First Baptist Church Lipan, TX

Believers and Sin - 1 John 1:8-2:2 You cannot be a believer without truly acknowledging your sin. Forgiveness is guaranteed for confessed sins. The gospel is the power to overcome sin. Even when we sin, Jesus is on our side. Jesus isn't just for Christians, He's for the world. The second mark of an authentic Christian life is daily confession and acknowledgment of our sinfulness.

Walking in the Light - 1 John 1:5-7 Because God is light He is absolutely pure. Because God is light, He illuminates what He touches. We cannot walk with God and have fellowship with darkness. Living a sinful life while claiming fellowship with God proclaims a lie. Walking in the light is living a life submitted to God, allowing Him to remove the darkness from you. Walking in this type of fel...

A Declaration for Faith - 1 John 1:1-4 THE CHRISTIAN FAITH IS NOT AN UNINFORMED FAITH. IT IS BASED ON EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY. JESUS IS BOTH THE WORD & ETERNAL LIFE. ACCEPTING JESUS MEANS BECOMING A PART OF A FELLOWSHIP. SALVATION OF OTHERS SHOULD BRING JOY TO THOSE WHO ARE ALREADY SAVED.

Life From Death - Mark 5:1-20 Evil and Spiritual Warfare are real. Sin in us recognizes a holy God. What scared the townspeople was change. When you become accustomed to living with evil, you will inevitably become accustomed to living apart from God. We are called to be agents of change in our community.

The Opinion That Matters - Luke 18:9-14 Who Jesus is talking to is important Your opinion of yourself isn't what matters Comparing your relationship or standing with God to someone else's does not matter Your acts do not make you righteous We find righteousness only in Jesus

Logs, Specks, and Swine - Matthew 7:1-8 Remember you are not the final judge. Don't be a hypocrite! It's about recognizing that we are sinful and everyone needs mercy and forgiveness. After you have addressed your sin, help your brother with his. Be discerning rather than judgmental.

Called and Compensated - Matthew 20: 12-16 God grants salvation to whomever He chooses God calls each individual in the timing He calls them The reward for following Jesus is the same for all We must not be jealous over God's graciousness

If I Only Touch His Cloak - Mark 5:25-34 WE CANNOT LET THE OBSTACLES OF LIFE DETER OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS NO ONE IS ACCIDENTALLY BLESSED BY JESUS TO BE TOUCHED BY JESUS, YOU HAVE TO GET CLOSE TO JESUS THE LORD IS NEVER TOO BUSY TO DEAL WITH ANYBODY. GOD DOESN’T LOOK AT YOUR SOCIAL STATUS – HE LOOKS AT THE INDIVIDUAL

Someone Stole My Jesus - John 10:10 You don't have to settle for ho-hum Christianity The thief steals anything he can to weaken your faith Stealing requires stealth If the devil cannot have a non-Christian, he'll settle for a dead one In all reality, a dead Christian is probably more valuable to Satan than a lost soul The thief comes to destroy Don't let anybody steal your Jesus

B.O.L.D. - 2 Corinthians 3:12 Hope for Paul is not wishful thinking. Hope is supreme confidence in God's work and word. B - Because Christ goes behind, beside, and before us we can be bold in our faith. O - By being bold we can overcome the obstacles in life. L - Jesus leads us. D - Jesus disciples us so we can disciple others. For Paul, boldness in the Christian walk was a given. We have thi...

We All Smell Like Sheep - Psalm 23

5 Important Things You Can Do For God - Various Scriptures 1)  Stop sitting around 2) Take silent time for God 3) Pray for everything you can 4) Read the Bible 5) Follow the calling from God

A Gospel Charge - Acts 20:25-38 Always preach the whole counsel of God Shepherd the flock God entrusts you with Remember that the sheep are God's, not yours Do not let material wealth derail your commitment to the gospel Everything should begin and end with prayer

Counterfeit Christianity - Matthew 7:21-23 Words alone do not save you You can do all of the right things and not be saved All of our good things aren't worth anything if we don't know Jesus A relationship with Jesus changes everything

Inviting Others to Join The Journey - John 1:43-51 Invitations are easy Invitations work best through relationship Invitations express personal excitement Invitations can lead to answered questions Invitation have the power to change lives Invitations might be met with objections

Leading By Example

One Body - Romans 12:1-8 First Step: Be in Unity With Other Believers Second Step: Don't Think of Yourself Above Everyone Else Third Step: Work Together

The Most Hateful Man - Jonah 4 OUR PRIDE, NEED FOR REVENGE, AND PERSONAL FEELINGS ARE NOT MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE WILL, HEART, & CHARACTER OF GOD GOD STILL SPEAKS TO THOSE WHO ARE AWOL (Angry without love) WE CANNOT VIEW THE POSITIVE AS DESERVED AND NOT VIEW THE NEGATIVE THINGS THE SAME GOD HAS A PASSION FOR ALL PEOPLE DESPITE OUR PERSONAL FEELINGS THAT IS TRUE TO HIS HEART, CHARACTER, & W...

True Repentance - Jonah 3 God is the God of second chances True repentance requires we believe that God's promises are true True repentance will cause a change in action and attitude True repentance is the same no matter who you are True repentance affects your entire life True repentance can change the heart and actions of God For a believer, repentance will be an ongoing action in our lives

Return to God - Jonah 2 No matter where you find yourself, you can call on God Even if our situation is our fault, we can call on God Steps to Return to God    Call Upon God    Recognize your failure and God's mercy    Put your hope on things above When we flee from God, once we return, there will always be a mess to clean up

Jonah: Responding to the Call - Jonah 1 THE CALL OF GOD IS UNCONTROLLABLE, UNPREDICTABLE, AND SOMETIMES UNCOMFORTABLE YOU CAN RUN FROM GOD BUT YOU CAN NEVER TRULY HIDE OUR CHOICE TO FOLLOW OR NOT FOLLOW GOD AFFECTS THOSE AROUND US THE LORD ALWAYS PROVIDES, BUT WE MIGHT NOT LIKE HIS PROVISION GOD ALWAYS GETS HIS WAY

Where are you standing? - Matthew 7:24-27 You must be sure of your foundation Laying our foundation requires work Storms will happen If you have a foundation on the Rock you will be fine Even the second best foundation is not good enough

Jailhouse Church - Acts 16:25-34 When the going gets tough, the faithful praise God There is power in the praise of God God may not take you out of your circumstance, but he might change your situation What you will do at midnight depends a lot on what you do now

An Unexpected Journey - Luke 24:13-35 There are no little people to Jesus Sometimes we don't even recognize when Jesus is in our midst We must be careful to actually listen to Jesus Everyone's journey with Jesus will be different

While It Was Still Dark - John 20:1-10 The resurrection brings light into the darkness The same resurrection still has power today