Westminster Calvary Chapel

In light of the global challenges regarding Israel, I want to give you and overview of how to understand what the Bible calls “The End Times” and prophecy that speak to those times. We will spend most of our focus in Matthew 24, and as we read through we must understand that Jesus, who is a Jew, is talking to other Jews (the Disciples). This is known as the “Olivet Discourse.” These disciples were...

God sends out his work and it accomplishes what He desires. That’s important to remember as we discuss what effective ministry look like. Because some will respond in faith and others reject placing faith in Christ. In today’s text, we’ll see both! Paul continue on his second missionary journey taking the gospel to different regions and cities and we can learn a few things about what a truly effec...

Last week as we started Exodus, we learned how God’s redemption story moves out of (Genesis) and into the next phase. We learned that 70-people (Israel) turned into roughly 2-million people. And today, we’re getting more details about the man God will us next – Moses. The conditions surrounding his birth were very difficult as there was a national forced birth control because Pharaoh ordered that...

As we continue through Acts 16 the growth of Paul’s ministry team is being chronicled. At the start of Acts 16 Paul went into Macedonia (Philippi, Thessalonica, & Berea). From there he moved south into Athens & Corinth before circling back east to Ephesus and finally went south into Jerusalem. Why does this journey matter to you as a Christian? Because it’s a picture of the expansion of ministry,...

The theme of Exodus is Deliverance, which is defined as the action of being rescued OR set free. In the experience of the Israelites Exodus shows us how God delivered Israel from oppression of the Egyptian Government, how God gave Israel freedom to serve Him, and how this freedom was to result in their worshiping of Him. 

Psalm 46 has been a go-to Psalm for me because God has used it over-and-over in my life! Specifically v.10. There’s some questions about who wrote this Psalm. Some say it came from David & his battles in 2 Samuel. Others attach the setting to King Hezekiah and God’s intervention against Sennacherib. No matter who wrote it, we have a special Psalm of help that God has preserved for us in His word.

Tonight we conclude the final three-chapters in Genesis by looking at the truths woven into these chapters. When we live out biblical truths, church doctrines should impact our nations values. When we neglect or reject the truths of God, each person conducts their lives with a subjective right & wrong. As followers of Jesus we’re to instill faith into our children. Genesis closes with the death of...

In these verses the Holy Spirit was forbidding Paul and the team to preach the word. This is an important topic to discuss with growing believers because we need to recognize the value of open & closed doors. Think about your life and discover where God is leading you. Look around and see where God is forbidding you.  When we try to push through a closed door, it results in frustration, irritation...

Jacob’s family (Israel) is on the move & headed to Egypt. This first chapter communicates to us the family-line of Israel which came out of Jacob and thru his four wives. Chapters 29, 30, 35, and 46 explain these details. Jacob is a man who wrestled with fear most of his adult life and is on the move again at 130-years old. Now, he’s is forced to leave home again because of the devastation of the...

As we come in Acts 15 Paul & Barnabas had returned to Antioch of Syria from their first missionary trip with excitement & celebration of what God had done. The Church was onboard and things were looking good, but then a crack in the unity erupted. A group of people, some pharisees, wanted to manage the work of God by placing rules around the moving of God’s Spirit. While there’s much to learn in t...

The story line is tapering down in Genesis, but healing is still needed in the family among the Patriarchs before the next sequence of history surfaces. Famine is happening, Josephs brothers come to Egypt for food & return home. But Simeon is held in prison until the youngest brother Benjamin is brought back. Their father, Jacob, still back at home is mad at his sons.

As we come to (Acts 14) Paul & Barnabas continue to take the Gospel into remote areas where both Jew & Gentiles lived. But, they kept getting run out of town. Literally each town they visited had some people come to faith, but many others rejected them & stirred up riots which forced Paul & Barnabas out of town. They were forced out of Antioch of Pisidia. Then down to Iconium, and further south an...

Joseph’s is about 39-yrs old in this chapter. He’s had no contact with any of his family since they sold him into slavery. Now he’s married & has two boys. Plus he’s the 2nd most powerful man in Egypt during a famine & people are hungry! So Jacob, Joseph’s dad, sends 10 of his sons to Egypt to buy grain. The journey is about 265-miles from Canaan to Egypt thru a wilderness of desert land. Now Jose...

The mission goes on with Paul & Barnabas making their way to Antioch of Pisidia. Which you and I would recognize in our Bibles as the region of Galatia. The people in this area were known to be impetuous, fickle, and loved new things. Basically, they had a reputation for being uncommitted. The Gospel is spreading rapidly, and people are getting saved!

As we continue to move forward in our study of the Bible we see the bigger purpose of Joseph’s life take shape. Finally, victory comes after more than a decade of difficulty. About 10-years earlier… in (Gen. 37:5)… “Joseph had a dream…” and he told it to his family but they hated him for it! Tonight in chapters 40 and 41 we see three other dreams occur. The butler, baker and Pharaoh each had a sig...

As we move forward in the unfolding story of the Bible, today we come to a serious moment in the life of Joseph. We get to peak into a life that’s being perfected for a bigger purpose and it’s a beautiful reminder of how gracious & caring God is! God was with Joseph in the middle of this season when strange things & hard times were happening to him. Joseph was still being prepared for his life’s c...

We arrive at chapter 13 where the ministry of the church takes on a new shape. Men are selected, empowered by the Spirit, and sent out. We can recognize that he church is made of many parts with differing gifts; Jew, Gentile, men, women, free, and slaves. These men were ministering to NKJV (OR) worshiping the Lord NLT and all of a sudden… God gave a word of prophecy which directed the ministry bey...

As we continue our study thru Acts, we arrive at chapter #12, which is often labeled as a parenthetic chapter. Meaning, we get a look behind the scenes into details of other events happening simultaneously. In this case… there’s persecution of the church leadership in Jerusalem. The Church was ministering to hurting & hungry people by lifting the weight of oppression in the name of Jesus. People w...

In chapter 38 we come to a pause in the main storyline of Genesis and our attention is turned to Judah (the 4th son). In the previous chapter we see Judah involved in human trafficking which the bible tells us is worthy of death! As the story goes on Judah leaves the family and marries a woman outside the faith (covenant). He begins to make more bad decisions that even begin to affect his children...

This Gospel story is set to the backdrop of a 1st Century Sunday morning in Jerusalem when Jesus’ physical body rose from the grave! Many people are familiar with the facts of God’s word but it’s only in the place of intimate fellowship that a person can know Jesus! Our belief and understanding of the resurrection affects the way we live right now!

The scene is chapter 10 takes places about 10-years after the birth of the church. God was at work, but it took some time to prepare human hearts. Salvation is always a work of God’s grace and He uses believers to diffuse His work among people. What we see here is God working out the details of faith behind the scenes. This chapter opens with a Roman Centurion – Cornelius who was given a vision fr...

Acts records about 30-years of the early church (through snap-shot narratives) as the Holy Spirit births the church, nurtures the church, and multiplies Gods work on earth. Now the two primary characters: are Peter & Paul as they’re led by the Holy Spirit in advancing the Gospel. Today the Church reads and studies the book of Acts to be stirred into a greater faith as we learn how to advance the G...

History tells the story about Alexander the Great and how there was a man in his army who was not acting brave in battle. When he should have been pressing in he was lingering back! Alexander approached & asked “What’s your name soldier?” The man answered: “Sir my name is Alexander.” The great general looked this soldier in the eye & said “Get in there and fight or change your name!” John teaches...

John concludes this book by speaking of the reality of being changed forever! I’ve pastored this church for the last 12-years and I see the church as the family of God on earth with many needing to be connected to God’s truth. Yet, one of the challenges of our time is that people have a fascination with identifying problems and treating symptoms to feel better but never getting better!

Jacob is being called to new steps of faith and we witness that these steps of faith bring new problems & trails into his life. After his sons, Simeon & Levi take revenge upon a whole city, Jacob is driven right back into a place of fear & panic. Right in the middle of this chaos, God speaks to Jacob directing him back to Bethel, a place of worship and hearing the voice of God. Part of maturing as...