The Gospel of John Session 15 – Chapter 13 – Pastor Chris Black

Outline Available Here

Seek First the Kingdom of God: In Your Home

In our series “Seek first the kingdom of God” last week we dealt with God’s rule for marriage. This week I want to bring you a message about seeking God’s kingdom first in your home. Again, this means to come into alignment with God’s rule over every area of life. The first portion of scripture we read has to do with singleness. What to do if you’re a Christian and you’re not married. Being single offers you the unique advantage of

Seek First The Kingdom of God: In Your Marriage

The command of Jesus is to seek first the kingdom of God which means that our highest priority in life is to come into alignment with God’s rule. The portion of scripture we just read is about how marriage is supposed to be lived by two Christians in God’s kingdom. At the time this was written, it was revolutionary because in the Greco-Roman world of that time wives were treated as property, while men frequently sought sexual gratification outside the marriage. Ephesus was the epicenter of the cult of Artemis. While the cult empowered women to be priestesses and elevated women to independence, and competitive roles. So, the commands given by the Holy Spirit to them through Paul were completely against their culture.
Fast forward 1950 years to today and

Seek First The Kingdom of God – Pastor Chris Black

This scripture is a portion of Jesus’s sermon on the mount which is a kingdom message. What he is dealing with here is that we cannot faithfully serve two masters because our true allegiance will always favor one above the other. The masters contrasted are God and mammon. Mammon is an Aramaic term that means “wealth or material possessions that you put your trust in”. It’s not a sin to have wealth or material possessions as long as you don’t look to them for your security.

The Gospel of John Session 14 – Chapter 12 – Pastor Chris Black

Last week we went through chapter 11 where Lazarus fell sick and his sisters sent for Jesus. He did not come immediately when they called even though he wasn’t far off. Lazarus died and they buried him and both sisters let Jesus know how they felt about his absence in this calamity. He declared to Martha that he is the resurrection, and the life; and that her brother would live again. A crowd of unbelieving Jews came to help them mourn and they all went to the tomb. Jesus had them roll the stone away, said a short prayer, and called for Lazarus to come forth….and he did.

The Gospel of John Session 13 – Chapter 11 – Pastor Chris Black

Last week we went through chapter 10 where Jesus put forth a parable about a sheepfold and a shepherd. He then drew the parallels to himself and his sheep. He said that he was “the door” meaning he is the way into eternal life. Then he said that he was the good shepherd of the sheep because he will lay his life down for them. He also revealed that he had power to take his life back up again. He then explained to the religious leaders their part in the parable, they were the thieves and robbers that tried to…