Westminster Calvary Chapel

We're beginning a new study through the book of Romans with the first section in chapter 1. Romans is often referred to as "The Gospel of God" because it's a book of inspiration and renewal. As Paul begins to write this book he starts by introducing the "Gospel of God," defining the Gospel and underscoring the universal need for the Gospel in everyone's life. The whole world is in need of the salvation that God offers and that's what's taught here in Romans!

Today we finish our mini-series in Ephesians with an overview of chapter 5 & 6. This is where we're given practical application on how to walk in love as believers. It seems like we're prone to forget what God has done for us and we end up drifting backwards in our faith. Here's a few things we can do to guard ourselves!

Today, we’ll survey Ephesians 1-4. Here’s a few things about this church in Ephesus. God raised this church right in the middle of a bustling pagan city and it didn’t buckle! It rose to the occasion and did effective ministry But there was a problem that surfaced and it’s something we can learn from today. It seems like when we forget what God has done for us and we’re destined to drift backwards. God chose you & saved you! We have been ransomed, we have been cleansed, and we have been born again.

In Luke 18 Jesus is telling a few stories to help people understand what the Kingdom of God is really like. As he explains and interacts with a few people, we gain understanding and receive seven lessons from the Savior that are applicable to our lives following Jesus.

Today, our concluding study underscores the big picture of what we’ve learned over the last 2-years. We’ve seen the promise of Holy Spirit enabling the early believers to take the gospel message to the ends of the earth, all the way through the end of the book where Paul finally takes the gospel message to Rome. Here’s the main idea, if you never learned any more about serving God except for what we’ve learned in Acts, you’re going to do well. Don’t undervalue what God has given you!

In Exodus 14 God is now leading his people out of Egypt. Instead of leading them the shortest route through the area of the Philistines, He lead them out and around through the desert. Some may think this was a mistake, but it was a planned detour to teach the people about His faithfulness! As the Israelis were fleeing they began to realize the Egyptian army was following them. To make matters worse, Moses lead the people directly into a trap - the Red Sea.

Today we see Paul’s final mission take shape and this chapter records his journey to Rome. It’s been about three years since God told Paul of his final mission. In (Acts 25:12) we read of the natural steps that put this mission in motion, and Paul was finally on the way Rome. This is what the route looked like…

Tonight we see the Next Steps God gives the Children of Israel and how these steps inspire faith in us today. God speaks to Moses about how to lead His people, The Israelites, and He tells Moses to relay this message: Consecrate yourselves! In other words, Moses tells the people their obedience to God looks like this; it’s a life of faith where your home (children) and your work (animals) are dedicated to God & for God purposes.

The Gospel of Luke highlights the humanity of Christ and in this section we’re studying today, we see Jesus speaking to religious criticism. Jesus teaches those who are with him by using an illustration that highlights the lack of love thru a critical spirit. Critical people often come from the backgrounds of verbal abuse or emotional abuse and become deeply selfish, which is what we see of Simon the Pharisee. However, any view that rejects the wonderful work of God and discounts the evidence of a changed life is working on the wrong team!

In the final chapters of Acts we learn how to advance the gospel personally. Today the scene continues from where we left off last week with Paul in jail. He was brought into a Roman Court by Festus (Governor) who wanted a second opinion from his buddy King Agrippa II as to what should be done with Paul. Paul didn’t violated any Roman Law, but he was a nuisance to the religious leaders of Judaism because he converted to Christianity and followed Christ who fulfilled the OT Prophecies. Now Paul has the chance to preach the gospel to these world leaders!

As we continue studying thru the Old Testament, we’ve come to the final plague – death of the firstborn. God was passing over Egypt and delivering His final blow to those who resisted Him. This 10th plague is the most devastating of all plagues – death! So far, God has been patient with people for an extended period of time, but He systematically toppled all the god’s of the Egyptians. At each exchange between Moses & Pharaoh, there was an opportunity for Pharaoh to submit. Yet he chose to harden his heart instead and take his chances against God. Now the consequences were catching up with him.

As we near the end of our study in Acts, we see the conclusion of a life lived for Jesus. Paul got caught up in the legal system and from his perspective it was hinder his ministry. Yet, as we discover in scripture present set backs are often the breeding ground for next steps. Remember Paul was in custody in Caesarea waiting for his court case to be heard. His accusers were the religious elites the High Priest of Judaism, the Elders of Judaism, and an attorney named Tertullus. They painted Paul as the ringleader of a cult that was creating rebellion in Jerusalem against the Pax Romana (Roman Peace). The Jews fabricated stories attempting to have Paul put to death. Now as we pick up today, the traveling ministry of Paul has come to an end — no more mission trips. But the effectiveness of the Gospel was still at work.

When we say, “God’s in control and working everything out in the world.” Many times that comes across as meaningless. We simply don’t understand it fully! God was patient with Pharaoh but the time came for judgment. Here’s a few simple applications as we look at a A safe country, a declining country, and where’s my country.

Paul was a hard charging man but it wasn’t according to his human desire. The Holy Spirit placed a strong desire in Paul to get to Jerusalem. Yet in all the lead up to get to Jerusalem, Paul’s friends were telling him that it was dangerous, and jail & suffering were ahead! And they were alright! But they were missing God’s purpose. God was moving Paul forward into the next phase of his ministry. While unexpected moments left an imprint on Paul’s life, He was still compelled to continue forward! Here’s the key… God used an unexpected way to move Paul forward.

As we continue to navigate thru the OT we’re working our way thru the 10-Plagues of Egypt; A series of judgments poured out by God. At the end of each of these plagues Pharaoh become more resistant and refused to give God His people! God says He had two purposes for these plagues, to show unbelievers His power (v.1) & To provide a deliverance story for His people (v.2) A Memorable moment to pass on to their kids & grandkids about how the hand of God moved on their behalf!

In our modern culture we have a strong dislike around the thoughts of judgment! Many have embraced the sacred-secular, which views judgment as the ultimate sin and labeling judgment as an enemy of “my feelings” that guide me to what I want! “This makes me feel good… so don’t tell me it’s wrong.” Yet, in an honest reading of the Bible we learn God’s motivation behind judgment. It’s to awaken humanity to the reality of what life & eternity is without Him! Tonight we will continue our study through the 10-plagues of Egypt.

Today we enter the last segment of Paul’s Mission in the book of Acts. Paul completed his 3rd Missionary Journey and he’s headed back to Jerusalem to drop off a financial donation from the Gentile Churches. However, along his travel route believers were warning Paul what would happen to him in Jerusalem! Paul was being warned of the difficulty ahead. In this section of verses, we see his arrival in Jerusalem goes bad - exactly like he had been warned about.

The Israelites had been enslaved in Egypt for about 400 years and it seems that they had lost faith in God’s promise to Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. No doubt they believed God existed AND went thru the motions of worshipping. However, they doubted He could, or would, set them free from the difficult circumstances of their lives in Egypt. In the Church Age we read the Gospels and how Jesus came with a ministry of mercy & grace & truth. Jesus came to seek lost people who know they’re sick and looking for help. Yet, God is not afraid to take radical steps to get the attention of creation. So, last week we ended with the first plague as the Nile was turned to blood and tonight we will look at the successive three plagues.

2 Timothy was written by Paul in a jail cell in Rome and was sent to Timothy to help him lead the church. Because his tendency was to be timid when opposition hit. So he encourages him to be strong and to raise up faithful men who can add to the ministry team. Paul then gives three examples to illustrate how Timothy and the church were to move forward in the last days.

God taught Moses that His Name was sufficient no matter what he faced! We learned this is a spiritual lesson all followers of God go thru. Because God wants us to trust Him. However, with the natural eye, Moses was 80-years old. He had spent the last 40-years of his life as a shepherd, and now God was calling him to go before the head of state – Pharaoh, to demand the immediate release of the country’s work force. No doubt, this was a daunting task from the natural perspective.