Archive for the ‘spiritual maturity’ Category

Two New Discipleship Books

June 20, 2010 - 8 Tamuz, 5770

I have uploaded two new discipleship booklets that are sure to be  helpful in becoming better disciples of Jesus Christ. The first one, Basic Training:Basic Doctrines,  is based on Heb 6:1-2. The second one, Basic Training:Basic Practices part 1,  is part one of a series of booklets based on 2 peter 1.

Do You Trust God?

September 30, 2009 - 12 Tishrei, 5770

The following is a message that was presented at Valley View Church by Pastor Mark Vincent on September 23, 2009. It is titled Do You Trust God?. The sermon is a message from Judges 6-7 about how Gideon grew in faith and courage

If you want to download this message you can go here

The Reason Jesus Came

December 5, 2008 - 8 Kislev, 5769

On This Christmas season I wanted to reflect for a moment on the opposite end of Jesus earthly life. Christmas is a day arbitrarily chosen as a day to celebrate His birth, but why was He born. He came to be the sacrifice that would take away both the power and guilt of our sins.It is through His blood that we have the victory over Satan.

I have embedded below a video of the song We are the Reason. The song was originally written by David Meece and redone by Avalon. The video below shows clips of scenes from the Passion of the Jesus Christ played to the Avalon version of the song.

When you view the video below think about this. If God loves us enough to send His Son to suffer so brutally then He will not withhold any good thing from us. Allow this video to strenghthen your faith and love for the Lord. As for me He is worthy of my all. If my association with and witness for Christ results in the loss of freedom, possessions or even my life then He is worthy of such sacrifice. Many now suffer for Him and soon in America Christian will suffer as the result of dramatic changes soon to unfold.

(Warning: contains graphic content which may not be suitable for small children and weak hearts)

Guarding Your Heart

November 16, 2008 - 18 Heshvan, 5769

As I write this I am convinced that we are living in the cdays of the great apostasy. In the Scripture we are instructed that prior to the manifestation of the antichrist that there would be a great falling away. I personally know of several people that I never thought would turn away from God turn away from the truth and become involved in moral compromise(”Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; ” 2Th 2:1-3)

The Anatomy of Moral Failure.
Moral failure is never a sudden thing. It always begin with subtle compromises that are dismissed as things of little significance. It begins with things like taking a second look, laughing at something dirty or simply getting too close to the wrong crowd, or giving credibility to ungodly counsel. As the temptations of the world and it’s deceptions begin it’s pull then the next thing is to trust in the flesh. This might take the form of a virtuous young lady who is drawing close to the world thinking she is a big enough girl to handle these temptation or perhaps a young man believing he is strong enough to handle it or a mature person thinking that he or she is devout enough to handle the temptations. If someone as strong as Samson fell and if someone as smart as Solomon could be fooled by sin’s deceptions and if someone so devout as to be a man after God’s own heart like David could be overcome by temptation we are utterly naive to believe that we can manage or master sin through our own power. Either we fight sin or it masters us.

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Think out of the Box

August 22, 2008 - 21 Av, 5768

The Children of Israel got a lesson in thinking outside of the box when God delivered out of bondage through the hand of Moses. After the ten plagues and after the Passover, when the Israelites reached the shores of the Red Sea, they found themselves in a predicament. The sea was blocking their path in front of them and the Egyptian army was pursuing them from behind. They were in what seemed to be an impossible situation. (Exodus 14)

Read the rest of the article here

Going With God

August 17, 2008 - 16 Av, 5768

In these trying times, as we struggle from family problems to the culture wars to financial trials caused by the economic collapse of America that is currently in it’s beginning stages,it is easy to be consumed by our problems and forget that God is ultimately in charge of our affairs. Below is a sermon preached by Pastor Earl Bunch of the Bridge Community Church that challenges us to believe that The Lord orders our steps and His Spirit “…choreographs our lives…”

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Thou Shalt Not…Not Judge

May 11, 2008 - 6 Iyar, 5768

Matt 7:1 is one of the most misinterpreted passages in the Bible. It is often used by worldly people as a cover-up for evil. A closer study of this passage will reveal that not only is it wrong to use this text as a defense of moral relativism but that it is impossible NOT to judge.

Read the rest of the article here.

Patterns of the Saints

April 7, 2008 - 2 Nisan, 5768

When one studies the lives of the saints in the scriptures, a clear pattern commonly emerges as they walk towards victory. There are three stages as they fight the good fight of faith. There is the initial move of faith followed by a season of trials in the wilderness. At the end of this season the child of God reaches the turning point where God brings the victory.

Read the Rest of the article Patterns of the Saints

Practicing Brotherly Love

December 28, 2007 - 19 Tevet, 5768

The New Testament, in it’s emphasis on Biblical unity in the Church, instructs us to develop intimate relationships among the brothers and sisters. We are to develop relationships where we fall head over heels in brotherly love towards our brothers and sisters in Christ. There are three principles that govern how to safely and effectively achieve intimacy among members of the Body of Christ: Trust God to place into our lives those with whom we are to have relationships and trust Him to arrange them in the proper relations with us, Speak the truth in love, and flee selfish desires.In this installment I am writing on Trusting God to bring people into our lives in the proper relationships.This study is divided into four parts

  1. Trust God to Bring people into Your Life in the Proper Relations.
  2. Flee Fornication and other Selfish Ambitions.
  3. Speak the Truth in Love
  4. Brotherly Love Produces Holiness.

Perfection Through Perseverance

December 23, 2007 - 14 Tevet, 5768

The following sermon was presented by Kyla Marvel at the Bridge Community Church on August 19, 2007. The theme of this sermon is that God uses trials to perfect us and bring us to maturity in Christ.



If you cannot view the embedded video you can download this sermon here.