The Book of Amos: Part 1
July 25th, 2010
Sermon Title: The Book of Amos: Part 1
Speaker: Garrett Lee, Elder
Text: Amos 1-2
Series: The Ancient Gospel: Majoring On the Minor Prophets
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A Matter of Life And Death: The Message of Micah, Part 1
July 18th, 2010
Sermon Title: A Matter of Life And Death: The Message of Micah, Part 1
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Elder
Text: Micah 1-2
Series: The Ancient Gospel: Majoring On the Minor Prophets
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Christlikeness
July 11th, 2010
Sermon Title: Christlikeness
Speaker: Dr. Bruce McAllister
Text: 2 Corinthians 3:18
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Surprised By Grace: The Message of Jonah, Part 2
July 5th, 2010
Sermon Title: Surprised By Grace: The Message of Jonah, Part 2
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Elder
Text: Jonah 2-4
Series: The Ancient Gospel: Majoring On the Minor Prophets
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Surprised By Grace: The Message of Jonah
July 3rd, 2010
Sermon Title: Surprised By Grace: The Message of Jonah
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Elder
Text: Jonah 1-2
Series: The Ancient Gospel: Majoring On the Minor Prophets
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The Ancient Gospel: Majoring On the Minor Prophets
June 20th, 2010
Sermon Title: The Ancient Gospel: Majoring On the Minor Prophets
Speaker: Garrett Lee, Elder
Series: The Ancient Gospel: Majoring On the Minor Prophets
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Putting Your Spirit Gifts to Work!
June 13th, 2010
Sermon Title: Putting Your Spirit Gifts to Work!
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Pastor
Series: The Church – To Know Her Is to Love Her
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Of Shepherds and Sherpas
June 7th, 2010
Sermon Title: Of Shepherds and Sherpas
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Pastor
Series: The Church – To Know Her Is to Love Her
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Advancing God’s Glory Through Prayer
June 1st, 2010
Sermon Title: “Advancing God’s Glory Through Prayer”
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Pastor
Text: Exodus 15:1-21
Series: The Church – To Know Her Is to Love Her
I. Pray In Light of God’s Mighty Deeds (15:1-10)
II. Pray In Light of God’s Wonder (15:11)
III. Pray in Light of God’s Promises (15:12-17)
IV. Pray For The Spread of God’s Rulership (15:18-21)
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The Gospel + Relationships = Growth
May 26th, 2010
This Sunday at Grace Church of Alexandria, we discussed this prescription for our Christian relationships: The Gospel + Relationships = Growth. This was drawn from 1 Thessalonians 2:8 where Paul says he delighted to share with the believers “not only the gospel but also our own lives as well.” The place where God transforms us and sanctifies us is when we live in friendship and relationship with other believers and speak truths of the gospel to each other. The sermon was not successfully recorded, so here is a summary.
How To Give And Get The Most From Your Christian Friendships
From 1 Thessalonians 2:7-14, we saw seven ways to build your relationship with another Christian (your spouse, an accountability partner, a new Christian, an elder-in-training, your kids) so that you both grow up in Christ.
1. Focus on Discipleship, Not Church Growth (2:9).
2. Follow Others’ Example (2:10).
3. Cultivate Close Relationships (2:11).
4. Come out of the Shadows with your Sin (2:12).
5. Care for Others’ Burdens (2:12).
6. Ask Each Other Hard Questions (2:12).
7. Pray For, Pray With Each Other (2:13).
Questions Someone Should Be Asking You
In particular, we saw our need of opening up to other Christians so they can help us to live a life worthy of God’s glory and rulership, as verse 12 commands. I pointed to four friends of mine who meet regularly for accountability and spiritual sharpening as a great example of how to implement #6, that is, ask each other hard questions.
Every few weeks my friends get together and ask each other the following four questions and honestly, transparently answer them:
- Have you spent focused time in the Word and prayer this week?
- Are you building gospel relationships with believers and unbelievers?
- How are your interactions with the Body of Christ? Are you neglecting the Body?
- Are your thoughts glorifying to God?
If they’re falling short of pleasing God in one of these areas, my friends speak truths of the gospel to the struggler that will help them turn away from their sin and honor Christ. Then, after they’ve each answered these questions, each man gets asked two questions tailored to their weaknesses. If I were meeting with these friends, they’d need to ask me questions like this:
- Jonathan, has your wife been your #1 priority or have you allowed church duties to compete with your love for her?
- Jonathan, have you taken time to share the gospel with non-Christians when you had an opening this week?
I urge you to find a Christian friend who can ask these questions of you, and to whom you can ask these kinds of questions. Cultivating relationships that deliberate focus on Christ is essential to rooting sin out of your life and living to God’s praise.
