demonstrated that faith by obeying what He had told them to do.

IV. Obedience Welcomes the Holy Spirit into Our Lives
So, when Peter said that the Holy Spirit was a witness of these things, whom God gives to those who obey Him, he was emphasizing that the Messiah had indeed come in the person of Jesus, whom the Sanhedrin had put to death.

If we will obey Him in repentance and walk close to Him, the HOLY SPIRIT will live within us and give us the power we need to do what God has called us to do- that is to reach those who do not yet know Jesus as their forgiver and leader.

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2019-09-08: Acts: Life In The Spirit — Free To Follow

Sermon Audio: Free To Follow
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Acts 5:17-25
Duration: 22:18
Size: 10.6 MB

Acts: Life In The Spirit
Free To Follow
Acts 5:17-25

Now, people have many different ideas about what freedom is all about.

Let’s look at a few areas in our lives where freedom can be more than a song.

I. We Can Find Freedom from the Past (No more guilt!)
God does not think about our sins anymore after we confess and repent of them.

II. We Can Find Freedom in the Present (No more bondage!)
God wants to set us free from a sinful lifestyle, and He will free us if we ask Him to.

So, what I’d say to you first of all is PRAY!!! And if it doesn’t happen in a moment, don’t give up, but keep on praying!

Let’s show hurting people what Jesus is really like. Then they will come to Him and be healed and set free!

III. We Can Find Total Freedom in the Future (No more sorrow or pain)
We can find total freedom when our life is over, but only if we are trusting in Jesus for our salvation and aiming to do what God wants us to do.

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2019-09-01: Little Seed–Big Tree

Sermon Audio: Little Seed–Big Tree
Speaker: Pastor Frank Clore
Scripture Text: Matthew 13:31-35
Duration: 21:59
Size: 11.8 MB

Little Seed–Big Tree
Matthew 13:31-35

In the 1st parable, the seed is the Word of God (the Scriptures) and when the pure word of God is sown in the hearts of the people who are prepared to hear it–it produces a wonderful and bountiful harvest.

In the 2nd parable, the seeds represent the “sons of Righteousness” In other words, God sows US into the world to change the world and to let people know what He can do in their lives–as He has in ours.

To be the effect the church will have on the world. Now, today’s parable, the seed in the story seems to represent the church. The focus of the parable appears.

“Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” –Isaiah 55:6-9

“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.” –Isaiah 55:1-2

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Although it is the smallest of all of seeds, when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.” –Matthew 13:31-32

“Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.” –Isaiah 54:2-3

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2019-08-25: Acts: Life In The Spirit — Reaching Your Jerusalem

Sermon Audio: Reaching Your Jerusalem
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Acts 5:12-16
Duration: 19:08
Size: 9.21 MB

Acts: Life In The Spirit
Reaching Your Jerusalem
Acts 5:12-16

God expects His people to make a difference in the world around them.

I. God Expects His People to Believe Him for Miracles (Acts 5:12,15-16)
Do you trust God to work miracles on your behalf?
Do you trust Him to work miracles for someone else through your prayers?

II. God Expects His People to Foster a Sense of Community (Acts 5:12b)
The important thing for us to glean from this is that they all met together, building their sense of oneness.

III. God Expects His People to Build a Good Reputation (Acts 5:13)
Ask yourself, “What positive impact does my life have on my neighborhood? How can I make a greater impact?”

IV. God Expects His People to Grow (Acts 5:14)
It is about another human being finding peace with God and receiving God’s free gift of forgiveness and eternal life.

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2019-08-18: Acts: Life In The Spirit — Living A Life Of Integrity

Sermon Audio: Living A Life Of Integrity
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Acts 5:1-11
Duration: 23:23
Size: 11.4 MB

Acts: Life In The Spirit
Living A Life Of Integrity
Acts 5:1-11

As our merciful God is working His goodness into our hearts and lives, He requires sincerity and integrity from us.

I. God Cares about Proper Motives (Generosity or Greed?)
As far as we can tell, they were giving for the right reasons: to honor God and to help those in need.

Nevertheless, greed and pride are sins that can easily sidetrack us from doing what honors God.

II. God Requires Honesty from His People
We do know, however, that he and his wife were in on it together and had agreed on what they would tell anyone who might ask about how much they sold their property for.

III. Personal Sin Affects Those Around Us
The sin I’m talking about is the kind where we make a conscious choice to disobey God and His word, and we really don’t feel all that bad about it; at least not bad enough to repent and turn back to God.

God was not pleased, because He knew that their sin would have a harmful effect on the character and testimony of the church.

IV. God Does Not Want People to Take Him Lightly
These verses show us that fearing the Lord is a good thing. It does not mean that we do not trust Him or love Him.