LifePointe Church Sermon of the Week

Today we have the honor of welcoming friends and pastors Ted & Jana Sawchuk from Burning Hearts Church in Fargo, ND back to LifePointe! This morning Pastor Jana shares testimonies of God's power and a challenge to be a people who come and see and then go and tell.

Happy Resurrection Sunday! Today we celebrate the risen King Jesus! He is alive and He is still moving, still healing, and still transforming hearts and minds. AND, if He has overcome death, our greatest adversary, then He can overcome anything you will face in this life.

Part of God's rescue plan for humanity was to get His presence in us. No longer would His Spirit reside in a temple but now we would be temples of the Holy Spirit. Because of Jesus' finished work on the cross we have the privilege of being hosts of His presence and carry a great responsibility to steward that privilege well.

We need an encounter with the Holy Spirit! God's plan for our lives is to be full of the Holy Spirit and power. This morning we look to the words of Jesus who said it would be better if He leaves so He could send the Holy Spirit. Jesus knew that because of His finished work on the cross the Holy Spirit would not just be with us, but in us and on us.

In John 14, Jesus explains in a greater measure the depth and breadth in which His kingdom is meant to impact our lives. Because of Jesus we have an inheritance in God's kingdom and that inheritance is, in part, meant for us to experience now. Jesus said, "Whoever believes" would do the works that He did and greater. Pastor Drew challenges us to trust God and take up our inheritance.

This morning we have Pastor Josh Skjoldol with us. Pastor Josh is lead pastor of Evangel Church in Bismarck, ND. Evangel is a regional church that is having a huge impact on North Dakota. This morning Pastor Josh challenges us to be vessels that are ready to be used by God.

Sunday Evening Service - Tonight we hear again from Pastor Josh Skjoldol. God wants to use highly unlikely people from highly unlikely places to do highly unlikely things.

This week Pastor Drew challenges us as believers to embrace our new way of life in the Kingdom where we come into alignment of who we're supposed to be! We are no longer slaves but free in Jesus. He freed us from slavery for something greater than we can imagine!

We have been made sons and daughters through the finished work of Jesus. We have been adopted into the family of God. Still, many of us live as orphans even though we have been called His own. This morning Pastor Drew challenges that orphan spirit that many of us still walk in.

Continuing our series on Pastor Drew's new book "A Prince from the Ashes", we explore the love of the Father. God's extravagant love has been poured out on us and brings definition, purpose, and meaning to our lives. And the truth is, The Father is speaking over you and I. Let us be open to receive His great love!

This week, Pastor Drew kicks off a new series from his new book, "A Prince from the Ashes". Psalm 113 says, "He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; He seats them with princes, with the princes of his people." This is our story! He lifts us from our own mess and prepares a place for us at the table with Him.

This month's Sunday Evening Service, we have a special guest speaker Carol Hubing. Jeff and Carol pastor and lead a Fire School of Ministry in Chicago. Carol has a humble and beautiful way of sharing God's hear for us! Tonight, she challenges us to not just be wearers of God's presence but be be bearers of it.

This week, we have a special guest speaker Dr. Jeff Hubing. Jeff and Carol pastor and lead a Fire School of Ministry in Chicago. They have long been a voice of encouragement and exhortation into the LifePointe Family. Today Jeff shares his heart on the kingship of Jesus.

God's Word is sharper than any two-edged sword and is living and active. It is not like any other book on your bookshelf! It is relevant for your life and all the things you face. And, one of its functions for believers is as weapon against the enemy of our souls. Sadly, often Christians do not use utilize it like we were meant to. Today, Pastor Drew encourages us to wield the powerful weapon of God's Word as just that, a weapon.

Often as followers of Jesus we can find ourselves fighting for or against things thinking that we are fighting on behalf of God. The reality is that we need to be asking the question, "Am I fighting my battles or God's battles?" We need to be submitted to His agenda and His plans, not ours. Worship is a place of strength and power that we fight from and it aligns our hearts with God's heart and will.

The enemy wants nothing more than for followers of Jesus to be lukewarm, passive, or indifferent. Especially in the midst of a battle, the enemy wants us to waffle in our obedience to King Jesus. That's because he knows how powerful a weapon obedience is. Obedience is the fruit of our faith and our beliefs in action. Jesus wants to equip us to win and destroy the works of the enemy through obedience to His ways! Join us today as Pastor Tony shares his heart on obedience.

As followers of Jesus, our battle is not against flesh and blood or this world. Instead, our battle is in the place of prayer against the schemes and plans of the enemy. It is God who fights for us, which is why it is even more important for us to go to prayer as means of action in the kingdom. This morning Pastor Drew kicks off our new series "Battle Lines".

In 2020, hopelessness has been experienced at epidemic proportions. The systems of this world, people, our health have all been shaken this year and who or what we put our trust in has been revealed. For many this has causes a great chasm of hopelessness. The good news is that God has called us to come and know Him and experience Him in a new and deeper way. Join us as Pastor Tony challenges us to embrace the truth of God over and for our lives.

2000 years ago, an angel appeared to shepherds in a field and announced the birth of The Messiah. The angel declared that His birth would bring great joy to all people. All people. Not the spiritual elite, or the affluent, or the most holy but all people. And the message was given to some humble shepherds in the middle of the night.

This morning, Pastor Drew challenges us a with a message entitled "The Return of the King".

We have all grasped for control in various circumstances in our life. We try to hold it all together ourselves. We often worry and grow anxious when things are out of our control. It isn't until we are confronted with King Jesus that we realize our desire for control is just an illusion. In fact, King Jesus is a direct assault against our need for control. This morning, Pastor Drew encourages us from Matthew 2 to give up control to King Jesus.

This week we kick of a new series for our Christmas season entitled "The Arrival of the King". We are not celebrating the arrival of just any king, but The King. King Jesus is what our hearts have longed for and our souls have hoped for! He is better than we think and far exceeds any expectations we may have of Him. Oh that we would lift up our heads and invited Him in!

In the Gospel of John, Jesus commissions Peter to not only feed His sheep but to feed His lambs also. God's heart is for all generations and He desires us to be a people who intentional about the legacy we are leaving. This week, Pastor Nicole Barnes our Children's Director, shares heart on being a people concerned with discipling and feeding the next generation.

Join us as continue our series "Kingdom Culture" with a message from our Youth Pastor, Riley Edwards. The truth is, God loves the next generation and we need to be as passionate about them as He is.

Jesus gave us the gift of showing us how we are to love people. Not only did He say it with His words but through everything that He did. He modeled love. Many of the things Jesus did and people He spent His time with was against the better judgement of the day. Jesus calls us to love like Him! This week, our Chi Alpha Director, Pastor Alex Rosinger shares His heart on loving like Jesus.

Sunday Evening Service - We welcome back Dr. Jack Klugh as he shares his heart on growing in maturity in Jesus.

This week, we have the privilege of welcoming special guest Dr. Jack Klugh. Dr. Klugh has served for decades as Chaplain for our Armed Forces. He has unique perspective and wisdom to share about his journey with Christ. This morning we ask the question, how will we respond to the storms of life?

All over the gospels we see the way of prayer modeled to us by Jesus. And it's actually something that He invites every single one of us into. It's not something that is left up to just pastor's. elders, or the spiritual elite. It is a way that Jesus has laid out before us to walk in. Join us as Pastor Drew shares about the the way of prayer.

Jesus declares a new way of life. But, He doesn't just talk about it He also shows us. In John 1 we see Jesus call His first disciples and invites them on an adventure with Him that will change them from the inside out. Join us as Pastor Tony continues our series "Kingdom Culture".

This week, we will hear from our special guest Rich Greene, Lead Pastor of LifeChurch in Corallville, IA. Pastor Rich will continue our series "Kingdom Culture" with a message about living on mission.

This week, Pastor Drew kicks off a new series "Kingdom Culture". Over the coming weeks we will explore the way of the kingdom Jesus unveiled to the world. This morning we will look at the way Jesus modeled honor, humility, and servant leadership with the way of honor/

King Jesus is near! He is not far away or indifferent. He knows our loneliness. He knows our pain. Not only did He experience everything we face in this life, He overcame it. Now we have Him as our example and help in time of need. Join us as Pastor Drew continues our series "The Kingdom is Near.

The Kingdom of God is kingdom that comes to change a person from the the inside out. Religion seeks to change a person from the outside hoping that it will reach the heart. In Mark 7, Jesus challenges the Pharisees to worry about the matters and motives of the heart and to not be so concerned with the traditions of man. Join us as Pastor Drew challenges us with total surrender to God.

This week we have guest speaker Pastor Bryce Meyer. Pastor Bryce pastors in Bismarck, ND and here to minister a powerful message today. How do we prepare for the God moments in our life? Can we prepare? Pastor Bryce will challenge and encourage on how we can make sure the soil of our hearts is ready to receive from God.

Sunday Evening Service - Pastor Bryce is back to encourage us to welcome Holy Spirit into all aspects of our life. Jesus said it would be better if He left because He would send us an Advocate in the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit will convict us of sin, be a comforter, and equip us to live and be used by Him.

The Kingdom is near! What great and joyful news! And it is so near that the God of the universe wants close relationship with you and I. Jesus demonstrated a life of intimacy with the Father and had the desire that we too would be one with Him as He is one with the Father. God is not impressed by our lip service, religion, or spiritual busyness. He desires intimacy with us.

Jesus shows up in the everyday life and invites us into a lifelong journey of transformation. He will interrupt our routines, show up in the mundane, or speak to us in the small things. The kingdom is near and that is good news! This week Pastor Tony continues in our series on the Gospel of Mark.

After a storm that left devastation and much of Iowa without power, we had church outside this morning. It was only fitting we were encouraged that God's kingdom is not a building, an institution, or just a doctrine, but relationship to the God of the universe. Kicking off our new series "The Kingdom is Near", Pastor Drew shares a message from Mark 1 on John the Baptist's introduction of King Jesus.

As we conclude our series "Hungry for Wisdom", Pastor Tony challenges us with a message on leaving a legacy of wisdom. The bible says we are but a vapor, here one day and gone the next. We can make the mistake of thinking our life doesn't matter much. Instead let us live a rich and full life by choosing God's ways of wisdom.

As the nation has entered a recession many people are left feeling anxious and worried about their finances. But what does God's Word have to say about our finances? Is it possible to live a recession-proof life? Pastor Drew shares his heart on what God says about our finances.

Many people live in one of two extremes. Either their workaholics on the brink of burnout or have difficulty finding motivation and purpose. God has something to say about work and rest. This morning Pastor Drew gives us wisdom for our work and wisdom for our rest.

Our words matter. They can can be lifeless or destructive. They can also breathe life into lifeless people or situations. After our words leave our mouths they can take on a life of their own. They can do more or less than we intended them to. All the more reason for us to be wise with our words. We need to be thoughtful, slow to speak, and seek to always do better. This week, Pastor Drew continues ours series "Hungry for Wisdom" with a message on wisdom for our words.

This morning we're kicking off a new series out of the book of Proverbs called "Hungry for Wisdom". God will give us wisdom if we ask. We need His wisdom to navigate the the world we live in.

A gospel without signs and wonders is a powerless gospel. Jesus said signs and wonders would follow those who believe. But what happens when people start to follow signs and wonders rather than The Wonder-Worker? Pastor Drew concludes our series "Authentic Fire" with a challenge to seek Jesus above all else.

Many Christians have wrestled with questions on divine healing or God's power in the here and now. In many ways Christianity has been reduced to a philosophy or Sunday morning "churchianity" rather than a gospel that is relevant to the issues this world faces everyday. The truth is God still heals and is awakening His church again to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit everyday.

In the wake of the unrest, pain, and chaos we need to hear what God is saying. If there was ever a time when the people of God needed to be attentive and sensitive the to the Holy Spirit it is now. In light of that truth, we cannot allow for extremes or abuses in the prophetic rob us from what God is saying and doing. We must press in for an authentic move of God.

All throughout history God has given a people the opportunity to respond to His purposes. Many times, however, people are caught up in the comfort and safety. We now find ourselves in a time of stirring where God is awakening us to His purposes! Will we respond to the call?

This gospel is a gospel of grace! It is what saves us and empowers us. But what happens when we only emphasize God's grace and not the rest of who God is? We get a sloppy grace. What happens when we only talk about God's call to holiness but not grace? We get legalism. This week, Pastor Tony shares his heart about true grace and how we can avoid falling into these extremes.

The Gospel is really good news! For the hurting, the sick, the sinner, the poor and rich it is redemption and restoration. But, there are some who would seek to use the good news of the Word and take it extremes and use it for their own selfish gain. This week Pastor Drew exposed the error of the Prosperity Gospel and brings us into alignment with the true Gospel of peace, healing, power, and suffering.

This morning we start a new series entitled, "Authentic Fire". One of our core values as a church is authenticity. We are contending for a move of God's Spirit and a mighty outpouring, but we want the real thing. Not something man-made or contrived, but a genuine move of God. Pastor Drew will give us some insight how to avoid the inauthentic.