Sundays at Followers Church

When it comes to spiritual athleticism or holiness, God wants all of us to win medals in the categories of justice, mercy, faith and obedience. Scripture References:  1 Corinthians 9:7–14 Matthew 23:1–4, 13–15, 23 1 Corinthians 9:24–27

Every Christian should constantly strive to help others find the simplest path to following Jesus, and never put anything in their way that might trip them up or violate their conscience. Scripture References:  1 Corinthians 8:8–13 Romans 14:12–13

When Jesus told us we needed to prioritize our “lives” and our “loves" around Him and the will of God, He wasn’t asking us to treat our loved ones as if they are distractions from His will. However, Jesus did make it clear that following His will might mean we would lose some close relationships along the way. Scripture References:  1 Corinthians 7:29–35 Luke 14:26–27 & Matthew 7:21 Ephesians...

As Christians, when our personal failures with sin become public, or when our conflicts with other Christians becomes public, something wen’t wrong...  Scripture References:   1 Corinthians 6:5–8 (NLT) Matthew 18:15–17 (NLT) 1 Corinthians 6:9–11, 15–20  (NLT) 1 Thessalonians 4:1–8 (NLT)

If we choose to enable our own sin instead of dealing with it in a severe way, we’ll inevitably enable the sins of others, which leaves the entire church on a dangerous path. And when this happens, Jesus will deal with the entire church. Scripture References:  1 Corinthians 5:12–13 (NLT) Galatians 6:1–2 (NLT) Matthew 7:13–14 (NLT) Colossians 3:5–10 (NLT) Revelation 2:4–5 (NLT) Revelation 2:14–16 (...

Similar to the way children should respect their parents for their investment, we should respect God, and our spiritual leaders and teachers for their investment into us. And the best way to do that is by teaching others what we’ve learned. Scripture References:  Philippians 2:5-8 (NLT) 1 Corinthians 3:1–5, 4:6 (NLT) Ephesians 4:11–13 (NLT) Hebrews 5:12–6:1 (NLT) 1 Thessalonians 5:12–13 (NLT) Mica...

God made each of us a certain way on purpose. It’s like we’re each a unique piece to a puzzle. Knowing this, we must accept the fact that, fitting into our unique place amongst others, is ultimately the most rewarding thing we will ever experience. And until we all come to this conclusion, the church will never be as beautiful as she was designed to be. Scripture References:  1 Corinthians 3:1–3 (...

God made each of us a certain way on purpose. It’s like we’re each a unique piece to a puzzle. Knowing this, we must accept the fact that, fitting into our unique place amongst others, is ultimately the most rewarding thing we will ever experience. And until we all come to this conclusion, the church will never be as beautiful as she was designed to be. Scripture References:  Ephesians 6:4 2 Timot...

Only those who grow their relationship with God, have a partnership with God. And only those who are partnering with God are fulfilling His purpose. And only those who are holy can partner with God. And only God can make us holy.  Scripture References:  Colossians 1:19–23 Hebrews 10:14 1 Corinthians 1:10 James 1:2–4 1 Corinthians 1:8–9

The Corinthians had hard soil, but Paul knew it was his job to farm their souls by cultivating the soil of their hearts. Similarly, even though the people of our world probably have hard soil (or souls), they are our target, and we should be cultivating our relationships with them. Scripture References:  Acts 9:15–16 Acts 13:1–3 Matthew 13:3–9, 18–23

Malachi’s challenge to the priests to be the best examples of righteousness, due to their knowledge of God’s word and instructions, applies to us. But again, our hearts must be prepared for these priestly duties, and only the Holy Spirit can do that as we repent. Scripture References:  1 Peter 2:5–6 2 Chronicles 7:14–16 Malachi 1:2a Malachi 1:6,13 Malachi 3:8–12 Romans 8:7–8 Malachi 3:16–18

Jesus is our eternal High-Priest, which makes us—His brothers and sisters—also priests. And based on what Jesus said to the churches in Revelation, holiness is still something He wants us—His priests—to be known for. Scripture References:  Zechariah 3:8–9 (NCV) Revelation 3:1–2 (NLT) Hebrews 6:20–8:1 1 Peter 2:1-9 Isaiah 11:1–5 (NLT) John 15:5 (NLT)

What God was wanting from Haggai’s message, was for His children to have a change of heart or attitude towards sin, towards Him, and toward others. And because of that change, their practices would change. Scripture References:  Proverbs 3:9–10 Philippians 2:3–11 Proverbs 3:11–12 Hebrews 12:5–8 Romans 8:5–9 2 Timothy 3:16–17 1 John 3:9–10

Living loud for Jesus doesn’t happen without killing our sinful nature. Therefore, we must identify the things that need to be killed, and then find people to regularly mentor us who are good at that kind of killing. But none of this happens without a strong commitment on everyone’s part to remain in community with each other, and to encourage one another. Please note that we had a Kids Ministry p...

Are you known for being angry at the things that make God angry? Or are you just known for being angry? Even though Jesus became angry, He was always slow to anger and always corrective when confronting others; filled with grace and truth. We must remember that, human anger doesn't produce the righteousness God desires.  Scripture References:  Matthew 23:37 Proverbs 6:16–19 Exodus 34:6 Mark 9:33–3...

Similar to the situation with Lazarus, our primary role as followers is to bring glory to God with our lives, regardless of whether or not we’re dealing with disease or sicknesses. And furthermore, there might be times when God orchestrates sickness, or even things like blindness, as a part of His plan to bring Him glory. Scripture References:  John 11:21 (NLT) John 11:32 (NLT) John 11:33–35, 38–4...

When we help the poor, that is “living loud” according to Jesus. In fact, Jesus promised that He will give us back whatever we invest into others. And furthermore, Jesus takes it personally when we give or don’t give... Scripture References:  Matthew 5:3 (NLT) Mark 12:41–44 (NLT) Luke 3:10–11 (NLT) Luke 4:16–18a (NLT) Matthew 25:31–46 (NLT) Luke 6:36–38 (NLT)

As believers in Christ, we won’t help those who are overcome by some sin if we ourselves are overcome by sin. And when are overcome by sin, we get stuck in a cycle of sin and repentance. And when this happens, it can prevent us from ever exhibiting fruit, and our lives will inevitably be lived in a way that’s loud for the wrong reasons. Scripture References:  Matthew 3:11 (NLT) Ephesians 1:13 (NLT...

A person who is devoted to God and to others is always trying to re-present God well—both in the church and in the world. However, if we are to be devoted to God—and to each other—we cannot be devoted to anything else...especially money! Scripture References:  Acts 2:36–37 (NLT) James 5:16 (NLT) Galatians 6:2 (NLT) 2 Corinthians 5:11,17–21 (NLT) Matthew 6:24 (NLT)

In view of the ultimate command—both in the Old and New Testament—it’s clear that relationships are a big deal to God. And what makes every relationship work is love, which isn’t always seen in our sin nature. However, our sinful nature can be changed to be like Jesus’ nature—which is loving—but that requires us to let the Holy Spirit change the way we think about others. Scripture References:  Ac...

God has given us all the spiritual supplements and stimulants needed to turn us each into spiritual body builders, but it still requires us to put in the time of training or heavy lifting. So since we all have what we need to be a spiritual body builders, the question is, are we willing to do the hard work that’s required to live like Kingdom people? Or to be fruity? Scripture References:  1 Corin...

We are supposed to be mature when it comes to understanding what brings order to the church, or what causes disorder. However, many of us are immature and calculate our value by comparing ourselves to others, and then diminish ourselves accordingly, and this causes disorder. So we need to remember that regardless of what body part we are, or function we serve, our first priority is to support each...

When it comes to being a leader for Jesus, what that really means is that we’ve become a slave to the will of God. And God’s will is to reach those who are lost, and to develop those who are a part of the Kingdom. Scripture References:  Matthew 20:17–28 Philippians 1:1a (NLT) James 1:1a (NLT) 2 Peter 1:1a (NLT) Jude 1a (NLT) 1 Peter 2:11–17 (NLT)

If we’re going to learn what God’s will is for our lives and abide in Him, we must continually listen, treasure, tune, concentrate, cry out, and search for wisdom, which are all actions that require a lot of work. Scripture References:  Colossians 1:6–10 (NLT) John 15:1–8 (ESV) Proverbs 2:1–11 (NLT) 1 Peter 1:21–2:3 (NLT)

Obedience to Jesus’ teachings is what helps solidify our faith in God, and strengthen our foundation in Him. And according to Jesus, when we teach others to obey those same teachings, that’s what changes our ranking in Heaven. Scripture References:  Matthew 7:24–29 (NLT) Proverbs 19:3 Matthew 23:2–3 (NLT) Matthew 5:17–20 (NLT) John 14:21, 23—24 (NLT) Matthew 28:19–20 (NLT)