In a third message on the passages in I Peter 1:1-2, we continue to look at Peter's background, this time examining his status as a member of the Kingdom of God. That said, even though Peter struggled with this at first, he found out the hard way that the world is not his friend. If someone as loving, sacrificial, and revolutionary as Jesus was treated cruelly and unjustly, then that should cause a believer in Christ to want to be set apart from this world. When you choose Christ, we are strangers, out of place in this world, and that is because God is replacing a heart moved by fear, failure, and inadequacy, with a heart empowered by confidence, victory, and competence, through the work of the Holy Spirit.
In the second in a series on the first letter of Peter, which was a letter addressing the persecuted church of Asia Minor, we continue to look into the background of the man before and after experiencing the power of Jesus Christ. Before Jesus rose from the dead, Peter had difficulty standing behind Him. He needed power to do it. After the resurrection, Peter learned that in order to be led by the power of the Holy Spirit, there had to be obedience. Just as was then, so it is today with believers, and in reading about Peter, we see why his life, his difficulties, his failures, and His triumphs are there for us to learn from.
The first letter of Peter teaches what it means to be God's people in times of persecution, trials, and suffering. That said, Peter became a prime authority on these matters after he encountered the risen Christ and experienced the power of the Holy Spirit. In this message, Pastor Troy Billow begins a new series on the first letter of Peter with a little review on the nature of the "old Peter", which was weighed down by his lack of faith, failures, shame, and inadequacy. Yet despite these flaws, Jesus had tremendous potential for Peter, and saw past them as He did a good work in him that was carried on to completion, transforming Peter into the exact opposite of the man he once was. In other words, there was a lot of "growing up" that Peter had to experience before he became a bold Apostle for Jesus Christ.
Discipleship is the 2nd step one needs to take after receiving the gift of salvation. Those who take what Christ has done for them seriously are motivated and committed to follow and serve the King of Kings. In this message, Pastor Troy Billow explains in greater detail the meaning, cost, and requirements of discipleship.
Jesus loves you. He sacrificed His life for you to reconcile you to a relationship with Him. How can you be reminded of this? Remember where He found you. Remember how He helped you. Remember how He built you up by the truth of God (when you're making it a point to read and trust His word). Remember how He puts you in your right mind when everything around you is descending into chaos and dysfunction. If you're convinced that Jesus loves you, and you really know how important that is, your confidence in Him will grow stronger,, and He will compel you to tell others. In other words, Jesus wants to do a work in you, and through you, because He loves you, and He wants you to share what He's done for you to others, so that he too can do a work in them if they trust Him to.
Jesus Christ is the gold standard when it comes to love and what it means. His kindness, sacrifice, warm welcoming embrace of people begins to do a work in those who receive Him into their hearts and lives. That said, as the presence of Christ permeates our hearts, the love of God is being made complete in us, as we trust Him and walk in the Spirit. Since we are people of the Kingdom of God, we are different from the world. In our difference, we are empowered by the love, joy, peace, patience, etc. of Christ, and as such, we are called to radiate these qualities to others. In this message, Pastor Troy Billow explains what this means, and how abiding in Christ helps us practice love where we could not in our strength alone.
Love is a concept that is taken for granted in our modern age. But when you go back into history, one fundamental event gave it a dimension that was never before felt, especially in this capacity. John 15:13 states "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down oneβs life for oneβs friends" and John 3:16 states, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." God didn't just TELL the world that he loved it, he SHOWED the world that he loved it (us). The crucifixion of Jesus Christ was extremely serious, extremely wonderful, and extremely powerful. The magnitude of what Jesus did for us also brought a new feeling in a capacity never before experienced in such a dynamic way, and that concept is JOY. It is a feeling that is other than dismal, depressing, dark, and detrimental and can overcome these things just as Christ overcame death, darkness, and Satan. Join us as Pastor Troy Billow explains the force this concept we call love in this special Valentine's Day message.
The Psalms of King David was a private, intimate journal of his ups and downs, triumphs and tribulations, strengths and weaknesses, thankfulness and seasons of desperate need, so that every generation since (we) could see and learn from how God lifted him up in his life, carried him through, and in that brought David a peace, security, and comfort in depending on the Lord. God has a way of sorting things out and fixing things in our heart and in our life. That said, God is a "safe space", a refuge, and fortress for all of us, which provides us safety, security, relief, and protection. What David experienced up close and personal is, or can be experienced by those who have the same attitude and perspective that David did towards God. In this message, Pastor Troy Billow will show you how.
The most Important thing to remember, when you need God to act, is that you understand who God is, and that you understand who you are in light of that. King David respected, awed, listened, and obeyed the Lord. He knew that without Him, he was like a man without a GPS. he got lost without Him. David made sure he got some alone time with God, and in that alone time, he lifted his soul up to Him. God is looking for the same in us today, when we need Him to act. He needs us to be humble and to fear (respect, admire, and revere) Him, for Him to be able to instruct you. David was able to experience the glory, prosperity, abundance, and provision in His life, and restored his soul where there was brokenness, fear (anxiety), outrage, and feelings of despair. God does the exact same things for us today, and we can't experience these things if we don't seek God, lift up our souls to Him, and treat our relationship with Him with tremendous importance, value, and care.