Woodcreek Church

We can have confidence of our salvation because we have been given the Holy Spirit. As a result we see the fruit of the Spirit in our lives, the first being love. And when we have the love of God there is no fear of eternal judgment. (1 John 4:13-21)

The truth that "God is love" is a life-changer. To know how that love was shown through God sending His only Son to die for our sins affects everything about our lives. The more we know the Father the better we can love one another. (1 John 4:7-12)

Don't beleive everything you see, hear or read. This is John's warning in 1 John 4:1-6. Satan works hard to deceive Christians to get them off track in their faith. Remember, Jesus is God and everything should be tested according to the Word of God.

John continues to encourage his readers toward confidence and obedience. In this paragraph he says that we can have a confident faith, a confident prayer life and communion with God by obeying his commandment. (1 John 3:19-24)

God desires for His children to walk consistently with who they are. When we sin we are living like we are not His children. The way we show that we love God is by loving our brothers and sisters. Love is shown when we meet needs with our generosity. (1 John 3:4-18)

One of the reasons we have such a hard time loving others is because we haven't really connected with how deeply God loves us . Imagine how much better life would be if we lived loved by God. (1 John 2:28—3:3)

Beware of the antichrists in our world! There are many who say they they believe in God but deny Jesus Christ. We must remain committed to the Word of God and submitted to the Spirit of God if we want to maintain a confident faith. (1 John 2:18-27)

One of the biggest problems in life is that we love the world and the things in the world more than we love God. (1 John 2:15-17)

Believers can’t love Jesus and Hate His people. (1 John 2:9-10)

The older I get the more I love the metaphor of walking to describe the Christian life. Walking is not as spectacular or fast as running, leaping, or flying, but it is a steady, sure movement in one direction. The same is true in living for Jesus Christ. (1 John 2:1-6)

How hard is it for you to admit your sin? Do you tend to deny or ignore your sin? Do you minimize it or rationalize it? Or Do you confess it? Confessing sin is one of the greatest evidences of those who are walking in the light. (1 John 1:5-10)

John testifies to the truth of the incarnation of Jesus Christ. If you deny the incarnation of Jesus Christ, then the cross looses its significance. If Jesus wasn't a man, he couldn't be our substitute and die in our place. (1 John 1:1-4)

Jesus commanded for His followers to be baptized therefore it is a critical part of the life of every believer. In Acts 8 we see a story of a man from Africa who trusted in Jesus and then immediately wanted to be baptized. (Acts 8:26-40)

May the truth of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ fill our hearts with living hope and ignite our passion to love and serve Jesus for the rest of our eternal life. (Luke 24:13-32; 1 Peter 1:3; John 11:25; Acts 1:11; Philippians 3:20)

Jesus tells his followers to love each other the way he loves us. In order to love others like Jesus, we must believe and live out of the depth of God's love for us. It is only then that love flows freely. (John 13:3,4,35; 15:12,13; John 10:17,18; Romans 5:8; John 3:16; 1 John 3:16; 4:9,10)

Throughout the Scripture we see that God takes his people's unity very seriously. In Phil 2:1-4, we see why we should pursue unity and we see how to do it. As our church becomes more diverse we will need to carefully pursue unity for God's glory. (Philippians 2:1-4)

Another picture the New Testament uses of the church is that of a family. This message explores some of the similarities and differences between the church and families and considers some of the practical implications of viewing the church as a family. (John 1:12-13, Galatians 4:4-7, Matthew 10:34-39)

If we want to go deeper in our relationship with Jesus then we will value what he values and love what he loves. Jesus highly values and deeply loves his church. This truth should not only raise our value for but also deepen our commitment to the church. (Ephesians 2:19-22; 1 Peter 2:4,5; Romans 12:4,5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 5:25-32)

Christian’s who are deeply committed to God’s Mission live “questionable” lives. (Matt. 28:18-20, Gen. 12:1-3, Gen. 41:56-57, Gal. 3:8-9, Rev. 7:9, Ps. 96:6, Eph. 4:11-12, Col. 4:2-6)

While our relationship with Jesus Christ is personal, God never intends for it to be private. We are called not only to be connected to his Church but also to be committed. We are not called simply to be an attenders but members. (Matthew 16:13-18)

If we want to go deeper in our relationship with Jesus Christ, then we need to serve as Jesus served. For Jesus tells us that serving is the key to true greatness and happiness. (Mark 10:35-45; John 13:1-17)

If we want to go deeper in our relationship with Christ, we need to pray more than we do. W.H. Griffith Thomas once said, “It is only through a strong prayer life that we find God’s presence real, His power felt, His will clear, and His service easy.” (Luke 11:1-4; Matthew 6:5-13; Matthew 7:9-11)

What is worship and how can we deepen our relationship with God through true spiritual worship? The heartbeat of white-hot worship is not our ministry for God, but rather our ministry to God as we seek to bless the Lord with all that we are. (Hebrews 12:28-29)

How can we turn our knowledge about God into knowledge of God? By taking the truths we learn about God, meditating on them and turning them into praise and worship to God. We will work through this process using Colossians 1:15-20 as an example. (Colossians 1:15-20)

Learning who you are in Christ is the starting point of going deeper in your relationship with Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:17; Philippians 4b-11)