ACTS—Building Toward the Future | Genuine Unity… & the Threat of Dishonesty Acts 4:32—5:11 | February 9, 2020

ACTS—Building Toward the Future | Genuine Unity… & the Threat of Dishonesty Acts 4:32—5:11 | February 9, 2020

 

Unity—All In!
One heart… One mind…
What’s yours is mine!
With unity of mission there is power!
There is also encouragement 

Q—Have you been inspired by a unified team effort?

 

A Cautionary Tale
Guard your heart while doing good
Generosity with deception is despicable
A sin against man is a sin against God
The Holy Spirit is God
God is serious about His mission 

Q—Do you desire the praise of people or of God?

 

You Will Be Found Out
A darkened heart is self-deceived
God still offers second chances
God is serious about protecting His Church 

Q—Does this scare you?  At least a little?

 

What Should We Do?
Is this our second chance?
God is serious about the Great Commission
Are we?
It’s going to take unity. Are we all in?
God’s power is waiting to work through us

CROSSROADS CHURCH

5467 1st Ave, Pittsville, WI 54466 | 715-884-2665

Sunday Services at 9:30AM

[email protected]

ACTS—Building Toward the Future | Do We Even Have a Prayer? | Acts 4:23-31 | February 2, 2020

ACTS—Building Toward the Future | Do We Even Have a Prayer? | Acts 4:23-31 | February 2, 2020

 

Prayer—The Reminder
There are almost 1,100 prayers recorded in the Bible
The first… soon after the Fall
Humility and repentance are required

 

Prayer—A Pattern in Acts
The Greatness of God
The Will of God
The request for help from God
The desire to be used by God

 

Prayer—Have We Seen This Pattern Before?
How… not What!
It’s relational
It’s missional
It’s practical

 

Prayer—For Boldness!
The early church needed it
Paul needed it
We still need it

 

Is it the same for us today?
Do we have the same Jesus?
Do we face the same opposition?
Do we have the same mission?
Do we take this mission seriously?
Will we follow directions?

CROSSROADS CHURCH

5467 1st Ave, Pittsville, WI 54466 | 715-884-2665

Sunday Services at 9:30AM

[email protected]

Apologetics—Origins… (My Thinking on Creation Has Evolved) | February 24, 2019

Apologetics — Origins… (My Thinking on Creation Has Evolved) | February 24, 2019

 

“In the beginning God created…” Genesis 1:1a

 

Be Prepared for the Questions…
The Question of Evil
The Question of the Moral Law
The Question of the Reliability of the Bible
The Question of SO Many Religions
          A needed clarification… LOVE!
The Question of Origins!

 

Know the Positions…
The Bible Position Genesis 1 & 2
The Evolution Position Romans 1:21-23
What do these two positions claim?
          They explain how we got here!

 

What Form of Literature is Genesis 1?
Poetry with purpose
          There is only ONE God Deuteronomy 6:4
          Day 1—gods of light & darkness
          Day 2—gods of sky & sea, etc…
          Day 6—gods of humanity
          Toledot—generations
                    They were created… by one God!
Poetry and… cosmogony
          “The movement from chaos to cosmos
Not geological or biological or chronological… cosmological
Chaos—Darkness, watery deep, formless earth…

What Can We Know About Creation? What’s Our Answer?
He is the ONLY God… and He’s a God of order
He created everything
And He created YOU in His image & likeness
And He isn’t satisfied with the chaos of this world, but through the Cross He is offering you order… and peace!

CROSSROADS CHURCH

5467 1st Ave, Pittsville, WI 54466 | 715-884-2665

Sunday Services at 9:30AM

[email protected]

Apologetics—With SO Many… How Can I Know | February 17, 2019

Apologetics—With SO Many… How Can I Know | February 17, 2019

 

“I am the LORD, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God.” Isaiah 45:5a

Why (or How) Should We “Do” Apologetics?
It produces confidence
Because I (am) said so!
Do so with gentleness and respect 1Peter 3:15

Who is asking?
Some are hostile to Christians Matthew 7:6
Some are earnestly seeking Jeremiah 29:13-14
Some are believers looking to be prepared 1Peter 3:15

Questions Covered So Far…
The Question of Evil
The Moral Law
Historical Evidence for the Bible

 

But With So Many Religions…
The three “largest” religions…
1. Christianity | 2.4 billioN | 1 Trinitarian God
2. Islam | 1.8 billion | 1 God only
3. Hinduism | 1.2 billion | 330+ million gods

 

Many “gods”… is not new
Ten plagues | Exodus 7-11
Dagon Philistines | 1 Samuel 5:1-4
A god we don’t even know | Acts 17:22-23

What is Truth?
Exclusivity is a fundamental property of truth
Examine exclusivity to see if it’s true
Reincarnation… it’s what you do…
Paradise (in Islam)… karma!
Heaven (in Christianity)… REDEMPTION! (through Grace)

CROSSROADS CHURCH

5467 1st Ave, Pittsville, WI 54466 | 715-884-2665

Sunday Services at 9:30AM

[email protected]

Apologetics — Can I Trust This Book? | February 10, 2019

Apologetics — Can I Trust This Book? | February 10, 2019

 

“Your Word is Truth” John 17:17b

 

HISTORIC CLAIMS OF THE BIBLE?
James Ussher believed Genesis 1 occurred in 4004 BC
66 books (39 Old Testament and 27 New Testament)
40 different authors
1 consistent theme

 

How Can We Trust a Document THAT Old?
What’s the criteria for trusting an ancient document?
Years between earliest copy and the original writing
The total number of early copies

 

Two Ancient Examples
Homer’s “Iliad” and Caeser’s “Gallic Wars”
Homer’s Iliad — 400 years 643 early copies
Gallic Wars — 1,000 years only 10 early copies
How does the Bible compare?
New Testament — 50 years 25,000 early copies
If we can’t trust the Bible to be historical …

Age Isn’t Everything…
Is it correct simply because it’s old?

1st Century Jewish Historians confirm it
Josephus—“At the same time there was a man named Jesus, if we may call him a man. He was a worker of miracles and a teacher of those who willingly received the truth…”

1st Century Roman Historians confirm it
Tacitus—“Christians… Christus, from whom their name is derived, was executed at the hands of the procurator Pontius Pilate in the reign of Tiberius …”

2 Peter 1:20-21… 2 Timothy 3:16… Romans 10:9-10

    CROSSROADS CHURCH

    5467 1st Ave, Pittsville, WI 54466 | 715-884-2665

    Sunday Services at 9:30AM

    [email protected]