Category: 2018 Sermons

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Sermon Audio: All In — Alabaster Jar, 30 Pieces of Silver, and the Cross
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Matthew 26:6-16,36-46
Duration: 19:49
Size: 9.66 MB

All In
Alabaster Jar, 30 Pieces of Silver, and the Cross
Matthew 26:6-16,36-46

So I’ve given you pictures of what it looks like to go all in with God, to push all your chips to the middle of the table and say, God I belong to you.

It is understanding that it doesn’t start with what you can do for God, it starts with what God has done for you.

She wasn’t just pouring perfume on Jesus, She was giving her life to Jesus. She was offering her life to Jesus.

So when we give these gifts, of our tithes and offerings I hope you see it as an alabaster jay of perfume.

Jesus is alluding to the cup of wrath, sometimes it is called the cup of sorrow in the Old Testament.

Are you grateful today? Are you grateful today that He took our place, that He drank the cup that we deserve?

I don’t know what God is demanding or asking or prompting of you, but He gave everything, and that means we should be willing to give ourselves back to Him.

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Sermon Audio: All In — Caleb
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Joshua 14:6-14
Duration: 40:32
Size: 20.0 MB

All In
Caleb
Joshua 14:6-14

But 45 years later, God gives them a second chance. Aren’t you glad that God gives second chances?

Really, the difference between going all in and just holding out is, it really comes down to this, are you going to let fear dictate your decisions or are you going to let faith dictate your decisions?

Just try to imagine the conviction in his voice when he said this. This is the Braveheart moment. This is the Gladiator moment.

The simple answer to why he was as vigorous at 85 as he was at 40 is because his faith never diminished.

Abraham lived much of his life in Hebron and according to this tradition, he went to Hebron and fell prostrate on the ground and prayed on those gravesites where his ancestors were buried.

Do you see the history that we are a part of? It goes back to Noah that goes to Abraham that goes to Caleb. If Caleb is not all in, they never claim that promise and they never experience the miracle that God does.

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Sermon Audio: All In — Abraham and Isaac
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Genesis 22:1-19
Duration: 28:32
Size: 14.2 MB

All In
Abraham and Isaac
Genesis 22:1-19

Today I would for us to look at the lives of Abraham and Isaac, so if you have a Bible, turn over to Genesis 22.

There is a tremendous tension because how could a loving God even suggest what He is commanding Abraham?

The blessings that God gives us can become more important than the God who gave them to us in the first place.

I’ve got to ask the question–are you following Jesus or is Jesus following you?

We read these stories and we don’t even think about the dynamics happening in this story!

Long before God laid the earth’s foundations, He had us in mind… Long, long ago, He decided to adopt us into his family… He thought of everything, provided for everything we could possibly need.

How much do you trust God? Enough to put your Isaac on the altar?

If your faith is in Christ, then you have been grafted in to the family of Abraham and he is your father.

Christianity is not about what you can do for God, it is about what He has already done for you.

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Sermon Audio: All In — Noah
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Genesis 6:5-22
Duration: 29:27
Size: 14.3 MB

All In
Noah
Genesis 6:5-22

Here is my prayer for this series–that all of us would go all in. Can you imagine a church where everybody is all in?

The book of Chronicles, is kind of an instant replay, if you will, of the history of Israel, and the first nine chapters are devoted to genealogy.

What we are going to do over these next few weeks is profile the stories of those who went all in, and they all look very different but I think there is a unique inspiration from each of these stories that will challenge us to go all in.

I think sometimes we act or think as if God has no feelings. But He does.

So you need to understand that God’s plans and purposes for you are so far beyond what you can even begin to imagine.

You are all in all the time. It is taking up your cross daily and following Christ.

When you make a decision to follow Christ, I’m not going to promise you that it’s going to get easier. In fact, I believe it gets harder.

I also believe that the blessings of God will complicate your life, but it will do it in a way that you want your life to be complicated.