Lakeside Bible Church Sermons
Web Site: Lakeside Bible Church
Total Sermons: 91
Total Amens: 1
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Spiritual Olympics
In 1 Corintians 9:24-27, Paul uses an analogy to describe our spiritual lives. He used the metaphor of an athlete running a race for a prize at the Olympics or the Isthmian Games at Corinth. Like a coach, Paul teaches us two techniques for ensuring that we run a winning spiritual race: exhortation and exemplfication. As spiritual athletes, we are not seeking to win the gift of salvation (which we have already been given), but the rewards of faithfully serving the Lord. To run a good race, we must not only have discipline, but direction, as well. Indeed, we must employ both direction and discipline so that we may not be disqualified from the race. It is also important to remember that we are not racing against our brothers and sisters in Christ, but against ourselves and time. Winning, according to Paul, was to be conformed to the likeness of Christ. Is this your idea of winning?
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God Is Faithful
A great test of our walk with the Lord is when we are given the opportunity to take a vacation. We all know that you can take a vacation to 'get away from it all', but you can never take a vacation from trials and temptation. 1 Corinthians 10:13 teaches us that God is faithful and that His faithfulness is the key to us having hope in the face of trials. God has given us three promises that are based on His faithfulness, and in which we can place our hope: 1) No temptation or trial is remarkable; 2) No temptation or trial is unbearable; and 3) No temptation or trial is inescapable. God in His grace and mercy gives us a way out of every trial and temptation through endurance and hope in His promises. Because God is faithful, He can be trusted.
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The Invisible War
The story of Job is a testament to Christians that even though we must endure numerous attacks from Satan, we can have confidence that our sovereign God is still in control. We must remember however, that even though Satan was defeated by Jesus Christ, his power is for now still in effect and his threat still great. But just as Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong in the face of suffering, Christians are to submit to trials and worship God our creator because Satan's power has been limited by the triumph of our Savior Jesus Christ. By God's grace we can recognize the advances of Satan's attacks and be ready for the battles. In Job 2 we learn that Satan is persistent but has faulty perception of the power of authentic God-given faith. Although Satan's persecution is overwhelming, his acts are only carried out by permission from God. Thus we know that God is fully in control and sovereign over all things - including pain and trials. As such, believers cannot lose their God-given faith!
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Putting Sloth To Death
Sloth is perhaps one of the seven deadly sins that is most easily overlooked. It can be defined as one who is sluggish or lazy or one who lacks incentive. Sloth, like any sin, can certainly lead to spiritual death if not covered by the blood of Jesus. It therefore must be mortified in our lives. The book of Proverbs gives us seven characteristics of a slothful person as well as seven consequences of being slothful. Finally, the New Testament scriptures (2 Thessalonians 3:6-15) give us guidance on how - through God's grace, sloth can be put to death by way of seven cures.
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Overcoming Opposition
Acts 4:1-31 tells of the outcome of the miracle by Peter and John when they healed the lame beggar. Peter had shortly before delivered his first sermon (at Pentecost) and when the spreading of the news of Jesus's resurrection, and the miracle carried out by Peter and John became known to the Sadducees, the apostles were taken before the Sanhedrin to account for their preaching of the gospel. However, Jesus had equipped His apostles to expect the persecution they faced. This served as the first persecution that the early church experienced. This account demonstrates that a believer can expect to be persecuted when the gospel is boldy shared with others - when we strive to be faithful to share the gospel. But we should rejoice in knowing that the church is the most amazing and invincible organism ever created by God. In fact, the church has grown as a direct result, and in direct proportion to the amount of persecution brought upon it. Indeed, persecution is all part of God's plan for growing the church.
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Putting Greed To Death
Today's culture tends to be obsessed with material and monetrary posessions. This is manifest in a "never enough" attitude in that no matter how much we have, we never seem to have enough. In biblical terms, this is known as greed, which can be defined as having the desire for more or not being satisfied with what you have. In Luke 12:1-12, Jesus uses the Parable of the Rich Fool to teach His disciples the foolishness of greed. This parable teaches us that greed is a very deadly sin and people have lost their souls over greed. Although riches can be a source of sin and evil, riches can be okay as long as we trust in God instead of our wealth. Verses 22-24 teach us the solution to greed: 1) be rich in faith and 2) be rich in good deeds. It follows that we should pursue godliness as our greatest treasure and always keep in mind that we are merely passing through this world. We can also learn to be content with the basic necessities of life and fear the deceptive nature and destructive results of greed. In summary, to overcome greed in your life, become greedy for God!
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A Lame Man Leaps
In Acts 3:1-26 Luke recounts the first miracle ever performed by Peter and John. - the healing of a lame beggar on their way to worship at the temple. This event, which served as the foundation for Peter's second sermon, tiggered the first persecution of the early church. Peter and John saw not a beggar who needed money, but a man who's body needed to be healed and who's soul needed to be saved. This event was fulfillment of prophesy (Isaiah 35:5-6) and therefore signified that the Jews had indeed crucified their Messiah. Like the beggar, we are all born into this world unable to walk because of the disease of sin. But, like the healed beggar, if we confess our sins and repent of them we can be restored by Jesus Christ. For we were all once spiritual beggars, but have been granted the miracle of salvation, which heals us and causes radical change in us. This should serve as a platform to preach the gospel, just as it did for Peter and John.
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Putting Anger To Death
The renewal of the mind in salvation not only brings about renovation of character, but transformation from the old self to the new. This includes one's tendency toward anger. Anger can be either good (righteous) or bad (sinful), depending on motive and purpose. Anger is righteous when it is unselfish and based on love for God and others, but sinful anger is an outward expression of a deeper ailment: pride or lack of faith in God's sovereignty. However, even righteous anger can turn to bitterness and further sin if allowed to continue. Prolonged anger allows Satan a foothold to destroy relationships, and at worst may become hostile. It can even potentially damage the church. The solution to anger is to put away or put off our sinful thoughts and tendencies and put on (replace them with) the thoughts generated through God's word.
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