A Sure Hope

Too often we can get hung up on the wording or definition of certain Biblical truths, but Pastor Dave tells us today that this is of little importance. What we call our encounter with the Holy Spirit can be different, but it doesn't matter. What truly holds meaning is that we do have an encounter with the Holy Spirit!

The Bible teaches that we will reap what we sow. The life and death of Abimelech in Judges 9 is a memorial to that truth. Although he acquired great power quickly through ruthless betrayal, he lost it just as quickly in the Lord's judgment. In today's message, Pastor Dave will warn you about ambitious pride.

To the outside world, the ruthless ambition of Abimelech seemed to be a success for a while; but God's word teaches that anything that's acquired through sin and corruption is subject to God's judgment. In today's teaching, Pastor Dave will show you how easily that which is gained through sin can be just as easily lost.

Ambition, in and of itself, isn't an evil thing; but if it isn't paired with humility and God's calling, it can lead you into a vicious and cruel path in life. In today's message, Pastor Dave will remind you that God always has a higher authority and rule over the rule of man. Everything you do should always be submitted to God's sovereignty.

The story of Abimelech in the book of Judges is a truly tragic, but cautionary. He rose to power in ruthless and cruel ambition through violent betrayal; but was himself judged by God for his sin and promptly removed from power. In today's message, Pastor Dave will remind you of God's sovereignty, justice and judgment.

Pastor Dave reminds us in today's message that we serve a big God! Everything we do should be for His glory and to bring more and more people to Him. God can do anything, so we have no reason to not do as He's instructed! Since He can accomplish everything, we can be courageous and proclaim His power!

Mountain top experiences with God are wonderful, aren't they? We meet our Creator in new ways and we can't help but overflow with praise! Pastor Dave reminds us today, though, that the enemy is waiting for us at the foot of the mountain. We'll need to be ready to fight off his attempts to steal our joy!

God shows up just when we need Him most! Even when we fail, we have the best cheerleader in our Heavenly Father! He encourages us to stand up and try again right away, and gives us the strength to keep going! Pastor Dave today will remind us how incredible our God truly is, and how we can rely on Him always!

God loves to do things in a way that proves only He could be orchestrating it! Today we'll join Gideon in some pretty long odds for success in battle, but God will come through! Pastor Dave will encourage us to take this example of God's power and remember that He can do the impossible even in our lives!

God hasn't changed – He's the same today as He was yesterday and as He will be in the future! God is faithful to us no matter what, even when we can't feel Him or see Him moving! Pastor Dave reminds us today to trust in God no matter what, remembering all He's done and all He's promised to do!

In today's message, we'll join Gideon as he meets with God in a powerful way. He witnesses a miracle as he comes to the Lord's table in communion! Pastor Dave tells us that we too need to spend time intimately with God, letting it remind us of the cross. In that time of remembrance, we'll find God's unrivaled power!

God has plans for each one of us, plans to change people and share truth with the world! When He calls us to our specific task, though, we may have doubts. Pastor Dave today reminds us that it's ok to ask God to confirm His plans for us! We can ask Him to give us peace about our calling, and to reinforce His Word!

We sometimes think that the mighty Biblical figures we study are super-human or possess unattainable character. This isn't the case, however, and Pastor Dave will point that out with Gideon, a judge over Israel. Gideon was afraid, and even questioned God's motives and methods, but God still used Him to do incredible things!

In times of crisis, it might be hard to see God working. Pastor Dave tells us today that we need to instead be reminded of how God's worked in the past! He's always been faithful, to us and others throughout history! His love also never waivers, and will be enough to get us through any and all circumstances!

Sometimes God needs to break into our lives and correct something we're doing wrong. It isn't because He doesn't love us – in fact, it's BECAUSE He loves us! Pastor Dave shares today that God's chastisement is meant to bring us back to Him, correcting our course and reminding us of our need for a Savior!

Today Pastor Dave shares a song of celebration, and words of praise for all God did to deliver the Israelites from their latest captivity. This includes sharing the story of Jael's conquest over an enemy. Though her actions didn't follow the accepted social practices, she honored God, and was called blessed because of it!

We might think that worship is meant to benefit God, but in today's message, Pastor Dave shares that it's actually more for us! We grow as we lift our voices in praise to God! Our worship comes in response to all we see in creation, and all the love and grace we now live in thanks to Jesus death and resurrection!

When God has something that needs to be done, He'll use whoever He can to accomplish it! It could be us, but if we're not willing, God will turn to others. In today's message, Pastor Dave encourages us to live with an openness to God and His perfect timing, and a willingness to do whatever He asks of us!

God wants us to repent of our sins, but He wants it to be real! When we come to Him in sorrow over our sin, we need to not just say the words, but take the steps necessary to turn away from whatever we've done. Pastor Dave reminds us through the story of the Israelites today that true repentance comes from the heart!

The Bible reminds us in its stories that God uses ordinary people to accomplish His will; all He’s looking for is someone who will trust Him to use them. Pastor Dave is reminding us that God hasn’t changed how He does things. God is looking for people just like us to achieve His goals in today’s world, too – we just have to trust Him.

The Israelites kept needing deliverers – judges – because they were expecting a leader to provide a surrogate relationship with God. They should have been seeking Him themselves but they didn’t want to until they got in trouble. Pastor Dave is reminding us and warning us to seek God for ourselves – that’s the only way to stay close to Him.

God allowed the nations surrounding Israel to remain as a challenge to see if they would continue to trust Him or follow other gods. Pastor Dave teaches us that they failed the test. He is also trying to show us that this story relates to Christians today; we have been presented with the same challenge.

In the book of Judges God makes it clear that the Gentile countries were there to test Israel, to see if they would continue to follow Him or go and serve other gods. Pastor Dave tells us that in the story they broke away from God. This is a warning to us as well – if we aren’t careful, our choices will lead us away from God.

The book of Judges tells us that the descendants of the original Jewish inhabitants of Canaan turned away from God because they hadn’t been taught about Him. Pastor Dave reminds us that if we don’t teach our children about God and Jesus, there’s a good chance that we’ll see our children turn away from God as well.

After entering the Promised Land, the Israelites did okay in following God. But after Joshua died, they went way off the rails. Pastor Dave is teaching from the book of Judges where we’ll learn just how far off the path the Israelites got, and how this is an appropriate warning for us to avoid the same traps that snared the Jews.