Element Christian Church of Santa Maria

Genesis chapter 16 contains allusions to other important passages in Genesis; by bringing the events of Hagar and Abram into the larger context of these other passages, Moses enlarges the reference of the story beyond Abram and Hagar as individuals and ties their actions to the themes of the book as a whole.

Throughout the scriptures we are constantly reminded that our faith is in a big God who saves people despite their continued indifference and sin. We are also reminded that our righteousness before God has nothing to do with ourselves and everything to do with Him.

This covenant has called us to believe in Jesus Christ. It has called us to understand that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin. We are all covenant breakers, and yet Jesus trades Himself for us. 2 Corinthains 5:21For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

If we don’t understand Jesus, nothing in the scriptures will make sense, especially when it comes to money and our “things.” God spoke and created everything with His words; therefore, there is nothing that does not belong to Him. All things were made for His glory, to reflect His Glory, and be used for His purposes.

The Cinema. Today's modern day pulpit... telling today's story through the digital story form. We'll watch these popular movies and follow up with an expository exploration of the narrative themes and spiritual parallels of these movies.

John Piper wrote that there were Six Reasons for Jesus’ Coming: 1. to ransom many, 2. to call sinners, 3. to give sight to the morally blind, 4. to divide households, 5. to save from divine condemnation 6. to give eternal life.

Jesus constantly addressed our tendency to be over-impressed with how hard we are trying…that even in our servant-hood we would get prideful. When we truly learn to walk in grace, to understand God better, we will learn to live the call that places others above ourselves.

Dallas Willard “Whatever our position in life, if our lives and works are to be of the kingdom of God, we must not have human approval as a primary or even major aim. We must lovingly allow people to think whatever they will.”

Joseph lived a life trusting and submitting to God, and when God called him and told to that he was to take care of Mary and raise Jesus he dropped everything, got his priorities in order, and simply submitted to God. As a father (or would be father one day) our main priorities are: 1) Jesus 2) Wife (or husband) 3) Children 4) Providing (work) 5) Everything else (Hobbies, friends, extended family,...

The Cinema. Today's modern day pulpit... telling today's story through the digital story form. We'll watch these popular movies and follow up with an expository exploration of the narrative themes and spiritual parallels of these movies.

Predestination is the love of God in action.

The builders of the Tower of Babel unite to dishonor God by rejecting the truth of who He is and attempting to replace Him through Pagan idolatry.

In the end of the flood narrative, Noah dies, it doesn’t sound like a note of hope • But our hope doesn’t come from this father – but from our Father in Heaven. • Our hope doesn’t come from Noah’s son, Ham – but from the Son of God, JESUS. Until Jesus came and died and rose our sin was only covered, like Noah’s sin was covered, like Adam’s sin was covered; but Jesus takes away our sin.

The writers of the Old Testament were undone by the notion that God, who is free to do whatever He wanted, would bind Himself, restrict Himself, to the covenant.

The first priority in all things is the worship of God. Noah has great gratitude for his safe deliverance. God doesn’t command a sacrifice; Noah does this on his own initiative.

Jonathan Edwards “God has respect to Himself, as his last and highest end, in this work; because he is worthy in himself to be so, being infinitely the greatest and best of beings...All that is ever spoken of in the scripture as an ultimate end of God’s works is included in that one phrase, the Glory of God.”

This is the pattern for God: He picks Abraham while he is in Babylon. He picks the Apostle Paul (a murderer). He picks pathetic servants and offers grace. Real Christians should never think they are better than anyone. We understand we simply have received GRACE!

Religious and spiritual arrogance, intolerance, and contempt has been a problem throughout the ages; it is also an enormous problem in our world. Arrogance is something Jesus consistently spoke against, yet it was Jesus who said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Those words don’t sound like humble words to us.

Contentment is an acquired skill. When we understanding that all of our longing has always been for Him, God will be the one to say “more.” More of who He is, and for all eternity will never plumb the depths of who He is. We are not God; we should stop trying to be…because only then will we find true contentment for our souls.

“Cain, what have you done?” …”My sin is more than I can bear” That is why Jesus came, died, and rose from the dead, because Cain spoke the truth…it IS more than we can ever bear.

Jesus is the son of God. We hope in the son of God, not the son of Eve. Jesus’ love is a cry of hope.

God went looking for Adam in the garden and now, today, God comes looking for us. God took on flesh to bring us home. 2 Corinthians 2:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

In the temptation account, the serpent promised that the man and the woman would know “good and evil,” just as God knew “good and evil.” The man and the woman had believed that when they obtained the knowledge of “good and evil,” they would, on their own, enjoy the “good.” The possibility that they would know only the “evil” and not the “good” is not raised in the narrative prior to their eating t...

Man is put in the garden to worship God and to obey Him. Man’s life in the garden was to be characterized by worship and obedience; he was a priest, not merely a worker and keeper of the garden.

GOD DOES HIS WORK TILL IT IS DONE. Phil 1:6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Ultimately God’s actions and work in history reached their climax in the person and the finished work of Jesus Christ.