Garden Grove Church of the Nazarene
Our people - Our church
Once again, we look at Peter’s instructions to a house church struggling to maintain their integrity in the face of false teachings. He says that we must “add to godliness mutual affection, and to mutual affection, love.”
To measure our love for God by the attitudes that lurk in our hearts about other people becomes a harsh measuring stick, and it is as true within the family of God as it is everywhere else.
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Last time we talked about the need to evaluate our spiritual immune system…to make sure we are doing all that we need to do to live healthy Christian lives in a world where there are many forces that would seek to pull us away from our faith.
To be truly Christian we must be able to be IN the world as the fragrance of Christ…as ambassadors for Christ…as the hands and feet and heart of Christ…while at the same time not allowing ourselves to be OF the world…succumbing to pressures that are not of Christ…yielding to the influences that would destroy our relationship and our relationship with Christ.
Let’s go to school in these verses of scripture to see what Peter was teaching that would help those early believers evaluate their capacity to stand strong in their faith even though they were being attacked from those outside the church, and confused and disillusioned by some within the church.
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As Pastor Jim has been experiencing some medical treatments to help determine why there is an increasing weakness in his legs, the doctor told him that his immune system may be weak. The treatment they’re trying is to “feed” it – add to his blood that which is needed to allow his immune system to help his nerves communicate more efficiently with his muscles so that they can respond when he decides they should respond.
The purpose of this sermon is not for the pastor to give his “organ recital,” but to help us think about the complexity of the human body, and how, we function, not just as physical beings, but as spiritual ones. The Apostle Peter gave the church some very profound and practical advice to help them in the face of severe persecution for their faith. He tells them, in essence, that merely wearing a name tag that identifies them as a Christian is not enough. They must build up their “spiritual immune system” as well.
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Over the past several weeks, we’ve been looking together at what the Bible has to say about heaven and about glimpses of what it will be like. In this sermon, Pastor Jim follows up on a that series with a message that he hopes will enable us all to seriously consider the responsibility that we have to live our lives here on earth in right relationship with God.
Why? Because our eternal life depends on it!
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Every summer, we have a special Sunday service at GGNaz when we celebrate our children. We thank our children’s workers and congratulate the children as they are promoted from one grade to the next. On this Children’s Sunday, Pastor Jim reflects some more on Todd Burpo’s book, Heaven Is For Real, and on the story of his disciples, who had been arguing among themselves as they walked along the road.
He asked them: What were you discussing out on the road? But they didn’t answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was greatest. (Matthew 18:33-34)
We live in a world that is obsessed with greatness. The privilege of power is sought after, perhaps not with guns, but with money, influence and manipulation. It wasn’t all that different from the culture of Jesus’ day. The disciples allowed themselves to be caught up in the power seeking obsession that had them arguing among themselves as to who was the most fit to be in positions of power and influence int he government that their master was sure to set up.
But then, there was a little child. Jesus brought before them a little child.
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Character is who you are when no one else is near.Yet…
Help us put character back in our society. It begins with our children! GGNaz and Kid of Character are partnering to place these books and CD’s in Sunnyside Elementary School (GGUSD).
Our goal:
Help us put these materials in a local school! Mark you donation to “Character” and place it in the offering or mail to 13411 Euclid Street, Garden Grove, CA 92843. Make checks payable to GGNaz and we will issue one check to Kid of Character. Donations are tax deductable.
Thank you for donating what you can to help with this very important cause. We can make it happen!
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