The Holy Spirit 101

If you have been listening to the local news you will have heard that over the last month South Carolina has suffered a swarm of minor earthquakes. There is something deeply unsettling about an earthquake. The ground beneath you the one thing you assumed was stable suddenly shifts. Walls crack. Foundations groan. What felt permanent proves fragile. And even after the main quake subsides, the aftershocks come. They are reminders, Echoes.
Continuations of the first movement. 

But today I am not going to be talking about geology.
I am going to be talking about theology. Because throughout Scripture, when God moves, something shakes. Mountains tremble; Prisons rattle, Veils tear, Graves open.
Hearts break and Nation’s shift. And long after the first divine movement, the aftershocks continue. 

The Bible is a record of holy earthquakes. And history, including our own lives, are filled with their aftershocks. 

A friend told me this story about a friend of theirs who was fishing for bass in a small boat on a lake near silver springs. The earth shook and the whole side a cliff face started tumbling into the lake and the fisherman had to navigate in his small boat through falling rocks and waves to safety. 

The aftershock, latter my friend spent over two hours speaking with him about how God had saved him and praying with him. Doesn’t that sound like our own lives dodging waves and boulders with Gods help. 

Exodus 19:18 says: Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently. When God descended, the mountain trembled. There was thunder.
There was lightning.
There was fire.
There was a trumpet blast that grew louder and louder. The people stood at a distance and said to Moses,
(Exodus 20:19). “You speak with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die” 

Sinai teaches us something critical: When God reveals His holiness, casual religion collapses. The giving of the Law was not gentle.
It was seismic. God was establishing covenant.
He was defining righteousness.
He was revealing His character. 

And the aftershocks? A nation was formed.
Worship was structured.
Sin was defined.
A tabernacle was built so holy God could dwell among imperfect people. The shaking produced order, It removed illusion. It exposed fear. And it established reverence. 

Hebrews 12 reflects us back to Sinai and contrasts it with Mount Zion, showing us that the same God who once shook a mountain now invites us through grace. But make no mistake: Grace does not mean God has become less holy. It means we have been given access. 

And now if we go to Matthew 27:51–52 it tells us: “And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;
And the graves were opened” At the exact moment Jesus cried, “It is finished,” creation convulsed. The veil tore from top to bottom signifying that God initiated access. The earth shook. Rocks split. Graves opened.

Why? Because the cross was not merely a Roman execution. It was a cosmic transaction. Isaiah 53 had foretold it: “He was wounded for our transgressions the chastisement of our peace was upon him.” At Calvary, sin was judged.
Wrath was satisfied.
Mercy triumphed. The earthquake was heaven’s exclamation point. Something irreversible had occurred. 

And the aftershocks? A Roman centurion declared, “Truly this was the Son of God.” The disciples who scattered would later preach boldly. Within weeks, thousands would be saved. The cross-shook Jerusalem. And It is still shaking hearts today. Every conversion is an aftershock of Calvary. 

And after the Crucifixion the resurrection. Matthew 28:2: “And behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone” Another earthquake. Not to free Jesus, He was already risen. But to reveal the empty tomb. Death had been defeated. Paul would later declare in 1 Corinthians 15: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” The resurrection was not quiet. It was triumphant. It was seismic. 

And The aftershocks, Cowards became witnesses.
Thomas moved from doubt to declaration.
Peter preached with fire.
The gospel began spreading beyond borders. Hope replaced despair, Fear turned into faith. The empty tomb still sends tremors across generations. Because if Christ is risen, everything changes. 

Then Acts 2:2 tells us about Pentecost: “And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house…” Then in Acts 4:31: “And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit” 

Notice this carefully. Prayer preceded shaking. Boldness followed it. When the Spirit filled them, fear lost its grip. Three thousand were saved in a day. The gospel expanded. The church multiplied. The aftershocks of Pentecost have never ceased. Every Spirit-empowered sermon.
Every missionary sent.
Every revival born in prayer. All are echoes of that upper room. 

Acts 16 then tells us Paul and Silas were beaten and imprisoned. At midnight they prayed and sang. Not after deliverance. Before it. Verse 26: “And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken” Doors opened. Chains fell. 

But here is the greater miracle: The jailer was saved. The shaking reached beyond the prisoners. It touched a household. Sometimes God shakes your prison so someone else can be free. Sometimes your praise in pain produces someone else’s breakthrough. 

Then in Hebrews 12:26–27 declares: “Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.” God shakes what is temporary. He removes what is false. He exposes what is unstable. Not to destroy you, but to establish you. If He shakes pride, it is mercy. If He shakes hidden sin, it is mercy. If He shakes comfort that is keeping you from calling, it is mercy. And that aftershock is purification. 

Throughout Scripture, empires rise and fall. Egypt shook. Babylon fell. Rome eventually collapsed. Psalm 46 says: “Though the earth be removed God is our refuge and strength.” Nations are not eternal. Kingdoms of men are temporary.

 But Daniel saw a different kingdom, one cut from a stone not made with hands that would crush all others and stand forever History is moving toward an unshakable kingdom. And we are living in the tremors of that coming reality. 

And The aftershocks of a true revival.   True revival does not end with a closing hymn. It alters lives. It changes priorities. It transforms homes. In Acts, revival led to generosity, unity, boldness, and expansion. When God truly moves, the evidence continues. If nothing changes, nothing truly shook. But when God shakes deeply, fruit follows. 

Perhaps you remember your moment of shaking. Conviction gripping your heart. Tears you could not explain. A sermon that pierced. A crisis that drove you to your knees. That was your earthquake. 

And the aftershocks? Habits changed. Relationships shifted. New hunger emerged. God shakes individuals before He shakes regions. Jesus said in Matthew 7 “Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them is like a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.” 

Storms came to both houses. But only one stands. The storm is not the issue. The foundation is. You cannot prevent shaking. But you can choose where you stand. Christ is the Rock. Not religion. Not tradition. Not emotion. Christ.     

Now we come to the final shaking. Revelation speaks of cosmic upheaval. But it also promises in Revelation 21:5 “Behold, I make all things new” A new heaven. A new earth. No more death. No more sorrow. The throne stands secure. The Lamb reigns. The redeemed worship. That kingdom cannot be shaken. 

Now we must come to a decision. If everything in your life were shaken tonight would your soul remain secure? Jesus died for your sin. He rose in power. He alone offers unshakable life. If your heart is stirred, that is grace. If conviction is present, that is mercy. 

Right now, surrender. “Lord Jesus, I need a foundation that will not move.
Forgive me.
Save me.
Anchor me to You.” Salvation is surrender. 

And to the churches out there are you anchored? Have you drifted? Has comfort replaced hunger? Let the shaking awaken you. Return to your first love. Strengthen prayer. Stand boldly. Because when the church stands firm on scripture, the world sees stability in chaos. 

The Bible begins with creation. It moves through covenant. It climaxes at the cross. It explodes at resurrection. It advances at Pentecost. And promises consummation.

 And through it all. When God moves, something shakes. But the purpose of shaking is clarity. To reveal what lasts. So choose the unshakable kingdom. Build on the Rock of Jesus. Because when the final earthquake comes. Only one foundation will stand. And that foundation is Jesus Christ. 

Amen

After I had finished writing it, I realized that not only was it about God looking but was also my own testimony on how God found and saved me.   

So today I stand before you with gratitude in my heart and humility in my spirit. I am not here because I was the smartest.
Not because I was the most disciplined.
Not because I always made wise decisions. I am here because God found me. 

If the truth were told, there was a time in my life when I was not pursuing holiness. I was not chasing righteousness. I was not waking up every morning asking, “Lord, what is Your will?” But heaven had its eye on me. 

The Bible says in Luke 19:10,
“For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Notice the order, He came to seek first.

Before saving, there was seeking. That means before I knew I was lost; He knew where I was. There was a season in my life when I thought I was doing just fine. Maybe outwardly I looked stable.
Maybe I had plans.
Maybe I had ambitions.
Maybe I even had religion. But I did not have surrender.

It is possible to know about God and still not know God.
It is possible to attend church and still not belong to Christ.
It is possible to speak Christian language and still have an untouched heart.

Isaiah 53:6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way.” My problem wasn’t that I hated God.

My problem was that I wanted my own way. And that is the essence of being lost living independent from the One who created you. 

There was an emptiness I couldn’t explain. I tried to fill it with distraction. I tried to fill it with alcohol.
I tried to fill it with violence.
I tried to fill it with relationships. But no matter what I added, something was still missing. 

Have you ever smiled in public and felt hollow in private?
Have you ever laughed with people but cried alone?
Have you ever felt successful and yet unsatisfied? That was me. 

Ecclesiastes says God has “set eternity in the hearts of men.” There is a space in every human soul that only God can occupy.
And when He is absent, everything else feels temporary. Looking back now, I see what I could not see then. God was planting seeds. 

A praying relative
A childhood memory of Scripture
A sermon that lingered in my mind
A moment of conviction that would not leave Maybe someone here today is the result of someone else’s prayer. 

Long before I ever prayed sincerely, someone may have been praying for me. 

John 6:44 says,
“No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him.” I wasn’t randomly thinking about God.

He was drawing me. The conviction I felt wasn’t coincidence.
It was mercy. There came a time when I could no longer ignore the stirring in my heart. I would lie awake at night and think about eternity.
I would hear a sermon and feel uncomfortable.
I would see hypocrisy in myself and feel exposed. Conviction is uncomfortable but it is kindness. God could have left me alone. He could have let me drift.
He could have let me sink deeper. But He interrupted my peace. 

Revelation 3:20 says,
“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock…” That knocking became louder. 

Through circumstances.
Through conversations.
Through disappointment.
Through conviction. Every testimony has a turning point. 

For some it is tragedy.
For others it is failure.
For others it is simply exhaustion from pretending. There came a moment when I realized: I cannot fix myself. Maybe I tried to improve.
Maybe I made promises I could not keep.
Maybe I said, “Tomorrow I’ll change.” But self-reformation without surrender never lasts. 

Psalm 34:18 says,
“The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart.” 

It was in brokenness that I became honest. I admitted I needed God. I remember that moment well. My first time back in a church since I was a teenager Now aged 45. It wasn’t polished.
It wasn’t eloquent.
It was simple. “Lord, I need You.” 

And when I prayed that prayer something shifted. Not the outside world.
But the inside of me. The guilt lifted.
The weight eased.
Peace entered. 

Romans 5:8 says, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” 

He didn’t wait for me to clean myself up.
He met me in my mess. That’s when I understood: Grace is not a reward.
Grace is a rescue. 

The next day, life looked the same but I was different. Scripture felt alive.
Worship felt personal.
Prayer felt real. I wasn’t performing religion anymore.
I was experiencing a relationship with God. 

2 Corinthians 5:17 says,
“If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature” 

I wasn’t perfect overnight.
But my direction changed. My desires shifted.
My hunger changed.
My convictions deepened. Salvation is instant.
Sanctification is progressive. 

God began working on layers of my heart. Pride had to go.
Bitterness and anger had to be surrendered.
Habits had to be broken.
Fear had to be confronted. 

Hebrews 12:6 says,
“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth” 

Correction became evidence of belonging. He wasn’t condemning me.
He was shaping me. 

Let me be transparent. There were moments after salvation when I stumbled. Moments of weakness.
Moments of doubt.
Moments of frustration and anger. But here’s what proved God had truly found me: He didn’t leave. 

Philippians 1:6 says,
“He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” 

I discovered that God was more committed to my transformation than I was. And his grip is stronger than my failures. 

God did not find me just so I could sit safely in church. He found me so I could testify. He found me so I could reach someone who felt unreachable. He found me so I could stand here today and say: If He found me — He can find you. 

Your past is not stronger than His grace.
Your mistakes are not deeper than His mercy.
Your shame is not greater than His love. 

Maybe someone here today feels that same stirring I once felt. That tug.
That conviction.
That awareness that something is missing. That’s not guilt.
That’s invitation. God is still seeking. He is walking these aisles.
He is knocking on hearts.
He is calling names. 

You don’t have to clean yourself up first.
You don’t have to fix everything first. Just respond. Just say, “Lord, I need You.” Because the same God who found me
is ready to find you. 

I stand before you not as someone who achieved salvation,
but as someone who was pursued by grace. I was lost.
He found me. I was wandering.
He called me. I was broken.
He restored me. And if He did it for me — He can do it for you. 

Heavenly Father, Before I ever looked for You, you were looking for me. Before I ever whispered Your name, you knew mine. Before I ever understood grace, you were extending it. Lord, today we stand in awe of a love that pursues us.
A mercy that chased us.
A patience that waited for us. When we were wandering, you were watching.
When we were rebelling, you were reaching.
When we were broken and unaware, you were working behind the scenes. Thank You for not leaving us to ourselves.
Thank You for not giving up when we resisted.
Thank You for loving us before we loved You. 

Father, as I have shared this teaching and testimony, let every heart feel the tenderness of Your pursuit.
Let those who feel far away realize You have never been far from them. 

Holy Spirit, move gently through this place.
Convict with kindness.
Draw with compassion.
Reveal the Savior. And may we leave here humbled by this truth:
Before we ever looked for You,
You were already seeking us. Amen.

Our teachings have taken us from the beginning (Genises), then the Middle (easter) so for today’s teaching I am going to the last book of the bible and cover Revelations 1-20 (the return of Jesus) 

In doing research for today it has been a journey filled with awe at the power of God but also the tenderness of God. It also enlightened me on something I really hadn’t thought of before. We hear in scripture that God is the Alfa and Omega the beginning and the end and that is true but after reading Revelations I have conclude that God is also the Omega and Alfa the end and beginning as God will take away everything as we know it and make all new. Revelation 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, “Write”, for these words are true and faithful.   

 The Book of Revelation is sometimes approached with fear, confusion, or hesitation. Many talk about the end times and focus on dates, symbols, beasts, and speculation. But the opening words of this book (Revelation 1:1). tell us what it is truly about: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ”   This means that the central purpose of this book is not to confuse us, but to reveal Christ, to lift our gaze from the temporary, the troubled, the broken, and the chaotic, and fix our eyes on the One who reigns above all. 

This teaching seeks to reorient the heart to worship. It is not meant to provoke anxiety, but awe. Not fear of the future, but faith in the One who holds the future. Revelations is a call to lift our heads, to see Christ glorified, reigning, holy, merciful, and victorious. It is a reminder to every weary believer that the story is already written, and the ending is already secure. The Lamb wins. The Kingdom stands. Christ reigns forever. So let us walk through Revelation chapters 1 through 20 with a heart of worship beholding Jesus as He truly is. 

John, the apostle who once leaned on Jesus’ chest at the Last Supper, is now old, exiled on Patmos, separated from the churches he loved. His earthly ministry seems to have been cut off. His voice seems silent. But God is never finished with His servants. On the Lord’s Day, a voice like a trumpet calls out. John turns and sees Jesus in His glory. Not the humble rabbi. Not the suffering Savior. Not the one crowned with thorns. 

He sees: Eyes like flames of fire, He sees truth without distortion. Feet like burnished brass, He stands in purity and justice. A voice like many waters, Majestic, commanding, irresistible. A face shining like the sun, Bright with divine power. John falls at His feet as though dead. And Jesus touches him. “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One. I was dead, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I hold the keys of death and Hades.” 

This is our King. Not a distant ruler. Not a memory. Not a symbol. The Living One. Christ does not comfort from afar He lays His hand upon His servants. The first message of Revelation is not terror. It is reassurance. The King lives, and He holds all authority. 

Before unveiling the future, Jesus speaks to His Church the lampstands, He is present with His people. He sees not just what we do, but why we do it. 

To Ef·e·sus, the church that works tirelessly, He says: You have lost your first love.  Come back to Me. 

To smur-nuh, suffering and poor He says: Be faithful.  You are rich in Me. 

To Per·ga·mum and Thai-uh-TAI-ruh, compromised by culture, He says: Stand firm.  Truth matters. 

To Sahr-dihs, spiritually asleep He says: Wake up.  Strengthen what remains. 

To Philadelphia, small yet faithful, He says: I have placed an open door before you.  No one can shut it. 

To lay-o-dih-SEE-uh, lukewarm and comfortable He says: I stand at the door and knock.  Let Me in. 

Christ’s message to the church then is Christ’s message now: I see you.  I know you.  I am with you.  Return to Me.  Walk with Me.  Worship Me alone. The exalted Jesus is not only King over eternity. He is the Shepherd of today. 

John is then taken up into the throne room of heaven. The very center of reality, it is not war, or government, or earthly authority. It is a throne. No one panics in heaven. No one debates outcomes. No one doubts the King. And the One seated there holds a scroll. The plan and destiny of creation. 

Then comes the question: Who is worthy to open the scroll? No one steps forward. John weeps because if no one is worthy, history has no hope. But then, A voice: Do not weep.  The Lion of Judah has prevailed. John turns and sees not a lion, but a Lamb standing as though slain. The Lion conquers as the Lamb. Heaven erupts in worship, not forced worship, not fearful worship, but joyful, thunderous, triumphant praise. “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing!” 

The greatest truth in heaven is this: Christ reigns because Christ is redeemed.   The seal’s break. The earth shakes. History unfolds. The judgments are not random. They reveal the emptiness of human power, the collapse of kingdoms built on pride, and the futility of rebellion against God. But amid the turmoil John sees the redeemed: A great multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language They worship the Lamb. They stand in victory. They belong to Christ. And heaven declares: “The kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever.” 

THIS IS NOT A FUTURE HOPE IT IS A GUARANTEED DESTINY.   Behind nations, wars, movements, cultures, and ideologies lies a deeper conflict: The struggle between the kingdom of God and the rebellion of Satan. The dragon rages because he knows his time is short. But the saints overcome: “By the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.” Our weapons are not earthly. Our victory is not earned through force. Our strength is Christ Himself. God’s judgment is not impulsive. It is holy, patient, measured, and just. The world has been given every chance to turn, and yet darkness persists. Babylon falls. The Beast Falls. The False Prophets Fall. Satan is defeated. 

Then comes the Great White Throne. Every life stands before God. No reputation matters. No excuses remain. But for those in Christ, there is no fear. Their names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. They belong to Him. Forever. Revelation does not end with destruction. It ends with a wedding. The Lamb and His Bride. It ends with a home. A new heaven. A new earth. A world where God dwells with His people. No death. No sorrow. No pain. No sin.

 “BEHOLD I MAKE ALL THINGS NEW”.  This is not wishful thinking. It is the promise of the King who conquered death. The message of Revelation is not simply to be learned. It is to be responded to. Not with fear. Not with speculation. But with worship. Lift your eyes. Lift your voice. Lift your heart. Christ reigns. Christ is worthy. Christ will return. Come, Lord Jesus. 

Friends, the message of Revelation is not only a vision of what shall come it is a call to the heart now. The Lamb who reigns is the Lamb who was slain for you. His hands bear the marks of love. His invitation is not distant. It is here. It is now. 

If today, as you have heard the Word, your heart has stirred. If you sense the Holy Spirit drawing you. If you desire to return, to recommit, or to surrender for the first time, then hear the voice of the Savior: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in.” 

This is your moment of grace. Not tomorrow. Not someday. Today. If you are ready to commit or recommit or just feel the need. Then say, “Jesus, I give You my life,” 

I Now pray this for you: Lord Jesus, we come to You.  We believe you are the Son of God.  We believe you died for our sins and rose again.  We turn from our old lives, and we surrender our hearts to You.  Be our Savior, be our Lord, and be our King.  We belong to You now and forever. 

Praise be to the King! If you have ever prayed that prayer, heaven rejoices and your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life forever. So be it, Amen, Amen.

  Today we step into a subject that has stirred the hearts of believers across generations a subject that lifts our eyes beyond what is seen and invites us into the unseen workings of God. Today, I am going to be speaking about angels. Not the angels of paintings or imagination. Not the soft, silent figures of folklore. But the angels revealed in the Word of God real, powerful, purposeful beings created by the Lord to serve His will and minister to His people. 

The Bible declares in Hebrews 1:14, “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” That means angels are not distant or irrelevant they are actively involved in the lives of those who belong to God. Even now, in ways we may not fully perceive, heaven is at work around us.

 From Genesis to Revelation, angels appear at pivotal moments. When Hagar was alone in the wilderness, it was an angel who found her and spoke hope into her despair. When Daniel was surrounded by lions, it was an angel who shut their mouths. When Mary received the news that would change the world, it was an angel who stood before her with a message from heaven. And on resurrection morning, it was angels who declared, “He is not here, for He is risen.” This is not coincidence. This is divine orchestration. Angels are messengers, warriors, protectors, and servants of the Most High God. Psalm 91:11 tells us, “For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.” That is a promise, not just poetic language, but a declaration of God’s care over His people. 

And yet, while angels are powerful, they are never the focus of our worship. They do not draw attention to themselves they point to God. In fact, throughout Scripture, whenever someone is tempted to worship an angel, the angel immediately redirects that worship back to the Lord. Angels exist to glorify God and to carry out His commands. 

So why does this matter to us today? Because we live in a world that often feels uncertain, chaotic, and overwhelming. There are moments when we feel alone, unseen, and unprotected. But the truth of God’s Word reminds us that we are never alone. There is a spiritual reality unfolding beyond our natural sight. There is a divine protection we may not always recognize. There is a heavenly host assigned to the purposes of God in our lives. In 2 Kings 6, when the servant of Elisha was afraid because an enemy army surrounded them, Elisha prayed, “Lord, open his eyes.” And when his eyes were opened, he saw the mountains filled with horses and chariots of fire the armies of heaven standing guard. 

What a powerful truth: what you see is not all there is. There may be battles you are facing right now that you cannot explain. There may be moments where you have wondered how you made it through. There may be times when danger was near, but somehow you were preserved. Could it be that God had already dispatched His angels on your behalf? Today’s message is not meant to create fear or fascination it is meant to build faith. Faith in a God who is not distant but deeply involved.
Faith in a God who commands the hosts of heaven.
Faith in a God who watches over His children with care, power, and purpose. 

As we begin this journey into understanding angels, let us approach it with humility and reverence. Not seeking to elevate angels above their place, but to magnify the God who created them and sends them. Today, may your eyes be opened not just to the existence of angels, but to the greatness of the God who commands them. May your faith be strengthened, knowing that heaven is not silent, and you are not alone. For the same God who sent angels to guide, protect, and deliver in Scripture is the same God who reigns today. And if He has done it before—He can do it again. 

There are moments in life when what you see doesn’t match what you feel. We have all been in situations where: You should have fallen… but didn’t You should have broken… but didn’t You should have lost… but somehow you made it through And you couldn’t explain it. I’m going to suggest something to you today. Maybe You were not alone. 

There was a man driving home late one night exhausted barely able to keep his eyes open. For just a second he drifted off to sleep. The car veered off the road headed straight toward a ditch. But suddenly he felt the wheel jerk back. Not slowly, not gently but forcefully. He woke up instantly, heart racing, and somehow the car was back in its lane. No other cars, no explanation, no time to react on his own. He pulled over, shaking, and said, “God that was You.” 

Sometimes what you call coincidence Heaven calls intervention. It’s not luck, It’s not chance. it’s what happens when God gives His angels charge over you. Psalm 91:11 “He SHALL give His angels charge over thee…” Not might.
Not maybe. He SHALL. 

There are testimonies from believers around the world missionaries, pastors, ordinary people Who have found themselves surrounded by danger. One missionary shared how hostile men came to attack their compound at night. But they never entered. Later one of those men came to Christ. And he said, “We were going to attack… but we saw soldiers surrounding your home.” There were no soldiers. Only angels. They thought they were outnumbered… But heaven had already surrounded them. 

Acts 12:7 Peter didn’t fight his way out. He didn’t break the chains. God sent help. Right now, there are people here that feel trapped. Not physically but spiritually. Bondages Fear Oppression Situations they cannot fix You’ve been trying in your own strength… But today heaven is offering help. If you need any help open your heart stay right where you are. AND LET IT HAPPEN] You don’t need to explain it. God already sees it. Father, in the name of Jesus… Send Your help. Break chains.
Open doors.
Release what has been bound. Let angelic assistance move according to Your will And bring freedom to Your people. 

Even Jesus needed strengthening. Luke 22:42-43 ^“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”  An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. That tells me something… It’s okay to need help. 

A woman once shared with me how she was in a hospital room and had received devastating health news. She had No strength left.
She had No words left.
She had No hope left. But then She told me, “I felt something come over me, like peace, like strength that wasn’t mine.” She made it through that night. Then the next. Then the next. The next time I saw her she said, “I know now, God carried me.” 

Sometimes angels don’t remove the storm, they strengthen you in it. So, If you’re tired. If you’re worn down. If you feel like you can’t take another step… This is not weakness. This is where heaven meets you. Lord, Send strength from heaven. Lift every heavy heart. Restore what has been drained. Let Your people rise again, Not in their strength. But in Yours. In Jesus’ name. 

But beware Not every spirit is from God. 1 John 4:1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 

Discernment matters. Truth matters. When you pray… something happens. When you worship… something shifts. When you obey… heaven responds. 

Let me bring it home. Think back over your life. Moments you should not have survived. Decisions that should have destroyed you. Situations that should have taken you out. But you’re still here. The greatest thing angels do… Is not just protect, it’s point people to God. Because without God… Protection doesn’t matter. Strength doesn’t matter. Nothing matters. 

If you are here today And you are not right with God… Or you once were but you are struggling This is your moment. I want you to just sit where you are. And say this to yourself or aloud: “Lord Jesus. I come to You today. I give You, my life. Forgive my sins. Make me new. I surrender everything to You. Be my Lord. Be my Savior. From this day forward. In Jesus’ name. Amen.” Just remember. You are not alone! You are not forgotten! You are not unprotected! The God of heaven… Has assigned His kingdom… To move on your behalf. 

Father, Thank You for what You have done in this place today. Seal every word.
Strengthen every heart.
Protect every life. Let Your angels go forth according to Your will, And let Your people walk in faith. In Jesus’ name I pray Amen.

   Good morning, Today I want to talk about gardens, and about one garden in particular. When we think of gardens, we imagine beauty.  We think of carefully planted rows, bright flowers reaching toward the sun, soft grass beneath our feet, and the peaceful sound of wind moving through the trees.  Gardens are places of life.  They are places of growth.  They are places where things flourish. From the very beginning of Scripture, gardens have mattered to God.  The story of humanity began in a garden, a place of fellowship, innocence, and walking with the Lord in the cool of the day. Gardens often represent blessing, provision, and peace. 

But the garden I am going to talk about today is a completely different kind of garden. There were no colorful flowerbeds there.
No neatly arranged pathways.
No fountains or fragrant blossoms filling the air. The only things in this garden were olive trees, ancient, twisted, weathered olive trees, and two great stones used for pressing olives.  Heavy stones.  Crushing stones. Stones designed not to decorate, but to press, to squeeze, to crush until oil flowed. The name of this garden is Gethsemane. 

Matthew 26:36 “Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane” The word Gethsemane means: “Oil press” It was not simply a place of beauty it was a place of crushing.  A place where olives were laid beneath enormous weight until everything inside them was crushed out.   And it is in this garden, not the garden of beginnings, but the garden of burden, that we see one of the most powerful and intimate moments in all of Scripture. Here, under the shadow of those olive trees, the Son of God knelt.
Here, beneath the night sky, the Savior of the world would pray.
Here, in a place meant for crushing, the weight of the world would begin to press upon Him. Before the cross, there was a garden.
Before the nails, there was surrender.
Before the victory, there was the crushing.   

Today we step into that garden.
We walk past the olive trees.
We hear the quiet of the night.
And we witness what happens when divine love meets unbearable pressure. Because what took place in Gethsemane was not weakness it was willing surrender.
It was not defeat, it was obedience.
It was not the end, it was the beginning of redemption being pressed out for all mankind. 

So, this morning, let us enter that garden with reverence.
Let us listen carefully.
And let us learn what Gethsemane teaches us about surrender, suffering, and the strength that comes through submission to the will of God.   We walk not into a palace, not into a synagogue, not even yet to the hill called Calvary but into a garden. A quiet place. A dark place. A sacred place. This is the Garden of Gethsemane. This is where eternity trembled in silence.
This is where the will of heaven collided with the weight of the world.
This is where Jesus did not face nails but something even heavier. He faced the cup. Before the crown came the crushing.
Before the victory came the surrender.
Before the cross came the garden. 

And if we are going to understand the power of the cross, we must first understand the agony of the garden. It was a place where olives were crushed under immense pressure until oil flowed out. This is not accidental. Jesus did not randomly choose this location.
He chose a place that symbolized what He Himself was about to experience. Just as olives are crushed to produce oil.
Jesus would be crushed to release salvation. In a Spiritual Meaning, Gethsemane represents pressure It represents crushing It represents hidden suffering It represents internal battles Before God uses you publicly, He will often press you privately. 

That burden was placed on Jesus.  Matthew 26:37–38 “My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death” Here we see something profound: Jesus, fully God yet fully man. He feels sorrow, heaviness and distress This is not weakness.
This is real humanity under divine assignment. Spiritual maturity does not remove emotional struggle it teaches you how to surrender through it. Jesus was not afraid of pain alone.
He was facing something deeper: The weight of sin The separation from the father The full wrath meant for humanity 

On that Night after the Last Supper Jesus takes His disciples to Gethsemane but not all to the same level. Eight disciples stay at a distance Three go further (Peter, James, John) Jesus goes alone This teaches us: Not everyone can go where God is taking you. There are levels in prayer: Casual prayer Committed prayer Crushing prayer Some people can walk with you but only God can carry you through your deepest battle. 

This is what Jesus was really facing.  Matthew 26:39 “O my father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me” What is the cup? The cup represents: Sin of all humanity Judgment of God Separation from the father Jesus was not afraid of nails.
He was facing becoming sin. This is the moment: Where holiness would carry sin
Where purity would carry corruption
Where the son would experience separation   And now comes Jesus’s total Surrender “Nevertheless, not as I will, but as Thou wilt.” This is the turning point of history.

One word: Nevertheless This is where: Self-dies Obedience rises Destiny is secured. The battle was not won at the cross. It was won in the garden. Because once Jesus said “YES” in Gethsemane…
the cross became inevitable. 

After Jesus finishes praying, he returns to his disciples and finds them sleeping. Matthew 26:40 “Could ye not watch with me one hour?” This reveals: The weakness of human flesh The loneliness of spiritual leadership The cost of obedience Spiritual Reality:   While Jesus was fighting spiritually. The disciples were sleeping naturally. 

Many times: God is calling you to pray But all your flesh wants to do is rest.   Sometimes prayer can become agony. Luke 22:44 “His sweat was as it were great drops of blood” Bow that is intense. Jesus is under such pressure that His body responds physically. This shows us: There is a level of prayer where: Words fail Strength fades Only surrender remains Some prayers are not polite. They are desperate. 

But rest assured Heaven responds to surrender.  Luke 22:43 “There appeared an angel unto him from heaven, to strengthening him.” Notice, the angel did not come before the surrender. He came after. God may not remove the pressure, but He will give you strength to endure it. 

Now Judas arrives and betrays Jesus. Not with a sword.
but with a kiss. This teaches us that: Betrayal often comes from closeness Pain often comes from familiarity Yet Jesus does not resist. Because once you have surrendered in that garden You don’t fight what God has allowed. Every believer will face a Gethsemane. A place where: Your will is tested Your obedience is stretched Your faith is pressed   

Your Gethsemane may look like: A hard decision A painful loss A season of silence A call you don’t want to answer What we must always remember from the garden is, Pressure reveals purpose. Surrender unlocks destiny. Prayers sustain obedience. God strengthens those who yield. Victory begins before the battle is seen.   

What we also need to Remember: While Gethsemane means oil press. Oil represents: Anointing Power Healing Presence And here is the hard Truth: There is no oil without crushing. The reason Jesus could pour out salvation Is because He allowed Himself to be pressed. 

But The story does not end in Gethsemane. It moves: From garden To cross To resurrection What looked like surrender, was actually victory in disguise.   Today, God is asking: Will you say “nevertheless”? When it’s hard When it costs When you don’t understand Will you surrender your will? Because your breakthrough Is on the other side of your surrender. 

Lord, we thank You for the garden. We thank You for the place where Your Son said yes, when everything in the natural world said no. Teach us to pray in our Gethsemane.
Strengthen us in our weakness.
Help us to surrender when it hurts. Give us the strength and grace to say:
“Not my will, but Yours be done.” And let the oil of Your Spirit flow through our lives. In Jesus’ name,
Amen

tThis morning, as I prayed and prepared for this teaching, I found myself thinking about how many times in my own life God has met me in moments when hope felt distant. There have been times when prayers felt heavy, when the road of faith seemed difficult, and when the world itself felt uncertain. Yet again and again, the Lord has reminded me of one unchanging truth. The tomb is empty. Easter is not just a day on the calendar. It is the reminder that the same power that raised Jesus from the grave is still at work today in our lives, in our church, and in this very moment. So today we come to the very heart of the Christian faith.

We come not merely to an event recorded in history, but to the defining moment of eternity itself.
We come to a holy mystery where heaven and earth collide, where divine love is poured out, and where the destiny of humanity is forever changed. Before there was a crown of thorns, there was the eternal plan of God.
Before the nails were driven into His hands, grace had already been written into the story of creation.
From the foundation of the world, God knew the cost of our redemption, and He chose love anyway.

What we witness at the cross and the empty tomb is not God reacting to human failure, but God fulfilling His promise of salvation. The crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus Christ are not two separate stories; they are one divine act of redemption.
They are the hinge upon which all of history turns and the lens through which all Scripture must be read.
At the cross, we see the depth of human sin and the greater depth of God’s mercy.
At the resurrection, we see death defeated, hope reborn, and the future of all who believe secured forever. The cross without the resurrection would be tragedy, an innocent man suffering under the weight of injustice.

The resurrection without the cross would be triumph without justice victory without atonement.
But together, they reveal the wisdom, holiness, love, and power of Almighty God.
Together, they declare that sin has been judged, death has been conquered, and redemption has been accomplished. So today, as we stand in the shadow of the cross and in the light of the empty tomb, we do so with reverence and expectation.

For this is not merely a story to be remembered, but a truth to be received, a power to be experienced, and a hope to be proclaimed. The apostle Paul declared,1 Corinthians 2:2 “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified” And again from, 1 Corinthians 15:14 “If Christ had not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith” Therefore, today we stand at the intersection of suffering and glory, death and life, judgment and mercy.

For this is holy ground. We do not rush. We do not sensationalize. We listen with reverence, for in this story we see our sin judged, our debt paid, our death defeated, and our future secured. The crucifixion of Jesus was not an accident of history nor merely the result of human hatred. It was the eternal plan of God. Scripture tells us in Revelation 13:8 that Christ is “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” Before there was a sinner, there was a Savior. Before there was a fall, there was a plan for redemption. Humanity’s problem was not ignorance but sin. Not weakness but rebellion. The holiness of God demanded justice, and the love of God provided a substitute. 

The cross stands as the place where justice and mercy kissed. And before nails pierced His hands, anguish pierced His soul. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus fell to the ground and prayed, Matthew 26:39 “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will” The cup was not merely physical pain. It was the cup of divine wrath the full weight of sin, judgment, and separation. In that moment, we see the true humanity of Christ, trembling yet obedient, sorrowful yet resolved. Salvation was costly, it was not cheap grace; it was grace purchased with obedience unto death. 

Jesus was betrayed with a kiss, denied by a friend, abandoned by His disciples, and condemned by false witnesses. He stood silent before His accusers, fulfilling the words in Isaiah 53:7 “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth” The King of Glory was mocked with a crown of thorns. The Judge of all the earth was judged by sinners. The Innocent One was declared guilty so that the guilty might go free. 

Crucifixion was designed to humiliate, torture, and destroy. Victims were stripped naked, exposed to shame, and left to die slowly. Yet God transformed this instrument of terror into an altar of redemption. Jesus was nailed to the cross between two criminals, fulfilling prophecy and identifying fully with the sinful and rejected. Above His head hung the charge: “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.” What Rome intended as mockery, heaven declared as truth. 

From the cross, Jesus spoke these 7 sentences that echo through eternity: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” 

“Today you will be with Me in paradise.” 

“Woman, here is your son… Here is your mother.” 

“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” 

' I thirst.” 

“It is finished.” 

Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” 

These words reveal forgiveness, salvation, compassion, substitution, humanity, victory, and trust, The cross is not silent, it preaches. When Jesus cried, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” He was quoting Matthew 27:46. In that moment, the sinless Son bore the full separation that sin causes. God did not cease to love the Son, but the Son experienced the judgment that belonged to us. This was substitution, Christ stood in our place. He became sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. 

“It Is Finished” From the Greek word tetelisti means “paid in full.” The debt was canceled; The law was fulfilled. The sacrifice was complete. Nothing could be added. Nothing needed to be repeated. Salvation was accomplished. When Jesus breathed His last, the curtain in the temple was torn from top to bottom. The way into God’s presence was opened not by human effort, but by divine sacrifice. 

Jesus truly died. His body was pierced, His blood poured out, His heart stopped. He was wrapped in linen and placed in a borrowed tomb. The stone was sealed. The guards were posted. Hope seemed buried. Holy Saturday represents the silence we all experience, the waiting, the confusion, the grief. But God is often most active when He appears silent. 

Then early on the first day of the week, the women went to the tomb and found the stone rolled away. An angel declared, Matthew 28:6 “He is not here; He has risen, just as He said” The resurrection was not a spiritual metaphor. It was physical, historical, and witnessed. The tomb was empty. Death was defeated. Then Jesus then appears to Mary Magdalene, to the disciples, to Thomas, and to more than five hundred believers. He ate with them. He spoke with them. He invited them to touch His wounds. The same Jesus who was crucified now stood alive forevermore. 

The resurrection declares: Jesus is the Son of God, the sacrifice was accepted Death has been conquered, our faith is secure Our future resurrection is guaranteed Because He lives, we shall live also. We are not saved by works, rituals, or morality. We are saved by grace through faith in the finished work of Christ. The resurrection is God’s receipt that the payment was accepted. Sin no longer has dominion. Death no longer has the final word. The same power that raised Christ from the dead now lives in us believers. The cross calls us to die to self. The resurrection calls us to live for Christ. Christianity is not merely believing in the cross it is carrying it. 

Friends, we do not leave the cross behind when we come to the resurrection, nor do we linger at the empty tomb as spectators. We live every day in the light of both. The cross tells us who we were, sinners in need of grace. The resurrection tells us who we are becoming new creations destined for glory. Together they shape our identity, our worship, and our hope. When we look to the cross, we remember the cost of our redemption. We remember that sin is serious, that love is sacrificial, and that forgiveness was purchased at an immeasurable price.   The cross humbles us, it silences pride, It strips away self-righteousness. At the foot of the cross, all ground is level, and all boasting is excluded. 

And when we look to the empty tomb, we remember that the story did not end in death. The stone was rolled away not so Jesus could get out, but so the world could see in.   Resurrection power shattered despair, overturned finality, and proclaimed that God always has the final word. The resurrection declares that what God promises, He fulfills; what God begins, He completes. To live as resurrection people means we refuse to let death, fear, or suffering define us. 

We may walk through valleys, but we do not walk without hope. We may grieve, but we do not grieve as those who believe death is the end. Because Christ lives, our suffering has meaning, our obedience has purpose, and our future is secure. 

The resurrection also sends us. We are not called merely to admire the risen Christ but to follow Him. Just as the Father sent the Son, the risen Son sends us the church. We go bearing witness that forgiveness is available, chains can be broken, and new life is possible in Jesus Christ.   

The gospel we proclaim is not advice it is news. Good news that death has been defeated and salvation has been accomplished. And finally, the resurrection fixes our eyes on what is yet to come. The risen Christ is the first fruits of a greater harvest. What happened to Him will happen to all who belong to Him.   

One day, graves will open, tears will be wiped away, and death itself will be no more. Until that day, we live faithfully between promise and fulfillment, carrying our crosses with confidence, knowing a crown awaits. So friends, stand firm. Preach Christ crucified. Live in the power of the resurrection. Let the cross shape your love and the empty tomb shape your hope. For this is our confession and our song: 

Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. 

Amen.

You Have often heard me talk about Mary-Beth being my spiritual daughter, so what does having a Spiritual Daughter mean. It is a Sacred Trust that has been Entrusted to Me.  

I did not seek the title of spiritual parent, nor did I imagine the depth of responsibility it would carry. Yet in the quiet work of God, a spiritual daughter was entrusted to my care, not by blood, but by calling. What began as prayer and obedience grew into a sacred bond, one I recognize now as a holy stewardship placed in my hands by the Lord Himself. 

I came to understand that this relationship was not about authority or position, but about faithfulness. God did not ask me to shape her according to my will, but to walk with her as He revealed His will. I was called to pray more than I spoke, to listen more than I instructed, and to trust the Holy Spirit to do the work only He can accomplish.   

My role was never to replace God’s voice, but to echo His truth with humility and love. Through this journey, Scripture came alive in new ways. I saw reflections of Paul’s care for Timothy, of Naomi’s guidance of Ruth, of Elijah’s faithful investment in Elisha. These were not relationships built on control, but on a scriptural care relationship where faith was nurtured through presence, patience, and example.

 In walking alongside my spiritual daughter, I learned that discipleship is as much about surrender as it is about guidance. There were seasons of joy and seasons of pain. Moments when growth was visible and moments when progress could only be trusted to God. At times, I felt the weight of responsibility deeply, aware that every word spoken and every silence held could either strengthen or wound.   Yet, in that awareness, I found myself drawn closer to prayer, more dependent on grace, and more mindful of my own walk with Christ. 

This sacred bond has shaped me as much as it has shaped Mary-Beth.  In seeking to encourage her faith, my own faith was refined.  In offering counsel, I was reminded to seek God’s wisdom first. Spiritual daughterhood revealed to me that God often teaches us through those we are called to guide, and that true leadership in the Kingdom is marked by service, love, and faithfulness.   I hold this calling with reverence, knowing it belongs ultimately to God.  

My prayer is that this relationship remains anchored in Christ, guided by the Holy Spirit, and guarded by love.  And may it bear fruit not for recognition or legacy, but for the glory of God and the fulfillment of His purposes in both our lives   

So, Friends, today let us find out what the Holy Bible has to say about this subject because I am not addressing a light or secondary matter as you can tell from what I have just said. I am speaking of something that touches the very heart of God. From eternity, God has desired a family. Creation itself was an act of fatherhood, and redemption is the restoration of that family through Jesus Christ. 

In our generation, we live in a paradox. We are more connected technologically than any generation before us, yet spiritually, many are isolated, disconnected, and orphaned. Churches are full, sermons are preached, worship is sung but many believers are left without spiritual guidance, affirmation, or covering. 

God never intended His people to grow alone. Faith was always meant to be lived in relationships. The Kingdom of God advances not only through proclamation, but through spiritual reproduction, lives shaped by lives, hearts formed by hearts. One of the most powerful expressions of this reproduction is the raising of spiritual sons and daughters. These are men and women who are not merely attendees, but disciples; not merely converts, but carriers of God’s presence; not merely followers, but future leaders. Jesus Himself redefined family when He said: “Whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.” (Matthew 12:50) With that declaration, Jesus announced that spiritual relationships would carry eternal weight. Today, the Church must rediscover this truth. 

Before we can speak of spiritual daughters or sons, we must speak of God as Father. Every healthy spiritual relationship flows out of a correct understanding of who God is. Scripture proclaims: “I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:18) This is not symbolic language. This is scriptural language. God binds Himself to His people with the commitment of a Father. He provides, protects, corrects, and remains present. 

Many believers struggle to become spiritual parents because they themselves have never fully embraced their identity as sons and daughters of God.   When identity is insecure, authority becomes abusive. But when identity is rooted in God, authority becomes nurturing. A spiritual parent must parent from wholeness, not from need. From security, not from fear. From love, not from control. The Apostle Paul writes: “For in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.” (1 Corinthians 4:15) Paul is not using poetic exaggeration. He is describing spiritual reality. 

Spiritual daughters and sons are not recruited they are born. And birth always involves labor. Paul tells us in Galatians: “My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you.” (Galatians 4:19) Spiritual parenting requires sacrifice, patience, and perseverance. It requires walking with people through immaturity, failure, doubt, and growth. This is not glamorous work, but it is holy work. A spiritual daughter or son is a man or woman whom God connects to a mature believer for intentional discipleship. This connection is recognized spiritually, affirmed mutually, and governed by biblical boundaries. 

Paul clarifies spiritual authority: “Not that we have dominion over your faith but are fellow workers for your joy.” (2 Corinthians 1:24) A spiritual daughter or son is never possessed. They are stewarded. They are never silenced. They are strengthened. They are never diminished. They are developed. True spiritual parenting empowers sons and daughters to hear God for themselves, not to replace God’s voice. 

The story of Naomi and Ruth unfolds in the context of loss, famine, and displacement. Naomi did not choose Ruth out of convenience; she walked with her through suffering. Ruth declared: “Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God.” (Ruth 1:16) Naomi taught Ruth how to trust God in uncertainty, how to live righteously in a foreign land, and how to recognize divine opportunity. Because of Naomi’s guidance, Ruth entered into God’s redemptive plan. 

Spiritual sons and daughters are more often than not forged in seasons of hardship. Spiritual parents must remain faithful in those seasons. Scripture tells us: “Mordecai had brought up Esther.” Mordecai shaped Esther long before she stepped into public influence. When the crisis came, Esther had already been formed in prayer, wisdom, and courage. Destiny without formation leads to destruction. Spiritual daughters and sons must be prepared privately before they are positioned publicly. 

When Jesus called the healed woman "Daughter," He restored what society had stripped away. “Daughter, your faith has made you well.” (Mark 5:34) Jesus did not merely heal bodies; He healed identities. 

Every spiritual son or daughter must first know they belong. After the resurrection, Jesus entrusted Mary Magdalene with the message of victory: “Go to My brethren and say to them…” (John 20:17) God entrusts revelation to those He restores. Jesus commanded: “Go therefore and make disciples.” (Matthew 28:19) Discipleship is not mass production it is relational investment. Paul reinforces this through Titus2:3–5): “That the older women admonish the young women.”  

This is God’s design for spiritual sons and daughters. Spiritual parents must love patiently, teach faithfully, and pray persistently. “Love is patient, love is kind.” (1 Corinthians 13:4) “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God.” (2 Timothy 3:16) “I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you.” (Galatians 4:19) Spiritual daughters and sons must remain teachable and pursue maturity. “Receive with meekness the implanted word.” (James 1:21) “Till we all come… to a mature person.” (Ephesians 4:13) 

Many women and men come wounded by abandonment, neglect, or abuse. God promises: “A father of the fatherless… is God.” (Psalm 68:5) Spiritual family becomes the context for healing. “Whom the Lord loves He corrects.” (Hebrews 12:6) Correction is proof of love. “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30) Spiritual parents rejoice when daughters and sons exceed them. “Commit these to faithful people who will teach others also.” (2 Timothy 2:2)

 Spiritual daughters and sons become spiritual mothers and fathers. Friends, God is restoring spiritual families. The Church must rise to raise daughters and sons who know who they are in Christ, who walk in holiness, and who carry the gospel with courage. “As many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons and daughters of God.” (Romans 8:14) 

Let us Pray. Lord, source of all life and every good gift, we come before You with grateful hearts, lifting up the spiritual daughters and sons You have placed within our care. They are not ours by possession, but Yours by creation and redemption. We thank You for the sacred trust of walking alongside them, nurturing what You are forming, and witnessing Your hand at work in their lives. Lord, as You spoke through the psalmist, “Children are a heritage from the Lord” we receive these sons and daughters as a holy inheritance. Shape them in the likeness of Christ. Write Your truth upon their hearts, that they may delight in Your ways and walk in obedience, not out of fear, but out of love.   

Father, plant them deeply in Your Word. Let them be like trees planted by streams of water, bearing fruit in season, whose leaves do not wither. When the storms of doubt, temptation, or suffering arise, anchor them in the unshakable hope found in Jesus. Guard their hearts and minds with Your peace, which surpasses all understanding. 

Holy Spirit come near to them. Teach them to recognize Your voice above all others. Convict where correction is needed, comfort where wounds remain and empower them with spiritual gifts for the work of ministry. Ignite within them a bold and holy faith, one that does not shrink back, but presses forward with perseverance and trust.  

 Lord, for those called to be spiritual mothers and fathers, grant wisdom beyond our own understanding. Keep us humble, teachable, and dependent upon You. Help us to reflect Paul’s heart when he said, “We were gentle among you, like a nursing mother caring for her children” Give us grace to speak truth in love, patience to walk at their pace, and joy to celebrate their growth, even when it leads them beyond us. Heal what is broken in them Lord, wounds from the past, disappointments, fear, and rejection. Remind them that in You they are fully known and fully loved. Restore their identity as sons and daughters of the Most High, co-heirs with Christ, chosen and set apart for Your purposes. 

Send them out, Lord, in Your perfect timing. May they carry the light of Christ into dark places, the compassion of Jesus into wounded hearts, and the power of the Spirit into a world longing for hope.   Let their lives proclaim the gospel not only in word, but in love, humility, and faithfulness. We place them once more into Your hands, trusting Your promise: “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6). And May Your name be glorified through their lives, from generation to generation. In the holy and mighty name of Jesus.
Amen.

Today is my final teaching on Gods free gifts and I would say the greatest free gift of them all and that is God’s Love 

Without the love of God there would be no peace. 

Without the love of God there would be no Mercy. 

Without the love of God there would be no grace. 

Friends, today I stand before you to declare the greatest truth the world has ever known: God loves you. This is not a shallow slogan, not a soft sentiment, but the deepest reality of the universe. It is the heartbeat of Scripture, the theme of redemption, and the hope of humanity. (John 3:16). “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” Many hear this verse but struggle to believe it. 

Life’s disappointments, human rejection, personal failures, and broken promises make us question whether God’s love is real or reliable.   But today I want to take you through the Bible to show you the unfailing, unshakable, eternal love of God. By the time we finish, I pray His love will not just be information in your mind, but transformation in your heart. 

John writes in 1 John 4:8, “God is love.” That is not simply something God does; it is who He is. Love is His nature, His essence, His eternal character. He does not love us because we are lovable He loves because He is love. Human love is fragile and conditional. We often say, “I love you if…” or “I love you because…” But God’s love says, “I love you in spite of, I love you regardless, I love you eternally. 

Jeremiah 31:3 says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, with lovingkindness I have drawn you.” His love is not a passing mood or an emotional whim. It is everlasting, covenantal, and secure. Love must be demonstrated to be real. Paul writes in Romans 5:8: “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 

The cross is the greatest demonstration of God’s love. Jesus did not wait until we cleaned ourselves up. He died for us while we were still lost and rebellious. The nails did not hold Him there, love did. 

Think of it this way: if someone is drowning, you might throw them a rope. That’s kindness. But if you jump in, take their place, and give your life so they may live that is sacrificial love. That is the love of Christ at Calvary. 

Paul prayed in Ephesians 3:18–19 that we would grasp “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge. It is Wide enough to embrace the whole world. It is Long enough to last for eternity. It is High enough to lift us to heaven. It is Deep enough to reach the lowest sinner.

 Romans 8 declares that nothing neither death nor life, angels nor demons, present nor future, height nor depth can separate us from the love of God. You may run from Him, but you cannot outrun His love. From Genesis to Malachi, God’s love is woven through His dealings with His people. After Adam and Eve sinned, He clothed them. When Israel groaned in Egypt, He delivered them. In the wilderness, He fed them with manna. In exile, He promised restoration. 

The Old Testament word “hesed” speaks of God’s steadfast covenant love. And Psalm 136 repeats, “His love endures forever,” twenty-six times. 

The story of Hosea and Gomer shows His relentless pursuit: Though she was unfaithful, Hosea bought her back just as God redeems His wandering people. 

If the Old Testament whispers of love, the New Testament shouts it in Jesus Christ. He touched lepers, welcomed children, forgave sinners, and embraced outcasts. The parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15 shows a father running to embrace his lost child a picture of God’s eagerness to forgive and restore. And at Calvary, His love reached its climax. Jesus laid down His life willingly, bearing our sins, so we could bear His righteousness. 

Truly, the cross is love in action. God’s love is not just a doctrine to discuss; it is a power that transforms lives. 1 John 4:18 says, “Perfect love casts out fear.” His love removes guilt, heals shame, restores identity, and breaks the chains of sin. Many live haunted by their past, feeling unworthy of God’s love. But the gospel declares: you are not loved because of your worthiness you are loved because of His grace. 

His love gives us new hearts, new hope, and new direction. Jesus said in John 15:9: “As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Remain in My love.” To remain means to abide, to dwell, to root ourselves daily in His love. It means waking each day with the assurance, “I am loved by God.” When trials come, we find security in His love. When doubts whisper, His love reminds us we are His. Worship becomes our natural response not because we must, but because love overflows. 

God’s love is never meant to stop with us; it flows through us. Jesus said in John 13:34–35: “Love one another. As I have loved you, you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples.” When we forgive as He forgave, when we serve as He served, when we love as He loves, we become living testimonies of His grace. This applies to marriage, family, friendships, and even our enemies. Love becomes the mark of the believer. Love and forgiveness cannot be separated. God’s love moved Him to forgive us at great cost. And His Word commands us to forgive others, not because they deserve it, but because we have been forgiven. 

The world says, “Hold a grudge.” God says, “Release it.” 

The world says, “Get revenge.” God says, “Love your enemies.” 

Such radical love is impossible without the Spirit of God within us, but it is the clearest reflection of Christ in us. But what about when life hurts? When prayers seem unanswered, when sickness lingers, when grief overwhelms does God still love us? Yes. The cross proves His love once and for all. And Romans 8 assures us that even in hardship, persecution, famine, or danger, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 

His love does not always remove the storm, but it carries us through the storm. Hebrews 12 tells us that God disciplines those He loves. Discipline is not punishment but correction. A father who loves his child will guide and sometimes chastise them for their own good. So, when God convicts, redirects, or closes doors, it is not rejection it is love shaping us into the likeness of Christ. 

The church is the community of the beloved. Paul often calls believers “the beloved of God.” The church is not a club, not an institution, but a family bound by divine love. When we gather, we remind one another of His love, we worship the One who loved us first, and we extend that love to a hurting world. God’s love is not temporary; it is eternal. Jeremiah 31:3 says it is everlasting. 1 Corinthians 13 says love never fails.

 Heaven will be the fullness of God’s love experienced without hindrance. Revelation 21 describes a place with no tears, no pain, no death because the love of God will surround us forever. 

Fellow worshipers we have walked from Genesis to Revelation, from the Garden to the Cross to the Throne, and everywhere the message is the same: God loves you. You may feel unworthy, but His love says you are priceless. You may feel forgotten, but His love says you are remembered. You may feel guilty, but His love says you are forgiven.

 The question is not, “Does God love me?” The cross already answered that. The real question is, “Will I receive His love and walk in it?” Today, come home to the Father’s embrace. Abide in His love. Reflect His love. And live forever in the unfailing love of God. Let us open our hearts to that perfect love so freely given.

Lord we come before You with hearts that seeks Your presence.
You are love itself pure, eternal, unchanging love.
From the beginning of time, Your love has reached across the ages, calling creation into being and breathing life into all that exists.
And still today, You call us by name and draw us near to You. Lord, thank You for loving us even when we fall short.
When we are broken, You mend our spirits.
When we wander, You gently lead us home.
When we doubt, Your faithfulness holds us steady.
Your love never grows weary, never fades, never gives up.
It is patient and kind, full of mercy and compassion.
Let Your love flow through us like living water, cleansing every thought, healing every wound, and renewing every soul. Teach us to love as You love, Lord, to forgive freely, to show kindness without expecting return, to see others not as the world sees them but as You do, precious, chosen, and made in Your image.
Help us to be a vessel of Your compassion, to speak words that heal, to act with gentleness and grace, and to reflect Your light in every place we go. Let Your love be the foundation of all we do.
When we are weary, may Your love give us strength.
When we are uncertain, may Your love guide our steps.
When we are afraid, may Your love remind us that we are never alone. Thank You, Lord, for the cross, the greatest act of love the world has ever known.
Through Jesus, You showed us that love is stronger than sin,
greater than sorrow, and victorious over death itself.
May that same love take root deep within us, shaping our thoughts, our words, and our every action. Holy Spirit, dwell within us and teach is to live daily in the awareness of this love.
Let Your love surround us like a shield and carry us through each day.
May our lives be a testimony of Your goodness and grace,
so that those who meet us might sense something of You 
Your peace, Your mercy, your grace and Your everlasting love. In Jesus’ precious name I pray. Amen

Today we gather around one of the most precious treasures that God offers to His children: And that is peace. Peace is something the world endlessly longs for, yet so few ever truly find. Nations sign treaties, but wars continue. Families seek harmony, but divisions arise. Individuals chase calm in possessions, pleasures, or philosophies, yet still feel restless inside. Humanity, from the beginning, has sought peace, but apart from God, it remains elusive. 

Jesus Christ spoke words that strike deep into the human soul: (John 14:27). “Peace, I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid”   

This is not a superficial, fragile peace. It is not the quiet that comes when problems are absent. Rather, it is the deep and unshakable stillness of the heart that comes when God Himself rules within. It is peace that cannot be stolen by storms, trials, or enemies. Today we will explore four dimensions of this divine peace: 

The Source of Peace – God Himself. 

The Nature of Peace – what makes God’s peace different. 

The Practice of Peace – how we live it out daily. 

The Promise of Peace – eternal peace in Christ’s kingdom. 

May the Holy Spirit open our eyes, quiet our hearts, and fill us with His perfect peace as we hear His Word. 

The Source of Peace God Himself is the Source Paul often closes his letters with a simple blessing: (Romans 15:33).  “The God of peace be with you all”   

Notice He is not merely the giver of peace. He is peace. Peace flows out of His nature, just as light flows from the sun or water from a spring. The world’s peace is dependent on circumstances, no conflict, no trouble, no noise. But God’s peace flows out of His very being, unchanging and eternal. 

That’s why Jesus could say in John 16:33, “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” His victory is our peace. Peace was purchased at a price. Colossians 1:20 declares that Christ reconciled all things to Himself, “making peace by the blood of His cross.” Humanity was at war with God. Our sin created hostility, like a wall separating us from Him. But at the cross, Jesus tore down that wall. Isaiah prophesied, in Isaiah 53:5). “The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him” 

Imagine two nations at war for generations. Suddenly, one king’s own son steps onto the battlefield and offers himself as a ransom. His blood is shed, the enmity is ended, and reconciliation begins. That is what Christ did for us. He is the Prince of Peace, and through His sacrifice, He ended the war between heaven and earth. 

Jesus promised His disciples in John 14:26–27 that the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, would come. The Spirit applies Christ’s finished work to our hearts, calming our fears, teaching us truth, and reminding us of God’s promises. It is the Spirit who whispers peace to us in the midnight hour, who steadies us when storms rage, and who fills us with confidence that God is with us. 

The Nature of God’s Peace Peace Beyond Understanding Paul writes in Philippians 4:6–7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” 

This is not peace we can reason out. It doesn’t make sense to the world. How can a person in the middle of hardship still radiate calm? How can someone who has lost everything still sing praises to God?   Yet history is full of testimonies. Paul and Silas, beaten and chained in a Philippian jail, sang hymns at midnight.                              Why? Because they possessed peace that came not from circumstance but from Christ. 

Mark 4 tells us of Jesus asleep in the boat while a violent storm raged. The disciples cried out in fear, but Jesus arose and said, “Peace! Be still!” and the wind and waves obeyed. But notice before He calmed the storm outside, He Himself was calm inside. The storm did not shake Him. He carried within Him the peace of God, and He released it into the situation. So, it is with us. God may not always remove the storms of life. But He offers peace that steadies us within the storm.

 The Hebrew word shalom means more than calm. It means wholeness, harmony, health, completeness. It is life as God intended. When God gives peace, He is not just calming nerves He is restoring what is broken, healing what is wounded, and reconciling what is divided.  

Romans 5:1 tells us: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Peace is not earned. It is received by trusting in Christ. The moment we believe, the war is over. The guilt is lifted. 

The heart rests. A man burdened with a heavy pack struggles under its weight. At last, he kneels at the cross and lays it down. Instantly, he rises light, free, and at peace. That is what faith in Christ brings. Colossians 3:15 urges: “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.” Peace is not just a one-time gift; it is a daily decision to let God’s peace reign. 

How? Through prayer, worship, and the Word. Every morning, as we bring our anxieties to Him, He exchanges them for peace. Every time we worship, we realign our hearts with heaven’s harmony. Every time we open Scripture, we drink from the fountain of peace. 

Peace with God naturally leads to peace with others. “Blessed are the peacemakers,” Jesus said (Matthew 5:9). Paul echoes, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all” (Romans 12:18). To walk in peace means to forgive, to reconcile, to extend grace. Forgiveness may not erase the past, but it releases its power over the present and opens the way for peace. 

Peace in Eternity Our earthly peace is only a foretaste. Revelation 21:4 promises a day when God will wipe away every tear, when death and pain shall be no more. The Prince of Peace, whose reign was foretold in Isaiah 9:6–7, will establish a kingdom where peace will have no end. Heaven is not merely rest; it is perfect harmony. No sin, no conflict, no fear. Only wholeness, joy, and everlasting peace in the presence of God. 

Every struggle here is temporary. Every storm here is passing. Every battle here will end. But the peace of God’s eternal kingdom will never end. Friends, we have seen that: God Himself is the source of peace. His peace is unlike the world’s; it is deeper, stronger, and everlasting. We must practice peace daily by faith, prayer, and forgiveness. And we hold to the promise of eternal peace in Christ’s kingdom. So, let me ask: do you have this peace today? 

Not just the outward quiet, but the inward assurance? Not just the absence of trouble, but the presence of Christ? Peace is not passive. It is active. To carry God’s peace means to become a peacemaker in a world filled with conflict. It means forgiving when wronged, reconciling when divided, and loving even when unloved. 

The Apostle Paul challenges us in Romans 12:18: “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” So, I ask you: where does God want you to be an instrument of His peace? In your family? Among friends? In the workplace? Will you leave this place not only with peace in your heart but also with peace flowing through your words, your actions, and your life? 

The peace of God is not meant to be hidden within the walls of the church; it is meant to shine in the darkness of the world. Jesus said in Matthew 5:14, “You are the light of the world.” If you have received His peace, then you are called to carry that peace into your neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, and even into the broken corners of society. 

The world is longing for peace, and you hold the answer, because you hold Christ. Will you go and be His ambassador of peace to a restless generation? Lift your eyes beyond the present struggles and see the greater horizon. Isaiah 11:6 paints a picture of the peace of God’s kingdom: “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and a little child shall lead them.” This is the destiny of the people of God, perfect, unending peace in the presence of the Prince of Peace. 

Every trial you face today is temporary. Every tear will be wiped away. Every conflict will be healed. Let this eternal vision anchor your heart and carry you with hope, until faith becomes sight and peace becomes forever. One day, every shadow will vanish, every war will cease, and every restless heart will find eternal rest in Christ. You can live today with confidence, because the God of peace Himself goes with you. 

Peace is not just something we strive for; it is something God has promised to complete in us. Philippians 1:6 assures us: “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” 

That means the struggles you face today cannot rob you of tomorrow’s peace. The storms you fight now cannot undo God’s final victory. The invitation stands: “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Surrender your burdens. Lay down your sins. Receive the peace that only Jesus gives. And may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely. May your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ 

So let us close now with the blessing Paul spoke over the church: “Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times in every way.   

The Lord be with you all” May His peace guard your heart when fear rises.              May His peace guide your steps when decisions press.                                             May His peace reign in your home, your work, your church, and your soul.                  And may His eternal peace be your portion, now and forevermore. Amen.

Gods Mercy 

Beloved in Christ, there are few truths more precious to the human soul than the mercy of God. If you take mercy out of the Christian faith, you strip the gospel of its sweetness, the cross of its meaning, and the believer of his hope. Without mercy, justice would crush us. Without mercy, holiness would consume us. Without mercy, none of us could lift our heads in the presence of Almighty God. But thanks be to God, we serve not only a just God and a holy God, but also a merciful God whose compassions fail not. 

Mercy is the very air the sinner breathes. It is the ground on which the believer stands. It is the song of the redeemed and the hope of the broken.   To meditate on mercy is to look into the beating heart of God Himself. And if there is one thing the world desperately needs today, it is a rediscovery of the mercy of God mercy that heals, mercy that forgives, mercy that restores, mercy that triumphs over judgment.

The psalmist declared in Psalm 103:8–10: “The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will He keep His anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.” 

My friends, this is the gospel in seed form: God does not deal with us as our sins deserve, because He is merciful. So let us take a journey together through the Word of God, tracing the golden thread of divine mercy.   We will look first at the nature of God’s mercy, then at mercy revealed in the Old Testament, then at mercy displayed in Jesus Christ, then at mercy in the believer’s life, and finally at the eternal mercy that secures our future. And as we walk through these truths, may our hearts be set ablaze with gratitude and shaped into vessels of mercy for others. 

We must begin where Scripture begins: with the very character of God. Mercy is not merely one of God’s actions; it is part of His eternal nature. In Exodus 34, when Moses pleaded to see God’s glory, the Lord descended in a cloud and proclaimed His own name: “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” 

Notice, the very first attribute He declares is merciful. Before He mentions power, before holiness, before sovereignty, God reveals Himself as merciful. Mercy is not God’s reluctant duty; it is His chosen delight. Micah 7:18 asks: “Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of His inheritance? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in steadfast love.” 

Did you catch that? God delights in mercy. He takes joy in compassion. What we struggle to offer grudgingly, He offers gladly. How unlike us this is! Our mercy is limited, our patience wears thin, and our forgiveness often carries strings attached. We forgive once, maybe twice, but beyond that, we hesitate.   Yet Jesus told Peter in (Matthew 18:22) “Not seven times, but seventy times seven”. Why? Because our mercy must reflect God’s mercy, which is boundless and inexhaustible. 

Think of the parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15. The boy had squandered everything, disgraced his family, and rehearsed a pitiful speech begging to be treated as a servant. But the father, seeing him from afar, ran to him, embraced him, kissed him, and called for the robe, the ring, and the feast. That my friends is mercy in action, the father withholding the judgment the son deserved and instead restoring him to full sonship. That is a picture of how God receives us. 

Beloved, if this is who God is, then we must cast off every distorted view of Him as a tyrant waiting to punish or a judge eager to condemn.   He is merciful. When you stumble, run to Him, not away from Him, for His mercy is greater than your sin. 

To understand the depth of God’s mercy, we must first look at His dealings with His people throughout history. The Old Testament is not a book of wrath versus a New Testament of grace. No, mercy saturates every page of God’s Word from Genesis to Malachi. Consider again Adam and Eve in the garden. The Lord had warned them: “In the day you eat of it, you shall surely die.” Yet when they transgressed, though judgment fell, mercy triumphed. Instead of instant death, God clothed them with garments of skin a foreshadowing of the covering to come through Christ.  Mercy was present even at the dawn of human rebellion. 

Think again of Israel in the wilderness. Again and again, they murmured, complained, and rebelled. They worshiped a golden calf at the very foot of Mount Sinai, where God’s glory blazed above them. By all rights, God could have wiped them out. Yet He relented at Moses’ intercession, proclaiming His mercy. Nehemiah 9:17 recounts: “But You are a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and did not forsake them.” What a testimony! 

And what of David? After his grievous sin with Bathsheba and his orchestration of Uriah’s death, judgment could have consumed him. But when David fell on his face and cried out, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your steadfast love” God forgave him. Mercy restored the fallen king. 

Jonah, too, gives us a vivid picture. Sent to Nineveh, a cruel, violent city Jonah ran away, because he knew the Lord was merciful. In Jonah 4:2 he complains: “That is why I made haste to flee; for I knew that You are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.” Even Jonah could not stomach just how merciful God truly is! 

And then there is Lamentations 3:22–23: “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.”   Jeremiah wrote those words as Jerusalem lay in ruins, with the temple destroyed and the people carried into exile. Even in judgment, he saw mercy shining like the dawn. 

Beloved, mercy is not an afterthought in the Old Testament. It is the very backbone of God’s covenant dealings with His people. If He were not merciful, Israel would have perished a thousand times over. But mercy carried them through. And mercy carries us still. This same mercy meets us in our wilderness, forgives us when we stumble, and renews us every morning. 

Do not say, “I have sinned too much for God to forgive me.” Look at Israel. Look at David. Look at Nineveh. God delights in mercy. His mercies are new not just yesterday, not just last year but every morning. If the Old Testament reveals God’s mercy in shadows and promises, the New Testament reveals it in flesh and blood. 

Mercy walked among us in the person of Jesus Christ. The Gospels overflow with stories of mercy. Blind Bartimaeus cried out by the roadside, Mark 10:46–52. “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” And though the crowd told him to be silent, Jesus stopped, called him, and restored his sight. Mercy heard his cry. A leper fell before Jesus, (Mark 1:40–42).  “Lord, if You will, You can make me clean.” Moved with compassion, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean” Mercy touched the untouchable. A woman caught in adultery was dragged before Jesus, with stones ready in the hands of the Pharisees. “Moses commanded us to stone such women,” they said. “What do You say?” Jesus bent down, wrote on the ground, and then said from Mark 1:40–42. “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” One by one, they dropped their stones and left. Jesus looked at her and said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more” Mercy touched the untouchable. Mercy spared the guilty. 

Above all, the cross of Jesus Christ is the supreme revelation of God’s mercy. Justice demanded death for sin. Holiness demanded punishment. But mercy stepped in. Romans 5:8 declares: “But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  The wrath we deserved fell upon Him, so that mercy might flow freely to us. At Calvary, justice and mercy kissed. No wonder Jesus declared in the Beatitudes: (Matthew 5:7) “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy” His whole ministry embodied mercy mercy to the sick, mercy to the broken, mercy to sinners, mercy even to His enemies. As He prayed from the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” If grace is the heartbeat of Jesus’ ministry, then mercy must be the heartbeat of His church. 

We are not called to be Pharisees hurling stones, but followers of Christ extending hands. The measure to which we have received mercy must become the measure by which we extend it. To withhold mercy after receiving it is to deny the very gospel that saved us. Paul writes in Romans 12:1: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Notice what motivates the Christian life: not fear, not legalism, but mercy. Because God has shown us mercy, we surrender ourselves to Him. Every believer is a trophy of mercy. Paul himself testified in 1 Timothy 1:13–16: “Though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief … and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me … that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display His perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in Him for eternal life.”

 Paul never got over the mercy of God in his own life, and neither should we. But mercy received must become mercy given.   James 2:13 warns: “Judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” Jesus told the parable of the unforgiving servant: forgiven of a great debt, he refused to forgive his fellow servant of a small one. The master rebuked him, saying, (Matthew 18:33). “Should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?” 

We are called to be channels of mercy in a merciless world. This means forgiving those who wrong us. It means compassion for the poor, the hurting, the marginalized. It means patience with the weak, kindness to the undeserving, love for the unlovely. Mercy is not weakness; it is Christlikeness. Examine your heart. Is there bitterness you have held onto? Is there someone you refuse to forgive? Remember the mountain of sin God has forgiven you and let that mercy overflow to others. As Jesus said, “Freely you have received; freely give.” Mercy received must always become mercy extended. 

Finally, let us lift our eyes to eternity. Mercy is not only for this life; it is our eternal hope. Jude 21 exhorts us: “Keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.” Did you catch that? Eternal life itself is described as God’s mercy. When we stand before the throne of judgment, what hope will we have but mercy? Not our works, not our righteousness, not our service. Only mercy.   Titus 3:5 reminds us: “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy.” From beginning to end, salvation is mercy. Heaven itself will be the eternal unfolding of God’s mercy. For ages to come, we will marvel at the riches of His grace and mercy in Christ Jesus.   Ephesians 2:4–7 says: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us … raised us up with Him … so that in the coming ages He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” 

Eternity will be a school of mercy, and God Himself will be the teacher. Therefore, let us live not in fear but in hope. Whatever trials we face, whatever sins we struggle with, whatever burdens we carry, the mercy that saved us will sustain us to the end. Mercy will have the last word. We have walked together through the glorious landscape of God’s mercy its nature in His character, its display in the Old Testament, its embodiment in Jesus Christ, its power in the believer’s life, and its promise in eternity.  From Genesis to Revelation, mercy flows like a river, cleansing, restoring, renewing, saving. 

So, what must we do? First, receive God’s mercy. Do not harden your heart. No sin is too great, no past too dark, no failure too deep. God’s mercy is greater. Run to Him, and you will not be cast out. 

Second, rejoice in God’s mercy. Let gratitude flood your soul. Sing with the psalmist, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” 

And third, reflect God’s mercy. Go and be merciful, as your Father in heaven is merciful. Forgive as you have been forgiven. Love as you have been loved. Show compassion as you have received compassion. In a harsh and unforgiving world, let the church shine as a beacon of mercy.

I close with the words of Charles Spurgeon: “God’s mercy is so great that you may sooner drain the sea of its water, or deprive the sun of its light, or make space too narrow, than diminish the great mercy of God.” 

May we live, breathe, and proclaim this boundless mercy until that day when mercy brings us safely home. Amen.

Over the last few weeks, we have been hearing on the media about freedom this and freedom that. But the holy spirit put on my heart what God has already given us for free. So, for the next four of my teachings, I would like to concentrate on four things that God has already freely given us and that appear in the bible numerous times. they are. Grace, Mercy, Peace and of course the greatest of them all Love.   This morning, I will start with.   The Grace of God   As we navigate our everyday experiences, we see the footprints of God’s grace guiding our path. Whether in our moments of joy or in challenging times, grace is a continuous presence that enriches our lives. It teaches us compassion and patience, encouraging us to extend grace to others as we have received it ourselves. Embracing grace helps us cultivate a heart of gratitude, reminding us to cherish all the little things that God allows us to experience daily. Living in his grace impacts relationships, allowing us to thrive in a community grounded in love.   Romans 5:1-11 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!   Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now receive reconciliation.   Today we turn our attention to one of the most profound and life transforming themes in all of Scripture: the grace of God. Grace is the heartbeat of the gospel, the melody of redemption And the gift that changes everything for every believer. Grace is a word often spoken, sung, and prayed, yet sometimes not fully grasped. It is deeper than kindness, broader than forgiveness, and stronger than mercy. Grace is God’s unmerited favor toward undeserving humanity. It is God giving us what we could never earn, achieving for us what we could never accomplish, and offering us what we could never repay. The apostle Paul exclaims in Ephesians 2:8–9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Grace is God’s gift, not man’s achievement. In this teaching, we will journey through Scripture to see how God’s grace is revealed, how it operates in our lives, and how it calls us to live differently. We will see grace in the Old Testament shadows, and in the fullness of Christ, and in the daily walk of the believer. The Biblical Foundation of Grace is not a New Testament invention. It is the eternal disposition of God toward His creation. From Genesis to Revelation, grace is woven into the fabric of God’s dealings with humanity. Grace is God’s unmerited favor. The Greek word charis carries the idea of a gift freely given.  Grace is not payment for performance, but love given in spite of failure. Humanity’s story begins with glory in Eden but quickly falls into rebellion. Adam and Eve chose self over God, and sin entered the world.  Romans 3:23 declares, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” If all have sinned, then all are in need of grace. Romans 6:23 continues, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Grace, then, is not optional, it is essential. Without it, we are hopeless. With it, we are redeemed. Grace flows from who God is. It is not a mood God sometimes feels; it is His nature. Grace is Undeserved. Titus 3:5–7 reminds us that we are saved “not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy.” We do not deserve grace, yet God delights in giving it. Grace is Abundant - Romans 5:20 says, “Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.” Grace is not fragile or limited. It overflows, overwhelms, and overcomes sin. Grace is Transformative Grace does not simply pardon us it changes us. Titus 2:11–12 declares, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age.” Grace is both pardon and power. Though the word “grace” may not always appear, the reality of grace saturates the Old Testament. Grace in Noah Genesis 6:8 says, “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.”   God’s Grace preserved Noah and his family in the midst of judgment. Abraham did not earn his calling. God chose him, blessed him, and promised him a nation, not because of Abraham’s merit but because of grace.   Romans 4:16 reminds us, “That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace.” Israel often wandered, complained, and rebelled, yet God’s grace preserved them.   Exodus 34:6–7 reveals God’s heart: “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” Even under the Law, grace was present. The sacrifices pointed to a greater grace to come the grace of Jesus Christ. When we turn the pages to the New Testament, grace shines in its fullness through Christ. Grace is Revealed in Jesus Christ John 1:14 declares, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.”   Jesus is the embodiment of God’s grace. Every word He spoke, every miracle He performed, every sinner He forgave was an expression of grace. The ultimate display of grace is the cross. Romans 5:8 proclaims, “But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”   Grace is not cheap it cost the blood of God’s Son. Grace does not end at the cross; it triumphs in the resurrection. Because He lives, grace assures us of victory over sin and death. Grace is not only the doorway into salvation; it is the pathway of the Christian life. Grace Sustains Us - Paul testifies in 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”   Grace does not remove all trials, but it carries us through them. Grace Trains Us. Grace is our teacher. It leads us away from sin and into righteousness. It empowers us to forgive others as we have been forgiven. Grace Calls Us to Humility James 4:6 reminds us, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”   Living in grace means acknowledging our dependence on God daily. Grace is not passive—it calls for a response. Grace must be received by faith. Have you accepted God’s free gift, or are you still striving to earn what has already been offered? As recipients of grace, we are called to extend grace to others. Colossians 4:6 urges us, “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt.” Romans 5:2 declares, “Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand.”   Grace is not a one-time event but a daily reality. Grace is the undeserved gift of God, revealed in Christ, sufficient for our every need. It saves us, sustains us, sanctifies us, and one day will glorify us. When John Newton, a former slave trader transformed by Christ, reflected on his life, he penned the words: “Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.” I once was lost, but now I am found,
Was blind, but now I see. 
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come,
'Tis grace has brought me safe thus far
And grace will lead me home. That is our testimony too. We were lost, but grace found us. We were blind, but grace opened our eyes. We were dead, but grace gave us life. We were in danger and grace saved us. I would like to recite 4 scriptures verses that really spoke to me while preparing this teaching. Hebrews 4:16 “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”   Titus 2:11-12 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. This verse really teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age   Ephesians 2:8-10 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.   1 Peter 4:10 “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” If you have never received the grace of God through Jesus Christ, today is the day. Lay down your striving, your sin, your self-sufficiency, and come to the throne of grace. For there, you will find mercy and help in your time of need. Remember brothers and sisters God’s grace is the heartbeat of the gospel the divine free gift that reaches down into the darkest places of our lives and brings light. It is the unshakable truth that no matter how far we have wandered, God’s love runs deeper still. Grace forgives the sinner, strengthens the weary, and heals the broken. It is the hand of God lifting us up when we cannot rise on our own. Grace is not earned by deeds or measured by worthiness it flows freely because of who God is, not because of what we have done. In His grace, we find freedom from shame, victory over sin, and the courage to walk forward in hope and in the light of God.   Grace teaches us patience, compassion, and humility, reminding us that we, too, are recipients of a love greater than we deserve. When we live in God’s grace, we walk not in fear of condemnation but in the confidence of His unfailing mercy.   Grace does not excuse our faults, but transforms us through the power of His Spirit, shaping us into vessels of His love. It is both shelter and strength, rest for the soul and fire for the journey. Truly, to speak of God’s grace is to speak of His very heart. A love that never let’s go. A gift that never runs out. A promise that never fails. Lord, Your Word declares that Your grace is sufficient for us,
for Your power is made perfect in weakness.
We ask, Lord, that You would cover us with Your mercy,
for by grace we are saved, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
Teach us to walk in Your ways,
to stand firm in faith, and to live each day under the shadow of Your abundant favor.

 Therefore, let us then live as people of grace: humble in spirit, bold in faith, generous in love, and steadfast in hope. And let us never forget that from beginning to end, salvation is of the Lord, it is all about grace. Amen.

I have taken a line from Matthew 16:23 and called today’s teaching 

GET BEHIND ME SATAN 

I have found on my journey through life that it doesn’t matter if you are a new  Christian or one of many years Satan is going to find a way to make you doubt yourself. 

And the more you trust in what the spirit is telling you the more Satan in going to try and twist it to his advantage. 

Maybe you yourselves have had these thoughts come into your mind, I certainly know I have. 

That you’re not good enough. 

Why would God ever pick someone like me with a past like mine. 

I’m not worthy. 

and there’s to many more to mention. 

I want to encourage you today to live free of these thoughts and travel light, because it’s amazing as we go through life just how much stuff we end up accumulating. 

And so, what I want to talk about is Letting Go of those thoughts, and putting down the stuff that holds us back, the baggage that weighs us down, so that we can live a life that honors God alone.   

My goal for all of us is to learn how to let go of the past and take hold of the future, unpacking all that baggage, closing the door to the negative voices of Satan and the past, and embracing the truth of God in the present. 

The problem is that everything around us, everything in our culture shouts just the opposite. 

We are told that we need to talk about our baggage, we need counseling, we need to rehash it, reminiscing about the failures, the hurts, and the offenses. 

Society in general teaches us to compromise God’s standards, trying to impress, trying to measure up, trying to conform so that we fit in.   

And so many of us have spent all our lives accumulating all this emotional baggage, burdens and addictions, discontent and are depressed, because now we are loaded down with all this stuff that Satan loves to use. 

In fact, some of us may feel like we are stuck, we are trapped under that weight, and so I want to encourage you to let go of the past and take hold of your future; because your calling is too great and your God is too good to waste your time on stuff like that. 

I would like to turn to the Word of God and tell you about an interesting moment in the life of Israel. 

It was just about 3,500 years ago, the people of God were in bondage, enslaved by Egypt, and so they cried out in desperation, because when you’re beaten, when you’re forced to work and you’re not getting paid for your troubles, it’ll make you cry out to God.   

And so, the people of God cried out for deliverance, not because God had promised them a better life, but they cried out because their situation forced them to cry out.   The Bible says in Exodus 2:24 that, “God heard their groaning, and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob” 

You see, when you find yourself in a difficult situation and fighting Satan, it makes you seek God like never before, and he’s going to hear your prayer, and he’s going to draw you out. 

Then Israel suddenly found themselves in a place of wilderness, they’d been in a season of captivity, when suddenly they’re released and now they’re free. 

They’ve gone from slavery to wilderness, slavery to survival, and so now they find themselves in that season of survival. 

Israel learned how to survive in the wilderness, but the problem with the wilderness was that now they’re on God’s welfare program. 

They’d gone from slavery to survival, but now God is feeding them, and they’ve became complacent because they’ve got just enough. 

They’re doing better than they were, they’re better than they used to be, and so now they plateau. 

They’ve become complacent because they no longer have Pharaoh breathing down their neck.   

And so, they’re no longer crying out to God, they’re not fasting and praying like they did in Egypt, because now they don’t even have to work and they’re getting fed. 

Life was okay, they’re making it, they’re surviving, and then the Lord said to them in Deuteronomy chapter 1, “You’ve stayed long enough at this mountain. 

Break camp and advance into the hill country go to all the neighboring peoples, in the mountains, in the western foothills, in the Negev and along the coast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river. 

See, I have given you this land. 

Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord swore he would give to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and to their descendants after them"  

And so, God told them that it was time to move out, they’d been at this mountain long enough, because God didn’t get them out of Egypt just because life was unbearable; he got them out of Egypt because he swore to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and to Israel, to their descendants after them, he would bring them into a land flowing with milk and honey.   

And so, they’ve been camped around the mountain, they’re eating, they’re singing, they’re worshiping and enjoying God’s presence and provision, but they’ve become complacent. 

They didn’t have a desire to go any further because everything was okay, and so God reminds them of his promise to their fathers, and his promise creates a new hunger within them. 

You see, God’s Word doesn’t make people passive, God’s Word gives us a fervency deep inside, an urgency to move, because God’s Word is liberating, God’s word sets you free and Satan knows that and doesn’t like it.   

And so, they have all these great promises of God, life is okay right now, but they’re letting go, leaving it behind, and pressing forward to the promise.

And his promise is that we would be the head and not the tail. 

That God is for us and not against us, that we will soar with wings like an eagle, and that we are more than just conquerors. 

And I’m telling you this, because of the likeness to the early church.

 I’ve been studying the book of Acts again, where the church has really started to grow, but now it begins to experience growing pains. 

Many had become complacent, because they were just happy to be together, worshiping and praying, but it became very difficult for the apostles to minister to everybody.   

And it was also at this time that opposition came from the Jews. 

One of the disciples, a deacon named Stephen was performing great wonders and miraculous signs among the people, and none of these Jews could stand up against the wisdom or by the Spirit by whom Stephen spoke. 

And so, the Bible says at the end of Acts chapter 6, this opposition stirred up the people, they seized Stephen and produced false witnesses who testified against him. 

They dragged him out of the city and stoned him, accusing him of speaking words of blasphemy against God.   

And now in Acts chapter 8, the Bible tells us, “Saul was there, giving approval to Stephan's death. 

And on that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria” In the words of God to Israel, “You’ve stayed long enough at this mountain. 

Break camp and advance!” The time had come, it was time for the church to move out, the salt was now leaving Jerusalem, because it was intended to be spread all over Judea and Samaria.   

You see, what persecution does to the church is what wind does to seed; it scatters it and produces an even greater harvest. 

The Bible tells us, “Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went” (Acts 8:4). Those believers were God’s seed, and it was that persecution that allowed them to be scattered so that they could bear much fruit. 

These were the growing pains, these were difficult times, and the Bible says it was Saul who was there giving approval for the death of Stephen, the first martyr of the church.

It was Saul who would encounter Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus and be converted to Christianity. 

Saul, who is now renamed the apostle Paul wrote, “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). 

In other words, you may not like it, you may not have asked for it, but even though you can’t change your past, God can change your future. 

And so, the apostle Paul knew firsthand that our past doesn’t always stay in our past, and until you deal with it at the cross of Jesus Christ and close the door on it the past has visitation privileges and Satan uses them. 

There are some of you who woke up today and you hoped things would be different, but the past didn’t stay in your past, and what you thought you had left behind without a forwarding address showed up on your doorstep. 

And if there’s anybody who understands what that’s like, it’s the apostle Paul, he knows what it is like to be haunted by guilt, he knows what it is like to persecute the church, harming good people, and even taking innocent lives.   

And so, for those of you who think that everything in your life has to be perfect before you can serve God, I want you to know from personal experience that God has a way of using ordinary, broken, wounded, hurting people for the sake of the gospel. 

You see, even though we can’t go back to it, our past continues to haunt us, reminding us of what we’ve done. 

That’s why it’s so important to remember the words of Jesus in Matthew chapter 11, verse 28. He said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” And so, we need to accept his invitation, we need to give our baggage to Jesus, letting it go, because if we don’t our spiritual enemy Satan will use it against us. 

Not only will the Satan remind you of what you’ve done and what you haven’t done, but he will tell you that what you’ve done is unforgivable and you’re unlovable. 

He’ll tell you if people really knew what you were struggling with, what you said to your friend or your spouse, if people really knew they wouldn’t love you. 

And so, Satan wants us to believe that God could never use a person like you or I because of what we’ve done, but the Bible tells us to demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, “Taking captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). 

And so, we’ve got to bring our baggage to Jesus, letting it go, letting go of the past, so that we’re able to take hold of the future that God has for us. 

The good news is that Jesus doesn’t leave us holding the bag, holding onto our past, but instead he comes to set us free when we need him the most. 

We know that, because that’s what he did with the apostle Paul.

He told Ananias to lay his hands on Saul, praying so that he may receive his sight, and he did but it wasn’t without some resistance.   

And what I mean by some resistance from Ananias is because he replied, "Lord, I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. 

And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”   

But listen to what the Lord said to Ananias, in Acts 9:13-16. 

"Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. 

I will show him how much he must suffer for my name”

In other words, God is far more concerned with your future than your past, he’s far more concerned about what you’re going to do than what you did. 

And so, how do we let go of our baggage when we can’t change the past? 

Well, the first thing we need to do is close the door on the past so that Satan can’t continue to speak lies to us.   

And the most effective way to do that is by confessing our sins, the Bible tells us in (1 John 1:9) “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” 

You see, the apostle doesn’t say deal with it, hide it, bear the weight of it, or even you should be ashamed of yourself, but he simply says, “If you confess your sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive you.” 

In other words, God’s grace is bigger than our sins, and so our standing with God is determined by our relationship with Christ and not by the rules that we’ve broken or the things we have done. 

I know I sometimes struggle with the baggage of something that I did five, ten, or fifteen or more years ago, but all of us would do well to give ourselves the same grace that God has extended to us through Jesus Christ.  

You see, the power of your past was broken when Jesus died on the cross, and so you simply need to make the decision to close the door to those lies that we continue to hear from Satan, because we are not what we have done, we are who God says we are. 

And today, if we have put our faith in Jesus Christ, we are forgiven, we are loved, and we are a child of God. 

That’s what the Bible says, in (John 1:12). “To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” 

Today there are so many that need to close the door to the lies of Satan, letting go of the past so that they can take hold of their future. 

When we respond to Jesus’ invitation to “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened” When we respond to him in faith, receiving his grace, he saves us from our past so that we can step into the future that he has for us. 

We are not what we have done, but we are who God says we are, we are his children, forgiven, and loved. 

And so, God doesn’t just save us from something, he saves us for something, and that is to be his witness. 

No matter who we are God can use us to show the love of Jesus to people just like you and me. 

To people who live where you live, where you work, where you shop, or where you play. 

Now, up to this point we’ve talked a lot about Paul’s past, Paul’s failures, Paul rejecting Christ, Paul killing Christians, but that’s not the point of this message. It’s not about what Paul has done in the past, it’s not about Paul’s baggage, it’s about what Jesus Christ has done for all of us on the cross.   

And it’s so important that we’re able to see what God is doing, because when we look at our past from the right perspective, we don’t see our failures, but we see God’s faithfulness in our lives. 

You see, the apostle Paul knew that he was a sinner, he struggled with the fact that he persecuted those who believed that Jesus was the promised Messiah. In fact, he said this to the Corinthians, “I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God” (1 Corinthians 15:9). But the most important thing when he looked at his past wasn’t how he could’ve been so blind, it wasn’t to see how bad he was, but to see how good God is. 

The question I have for you today is what is your testimony going to be about?

 Is it going to be all about you, about your past and what you’ve done, or is it going to be about what Jesus Christ has done for you?   

You see, when you’re in Christ, your identity is not found in what you’ve done, it’s not found in your past as Satan wants you to believe, but when you belong to Christ, you’re called to let go of that baggage, to live free and travel light, because you’ve been forgiven. 

And today I pray that God is speaking to all of us, he’s breaking through all of our excuses, he’s tearing down every monument we have built of “I can’t or “I didn’t” and he’s encouraging us not to settle on a life that’s less than what he created us to be.

The question I want to ask ourselves today is will we trust him with our baggage, letting go of the past and taking hold of the future? 

You see, it’s not a question about whether God will show up, because he’s always shown up, he’s always been faithful, but will you trust God and not Satan with your future? 

Because that’s when the real test begins, when you’re about to step out, and you feel unworthy and unable, but that’s exactly the kind of person that God wants to use. 

And so, I want to remind you that we can’t change the past, but God can change your future. 

And so, let us press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of us, forgetting what is behind, and straining toward what is ahead for his glory. Amen