A message from the series "Words of Worship." “An extension of the hand in thanksgiving; a sacrifice of praise offered in faith - often before the outcome is seen.”
Do you praise and thank God from the darkness? Are you grateful for the darkness?
See Psalm 56: 10-12
JONAH & TOWDAH - Jonah 2
Even in the midst of Jonah’s disobedience, God leveraged the circumstances for His glory. As a result, Jonah repented and cried out to God from the pit of his despair.
God is always worthy of our praise and trust, even in our darkest times when things are at their absolute worst.
What might it look like for you to TOWDAH in your circumstances?
Psalm 50:23 “Whoever offers a thanksgiving sacrifice honors me, and whoever orders his conduct, I will show him the salvation of God.”

A message from the series "Words of Worship." HALAL: “An exuberant expression of celebration, a word that connotes boasting, raving, or celebrating.”
HALAL is the primary Hebrew word for praise, from which we get the word: “Halleu” = praise and “yah” = YAHWEH. Literally, it means “Praise God”.
Read 2 Samuel 6
Is there a desperation in our hearts for the LORD?
1. We’re more framed by culture than we are by Christ. Passion follows formation.
2. We treat God as familiar instead of Holy.
3. We underestimate what we’ve been saved from. A low view of sin leads to a low view of grace.
4. We want a God who serves us, not a God whom we serve. We talk a lot ABOUT God, but do we KNOW God?
5. We’ve forgotten that worship is Spiritual warfare. When we look at how we live, do we conclude that we actually need God?
We need to slow down and just spend time in God’ presence. Psalm 46: 10 “Be still and know that I am God”.
God is not looking for us to perform for Him, He’s looking for us to surrender ourselves to Him in our worship.

A message from the series "Words of Worship." Words of Worship | YADAH
Worship is not about the position of your body, it’s about the posture of your heart.
YADAH: “ To revere or worship with extended hands. To hold out the hands. To throw a stone around arrow.”
YADAH is about a posture of trust.
When is the last time you praised God for the thing He hasn’t given you yet?
What battle are you facing right now? What situation feels overwhelming or impossible right now that, instead of fighting in your own strength you can surrender in YADAH?
What if it isn’t about fighting harder, but about surrendering more?
“…we do not know what do do, but our eyes are on You.” 2 Chronicles 20:12b - see also 2 Chronicles 20: 15b, 21b, 22

A message from the series "New Testament Challenge." Revelation 21:3 “Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: ‘Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His peoples, and God Himself will be with them and will be their God’. “
Responding to the Gospel involves:
Genuine confession (Rom 3:23, 6:23).
Genuine repentance
Genuine faith (Hebrews 11)
Genuine obedience ( 1John 1:6; Rom 10:9)
Four discoveries about our future that will change the way we live today:
1. We’re going to receive new, imperishable bodies (1 For 15:52, 58; Col 3:1-4)
2. Our final destination isn’t up there, it’s down here (Rev 21:1; Gen 1:1, Gen 1:31a)
3. God is coming to live with us! (Rev 21:3-4)
4. God will form a new city beyond our imagination ( Rev 21:2; Rev 22:1-5)

A message from the series "New Testament Challenge." John 11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live…”.
God’s perfect timing fulfills His purpose for His glory and reveals His love for us.
What we expect God to do is not always what God actually does.
Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life - John 11
Every difficulty is an opportunity
The difficulties may not be something we would choose, but they are something God will use.
God’s purposes for His glory were fulfilled because Jesus showed up late.
Don’t miss the lesson that God is trying to teach you through the waiting.
Ultimately, when there’s a gap between what I think God should do, and what He actually does, I need to (by His power) trust.
1. Know that he knows; God will use your pain to draw you closer to Himself.
2. Know that He cares; God cares more about your holiness than He cares about your happiness.
3. Trust Him in the process; Your timetable and God’s timetable are probably not the same.
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

A message from the series "New Testament Challenge." Hebrews 4:15 For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.
Jesus is the Great High Priest who has made the way for us to be with the Father.
The role of the High Priest in the Old Testament:
Three primary responsibilities:
1. Mediation - Our representative to God
2. Sacrifice - Blood offering for sin
3. Intercession - Acts on our behalf
Jesus, our High Priest through Faith
1. Jesus is our Great High Priest Heb 4:14; Rom 8:34; Heb 1:3; 1 Tim 2:5
2. Jesus is our sympathetic High Priest Heb 4:15; 1 Cor 10:13; 2 Tim 2:22
3. Jesus is our approachable High Priest Heb 4:16

A message from the series "New Testament Challenge." Matthew 9: 12-13 “Now when He heard this, He said ‘It is not those who are well who need a doctor, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: I desire mercy, not sacrifice. For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Jesus specializes in choosing people the world overlooks.
Who are the outcast in your life? How have you responded to them?
Jesus and outcasts:
1. Jesus calls the unexpected. Matt 4:19
Have you believed the lie that you have to clean yourself up before following Jesus?
God’ Kingdom isn’t for those who think they have it all together, it’s for those who know they need Him. Titus 3: 4-7
2. Jesus touches the untouchable Matt 8: 1-3
Who in your world feels untouchable?
Do you feel like there’s something about you that makes you “too far gone” for Jesus?
3. Jesus lifts up the rejected. Matt 15: 21-28
Are there barriers in your own heart that keep you from seeing people the way Jesus sees them?
Jesus consistently moves toward the people the world moves away from.
How does Jesus want you to respond to the outcasts in your life?

A message from the series "New Testament Challenge." 2 Timothy 4:7 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
What if we spend our whole lives running hard, only to realize we were in the wrong race?
What race are you running in life? Mk 8:36; 1 Tim 1:15
To run the right race…
1. Start by trusting Jesus as Savior. Rom 3:23; 6;23; 10:9; 1 Jn 1:8,10
The Gospel:
a. Keeps us humble
b. Reminds us that we are sinners
c. Evokes praise
d. Motivates us to do good works
2. Continue by following Jesus as Lord. Col 2:6
3. Run with endurance. Heb 12: 1b-2a
4. Finish well. 1 Jn 1:9
What’s your next step?

A message from the series "New Testament Challenge." 1 Corinthians 1:10 “I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.”
Euphony: a pleasing or sweet sound; harmony
Cacophony: an incongruous or chaotic mixture or sound
Romans 16 - Paul took time to develop and nurture relationships during his travels.
Euphony is God’s desire for His church;
Euphony happens through diversity (see Galatians 3:28)
A euphonious church;
1. Walks in sync with God’s Word (2 Tim 3:16)
2. Lives in obedience to Jesus (John 14:15)
3. Stands united in mission (Phil 1;27)
What is your next step?

A message from the series "New Testament Challenge." The Church is birthed and spreading like a wildfire.
The Holy Spirit is God;
The Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Trinity.
The Trinity: see Gal 1:26; Lk3:21; Acts 5; Debt 6; 1 Tim 2
1. God exists in three distinct Persons
2. Each Person is fully God
3. There is ONE God
The Holy Spirit is God’s acting agent in our lives to seal us, convict us, and transform us.
The Church changed the fabric of every city they entered.
God’s dream for us;
1. We would spread the Gospel like wildfire
2. We would change the very fabric of our sphere of influence
3. We would make a clean break from our old life and step into
our new life.