It´s About The Cross

December 22nd

                                                      

 

A briefing of Pr. Silvana´s preaching

December 15th

By Pr. Silvana

FORGIVENESS... WHAT DOES

IT MEAN?

• THE ACT OF FORGIVING SOMEONE.

•TO FORGIVE = to decide not to blame someone or be angry with them although they have done something wrong (Longman Dictionary of  Contemporary English);

•// behave as if they had never done it;

•// no longer have the wish to punish somebody for an offence;

•// show mercy to somebody;

•// no longer have hard feelings towards

somebody who has hurt you.

The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant 

Matthew 18.21-35

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” 

22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. 

23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 

24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 

25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

26 “The servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 

27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’

30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 

31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 

33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 

34 In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

—FORGIVENESS is a commandment. —

- The one who loves Jesus, obeys His commandments.

—Luke 6.37 – “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”

—Col. 3.13 – “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

—FORGIVENESS is a decision, not a feeling.

—- I decide to forgive even when I don’t want to.

—FORGIVENESS brings joy, peace and freedom.

- Lack of forgiveness brings bitterness and sickness.

—FORGIVE ANYONE WHO HAS OFFENDED/HURT YOU.

—Ephesians 4.32 – “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

—FORGIVE  YOURSELF.

—Romans 8.1-2 – “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.”

—II Co. 5.17 – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”

December 8th

The Beatitudes

Matthew 5:1-12

"Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, and He began to teach them. He said:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”"

• This has nothing to do with financial status.
• To be poor in spirit is to recognize dependence on God. Psalm 51:17.
• And God says in Isaiah 57:15 that He is very close to whoever humbles himself in His presence.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted."

• Ensures the lap of God the Father, Jesus´ friendly hug and comfort brought by the Holy Spirit.
• Isaiah 61:2-3
• James 4:9-10

“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”

• To the humble and meek, those who bend before the will of God.
• Psalm 37:11

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness , for they will be filled.”

• It is not a matter of revenge. It's a matter of seeing the right prevail. Psalm 55 1-3.
• Hunger and thirst for the word of God. Psalm 42

“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.”

• What is mercy?   
• Mercy is a feeling that starts in me.
•  It comes first from God to me.  2 Corinthians 1:3
• If you are merciful happiness is guaranteed. Psalm 41:1
• But the punishment for the lack of mercy  is guaranteed too. James 2:13

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.”

• Pure in heart are those who seek holiness.
• Proverbs 4:23
• Mark 7:20-23
• Only those who save theirs hearts pure will see God. Psalm 24:3-4

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.”

• John 14:27: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹ Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

• James 1:2-4 – God is in control
• And a reward was promised! Isaiah 40:10

Characteristics of the Beatitudes´Sermon

• A small sermon inside a larger sermon
• The beatitudes sermon is part of a sequence
• On this first part , Jesus speaks about the rewards.
• It is a message of hope
• It is a timeless message of comfort
• It is a nowadays motivational speech.

What is the meaning of blessed?

• Blessed comes from the greek word Makarios and means "happy“.
• It is the happiness of belonging to God and being in peace with Him

(By Ana)

November 1st

 Message from Pr. Lobo

 

 Acts 3:1-11

“One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. Now a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money.  Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” ⁵ So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of  Nazareth, walk.” Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade.”

Everyday, we must ask ourselves: "-Who am I?"!

Jesus died in a cross for you!

Not for you to receive a new car, not for you to prosper... 

You must want to be like Him!

You must want to look like Him!

   You must want to speak what He spoke!

1.    At the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon

They were people who prayed!

Romans 12:12 : “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

James 5:16: “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

Phillipians 4:6-7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

2.    Look at us (v.4)

They were people who looked like Jesus

^“From now on, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.” (Galatians 6:17)

3.    “…but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, WALK!”

They were people who had power!

Mark 16:15-18:  ^“He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;  they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”

1 Corinthians 2:4-5: “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.”

John 7:38: ^“Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”

3 P´s

"At the center of God´s will there are 3 P´s:

Provision, Power and Peace!"

Pr. Áurea Marciano

November 24th - Happy Thanksgiving!

“... and be thankful”

Pr. Silvana

Luke 17:11-19 - Ten Healed of Leprosy

¹¹ Now on His way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. ¹² As He was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance ¹³ and called out in a loud voice,

 “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” ¹⁴ When He saw them, He said,

  “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” 

And as they went, they were cleansed. ¹⁵ One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice.

 ¹⁶ He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him—and he was a Samaritan. ¹⁷ Jesus  asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?

¹⁸ Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” ¹⁹ Then He said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

The ten lepers…

—  … wanted to be healed;…

—  … believed in Jesus;…

—  … obeyed Jesus. But…

—  … WERE NOT THANKFUL, except  for  one  of  them.

Colossians 3.15

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.”

Colossians 4:2
“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”

Hebrews 12:28a

“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful…”

We should always follow the example of that Samaritan leper who went back to thank Jesus for his healing, throwing himself to Jesus’ feet and worshipping Him. Before going to his family or enjoying his new life as a cleansed person, he decided to express his gratitude to the Lord. We must decide to be always thankful!

Now, let’s watch a movie and learn how “Thanksgiving Day” was first celebrated.

We tend to complain about everything and forget to give thanks for so many blessings God has given us.

Above anything else we must be thankful for our salvation!