Teaching from Curwensville Alliance (Pastor Steve Shields)
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We are told in 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 that we will be afflicted. When life gets you down, what do we do?
Sometimes we panic. Sometimes we do the opposite of what we should do. Life happens while we’re making other plans.
How do you respond? What do you do next? 1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us that no temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.
Our intentions are good, but our follow-through often falls short. Just like Peter when he denied Jesus 3 times in Matthew 26:34-35.
Our words and actions are two different things. We need to draw closer to Christ, and put on the armor of God daily.
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Life puts us in places where we feel unprepared. More accurately God puts us in places where we feel unprepared. A change of job. An illness. A windfall. And we ask ourselves am I ready for what is ahead?
Beliefs that are essential for receiving God’s wisdom. Believe that God is a God of grace – hesed. Believe that you are in need. Believe that the task is weighty. The tasks God gives are difficult. The tasks God gives are greatly important. Believe that nothing is more important than serving God.
This wisdom becomes accessible at the cross. You need grace. The work is too weighty for you. You can’t do this without God. Prioritize serving God.
Be prepared to receive wisdom.
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Paying attention helps you live wisely. Failure to pay attention can cause drift. Failure to pay attention can bring disaster. Paying attention makes it possible to receive blessing..
Focus your attention on things that advance the Kingdom. What’s going on around us. What God says in His Word.
Hold on to what you have learned. Visit it repeatedly. Unpack it thoroughly but not creatively. Live it deliberately and dependently.
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Wisdom is the centerpiece in all of life. You need wisdom in the good times. You need wisdom in the bad times.
James 1:5 (NIV) If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. James is talking about a wisdom that helps us stick with God. Trusting that His plan is a good plan.
As you grow in wisdom, you trust God’s plan and as you trust God’s plan, you grow in wisdom. Trust God’s plan so that you don’t get tossed around. Trust God’s plan so that you don’t get tricked. Don’t be deceived.
Receiving wisdom requires humility. The humility to revere God – to fear God. The humility to submit to God. The humility to trust God.
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Wisdom is a gift that must be pursued. While wisdom comes as a gift from God, you must pursue it as though it depended upon you.
Wisdom expands your life by limiting you. 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
Wisdom is both earthly and spiritual. Biblical wisdom protects you spiritually.
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What is the church? A building. A family. A gathering. A moral and cultural fixture. A body. God’s implement to shatter the gates of hell.
Why I’m committed to Alliance Missions.
Our message is the centrality of Christ. Jesus answered “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6.
Our mission is to complete the great commission. A commission is a calling to complete a task. “…go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20
Our method is to plant missionary churches.
Our members are a missionary movement.
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Pastor Steve takes us through Luke 12:35-48 and asks the question are you ready for the end times?
What are the essentials? The return of Jesus Christ is an absolute certainty and He expects us to be ready. Don’t confuse end-times study with end-times preparedness.
Being prepared means being the people who do what Jesus commanded. Love one another, Love your neighbor, Love God. Love your enemies, Turn the other cheek. Do good to the “least of these”. Go above and beyond. Your preparedness reveals your heart!
What does a ready heart look like? Watchful, faithful and diligent.
What kind of servant am I? Are you thinking about what matters? Are you doing what matters? Are you being who you were made to be?
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Listen as Pastor Steve leads us through Matthew 18:21-35.
When we fail to forgive, we show we don’t get it. God shows us grace, and we need to show others grace.
God shows us a grace that is grace, that is faithful, that is available to all, that is counterintuitive, that is effective, that brings glory to Himself.
We show others grace that is grace, that is faithful, that is available to all, that is counterintuitive, that is effective, that shows God’s glory and goodness. So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. I Corinthians 10:31
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Listen as Pastor Steve goes through the parable found in Matthew 25:31-46.
The determining factor are you “blessed” or “cursed”?
Unless you have humbled yourself and understood your own need for grace, giving grace to others doesn’t come naturally. The way you live doesn’t determine your spiritual destiny – it reveals your heart.
The judgement tells us you do have to face the reality that you need forgiveness. You get to live your faith as an expression of your experience with grace.
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Listen as Pastor Steve goes through Proverbs 3:1-10, 21-35 on back to school.
Don’t forget you are being formed every day in your life. You are being formed in surprising environments.
As we head back to school remember to not set your OS for automatic updates. Consider the source. Do the math. God’s wisdom is greater than my wisdom.
As you move forward in life ask God to lead you. As you move forward in life stay away from evil. As you move forward in life honor God with what you have.
Don’t forget to trust in the Lord.
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