5 Portraits Of A Faithful Christian (Philippians 2:25)

A Cross-Shaped Life (Mark 8:27-38)

Every disciple, every one of us who calls Jesus Christ, Lord, the question we will face of being asked is, “Who is your King?”Who do you worship? Do you have a cross-shaped life?In our culture today, the world is telling us that there is no God on the throne in heaven. They demand that we follow the ways of the world, and not the way of Christ.They want us to deny our allegiance to our Lord and Saviour. In Mark 8, we see what Jesus taught and what his first followers did.

Anchoring Faith In God's Past Faithfulness (Joshua 4)

Have you experienced a time in your life when the memory of God’s faithfulness just slowly fades into the background. At one point, God answers your prayer and you remark that you’ll never forget this. Or God provided exactly what you needed, and you thought I’m going to be forever grateful. Or maybe God carried you through a difficult season, and you thought God is so good all the time. But life happens. New responsibilities, new worries, and distractions.  Before long, you develop “gospel amnesia” which results in fear replacing faith, anxiety replacing gratitude, and we end up trying to face today’s challenges as though God has never helped us before. Joshua 4 tells us how we can anchor our faith in God’s past faithfulness.

Godly Examples Among Us (Philippians 2:25-30)

Notice all the emotional words used in Philippians 2:25-30: longing, distress, anguish, heaviness, sorrow, joy.  This full range of emotions when it comes to the relationships within the church family. Is this the way we feel about our church family? Do you long to see each other every week? Do you long to spend more time together? Are you in anguish when one of our church members is suffering? Do you rejoice when you see your brother and sister in Christ again? The church is to be highly relational and affectionate b/c of how much we love each other. And this love can only come from the love of Christ and the overflow of his love in our hearts towards his people. Christ centred, humbly serving others, and deep affection for one another: This is what the church is supposed to look like.

Trusting God Before The Miracle Comes (Joshua 3)

Some of you may be going through something that feels unsolvable, or a time of uncertainty where everything seems out of your control.If this is true of you, God has good news for you.In Joshua 3, we see a story that’s not just a story about Israel crossing a river. It’s a story about what it means to trust God when the way forward is not clear.

How God Uses The Most Unexpected People (Joshua 2)

As God is building His kingdom, if He asked you to make a list of all the people He should use, who would you choose?  Rahab would most likely be not on that list, but yet in Joshua 2, we read how God uses her powerfully.  Her story is not ultimately about a woman with a checkered past. It’s about a sovereign, gracious God who delights using the most unlikely people to accomplish His great purpose.