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John 16:5-8 (NLT): But now I am going away to the One who sent me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment.
1 Corinthians 12: 1-10 (NLT): Now, dear brothers and sisters, regarding your question about the special abilities the Spirit gives us. I don’t want you to misunderstand this. You know that when you were still pagans, you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols. So I want you to know that no one speaking by the Spirit of God will curse Jesus, and no one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit. There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said.
There are three things the Holy Spirit came to do: convict the world of its sin, God’s righteousness, and the coming judgment. Don’t try to do the Holy Spirit’s job- that is worldly, man-made religion. When we convict the world of its sins, we live in that man-made religion, and we have no time for love. If all we do is convict, look down on people believing that we are better because we are saved, we will save no one. We must move over and let the Holy Spirit do his work. When the Holy Spirit is free to move, he does os powerfully, in freedom.
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Luke 6:43-45 (NLT): A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thornbushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.
Galatians 5:16-18 (NLT): So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.
Galatians 5:19-24 (NLT): When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.
The passage in Luke is a potentant statement that gives believerts a unique look into the heart of God. Read more ›
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“What’s love got to do with it?”
What’s love got to do with it? EVERYTHING!
2 Corinthians 6:14-15 “Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever?”
Agape love is the love that God has for us. It is shown in acts of service, kindness, and sacrifice. Sacrifice in your relationship so that it benefits the other person, in a way that it doesn’t benefit you. If the other person is not receiving of the gift, it doesn’t matter. Do something for the other person. Sacrifice your time or something else so that the other person accepts it, and it means something. Read more ›
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The Church Part 1
Acts 2:41-45: Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all. All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need.
The new testament church described in Acts is the kind of church that attracted thousands. Imagine having a church of only one hundred that, after a miraculous move of the spirit, grows to over three thousand in one day! Imagine! And this church was run on four basic actions: teaching, fellowship (hanging out), the Lord’s Super (eating together), and prayer. Four simple actions constructed a church that revolutionized ancient historical culture and changed the course of the human race! Read more ›
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Ephesians 2: 19-22: So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.
Lots of places have slogans. For example, McDonald’s slogan would be “I’m loving it.” The C3 Church’s slogan would be “your best life”. We believe that God has only the best of intentions for our lives. You best life means your best all together life, not your best one part of your life. We are not supposed to focus only on your spiritual life; you must focus also on your physical and emotional lives as well.
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John 3: 1-5 (NLT): There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.”
Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”
“What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.
Nicodemus came to Jesus soon after Jesus had cleared the Temple. He was a member of the Pharisees–a group who ran the Temple and profited from the not-so-holy business dealing that were going on within until Jesus came and drove everyone out. It seemed to be his hope to win Jesus over before this new stranger could cause any more trouble. He tries to butter him up by calling him “Rabbi” and talking about his miracles. It is then that Jesus hits him with this: “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” Read more ›
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