Prairie View Christian Church

Christians have found 101 ways to disagree about baptism, but as always, Scripture must be our guide. What does God's Word say about the What's, Who's, When's, How's, and Why's of baptism? What is it supposed to mean? Hear from Pastor Jeff on this topic as we examine one aspect of God's work in salvation.

Over time, God's people can forget that they have been given a mission from God: making disciples. Just like Jonah, we can become inward-focused, worrying more about our own affairs than the condition of the lost. Have YOU forgotten that God has placed you among sinners who need to hear about Jesus?

Jesus wants his church to be unified, and he's done the work to make it possible. Not only did he give us the perfect example of un-selfishness during his life and ministry, but he has also provided us with all the resources we need to live with each other in humility, service, and sacrifice, resulting in glory to the Father.

Jesus doesn't want any of his followers to be confused about what's in store for them. If Jesus is to be our Savior and Lord, he needs to be Lord over our whole life. But in his grace, it's only when we turn over ownership to him and embrace being his steward that we can actually enjoy our possessions, relationships, and lives.

In Mark 11, Jesus cursed a fig tree when he found it without fruit. What upset Jesus so badly about the tree - and what he found in the Temple - and what he might find in our own lives? Religious busy-ness and activity without a heart for God. Do we put our confidence and hope in our Savior, or in all the stuff we do for him? Be amazed that God has been good to you, and serve out of a deep sense o...

God is building his church - and he often uses the language of construction to help us understand his work. We use a popular HGTV show to help us think in a fresh way about the work God is doing in our lives, and in our church. Especially important? The foundation, without which no building will stand. Find out what the church's foundation is this week at PVCC.

The Scriptures have clear instructions for men: be Christ's man first, then a good husband, then a good father. There are plenty of clear and challenging verses for each. But most important, don't forget that to be a Godly leader for your family, you yourself must be led by God, and following Him first.

In Jesus' day, there were many obstacles to worship - and in our day too. Whether the issues are misaligned priorities, adding to God's word, or other distractions, the real problem has always lain in our heart. We want to seek ourselves, worship ourselves, and run our own way; but in God's kingdom, it's all about him - we worship him, seek him, and "run in the pack" of his people.

If we are saved by grace alone through faith alone, and Jesus is our only hope, then why does the Bible speak so much of God judging us by our works? Hear Paul tell the Corinthians about our deeds determining the degree of our rewards, and not just revealing the reality of our faith.

God is building his church, and today we see from 1 Corinthians 3 that he uses many different servants in many different roles to get the job done. There's lots of good work to do at Prairie View - in our own lives, in each other's, and in the community. Will you join God, and us, in the hard-but-joyful work?

Seeing others through God's eyes - it sounds like a great idea. So what's preventing us from doing so? This week we'll continue our "Signs" series by going to 2 Corinthians and considering the idea of spiritual blindness. Until we see Christ as he truly is, we won't be able to see anything else clearly either.

What would a generous church be like? This morning Pastor Jeff asked us to imagine that with him, and led us through the scriptural background on Old Testament and New Testament generosity. But rather than simply call us to sacrifice financially, he called us to a whole lifestyle of worship, where we use our money and all our resources to glorify God.

People Empowered: If we are going to accomplish God's mission for the church we are going to need His help. God works through the Holy Spirit to empower believers for evangelism, fellowship, discipleship, ministry, and worship. We get to work with God through prayer.

If the purpose of the church is to glorify God through making disciples, why do we gather on Sunday mornings? Because it's a great opportunity to participate in God's work! Through prayer, singing, offerings, the Word, baptism, and communion, we demonstrate God's glory and draw closer to him - and each other.

God has made many promises to us - so when will they be fulfilled? And how long to do we have to wait? Scripture is clear that while the next life will be wonderful beyond compare, we have painful, difficult work to do in the meantime. Are you accomplishing God's purposes for you in the time that you have?

This week in the Book of Hebrews, our author took a great amount of time to warn us about being dull of hearing and slow to respond. Failure to apply what we learn about Jesus to our life COULD be an indication that we might not be right with him in the first place. But for those who are his people, he wants them to be assured of their salvation, confident to the end.

Christians and churches face many serious temptations. How do we avoid being confused about who Jesus is, and what he did? How do we avoid becoming enamored with another Christians gifts and ministry? How do we avoid shifting our focus to avoid making the world uncomfortable? All by keeping our focus on the Gospel: who Jesus is, and what he's done on our behalf.

The church in Rome had a solid grasp of the Gospel, but weren't treating each other like brothers and sisters in areas of Christian liberty. How should we go about disagreeing with each other in a Christ-honoring manner? What things MUST we be agreed upon? How we handle our disagreements says something about our community.

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Are you following Christ? At PVCC, we want to be following Christ as the whole pursuit of our lives, pursuing him actively, and pursuing him together with our fellow believers. Today we look at "Following the Way".

Fast Forward the first 30 seconds to hear the message;)

Do you get the most out of the sermons you hear? Are you listening with discerning ears, with an intention to hear from God and apply what you learn? Did you know that just listening to a sermon is downright "challenging"?

Did you know you're in a race? Do you know where you're going? Are you developing the skills you need to finish strong? Do you have your map? Carl Pafford shows us how Adventure Racing gives us key lessons on running the race of faith, and lays out a "mini-vision" for the next several months at PVCC.

How do we live wisely, as Christ's people? The way we use our resources reveals what our priorities are. Time, Energy, and Money - all can be used in pursuit of your goals. Is your goal His Kingdom and His Righteousness? If not, then what?

God promises to give us wisdom if we ask in faith. What does that mean? Faith is the response of the whole soul to God's revelation of Jesus Christ, who IS 'wisdom of God'. He's known through his word - do YOU know him?