Tag: Sermon

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2018-11-18: All In — Alabaster Jar, 30 Pieces of Silver, and the Cross

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Sermon Audio: All In — Alabaster Jar, 30 Pieces of Silver, and the Cross
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Matthew 26:6-16,36-46
Duration: 19:49
Size: 9.66 MB

All In
Alabaster Jar, 30 Pieces of Silver, and the Cross
Matthew 26:6-16,36-46

So I’ve given you pictures of what it looks like to go all in with God, to push all your chips to the middle of the table and say, God I belong to you.

It is understanding that it doesn’t start with what you can do for God, it starts with what God has done for you.

She wasn’t just pouring perfume on Jesus, She was giving her life to Jesus. She was offering her life to Jesus.

So when we give these gifts, of our tithes and offerings I hope you see it as an alabaster jay of perfume.

Jesus is alluding to the cup of wrath, sometimes it is called the cup of sorrow in the Old Testament.

Are you grateful today? Are you grateful today that He took our place, that He drank the cup that we deserve?

I don’t know what God is demanding or asking or prompting of you, but He gave everything, and that means we should be willing to give ourselves back to Him.

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2018-11-11: All In — Caleb

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Sermon Audio: All In — Caleb
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Joshua 14:6-14
Duration: 40:32
Size: 20.0 MB

All In
Caleb
Joshua 14:6-14

But 45 years later, God gives them a second chance. Aren’t you glad that God gives second chances?

Really, the difference between going all in and just holding out is, it really comes down to this, are you going to let fear dictate your decisions or are you going to let faith dictate your decisions?

Just try to imagine the conviction in his voice when he said this. This is the Braveheart moment. This is the Gladiator moment.

The simple answer to why he was as vigorous at 85 as he was at 40 is because his faith never diminished.

Abraham lived much of his life in Hebron and according to this tradition, he went to Hebron and fell prostrate on the ground and prayed on those gravesites where his ancestors were buried.

Do you see the history that we are a part of? It goes back to Noah that goes to Abraham that goes to Caleb. If Caleb is not all in, they never claim that promise and they never experience the miracle that God does.

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2018-11-04: All In — Abraham and Isaac

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Sermon Audio: All In — Abraham and Isaac
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Genesis 22:1-19
Duration: 28:32
Size: 14.2 MB

All In
Abraham and Isaac
Genesis 22:1-19

Today I would for us to look at the lives of Abraham and Isaac, so if you have a Bible, turn over to Genesis 22.

There is a tremendous tension because how could a loving God even suggest what He is commanding Abraham?

The blessings that God gives us can become more important than the God who gave them to us in the first place.

I’ve got to ask the question–are you following Jesus or is Jesus following you?

We read these stories and we don’t even think about the dynamics happening in this story!

Long before God laid the earth’s foundations, He had us in mind… Long, long ago, He decided to adopt us into his family… He thought of everything, provided for everything we could possibly need.

How much do you trust God? Enough to put your Isaac on the altar?

If your faith is in Christ, then you have been grafted in to the family of Abraham and he is your father.

Christianity is not about what you can do for God, it is about what He has already done for you.

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2018-10-28: All In — Noah

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Sermon Audio: All In — Noah
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Genesis 6:5-22
Duration: 29:27
Size: 14.3 MB

All In
Noah
Genesis 6:5-22

Here is my prayer for this series–that all of us would go all in. Can you imagine a church where everybody is all in?

The book of Chronicles, is kind of an instant replay, if you will, of the history of Israel, and the first nine chapters are devoted to genealogy.

What we are going to do over these next few weeks is profile the stories of those who went all in, and they all look very different but I think there is a unique inspiration from each of these stories that will challenge us to go all in.

I think sometimes we act or think as if God has no feelings. But He does.

So you need to understand that God’s plans and purposes for you are so far beyond what you can even begin to imagine.

You are all in all the time. It is taking up your cross daily and following Christ.

When you make a decision to follow Christ, I’m not going to promise you that it’s going to get easier. In fact, I believe it gets harder.

I also believe that the blessings of God will complicate your life, but it will do it in a way that you want your life to be complicated.

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2018-10-21: Jesus-The Ultimate Action Hero–Jesus The Sneaky Savior

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Sermon Audio: Jesus The Sneaky Savior
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Mark 16:1-20
Duration: 20:00
Size: 9.98 MB

Jesus: The Ultimate Action Hero
Jesus The Sneaky Savior
Mark 16:1-20

Of course, they faced three problems: the guard would stop them, the stone would stop them, and the body would have already started to decompose.

Our job, like these women, is to continue on with the task, perhaps wondering how it is going to be accomplished, but not let the impossibility of it all be a deterrent.

Others may have great precepts and philosophies, but none other has God becoming human, dying for his people and then raising from the dead–proving that the sacrifice took and that the same power that raised Christ from the dead will give new life to us who belong to Him!

The most ancient manuscripts don’t contain this ending and the early church fathers indicate Mark ended in verse 8.

Jesus told his disciples over and over again that He would be crucified, buried, and then rise from the dead.

Jesus told his disciples that they would receive power to be witnesses, not to experience power or be able to wield it.

After He left they went out and did exactly what He commanded, which is just what we are to do: preach the gospel and make disciples.

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2018-10-14: Jesus-The Ultimate Action Hero–Jesus Died In Weakness

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Sermon Audio: Jesus Died In Weakness
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Mark 15:42-47
Duration: 21:52
Size: 10.7 MB

Jesus: The Ultimate Action Hero
Jesus Died In Weakness
Mark 15:42-47

As we look at the events following the crucifixion of Jesus the Messiah let’s get one fact straight: Jesus really died on the cross.

Both of these men were secret disciples until this moment.

So just as the religious leaders saw Him die, and the soldiers confirmed it for themselves and Pilate–all of the three major institutions that rejected Him, religious, civil, and military, admitted to His death.

Isn’t it ironic that they accused Him of trying to destroy the temple, yet got the fact that He wasn’t really talking about the physical temple, but His body?

The torture:
So in a way, the soldiers are acting out physically what we as the human race did spiritually in the Garden of Eden–thumb our nose at God’’s authority in our lives.

The robe:
In some ways these elements show a weakness in man and the strength of our ultimate action hero.

The crown:
This crown was made of thorns, representing the result of man’s efforts to rule himself.

The thorns:
Jesus wearing a crown of thorns perhaps represents the fact that man is incapable of saving himself.

The reed:
The reed could symbolize that man really has no power, though he thinks he does, just as a reed doesn’t really do much damage.

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2018-10-07: Jesus-The Ultimate Action Hero–What Happened on the Cross

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Sermon Audio: What Happened on the Cross
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Mark 15:21-41
Duration: 20:54
Size: 10.5 MB

Jesus: The Ultimate Action Hero
What Happened on the Cross
Mark 15:21-41

  1. Transference. Leviticus 16:20-22, Hebrews 13:11-13
  2. He became sin for us. 2 Corinthians 5:21
  3. God placed the punishment for our sins on Him. Isaiah 53:6
  4. The Father then turned His back on the Son, pouring out His wrath against all sin. Isaiah 54:7
  5. Jesus died, and He sprinkled His own blood on the mercy seat of the heavenly temple as a propitiation.
  6. This satisfied the wrath of God against sin. Romans 5:9-10

What does this mean to us now?

Removed our Sin. Psalm 103:12

Blotted out our sin. Isaiah 43:25

Redeemed us. Romans 3:24

Did away with the Old Covenant. Ephesians 2:15-16, Romans 7:4, Hebrews 10:10

Tasted death. Hebrews 2:9

You died with Him and rose with Him. Romans 6:6-11, Colossians 1:20-22

Made us His children. Galatians 4:4-7

Set free from the power of sin. Romans 7:4-6

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2018-09-30: Jesus-The Ultimate Action Hero–The Darkest Day

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Sermon Audio: The Darkest Day
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Mark 15:1-14
Duration: 26:40
Size: 13.0 MB

Jesus: The Ultimate Action Hero
The Darkest Day
Mark 15:1-14

The Sanhedrin had met the night before and condemned Jesus, but because decisions made at night were not binding, they needed to come together to legitimize their actions.

The religious leaders were pretty good at moving the people because they held such power over them, so it should come as no surprise that they “stirred up” the crowd to ask for the release of Barabbas, a known murderer, over Jesus.

So we see here that both the religious trial (Mark 14:53-59) and the civil trial (Mark 15:2-15) resulted in a no guilty verdict against Jesus.

My guess is that these soldiers had nothing personally against Jesus like the religious leaders, but hated the Jews and hated being posted in this backwater called Palestine.

Jesus said “take up your cross and follow Me.” Simon was the only man who ever lived who could say he had literally done that.

We know from Luke 23 that the two criminals have a conversation with Jesus. One of them rejects Him, the other begs for His mercy.

It seems as if the creation mirrored the spiritual darkness that encircled Jesus.

Jesus did not succumb to crucifixion. To pay for our sins He gave up His life voluntarily.

It shows that Christ’s sacrifice was not for the Jews only, but even for the hated Romans, in fact for all Gentiles, for all people.

He lived the life you should have lived and died the death you should have died–trading His life for yours.

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2018-09-23: Jesus-The Ultimate Action Hero–Betrayal

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Sermon Audio: Betrayal
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Mark 14:43-72
Duration: 23:51
Size: 11.3 MB

Jesus: The Ultimate Action Hero
Betrayal
Mark 14:43-72

Beginning in Mark 14:43 we shift from Jesus being the source of the action to Him being acted upon by others.

There were not photographs so it was important that someone who knew Jesus point Him out among the disciples.

Jesus wants them to know that He knows their actions are unsupported and that the only reason He is allowing it is to fulfill God’s Word.

What Mark records here is really the second hearing–taking place at the current high priest’s house: Caiaphas.

The religious leaders had already rendered their judgment and were looking for facts to support it!

At this point Caiaphas was getting frustrated. He tried to trick Jesus into answering a false accusation.

They didn’t need any more witnesses because Jesus was either blaspheming or telling the truth.

This records Peter’s worst hour. He can’t escape who he is, though he tries desperately.

Mark focuses a lot of Peter here and the process of Peter’s denial:

curiosity
pride
weakness
making up
running away
denial
weeping