E.P.I.C. Word of Truth

SafeGuarding Prayer - Ask...Seek...Knock (Matthew 7:7-12)

Our prayers are precious to the Lord. He wants us to bring all things to Him in prayer (Philippians 4:6a - Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication).
We should not take our prayer life for granted. We need to pray; we need to be praying always for everything. God answers our prayers; sometimes the answer might be “not yet”, or even “no”, but He will answer. We need to also understand that faith is a great and significant aspect of successful prayer.
Never quit, never give up on your faith in God. Faith tested is faith that is strengthened. All things in our life, including our prayers should be built upon faith. Faith knows there will be delays. Faith accepts God’s conditions and timing. If faith is exercised and holds fast through the waiting, the delays, the trials – the answer to our prayer, when it comes, will be that much sweeter and miraculous.
Faith is taking your eyes off of self, not trusting in your own abilities, and placing your gaze exclusively on God and totally trusting in Him. Faith is foundational to a successful prayer life and a successful Christian walk. Prayer exercised through a true and strong faith in Christ is true fellowship with God.
How is your prayer life?
What are you faithing God for?
Are you asking, are you seeking, are you knocking?
Are you staying focused on God in your prayers?
Are you daring to pray for great and miraculous things?
How is your faith?

The Offence of the Cross (Galatians 5:11)

The One who died for my sins, and died for your sins, the One who died a painful and bloody death on the cross. That is our one way to Heaven – through Him – He is the Door. Belief in Christ, faith in Christ, trusting in His life, His death, His burial, His resurrection for our salvation is the key - that is the one way to Heaven. That is the offense of the cross.
The offense of the cross is that your wisdom, is that your righteousness, is that your integrity, is that your good works – are all in God's sight as a pile of filthy rags. That is what can be offensive to the unsaved person. That is what can be offensive to the person that is not a Christian.
We need to put ourselves on the altar, and we need to put Christ on the throne of our life. We need to accept the cross gladly, and as we do, we should die to self as we magnify Christ.

Brotherly Kindness (II Peter 1:3-8)

Has someone hurt your? Has someone close to you hurt you or let you down? How we react to that hurt is very important. Do we react with brotherly kindness? Do we react with love? In our relationships do we demonstrate the Christian characteristic of brotherly kindness - even if someone has greatly wronged us? Bitterness can grow and can be stoked when we do not have brotherly kindness in our spirits and in our actions. We need to freely forgive all offenses, instead of planning revenge. Do not waste another moment thinking about self and dwelling on the offense - instead demonstrate the grace of God  by forgiving, by loving, and by displaying Christian brotherly kindness. 

Enter into Rest (Hebrews 4:1-11)

We need to enter into the rest that only God through Jesus can provide us. There is rest available to the weary and burdened soul: rest for your spirit, the rest of salvation, the rest of submission and the rest of service.
All this is available to the Christian who just seeks to acquire it.
Faith in Christ should equal rest in Christ; but this is not always the case. Too many times Christian do not progress in their walk with Christ. We need to be very careful and diligent about not missing out on the rest that is available to every Christian if we would only pursue to acquire it.
We need to choose to enter into this rest with Christ. We should not just be content to be saved from Hell, but we should be choosing to live for Heaven.

Being Careful with the Word of God (Tradition vs. God's Word) (Mark 7:1-13)

This Word of Truth is about our care in the handling of the Word of God. We must make sure we are getting it right. We must make sure we are not elevating the teaching or the tradition of men over God's Word. Jesus speaks very strongly against putting traditional teaching on a pedestal higher than God's Word. It is extremely important that we interpret Scripture carefully and correctly. We must compare Scripture with Scripture. It is a terribly sinful thing to teach and preach tradition that is in conflict with the Word of God. We must study out and own doctrine and own standards and own convictions for ourselves, and not just because it has always been taught that way. We need to make sure we are being Biblical, and not traditional in our thinking and in our application of Scripture. 

"Hearken... to do them" (Deuteronomy 4:1-6)

What the Bible teaches us is of utmost importance in our life. We need to determine to live by its teaching and principles. We need to "hearken... to do them." We need to hearken to live out God's will in our life. We need to hearken to live out the word of God in our life. As part of this hearkening we need to have an understanding of the word of God, and that understanding needs to be growing and maturing. We also need to make sure we have the pure word of God, not a corrupted version of it, but the pure word of God in our life. In order for us to have true freedom we need to live under the authority of God and His word. We need to hearken to His authority in our life and to His sovereignty in our life. 

Given a Charge (Numbers 27:18-23)

We have all been, like Joshua, given a charge from the Lord for our life. Are we living out that charge? Are we living out God's will for our life? Are we living out the charge of being witnesses for Him? Are we living out the charge of bringing others to Jesus? Are we living out the charge of sharing the gospel to the world? We have all been given a specific charge for our life as well - are we living out that charge from God? 

Laboring & Living Rightly in the Lord (I Corinthians 16:5-14)

In our passage Paul will be coming again to Corinth, but he tells them he will stay at Ephesus until Pentecost because there is a great door opened there for ministry as well as many adversaries. Paul is being sensitive to the Lords timing and opportunities the Lord is giving him to minister. He tells the Corinthians to not despise his “son in the ministry” Timothy who would be coming to them. Paul gives them in this passage some final words regarding their labor in the Lord, regarding living rightly in the Lord, and loving rightly in the Lord.

Faithfulness in Circumstances (II Timothy 4)

In this message we are going to look at the ultimate closing remarks of Paul, in that we will be examining the closing statements of the book of II Timothy and Paul’s last written words.
The Marked Significance of These Remarks
The deathbed statement of any individual has an importance that is not attached to other remarks. This is what lends much significance to II Timothy. It is the final written communication of Paul; it is his final message. It has a note of sadness that is not detected in his other epistles. Nevertheless, there is the overarching tone of triumph, “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” Paul wrote his own epitaph in chapter four of Second Timothy verses 6-8.

God's Special Team (Colossians 4:7-18)

In this passage of Scripture you may start to recognize many of the names Paul mentioned in these closing remarks and start thinking how Paul’s ministry was not just Paul going it alone, but there were many people involved in his great ministry every step of the way. Paul got the headlines. He was the main preacher. He drew the crowds but he also had an amazing, faithful and special team of people behind him, supporting him, praying for him, and doing their part for Christ and His Gospel.