In this episode we discus spiritual gifts and in particular healing. Tim talked about when he first started to pray for healing and the shares several stories. Tim and Alana discuss the following 7 questions. 1. What was your first experience with healing? Was it something you saw someone else experience, or was it something...
The undignified love of the Father Turn in your bibles to Luke 15:11-3215 Verse 12The prodigal comes and ask the Father to divide his estate. This was basically the equivalent of saying “ I wish you were dead.” This was a completely outrages request and an insult to the father. Upon receiving such a...
Rest and Mourning • Matt 5:4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. • There is a blessing that comes with mourning. Part of that blessings is direct comfort from the Lord Himself. The Commandment: Exodus 20:8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and...
Stories from the Mission field: Counting the Cost In this episode Stories from the Mission field Counting the Cost we discuss the expectations and costs for going on the mission field. What expectations should someone have before heading to the mission field. And then of course are the costs to having an experience on the...
I Understand that I don’t Understand In this episode I Understand that I don’t Understand we grieve with our black community and discuss with humility how to fight racism. However, we don’t claim to have any answers but we offer this with humility and grace. What we do know is that there continues to be...
Pentecost and the Color of the kingdom In this message we explore Pentecost and the color of the Kingdom. When the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost it was for all the nations on earth. (This message was recorded outside so there is some extra back ground noise) Revelations 5:7-10 Rev 5:8 This is all...
Stories from the Mission Field Pt 2 In this episode of Stories from the Mission Field Pt 2 Tim turns the tables on Alana and asks her to share about her time on the mission Field in Northern Ireland. We did this to show the differences in how people will experience missions. We will all...
Stories from the mission field. In this episode Alana ask Tim to share some stories from the mission field. Tim has traveled to Africa to do mission work now many times over the past several years. Over the course of those trips Tim has accumulated many stories. Some he can share and some he can’t....
Complete Joy in the midst of a Pandemic. In John 15:9-13 Jesus promises us complete joy, or the full measure of joy. But for many of us we would say that we aren’t living in the reality of complete joy. Then on tip of that add the circumstances of the a global pandemic and...
A discussion on walking in the tension of the Kingdom. This is the online version of Taco Tue with Tim. Because we can’t meet for tacos at our favorite taco shop, we took our discussion online. So you’re welcome to grab your own tacos and join us for this discussion. Why the topic of walking...
As I look at how this Corona-virus pandemic has been playing out, I keep asking God what are you doing? And I believe one of the things that God is doing is exposing the idols and blind spots in the church, at least here in the U.S. This is a very biblical concept. When we...
A discussion on Worship and the effects of COVID-19, the online version of Taco Tue with Tim. Because we can’t meet for tacos at our favorite taco shop we took our discussion online. So you’re welcome to grab your own tacos and join us for this discussion. Why talk about it from the perspective of...
Sorry for poor audio quality Covid-19 The Curse, the Mercy, and the Response The Curse • This is a question I have been hearing both from believers and non-believers. o “Why would a loving God allow this to happen?” o To briefly answer this question, we must go back to Genesis 1 & 2 •...
Pastor Tim Mengler continues in the series Winning the War for Your Mind this week dealing with temptations. • 1 Cor 10:13 There is nothing unusual about our temptations. • Why is this important? Because the enemy tries to convince us no one else has this problem. o Use this verse, don’t condone the sin;...
Winning the War for Your Mind Pt II Scripture as Our Weapon (Psalm 23) Psalm 23:1 What is the job of shepherd? To provide and care for, to protect, to look out for. • When those thoughts are coming against you. I feel alone, I feel unprotected, I feel uncared for. o Respond with what...
Winning the War for Your Mind (2 Cor 10:1-5) Verse 3 Paul realizes that this is spiritual warfare. This is a spiritual issue, not a worldly one. Verse 4 The implication is that Paul sees their criticism of him being rooted in a demonic stronghold. • The word stronghold refers to a place where an...
The Heart of Worship Pt 2 (John 3 & 4) • John 3 A Pharisee named Nicodemus come to Jesus and asks to know more about the Kingdom. o Jesus says, in order to know God and understand the Kingdom of God, you must be born again. o John 3:5-6 There are two parts to...
The Heart of Worship (Physical posture as worship) • In Matt 14 after Jesus clams the storm, it says “they worshipped Him.” • The word ‘worshipped’ here means: to fall down, to kneel, to bow down, fall at the feet of another, to prostrate oneself. It can even mean to kiss the hand of. o...
On Mission with God: To the Nations and the Neighbors (Rev 5:8-10) • Matt, Mark, & Luke all have the same basic command from Jesus to be on mission and take the Gospel to all nations. • These passages are generally referred to as the Great Commission. Acts 2:5 God saw fit to have every...
Let God be on Mission in You: Growing in the Desert (Matt 4:-11) • The Lord wants to grow us to be more like Him and one of the primary ways He does that is through a wilderness or desert experience. o Desert seasons are also often very long, sometimes years. • All three Gospels...
On Mission with God: Serving and Compassion (Matt 20:24, John 13:12) • Matt 20:26 The context here is that the mother of Zebedee’s sons came asked for her sons to sit at the sides of Jesus. Then the other ten disciples get made about this. • In the Greek Jesus actually states this very emphatically,...
In Luke 9 Jesus says that those that want to follow Him will have to deny themselves and take up their cross daily. In this message we explore what that means and how it relates to being on Mission with God. On Mission with God: All In (Luke Chapter 9) Verse 18 Jesus is trying...
On Mission with God: Immanuel • Isa 7:14 This Hebrew name occurs three times in the OT with two times being in Isa 7 & 8 • The name implies that Jesus is leaving heaven and coming to be with us here on earth. The structure of the name: The name is really made up...
On Mission with God: Destroying the works of the Devil • 1 John 3:8 The context here is sin, John it telling his readers that you can’t continue in a life of sin. • But the work of the devil is the source of sin. o Jesus came to destroy all the works of the...
On Mission with God: Suffering and Sacrifice (Hebrews10:32; Phil 1:29; 1 Peter 4:12) • Throughout Jesus’ ministry, He warns His disciple that He would have to suffer and die as a sacrifice. o Jesus also tells His disciples that no student is above their teacher o Jesus warns all who would comer after Him they...
On Mission with God: Being Sent Ones (Luke10:1 and Acts 2-3) • Again, and again Jesus gives the command to go! o Matt 28:18-20 o Many of Jesus’ parables give us insight into what the mission will look like. Luke 10:1 Jesus is commissioning and sending out the 72, expanding His mission team from 12...
On Mission with God: Empowered (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:1-8) Luke 24:49 Jesus told His disciples to stay in the city until they received the Holy Spirit, power from on high. • He starts out by saying “stay here.” In Greek, it’s actually the verb “to sit.” o The verb is also in the active form....
On Mission with God Praying toward the Mission (Acts 4:23-31) • We cannot be on mission with God as the primary purpose of the church without prayer. • The specifics, the wisdom, of how we are going to walk out this mission are going to come through prayer. o The power and empowerment for this...
On Mission with God Discovering the primary purpose of the Church • Since the moment Adam and Eve fell in the garden God has been on a mission, the missio dei o That mission has been to restore the relationship between mankind and God Himself. o In the OT era God’s mission was primarily seen...
In Philippians chapter 4 Paul says that he has learned to be content in every situation. I think that’s a great lesson for us all to learn. Let’s look at this passage and ask who were his teachers and what was the curriculum to see if we too can learn to be content? Learning to...
A Life Worth Following Part 2 1 Cor 11:1; 2 Cor 1:8-9 • From this statement, Follow my example as I follow the example of Christ, we saw three key issues. o First, the quality of Paul’s life, the worthiness to be followed. o Second, there is an invitation. “Follow me” A deliberate invitation. o...
Paul tell us in this verse to follow him as he follows Christ. But what made Paul’s life worth following? A Life Worth Following (1 Cor 11:1) 1 Cor 11:1 Is my life worth following? Context: Paul is addressing the entire Corinthian Church. He is not writing to an individual believer. Three key issues here:...
It’s Not My Job: It’s My gift (Colossians 3:22: 1 Cor 12:12) • The context of 1 Cor 12, Paul is talking about Spiritual Gifts. o Then in this section he abruptly talks about the body, meaning the church. o He is creating this picture, this analogy that the church is like the human body....
It’s Not My Job: It’s my Testimony Matt 28:18-20 These were Jesus’ final words to His disciples. • He commissioned His disciples to go and spread the news of His love and sacrifice to the world. • Even many of Jesus’ parables were stories around the idea of sharing our faith. This passage in Colossians...
Sometimes it’s really easy to complain about our jobs. At times it’s even easy to fall into the “it’s not my job” attitude. But in Colossians 3 Paul gives us a great way to see our work from a whole different perspective. To such a degree our jobs, how we serve and volunteer, even lead...
Doing the Right Thing will Cost You 1 Kings 16:30-33 This is the context into which the rest of this story takes place. 1 Kings 17 Because of the wickedness in the land, Elijah prophecy’s that there will be no rain, not even dew. Verse 7 Shows that what Elijah prophesied came true, no rain,...
Baptism The word Baptize There are two basic forms of the word baptize in the NT • One, which is used less frequently means “to dip” or “to dye” We see both of those images in baptism. • The Other form which is used far more frequently refers to the Jewish cleansing practices. o If...
Today I look a passage in 1 Cor 9 where Paul says he as been all things to all people to reach them for the Gospel. Paul entered into the world of people who had never heard the name Jesus before in order to bring the Gospel message. The call remains the same for us...
For the Love of Weeds (Matt 13:24-30) • Verse 24 Jesus tells a parable using language and concepts they would have been understood. But of course, adding new meaning and symbolism. Verse 24 The kingdom of heaven is the kingdom of God. Jesus tends to use these terms interchangeably. • The man or farmer here...
In this passage we take a look at Jesus’ warning about the yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod. Jesus is talking about the world views of religion and government. Heeding this warning from Jesus will help us discern the times we are living in. Of Governments and Religion (Mark 8:1-18) Verses 1-3 This passage...
In this message we look a the deep connection between love and obedience. Love compels obedience. Jesus says he can only do what He sees the Father doing, and He can do nothing by Himself. He did the miracles he did through the Power of the Holy Spirit, acting in obedience to what the Father...
A brief introduction to the Holy Spirit and the importance of being filled with the Holy Spirit. Living in the Spirit: Being Filled (Ehp 5:15 and Acts 8) Eph 5:18 The verb here in the NIV as “be filled” is a present passive imperative in the Greek. o There are three components to this grammar...
Today we take a look at Psalm 23 and how it perfectly represents Jesus and therefore also perfectly represents the Communion Table. Communion Psalm 23 Verse 1 The Shepherd’s job was to protect the sheep. • Jesus is of course The Shepherd, our Shepherd. o And He has laid down His life for us, the...
Remembering Remembering God’s presence and promises, can be a key to getting through difficult times. We all have a history with God, and it’s important to remember and reflect on that history. The problem is, there is just something about human nature that causes us to forget rather quickly what God has done for us....
Trust Last week I talked about walking into the fire, and how it takes deep trust in God to be able to enter in. But, in the fire we find what we were looking for all along. This week I want to talk about why can it be so hard to trust God, and where...
The church of Jesus has been born out of the presence of God and was created to gather around His presence continually through the Holy Spirit. In the book of Acts, we see that, within a few short weeks, the crowd in Jerusalem went from saying, “Crucify Jesus” to “What must we do to be...
Everything we need is the found in the presence of God. Moses knew this. Chapter 33 of the book of Exodus contains some incredible comments by Moses, statements that serve us well as we seek to know God and encourage others in the 21st Century. Even though Moses already had an incredible and personal relationship...
In the frantic pace of today’s society, the concept of rest sounds like a quaint antique. However, Sabbath rest is biblically fundamental to the kingdom of God. Sabbath rest is highlighted in the Ten Commandments, where God goes out of his way to remind us to “remember” the Sabbath. In the agricultural age of...
In Matthew chapter 12, Jesus illustrates spiritual realities through the natural world that apply to us as humans. Fruit trees require great care and attention to produce good fruit. The same is true for us – the words we speak reflect the condition we have cultivated in our hearts. Jesus condemns the religious leaders (the...
Words have great power. We were made in God’s image, and if we truly want to imitate him, we will use great care with our words and get in the habit of speaking blessings, not curses. The apostle Peter tells us that we should speak God’s words so that we advance Jesus’ kingdom, not...
There is no getting around it – God is concerned about justice for those who have no voice. Justice was a major part of Jesus’ ministry as well. In fact, the word “justice” is used 130 times in the NIV translation of the Bible. Jesus saved some of his harshest words for the religious leaders...
In this message I talk about what does it mean to be on mission with God and what is the mission of God. In Matt 28, the last words of Jesus to His disciples, Jesus gives His marching orders to the disciples. From this passage we can not only determine what the mission of God...
Seek First: Escape Condemnation, The King has a short memory • John 3:16 The context here is that Jesus is talking to Nicodemus about Spiritual things. Verse 16 Jesus is speaking both about Himself and God the Father when He says…“For God so loved the world..” • What God the Father did, He did from...
Seek First: The Rocks Cry Out, The Strength of Praise Luke 19:28-29 During this time period the only way to atone for your sin was to make an animal sacrifice. • Take an animal and head to the Jerusalem, or buy the animal in Jerusalem. • We see all of that imagery here in this...
Seek First: The Church (Matt 16:18-19) • The Church is the body of Christ and the Bride of Christ. You can’t love one without loving the other. o But to love the church we must understand the mission of the church. Verse 16 Jesus is talking to Peter and setting him up to be the...
Seek First: The Color of the Kingdom (Rev 5:8-10) Verse 9 Why is this a new song? • Because Jesus taking the scroll to open it represents a new era in God’s redemptive history. • What’s new about this era? • The Lamb’s death on the cross has never happened before, nor will it happen...
Seek First: Triumph over Afflicting Spirits (2 Tim 1:6-8) Fear, depression, anxiety • How do we deal with fear? o We must treat it as a spirit, an intruder spirit. An unwelcome guest. • We deal with is using the authority Christ has given us. o Deal with is like you would an intruder in...
Seek First: The Realms of the Kingdom, Spiritual vs Physical (1 Tim 4:1-9) Verse 1 There are other spirits out there, that are not the Spirit of God, and those spirits are deceiving. • The Spirit of God speaking through Paul tells us there are demons teaching. o The implications here is some of what...
Seek First: The King Gave You His Sword The ten weapons of Spiritual warfare from Nehemiah 4 1. Cry out to the Lord in _________ a. Ask the Lord to put the attacks back on the enemy’s head 2. Work with all your ___________ a. Working half-heartedly is victory for the enemy 3. _________ guards...
Seek First: You Carry His Message (2 Cor 4:1-6) Verse 1 When it comes to evangelism it’s easy to lose heart, and get discouraged. • Evangelism is an operation of God’s mercy and not our strength. o If we have been discouraged, we need to go back to God’s mercy again. Verse 2 He has...
Seek First: Love Like the King (1 John 4:16) • 1 John 4:16 This verse tells us three things: God Loves us. God is love. We are to live in love. • Two are statements about the character and nature of God, king Jesus o One is a statement about how we are to live...
Prayer: The Heart of Relationship I want to touch on a few, tangible, practical ways we can seek first the kingdom of God through prayer: It’s about making it personal. It’s about the yes. What keeps us from relationship? Making it Personal David is known as a man after God’s own heart. That’s a pretty...
Seek First: The Economy of the Kingdom (Matt 25:14-30) • The context here is that Jesus has been telling parables about what the kingdom of God is like. • Jesus is talking about money. So, we are going to look at it from the stand point of money. Verse 14 The word “man” used is...
Seek First: Everything Belongs to the King (Psalm 50:8; Malachi 3:6) Psalm 50:8-15 The context here is God was dealing with the people’s attitudes toward the sacrifice. • Everything already belongs to Him. He is not asking for it because He needs it like an earthly king might. Verse 13 He clarifies that He does...
Seek First: The Kingdom has a Helper (2) John14:15 The kingdom rule of King Jesus starts with love. Verse 16 Jesus promises the Holy Spirit, referred to here as the Counselor. • Do you see how much this stands in contrast to the way earthly leaders rule? o Earthly leaders surround themselves with counselors. But...
Seek First: The Kingdom has a King (Matt 6:25-34; Romans 14:17) • I can only give myself to seeking the Kingdom I know the Kingdom. o And if there is a Kingdom then there must also be a King. o I can only give myself to seeking the Kingdom if I know the King The...
Intro to Seek First Seek First: This series will be based on this passage in Matt 6 and the parallel story in Luke 12 • For the entire series we will focus in on the statement that Jesus makes to “Seek First His Kingdom” • The theme of this series is “Seek First the Kingdom...
The Christmas Story: Love is Born Part III (Luke 1:39-56) Verse 39 This journey would have been over 80 miles and taken 3-4 days. • No mention is made of a traveling companion but a young “single” woman would not have traveled alone. Verse 40-41 The word used here actually means to leap for Joy!...
The Christmas Story: Love is Born Part II (Luke 1:26-38) Verse 26 The story now shifts from Zechariah to Mary. • From the public setting of the Temple in Jerusalem to a private scene in a small town. • There are nine parallels between this story and the one that we just looked at with...
Rooted into Thankfulness (Col 2:6-10) Verse 7 There are four very important verbs in this verse. • Be rooted, to build, to be strengthened, and to overflow o And these verbs each build on each other. • The verb here is “to be rooted” or even “to be firmly rooted” o It’s a passive participle....
Sowing and Reaping with Authority in Partnership Matthew 28:18-20 Galatians 6:7-8 If we are co-heirs with Christ, and he has shared his authority with us, where is it, and why don’t we live with it constantly? I believe we were made to partner with Jesus to live in His full authority on this earth. But,...
Praying for Life, Praying Toward Vision Part 3 (Eph 6:18) • Eph 6:18 The emphasis here is actually on the word perseverance o NIV has always keep on • NASU be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, • Paul is calling the church to persevere in praying for itself...
Praying for Life, Praying Toward Vision Part 2 (Luke10:17; Eph 6:10) Psalm 23:5 The word “table” here has as its first meaning, a kings table, can also mean a sacred table o But the idea behind it is provision, blessings. • The Lord will not only bless us with great provision, a banquet table, He...
Praying for life, Praying toward vision Part 1.5 (Philippians 4:4-8) • Grammar definition: “The middle voice is that use of the verb which describes the subjects as participating in the results of the action.” • In the middle voice I actively participate in the results of an action that another initiates. o Peterson adds: “Two...
Praying for life, Praying Toward Vision (Mark 1:35 and John 15:14) Mark 1:35 It starts out by saying very early in the morning. • This helps avoid distractions. Jesus beat the crowds and distractions by getting up very early. • Then it says Jesus left the house. He had to find that quiet place to...
Entertaining the Presence Part 6 (Ezekiel 47 and John 7:37) Verse 1 Throughout the book of Ezekiel he has this tour guide simply identified as “the man.” o This man is leading Ezekiel through a long and complex vision. o Much of the last part of the book is related to the restoration of the...
Entertaining the Presence Part 5 • 2 Chronicles 5:11 The priests then withdrew from the Holy Place. All the priests who were there had consecrated themselves, regardless of their divisions. • Consecration was a part of the preparation they went through before the Lord sent His presence so strong. • Joshua 3:5 “Joshua told the...
Entertaining the Presence Part 3 (Acts 4) Verse 8 In Mark 13:11 Jesus told His disciple that when you are arrested don’t worry about what to say, the Holy Spirit will give you the words. I love how it says, “when you are arrested” We see that here. Verse 13 This verse should encourage all...
Baptism The word Baptize There are two basic forms of the word baptize in the NT • One, which is used less frequently means “to dip” or “to dye” We see both of those images in baptism. • The Other form which is used far more frequently refers to the Jewish cleansing practices. o If...
Entertaining the Presence Part 2 (1 Kings 8, 2 Chronicles 5) 1. Response: God was responding to their preparation, sacrifice, praise, worship and honor. 2. Prophetic vision of the NT era: What God will do in the next era after the Temple. • This scene happens at the inauguration of the Temple • Yet God...
Entertaining the Presence Part 1.5 (1 Kings 8, 2 Chronicles 5) Key verse 1 Kings 8:10 & 2 Chronicles 5:13-14 Why is it important to have this level of God’s presence? • First, it is just such a beautiful scene. I think we would all want to be there. • Second, it’s widely reported...
Entertaining the Presence (1 Kings 8: 2 Chronicles 5) Key verse 1 Kings 8:10 When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD. 11 And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple. Why did the...
Joy Complete (John 15:9-13) What are some things that attack our joy? 1. Church culture: In the church a few generations ago, there was a rise of stoics, those who thought the best practice of Christianity was to lead a stoic life. Some of this attitude remains today. 2. The enemy: Of course, satan loves...
The Full Armor of God Pt III (Eph 6:1-18) Verse 16 The shield here is a Roman shield that was four feet high, made of wood and covered in leather. • Right before a battle they would soak the shield in water to extinguish any flaming arrows. o The shield was also rimmed with metal...
The Full Armor of God Pt II (Eph 6:10-18) • Verse 14 … with the breastplate of righteousness in place, o In the Greek the verb to “to put on” is repeated in this clause, the NIV assumes that. o and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, (NASB) • The breastplate was a piece...
The Full Armor of God (Eph 6:10-18) Verse 10 This statement is both a passive verb form and an imperative. • Paul is reminding us that we need to be strengthened and that we must look to the Lord for that to happen. Verse 11 Here Paul introduces the idea of needing to get dressed...
Mega Apostle or Servant (Phil 2:1-9) Verse 1 Paul is writing this letter because there was some disunity in the Philippian Church • Paul begins this section by asking some rhetorical questions. Verse 2 He is calling them to be unified in how they think. Then he goes on to call them to be unified...
Living in the Spirit: Spiritual Gifts Part II Verse 8, The word wisdom here means: wisdom, insight, intelligence, knowledge; Wisdom (of God) • The wisdom of God is really what is in view here. • The spirit gives us wisdom to help us understand the things of God. Words of knowledge The word translated as...
Living in the Spirit: Spiritual Gifts (1 Cor 12:1-7) The Difference: Spiritual gift verses a natural talent. • A spiritual gift is something that I can only do with the help of the Holy Spirit. o It’s super-natural • A natural talent is simply the way God has created me. o I am just really...
Living in the Spirit: Pentecost Sunday (Luke 24:49 & Acts 2:1) Luke 24:49 To emphasize the importance of the HS Jesus tells His disciple stay in the city until you receive the Holy Spirit, power from on high. • In this context Jesus is saying that the Great Commission is a Suicide mission without the...
Living in the Spirit: Keeping in Step with the Spirit (Gal 3:1; Gal 5-16-26) Gal 3:1 The context here is Paul is pointing out how some people had reverted back to the ways of the Law and Old Covenant thinking. Verse 2 We don’t get the Spirit by observing the Law. • If that were...
Living in the Spirit: The Ministry of the Spirit (2 Cor 3:1-18) Verse 3 This is an important ministry of the Spirit, to write on our hearts the testimony and grace of Jesus. • This is the perfect example of how things have now become internal. Verses 4-5 Paul is making the case that they...
Living in the Spirit: The Wisdom of the Spirit • John 14:25-26 Jesus says the Holy Spirit will teach us all things. • John 16:12 There was much more that Jesus wanted and needed to teach His disciples and us. • You can’t take all the wisdom of God and download it into human beings...
