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Episodes
Welcome to the online audio hope of sermon messages from Pastor Chris Thompson.
Episodes
Sunday Jun 02, 2019
Sunday Jun 02, 2019
Turn with me if you will to Mark chapter 1. We’re going to be reading verses 21-28 this morning in a message that I’ve titled “The Absolute Authority of Jesus of Nazareth”
You might be thinking, “Pastor, is this a sermon about demons?” No… This is not a sermon about the beings that have the power to turn our culture into a world that takes pride in their sin, but rather, It’s A SERMON ABOUT THE ONLY ONE WHO HAS THE POWER TO OVERCOME ALL SIN.
It’s about the only one who brings cosmic power because He created the cosmos.
Sunday May 05, 2019
Sunday May 05, 2019
The people of Galilee had heard of the works of Jesus. It was in the City of Cana, in the land of Galilee that Jesus turned Water into Wine. And Many Jews from Galilee had been in Jerusalem for the Passover and had heard of the miracles that Jesus was performing. Many of them had seen what he had done.
There was a trait that we’re going to see today in the Galileans who had heard about Jesus. You and I can relate in our lives as well to a trait. The people in your life can relate to this trail, and may, in fact, be living with this trait right now.
See, there was a curiosity about Christ and who he was and what he was doing. This curiosity would lead to many people coming to follow Jesus.
Point number 1 in your notes:
The curiosity of what Jesus can do in a life begins at first introduction to our Savior.
Point number 2 in your notes:
We people have no other answer; they will turn to what they didn’t know existed.
Point number 3 in your notes:
When we are desperate, we will beg and plead for Jesus.
Point number 4 in your notes:
Once people touch and feel their Savior, personal trust in Jesus deepens.
Friday Apr 26, 2019
Friday Apr 26, 2019
As we read through our text, I want you to pay attention to the emotions of Mary, and Mary Magdalene that Sunday morning.
I want you to feel with the guards felt.
I want you to feel with the disciples.
I want you to ask yourself, have you found Jesus,
or are you still looking for Him?
I want you to see what happens when you find something in a place that you've never been looking.
Point number 1 in your notes:
When you don’t know where Jesus is, your life is full of fear.
Point number 2 in your notes:
Knowing where Jesus is it gives our life assurance and direction.
Point number 3 in your notes:
Knowing that Jesus is standing right in front of us gives us reason to fall at His feet and worship Him.
Friday Apr 26, 2019
Friday Apr 26, 2019
Point number 1 in your notes this morning:
Just as the truth of the MIRACLES of Jesus point to Him being the Messiah, still some people will refuse to believe.
On Palm Sunday, many Jews waved Palm branches in and claimed Jesus as the “Son of David.” They had seen him raise a man from the dead. They had heard of his other miracles. Jesus certainly had a reputation, and people wanted to see and know him.
His miracles were well known.
Changing water into wine
- Healing a leper
- Healing a paralyzed man
- Calming the storm
- Healing a mute demon-possessed man
- Feeding 5000 men and their families
- Walking on water
- Healing a girl possessed by a demon
- Healing a deaf man
- Feeding the 4,000 men and their families
- Healing a blind man
Point number 2 in your notes this morning:
Just as the truth of the PROPHECIES of Jesus point to Him being the Messiah, still some people will refuse to believe.
Point number 3 in your notes this morning:
Just as the truth of the WORDS of Jesus point to Him being the Messiah, still some people will refuse to believe.
And many more!
Friday Apr 26, 2019
Friday Apr 26, 2019
We’re going to look at the life of Christ and three major instances in his last days. We’re going to see how the plot to kill Jesus came to pass, the prayers of Jesus before His crucifixion, and the details of the resurrection of our Lord. There is a theme that we need to take away from this series, and it’s the reminder on a Friday 2000 years ago, Roman soldiers had in their hands some nails and a hammer, and those nails were for me. Those nails were for you.
Point number 1 in your notes this morning:
The Death of Jesus on the Cross was a planned event.
Point number 2 in your notes this morning:
Judas was part of the Heavenly and the Earthly plan to lead Jesus to the Cross.
Point number 3 in your notes this morning:
Jesus wants us to know that He knows our sin.
Sunday Mar 31, 2019
Sunday Mar 31, 2019
28 The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, 29 “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?” 30 So the people came streaming from the village to see him.
Point number 1 in your notes this morning:
When people bring people to Jesus, we start to show and tell enthusiastically.
Luke 15:3-10 (NLT)
3 So Jesus told them this story: 4 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. 6 When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!
8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.”
John 4:31-38
31 Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus, “Rabbi, eat something.” 32 But Jesus replied, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about.” 33 “Did someone bring him food while we were gone?” the disciples asked each other. 34 Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. 35 You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest. 36 The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! 37 You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. 38 I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.”
Point number 2 in your notes this morning:
When people bring people to Jesus, new believers are introduced to biblical spiritual nourishment.
Isaiah 55:1-3 (NIV)
55 “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. 2 Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.
Deuteronomy 8:3 (NIV)
3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
2 Peter 1:3-4 (NIV)
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
John 4:39-41
39 Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” 40 When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, 41 long enough for many more to hear his message and believe
Point number 3 in your notes this morning:
When people tell people about Jesus, we must be willing to stay.
John 4:42
42 Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.”
Point number 4 in your notes this morning:
There is a joy that comes to Christians when new believers “Get it.”
Monday Mar 25, 2019
Monday Mar 25, 2019
Point number 1 in your notes this morning:
When Jesus brings people to Jesus He first addresses our sin
After Jesus explains to this woman that He offers living water, he starts to make inroads. He starts to show her the good news of the gospel message. And part of that message is the message of God‘s grace. But Jesus knows that there is no need for grace if we don’t recognize our own sin as sin.
Jesus brings this woman’s sin to the forefront of the conversation and he puts it all out in the open on the table so she can see it and He can see it.
When Jesus brings people to Jesus
Point number 2 in your notes this morning:
When Jesus brings others to Jesus, He addresses our worship.
Explanation:
There was a debate that was going on between the Samaritans and the Jews about where worship was supposed to take place. Being that these cultures were so deeply angered and mad at each other, the Samaritans had built a temple that they worshiped in. And so you have this argument between the Samaritans and the Jews and one says that you worship in Jerusalem, and the other in Samaria.
Jesus says there’s coming a time when you’re not going to worship in the Temple, but you’re going to worship God in spirit and in truth. There is, however, an assumptive point that Jesus is making to the woman that it is as you come to Jesus, YOU ARE GOING TO WORSHIP. That’s not a question.
It’s not a question of where we worship but it’s a question of who we worship.
3. When Jesus brings others to Jesus HE confirms that HE is Lord.
Jesus has no authority in our life if He is not the Messiah. He has no authority in our life if He is not Lord. But just as he did for the woman at the well if you’re coming to Jesus he WILL confirm without a doubt that He is God.
This woman at the well, even though she is coming from a different religious background, she knows there is a God. And she’s waiting for him to come. She might not know all the details and theological perspectives, she might not have all the Bible verses memorized, but she knows that when the Messiah comes he’s going to answer so many questions for us.
She was waiting with anticipation. She was ready for the Messiah.
I personally believe that every single soul is waiting to recognize its savior.
4. When Jesus brings others to Jesus, he helps them grow closer to Him, and further from this world.
Explanation:
The disciples would have had every right to ask Jesus why He was talking to a woman of the night in the middle of the day, alone. But they knew that Jesus works different from the way we would work. The realized that if Jesus is talking to a sinner, He is making himself known. When Jesus makes himself known, He is begging to grow a young follower into a mature follower. An that means that we are about to experience a life of change.
Monday Mar 18, 2019
Monday Mar 18, 2019
Title: “Our Personal Ministry”
Today’s Topic: John 3:30: He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.
Scholars suggest there may have been hundreds of thousands of people who came to Jerusalem every year to celebrate the Passover. At this point in our story, however, the event is over, and everyone from out of town is heading home.
John 3:22-26 Then Jesus and his disciples left Jerusalem and went into the Judean countryside. Jesus spent some time with them there, baptizing people. 23 At this time John the Baptist was baptizing at Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there; and people kept coming to him for baptism. 24 (This was before John was thrown into prison.) 25 A debate broke out between John’s disciples and a certain Jew over ceremonial cleansing. 26 So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Rabbi, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you identified as the Messiah, is also baptizing people. And everybody is going to him instead of coming to us.”
The men who followed John the Baptist were very loyal to their leader. They had followed John for a while now, and they had seen some of their colleagues who also used to follow John, leave their group, and start following Jesus.
Disciples of John the Baptist were worried about earthly numbers, figures, and attendance. They were starting to see their influence diminish. They were starting to wonder what would happen if everyone stopped coming to see John the Baptist.
How should the church feel if another church opens its doors across the street? Why is it hard to feel this way?
John gives a very important lesson:
John 3:27-30 John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’ It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the bridegroom’s friend is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows. Therefore, I am filled with joy at his success. 30 He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.
John tells his disciples that you only have what God gives you. John said no one could receive anything unless God gives it from heaven! John then utters one of the most humble statements and the entire Bible. He says, "I am filled with joy at his success. He must become greater and I must become less."
John also teaches his disciples that anything that we do is limited to the things that humans can do and that Jesus is not limited because he's not limited to earth.
John 3:31-36
31 “He has come from above and is greater than anyone else. We are of the earth, and we speak of earthly things, but he has come from heaven and is greater than anyone else. 32 He testifies about what he has seen and heard, but how few believe what he tells them! 33 Anyone who accepts his testimony can affirm that God is true. 34 For he is sent by God. He speaks God’s words, for God gives him the Spirit without limit. 35 The Father loves his Son and has put everything into his hands. 36 And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment.”
John is telling his disciples that even if you could do your best, your best is earthly, worldly, and bound by human limitations. If you're trying to give somebody advice or correct of sinful behavior, there's only so much that you can do because you're human. God can do so much more. John says, “Jesus is sent by God the Father and that Jesus speaks of God's words because the father has given the Son the Spirit without limit.” Jesus talks to people about what Our Lord has seen and heard and that he came from heaven to save the world, but nobody is believing in Him.
There is a warning that people will believe the disciples of John because they're talking from a human standpoint, but what good is it if somebody believes us, but doesn't believe Jesus? That belief is worthless.
If a non-believer will trust us before they trust in Jesus, what actions can we take to bring them to Jesus and finally believe in Him? Do our actions have an influence on others?
Shouldn’t people in our lives who know that we are Christians expect more from us when we are in ministry? We need to be beginning our conversations with statements like, “let’s see what the Bible says,” or, “I know that God has an answer for this.” or, “we need to start working on this in prayer .” These lessons show others that we are leaning on God to direct our lives, and they can as well.
John the Baptist was so adamant about biblical principles that HE WOULD NOT BUDGE. John the Baptist would "tell it like it is," and if somebody in his life was living outside of the principles of the Bible, John would call them out.
Luke 3:19-20 John also publicly criticized Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, for marrying Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for many other wrongs he had done. 20 So Herod put John in prison, adding this sin to his many others.
Standing by his heavenly calling lead to John being sent to prison, and it will get us in earthly trouble also. The ministry of John the Baptist was to let people know that the Messiah was coming. Can you imagine what people would've thought about John the Baptist if John had wavered in his support of the gospel so that he didn't offend anyone? Would people have really followed a wishy-washy religious leader?
Flimsy leaders create flimsy followers, and John was not a flimsy leader. Herod, the Roman ruler of the district of Galilee has become fed up with John talking down at the sinful lifestyle that Herod enjoys on a regular basis.
Herod acted outside of the Law of Moses and he married his brother's wife. John knows this is not appropriate and Herod it is going to shut up this messenger of the Lord by throwing him in jail. Notice what John did and what John didn't do. John spoke about the wrongdoing of a government leader, but John didn't cause a revolt of the people, but rather John simply told the truth.
What does the example of John the Baptist tell us about the courage we need to defend the authority of Scripture? Why is this hard?
See what Jesus does once the news of the arrest to make it's way to our Lord.
Matthew 4:12
When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he left Judea and returned to Galilee.
John 4:4
He had to go through Samaria on the way.
Threats to our ministry don't always require us to stand and fight, sometimes we need to go find new sheep. Jesus knew that the pressure was on. Only a few days ago he had caused a major disturbance at the temple in front of thousands of people. All the Pharisees saw him toss over the tables of the moneychangers, and they knew who he was. He spent a good amount of time talking to Nicodemus. Jesus understood the depth of the hatred from the Pharisees for Jesus by now. John has just been arrested, and it's easy to imagine that Jesus is going to be next.
Jesus isn’t running away. He will come back and minister in this area again. For now, however, His ministry is better with Him in the field that it is with him in jail.
In Matthew chapter 10, Jesus talks to His disciples about not staying too long in an area where people aren’t going to listen.
Matthew 10:13–15
13 And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. 14 And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. 15 Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.
Jesus is going to go and minister in another location. He's going to go to Galilee. There are people there who need to know about the saving grace that the son of God brings. Jesus could've stayed and argued with the people and he could have, with His heavenly power, simply changed the minds and convinced people of who he was. But that's not who He is.
Sometimes, after we made our point, and after we have preached in an area, it's time to go find a new sheep. Sometimes our work in a specific area is done much sooner than we think. Sometimes God has plans for us somewhere else, to reach new people, to guide new souls to Christ who have not heard his words.
What is the lesson you learned from this study?
Monday Mar 18, 2019
Monday Mar 18, 2019
When Jesus began His ministry, one of the first people He had a one-on-one conversation with was a man named Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a leader in the Jewish church, who had come to Jesus at night to ask questions. What Jesus made very clear was that works would not get people to heaven. The Pharisees liked everything by the book. They liked the rules and works. They weren’t going to believe in a system that they couldn’t control. To the Pharisees, righteousness was to be seen on the outside.
The topic of belief is one that Jesus knew Nicodemus would struggle to understand. In order to connect with Nicodemus, Jesus quoted a story from the Old Testament and reminded Nicodemus of a time when belief saved the Hebrews.
Numbers 21:4-9 Then the people of Israel set out from Mount Hor, taking the road to the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom. But the people grew impatient with the long journey, 5 and they began to speak against God and Moses. “Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die here in the wilderness?” they complained. “There is nothing to eat here and nothing to drink. And we hate this horrible manna!” So the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, and many were bitten and died. Then the people came to Moses and cried out, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take away the snakes.” So Moses prayed for the people. Then the Lord told him, “Make a replica of a poisonous snake and attach it to a pole. All who are bitten will live if they simply look at it!” So Moses made a snake out of bronze and attached it to a pole. Then anyone who was bitten by a snake could look at the bronze snake and be healed!
Why would it be so hard for people who were ill from snakebites to follow the instructions from Moses and look at the pole to be cured?
From this story in the book of Numbers, we can see that the Lord brought a way for the people to be saved. The way to salvation involved belief. Unfortunately, not everyone believed, and those who didn’t would eventually die. God said, “All who were bitten will live if they believe and look at the snake.”
Jesus told Nicodemus that in order to spend eternity with the Father, you must be born again. To be born again is a spiritual birth. It’s not something you can control, it requires faith.
John 3:9 “How are these things possible?” Nicodemus asked. 10 Jesus replied, “You are a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don’t understand these things? 11 I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe our testimony. 12 But if you don’t believe me when I tell you about earthly things, how can you possibly believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.
Do you see the similarities? Sometimes something as simple as faith can seem so difficult.
The Hebrews were in the wilderness, and they were being bitten by poisonous snakes. Moses walked around the camp, and he told people they simply needed to look at the bronze snake on the pole to be healed. They needed to have faith. They needed to do what God had asked them to do, and their faith would lead to healing.
Undoubtedly there were people in the camp who had been bitten by the snakes who would not believe the directions from Moses. They were the ones who died. They died because of their lack of faith. The author of Hebrews writes in Hebrews 11:
11 Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.
If you looked at the bronze snake and were cured, how would you feel when you looked at the people in your camp that didn’t look at the pole and were dying?
Jesus knew He would someday be nailed to a wooden pole. Jesus has asked us to be obedient in the same way that Moses asked of the Hebrews. Jesus told us that we need to be born again and to do so, you and I need to have faith in the man on the pole.
Jesus continues his discussion to Nicodemus, with the most quoted verse in the entire Bible. John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
As much as we learn about God from this one verse, we discover so much more from one simple word within this verse. It’s the word SO. God didn’t simply love the world, He SO loved and the world. He doesn’t simply love you; He SO loves you. To some people, you might say, “I love you.” However, isn’t there a difference when you say, “I love you SO much”?
It’s two letters! However, it shows us how deep God’s love is for us. He loved us SO much that He decided to save us. He decided to trade HIS SON for You and me.
Some people will do anything for their pets. When we need to take our animal to the vet. We are never ready financially for the veterinarian to say, “yes, I can heal your precious best friend, but it’s going to cost $9000.” It is so much money, and you’re left with a choice. They can put your dog to sleep with a simple shot and you say good-bye for only $112.
Some people might say, “No animal is worth $9000.” However, others will say, “I love my dog SO much that I would pay anything.” It sounds strange to compare Gods love for us to our love for an animal, but that that’s what God did. He paid for us because He loves us SO much. God knew that He would have to pay more than thousands of dollars for us but He paid something even more than that: He gave his Son for you.
What if the angels were looking at God and saying, “You paid what?” “You gave your Son? Look at them, they’re just humans. No human is worth the Son of God. Look at them, God! They are sinners! They don’t obey you. They don’t follow you. They curse your name!” And maybe God would look back at His angels with tears in His eyes as He keeps one hand on our shoulder and says, “I know all of that, but . . . but, but I love them SO much.”
How must God have felt as Jesus died on the cross for us? What can we learn about the depth of His love?
How are we responding to the love of God? We need to continue to look up, because there is a God who loves us, and never stops looking down.
Jesus continues his message to Nicodemus in John 3, 17.
John 3:17-19
17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.
18 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. 19 And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil.
John makes it clear that if you believe, you have already been saved, but if you DON’T believe, if you don’t have faith, you have already been judged. It’s a very clear gospel message the only way to the father is through belief in Jesus Christ.
People want to create shiny things. There are so many different cultures, lifestyles and fake religions that keep popping up that are based on fabricated ideas. They all have one thing in common, they diminish the truth of the gospel and allow you to create your own path. The pleasures of this world will always sparkle, but they will never save.
John goes on to tell us that new this direction for our lives is free. We can all have this joy by simply having faith. It’s a change in our life that is going to bring us closer to our creator and further away from guilt. This change even comes with the benefits of people who are going to notice our change, people who are going to understand, and people who are going through the same exact thing that we are. We are also part of a family of believers, many of whom have been on the very place that every new believer has been.
John 3:20-21
20 All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. 21 But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants. ”
Jesus has a message for Nicodemus. Jesus says you can continue in your sin if you choose to, you can hide it from everyone in your world, and you can think you’re hiding it from Jesus, but God still sees our sin. A new life in Christ makes all our sin visible to us the same way that Jesus sees our sin. When we recognize and repent of our sin, we can finally recognize the power of the blood of Christ that paid for our sin.
Jesus wants you to walk to the cross with your sin. Jesus gives us relief from our sin, and that is what the Light is for. It’s to shine a light on our sin. Yes, the closer we get to Jesus, the brighter the light shines on our sin. This helps us to see it and come to Jesus to eliminate it from our lives. We cannot grow closer to Christ and closer to sin at the same time.
If Jesus were right here right now he might say, “Why are you still carrying that sin around? Why have you not yet brought that to me?” I already paid for it. All that guilt and that heavy heart that you have because of the sin that you know is in your life, I already paid for that. Let me have that, leave this sin, and let’s move on together.”
Jesus really knows what our sin is, but what Jesus wants is for us to recognize it as sin. He wants us to stop making excuses. He wants us to stop believing what the world says that our sin is OK because it’s not OK. Jesus wants us to except that he is already paid for that guilt, he’s already paid for that sin.
Our response to the blood of Christ covering our sin should be . . .
Monday Feb 18, 2019
Monday Feb 18, 2019
Turn with me if you will to John chapter 2. We’re going to be reading verses 12-25 this morning in a message that I’ve titled “The Problem of Worship without Reverence.”
Point number 1 in your notes this morning:
The Respect of the Father should always be part of our Worship.
Point number 2 in your notes this morning:
Every place that the Lord lives should be considered Holy.
Point number 3 in your notes this morning:
God no longer lives in a building, but rather lives in us.
Point number 4 in your notes this morning:
Jesus is looking for genuine devotion, not superficial astonishment.