ALIVE Wesleyan

To reveal the kind of faith required for the life of Christianity and this is revealed through Jesus Hebrews 11:1 (NIV84) Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Faith is not: If I do this, God will do this. That is God as puppet. Not a formula. If I do the spiritual hokey pokey I will be healed. Not a way to figure out the answers to the universe. #alivewesl...

Maybe you have never ran or cycled in such a way as to hit a wall, but we all share experiences when life became so tough, a season of life was so trying that we felt it was going to crush us and we hit a proverbial wall. · Mothers of young children know what it is to hit the wall. · Anybody who has tried to diet and then driven by a Dairy Queen knows what it is to hit the wall. · Anybody who has...

Whether you are believer or not, I don’t have to convince you of evil. We may differ on where evil comes from.   Some people believe evil is random.   Some believe evil is part of humanity so evil happens whenever people get together.   Some people evil is from a minority of humanity, but generally people are good.   John 10:10 (NIV84)  10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have...

And now we can see the two main strategies Satan uses in our lives. Strategy 1: To get you to believe something different than what God says is true about himself or his promises. Strategy 2: To get you to believe something different than what God says about you. Questions about who God is based on your circumstances. He attacks people on what they know and do not know about God. Questions about w...

Research reveals about 80% of Americans believe in God while only 60% believe in the Devil. He is saying that fear that there is something under the bed, is a legitimate fear. The Bible affirms there is more than meets the eye and if that’s true, who and what are we talking about. Most often the Bible calls the personality Satan. It is a word that means adversary, enemy, devil. #alivewesleyanchurc...

Can one person really make that big difference One person can make a difference to God. So this idea of making a difference to God sounds like an oxymoron, creation making a difference to the creator. The finite making a difference to the infinite. The weak making a difference to the omnipotent. And yet the scriptures indicate we can make a difference to God. #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest s...

ALIVE will become a multiplying movement. If churches don’t plant churches, who will? We need more churches to reach our communities. In order to build campuses and plant churches, ALIVE is getting intentional about raising missional leaders We need people who will live risky lives in order to reach people, sacrificial lives in order to meet needs, and Godly lives in order to have something to off...

God honors movement. God honors sacrifice. Today I want to go after the way we think about sacrifice.  Throughout the New Testament there is a word that is used 29 times. It is the word “ phroneo ” which is translated “mind.” Mark 8:33 (NRSV )  33  But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your  mind  not on divine things but on...

ALIVE will become a multiplying movement. In order to become a multiplying movement, we have to get intentional about raising up leaders, men and women who understand that God has gifted them and God has called all of us to be part of advancing His kingdom in our neighborhoods There are four main strategies we are establishing to build up leaders. #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stor...

Vision Submission must be part of any group that believes it is being led by God-given vision. Tom, the daily responsibilities for the ministry have lessened for you but the responsibility of charting the course of all that is ALIVE has risen in importance and need. God honors movement. Judges 2:6–10 (NIV84) 6 After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, eac...

This lawyer has lived his life in his bubble. But, his bubble was not about personal space thing. Because, from his perspective, eternal life - the good life - a life that would honor God means staying away from everything that would make him dirty. It means following all the rules, staying clean, and trying to convince everyone else to live like him. This is why walking by on the other side would...

We can never be good enough.  We can never earn what we do not deserve. And what the lawyer didn’t understand is what some of us do not understand. The answer to his problem was standing right in front of him. God loves his creation and he sent Jesus to do what we could not do for ourselves. Luke 10:29 (NRSV)   29  But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Luke 10:3...

I pay my own way. I am all that. The two great cliffs people who follow God frequently make the mistake of jumping off of. And you know what, people who do not believe find these two schools of thought repulsive and they detest any gathering that espouses these two ideas. And if that is you, you are just like Jesus. He too detests these religious ideas. #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons...

He talked about how we can be like the religious lawyer and get stuck thinking  I’ve earned it and I pay my own way.  How can we be a people who give mercy away? The story is in Luke 10:25-37. If you have a bible Luke is about 3/4ths of the way through. In this passage Jesus is talking to the religious lawyer. And he has just had this conversation with the lawyer about what must I do to inherit et...

Let me share the two mistakes the lawyer makes and perhaps some of us make, as we relate to God. “Pay my own way.” Another more boring term would be to over-moralize. “God blesses me because I am good. The “good-er” I am, the more blessings I achieve.   The second mistake is “I am all that.” A more boring term for this would be to over spiritualize. “I am at the head of class when it comes to God....

We all have a personal code we live by. Last week, we discovered the code of Jesus. First, he tries to appeal to the physical desires and physical appetites. When the temptation to his physical desires doesn’t work, he appeals to the possibility of personal gain. Satan plays his biggest card and tempts with power and personal glory. And we all get this because every temptation in our lives is this...

What is the code that moves us from regret to redemption? If the only things that change are time and circumstances resulting in less opportunity to build regret, then we haven’t really changed. Circumstances do not build solid character. Circumstances reveal character.    #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stories, & training: https://alivewesleyan.com/sermons/ STAY CONNECTED:  Twi...

Last week we began this series called back to the future.  This idea that looking back we see a series of events that lead us to this moment.  If one thing had been changed the outcome could have been completely different and you may not be sitting here.   When we look back, we do so knowing the outcome of the story, and this is the case in the incredible story we are going to be diving into.    #...

Speaker: Matt Irvine Ruth 1:1 "In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab. The man’s name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion." #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stories, &...

The issue is not how big this moment seemed to be but rather how small and insignificant we label the miracles God does in our lives every day What matters is our anticipation of them and our response to them. This requires anticipation. This requires belief. This requires hope. This requires action. So what is our part? #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stories, & training: https:...

Since the beginning of time, God has been doing completely impossible things in the hearts of completely average people like us. He won’t stop now.  #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stories, & training: https://alivewesleyan.com/sermons/ STAY CONNECTED:  Twitter: https://twitter.com/ALIVEWesleyan Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ALIVEwesleyan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com...

What do you do when you don’t feel like God is with you? Heat Series: Wrestling through trusting God when life is painful, confusing and doesn’t make sense. Speaker: Tom Harding #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stories, & training: https://alivewesleyan.com/sermons/ STAY CONNECTED:  Twitter: https://twitter.com/ALIVEWesleyan Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ALIVEwesleyan Instagr...

God doesn't "need" a person like you. You need a God like Him. Speaker: Tom Harding Heat Series:  Wrestling through trusting God when life is painful, confusing and doesn’t make sense. #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stories, & training: https://alivewesleyan.com/sermons/ STAY CONNECTED:  Twitter: https://twitter.com/ALIVEWesleyan Facebook: https://www.facebook.com...

The most important thing that a church will ever do is announce that it is possible to be saved by grace through faith in Jesus. After that, all things are now possible. Speaker: Tom Harding Heat Series: Wrestling through trusting God when life is painful, confusing and doesn’t make sense. #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stories, & training: https://alivewesleyan.com/sermons/ STA...

The most important thing that a church will ever do is announce that it is possible to be saved by grace through faith in Jesus. After that, all things are now possible. Speaker: Tom Harding Pieces Series: Under the headship of Jesus, all of the most important pieces of our lives are brought back into a right relationship with one another. #alivewesleyanchurch  For the latest sermons, stories, &am...