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Kingdom: Callings, Commitments & Conflicts

Stand Firm

March 2, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

Most Christians will nod their heads in agreement when a preacher declares that the Christian life is a battle. We understand that the theology of our faith reveals that there is a cosmic battle going on between the forces of Heaven and the rebels of Hell. Yet it would seem that we do not as easily believe that the fight has landed in our own front yard. We seem to be treating this war as something played out on our television screens instead of recognizing that we are enlisted, attacked and called to fight. This message reveals the tactics of the enemy as he opposes God’s people. The listener will also be empowered to withstand, keep his or her focus and wage war against the devil and those people whom he would use against our lives. Stand firm, fight hard and refuse the distractions! You were made for something bigger than your opponents’ distractions.

Unshaken, But Not Unstirred

February 28, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

You are not imagining things. God is placing His omnipotent hands upon the universe and shaking up everything. We should not be startled when we see instability or chaos in our generation. The promise of the Father is that He has one more shaking of all that exists, and this activity will serve to remove everything from existence that is not fit for eternity. There is a large practical impact that this truth carries on us: we cannot live our lives holding on to lesser loyalties which are destined by God to shaken off forever. Whether it is temporary relationships, wealth, philosophies, traditions, beauty or http://power...god will dislodge them forever with the shaking that is coming at the end of the age. Only what brings Him glory will remain. The throne of Jesus is the focal point of the eternal state and everything else will experience this divine shakedown. For those who belong to Christ, there is nothing to fear: we are a part of the unshakable Kingdom.

Don't Get Squeezed

February 24, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

If you are not fighting against fear, anxiety or dread then it is likely mastering you in one or more areas in your life. This world, with all of its chaos, serves to pressurize your life. What God pours in, the world seeks to squeeze out of you. This is nothing new, for Jesus spoke much to His followers about this issue of living with fear. He gives us a beautiful alternative to our tendency to give in to anxiety: put God's Kingdom first and then cast those very real cares upon Him in dependent trust. That's right, Jesus prescribes proactive faith as the antidote to fear. This message will actually serve to relieve you of an unbalanced sense of responsibility for what is happening in your life. Though you and I must faithfully manage that which God entrusts to us, the ultimate outcome is not in our control. Events belong to God, faithfulness belongs to man.

Seeing the Unseen

February 14, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

There are spiritual realities all around us that are impossible to be experienced through unaided natural senses. In our post-Enlightenment culture, we sometimes forget the fact that Christianity is a completely supernatural belief system with an invisible God at its center. We serve a resurrected King who rules from a different realm and grants unexplainable salvation through immeasurable grace. Around us are angels and demons who engage in a cosmic war. The bodies of Christians are the habitation of God the Spirit and the message left to us by Jesus is foolishness to the world but the dynamite of God which brings deliverance. Yes, Christianity is a mystical and wholly supernatural belief system. Yet, we cannot behold any of this without our great God opening our eyes to see the unseen. This message helps us all to hunger for this ongoing gift from on high. May God grant each of us eyes to see.

The Other Realm

February 17, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

There are 400+ years of prophetic silence between the last book of the Old Testament and the first book of the New Testament. Malachi’s prophecy ends with the promise of a God-sent messenger who will make the way for the King of kings. Matthew’s Gospel opens with that very prophet, John the Baptist, declaring that the Kingdom was now coming to earth. Jesus began His public ministry by calling people to repent and receive the Kingdom. His parables begin with the words, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like…” His first beatitude in the Sermon on the Mount promises the Kingdom. He taught His disciples, in the Lord’s Prayer, that their first request was to be for the Kingdom to come. Paul taught the Kingdom. Peter proclaimed the Kingdom. John, James and Jude all wrote of the Kingdom of God. So…maybe it is time we made the effort to comprehend just exactly what the Kingdom of God truly is. This message will stir your heart to learn more. After all, the Kingdom of God is the mission of God which never ends.

No Ringside Seating

February 7, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

Whether we are aware of it or not, the Scriptures teach that every single Christian is in the midst of a very real war. When God saves the repentant sinner, that newly redeemed saint is immediately drafted into the army of God. There is a cosmic battle taking place between the forces of Hell and the Kingdom of God. Many believers never embrace this reality and therefore hinder the advance of the Kingdom in their generation. This message exposes the organized strategy of Satan and his demons as they wage war on the Church of the living God. Because of their relentless warfare, the Christian must take up his and her battle gear, learn how to stand against the enemy and put that enemy to flight. Touching on core issues as the Christian's identity, authority and power in battle, Pastor Jeff gives a clarion call for all believers to stop engaging in friendly fire against each other and begin to launch spiritual missiles toward an enemy that God decrees has already been defeated.

The Desire & Destiny of Satan

February 3, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

We all know that Satan hates God. We read in the bible of His thirst to destroy Jesus - from His birth to the crucifixion. We cannot deny that the Apostles wrote of Satan's commitment to oppose the Church. So we are left with the bottom line understanding that Satan is the enemy of God and His people. But have you ever pondered why things played out like this for Satan? Why did he rebel against God? Why did he desire to kill Jesus? Why does he strategize and execute plans to fight against the Church? This message reveals what lies at the core of Satan's evil heart. There is a reason that fuels him to steal, kill and destroy. It has to do with a throne, a Kingdom and an insatiable jealousy. Satan's desire has an impact on you and those whom you love. It is time for us to get educated about our enemy.

Kingdom Vision

January 31, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

Sometimes it is wise for us to remain acquainted with the end of the story. When we are centered in who God is and what He has promised to accomplish, we are better equipped to press on in hope and courage. This message magnified the infinite and unique worth of Jesus Christ as we watch a scene of unhinged worship take place in Heaven. Central to this passage of Scripture is the supreme worth of the Lamb of God to fully carry out the plan of the ages. He will not come up short. Beautifully, the same One who rules the cosmos is also superintending your very life today. May the listener remember that Jesus has secured the back of his or her story too. You are in good hands today. Very good hands.

Bowing Before His Throne

January 24, 2016 • Jeff Lyle

What is the focal point of eternity? The throne of the Lord Jesus Christ. This message repeatedly calls the listener to consider the clear teaching of Scripture that the intention of God is not to import us all into His Heaven to live forever but, more precisely, to export Heaven to earth where we will inhabit His Kingdom which endures http://forever.the Kingdom goes immeasurably beyond any intermediate stay in Heaven. The Kingdom is forever and will be centralized when the throne of Jesus Christ is established in the new earth. Listen closely and consider whether believing that Heaven is the end of God's story might be keeping you from plunging more deeply into His Kingdom purposes which never come to an end.