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The message of grace that empowers you to stand as an overcoming believer.

  1. 5d ago

    Reigning in Life | Oct. 25, 2026 | Ps. Raph Felix

    Reigning in Life What makes a culture Many elements make up a culture: food, language, and many other things. Over time, these elements begin to shape you, and eventually, you start to look alike. Not in the sense that everyone becomes identical, but in the sense that certain traits inevitably make people identify you with that particular culture. It is more than just your ethnicity. It is what you become. There is an old saying: You are what you eat. "Numbers 11:5-6 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.” I often think about the people of Israel when they left Egypt. After 430 years in Egypt, they had begun to look less like Israelites and more like Egyptians. God needed 40 years to purge, cleanse, and transform them. And do you know how that process actually began? First of all, He changed the way they ate. "Deuteronomy 8:3 3 And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD." (Deuteronomy 8:3) I read an article this week about the new fever for bread and cheese in Europe. The hottest food isn’t some high-tech, elaborate creation.  It’s a simple snack called bólle méd ôst—a freshly baked bun with butter and a slice of hard cheese. Food experts call it the ultimate test of fundamentals.  As one food researcher put it, ‘You can’t pretend with it. You can’t fake it. It has to be really, really good.’  When a snack is that simple, there’s nothing to hide. You can’t mask a stale bun or poor ingredients behind a fancy presentation.. Everywhere you look, people are trying to ‘sell’ Jesus with add-ons.  Add layers of marketing, cultural trends, political branding, and rigid religious formulas. It becomes Jesus plus something else. Why do we do that? Because complicated things usually hide what is genuine. When a dish is fancy with sauces, microgreens, and foam, it’s usually because the chef is trying to mask low-quality ingredients. Strip away all the human add-ons and religious packaging, and leave only the raw, unadorned truth of the Gospel. Christ didn't come to give us a complicated, marketed system; He offered Himself as the Bread of Life. John 6:35 35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. A real walk with Jesus. No hidden gimmicks, no elaborate religious facade—just a clean, open-faced reliance on the pure grace of God. To Reign Romans 5:12-21 12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— 13 for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. 14 Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. 16 And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. 17 For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. 18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19 For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.  20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. To reign: Lexically, the term implies an active exercise of sovereignty, dominion, or power by a monarch or a ruling force over a given sphere or domain.  Here there are two ruling regimes: The realm of death by the power of sin (The Adam Administration): Death is an absolute monarch that "reigned from Adam to Moses" through one man's trespass. Death could only reign if it had a sting, a weapon to threaten. That is sin. 1 Corinthians 15:56-57 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. I grew up going to the cattle farm. My dad uses a cattle prod to urge the bulls and cows. That is the image here.  But in the Bible, the image relates to a cattle goad used to make oxen, horses, and other beasts of burden keep moving the load. Now, if sin is the sting, the one poking that sting, the power of sin, is the law. Sin is a reigning tyrant operating "in death" (v. 21). Here, basileuō highlights humanity's helpless subjugation under a hostile power. The realm of grace through Righteousness. Romans 5:21 …so that … grace also might reign through righteousness, leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. The kingdom of God is the realm of absolute grace, divine life, and sovereign triumph. That kingdom comes into real experience when you accept the gift of righteousness. That is more than assent with your mind. It is a deep conviction of forgiveness, a clean slate, and clean consciences.  Colossians 1:13-14 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. But more than that, it is righteousness: you have credit, a good deposit; you not only paid all your debts, but you have a positive balance in your account. When you owe nothing and, in addition, have a good balance, what do banks and credit card issuers start to do? They send you non-stop offers of credit lines. They want to do business with you. They favor you. I consider that what God wants to do with you. Because you stand in Christ’s righteousness, you are under God’s favor. But God’s favor will be translated into divine connections. Now, rather than victims under a tyrant, we are elevated to a royal status where we exercise dominion. —not through human effort, but as an overflow of God’s grace and imputed righteousness. If Death—an intruder — could exercise an iron-clad, tyrannical reign over humanity, how much more certain is it that believers, flooded with the unmerited "abundance of grace" and the legal standing of "righteousness," will exercise a royal reign in life? To "reign in life" is not a call to aggressive self-help, positive thinking, or authoritarian dominance over other people. In context, it stands in direct contrast to being ruled by condemnation and death. It describes a restored status of royal dignity, granted entirely as a "free gift" and received through Christ. Grace’s power completely surpasses sin’s reign. Rather than being crushed under the Fall’s dominion, we receive God’s abundant grace and the gift of righteousness, enabling us to reign victoriously in life. This reign is secured "through the one man, Jesus Christ," making it a triumph empowered by grace rather than achieved through human effort. (Romans 5:15) “But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many.” By one man, Adam, sin and death entered the world, and all humanity was plunged into ruin. But through the last Adam, Jesus Christ, God’s grace abounded infinitely more.  Your eternal salvation is secure not because you hold on to Him with failing hands, but because He holds you with pierced hands. Many believers confuse their standing with their state. They think that when they stumble, their standing with God is fractured, or their eternal destiny is somehow put back on trial.  Let the truth dismantle that fear: (Romans 5:16) “And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification.” Someone will say, that is a dangerous message. If you say that someone if completely forgiven by faith through grace, that person will receive that as a license to sin. Now they will not. The more you understand how clean and justified you are, the freer and cleaner you stand. The consequence is greater boldness, leadership, creativity, and authority.  A fascinating social experiment on a city street showed how truth shapes our behavior. A team took two sides of a road near their office: they scrubbed one side until it was completely spotless, while leaving a little bit of litter on the other side. Over the next few days, they watched what people did without saying a word. The side with a little trash quickly became much dirtier, while the side they cleaned completely remained spotless. Why? Because when something is already broken or dirty, people keep adding to the mess; yet when something is pristine and beautiful, people naturally want to protect and maintain it. When a person receives righteousness, they are made spotless, and that will make a single wrapper be cleaned immediately.  A person shared with me that, after hearing us speak about the righteousness of God in Christ, the first thing they wanted was, “I got tired of pretending and making myself a hostage of my addictions. I decided to come clean

  2. Oct 18

    Kingdom Reality | Oct. 18, 2026 | Ps. Raph felix

    Series: Kingdom Culture Message: The reality of the Kingdom (Romans 14:17) “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” This is the middle of an argument. People were fussing over what was on their plates, what days were holy, and who was keeping the religious rules better. And with one sweeping, grace-drenched sentence, Paul pulls the rug out from under every single system of human performance. The kingdom of God is not about external rituals, dietary restrictions, or religious checklists. Instead, it is about righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. We lean toward rules because rules give us a scorecard. If we can check off what we ate, what we wore, or where we showed up, we feel like we have a handle on things. But that is an illusion. You don't manufacture righteousness through your own grit; Christ purchased it and credited it to your account. Peace with God is not a feeling you conjure up by managing your stress; it is a permanent, settled reality secured by the blood of the cross. Joy is not a fragile emotion dependent on your current circumstances; it is the supernatural fruit of the Holy Spirit. The Gift of Imputed Righteousness Righteousness δικαιοσύνη dikaiosynē. That is the state of being declared right, just, and acquitted before a holy judge. "For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17) Our unshakeable position before God is not based on your performance, but entirely anchored in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Yesterday I was helping my son with his college and scholarship applications. I came across a story from 2019. In May of that year, nearly 400 students sat for graduation at Morehouse College in Atlanta, made up mainly of African American students. Like most graduating classes, the students had vastly different academic records. Some had perfect 4.0 GPAs; others had barely passed. Some were campus leaders; others were quiet attendees. And most of them were carrying heavy student loan debt. During the commencement address, billionaire investor Robert F. Smith paused and made a surprise announcement: he was setting up a grant to eliminate the entire graduating class's student loan debt. In an instant, $34 million of debt was wiped out. The students' new financial standing had absolutely nothing to do with their performance over the last four years. Their "clear" status was instantly secured by Smith’s wealth and his legal signature. Smith cleared their past financial debt, but he did not guarantee their future financial success. Christ’s finished work secures both past forgiveness and eternal standing. The word Righteousness δικαιοσύνη dikaiosynē. In classical Greek, it denoted one's duties to gods and humanity. In biblical literature, it means covenant faithfulness, right relationship and divine vindication. You are clear of blame or suspicion. But, in Romans 14:17, it defines the true nature of the "kingdom of God," contrasting with the superficial markers of "eating and drinking." Here, righteousness shifts from a legal status (justification by faith) to a practice and relational manisfestation. Romans 14:15 For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:10) Rhesus disease (HDN) is a condition where a pregnant woman's blood cells attack her unborn baby's blood cells. For decades, it was a deadly or permanently damaging condition for infants, and there was absolutely nothing the baby could do to fight it. In the 1960s, doctors discovered that an Australian man named James Harrison possessed a rare antibody in his blood that could completely stop the disease. Harrison agreed to donate his plasma. Over the next 60 years, he made 1,173 donations. The medication made from his blood, known as Anti-D, was given to mothers worldwide. Because of his blood, an estimated 2.4 million babies were born perfectly healthy, cleared of a disease that would have destroyed them. Harrison didn't have to die to give his blood; he just sat in a chair for an hour every week. The babies who survived did not survive because they were stronger. Someone donated life. If I am spiritually alive, it is because someone prayed for me. If I am following Jesus, it is because someone discipled me. If you are here today, someone invited you. If I preach today, someone patiently listened me and corrected me. Paul says, 2 Corinthians 4:11-12 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death is at work in us, but life in you. Our divine status imputed to us should produce a transformative relationship that results in uprighteousness. We had our vertical righteousness resolved; now let the horizontal righteousness manifest. There are so many opportunities, but all start with prayer. We were blessed to use all this new equipment, but we need workers. We have new families and new members in the church every week. But we need more spiritual fathers and mothers. We will soon open Vine Compassion Mission. We need more missionaries. God called us “strong”. Only the Mature understand that real satisfaction is not found in pleasing yourself, but in being a blessing. True kingdom righteousness prioritizes the community over the assertion of the individual. When we talk about righteousness in the kingdom of God, we are talking about a status that cannot be shaken. This week, I was with Pastor Azemar in my lifegroup, and I came with a sense of privilege and responsibility that many of us in our church take for granted. A lot of you are bilingual. The road to sacrifice in William Tyndale's life led to the first-ever translation into English of the Greek New Testament. It cost him his life. About five hundred years ago, he finished the New Testament for ordinary people. Unless you could read Latin, the word of God was obscure. Someone translated the truth of grace. You can also speak of the love of God to someone who would never understand unless you speak their heart language. Peace That Surpasses Our Understanding For each of these words, we must keep the definition from Romans. When Paul affirms, the Kingdom is peace in the Holy Spirit he refers to a peace that comes from our relationship with God. (Romans 5:1) “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” The fruit of our sense of righteousness is peace. Look at how Paul anchors peace. He says, "Since we have been justified"—past tense, finished action—"we have peace with God." Philippians 4:5-7 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. And a Ukrainian 71-year-old woman, Antonina, had been hiding in a basement for four months in a heavily shelled village near the active front line of the war in Ukraine. When she finally attempted to flee, she ran out of strength to continue walking. Ukrainian drones spotted her struggling in the combat "grey zone". They deployed a robotic machine typically used to carry wounded soldiers, like a mini tractor, to reach her. Using a spray-painted car mat that read "Grandma, get in," the military safely guided her through a dangerous four-hour evacuation. Expecting to find her trembling with anxiety, when they asked how she could be so calm while the world around her was literally crumbling, she smiled and said, "Well, I realized last night that God and I are both awake, so there’s no use in both of us staying up to worry." That is the kind of settled, resilient peace the Holy Spirit produces. It is peace with God, which guarantees the peace of God in the middle of life's fiercest storms. Original Language Term: εἰρήνη (eirēnē) In classical Greek, eirēnē primarily denoted the opposite of war (polemos), a cessation of hostilities, a temporary truce, or a state of order. The Hebrew term שָׁלוֹם (shalom) is richer; it denotes wholeness, well-being, comprehensive prosperity, relational harmony, and eschatological salvation. The word goes beyond "lack of war" to indicate flourishing and unimpaired relationships. However, in Romans 14:17, eirēnē functions within an exhortational discourse Paul addresses to the fractured community in Rome. The church was divided. Over dietary restrictions and the observance of certain days. In the text, eirēnē refers to our relationships. It starts with God and also applies to our brothers. That makes me remember Colossians 3:15 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. It is possible to be in harmony. We can accept the differences. In a political year, everything seems partisan, but it is not. We must intentionally avoid factions and parties. Romans 14:19 19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. Ephesians 4:1-3 1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  It is the practical outworking of the "God of peace" dwelling among His people. Paul argues that the true boundary marker of the kingdom

  3. Oct 11

    The Great Exchange at Calvary | Ps Christian Gimenez | Oct. 11, 2026

    The Grat Exchange of the Calvary - Ps Christian Gimenez - Oct. 11, 2026 **The Transformed Church** The church is edified through people who have their minds and lives transformed. It is built up when people are saved and changed by the power of the gospel, so that their lives are never the same again. They no longer live like natural people. Today, I want to speak to those of you who are already born again, who have the Holy Spirit living inside of you, and who already carry the conviction of His power in your lives. There are many Christians in this country, and that is a great blessing. Just as there are so many Christians in Brazil, which is also a wonderful blessing. The question is: do they know the great truth of the exchange at Calvary? Just like in Brazil, there are many people here who wear crosses on their necklaces. That is fine; I have no problem with that. The problem arises when people wear the cross but do not know the value of the price that was paid on it. That is why I call this message "The Great Exchange at Calvary." I want you to understand this great exchange, to apply the power that comes with it, and to enjoy all the blessings that are a consequence of it in your life. **Needs, Desires, and Purpose** I want to start with a question: What moves you? What drives your existence? There are many honest and good things that can motivate your life, which we can classify into three categories: needs, desires, and purpose. Needs are the necessary things you work for in your day-to-day life. They are good, they are blessings from God, and they provide great opportunities to experience the Lord as your provider. Jesus said that whatever you ask the Father in His name, you will receive. If you handle your daily needs the same way the rest of the world does, it shows a lack of faith in the exchange at Calvary. Once you are a child of God, your needs are not supplied merely by the strength of your own work; they are supplied by your Father, who has all the power and grace to give you everything. In times of need, a child of God walks and deals with those moments completely differently than someone who does not know Him. However, needs are not the main emphasis of this message. I want to talk about desires, and especially focus on purpose. Many people condemn each other's wishes and desires from a religious perspective. But you are a child of a good God, and He wants to fulfill those desires. The greater your revelation of the great exchange at Calvary, the more faith you will have to pray for your desires. In a religious environment, there is often condemnation when you pray for the things you want. Yet, the word of the Lord says in Jeremiah 29:11, *"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."* Observe that God wants to give you the future *you* hope for. It is the will of God for you to be a happy person; happiness and joy are meant to be a daily part of your life. The word of God says that the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking—things that highly religious people often rush to prohibit. Instead, Romans 14:17 says, *"For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit."* When you give up your joy, you are giving up on God and His kingdom. So be happy. Have joy. What joy? The joy that comes from the cross. The joy that comes from the certainty that you are a beloved child of God and that there is now no condemnation for you. It is the joy that comes from the Spirit. When you believe in a good, all-powerful God who is your loving Father, you acquire the faith to ask for your desires. Your relationship with God improves significantly. You do not just have a religion; you have a relationship with a beloved Father who has already proven His love for you. As Romans 5:8 says, *"But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."* This love defines your purpose. **The Three Core Truths of the Cross** When you see the cross and the great exchange at Calvary through the revelation of the Holy Spirit, you gain a purpose that stands above everything else in your life. While needs and desires relate to earthly, temporary things, purpose deals with eternal things. However, the Bible tells us that these eternal things are not just for us to enjoy in the afterlife. Your eternal life started the day you were born again, and on that day, you began to enjoy your inheritance in Christ. I want to quickly share a few core concepts you need to understand about the great exchange at Calvary. These are the principles that sustain your identity in Christ. Without these concepts, you will lack the faith to have a true relationship with God as a beloved Father. **1. Christ Took Our Place:** First, Christ took our place. Isaiah 53:4-5 says: *"Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed."* Realize that your transgressions, iniquities, burdens, punishment, and condemnation were placed upon Jesus Christ so that you might receive the position of a son or daughter and be a co-heir with Him. **2. Christ Took Our Curses:** Second, Christ took upon Himself our curse. Galatians 3:13 says: *"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree.'"* Some people often ask if hereditary curses are real. These curses are indeed described in the Bible—read Deuteronomy 28, and you will see them. However, what happened at Calvary removed you from the position of being cursed. Christ rescued us from these curses. Many Christians repeatedly hold services to "break curses" over their lives, but by doing so, they are underestimating the exchange at Calvary. Christ already took all the curses upon Himself. **3. Christ Took All Our Sins:** Third, Christ took all our sins. 1 Peter 2:24 says: *"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed."* How many sins did He take upon Himself? All of them. Yet, some people live their relationship with God asking for forgiveness for the same things every single day of their lives. Why? You only repeatedly ask for what you believe you do not have. If you know you already have it, you live in the reality that it is yours. People ask me, "Pastor, what do I do when I sin?" You repent—change your mind—and remember that you have already been forgiven. This is recognizing the great exchange at Calvary. It is understanding that God is not sacrificing Jesus every single time you sin. Hebrews 10:10 tells us that He died once and for all for our sins. The sacrifice was made; the debt was paid. The new covenant declares in Hebrews 10:17, *"I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more."* You must believe in the total forgiveness of sin. If you do not, you will find it very hard to embrace your position as a beloved child of God. You will constantly try to relate to a God whom you believe is angry at you, when the truth is that the Lord does not view you through your sins—He only sees you in Christ. That is why 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, *"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation."* Everything we have from God, we only have through Christ. **Embracing Your Inheritance as an Heir** Jesus taught that you and I are loved by God just as much as God loves Jesus Christ Himself. When Jesus was baptized, God declared, *"This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased"* (Matthew 3:17). Right after that, in the wilderness, the devil tried to question Jesus's identity as the Son. But Jesus chose to stand on the truth His Father had spoken rather than entertain the doubt the enemy tried to plant in His heart. This is how you must live every single day—declaring, "I am a beloved son," or "I am a beloved daughter." Not because you get it right every single day, but because He loves you. Because of this, you can fully believe Romans 8:16-17: *"The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ..."* Paul’s conclusion is simple: children are heirs. If you are a child of God, you are a co-heir with Christ. If you know that, you should ask yourself: *How big is my inheritance?* It is crucial for the children of wealthy parents to know the size of their inheritance; otherwise, they will not know how to manage or enjoy it. Your inheritance is already yours—not because of what you do, but because of who you are. How much of this inheritance are you actively enjoying in your life today? Sometimes people say, "Pastor, the inheritance is spiritual. It is hard to measure and hard to apply to my day-to-day life." This is a deception from the enemy designed to keep you from enjoying your inheritance right now. Your inheritance is meant to be used and enjoyed every single day. It blesses you, your household, your business, and your children. Because my inheritance is so vast, eternal, and powerful, absolutely nothing earthly can compare to it. Many people do not understand what the Lord means when He says, "Seek first the kingdom of God," simply because they have not yet comprehended the magnitude of their inheritance. **Seeking the Kingdom First Reshapes Priorities** The word of God says that we are transformed as we contemplate Him. The degree to which you enjoy your inheritance is directly proportional to your revelation of who Christ is. Recently, someone asked me how we manage to mobilize such a large number of leaders to move in the same direction in our church. Last month, our hom

  4. Oct 4

    While There is Still Time | Trenton Tombs | Oct. 04. 2026

    While There is Still Time | Trenton Tombs | Oct. 04. 2026 **Opening  Lord Jesus, I want to pray that you touch every brother and sister’s heart today, God, that we can be reminded that we are not servants, God. We are sons and daughters, Lord. You call us friend, Jesus. You call us your friend. You call us your bride. And we are here, God, to make ourselves ready for this glorious wedding day, to be a bride that can grow from glory to glory, God. A bride that can understand that you are coming back for a spotless bride, one that has understood that there is a bridegroom to take care of her. So Lord, we pray that more than anything else that you can have your way today in this word and that God confidence is produced in us, God. That hope is produced in us, God. That expectation is produced in our hearts. Holy Spirit, I pray that as I speak today that you move me out of the way. I pray Holy Spirit that as the head of the church, you speak to our hearts today in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen. Hallelujah. Amen and amen. All right, so Pastor Raphael is up in the mountain as well, serving our church, serving the brothers, and he gave me the privilege to share with you today. And we're going to have some slides. I want you guys to first put your phones on airplane mode. Amen. Like you're about to step into a movie theater. We silence our phones for a movie, but when the word of God comes, we get distracted. Come on, that doesn't make any sense. Let's silence our phones. You don't literally have to put it on airplane mode, but I want you to be focused. The reason I'm saying to do that is because I need you to use your Bibles today, and a lot of times our Bibles are on our phones. So let's make it a smartphone and use our Bible. Amen. It's only a smartphone when we open the Bible app. That's the only time it's really a smartphone. **Confidence for the Day of Judgment** So what we're going to talk about today is a topic that I've been studying for many years. And as I've studied over the years, I've realized that the goal of understanding the return of Christ is to produce confidence. Amen. Marcus, if you can put up, this is the only verse I did not give you, it is 1 John 4:17. While I was worshiping this morning with you guys, this was a verse that the Lord put on my heart. It says, "To have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is in this world, so are we." The verse before that tells you how you can have confidence. It says we love because we have first been loved. So what is so powerful about this is the Bible tells you to have expectation, to have confidence for the day of judgment. You know, just to set the record straight, if you've been born again, if you've put your trust in Jesus, fully received him as the Savior and Lord of your life, and the Holy Spirit now dwells inside of you, I got good news for you. You will never have to give an account for any sin you've ever committed. That's good news. Can someone say amen? Hallelujah. I know I don't have a British accent, but I want to hear amen, too. Hallelujah. And this is so powerful because it says love perfected in us, we may have confidence for the day of judgment. And why? This word judgment here is not talking about judgment in the sense of sin. It's talking about rewards for believers. Amen. **Discerning the Times: The Days of Noah** Now if you are not in Christ, today is the day to give your life to Jesus. Amen. And God wants us to have confidence for the day of judgment. And this is something so powerful. And Jesus teaches in Matthew 24, this is where we're going to be opening up a lot today, how to understand and discern the times. Can you poke your neighbor and say, "We need to discern the times." Amen. And in Matthew 24:37-39, Jesus teaches us that the return of Christ is going to be very similar to how it was in the days of Noah. This is what it says in verse 37: "For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood, they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark. And they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away. So will be the coming of the Son of Man." What is Jesus emphasizing? Jesus is emphasizing that people were in the routine. They were in their normal life, and judgment came unexpectedly for them. **Living with Urgency in the Last Days** What's amazing, though, is we know that God leads us from glory to glory, right? And Jesus himself instructs us on how to prepare for the end times, how to prepare for his return. And Jesus teaches us what to do. Now, just a few parallels between the days of Noah and the return of Christ, the end times that we're living in now. And how do you know you're living in the end times? Well, every single prophecy that needed to be fulfilled has already happened. We are in the last days, actually the last seconds. Apostle Peter says that at that time, they were in the last days, and that was 2,000 years ago. So we are living in the last generations before the return of Christ. That's a privilege. Shout amen. Come on. Jesus is counting on you. Amen. Jesus is counting on us. He's empowering his church. And the only way that we can really walk in our purpose is to understand the instructions that he gives. And something interesting about the flood. You know, I love to share the gospel with people, and oftentimes there's been a lot of atheists that will use this argument and say, "Well, why would God flood the earth? If God is good, why would he wipe people out of the earth?" Well, if you really take time to study Genesis, we're not going to get into all of it right now, but I'm going to give you a parallel of what's coming. **Preserving the Bloodline of Christ** If you think about this, in the times of Noah, there was this breed that was being born in Genesis 6. It says, "The sons of God slept with the daughters of men, and the Nephilim were born." Now, I'm not going to spend this morning speaking about giants with you, but it's in your Bible. You guys don't remember? David killed Goliath, right? He had a few brothers. If you want to know why David brought five stones, did you know Goliath had four brothers? David didn't think he was going to miss. He was just ready to wipe them all out. And sometimes God will put a giant in your life, and God will always give you everything you need to wipe out the giant in your life. Amen. So there were giants that came from this original act of sin and immorality in Genesis 6. And right after Genesis 6, God begins to have remorse over creation. Well, why was this even a thing? Why did the fallen angels from past eternity want to sleep with the daughters of men? Well, because only man can have dominion over the earth. In Genesis 1:26, God gave man dominion over the earth. So for the demonic to have real influence in the earth, they needed to possess people. That's why when you cast out a demon, you have authority in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth to cast out unclean spirits. Why? Because they are illegal spirits. Amen. And this is something interesting because the devil came into this Genesis 6 moment where the fallen angels began to sleep with humanity, and these Nephilim were born. And one of the reasons that this also was the strategy of the enemy was to corrupt, to defile the bloodline of Christ, the promised Messiah. Because the devil knew in Genesis 1 and Genesis 2, we see the fall of man. And what happened? God promised the serpent that he would bruise the heel of the child, the promised child. So he thought, "I need to corrupt the bloodline." And that's one of the reasons why we see giants in the Old Testament. The devil tried to corrupt the bloodline of Christ, and this is why God flooded the earth. So as much as you may have been taught God is this angry tyrant God, that's a Luciferian philosophy. God is good. God flooding the earth actually preserved the bloodline of Christ. That's why it says that Noah found favor in the eyes of God. Thank you, pastor. And this is why Christ comes from all the way back to Noah's lineage. Amen. **Modern Parallels and the Warning of AI** Why is that important? That's just some fun facts of the day, right? But why is that important? Because I'm not going to go through all the statistics of what is being spoken about today, but I want to just challenge you to be aware and be conscious of what's going on today. I'll give you just a little summary of what's happening right now. There's a few owners and founders of different AI companies right now that are openly saying that they are expecting the possibility between 10%, if you ask one, or Elon Musk will say 20%, of AI growing so quickly and so out of control of human control that there is a 10 to 20% chance within the next 10 to 20 years that 10 to 20 percent of humanity will be wiped out. And now, is this to create fear? No, but it is to create urgency. Say urgency. Urgency. And what I think is interesting is the same way that the devil in the old covenant tried to contaminate the human race is the same way that we see now AI beginning to have chips being put in people's brains. And this same hybrid race is being formed. And the Bible says that the beast will be like a man, 666, which means completely man, man-made, right? And we see that AI is pushing towards this. You may say, "I love my AI. It gives me all the answers I need." That's not AI, my friend. That is called ChatGPT or Claude. AI is something far different that most of us have never had the access to yet, okay? AI is artificial intelligence that has its own will, okay? And it will be used to deceive many people in the last days. **Point One: Guard the Truth** So I want to focus on three points of how we can prepare ourselves for the return of Christ. And let's look at what Jesus says in Matthew 24. You guys with me? Hallelujah. So this is what it says in M

  5. Sep 27

    Images of Multiplied Grace | Sep. 27, 2026 | Ps. Raph Felix

    Images of grace God works with images. Throughout Scripture, you see God trying to paint an image in our hearts so we can expect his goodness at all times. AI technology revealed Rembrandt's original 1642 “The Night Watch," vivid under-drawing and hidden compositional choices. AI-reconstructed missing side strips and restored colors were finally revealed to the public; viewers saw a completely transformed image that changed their entire understanding of the artist's original intent. Over time, the "soot" of human anxiety, doubt, and daily distraction obscures that divine intent, making goodness feel hidden or distant. God wants you to see his preexisting plan for you. You must perceive what was previously invisible. When everything appears gloomy, we must never forget that above the clouds, the sun is still shining. Eventually, the clouds will give way to the light's brilliance. Perhaps you are reeling from a painful diagnosis. For some, the distance from a loved one leaves you estranged and aching. For others, it is the daily reality of a physical limitation or a long-term chronic illness.  Remember: above the clouds, the Sun of Righteousness is shining upon you, and you will see His gracious intervention. (Malachi 4:2) "But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. The rising sun, with its "rays" or "beams" of light stretching out like wings across the horizon.  You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall." Young cattle cooped up in dark, constrained stalls during winter or night, suddenly released into the blinding, warm, life-giving freedom of the morning sun. God desires for you to do more than merely exist; He wants you to truly live.  A person in a hospital bed may be breathing; however, depending on the illness, they may not be experiencing the fullness of life. Your Heavenly Father wants you not just to survive, but to live joyfully as His beloved child. What should you do if you find yourself stuck? When we do not know what to do, we should always pray. James 5:16 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Do not stop praying. Maybe you just came out of a prayer campaign or fasting commitment. Don’t stop praying yet. Our prayers have the power to open the clouds of heaven, not because of our intense effort, but instead because of Christ's finished work, which grants us confident access to the Father. "Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16) Whatever brings joy to your heart, your Heavenly Father knows it and wants to give it to you. Matthew 7:11 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! The feeling of giving is what moves so many philanthropists. I was reading about Larry Stewart (April 1, 1948 – January 12, 2007), better known as "Kansas City's Secret Santa.” He gave away more than $1.3 million. What moves God’s heart is His loving heart for you. For some, it is improved sales in business. For others, it might be a simple phone call from a beloved son or daughter. For me, as a pastor, the greatest joy is seeing salvation, church growth, and families completely restored by grace. A Future and a Hope Whatever it is, our Father delights in the welfare of His servants. He has good plans for us. "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. "(Jeremiah 29:11) Taken out of context, this verse can lead you to believe faith should bring easy, trouble-free living. Yet God’s plan for His people, especially during exile, involved enduring seventy years of foreign domination before experiencing restoration.  Many times, God’s shalom comes through perseverance, not instant relief from suffering. (No projection) John 16:33 33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” 2 Timothy 3:12 12 Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, This means we must wake up every single day with the right perspective of God’s heart of love toward us. He is unconditionally fighting for us, even when we are under great trials. You wonder, "I experienced this trial, this financial hardship, this marital disagreement when I was young. Now, at my age, I am still going through this. Doors are closed. What is wrong with me? Why have I been betrayed again? Why am I not multiplying my LifeGroup?" It is scientifically proven that living in a constantly overcast, rainy city can lead people toward depression. Nevertheless, winters are not meant to last forever.  If you have grown accustomed to bad news as a normal part of your daily experience, remember: above the clouds, the shining light of the Sun of Righteousness is ready to usher in a new season of multiplication. God Loves Multiplication There is a vast difference between knowing that God is able to multiply and knowing that God is able and does love to multiply. Think of the difference in flavor between a meal prepared by someone who merely knows how to cook and a meal prepared by someone who truly loves to cook. It is completely different. Let’s look at some pictures of the multiplication of grace to fill our hearts today. Isaac - Blessings the enemies envy. Genesis 26:12-15 12 And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The LORD blessed him, 13 and the man became rich, and gained more and more until he became very wealthy. 14 He had possessions of flocks and herds and many servants, so that the Philistines envied him. And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The LORD blessed him. (Genesis 26:12). That was a test for Isaac. There was famine there. He could be tempted to move out from God’s place. (No projection) Genesis 26:1-2 1 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar to Abimelech king of the Philistines.  2 And the LORD appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. This defies logic. It is not naturally possible for a man to sow and reap such a miraculous, outrageous harvest in the very same year. That level of abundance can only result from divine intervention. Isaac sowed in the land he was already in. The place of multiplication is where God has placed you. It did not seem like the right time to sow. There was famine in the land. You are exactly where you are called to be. The promise of multiplication is meant to happen right where the Lord has called you, not somewhere else.  What’s truly staggering about Isaac’s story is that a hundredfold harvest in a single year is like gathering a hundred years’ worth of normal harvests all at once. Imagine starting a new job and, in your very first year, receiving a salary advance equivalent to working there for a century. Would that change your life? I know it sounds almost too good to believe. Yet, that is exactly what happened to Isaac. Because we believe in Christ, we are the spiritual offspring of Abraham. The same God who multiplied then, in Isaac’s life, is able and willing to multiply now in your life. Psalms 35:27-28 Let those who delight in my righteousness shout for joy and be glad and say evermore,  “Great is the LORD, who delights in the welfare [shalom] of his servant!” 28 Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness and of your praise all the day long. Throughout the psalm, the enemies "delight" in calamity, but verse 27 inverts that delight. That belongs to God and those with His righteousness. Those who receive His divine shalom. Isaac's prosperity had nothing to do with his management abilities, his personal merit, his deserving behavior, or his family background. The sole reason he prospered so abundantly is that "the Lord blessed him." Elisha and the Empty Vessels "When the vessels were full, she said to her son, "Bring me another vessel." And he said to her, "There is not another." Then the oil stopped." (2 Kings 4:6) The question for us today is: Do you have more space for God's blessings in your life? Are you providing enough room in your ministry for His multiplication? Are there empty vessels waiting for multiplying grace in your marriage and your family? Do your dreams provide enough space for His multiplication?  Regarding your giving, is there space for God to multiply your generosity?  We must be clear: God's acceptance is never tied to our financial giving. He does not love us more when we give. But the truth is, there is no prosperity without giving. They are interchangeable in Scripture. The Catching of Fish - Your one catch can change your story "And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking". (Luke 5:6) Fish come in different sizes and hold different values in the marketplace. During Jesus’s earthly ministry, He directed three distinct miraculous catches of fish. The first happened through a massive number of smaller fish—what scholars believe were tilapia, later known as "St. Peter’s fish." The catch was so large they had to request help from other boats. "And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink." (Luke 5:6–7) After the resurrection, there was another miraculous catch. This time, it was a specific number of large fish—153 to be exact.  "So Simon Peter went aboard a

  6. Sep 20

    Double Portion of Grace | Sep. 20, 2026 | Ps. Raph Felix

    Double Portion Two very famous prophets appear in the Old Testament. Elijah, whose stories appear mainly in First Kings, and Elisha, whose stories appear mostly in Second Kings. They seem to have started a school of prophets in the Old Testament. Samuel originated the prophetic bands in the 11th century BC. However, the formal, school-like communities known as the "sons of the prophets” were institutionalized and brought to their prominence under the leadership of Elijah and Elisha in the 9th century. Their relationship exemplifies how you can expect increasing favor in your life. In this story, Elisha, as Elijah's successor, experienced a double measure of miracles. Causing a drought (1 Kgs 17:1)Provision of flour and oil for the widow of Zarephath (1 Kgs 17:14)Resurrecting the widow’s son (1 Kgs 17:22)Calling down fire from heaven on Mount Carmel (1 Kgs 18:38)Bringing the drought to an end with severe rain (1 Kgs 18:45)Calling down fire on Ahaziah’s captains and their fifties (2 Kgs 1:10–12)Parting the waters of the Jordan River with his mantle (2 Kgs 2:8)(Note: Divine provisions, such as ravens feeding him or angelic sustenance, are typically acts of God upon the prophet rather than miracles mediated by the prophet's agency). Elisha records the following supernatural events: Parting the waters of the Jordan River (2 Kgs 2:14)Healing the contaminated waters of Jericho (2 Kgs 2:21)Pronouncing a curse resulting in bears mauling forty-two youths (2 Kgs 2:24)Providing water for the allied armies in the desert (2 Kgs 3:20)Multiplying the widow’s oil (2 Kgs 4:6)Prophesying the birth of the Shunammite woman's son (2 Kgs 4:16)Resurrecting the Shunammite woman's son (2 Kgs 4:35)Neutralizing poisonous stew in Gilgal (2 Kgs 4:41)Multiplying twenty loaves of barley bread to feed a hundred men (2 Kgs 4:43)Healing Naaman the Syrian of leprosy (2 Kgs 5:14)Transferring Naaman’s leprosy to Gehazi (2 Kgs 5:27)Causing a borrowed iron axhead to float (2 Kgs 6:6)Striking the Aramean army with blindness (2 Kgs 6:18)A dead man resurrecting upon contacting Elisha's bones (2 Kgs 13:21) There is a path we need to walk to experience that increase. From Priesthood to Prophets Moses established the Tabernacle and the role of the high priest. They were appointed to lead the people spiritually and civilly. The Israelites had no king in those early days, so the high priest guided them. Not long after, the high priesthood failed. Aaron's sons offered unauthorized fire before the Lord (Leviticus 10:1-2), and we see later, in the days of Eli (1 Samuel 2:17; 3:13), his sons profaned the sanctuary and brought God’s judgment upon themselves. God established a monarchy, with kings leading Israel and the high priest assisting them. But even great kings like David sinned. God then introduced the prophetic ministry, starting with Samuel, the first prophet. Unlike kings and priests, the prophet's role was not hereditary. No succession was guaranteed; God simply raised up a prophet wherever He chose. The primary word for "prophet," occurring over 300 times in the Old Testament, נָבִיא (naví). Meaning "one who calls/proclaims”. Or "one who is called [by God]”. (Acts 2:17-18)"'And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18.even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.” 1 Peter 2:9 9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Corrupt Age During the most corrupt era in Israel's history, the nation split into two: the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah. During that time, God raised Elijah to speak over the northern kingdom, which had reached unprecedented corruption. Ahab was king, and he had married a wicked woman named Jezebel. She was ruthless and entirely given over to darkness. She tried to force the Israelites to worship Baal, the false god of rain. Here we have the stories of Elijah and Elisha starting in 1 Kings 17. 1 Kings 17:1 1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” Baal worship involved fertility rites filled with rampant sexual promiscuity. Worse still, people sacrificed their own children in the fire as offerings to Baal. Elijah came to expose that corruption and bring judgment over the false gods. That is why the most notable miracle of Elijah is his calling fire from heaven over the sacrifice. A battle against the prophets of Baal. Remember that we are looking for Christ. Elijah points us to John the Baptist, while Elisha points us directly to our Lord Jesus Christ. Just as Elijah came before Elisha, John the Baptist, under the spirit of Elijah, preceded Jesus. Elijah and Jesus The name Elijah combines "Eli" (my God) and "Ya" (Yahweh). His name means "my God is Yahweh.” Or "my God is the LORD." The name Elisha, however, means "my God is Yeshua"; Yeshua means "Yahweh is salvation." That is the Hebrew name of Jesus, Yeshua, meaning "my God saves." In contrast, these prophets point to different dispensations. Elijah represents the Old Covenant and judgment. It is God as the lawgiver, ready to punish. Elisha, by contrast, represents the New Covenant, the time of grace. If Elisha’s ministry foreshadows Christ's, one of the most remarkable events in Elisha's life is the resurrection power of the incident with his bones. 2 Kings 13:20-21 20 So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. 21 And as a man was being buried, behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha, and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet. Jesus' death is what brings ultimate life to the world. Life flows abundantly. The Cross, the very place of death, now brings life to whoever believes. All who listen to the message of the cross can receive eternal life. For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18) We must throw those in our family who are dead into "Elisha's grave," so to speak. It is the power of Christ's death that can give life to those who are dead. Only by touching the cross will they receive resurrection life. The message of the cross either confuses or enlightens, either offends or empowers. (1 Corinthians 1:23-25) "But we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." During the 1988 Yellowstone National Park fires, millions of acres burned, drawing horror from the public and media as flames engulfed ancient forests. To many, it appeared as pure tragedy and destruction. Yet, forest ecologists understood a hidden purpose: Lodgepole Pines, accounting for nearly 80% of Yellowstone's forests, produce cones sealed with a thick resin. These cones won't release seeds under normal weather conditions; they require the intense heat of a fire (113° to 140°F to melt the resin) to open. The very fire that destroys is essential for releasing new life. Within just a few years, millions of new lodgepole saplings had sprung from the ashes, The Path to the Double Portion Towards the end of Elijah's ministry, he journeyed with his disciple Elisha through four different locations. These places represent four stages we pass through to grow in grace and receive a double portion of the Spirit. We will look at the first appearance of those places in the story of the people of God. (2 Kings 2:1- 9) Now when the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. And Elijah said to Elisha, "Please stay here, for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel." But Elisha said, "As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So they went down to Bethel …So they came to Jericho. … Then Elijah said to him, "Please stay here, for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan." But he said, "As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you."… When they had crossed [the Jordan River] , Elijah said to Elisha, "Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you." And Elisha said, "Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me." Gilgal 2 Kings 2:1 Now when the LORD was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. When the people of Israel entered Canaan, Gilgal was their very first stop. The word Gilgal means "to roll away." What exactly was rolled away? The spirit of shame. The Lord completely removed their reproach. It was also in Gilgal that the new generation of Israelites born in the wilderness had not been circumcised. Gilgal, therefore, also represents the cutting away of the flesh. And the Lord said to Joshua, "Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you." And so the name of that place is called Gilgal to this day. (Joshua 5:9) Forty years had passed since they left Egypt, yet the shame of Egypt still clung to Israel. A mentality of slaves prevents us from believing God for great things. Whenever a spirit of shame operates in our lives, it hinders our ability to receive abundantly from God. The Bible notes that Israel crossed the Jordan River on a very specific date. (Joshua 4:19) The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the f

  7. Sep 13

    Speak the Promises as a Blessing | Sep. 13, 2026 | Ps. Raph

    The Promises as a Blessing Remembering the promises of God. Fasting periods are an excellent opportunity to reflect on God's promises in our lives.  "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful." (Hebrews 10:23) Fasting helps us detach from distractions that can divert us from God's calling. Hold to the Promises Anchor your life in God's Word and His unchanging promises.  It is easy to let temporary hardships dictate our ultimate reality. We stare at concerning lab results, check our shrinking bank accounts, or receive devastating personal news, convinced that the story is over. However, we are called to live by what God has spoken rather than what our eyes can see. Jacob received the crushing news of his beloved son Joseph's death. Do you remember how that story unfolds in Genesis 37? Driven by bitter envy over their father’s favoritism, Joseph’s older brothers sold him to passing merchants as a slave.  They covered the truth from Jacob. Taking Joseph's famous colored robe, they drenched it in goat’s blood and carried it back to Jacob. Jacob had all the facts, so he concluded: My son is dead. It was factual. All the evidence pointed to that conclusion. However, it was not the truth. But because all he could see were the facts, a lie became the grievous reality for Jacob.  Genesis 37:34-35 34 Then Jacob tore his garments and put sackcloth on his loins and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted and said, “No, I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” Thus his father wept for him. This very sad scene I have experienced myself through my personal experience of losing a son. Unfortunately, I have also been present to comfort families such as mine. It's a devastatingly sad moment. In Jacob’s case, however, there was no real death. But he accepted the only evidence he had as the final truth. That was the only news Jacob had.  A lie that became Jacob’s permanent truth.  Jacob believed Joseph was dead for 22 years. Are you doing the same now with the last news you received from your doctor? Is the report from your family permanent, devastating news?  Maybe you have been hovering over the loss of that broken relationship for years. But these facts are not meant to be your final truth. In the story, the same sons who had brought false news of Joseph's death years earlier returned from Egypt to tell Jacob that Joseph was still alive. Jacob was so accustomed to living with the undeniable pain of loss that he could not believe it. Genesis 45:26 And they told him, “Joseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.” And his heart became numb, for he did not believe them. The good news of Joseph being alive has always been the real truth.  But Jacob got so used to the pain and grief that when the good news was revealed, his heart was numb. Perhaps you are like Jacob now, with a numb heart from positive and hopeful words. You no longer believe, exhausted from confessing, praying, and declaring for that miracle. Maybe you are close to giving up. You have spent weeks, months, or maybe even years trying, feeding your faith, saying the right words, and forcing a breakthrough through your own spiritual willpower.  You are exhausted. Genesis 45:27-28 But when they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said to them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 And Israel said, “It is enough; Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.” It is time to believe God's old promises again. To beleive He is able and willing to do far more abundantly than all that you can ask or think. "Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us" (Ephesians 3:20) Only when Jacob saw the wagons that Joseph had sent did his heart revive again. Today, God will open your eyes, and you will see his promises afresh. (2 Corinthians 5:7) "for we walk by faith, not by sight." Do not give up yet. Hold on to God’s promises. He knows how to turn our devastation into a miracle story. An entrepreneur spent over a year working late nights in a cramped apartment, building an online business with zero traction. Exhausted by mounting debt and dead-end analytics, he decided to quit, hovering their mouse over the button to shut down the server and delete the store forever. What he couldn't see was that a major industry influencer had just featured their product as a hidden gem, and thousands of orders were already quietly queued up to hit their site the very next morning. (Hebrews 10:23) "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful." If you were considering giving up, today is another opportunity to try again. The strength you need doesn’t come from your own motivation; it comes from God's promises. (2 Corinthians 1:20) For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. Genesis 46:30 30 Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face and know that you are still alive.” Jacob did not die.  The truth revealed, the promise unfolded, the real good news sustained the old Jacob alive for more than 17 years. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.God's promises can accelerate the multiplication of His grace in your life. Genesis 48:3-4 3 And Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, 4 and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make of you a company of peoples and will give this land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession.’ That promise did not fully come to pass with Abraham. It did not fully happen with Isaac either. Jacob reminded God of the promises. He was passing on the promise not as a hopeful desire, but as a blessing. For Jacob, after he learned that even after the facts of death and hopelessness, God is faithful and will fulfill his promises, he declared the promise as a blessing.  Genesis 48:15-16 15 And he blessed Joseph and said, “The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day, 16 the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys; and in them let my name be carried on, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” Learn to declare the promises of God as an inevitable reality upon your children and upon your business and ministry. (1 Thessalonians 5:24)"He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it." The Grace Adoption Jacob called Joseph's sons to his side to impart his blessing. What a father spoke over his children in his final days carried immense weight and would affect them for the rest of their lives. (Genesis 48:5) "And now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, as Reuben and Simeon are." Jacob surprised everyone in the family, saying,  "Joseph, I am adopting Manasseh and Ephraim as my own sons. They will receive the exact same inheritance as my other children."  The boys’ mother was Egyptian. That means her family did not know or serve Jehovah; they were idol worshipers. You might think you are disqualified from God's blessings because you come from a family with a terrible history. Maybe you are the first to beleive in Christ, and all the others are still in false religions or atheism. You may have many reasons why you feel you do not deserve His goodness. God adopted us into His own family.  "Despite your past, despite your mistakes, and regardless of what your family has done, I am adopting you as My own son, as My own daughter." Be free from every fear of generational curse.  God chose you to begin a blessed generation. He is establishing a generational blessing through you. We believe that even from a young age, children can understand important values.  Recently, a brother shared that his partner received a call from his 4-year-old child while he was working. The child was proudly showing off himself riding his new bicycle. The dad told him, “I love you, son." The son replied, “I love you too, Dad, but I love Jesus more."  When asked if he attends church regularly, the partner said, "Not often, but my son is a student at Vine Christian Academy. And man, They really teach these kids to know Jesus."  You will positively affect all your descendants. Accelerated blessings When Jacob surprised the entire family, he ignored the boy's mother's heritage. But also, as grandsons, these boys naturally would have had to wait an entire generation to receive what Jacob was giving them. Normally, the blessing would flow first to their father, and then Joseph would pass that inheritance down to them much later. Instead, these boys received an inheritance way earlier in life. Breakthroughs that would normally take years of human effort to accomplish can come quickly. It can take years to get out of debt, years to break free from an addiction, and years to establish a new standard of living. If you believe, God will do for you exactly what He did for those two boys: He will propel you years ahead of schedule. You will see things happening much faster than you could ever imagine, because you have honored God. Because you have declared,  "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,"  things will accelerate in your life.  What might nor

  8. Sep 6

    Why do People give up | Sep. 09, 2026 | Ps. Raph

    Why People Give Up. Recently, as we’ve been preparing for the mountaintop on October 1st, I have been in meetings every single morning at 5:30 AM. The Christian life was always intended to be intense, intentional, and passionate. Why do some give up? Why do some let discouragement take over? First, know there is a difference between giving up and surrender. It is ok to surrender. "Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved." (Psalm 55:22) "but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." (Isaiah 40:31) We are not called to just go through the motions, punch a spiritual timecard, and coast.  If it is not to live a passionate, purposeful, meaningful life—it’s honestly not worth it.  Christ did not give His life so we could live lukewarm lives. How to overcome discouragement? How can we keep a burning heart? I know that life happens. Disappointments come. Our expectations get shattered, and the passion we once had can quickly cool off into apathy or discouragement. How does that happen? How to overcome hopelessness? Read Luke 24:13-35 The right place The two disciples were actually a husband and wife: Cleopas and Mary. They are walking away from Jerusalem. Later, Jesus would make it clear that Jerusalem was the specific place they needed to stay to wait for the Holy Spirit—the place they would be filled with power.  "And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high." (Luke 24:49) There is a specific place you need to be to stay encouraged. Many believe it's about finding a new place or leaving God's designated place, but in reality, doing so often leads to discouragement instead of encouragement. The right place brings Multiplication. A hundredfold multiplication is ahead. Just stay in the right place. Genesis 26:1 1 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar to Abimelech king of the Philistines. Genesis 26:2-3 2 And the LORD appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. 3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father. Because Isaac chose to settle in Gerar, Genesis 26:12 tells us that he planted crops in that land and "the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the Lord blessed him." He experienced supernatural multiplication of favor, precisely because he decided to stay where God planted him. Genesis 26:12-13 12 And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The LORD blessed him, 13 and the man became rich, and gained more and more until he became very wealthy. For Isaac it was Gerar. For the disciples it was Jerusalem. Do not walk away from your Jerusalem. There is a specific place where you must be in order to stay encouraged. This is beyond a geographical location. This speaks of the people you are connected with. You may even move to another place, but your heart remains connected to the correct, godly, purposeful group of people who are part of the purpose of God for you now. However, if you don’t set your heart correctly with the people God has placed in your life, and you don't make a deliberate decision to honor that, you can be taken prematurely from where God wanted to bless you abundantly. May the lord open our eyes today. May our ears be discerning today. Many, when they feel spiritually dry, look for a new place, a new job, a new church, or isolate themselves entirely. But moving out opens you up to discouragement instead of encouragement.  When the pressure at work gets too heavy, or when family dynamics break your heart, the temptation is to pull away from the Church, to stop going to your LifeGroups, and to walk that seven-mile lonely road to Emmaus. How is your hope? The couple listened to the good news of resurrection. But it had no effect in their hearts. Luke 24:21-23 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. 22 Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, 23 and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive You are here today listening to the good news of Jesus’s complete work. Let your hope be in the right person. In the case of these two disciples, they were hoping for a “different Jesus.” A political leader. A revolutionary. A prophet. Have you ever been there?  I had hoped this marriage would go more smoothly.  I had hoped my finances would be stable by now.  I had hoped having children would be simpler.  I had hoped my kids would be walking with the Lord.  I also imagined other results by pursuing ministry. Unmet expectations are the breeding ground for a cooled-off heart. These two disciples had a very specific framework for how God was supposed to act. When the cross shattered that framework, they couldn't even see the Jesus walking right beside them.  It seems all the disciples had the same attitude with the gospel message. Luke 24:10-11 10 Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, 11 but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them  Fear and doubt dominate. Their hopes have been crushed. Their leader was crucified. Their hearts were cold and heavy.  The news of an empty tomb didn't matter to them. The tomb was empty, but Rome was still in charge, so as far as they were concerned, God had failed them. You think, “If I can just fix this. If I can just get my finances to this specific number, if I can just control my family, then I will have peace…” You sit in the service, and the pastor preaches the gospel. It is the greatest news in the universe! But you walk out to your car feeling just as heavy, just as anxious, and just as discouraged as when you walked in. You wanted Jesus to fix, balance the budget, and change your boss. A customer relationship that will always frustrate you and an unsatisfiable heart attached to things, time and worries. May the Lord open our eyes today.  The risen Christ, the resurrection and life, the joy of heaven, the peace that exceeds knowledge, is here speaking and rekindling our hearts again. Exhort one another every day Hebrews 3:12-13 12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. I asked my son to take care of the lawn, which he was supposed to do weekly. Grass grows quickly, so it needs to be mowed regularly. However, he decided to mow a week early, thinking, “Let me cut the grass as short as possible because it will grow back anyway, and I’ll have less work next week.” When I saw the lawn, I was very frustrated. The grass was sparse and bare in places. I knew what was coming—improper pruning weakens the grass. Weeds tend to grow faster than grass, choking it and stealing nutrients from the soil.  So he had another brilliant idea. He used a heavy dose of fertilizer and applied it at the wrong time of day. It burned the weeds and any other grass buds.  As a result, I now have neither healthy turf nor grass, as it is all dead. Weeds appear. No matter what. Naturally, you will be drawn to an unbelieving heart. That is why you must be surrounded by other believers. Weekly pruning. Weekly mowing. That is how we grow. If you don’t do the daily work of "exhort one another every day” eventually the good news will not sound like good news to you. Hebrews 4:2 2 For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. Have you met brothers who, when we try to speak the good news to them, seem almost offended? They think, “Pastor, what are you talking about? Jesus takes care of me. What do you mean? Don’t you see the immigration situation? Don’t you know the cost of gas? Have you made groceries recently? And about the “snowbirds…” they are already here, getting on our nerves…” I have a problem with believers who, instead of being inspired by the invitation to lead a group, serve on the encounter or the mountain track with us, reply that we have crossed a line of disrespect by challenging them. I will tell you, if you don’t like to be challenged, you will have to choose another God to follow. Let the Scripture reveal Jesus In the coming days, we want you to see Jesus Christ every single day. If your eyes and ears are open, you are certain to see Jesus Christ through Scripture; your heart will burn again. (Luke 24:27) “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” For years, historians and scholars had stared at ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs on tombs and monuments. They had all the facts in front of them, but the language was dead. It was a mystery to the world.  In 1799, French soldiers in Egypt discovered a heavy slab of black basalt that we now know as the Rosetta Stone. The Rosetta Stone contained the same decree written in three scripts: hieroglyphs, Demotic, and ancient Greek. Because scholars could read Greek, they finally possessed the key to unlock the entire Egyptian language. Suddenly, everything that was confusing made perfect sense. Jesus Christ is our Rosetta Stone. When we look at Scripture to see Christ, eve

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The message of grace that empowers you to stand as an overcoming believer.

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    VineSWFL.Church
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
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