Thought...

What would you do in your current situation if you were absolutely certain that God is on your side and working for your good? What would you have done differently in the bad situation in your past if you were sure of this?

You don't have to answer in a comment. Just to give you something to think about. If you are in Odessa Sunday night, come by Grace Baptist Church and we'll talk about it.

Daily Grace

Last night I talked about the situations we find ourselves in as believers who know God's grace, and yet still daily struggle with sins. We are at war within ourselves as Galatians 5 makes clear. The flesh wars against the spirit. What I taught last night was a big reminder to me, and I have already has a few others say it was a needed reminder, so I thought I'd share the main points here. It is not a definitive list, but it is a start.

The idea is that whenever we fall into sin, we often find ourselves in difficult situations, but those situations are antithetical to the Gospel. So here are 7 situations we find ourselves in when we fall, and how the Cross overcomes them.

Situation: Pride sets in (and we don't want to need grace or seek it again)
The Cross: Reminds us that we were never good enough, but Christ overcame
- Romans 5:6-9

Situation: Taken by Shame and Condemnation
The Cross: Offers redemption when we feel shame.
- Romans 7:18-8:2

Situation: Guilt takes lasting hold
The Cross: Offers forgives
- Acts 13:38-39

Situation: The enemy uses our sin to hold us back.
The Cross: Urges us to press on
- Philippians 3:12-14

Situation: Legalism takes hold (in an attempt to discipline ourselves)
The Cross: Leads us to a relationship (where Christ sanctifies us)
- Ephesians 2:8-10
- Romans 8:3-4

Situation: We become hardened towards others
The Cross: Offers us grace that we may show grace to others
- Luke 17:3-4 (The disciples are told to have God's character)

Situation: We hide from God in fear
The Cross: Pushes us TO Christ, not away.
- Hebrews 10:21-23

Sermons are Leaving

Hey guys, I am in Orlando for a few more days. Things are going great by the way. Went to Crosspointe Church this morning, liked it. Been touring a few apartments in the area to see what is available this afternoon. Anyways, just wanted to let everyone know that I am canceling my $6 a month podcast account, so sometime in the next few days they will probably disappear. I can't imagine that they will keep them up beyond the time paid for, so if you were listening or planning on doing so, you probably only have a couple more days I'd suspect. And I promise to write something when I get back to Texas.

Just a note, if you want my sermons, I still have the audio files, they can easily be emailed...