Crossweave Sermons
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Total Sermons: 48
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Zacharias' Encounter
Many times we come to God with a prayer request expecting him to respond to just that one slice of life. But instead, God answers with a much better and greater idea. Look at the example of Zacharia—he asked for a child, a son, but instead was given John the Baptist who was to prepare the way for the coming Messiah. The greater task that awaits every believer is to participate in God’s work of salvation for mankind. This work is still ongoing and he wants you to play your part in it.
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Beatitudes - The Meek
Meekness or gentleness was the opposite of the prideful attitudes and lavish lifestyles of religious leaders in Jesus’ day. Once you realize how sinful you are and mourn that loss, it humbles you. This character trait is one of God’s traits and can only come from him. The promise is that you will inherit the earth—or make it to the Promised Land. Your inheritance is secure and you will receive it just as God promised.
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Beatitudes - Those Who Mourn
After you realize and acknowledge your hopeless sinfulness, you mourn this loss just like you grieve at the loss of a loved one. The Jewish audience related to mourning since physical suffering and death was way too common. For Jesus to apply this experience to sin was new to his audience. The promise is that you will be comforted—the word "comforted" meaning to call to one’s side. God, through the Holy Spirit, is "called to your side" as your mourn your sinful condition.
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Beatitudes - The Poor in Spirit
You might say that the Beatitudes are Jesus’ introduction to Christianity 101. Each one is like the link in a chain that cannot be separated from the rest, and are in a specific order. They are descriptions, not requirements, to expect when you belong to his kingdom. It starts out, and rightly so, with the poor in spirit. You realize that you are spiritually bankrupt and completely helpless to change your sinful nature. You acknowledge your deplorable and despicable hopeless situation. This drives you to your only hope—the Savior Jesus Christ!
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Wheat and Weeds
Jesus is the sower in this parable where he teaches how wheat and weeds grow together until the harvest. The same is true with believers and nonbelievers who must learn to coexist until Judgment Day. The reality is that as believers, we live in two kingdoms on earth—the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of man. Whether in the church or in the world, the way we behave morally is the same, but the way we present that morality must be a bit different. The main difference comes through expectation. The church can be held to a higher authority because we adhere to the teaching of scripture and the way of Jesus, but the world is not like that. As Christians, we need to understand that the world is not always going to see things the same way as us. Right or wrong, we need to see it and be tolerant of it without being accepting of it.
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Amazing Seed
Jesus compares his kingdom to the amazing growth of a mustard seed into a tree that provides protection and shelter. His choice of a miniscule weed was to illustrate what divine power can do to what might seem hopeless and insignificant, placing the credit on God and not man. Your most basic knowledge about grace and salvation such as ‘God is love or ‘I’m forgiven’, can grow into something beyond your wildest expectations. You, together with others, will find shelter and security in God’s kingdom on earth.
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The Seed In You
The Apostle John makes it very clear in 1 John 3 that there are only two possible camps you can belong to. You are either of God or of the Devil; of righteousness or of lawlessness. He also makes a distinction between the sins that you commit each day—and will for the rest of your life on earth—for which there is forgiveness, and the bigger issue of Sin which Christ settled on the cross once and for all. He gives the assurance that the seed in you will keep you from continually or habitually sinning. This seed is no other than Christ himself who dwells in every believer through the Holy Spirit.
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Imperishable Seed
This sermon is part 3 of the series “Seeds” and deals with yet another use of the word seed in the Bible—the living word of God as in Christ himself. Paul spells this out as he differentiates between singular “seed”, pertaining to Christ, and the plural form pertaining to Abraham’s descendants. In 1 Peter 1:22-25, Peter points out that being born again is of imperishable seed, and not perishable such as the grass that withers and dies. In verse 18, he points out that not even silver or gold are a match for this imperishable seed. This study underscores the fact that Christians, born again of this imperishable seed, are also imperishable. Everlasting life is assured.
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From Seed to Fruit
If you are a believer, or if you aren’t but have heard about Christ’s death on the cross, or anything about the Gospel, then the seed of God’s kingdom has been planted in you. Just like Jesus himself illustrates in the story of the sower, seed that is planted is expected to grow and eventually mature and bear fruit. Has the truth about Jesus grown in your life? Is it bearing fruit? This study goes through the four scenarios of circumstances that you may relate to regarding this seed—soil by the wayside, rocky soil, thorny ground, and good soil. The goal is to be in the good soil meaning that you honestly recognize your deplorable situation and accept God’s plan as the only viable plan for you life. Do something about it today and take an action step that will keep you growing and bearing fruit.
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Die Daily
What did the apostle Paul mean when he wrote, “I die daily?” There are actually two things he meant: 1) that he faced the threat of death everyday, and 2) that he died to self each day. In many ways, you also face the threat of death everyday through the many unknown or unseen circumstances such as disease, accidents, etc. The whole reason Paul endured such hardship is because of the hope of the resurrection—a teaching not accepted by many in the city of Corinth. He went on to teach that it was vital for the listener to die to self before they would come to life just as a seed must be buried before it can come alive and grow. You must live a life fully surrendered to God, trusting his death on the cross to save you.
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