Simple Church

Sunday September 3, 2017 -Esther

In our final message of our series "Esther", we see so much of what can help us florish in our lives with Christ. Humility is essential in our pursuit of Jesus because it prepares us for God's call on our lives. Being humble not only brings a blessing to our lives, it enables us to see that it is not we who have done anything to cause the blessing. It is only Jesus working everything according to His will and, in doing so, He allows us to be vessels in carrying His message to the world. Mordecai became an intercessor for the Jewish people, just like Jesus is for us. 

Just as humility flourishes the seeking heart, pride can ruin the life that was meant to thrive. Pride is the root of all sin. Haman was full of pride and chose to be ruled by it, and it ultimately destroyed him. Pride keeps us from being fully obedient and goes against God and what His plan is for us. 

God is faithful to what He says He will do. His will can never change and He alone is soverign. We can rest in knowing He is worthy of our complete surrender and His grace and mercy is unmatched. 

 

Esther 9-10

Kenny Nix, Pastor

Wednesday, August 30, 2017 -Taboo

As we walk through part three of our "Taboo" series, we are forced to see that each one of us will struggle with sin. Regardless of the label your particular sin carries, it all breaks the heart of God and keeps us from the closeness He desires to have with us. The beauty of the gospel is sin died when Jesus was ressurected. We simply are not controlled by the things that weigh us down. As Connie explained, "All sin is a heart issue", and with a redeemed heart for Christ, we do not have to compromise our love for others by being ruled by our rebel nature. Christ has rescued us and given us instructions on how to reach the world for Him. It is by our love for one another the world with know we are Jesus' disciples. The difference, as with all things, is Jesus.

 

James 1:1, 1:22-27; John 13:33-35; Luke 6:43-45

Connie Champion

Wednesday, August 23, 2017 -Taboo

In the second message in our series "Taboo", we see an overarching truth regardless of subject matter. Keith explains it like this, "Jesus is our only hope in the darkness...sin brings you into utter darkness and leaves you there alone to die."

Whether our sin begins small and grows out of control or we immediately turn it over to Christ before it weighs us down, we can all recognize living in sin is selfish. It is giving in to what we want rather than pushing forward in the truth Jesus has called us to. At its root, sin is born from pride. When Jesus died, He overcame death and sin. We have freedom in our pursuit of Christ and all that His salvation offers. 

Remember you are forgiven and free from the weight of this world if your faith is in Christ alone. Remember the love of Christ is like no other love; it liberates and brings life from death. Remember God loves you. Remember the cross.

 

Romans 13:11-14

Keith Wilson, Youth Pastor

Sunday August 20, 2017 -Esther

Even in times of not knowing where God is, He is always working. Our circumstances often seem as if we are completely alone in life. We sometimes feel as if God has forgotten or even abandoned us, but take heart. There is a purpose that is greater than what we can see. 

In our series, we see God continuing to orchestrate events that seem hopeless to unfold His plan for the good of His people and for His glory. In our own lives, even when He seems hidden, we can trust God with our lives and the situations surrounding us. Just as we see God making what seemed impossible in the lives of Esther and the Jewish people, we can rest in knowing He is the same today as He was then. God has rescued the world by sending Christ, who redeems our broken past and redefines our rebel heart. Because of Jesus we are made new and we can experience grace from God. As Kenny said in the message, "God is constantly working things out. In our lives, we worry about tomorrow and we have so many doubts about if God is really present or if He is really doing something. Understand that God is using people we can not even imagine, even people we think are wicked and evil, to shape situations around us so He will receive glory from that."

 

Esther 7

Kenny Nix, Pastor

Wednesday, August 16, 2017 -Taboo

In our new series "Taboo", we immediately see our desperate need for Jesus to rule our lives. Even though our new life in Christ frees us from the bondage of slavery to our sin, we often look back and pick those weights up again and again. 

We see in the message from Paul to the Corinthians that, like us, their biggest struggle was parting from their old life. Paul explains that even though you "can" do anything, everything is not beneficial. All can become consuming, but there is none like sexual sin. It enslaves more quickly than any other sin. As Christ followers, we are called to honor God with our bodies because we were bought with a high price and we no longer belong to ourselves. 

 

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Keith Wilson, Youth Pastor

Sunday August 13, 2017 -Esther

Pride.

We take our pride issue lightly so often, but at its core pride is ugly, selfish and evil. Pride, if left to run rampant, will ultimately be the destruction of our lives and, for many of us, it will consume our souls. 

"There is an evil presence in this world that wants to encourage us to do those very things that we know we should not do that takes us further away from God." -Kenny Nix

 

Esther 6: 1-14

Kenny Nix, Pastor

Wednesday, August 9, 2017 -Jesus

In our continued series "Jesus", we see He is enough.

As Christ continued to reveal the truth of who He was to the disciples, the truth, in turn, revealed who they were in their hearts. Having pride, prejudice and judgement for the Canaanite woman who was asking for mercy, they wanted to send her away. Jesus allowed this situation to both minister to her and to teach the disciples about grace and love. This woman worshipped even after she had been rejected because she recognized Jesus is Lord and that is all that mattered. The Canaanite woman's faith was so great that her daughter was healed. She knew what is true even today, Jesus is enough.

The more closely we follow Jesus, the more we see the great need for Him to cleanse our rebel hearts and make them more like His. This grace and love is extended to all of us, regardless of any label we have attached to us. 

 

Matthew 15:21-28

Kenny Nix, Pastor

Sunday August 6, 2017 -Esther

In part five of our "Esther" series, we learn even though He seems hidden, God is orchestrating the events surrounding a seemingly hopeless situation soon to befall the Jewish people. Esther knows to approach the king could mean her life, but she was willing to risk everything to save her people. Just as the king extended his scepter and allowed her to enter and make her request, God extends His scepter of grace to us. We can approach the King of Kings with our requests and our burdens because He loves us with a relentless love that has no limits. God is in the middle of the unfolding story of Esther and He is in the middle of each of our stories as they unfold each day. We can trust God with our lives and know that He is faithful to lead us in every situation, even if He seems hidden. 

 

Esther 5:1-8

Kenny Nix, Pastor

Wednesday, August 2, 2017 -Jesus

Just as many people did not recognize the blind man after he was healed by Jesus, it is the same way with us when we have a new life and a changed heart. A new life given by Christ is the one thing the world can not explain away. He will take our your heart of stone and place within you a heart of flesh. We see the world in a different way. We have a new purpose and calling and Jesus reveals to us the reality of our lives being used in service for others. Pointing everyone in our path toward the great love of Christ through our broken stories and the truth of the gospel changes everything for all of us. When we shine the light of Jesus, others will see the difference, just like those who knew the blind man. We look the same, but we are a different person when we are new in Christ. That is the power of Jesus in us and, in turn, God is glorified in all circumastances of our lives. The world sees Jesus, not us. 

Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name goes all the glory. Psalm 115:1

 

John 9:1-11, 2 Corinthians 4:5-13

Dawn Hedgepeth

Sunday July 30, 2017 -Esther

We all have a calling on our life. If you say "no" to God and what He is leading you to in your life, He will call someone else. Fear often keeps people from living the life God has in store for them. 

We see in our fourth message in the "Esther" series, what we fear can either burn us or set us on fire. Even in the face of fear or uncertainty, if we will give God our "yes" and trust in Him, He will continue to reveal more of His calling to us. Because we can not live out the will of God on our own, His strength in us becomes a beautiful picture of God's faithfulness for the world to see, just as it did in Esther's life. Her obedience and willingness to follow through with Mordecai's leadership in her life, even in the face of death,  saved a nation. Esther's willingness to obey ultimately led to the redemption of the whole world through the life, death and ressurection of Jesus. 

Our calling and obedience to it is not only for us, it is for everyone else as well.

 

Esther 4:1-17

Kenny Nix, Pastor