Taming the Emotional Rollercoaster
Judges 6:1-10  |  Pastor Terry Wilcox

Context: Judges 6:1-10
This is major, considering Exodus 20:2-4

Everyone experiences fear.
Judges 6:14
Does it make a difference if God is  ?

  1. God makes a promise. – Judges 6:16
    Gideon responds with . – Judges 6:18-21
  2. God makes Gideon a second promise. – Judges 6:23
    (This sounds like Jesus to Martha in John 11:21-26)
    Gideon responds with . – Judges 6:24-26
  3. Gideon’s “rollercoaster” takes a dip. – Judges 6:27
  4. Gideon follows God’s plan, is victorious, and Israel enjoys 40 years of peace. – Judges 8:28

    Gideon’s success came when he:
    a. accepted God’s
    b. destroyed the 
    c. purged his army of  
    d. adopted God’s planHowever, the rollercoaster continued. – Judges 8:33-34

    The emotional rollercoaster is tamed by trusting Jesus and following his plan.

One of Satan’s insidious lies that creates needless fear regards the assurance of salvation.
A threefold confirmation:

  1. The trustworthy Word
  2. The confirming Holy Spirit
  3. The changed life
    I John 5:10-13

Personal Notes

Independence Through Proclamation
Habakkuk 3:3-15Pastor Terry Wilcox

On July 4th, Americans celebrated their actions to proclaim their independence from Great Britain.

  1. God’s past actions proclaim God’s deliverance. – Habakkuk 3:3-7
  2. God’s future actions predict His coming. – Habakkuk 3:8-15

Hallelujah !!

Independence through !

Personal Notes

Faith Versus Pride
Habakkuk 2:2-20
Pastor Terry Wilcox

  • “The just shall live by faith” is written four times in scripture:
    • Habakkuk 2:4
    • Romans 1:17
    • Galatians 3:11
    • Hebrews 10:38

Habakkuk 2:4-8

The Babylonians’ pride was insidious.
God contrasts pride with “living by faith.”

  1. Pride is and arrogance.
    Proverbs 16:18
    James 4:6

    • At its core, pride dismisses in favor of .
  2. Faith is trust and  on God.
    Hebrews 11:1
    Proverbs 3:5
    John 20:28

  3. Pride
    1. Leads to  and humiliation
      In Habakkuk 2:4-20, five times it says “” to the Babylonians
      – Proverbs 29:23
      – Isaiah 2:11
    2. Pride separates people from God
    3. Examples of Pride
      – Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4:30-31)
      – The Pharisee (Luke 18:11-12)
    4. Pride is  (beguiling)
      – Humanity can take pride in anything – or .
      – Consider Habakkuk’s complaint and his description of the Babylonians. Neither were  God.
      – The sin of pride is universal.

  4. Faith
    1. Faith leads to salvation and
      – Ephesians 2:8-9
      – Genesis 15:6
    2. Faith brings us  to God
      – Hebrews 11:6

The defining question: What is the  of my faith?

Personal Notes

A Divine Moment
Luke 8:41-48
Rev. J.R. Hutchinson

When Man makes contact with God….that is a Divine Moment in our life.

Some Divine Moments

·In the Beginning…..Creation
·The Burning Bush
·The Word became Flesh
·The Baptism of Jesus
·The Day of Pentecost
·The Resurrection of Jesus
·The Ascension of Christ

Greek Word used here in Luke 8:48 is DUNAMIS. It is translated virtue in the KJV and is translated power in the NIV and later versions.

This is not a glaring contradiction but rather an interlocking truth of God’s Virtue and Power, inseparable from His Character and His Person.

“He that cometh to Him (Jesus), finds virtue in Him.” -John Bunyan

  1. A DYNAMITE MOMENT
    It is a ,  moment in our life.
  2. A DEFINING MOMENT
    Jesus is  of 
        Godly Virtue      John 1:14
        Moral Virtue      John 1:14
        Saving Virtue    John 1:12; Ephesians 2:5
        Healing Virtue   Luke 8:48

    Jesus is of POWER
        Matthew 28:48
        Colossians 1:19
        Colossians 2:9

    Jesus is full of POWER
        Romans 8:11   Quickens our mortal bodies.

  3. The ULTIMATE DIVINE MOMENT
    I Corinthians 6:14; I Thessalonians 4:16

Personal Notes

 

Loss & Restoration of Spiritual Prosperity
James 4:1-10
Pastor Terry Wilcox

Perhaps the earliest of the New Testament letters, written by Jesus’ brother James (A.D. 48)

Causes of Lost Spiritual Prosperity – James 4:1-5

  1. The battle within us – James 4:1
    Greek word hedon is often translated .
    Hedonism – pleasure is the highest good and chief goal of life. Avoid  at any cost.
  2. Not getting what we  – James 4:2
    Not  God.
  3. Asking out of   – James 4:3
    We want God to change our , God wants to  us.
    Purpose of prayer is not to satisfy  , but to  His will.
  4. Not being faithful to our  – James 4:3
    English word world is from Greek word kosmos – the opposite of chaos, used to define the harmonious arrangement of God’s creation.
    Also used to delineate the differences between loving God and loving the systems and values of the world around us.

How to Restore Spiritual Prosperity

  1. Grace flows through the channels of  and .
    John Wesley’s four categories of grace:
    a. prevenient – going  – John 6:44
    b. saving – Ephesians 2:8-9
    c. sanctifying – Hebrews 10:14; I Thessalonians 5:23; I Corinthians 6:11
        This is grace for living now.
    d. grace
  2. Resist the devil – James 4:7
    Push back! We need not be the devil’s . 
    I John 4:4
  3. Draw near to God – James 4:8; Psalm 73:23-28
  4. Be  – James 4:9
    Today’s worldly philosophy says  is a useless idea from the past.
  5. Be humble and let God  you – James 4:9
    Painting of Niagara Falls titled

Personal Notes

Judgement and Restoration?
John 8:1-11
Pastor Terry Wilcox

Background: All Jewish men were to be in Jerusalem for Passover; Pharisees were determined to hang on to their power; Jesus was a threat.

Why Jesus came: John 3:17; I Peter 2:24

The Story

  1. John 8:2 – The people     Jesus.
  2. John 8:3 – Legalists tend to be . Where is the .
  3. John 8:6 – This was a trap using the  of Moses and the  of Rome.
  4. John 8:6 – What Jesus wrote in the dirt =  We .
  5. John 8:7 – “Without sin” is from the Greek word anamartetos which also means, “without a sinful .”
  6. John 8:9 – The more experienced realized their trap  . Jesus, the woman, and the  .
  7. John 8:11 – Two types of judgment:
    I. Condemnation
    II.
  8. John 8:11 –  makes restoration possible.
    James 2:12-13
    Grace does not  sin; it is the .

The church is not called to condemn people, but to create an atmosphere where the grace of God can do the work of .

Personal Notes

DO YOU THINK THIS WORKS TODAY?
Ephesians 5:21-33
Pastor Terry Wilcox

REASONS FOR DIFFICULTIES

  1. Society’s emphasis on self-fulfillment.
  2. The pace of our culture.
  3. Spirit of materialism. Things and experiences receive the highest priority.
  4. Lack of connection. Tweets can’t cut it.
  5. Culture can’t define wrong.

GOD HAS THE BETTER PLAN

  1. Highest form of love is the driver. Ephesians 5:25
    Lust asks, “How much can I get?“
    Love asks, “How much can I give?“
  2. A purifying love. Ephesians 5:26-27
    What you say and how you say it changes everyone.
  3. Pamper your wife. Ephesians 5:28-29
  4. No one is between. Ephesians 5:31

HOW?
SOME PRACTICAL STEPS

  1. Remember how you
  2. Make time to express your 
  3. Surprise her!
  4. Be a good listener.
  5. Work. Ephesians 4:32
  6. Admit your own shortcomings. 
  7. Help her to 
  8. Make Joshua’s declaration yours. Joshua 24:15

PERSONAL NOTES

Am I Free To Do That?
Galatians 5:1-6
Pastor Terry Wilcox

All the great things are simple, and many can be expresesd in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope.  -Winston Churchill

I believe that political freedom, civility, demonstrations without destruction, freedom to speak without violence, people being treated with respect, and the fair-handed administration of justice requires more than laws and law enforcement.

While we are contending for our own liberty, we should be very cautious not to violate the rights of conscience in others.  -George Washington

The heart of the issue is the condition of  .

Galatians 5:1
This text is about freedom, not political freedom.
Yes, the freedom that Jesus gives affects the way we live.

May we think of freedom, not as the right to do as we please but as the opportunity to do what is right.  -Peter Marshall

  1. Galatians 5-6 present practical application of our salvation by grace alone.
    Don’t turn back to self-!
    Galatians 5:9 warns that a small amount is .
  2. In Galatians 5:4 Paul warns that legalism is .
    Legalism-liberty-license –
    Scripture stands against two of these three.

    What keeps us centered?
    !  for God,  of God.

Freely we serve, because we freely love, as in our will to love or not; in this we stand or fall.  -John Milton, “Paradise Lost”

 

Winning When Tempted
Ephesians 6:10-18
Pastor Terry Wilcox

Two Factors in Battle

Three Areas We Are Attacked

  1. The  attacks our spirit.
  2. The  attacks our soul.
  3. The  attacks our body.

Winning Strategies

  1. For the Devil,  with .
  2. For the world, our  for .
  3. For the flesh,  from it.

 

Own Your Own Stuff
Luke 14:15-24
Pastor Terry Wilcox

The setting: Luke 14:1

What Jesus did is a reflection of who He is.  Hebrews 13:8
The parables of Jesus have been called, “The of God.” Luke 14:16 – “…a certain man” is .

Is the “Kingdom of God” something yet to come or something now?

  1. These people were not .
  2. They all offered lame .
    We do this to shield ourselves from the .
  3. The deadliest addiction is hiding from the truth about .
    It shuts out all .
  4. Understanding God’s   is the key to  and .
    This parable reveals both God’s grace and .

Today’s “love feast” is an opportunity to recognize our need and accept God’s .