In one way or another we have all likely experienced being a stranger or foreigner or that no one wants us around, the sense of not belonging, of missing out, of being on the outside looking in. Unfortunately, this even happens to people in the church. In this sermon series we are going to look at the lives of three outcast women, strangers, foreigners and in those passages we can hear Jesus telling them: You Belong.
For most of this year we will study the book of 1 Corinthians. The church in Corinth was a messy church and serves as a great reminder to us to guard ourselves and learn lessons from it. It was wracked by divisions, leaders against leaders, sexual immorality, questions about gender in church roles, disagreements in doctrine, etc.
In Church Discipline we are going to continue looking at the church in Corinth, studying Paul's letter to the Corinthians and focusing on discipline.
Jesus told us that following him would be a difficult thing. Jesus warned his disciples of this in Luke 9:23, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” This same warning carries on to us. And it is a warning...Following Jesus is tough.
Spiritual warfare is one of those topics we do not know a lot about, because we either sensationalize it or ignore it and attempt to explain it away. The Christian life is a battleground, not a playground, and we face an enemy who is much stronger than us, but not stronger than The Lord.
For many Christmas is a favorite time of year. We love the hearing and reflecting on the birth of Christ. It’s surrounded with all kinds of intrigue and mystery. This sermon series is going to examine the courageousness found in the Christmas accounts.
People in the Church have been manufacturing a church service to please people. That is not a fault of any particular person, it is people in the Church falling in line with the way we do church in Ameria. The manufactured church, as we’ll call it, is more concerned about manufacturing a service that pleases senses but is not courageously digging deeply into the apostles teaching, into fellowship, and into prayer. The Church is not our idea, it is Jesus’ idea, it is His body, He was the first to use the term church.
One of the hardest things for us as a people in general to do is obey a command. There is something within us that causes us to resist commands initially, and that is the key. We must fight against the natural urge to resist God’s commands for us.
This sermon series looks at three instances in the Old Testament book of Daniel in which Daniel and his friends had to exercise Courageous Faith.
Courageous Home is a series of three sermons that address marriage, singlehood, and parenting in our culture today.
This sermon series looks at the courageous life of the Lord Jesus through the lens of God’s servant, the prophet Isaiah. Reviewing Jesus’ courageous life we will be encouraged to live a courageous life as well.
Our sermon series God’s Courageous Promise is summarized in this important verse of Scripture in Joshua 21:45, “Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.”
We, like Joshua and the Israelites, are courageous warriors. In Ephesians 6 the Apostle Paul states that we are engaged in a great spiritual battle. We must never forget our God-given identity as courageous warriors.
During this series we encourage you to commit to memory the passage in Romans 12:1-2, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing, and perfect will.” This passage contains all the elements of true worship.
If we are going to be honest, WE ALL HAVE DOUBT. We all doubt something or someone or some event. It’s just that many people have been taught wrongly that it is wrong to have doubts. Our goal is to eventually get to the place that no matter what doubts we might have we will be convinced that we can trust God. Trusting God in the midst of our doubts isn’t easy.
The most important event in the history of the world took place over a period of three days. Death...on a cross; Buried...in a borrowed tomb; Resurrected...to life eternal. Hope for all!
Jonah is a small book that tells a fascinating story of adventure, confrontation, and mystery. It is so popular that a group of vegetables got together and brought this story to life through animation. There are many things to study in this book, but one that stands is grace.
In Scripture there are many different names used to describe God. While all the names of God are important in many ways, the name “Abba Father” is one of the most significant names of God in understanding how He relates to people.
In order to be physically fit we must engage in a disciplined workout program. It is not easy, but it is an important part of a healthy lifestyle. If we want to become and stay spiritually fit, we must engage in a disciplined spiritual journey. How many steps have you gotten in today?
Everyone knows their house needs regular maintenance to keep things in good repair. But sometimes we fail to recognize how much our homes need spiritual maintenance, too. “Fixer Upper” is a ten-part sermon series designed to help families build stronger Christian homes.
In this series Paul turns to another controversial subject in the letter he received from the Corinthian church: “Can Christians eat meat that has been sacrificed to idols?” How is this relevant today? This passage is about more than meat sacrificed to idols. At its heart is the issue of Christian freedom. We face this issue all the time as we consider and debate things such as what TV/Movies are okay to watch? Is it okay to drink alcohol or smoke? What about playing the lottery? Gambling? Debt?
What does it mean to live a generous life? How do we live a generous life?
“Ghost Stories” explores how the Holy Spirit helps us testify with power. Acts 1:8 says: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
In this “Gifts of the Body” sermon series we will work through 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14 where the Apostle Paul deals with the issue of spiritual gifts. Believe it or not there was an arrogance about spiritual gifts, there was a pride. You see the Corinthians ranked gifts and thought some more important than the others and in turn thought they (the individuals who possessed certain gifts) were better and more important than others. Therefore, spiritual gifts became a divisive issue among them.
There’s probably nothing in the world that gets a person riled up as quickly as when the subject of money is brought up pertaining to giving; and if you bring up the issue of money and giving in the church it’s like an accelerant on a raging inferno. In this sermon series centered in 1 Corinthians 16 we are going to look at four very practical matters Paul address on how to be a GIVING CHURCH: Tithing, Hospitality, Generosity, and Encouragement.
Have you ever stayed with someone or visited someone who you really didn’t know all that well? Were you uncomfortable because you didn’t know how to act in their home since you didn’t know their house rules? Or think back to your own home, what house rules did you grow up with? Churches today have house rules. Even churches in the Apostle Paul’s day had house rules.
Idols have always been and will always be a temptation for mankind. The problem we face today is the same problem the Corinthians faced in Paul’s day – will we heed the warning of temptation. Every Christian struggles with the temptation to sin. Everyone you know struggles with the temptation to sin even that person staring at you in the mirror each day. Even the people you look up to the most struggle – it’s just a fact for us in this fallen world as God’s people.
Let us focus on Faith proven by conduct in James 3 as we talk about the taming of the tongue. Words are powerful and far too many times we under estimate the power of the tongue. We must be prepared to accept the consequences of our speech. And, better yet, carefully select the words that we string together to effectively communicate what is in our hearts. The power of speech is one of the greatest powers God has given us.
This morning we share new ideas and challenges from a global children’s ministry conference held in Nashville this month. This conference helped us to reflect on where we are in this ministry at MACC and where we can go for the glory of God. Through His power at work in us, God can do more than we can ask or even imagine...but how much do we put His power to work? Our God is able, but He tends not to do more than we prepare for. In His signature “my ways are higher than your ways” fashion, God has chosen to accomplish His work through us by His power. How ready are we?
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6. Leaning on Jesus allows our faith to grow!
I love the Christmas story because of what it means for people long ago, for me personally and for those who don’t yet know the true meaning of Christmas. In this series, “Miracle of Christmas” we are going to talk about: the Miracle of the Moment, God’s perfect timing; the Miracle of the Message, God’s perfect Word; the Miracle of the Manger, God’s perfect Son; and the Miracle of the Method, God’s perfect Way.
Look around you and notice what we all have in common. It’s not our hair color, not our eye color, not our height, not our weight, nor our taste in music and food. What we all have in common is that we came from mothers.
Jesus is our one need: our one love, our one story, our one way, our one truth, our one life. Try and commit this verse, the focus text of this sermon series, to memory: "(John 14:6) Jesus answered, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." In this statement he clearly and unequivocally lets us know that his is our one need!
Many people acknowledge Jesus with their mouths, but never live for him. They use their relationship with Jesus as an additive. It’s just something added to their life whenever they want to sound spiritual or if they are in certain crowds of people, but at the core they are not living their lives for Christ. This series in the book of James will explore very practical ways we live for Christ.
The letter from the Apostle Paul to the Church at Ephesus challenges the self-righteousness and missional focus that was trying to infiltrate the churches in the day of Paul and is still hard at work today in many churches. Paul expects the outsider to see Christ and God’s unifying purpose for the world precisely in the Church. If we are self-righteous, people aren’t going to care about the message we have to share. If we are not focused on our mission, which is reaching the lost, then we become focused on ourselves and we are in the same danger the church in Ephesus eventually fell prey to.
The purpose of this sermon series, REACH, is to heighten our awareness and sensitivity to those who are outside of a relationship with Jesus and to encourage us to proclaim Him with power, with courage, with obedience, and with sensitivity. We want to help people find their way back to God.
It’s during times like this COVID-19 pandemic and our resulting isolation that we really realize just how much we need each other. This new series will focus on relationships in the study and application of 1 Corinthians.
It is important for Christ followers to remove themselves and allow the Spirit’s Power to work through them, which is drastically different than trying to do things with our own power. We must also allow the Spirit’s Wisdom to work through us, which is drastically different than trying to go through life under our own wisdom.
The apostle Peter challenged us in 1 Peter 3:15 to prepare ourselves to give an answer to everyone who asks us to give the reason for the hope that we have in Christ. With this sermon series our goal is to learn how to help neighbors, coworkers, and classmates who have objections and doubts.
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. Colossians 2:6-7.
The songs of the Christmas season are unmistakable and we love them. When the Bible tells the Christmas story, it tells it through song. From Jesus' conception in the womb to His dedication at the temple, every scene is filled with song. These songs help us discover something different, something important about the coming of this Child. Join us for this sermon series, “Songs of the Season” as we discover fresh insight into the advent stories of Mary, Zechariah, Simeon, and the Angels.
Do you find yourself complaining about money rather than acknowledging the blessings God has given you? Maybe you've got a death-grip on the "Benjamin's" and have forgotten that your resources aren't really yours in the first place, but given to you by God. Do you struggle with jealousy when your neighbors or friends seem to live on easy street? How about an entitlement mentality? Are you living within your means or blowing your budget each month and expecting others to help bail you out? Join us as we talk about The Cost of Living concerning our responsibility as stewards of God's resources.
More and more ministers are preferring an eisegetical approach to interpretation of the Bible, which means they read their own presuppositions into the Scriptures. Dangerously, they place their own opinions on the text. Exegetical interpretation is how we should interpret the Bible. That means we read the Bible and allow it to shape our views, which is how we develop a Biblical world view.
A focus on who Maple Avenue Christian Church is as a church family and what it really means to Connect, Grow, Serve, and Share with one another.
As the Apostle Paul wrote this letter to the Romans, it is clear that he is relentlessly unashamed of the Gospel that he proclaims so freely. His confidence is found in none other than salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. What about us? Why is it so difficult for many of us to carry the Gospel to those around us without feeling shamed by society? Do we stifle it’s power because of our embarrassment? Join us as we delve into the Word of God and study the book of Romans. Let’s be encouraged and celebrate Paul’s freedom as we live unashamed for the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
As the Apostle Paul wrote this letter to the Romans, it is clear that he is relentlessly unashamed of the Gospel that he proclaims so freely. His confidence is found in none other than salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. What about us? Why is it so difficult for many of us to carry the Gospel to those around us without feeling shamed by society? Do we stifle it's power because of our embarrassment?
Unashamed Relationships looks at the various relationships we as worshippers of God have, and how the Word of God instructs us in regard to those relationships.
Everything about our lives should be thought as an act of continual worship of our good and awesome Lord and Savior. Let's sacrifice ourselves on the alter of God and present ourselves as willing and humble servants doing His will as it is revealed to us.
Let us look together at the lives of five individuals in history of four different circumstances. These individuals are not very well known, they are not very popular, but their impact for the Kingdom of God is huge in the grand scheme of things. We define hero as per Webster’s dictionary: a person admired for achievement and noble qualities, on who shows great courage. Many of us may be able to identify with these individuals. God has always called unlikely people to be His messengers. This remains true to this day. We often forget the reality that our faults, weaknesses, and wounds don’t disqualify us from lives of impact for Jesus; instead, that is just what God uses to proclaim His redemptive love and power.
We have a personal and corporate responsibility to grow up in our faith, to build up one another, and to wise up in our knowledge of God.
This week was VBS at MACC and the whole week we were communicating with the kiddos that God not only made them, but He made them with a purpose. It is so important for people to know that they were made for a purpose, so many adults spend the majority of their life trying to figure out what there purpose in life is or even if they have a purpose. Everyone of us needs to know we were created by God in His image which gives us value and worth and purpose.
Campus Students for Christ is a local mission supported by MACC, right here in Macomb, IL at Western Illinois University. Avery LeJeune shares about our mission to international students.
