Joy and the Attitude of Christ

Jim Leffel

Philippians 2:4-11

Christ's example of humility and sacrificial love is the ultimate motivator for us to love others. Christ emptied himself and died an entirely sacrificial death motivated by love. There is only one reality moving forward in this life. It's that Christ is the Lord and that future is in His loving charge.

Back to Basics

Gary DeLashmutt

1 John 1:1-4

John, the last living disciple of Jesus, writes to Christian communities around Ephesus to reassure them of who Jesus is and what true spirituality looks like. Jesus Christ has always existed from eternity past and entered history as a human. Jesus' purpose was to die on the cross to restore the opportunity for people to be reconciled with God through his death. When we start a personal relationship with God, we have a deep spiritual connection with others who know Jesus.

Three Events During Jesus' Crucifixion

Gary DeLashmutt

Daniel 12:1-2

Three unique events occurred during Jesus' crucifixion. The first event was darkness falling over the land for three hours during the middle of the day. During this three hours of darkness Jesus was experiencing God's wrath and judgment for humanities sins. The second event that occurred was the curtain hanging in the Temple was torn in two. This curtain symbolized that God is Holy and we are unable to have access to Him. God tore the Temple curtain in two after Jesus' death because we now can have access to God through Jesus' perfect and final sacrifice. The third event was a powerful earthquake that revealed empty tombs. This event showed that Jesus being God had conquered the power of death for all who put their faith in Him.\r\n

Jesus' Prayer in Gethsemane

Gary DeLashmutt

Ezekiel 23:30-40

In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus prays to the Father and through His prayer we figure out Jesus' mission. His mission was to drink the cup that His Father had given Him. The cup that Jesus was about to drink was taking on God's righteous judgment for the sins of all of humanity. This left Jesus with a terrifying mission but He turned to the Father for everything He needed. Like Jesus we will have many ?Gethsemane? moments where we need to choose if we are going to follow God's will for our life. We can look to Jesus' example. He was honest with the negative feelings He was experiencing and He firmly resolved to follow God's will in spite of His negative feelings.

Two Crucial Decisions

Gary DeLashmutt

Romans 10:9

In Jesus' ministry he calls on His disciples to make two crucial decisions. He calls on us to make these same two crucial decisions. The first is who do you say that Jesus is? Have you accepted Him as your personal Lord and savior? The second decision is the choice to follow Christ daily. This includes choosing to reject the right to run your own life in order to follow Jesus and choosing to endure hostility from others because of your loyalty to Jesus. Each decision we make holds great consequences when it comes to the outcome of our life now and in eternity.

Who is Jesus?

Dennis McCallum

Colossians 1-2

There are a lot of different opinions on who Jesus is. However, Paul declares that Jesus is the King Messiah who has rescued us by purchasing our freedom with His own death on the cross. He is able to forgive us of our sins because He is fully God and fully man. Jesus has existed for eternity past and is sovereign ruler, creator, and sustainer of the universe. He is also the head of the church and His resurrection means that all who believe in Him will be raised from death into eternal life as well. And on top of all of this, Jesus wants to be reconciled to a close personal relationship with each one of us. Included is an interview showing various people's opinions of Jesus.

Who is the Real Jesus?

Gary DeLashmutt

Colossians 1-2

Jesus has had an impact on every generation, but who was he really? Was he the pagan figure of the gnostic gospels, someone unknowable, or the Jesus of the canonical gospels? The evidence that he is the man the gospels claim him to be is overwhelming - he is a figure who can be factually and historically known. And as the gospels proclaim, he is still alive, so that we can know him in a personal way, too.

Old Testament Ceremony

Lee Campbell

Hebrews 10:1-4

Sometimes, before we will see spiritual reality, we need to hit rock bottom. Part of the purpose of the Old Testament Law was to show the problem that people have, and to point to the solution in Christ. Jesus was the ultimate fulfillment of the symbolism of the Old Covenant.

Feeding a Multitude

Gary DeLashmutt

Isaiah 55:1-3

Jesus fed more than 5,000 people with one man's lunch, and he claims to be God. Jesus offers us spiritual food that will satisfy our deepest spiritual needs. Jesus made it clear that he is the savior of humanity, and that salvation comes through him.