Blog Archives

Layers of Faith

7/21/2017

Last Sunday, Pastor Juan talked about the layers of faith and the unlikely people who God uses to accomplish His work and will in our conquest journey.
Joshua is an incredible character, but he is not the only interesting character in the Bible.
We see names like Moses, Joshua, Sara, Abraham, Jacob, Esau, and this name Rehab pops up, a pagan-prostitute.
HEBREWS 11:3131 It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed with the people in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.

Rahab story is remarkable, and more remarkable is that God validated her story. You always hear people say to have faith like Noah or faith like Abraham, you never hear anyone say, “have faith like the prostitute, Rahab!” #FaithLikeAProstitute.

This is the reason also why so many people do not lean on faith as easily as they used to. Because we have made God, the word of God (bible), and the characters in the bible so unapproachable and far from today’s reality.
The most important thing in this story is not Rahab and her sin, but rather, Rahab and her faith. Faith in God, that led to the grace of God.
Faith is not a destination, it’s a process that grows as you allow God to work through the mess of the world and your mess. You cannot just learn about faith, you must live through it. You must practice it and you must trust God’s processes in it like Rahab.

What kind of Faith did Rahab have?

1. Courageous Faith:
Joshua 2:1–7 (NLT). It took courage because if the king found out that she was hiding these spies, she would’ve had to paid with her life and the life of her family as well.
So, it’s remarkable how she would risk so much, to save these spies. She was showing faith in action to her new-found relationship with God.

2. Confident Faith:
Joshua 2:8–11 (NLT). Rahab, made up her mind that this God was supreme over all the pagan gods. Her heart was stirred to help the spies, and then she acted in obedience. Faith without action is dead.

3. Concerned Faith:
Joshua 2:12–14 (NLT). Rahab, wasn’t concerned only about her own welfare. Once she had personally experienced the grace and mercy of God, she was burdened to rescue her family.
This is the crux of our ministry, right here. Self-serving ministry is not ministry.

4. Covenant Faith:
Joshua 2:15–21 (NLT).
A covenant is simply an agreement, a contract between two or more parties, with certain conditions laid down for all parties to obey. Covenant faith is not deviating from the promises that we have made to God and His church.
God showed Rahab Grace and when she turned her faith to God, she was used mightily. Don't miss tomorrow as we continue the Crossing Over Series! Bring a friend and join us at 1 PM!! 639 N 25th St.

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The Mindset of Crossing Over

7/12/2017

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Adjusting our mindset to what God is doing is key in Crossing Over. God has provided! He gives us a great example in Joshua. God expanded his boundaries to get him to see outside of the box (Josh 1:4). It's important to be able to see the need in this season and be a visionary to see the harvest in the next season.

What is your box? What are you limits?
Its a question we all need to ask ourselves.

Joshua came from slavery. There is no one who appreciates freedom more than someone whose been a slave to something.

We need to take on the identity and belief that we already have what we need. We just need to wait worship and press on! The 40 years created a warrior in Joshua, not the battle itself.

Key thought
Before we conquer external territory we need to first conquer our internal landscape.

God wants to bring healing to the issues of this season and repair any brokenness before moving to the next.

One thing to remember...Hold tight to word! You are more than a conqueror in Christ.

Conquers walk different, right? They have a swag or sway in their step. #conquerswag

Welcome to the new place! Let's be filled with boldness and courage and get the mindset of Crossing Over!

Join us us this Sunday at 1 PM for another inspiring, and heart transforming teaching! Come get an update on UPC's Crossing Over into our new building and how you can help! 639 N 25th St.

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Crossing Over P1

7/4/2017

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Service this past Sunday was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!! People made a public dedication of their love for God and we celebrated the awesome news of our new building!!! The new series Crossing Over will go through the Book of Joshua, which is a book of New Beginnings! We are, as a church, experiencing a new beginning.
New beginnings are wonderful! But they are also filled with lots of uncertainty!
That was the case for Joshua. After forty years of wandering in the wilderness, Israel claimed their inheritance and enjoyed the blessings of the land that God had prepared for them, “as the days of heaven upon the earth” (Deut. 11:21). That’s the kind of life God wants us to experience today.
Jesus Christ, our Joshua, wants to lead us in conquest now and share with us all the treasures of His wonderful inheritance. He has “blessed us with all spiritual blessings” (Eph. 1:3), but too often we live like defeated people. Joshua was a born leader and he was ready for such a time as this!
Joshua was so many things including:
1- A Slave
2- A Warrior
3- AServant
4- A Visionary
Joshua was looking at the promise land, but I’m sure he was also looking at all the barriers that were in front of the conquest, too. He knew that it was now up to him to not allow others to deter Him from what he was destined to do.
KEY THOUGHT: “God allows all the experiences of slavery, wilderness wandering, battles, and defeats to develop the appropriate warrior for the conquest of our promise land.”
A faith that is not tested is a faith that is not ready. We were tested for 2 Years!
As we move into the new building and new location, there are going to be times of victories, and times of defeat, but please, never forget what the Word says… ““Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. This is my command—be strong and courageous!”
Lets get excited and ramped up as God prepares us for this new transition! Don't miss this Sunday at 1 PM for P2 of Crossing Over! 639 N 25th St