Chiangmai Christian Fellowship

Big Idea - Revelation 12:11 says that they conquered Satan by the blood of the lamb. We know that Satan is an enemy, but do we really understand how intense and real the spiritual battle is that is raging all around us? We underestimate Satan, I think in part because we misunderstand how God deals with Satan. We see that God is all-powerful, and so we assume God can just kick Satan out of heaven o...

Big Idea - Often in Scripture, the idea of forgiveness of sins and cleansing from sin are put together. At first glance, it may seem that it is just two ways of talking about the same thing. In fact, most commentators make very little distinction between them. But, they do, in fact, describe two very different aspects of what the blood of Jesus has accomplished for us. Does it really matter? Isn't...

(1) Condemned by a Holy God (2) The law matters but it cannot save (3) Righteousness apart from the law (4) A penalty paid by blood (5) Righteousness: gift to receive

Big Idea What did Jesus mean when He said that we must eat His flesh and drink His blood? Certainly, this is one of the hardest sayings of Jesus. But, He made it clear that eternal life depends on it, for if we do not eat and drink His flesh and blood, we have no life in us. So, what did He mean, and how are we to do this? Jesus' teaching here is hard because the image is so contrary to our sense...

Big Idea: (1) Tychicus, the bondslave of Jesus (2) The new convert, Onesimus (3) Three Jews and three Gentiles (i) Aristarchus, Paul’s fellow-prisoner (ii) John Mark, serving again (iii) Jesus called Justus (iv) Epaphras, man of prayer (v) Luke, the careful historian (vi) Demas, a warning to us all

Big Idea - Most of the focus of Paul's letter to the Colossians is focused on the body of Christ and how they are to be putting on the new life in Christ as they live together as a community of faith. But, Paul does not intend that the Church be a fortress where God's people live cut off and in seclusion from the "outside" world. Instead, we are to be a people who live before the "outsiders" to di...

Big Idea - The last time I spoke on the topic of husbands and wives, specifically the submission of the wife to her husband, a lady came up after the service quite upset and angry that I would teach such a thing. She had attended a conservative Christian university and had been taught that these ideas were old, outdated, and no longer applicable to the world we live in. She was convinced that wive...

Big Idea - The last time I spoke on the topic of husbands and wives, specifically the submission of the wife to her husband, a lady came up after the service quite upset and angry that I would teach such a thing. She had attended a conservative Christian university and had been taught that these ideas were old, outdated, and no longer applicable to the world we live in. She was convinced that wive...

Big Idea - We all feel the pressure to prove that we are somebody, that we are important, and that our life has worth to others. So, we may do things to get attention or to prove to people that they should respect us or praise us. Sometimes, we may feel that we are not important, we are just a nobody, so instead of trying to get attention, we must just try to hide and be invisible so no one will s...

Big Idea - We all feel the pressure to prove that we are somebody, that we are important, and that our life has worth to others. So, we may do things to get attention or to prove to people that they should respect us or praise us. Sometimes, we may feel that we are not important, we are just a nobody, so instead of trying to get attention, we must just try to hide and be invisible so no one will s...

Big Idea - Do you make New Year's resolutions? The New Year is a time of starting over, a fresh beginning. We should always seek to make the coming year better than the last! But what will make it better? Did you keep the promises you made to yourself last year? Did you achieve the goals you set? Maybe we have given up on making resolutions because nothing ever comes of them. There are many goals...

Big Idea - Do you make New Year's resolutions? The New Year is a time of starting over, a fresh beginning. We should always seek to make the coming year better than the last! But what will make it better? Did you keep the promises you made to yourself last year? Did you achieve the goals you set? Maybe we have given up on making resolutions because nothing ever comes of them. There are many goals...

Chiangmai Christian Fellowship

Big Idea - The believers at Colossae were at risk of being convinced that something was missing in their lives. Due to this lack, they did not measure up, and without a major upgrade, they could not be truly spiritual or maybe not even saved. The deceptive teaching was centered on the fact that they were all Gentiles, and what was missing was a Jewish identity. But Paul warns them that this teachi...

Big Idea - The believers at Colossae were at risk of being convinced that something was missing in their lives. Due to this lack, they did not measure up, and without a major upgrade, they could not be truly spiritual or maybe not even saved. The deceptive teaching was centered on the fact that they were all Gentiles, and what was missing was a Jewish identity. But Paul warns them that this teachi...

Big Idea - Scripture is full of many warnings that we must persevere in the faith because there is a real possibility that we could fall. That is that our faith could fail. We see the Church and Christianity coming under attack more and more every day. Recent youth surveys tell us that only one in four High School graduates will hold on to their faith when they get to college. This is all a very b...

Big Idea - Scripture is full of many warnings that we must persevere in the faith because there is a real possibility that we could fall. That is that our faith could fail. We see the Church and Christianity coming under attack more and more every day. Recent youth surveys tell us that only one in four High School graduates will hold on to their faith when they get to college. This is all a very b...

Chiangmai Christian Fellowship

Big Idea - S - Paul writes that he rejoices in suffering. He was writing to the Colossians from prison, so it was not idle words, or fluff. We do not like to suffer. The modern world has gone to great lengths to move as far from suffering as possible. Most of us arrange our lives to avoid suffering at all costs. How can Paul rejoice in suffering? While it is true that we tend to avoid suffering mo...

Big Idea - S - Paul writes that he rejoices in suffering. He was writing to the Colossians from prison, so it was not idle words, or fluff. We do not like to suffer. The modern world has gone to great lengths to move as far from suffering as possible. Most of us arrange our lives to avoid suffering at all costs. How can Paul rejoice in suffering? While it is true that we tend to avoid suffering mo...

Big Idea - There are real threats to the Christian life. Paul and Timothy penned this letter to the Colossians partly because they were concerned about the real threats they faced. These threats are extremely serious because what is at stake is our very salvation in Christ. But isn't our salvation guaranteed? Doesn't the Bible teach that if we cannot lose our salvation - if God has saved us, then...

Big Idea - There are real threats to the Christian life. Paul and Timothy penned this letter to the Colossians partly because they were concerned about the real threats they faced. These threats are extremely serious because what is at stake is our very salvation in Christ. But isn't our salvation guaranteed? Doesn't the Bible teach that if we cannot lose our salvation - if God has saved us, then...

Big Idea - Jesus is everything in the Christian faith - who He is, and how we think about Him. From the very beginning, the Church and those who call themselves Christians have faced three possible errors in how they think about Jesus. The first is to fail to grasp that He is God. This is to see Him only as a human. The second is to fail to grasp that was, in fact, human and not just God. The thir...

Big Idea - Jesus is everything in the Christian faith - who He is, and how we think about Him. From the very beginning, the Church and those who call themselves Christians have faced three possible errors in how they think about Jesus. The first is to fail to grasp that He is God. This is to see Him only as a human. The second is to fail to grasp that was, in fact, human and not just God. The thir...

Big Idea - God invites us and even commands us to pray. We have amazing access to God and an invitation to ask for His help in our time of need. There is power in prayer to move the hand of God to act and move on our behalf and on behalf of others. But what can we pray for? What should we be praying for? James tells us in James 4:3 that "You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spen...