Tag: Val Watkins

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Sermon Audio: Have No Fear
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 12:4-7
Duration: 18:59
Size: 8.69 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
Have No Fear
Luke 12:4-7

Jesus recognized that his disciples struggled with fear. And so he addressed the issue of fear in their lives.

I. Proper Fear

But in Luke 12 Jesus teaches his disciples two very important principles with respect to fear.

A. Do Not Fear People

Jesus urged his friends not to fear people. He urged them not to fear even those who could kill the body.

B. Do Fear God

It is God, and God alone, who has authority to cast into hell, because of our sin against him.

“Fear of God is desperately needed in today’s church.”

How we need this wholesome fear that Jesus commended to his disciples.

II. Preserving Fear

Jesus teaches that a proper fear of God is in fact a preserving fear.

A. God Cares for Sparrows

But, not even the sparrow thrown into the bargain without real value is forgotten before.

B. God Cares Far More for Christians

Jesus was saying that God cares for sparrows. But he cares far more for his children.

If you don’t fulfill the mission God assigned to you, who will?

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 18:33 — 1.0MB)

Sermon Audio: Beware of the Leaven of the Pharisees
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 12:1-3
Duration: 18:33
Size: 8.49 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
Beware of the Leaven of the Pharisees
Luke 12:1-3

The question is what we will do when we come across signs of them in our lives, sticking up out of the sand?

I. The Example of Hypocrisy

It describes something small that spreads silently, almost secretly, but ultimately pervasively.

We may give people the impression that we are really rather righteous when in fact our hearts are far from God.

Are you doing anything or saying anything or thinking anything or watching anything with which you would rather not have your name associated?

II. The Exposure of Hypocrisy

But the more we do it, the greater our hypocrisy becomes as we try to hide it.

If you do not confess your sins, including the ones you think that no-one else knows about, then you will live your life in fear of being discovered.

There is no sin that is beyond the forgiveness of God.

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Sermon Audio: The Marks of a Hypocrite
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 11:37-54
Duration: 23:03
Size: 10.5 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
The Marks of a Hypocrite
Luke 11:37-54

Jesus reserved his harshest words, not for thieves, or prostitutes but to a segment among the religious folks who he identified as hypocrites.

In pursuit of the Truth and the attempt to carry out the will of God, we can get caught up in a spirit of self-righteousness which causes us to watch others to see that every i is dotted and every t crossed as we believe it should be.

The Pharisees were concerned only with what a man did; Jesus was concerned with what a man was.

The first mark of a hypocrite is that they major on the minors.

Whatever the issues are, if we use them to define whether person is spiritual or not, we are guilty. We are guilty of majoring on the minors.

The second mark of a hypocrite is that they are preoccupied with being noticed.

Are your acts of service to Christ done to be seen by men? Are you satisfied to serve unnoticed?

The third mark of a hypocrite is that they make men worse rather than better.

The Pharisees were like unmarked graves that did not look like graves at all.

The fourth mark of a hypocrite is that their teaching produces a burden not a blessing.

Jesus accuses them of taking all the joy out of living for God and made serving God a burden.

The fifth mark of a hypocrite is their works are a monument to their guilt.

Do you ever wonder if in some cases this showy tomb is evidence of guilt, more than of love?

The sixth mark of a hypocrite is that they make the truth harder to find.

It is easy to see the marks of being a hypocrite in the lives of others, but not near as easy to see them in our own lives.

Questions to ask yourself:

• Do you major on the minors?
• Are you preoccupied with being noticed?
• Does your influence make men worse not better?
• Do you make peoples burdens heavier?
• Are your works monuments to your guilt rather than your love?
• Because of your life, do others find the truth harder to find?

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Sermon Audio: Essentials of Discipleship
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 11:27-36
Duration: 21:23
Size: 9.79 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
Essentials of Discipleship
Luke 11:27-36

Wholehearted commitment is essential to true, vital Christianity.

I. Disciples Obey the Word of God

Jesus agreed that Mary was blessed. However, Mary was blessed because of her obedience to Jesus and not because of her relationship to Jesus.

Imagine what would happen if Jesus’ disciples listened to and obeyed the word of God with the same earnestness.

II. Disciples Believe the Resurrection of Jesus

Jesus was referring to his own death, burial, and resurrection from the dead.

They will say that we had so much more evidence than they ever did, and we have no excuse whatsoever for not believing and not obeying.

We will have no excuse for not believing the resurrection of Jesus.

III. Disciples Reflect the Light of Jesus

A failure to understand the person and work of Jesus is not because Jesus did not give enough evidence about his person and work.

Those who do believe that Jesus is the Son of God and Savior of sinners reflect the light of Jesus to the world.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 19:44 — 9.0MB)

Sermon Audio: Who Then Is This Jesus?
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 11:14-26
Duration: 19:44
Size: 9.03 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
Who Then Is This Jesus?
Luke 11:14-26

We have just that sort of case before us this morning, the incident relayed to us in Luke 11:14-26 presses three relevant questions upon us.

1. Is Jesus the Son of God As He Claims?
Since they could not deny the power that Jesus possessed, the man had indeed been delivered; they question the source of his power.

Perhaps like some today they thought of themselves as being open minded, willing to be convinced if enough evidence is presented.

2. How Do I Know He is Who He Says He Is?
If Satan’s goal is to destroy and Jesus is reversing that destruction by healing, then how can he be in the service of Satan.

Logic would demand that the religious leaders acknowledge that Jesus was God or that His power was God’s power and yet in the face of all the evidence they refused.

3. What Must I Do In The Face Of This Evidence?
There are only two sides, God’s side and Satan’s side. There is no other side.

If a man or woman is empty and without God, then a vacuum exist in their soul and that vacuum will be filled by something.

The entire Christian faith all of its claims and all of its promises hangs on the witnessed, historical verifiable event, the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ.

There is no middle ground; you cannot be neutral about Jesus, Who do you say that he is?

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Sermon Audio: Persistent Prayer
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 11:5-13
Duration: 20:18
Size: 9.29 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
Persistent Prayer
Luke 11:5-13

Now having given the disciples a pattern for prayer, Jesus continues his instruction by telling a story.

1. We Are To Pray Boldly

Jesus is asking each of his listeners, “which of you has the nerve to wake up his friend (and possible his family as well) in the middle of the night to ask for bread?”

Jesus is not comparing God to a sleepy, selfish and angry neighbor. He is contrasting the two.

But what gives us the right to come boldly or shamelessly to God with our needs.

2. We Are To Pray Passionately

There is a progression in this persistence, asking, seeking and knocking.

By a continued practice of asking, seeking and knocking we break the habit where prayer is just an option, or is for emergency use only.

As we keep on asking we are to keep on seeking and a part of this seeking is seeking to discover what the will of God is in this matter.

3. We Are To Pray Expectantly

He can be expected not only to answer our prayers, but in answering them in such a way that it is for our highest good.

God is eager to respond to his children who unashamedly ask, persistently seek and expectantly knock at His door with their needs and requests.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 19:09 — 1.0MB)

Sermon Audio: Lord Teach Us To Pray (Part 2)
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 11:1-4
Duration: 19:09
Size: 8.77 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
Lord Teach Us To Pray
Part 2
Luke 11:1-4

In the last half of the prayer we turn from praying for God’s glory to praying for our needs.

1. Praying On The Basis of a New Dependence – “Give us day by day our daily bread.”

God never gives us a reservoir of grace in our lives, but expects us to turn to Him everyday for the grace sufficient to meet the challenges of that day.

The only bread that will satisfy completely and forever is the provision of the Lord Jesus Himself.

2. Praying On the Basis of God’s Pardon – “Forgive us our sins”

Christian’s can and do still sin and Therefore stand in need of daily confession and forgiveness.

Some say but I can’t forgive, is it really I can’t or is it I won’t?

3. Praying On the Basis of God’s Protection – “And do not lead us into temptation”

Rather it accepts the danger of temptation, acknowledges our deficiency in dealing with it, and asks for deliverance from it.

Because we do not know what dangers we will face each new day, we need God’s protection to cover us.

“Our father in heaven, Hallowed be your name,” focus on the God of the Universe as Father.

priorities – “Your kingdom come”

purposes – “your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”

provision – “give day by day our daily bread”

pardon – “forgive us our sins, for we forgive everyone who is indebted to us”

protection – “and do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from the evil one.”

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Sermon Audio: Lord Teach Us To Pray (Part 1)
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 11:1-4
Duration: 17:47
Size: 8.14 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
Lord Teach Us To Pray
Part 1
Luke 11:1-4

Jesus gave the Lord’s Prayer in response to the disciple’s request in verse 1, “Lord, teach us to pray”.

It is actually given to us as the Lord’s blueprint for prayer that is acceptable to God.

1. Praying On the Basis of A New Relationship

Jesus is stating the importance of starting our prayers with the awareness that God is our Father.

Perhaps your father was angry and unapproachable or abusive or just not around.

God is not an angry judge looking for an opportunity to condemn us, nor is aloof and distant, too busy to hear you.

2. Praying On the Basis of a New Respect – “Hallowed be Your Name”

We hallow his name with our lips, both privately and publicly, and by our actions.

3. Praying On the Basis of a New Priority – “Your Kingdom Come”

When we pray, “Your kingdom come,” we are acknowledging God’s right to rule all people, including us.

4. Praying On the Basis of a New Submission – “Your Will be Done On Earth As It Is In Heaven.”

Notice you are not asking God to change His will or to bless your will, you are asking Him to help you find and do His will in your life.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 23:13 — 10.6MB)

Sermon Audio: Duty vs. Devotion
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 10:28-32
Duration: 23:13
Size: 10.6 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
Duty vs. Devotion
Luke 10:28-32

I believe that we many times have wrongly contrasted Martha and Mary, as though each Christian should make a choice to either be a worker like Martha or a worshiper like Mary.

1. Loss Of Focus Caused Martha To Resort To Self-Pity.

Martha’s problem was one of balance, between the going and doing and the sitting and listening.

2. Loss Of Focus Causes Martha To Become Angry At Others.

And the more the pressure, the most tempting it is to focus on the urgent rather than the essential.

It is even worse when we can think of someone who we do not feel is pulling their weight and who has let us down.

3. Loss Of Focus Causes Martha To Find Fault With Others.

We all have ways that we use to get a message across.

4. Loss Of Focus Causes Martha To Question God’s Care.

Martha was angry at Mary for being so selfish and she is angry at Jesus for allowing this to go on.

Whenever our service causes us to criticize others and pity ourselves because we feel overworked, we had better take time to examine our lives!

It all boiled down to the fact that Martha wanted to force Mary to serve Christ her way.

5. Loss of Focus Can Be Eliminated by Remembering Why We Are Doing What We Are Doing?

It was Martha’s attitude that needed correction, but Martha’s work was both good and necessary.

The Christian life is learning to balance duty and devotion.
Sitting without serving is powerless.
Serving without sitting is directionless.
Serving after sitting produces power and balance.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 25:29 — 1.0MB)

Sermon Audio: The Story of the Good Samaritan
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: Luke 10:25-37
Duration: 25:29
Size: 11.6 MB

Luke-The Investigative Gospel
The Story of the Good Samaritan
Luke 10:25-37

The question asked of Jesus by this lawyer is: “What do I have to do to have eternal life?”

Jesus wants the lawyer to see that law cannot save anyone because no one can keep the law perfectly.

Jesus defines neighbor with a story but notice that Jesus did not call this story a parable, so it could be the report of an actual occurrence not unlike a first century “Kitty Genovese Story.”

1. Compassion Is Based On Need Not Worth.

The priest has been excused by some down through the years, by saying that he didn’t want to touch the man because he might have been dead, and this would have made the priest ceremonially unclean and he would have been unable to carry out his duties.

Both of these men, saw the man but ignored the need.

2. Compassion Feels Something.

The Samaritan saw the same pitiful man lying in agony beside the road and his heart churned within him so that he could not pass by without helping.

3. Compassion Does Something.

You must move toward people to express compassion, in order to build relationships.

In every one of his acts he demonstrated compassion as he responded in a practical, timely and unselfish way.

4. Compassion Cost Something.

There is nothing more the Samaritan could have done to show his compassion for this man.

5. Compassion Demonstrates Our Relationship to God.

The second question that the lawyer had asked was, “Who is my neighbor?” the question had been turned on him and is now, “What kind of neighbor am I?”