FBC Platte City

In maybe one of the most obscure stories of the Bible, we find an account of Jacob wrestling with God. Here's a few takeaways from this week's message:1. Wrestling with God is part of your faith journey. In your spiritual journey, God will provide comforting experiences but other times he wants you to struggle with him. 2. In the wrestling, God makes himself known. 3. Wrestling with God ma...

Betrayal, deceit, jealousy, rivalry… sounds like a midday soap opera or Netflix special, but it’s actually all found in Genesis 29-30!Heres’s a few takeaways from this message:1. Your longings and desires (though often good) will never totally satisfy. Ultimately, your longing will only be met in the Lord.2. It’s easy to see what others have and miss what God has given you. 3. God has a special co...

Do you have a tendency to put conditions on your relationship with God? Like, “God, IF you do ____, THEN I will ____”?    When you find yourself taking on that mindset at a low point or at a crossroads in your faith journey, remind yourself of these promises of God from the Bible: • I will give you… the new heaven and earth (Isaiah 65:17). • I will be with you… always until the end of the age. (Ma...

We’re beginning our first week in this series called “Wrestling with God,” where we’re looking at the life of Jacob. Here are a few big takeaways to consider as we look at Jacob’s family: Even as followers of Jesus, we can be pretty messed up. Jacob and his family were considered “God’s people,” but they were still manipulative and deceitful. We are to  “put away” our old self and “put on” the new...

As you’re growing in your relationship with Jesus, there’s sometimes a temptation to think, “I already know the gospel, so what’s next?” But the good news about who Jesus is and what He’s done (what we refer to as the gospel) isn’t something we understand and move on from. The gospel is what we build our entire lives around. We won’t outgrow our need for the gospel- understanding it more deeply wi...

It can be intimidating to think about sharing your faith with someone else, but we tend to overcomplicate it. Billy Graham, a man who has said to have preached the gospel to over 200 million people, said it takes on average 7 people involved in leading a person to faith in Jesus. So part of the good news is, it’s not all on you! You don’t have to have an answer for every question a person may ask....

"The things I don't want to do, I do. The things I want to do, I don't do." Do you relate to that? Don't be fooled into thinking that following Jesus is easy. It's good, it's worth it, but it's not easy. Here's a few things you should know:1. Your struggle with sin is a common experience as a follower of Jesus. 2. Your struggle with sin is evidence that you ar...

When we talk about following Jesus, we mean having a relationship with Jesus that goes beyond 1 hour on a Sunday morning. What would it look like for you to invite Jesus into your daily life?

Our purpose as a church is to help people find and follow Jesus.  Last week we talked about people who are spiritually curious. Once someone decides to cross the line of faith and believe that Jesus is who he says he is, we encourage people to take the next step of baptism.  Have you crossed the line of faith recently and need to be baptized? Have you crossed the line of faith in the past but have...

As we look at the final message in our sermon series called Trusting God, we look at the time when God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering.  When you put yourself in Abraham’s shoes, it’s hard to imagine any other test being more intense.  There were a lot of things Abraham got wrong in his life, but in this instance, Abraham’s trust in God was grown and revealed.  When we face...

In Genesis 18, God tells Abraham he's going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of how wicked the people have become. Abraham responds by asking God to have mercy on any righteous people living in the city. The longer the exchange goes on, the bolder Abraham’s petitions become. When was the last time you prayed to God for your friends with boldness? Choose someone to commit to praying for th...

90 & pregnant? Not just unlikely, but impossible... right? When Sarah hears this, she laughs in unbelief. Wouldn't you? Long after Sarah passed away, she's remembered as someone who trusted God. Hebrews 11:11 says "And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise." Reflect on your...

2 big things happen in Genesis 17:1. God changes Abram's name to Abraham2. God tells Abraham and all of the males in his household to be circumcised. Seems like a lot to cover in 1 sermon, but we're talking about the significance of each action (and we're keeping it PG).

What areas of your life are causing you to doubt the Lord? Is there an area in your life where you’re being impatient and not waiting on God? Maybe a relationship, school, career, health?   The Lord sees. The Lord hears.  He’s right there with you. It may take time and it may be difficult, but trust God’s provision and timing.

Abraham believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.  -Genesis 15:6 When God made a covenant with Abraham in Genesis 15, it was a foreshadowing of greater assurance we find in Jesus Christ. Saving faith isn’t just believing in God but believing the promise of God. In the anxieties, doubts, and struggles of life, be reminded of God’s faithfulness to Abraham and the assurance we fi...

In this next episode of Abraham's life, we see conflict arise between Abraham and his nephew Lot because there weren't enough resources in the land they were sharing to support all of their flocks and herds. From this situation, we can see Abraham showing some  valuable lessons about pursuing peace in the midst of conflict: 1. Pursuing peace is a determined decision. 2. Pursuing peace ofte...

In our new series, we’re looking at the life of Abraham and what it looks like to trust God in your everyday life. God chose Abraham and promised incredible blessings for him. Here’s a few takeaways from this message: 1. Those who’ve received the promises of God are to be a blessing to others. 2. When we worship God and consider all He has done through Jesus, it develops our trust in God. 3. Faith...

To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under Heaven. -Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 The circumstances of your life are not an indicator of God's presence or God's absence.

In the Old Testament, God sent prophets to proclaim truth to his people.  When the events of the Old Testament end and before the New Testament begins, there were 400 years of perceived silence from God.  Zechariah was an old man who was living in the midst of this silence. When he receives a proclamation from God through an angel, he questions whether this news can be trusted.  If you're living i...

Mary is just a teenager when she's told she's going to give birth to the Savior of the world. She's poor, not married, and probably has more questions than answers.  Her response to this earth-shattering news? Joy.  Here's 3 lessons about finding joy we can learn from Mary:  1. Find joy in relationships with other followers of Jesus.  2. Find joy by magnifying God in your everyday life.  3. Find j...

When you're faced with difficult circumstances or decisions, it's an opportunity to decide if you'll ultimately trust God... but what do you do with your doubts? Here's a few takeaways from this message: 1. God uses the ordinary and often overlooked to do life-transforming work. 2. God wants to use YOU (and this is often in day-to-day faithfulness). 3. God uses honest doubts to strengthen faith an...

Here are a few questions for you to consider as you listen to this message: Are there some unmet expectations leading you away from the Lord? Are your unmet expectations causing you to doubt God’s character and his goodness in your life? What are some times that you’ve been faithless? Where has God continued to be faithful and gracious to you? Takeaways: Even those who are obedient to God will fac...

This is a message about abiding in Christ, living in conversation with God, and being surprised by His presence. Here's a few things for you to consider as you listen: Are you ready for _______? What do you hope/fear might happen? What if God crashed your party?

In Genesis 11, we find another story where humans try to take charge instead of following through with God’s plan. After a while, it’s easy to think critically of these people because of how quickly they rebel. Yet, we’re no different. God’s people again and again found themselves in a downward spiral away from God, but each event opened up a new possibility for God’s grace. In our own failures an...