A Sure Hope

Jesus has many descriptions throughout Scripture. Both the Old and New Testaments refer to Him with names such as Lamb of God, Son of Man, Living Water, Bread of Life, and so on. In today’s message, Pastor Dave will teach you about the power of these names, and how Jesus truly is The Word made flesh.

Last time I checked, none of us can control the weather. Sure, there are scientists out there who like to play with the weather patterns, but that’s just like a kid playing with play-dough. In today’s message, Pastor Dave shares with you how powerful God is Who created everything and IS in control of it all.

We don’t like to be corrected, but sometimes we need it. In today’s message, Pastor Dave teaches you that it takes a real friend to tell you when you’re wrong. Anybody can compliment your good traits, but only someone who loves you will call you out when you’re acting like a fool. Do you have friends like that?

When you’re in the midst of suffering, it can feel so hopeless. But, as Pastor Dave wraps up our study of Job today, he’ll remind us that God is a loving Father and His plan is perfect. Some experience restoration and blessing in this life, but everyone who loves God has the hope of eternity with Him.

We are made in the image of God. Through His Word and the Holy Spirit, we get a glimpse of what we should look like. But, as Pastor Dave will point out in today’s message, sin perverts that image in us. Only when we seek God and allow Him to reveal our sin can we see who we really are and who He wants to make us.

Our culture pays a lot of respect to those who “pull themselves up by their bootstraps”. Spiritually, this is impossible. It’d be like climbing out of the Grand Canyon with dental floss. We simply can’t do it. As Pastor Dave will remind us in today’s message, we have to admit we can’t do this on our own and accept Jesus’ help.

Each of us has a spirit of tyranny born into our hearts. This tyrant wants to rule over our own lives (as well as those around us) and place itself in a position of self-sufficiency and self-service. As Pastor Dave will explain in today’s message, this spirit has to die in order to find life with Christ as your Lord and Savior.

The story of Job seems unfair. As much as we can learn from it, nobody wants to trade places with him. While the majority of us won’t experience half the calamity that Job did, we’ll experience trials, and as Pastor Dave reminds us in today’s message, in those trials we have a chance to grow closer to God or push Him away.

God created our world with a beautiful tapestry of widely varying creatures, and even within a species, you’ll find incredible variation and uniqueness. As Pastor Dave will remind us in today’s message, this diversity of kinds should be a reason to honor God and respect His creativity, not a reason to discriminate.

If you don’t struggle with your faith, your faith won’t experience growth. Battling with doubts and questions in the face of the trials this broken world brings is an integral part of the journey of faith. As Pastor Dave will point out in today’s message, God didn’t reject Job when he admitted that his faith needed help.

Pride is at the root of so many evils. The sin that ultimately condemns souls to hell is the rejection of God’s grace. As Pastor Dave will remind us in today’s message, we need to humble ourselves and admit our desperate need for help. Only when you can see your own failure can you then accept God’s offer of salvation.

We all have needs in our lives, but we are too weak to truly handle life on our own. That’s why we surround ourselves with a support team of family members and friends. In today’s message, Pastor Dave teaches that God is the best support. He will care for you, even when things don’t make sense.

Have you ever been a little quick to the draw when someone offends you? Has pain ever caused you to do or say things you shouldn’t have? Today, Pastor Dave teaches that this is a human reaction seen even back in Job. As hard as it may be, instead of showing them a smoking gun, show them the love of Christ.

It’s all about Jesus. We see so much foreshadowing and many prophecies fulfilled in the Old Testament. In today’s message, Pastor Dave teaches you about one more – the description of being ‘born again’ found in Job… the oldest book of the Bible. If you’ve been born again, you know just how amazing Jesus is.

Think about the worst thing that’s ever happened to you. Maybe it was a financial difficulty, a health issue, or perhaps even the loss of a loved one. Pastor Dave teaches in today’s message that your response in these terrible times reflects on God. When times get tough, stay faithful. Praise God even in your darkest hour.

Every human being you encounter – without a single exception – was born into the oppression of sin. Some do a good job of hiding it and looking like they’ve got life figured out, while others don’t at all. As Pastor Dave will challenge us in today’s message, we need to share Jesus with everyone we interact with.

Sexual purity was a challenge in Job’s day just like it is now. Ultimately it comes down to the heart. It’s not just about the physical or external actions. As Pastor Dave will remind us in today’s message, God values our hearts and has equipped us in Christ to be restored to purity and maintain it through His power.

How often do you find yourself wondering if God can handle your problems? You may not say it out loud, but this is a common struggle for most of us. As Pastor Dave points out in today’s message, we acknowledge God as the Creator of everything and pridefully think our struggle is more than He can handle.

Scripture teaches us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. All of us want that, don’t we? This life throws all kinds of trials and tough decisions at us, and we’ve all felt the need for more wisdom. As Pastor Dave will explain in today’s message, God doesn’t withhold this gift, all we have to do is ask Him.

None of us can claim to be blameless, as God describes Job. Yet, as Pastor Dave will point out in today’s message, despite this, Job recognized just how far he was from the glory and righteousness of God. We need to approach God with the same humility as we trust in Him to provide redemption from our sin.

When your friend is facing a trial, the worst thing they can do is face it alone. First and foremost, Jesus is with them, and they can lean on Him. In addition to Jesus, God has placed you in their life. As Pastor Dave will encourage us today, we need to be careful and make sure we’re being an aid and not a hindrance.

Knowledge and intellect have become idols for many of us. God gave us these gifts – that’s important to remember – but, as Pastor Dave will warn in today’s message, God doesn’t fit well in a purely scientific approach to this world, we need child-like faith and humility to see who He is and admit our need for Him.

We often misunderstand God and His relationship with us. We see Him more as a reluctant, oppressive master instead of as a loving Father who wants the best for His children. As Pastor Dave will remind us in today’s message, God wants joy and peace for you – when you follow Him faithfully, you’ll find those things.

Many non-believers think that God is just sitting around waiting for us to mess up so He can administer some kind of judgment on us. However, this is not the God of the Bible. In his message today, Pastor Dave explains how that type of thinking is not only wrong theology but also a wrong belief about who God is.

Many of us may fall into the trap of believing that bad things happen to good people because they've somehow brought it upon themselves. Today, Pastor Dave shares the story of Job, whose friends held this very belief about him. The true power of encouragement, however, lies in its ability to restore faith in God.