Church at the Cross : Sunday Messages

Scripture: Genesis 39:20-40:23    + Suffering for God is an invitation into intimacy with God.   1 Peter 4:12–17 NIV God’s presence can sustain you in any suffering, and suffering can bring you into a greater experience of his presence.     “Dedicated to man who prayed to know Christ more richly even if it meant his cancer returned. The next year he experienced the deepest intimacy with Christ he...

Scripture: Genesis 39:1-23 + The Lord was WITH Joseph Genesis 12:1-3 + 3 Tactics of Temptation -       Persistent -       Persuasive -       Private + The Genealogy of Jesus Christ Matthew 1:1-2 Matthew 1:18-23 Hebrews 13:5

Scripture: Genesis 37 + Jacob’s Partiality + Joseph’s Prophecy + The Brother’s Plot Genesis 42:21 NIV Proverbs 28:13 NIV Psalm 32:1–5 NIV + Joseph’s Plight + God’s Providence Ephesians 1:11 NIV Genesis 50:20 NIV Psalm 105:16–19 NIV Romans 8:28 NIV Acts 2:22–24 NIV

Scripture: Genesis 35:1-15 + The Beginning Genesis 28:20–22 (NIV) + The Breaking and Blessing Genesis 32:24–28 (NIV) 2 Corinthians 1:8–10 (NIV)   + The Burying and Building 1 John 5:21 (NIV)   2 Corinthians 1:20 (NIV)

Scripture: Genesis 33 + When we yield the throne to God, He transforms our fear + When we yield the throne to God, He transforms our relationships + When we yield the throne to God, He transforms our priorities

Scripture: Genesis 32 Is there more to life than this? "Why do I have three Super Bowl rings, and still think there's something greater out there for me? ... I mean this can't be what it's all cracked up to be. I mean I've done it. I'm 27. And what else is there for me?" - Tom Brady Genesis 32:4 Genesis 32:11-12 Genesis 32:24-25 Genesis 32:28 Genesis 32:30 Genesis 32:...

Scripture: Genesis 29-31; Lamentations 3:19-24 + Covenant: God to Abraham  Nation  Land  Blessing(s)  + God will use the blessings that He provides to shape us into His character.  Genesis 29:25   Jacob says, “WHY HAVE YOU DECEIVED ME?”  + Big Idea: Your sin will find you out. You reap what you sow.  + God doesn’t require your help. God requires your surrender, trust, and obedience.  2 Corinthians...

Scripture: Genesis 28   "From about half-past ten in the evening until about half-past twelve,  FIRE.  God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob, not of the philosophers and scholars. Certitude. Certitude. Feeling. Joy. Peace. God of Jesus Christ." – Blaise Pascal, November 23, 1654.  + An Encounter with God is always by the Grace of God I am the LORD God and I will be your God…    I wi...

Scripture: Ephesians 6:1–4 + From a Child-Centered Home to a Christ-Centered Home  + From Outsourcing to Owning.   “All this that we here suffer is through you: you should have taught us the things of God, and did not; you should have restrained us from sin and corrected us, and you did not; you were the means of our original corruption and guiltiness, and yet you never showed any competent care t...

Scripture: Ephesians 4:29-5:2 + De-skilling = unlearning or never learning basic relationship skills  + 5 Directives: Communicate Constructively Stay In Step With The Spirit Take Out The Trash Commit To Kindness Freely Forgive Directive #1: Communicate Constructively Proverbs 12:18 NIV + What you speak to people, over time, they will start to live up to, or down to.  Directive #2: Stay In Step Wit...

Scripture: Acts 13:1–5 Acts 1:8 NIV Acts 8:1–3 NIV Acts 8:4 NIV Acts 11:22–26 NIV + Gifted by the Spirit + United in Jesus Acts 11:26 NIV + Vibrant in Worship + Attentive to the Spirit Acts 14:21–23 NIV Romans 15:14–20 NIV Acts 14:26–28 NIV

Scripture: Genesis 2:15–25   “So, in the one-flesh union of marriage... the married couple comes together completely, as long as they both shall live. In real terms, two selfish me’s start learning to think like one unified us, building a new life together with one total everything: one story, one purpose, one reputation, one bed, one suffering, one budget, one family, and so forth. Marriage remov...

Scripture: 1 Timothy 4:1-5 Acts 20:29–30 NIV 2 Corinthians 11:4 NIV + Marriage is Proof of the Goodness of God. + Marriage is a Picture of the Gospel of God. Companionship Procreation Sanctification Proclamation Ephesians 5:22–32 Marriage is a Covenant not a Contract. Marriage is a Covenant of Grace not Works. Colossians 3:12–13 NIV

Scripture: John 5:21–29 +Jesus gives Forever Life. Acts 17:31 NIV + Jesus gives Full Life. John 11:25–26 Ephesians 2:4–5 NIV John 17:3 NIV John 3:36 NIV

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:16–5:10 + We will be made glorious like Jesus. + We will be at home with Jesus. Most people, if they had really learned to look into their own hearts, would know that they do want and want acutely something that cannot be had in this world. There are all sorts of things in this world that offer to give it to you, but they never quite keep their promise. The longings whic...

Scripture: Romans 1:18-25 + Creation reveals God’s glory  Acts14:11-17 “The universe, which to the atheist is full of darkness and confusion, to the Christian, is resplendent with light and glory.” – Archibald Alexander  + Jesus reveals New Creation Romans 8:20-23 + The Church reveals Christ to the World

Scripture: Matthew 22:34-39   1 John 4:19 “But what uniquely frightens about Putnam’s work on social capital is the dramatic trend line he unearthed through his analysis: across all these diverse contexts for human connection, Putnam found that from the mid-twentieth century onward, participation in every sort of collective activity was going down.” – Matthew Bingham, A Heart Aflame for God. 3 Tip...

Scripture: Proverbs 4:23 “Life is getting faster. And while some might be inclined to dismiss this accelerating pace as neutral or even beneficial, there are good reasons to suspect that our habitual exposure to this hyper-paced world has serious consequences for our capacity to slow down and pay attention to things that really matter.” – A Heart Aflame for God, Matthew Bingham.  “The Greatest dif...

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 3:4-18 The Average US adult spends 7 hours and 2 minutes a day onscreens. “The algorithm doesn’t just curate information. It catechizesimagination… What you take in shapes how you see everything.” — Jim Essian + The Fruit of your focus tells you something about the value of the thing that holds your focus.   Be encouraged. Be Realistic. Be intentional. Psalm 119:35–37

Scripture: Psalm 73 + Asaph’s Wander - Ps.73:1-14 + Abba’s Rescue – Ps.73:15-24  + Asaph’s Wonder – Ps.73:23-28

Scripture: Ephesians 6:24 + What you love most is the most important thing about you. “ According to Augustine, ‘There is a scale of value stretching from earthly to heavenly realities, from the visible to the invisible; and the inequality between these goods makes possible the existence of them all.’ God is one thing, angels are another, as are people, terriers, red oaks, squash, rocks, and dirt....

Scripture: Genesis 27:1-46 Genesis 25:27–28 + Value Character more than Success + Character is destiny + Character will eventually show itself + Trust God’s Ways to secure God’s Ends  Proverbs 3:5–6 Psalm 106:13–14 + Don’t assume a strong finish Hebrews 12:1–2

Scripture: Genesis 26:1-35 + We can pass down a spiritual legacy, and we can pass down sinful patterns. 1 Kings 22:41–43 1 Kings 22:51–52 + We can live in faith, or we can live in fear. Exodus 14:10–14 + We can live for the favor of people, or we can live for the favor of God Exodus 33:15–16 John 12:42–43

Scripture: Genesis 25:7-11 , 19-34 “You contribute nothing to your salvation except the sin that made it necessary.” – Jonathan Edwards + God uses our prayer to fulfill His promises + God uses our weakness to fulfill his promises + God uses our opposition to fulfill his promises. Philippians 3:18-21 “We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is...

Scripture: Genesis 24 + A life that experiences God is one oriented toward God’s purpose. “…you might ask, “Why should God speak to me? What am I doing in life that would make him speaking to me a reasonable thing for him to do? Are we in businesstogether in life? Or am I in business just for myself, trying to ‘use a little God’ to advance my projects?” – Dallas Willard, Hearing God. + A life that...