First Alliance Church ATL

“The Light That Inspired the Prophets”  Isaiah 11:1-10

The Prophet Isaiah lived 750 years before the birth of Jesus. It was a time of great prosperity, but also a time of social evil and spiritual deadness. It was in this time of darkness that God inspired Isaiah with the light of inspiration, a light that enabled him to see the coming of the Messiah. The message that God gave Isaiah had three highlights:

I First, God inspired Isaiah with a message of h________ (11:1-3).
-In verses 2-3 Isaiah tells us what makes this new branch of David’s family so special:
1. In verse 2 he says, “The _______ of the ________ will rest on him.
2. Then he describes three pairs of spiritual qualifications which the Messiah will have:
a. The Spirit of w________ and u____________.
b. The Spirit of c__________ and of p___________.
c. The Spirit of k__________ and of the f_________ of the Lord.

II Second, God inspired Isaiah with a message of w__________(11:4-5).

III Third, God inspired Isaiah with a message of e______________(11:6-10).

“Thanksgiving is Good for You!”  Ephesians 5:15-21
Many people understand that giving thanks to people is good for us; it reminds us that we are not self-sufficient, that we need others. Saying “thank you” to someone also creates a point of connection between us and another person. In the coming week we will celebrate Thanksgiving, the holiday which emphasizes our duty to give thanks to God for all he has done. We know that he has given us our very life and that is good enough reason to thank him. But, does thanking God do anything good for us? The text we are looking at this morning answers that question with a big “Yes!” What does giving thanks to God do for us?
I First, it enables us to m_______ the m________ of the time God has given us (5:15-17).

II Second, thanksgiving p_____________ the filling of the Spirit in me (5:18-21).

III Third, thanksgiving enables us to live in v__________ over our circumstances (5:20)

This is our annual meeting Sunday - instead of a boring meeting we prefer celebrating!

Pastor’s Report—Dr. Kevin Goins: Up

Worship Report – Jennifer Bliss-Criswell

Pastor’s Report: In

Elders Report— Abel Irvin

Children/Youth Report— Margaret Goins

Pastor’s Report: Out

Belmont Senior Ministry— Ross Antonakos

Prison Ministry— Judy Cox

Missions— Debbie Miller

Grace Campus Chinese Bible Fellowship— Jennifer Gao

Communion with GCCBF

“Who Do You Think You Are?” (Conclusion)  John 5:19-47

Many people have opinions about Jesus and sometimes these opinions are shared with others.  Rarely, however, do we allow Jesus to speak for himself.  The reason for this may be that many have no idea what Jesus actually said about himself.  That is why our text today is so important.  In John 5:19-47 Jesus makes four claims about himself.  

I First, Jesus claims to be the Son of God.

II Second, Jesus claims to be the Giver of Life.

III Third, Jesus claims to be the Authoritative Judge.

IV Finally, Jesus claims to be the one who has w_________ who can corroborate everything he has said about himself.

-Who are these witnesses?

A. First, Jesus says, thee is the witness of ________ _____ __________ (5:31-32, 37-38).

-We need to ask two questions:

1. Why does Jesus find it n ___________ to call God as a witness?

2. W________ did God give this testimony about Jesus?  There are three possibilities:

a. At the b___________ of Jesus

b. Through _________ _________

c. Through our own e______________

B. Second, there is the witness of __________ _____ _____________ (5:33-35).

C. Third, there is the witness of Jesus’ own _________ (5:36).

D. Fourth, there is the witness of the S_____________ (5:39-44).

E. Finally, there is the witness of _____________ (5:45-47).

“Who Do You Think You Are?” (Pt 2)

John 5:19-47

Many people have opinions about Jesus and sometimes these opinions are shared with others.  Rarely, however, do we allow Jesus to speak for himself.  The reason for this may be that many have no idea what Jesus actually said about himself.  What about you?  Could you relate to another person what Jesus said about himself?  In John 5:19-47 Jesus makes four claims about himself.  

I First, Jesus claims to be the Son of God.

II Second, Jesus claims to be the __________ of _________.

III What does Jesus say about being a life-giver?

A. First, it is the nature of God to _________ _________ (5:21a).

B. Second, it is also the nature of the _____ of ______ to give life (5:21b).

-Who is it to whom Jesus is pleased to give eternal life?

1. First, the Bible says Jesus is pleased to give eternal life to those who ___ ______ ____________ it (Matthew 9:13; Mark 2:17).

2. Second, Jesus is pleased to give life to those who _________ in him (John 1:12).

C. Third, the Son of God gives life ______ (5:24).

D. Finally, the Son of God will give life at the _____ of h__________ h___________ (5:25).  

“Who Do You Think You Are?”

John 5:19-47

Many people have opinions about Jesus and sometimes these opinions are shared with others.  Rarely, however, do we allow Jesus to speak for himself.  The reason for this may be that many have no idea what Jesus actually said about himself.  What about you?  Could you relate to another person what Jesus said about himself?  In our text today we will hear Jesus tell us who he is.              

I These words are very important for three reasons:

1. This is a statement of ______ Jesus __, made by the one who knows him better than anyone else - h___________.

2. This is Jesus’ defense against the c__________ the religious officials made against him – the charges that led to the c_________.

3. Jesus told us they are important by the way he i___________ them.

II Jesus makes four statements about himself in John 5:19-47 – We are looking at the first statement today:  First, Jesus claims to be ____ _______ ___ _____.

III To call Jesus “Son of God” means he has a r______________ with God, but what k_____ of r________________?

1.   First, it is a relationship of d_____________(5:19a).

2. Second, it is a relationship of d______________ (5:19b).

3. Third, it is a relationship of l_________ (5:20a).

4. Lastly, it is a relationship of e_____________ (5:20b).

“Do You Want to Get Well?”  John 5:1-18

Despite the skepticism of our post-modern age, the majority of Americans claim to believe in miracles and many are looking for healing.  The evidence of this are the millions of web sites which claim to provide information on how people can find healing.  The new Testament also has a great deal to say about healing because Jesus was known as a magnificent healer.  Sadly, there is a lot of confusion about the healing ministry of Jesus, but our text today answers many of our most pressing questions.  What does this passage teach us?           

 

I First, this text teaches us that healing illness was a v_________ part of the ministry of Jesus (5:1-3).

A. Sick people were so common in Jesus’ day that many learned to i_________ them, but not ________.

B. Many Christians today try to avoid the issue of divine healing by focusing on the s___________ work of Christ.

II Second, this text shows us that both p_________ and s_________ health are only for those who know ________ to look (5:4-7).

-The issue for this man was not w___________ he wanted to be healed, but h______ he wanted to be healed.

III Third, this text shocks us by telling us that ________ is not the _____ to healing (5:8-9a).

A. Many today promote f_______ h_________.

1.  Faith healing is h____________.

2.  Faith healers emphasize the importance of your w_________.

B. But divine healing sees the w________ of God as the decisive factor in whether a person is healed. 

IV Fourth, this text shows us that while you cannot separate spiritual and physical health, _____________ ____________ is far more important (5:9b-14)

V Lastly, this text shows us that Jesus _______ heals _______ (5:15-18). 

“Believing is Seeing”  John 4:46-54

There is a proverb which, though it goes back at least four centuries, is still very popular today.  This proverb says, “Seeing is believing.”  In other words, we can only believe what we can verify with our physical senses.  But there are at least two significant problems with this.  First, it doesn’t always work, not even in the physical world. Many people have been completely deceived by depending on their eyes.  Second, it never works in the spiritual world. In fact, in our text today, Jesus tells us that in the spiritual world it is not seeing that leads to believing, but it is believing that gives us real sight.  But, how does a person develop faith?            

I You need the right s________ for faith to grow (4:46-47).

-When it comes to faith, there are two things which must be part of the soil of our life:

1. First, we must be aware of some significant ________ in our life.

2. Second, we need a s_________ or a g___________ of h________.

II Second, faith needs a c______________ (4:48).

III Lastly, faith needs to d_____________ (4:49-54).

-Did you notice what Jesus did for this man?

1. At first he made him believe w_______ a_____ sign.

2. But then, on the road back home, Jesus g________ him a sign.

“Cross-Cultural Ministry” (Conclusion)

John 4:21-42

In his encounter with the Samaritan woman Jesus illustrates for us how we can have a ministry which crosses social and cultural boundaries.  Today we see Jesus demonstrate three more principles which can assist us in Cross-Cultural Ministry.       

I God uses circumstances to lead us to cross cultural boundaries in ministry (4:1-4).

II God uses our humility to enable us to cross cultural boundaries in ministry (4:5-8)

III God uses our sensitivity to people’s needs to enable us to cross cultural boundaries in ministry (4:9-10).

IV God uses our ability to prioritize the essentials so we can cross cultural boundaries in ministry. (4:11-15)

V God uses our willingness to confront the issues of the heart to enable us to cross cultural boundaries in ministry (4:16-20).  

VI God uses our w____________ to set aside the cultural dimensions of our f________ to enable us to cross cultural boundaries in ministry (4:21-24).

Both the _______ of our worship and the ____________ of our worship have been heavily influenced by our culture.

Jesus says it is cultural to worship at a particular place and a particular time, but there are ________ worship requirements that are not cultural:

First, we must worship in ___________.

But there is something else – worship also must be done in _____.

Truth includes two things: C________________.         I_________________.

VII God uses our willingness to lift up ___________ to enable us to cross cultural boundaries in ministry (4:25-26).

VIII Lastly, God uses our sense of _______________ to enable us to cross cultural boundaries in ministry (4:27-42).