Churches don’t stop growing in one instance; it is something that happens over a period of time. You lose one member here or there, and you look up and notice there are fewer and fewer members left. Whether this is happening in your church or another church, what is it that causes churches to stop growing?

To rejoice means to be glad, to take delight in, and to take pleasure in. Clearly God’s desire for us is to be always rejoicing in him and to be filled with joy. This is not meant to be something that happens sometimes, but something that happens all the time.

There are only two passages where this is mentioned, so let’s look at them. What we must do is look at the whole passage, because if all we do is stop at the verse, we won’t garner the full context and meaning of this concept of binding and loosing.

The word Christian is an interesting word that derived not from Jesus, but from the people in Antioch, where the followers of Christ were first called Christians. Part of the reason they were called Christians is because they lived in such a way that represented Christ well. It is easy to conclude that these folks reminded people of Jesus by the way they lived.

As we fast forward two thousand years, how can we apply this to our lives? What are some ways that we can authentically live for Jesus so that when people see us, they will be reminded of him? There are many places in the Bible you can turn to address this issue, but I want to use Philippians 2 as my text to help us more authentically live for Jesus.

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The essence of our Christian walk is centered around hope. We receive Jesus at salvation, which allows us to partake of God’s forgiveness and that produces in us the hope of eternal life. In Colossians we find a term that defines this hope, it is called the hope of glory.

They had comfort in knowing that regardless of who the enemy was or the situation they faced, God was fighting for them.

Your effectiveness in preaching is not judged by the time on the clock but by the quality of the content. Let me add one more point. A good pastor should not just be beholden to their notes, but they must also be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. You must allow room for God to control what happens in the service.

The Bible is clear that no one knows when Jesus is coming back and there is no room for debate concerning this. You can study all the signs, look at all the charts, try to figure out all the numbers, but at the end of the day this truth remains: no one knows the day or the hour.

One of the truths of leadership is that you cannot always say whatever you want to say because your words matter. The big reason your words matter is because they have influence. If people are listening and following what you say, then you must be extremely careful about what you say. Unfortunately – or maybe fortunately – you don’t get the luxury of always speaking your mind.

When a person is caught in sin, the restoration process may not be quick; it may be an enduring process. That’s why Paul encourages those who are spiritual and mature to engage in this process. I fully believe if a person is willing to repent, then they can be restored. They may not get back everything they lost, because there are some consequences of sin that may not be undone. But they can have restored fellowship and find forgiveness.

As a citizen of a country, you are granted certain rights. For example, you have the right to vote, the right to work, and the right to pay taxes (even though that is a right I would gladly give up if I could). Regardless of where you live or grow up, if you belong to God, you are not just a citizen of your country, you are also a citizen of the kingdom of God.

Because many people don’t live under kingdom rule, you may not truly understand what “kingdom” means, and specifically the kingdom of God. However, because you are a citizen of God’s kingdom, there is an advantage and a responsibility that goes along with it. So let’s make sure we know what this means.

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What would you think of a mom who gave birth to her baby and then said “my job is done, you are on your own?” You would probably think that mother is irresponsible and possibly unfit to be a mother. Yet, this is what we often do to new converts. We help them through the birthing process and then leave them on their own to figure it all out themselves.

In the book of 1 Timothy, Paul gave Timothy – a young pastor of the church in Ephesus – an instruction. This is what he said:

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12).

Reading this verse caused me to become introspective and think about the type of example I am setting. As believers we are supposed to be models or reflections of Jesus Christ, ultimately pointing people to him. One of the ways we do that is by how we live.

As you continue reading, I would like you to join with me and take a few moments to be a little introspective as well. To begin, I want you to consider these two questions for a moment:

1. When people look at you, what Jesus do they see?

2. What Christ are you pointing the world to?

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