Romans 8:31-34

Throughout life, there will be times when our sins and failures lead us to conclude that God is disappointed or angry with us. How can He still love me after what I’ve done? If I’m really forgiven, why do I still feel so guilty? At such tiimes, we need to fix our eyes on the truth of Scripture and ask the questions Paul posed in Romans 8.

If God is for us, who is against us
(v. 31)? Our heavenly Father proved His loyalty to us when He delivered His own Son over to death in order to save us. Without Christ’s atoning death on our behalf, we would face eternal separation from God.

Who will bring a charge against God’s elect (v. 33)? No accusation against us can stand, since at the moment of salvation, the Lord justified us. This means we were legally declared righteous, while still in our sinning condition. No one can reverse this transaction and make us guilty again. To doubt our blameless standing in Christ is to declare His atonement insufficient to cover our sin.

Who is the one who condemns (v. 34)? Although Satan rails against us, Jesus’ death and resurrection are proof that we are right with God. Christ took our condemnation and gave us His righteousness in return. Now He sits at the Father’s right hand, interceding for us.

When doubts about the Lord’s love and faithfulness arise, focus on truth. If we judge His loyalty to us by our circumstances or feelings, we will never get an accurate view of God. True security lies not in our good performance, but in our relationship with Christ, and no one can take that from us.

How to Experience Christ’s Peace

John 14:27-31

“My peace I give to you” (John 14:27). Jesus spoke these amazing words just hours before His crucifixion. His peace isn’t dependent upon external circumstances, but rather, it transcends them. Although He gives His peace to every believer as a gift, our experience of it is related to our faith in the following truths:

• God is in control of everything. Without this assurance, the world is a scary place.
• He loves me and will see me through every circumstance, no matter how difficult or painful it may be.
• To have Christ’s peace, I must surrender my life to Him. When I hold onto my ways and plans, I’ll experience turmoil.
• I have a limited perspective and understanding of my circumstances and God’s purposes for allowing them. His goals for me are greater than my immediate comfort.
• The Lord promises to work all things out for my good. He is continually working to transform my character into Christ’s image.
• I must live in sync with God, walking in the Spirit and promptly confessing and repenting of sin.
• Scripture is my foundation for peace. It increases my trust in the Lord’s goodness, assures me that He keeps His promises, and reminds me of His sovereignty over every situation.

Sadly, many Christians live their whole lives without consistently experiencing this incomprehensible peace. Perhaps faith and submission are the most challenging issues. But only as we surrender control of our lives to Christ and trust in His plans for us will we discover tranquil rest for our souls.

Jesus said in Matthew chapter 5 and verse 9 “Blessed are the peacemakers,”  So if I want to live a blessed life I have to learn that being a PEACEMAKER is part of it!

What’s interesting to me is this is the only time in all the New Testament that the Greek term translated “peacemakers” appears. So I think it will help us to first point out what it doesn’t mean.

It doesn’t mean, “Blessed are those who avoid all conflict and confrontations.”
It doesn’t mean, “Blessed are those who are laidback, easygoing, and relaxed.”
It doesn’t mean “Blessed are those who defend a ‘peace at any price’ philosophy.”
It doesn’t mean, “Blessed are the passive, those who compromise their convictions when surrounded by those who would disagree.”

None of those ideas are God’s characteristic’s of the “peacemaker” in this verse.
The overall direction of this Scripture is to “Make peace!” (Check out Romans 12:18; 14:19; and James 3:16–4:2.)

FIRST; A “peacemaker” describes those who at  peace with themselves—internally, at ease . . . not agitated, ill-tempered, in turmoil . . . and therefore not abrasive.
SECOND; They work hard to settle quarrels, not to start them; they are accepting, tolerant, and find no pleasure in being negative. In the words of Ephesians 4:3, peacemakers “preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” but listen, not at the cost of your relationship with God being harmed through being tolerant and accepting to SIN!

Ever been around Christians who are not peacemakers? Of course. Was it pleasant? Did you sense a servant’s heart? Were you built up and encouraged . . . was the body of Christ strengthened and supported? You know the answers. Absolutely not!!!

Solomon gives us wise counsel about what peacemakers do:

1. They BUILDUP . “The wise woman builds her house” (Proverbs 14:1).
2. They WATCH THEIR TONGUES and heal rather than hurt. “A gentle answer turns away wrath” (15:1). “Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones” (16:24).
3. They are SLOW TO ANGER. “A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but the slow to anger calms a dispute” (15:18). “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city” (16:32).
4. They are HUMBLE AND TRUSTING. “An arrogant man stirs up strife, but he who trusts in the LORD will prosper” (28:25).

The Lord Jesus states a marvelous promise that peacemakers can claim: “they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9). God’s children. Few things are more godlike than peace.
When we promote PEACE, pursue it, model it, we are showing the world we really have a relationship with JESUS, but When you live opposite of these characteristics the question that I have is; Do you really have a relationship with God through JESUS CHRIST?!

A FEW SUGGESTIONS AS WE PREPARE FOR CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICES AT CrossView

1.Get Here Early! Service starts at 5 and 7pm but Not only will this help with the parking but we have an awesome start to the service that you don’t want to miss! Music will start on time!

2.Bring A Friend! It’s not too late to invite a friend or family member to one of our 2 Christmas Eve services. You never know how God might use that to encourage them! And don’t worry about a ticket… we will accommodate everyone that comes.

3.Stop by the Café for a free cookie/ bring your favorite if you would like to share with others

4.Pray – Spend some time in prayer before the service starts and ask God to speak to you and to move in the hearts and lives of those that attend. Also pray that God’s words will flow through me as I speak.

I’m really pumped about our services this year.  And I am so blessed to be your pastor. See you tonight 5 or 7pm :)

I’ve never traveled alone…

EVER…

Not even when the church met in a living room!

A part of it is accountability for sure…

However, another part of it is investing in people.

One of the questions I’ve been asked in the past few years is why, when I travel, do I “roll with an entourage?”

Honestly, I’ve never fully understood that question because…

#1 – The people who travel with me on trips are my friends, I actually like being around them.

#2 – Like I said, I have ALWAYS traveled with groups of people.

It’s not about rolling with an entourage but rather investing into the lives of a group of people that you actually care about. A group of people who you want to see and experience some of the things that you are seeing and experiencing.

Honestly, I learned this from Jesus!

Seriously, as I read the Gospels I have NEVER found a place that He did anything alone (except to pray, Luke 5:16!) Anytime He did ministry, anytime He was teaching, anytime He was going somewhere that his disciples had never been He was always taking them with Him.

If you want to do life and ministry like Jesus you can’t do it alone.

Unfortunately some pastors and ministry leaders are selfish. Stingy! They want to travel. They want to experience new things. They want to see new places. They want it for themselves…they just don’t want it for the people who are serving Jesus with them…

So they go at it alone, and when someone else comes in with a group of people they automatically play the self righteous “entourage” card. They see taking people with them on trips and such as an “expense;” however, leaders who care about the people who they serve with actually see taking people with them as an investment.

Every time I have a chance to travel to a new church and see a new ministry I take a crew of people with me!

The first time I traveled to Fellowship Church in 2002 to attend the C3 conference I took five people with me.

The next year I took 12 people!!!

The first time I was invited to speak at the Dream Center in LA I took five people with me!

I’ve taken a crew of people every time since!!!

When I was invited to Hillsong back in 2009 I took five people with me.

I could go on and on…but the reality is that…

#1 – I was able to invest time and energy in the people I traveled with, we were able to have great conversations and learn from one another.

#2 – They felt valued and invested in!

#3 – We were able to learn things, have some great experiences and I didn’t have to experience it all alone.

My advice, anytime you get to go somewhere new and see/hear something that you think is going to be life changing…DO NOT GO ALONE, take as many people as possible with you…

And when someone accuses you of “rolling with an entourage,” OWN IT…I would much rather be accused of investing in people that being a self righteous selfish leader who wants great things for himself but not for the people He is called to love and lead!

One of the things that really troubles me about the church today is the phenomenon of church hopping and church shopping. It’s a consumeristic mindset towards the body of Christ that grieves the heart of God.

It’s time for us to stop the hop. This isn’t Christianity. Jesus didn’t die so we could sample different churches like varieties of meat on a party platter. Jesus died to establish His church as the most powerful entity on the planet.

We are alive at the greatest time in history for the advance of the gospel. We have so much going for us.

We have the ability.
We have the resources.
We have the people.

What we don’t have is them committed to a place where they can actually be used for their God-ordained purpose.

If this generation doesn’t make the impact it should, it won’t be because it didn’t have the resources. Or even the passion. It will be because it was too busy hopping to different churches to stop and commit to one where its resources and passion could actually find an outlet.

The church is the change the world is waiting for. God help us if we keep the world waiting for us while we try to find the perfect church for us.

If you’ve fallen into the trap of church hopping, let me encourage you: embrace your place somewhere where God can use you. At the end of your life, God’s not going to be impressed or pleased that you saw what He was doing at ten different churches. He’s going be more pleased that you were a part of what He was doing at one church. And you’re never going to find the perfect one, so give up looking. If the church you’re visiting doesn’t have what you’re looking for, it might be because God wants you to provide it.

Let’s all commit together to begin a campaign to stop the hop.
Find a place to get planted. Embrace it. And start changing the world.

The question of our day isn’t if God wants to do incredible things through the church. The question is will we be in place to experience it?

Rockmart Christmas Eve Service this year is going to be off the chain! So be a bringer and bring someone with you!!! We’re going all out to present the Gospel this Christmas Eve. The opportunity is great! The need is urgent! And although public worship gatherings aren’t the only way someone can come to Christ, we’ve seen hundreds  respond to Jesus in this environment at CrossView. We believe God moves in a special way when His Church comes together. Not just in our church, but anywhere the Gospel is preached. So this Christmas Eve don’t keep Real HOPE to yourself but be a bringer and bring someone to hear the Gospel!!!

I may need to come back one day and read this myself…but I really feel like I am supposed to tell someone, “DON’T GIVE UP!!!”
Standing up for JESUS can be the most frustrating thing on the planet to deal with…but don’t stop now! What you are seeing as an obstacle God is using as an opportunity! Don’t give up!!! (Galatians 6:9)
People will hate you just because of what you do…and if you begin to experience any sort of success they will despise you even more. Don’t give up…your walk is not to please them!!! (Galatians 1:10)
You feel like you are not successful because your church hasn’t exploded with growth. BUT…you’ve seen 10 people receive Christ in the past year! REJOICE IN THAT…THE ANGELS DID!!! Don’t give up because your church isn’t getting attention from men…it has the attention of the Almighty…and in the end THAT is all that will matter!
You feel like you aren’t a good leader… a good speaker….or a good friend and you want to walk away and do something else because you just don’t feel qualified. Remember…Jesus took some very unqualified men and CHANGED THE WORLD!!! Lead like JESUS with truth, Grace and Accountability (Acts 4:13)
Someone doesn’t like something you did recently… Remember…they didn’t like Jesus healing on the Sabbath either…but He kept on doing it because He knew He was pleasing His Father!!!
Your past haunts you…the enemy constantly throws it in your face. You want to walk away when you focus on who you WERE…STOP IT and see who YOU ARE in Christ! You are a new person! (I Corinthians 6:9-11 – REALLY focus on verse 11!) Don’t give up!
People close to you have abandoned you…and you are hearing the things they said about you. You feel betrayed…hurt…and wonder if it is all worth it. Demas betrayed Paul…Judas betrayed Jesus…yet they hung in there and refused to allow that type of betrayal to take their eyes off of the goal.
Don’t give up! Don’t quit! Stay in the fight!!! God called you to be a warrior…and sometimes warriors get wounded. BUT…wounds should not take the desire to fight out of us…but rather cause us to want to fight even more.
I heard about a guy who was going through a rough time once and asked Bill Hybels, “With all of this stuff I am going through…why shouldn’t I just quit right now?’
Bill replied, “because one day you and I will stand in front of One who had an assignment much tougher than ours and He didn’t quit…that’s why!” BAM!
Don’t quit…don’t give up…fight the good fight! (Galatians 6:9) Pray, fast, preach, witness, memorize Scripture…and give Satan a swift kick in the cookies as often as possible!!
But whatever you do…DON’T GIVE UP! He called you–He gifted you–He empowered you and He will sustain you!
(II Corinthians 4) – DO NOT LOSE HEART, DO WORK!!!

Leaders are always defined by self-imposed standards. I’m not talking about standards set by other people, but standards they set for themselves. Great leaders always expect more from themselves than they do from their followers. They put forth more effort as well. That’s leadership.

If you were to look through the New Testament for the phrase “make every effort,” you’d find it six times. They represent six important Things we need to grow in as leaders. I believe these six things will lead to an effective more productive ministry.

1) Maintain Integrity

“Make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him” (2 Peter 3:14).

God doesn’t expect us to be perfect. No one is perfect. To be spotless and blameless means to live with integrity. How do you maintain integrity if you’re not perfect? You need to be transparent. A person of integrity is not claiming to have it all together in every area. On the contrary, the person of integrity is willing to be open and honest about their strengths and weaknesses.

Having integrity also means living what you say you believe. You model what you teach. And you tell the truth, even when it’s tough. All leadership is built on trust. And trust comes from having the reputation for living out what you believe and for telling the truth. As a pastor, or Christian leader people must trust you.

Will you make a commitment to lead with integrity? Will you be honest about both your strengths and weaknesses? Will you commit to living your message or sermons out every week? Will you tell the truth to those you lead even when it’s tough?

2) Forgive Those Who Hurt You.

“Make every effort to live in peace with all men. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up” (Hebrews 12:14-15).

Leaders forgive those who hurt them. You will be hurt in ministry. It’s going to happen. It’s a given. You will be hurt both intentionally and unintentionally. You will be hurt by those who recognize what they’re doing and those who don’t. You cannot be in ministry without being hurt. If you call the shots, you’re going to take some shots.

But you’ve got to be willing to forgive those who try to take you down. If you allow bitterness to build, it will choke your heart for God and your love for people until your heart grows cold!

Will you forgive when every bone in your body wants to retaliate?

3) Relax and Trust God.

“Anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us therefore make every effort to enter into God’s rest” (Hebrews 4:11).

If you’re going to be in ministry, you’ve got to learn to relax. You need to be concerned about the people around you, but at the same time, you’re not God. You can’t bear everybody’s burden all the time your just not that strong!!

How do you release those burdens? First, you’ve got to pray. Ultimately, God is the one responsible for your flock. He’s the one responsible for the growth of your ministry. Share your burdens with him in prayer.

Then you need to spend some time in God’s Word meditating on his promises. Remember what God has done in the past – in God’s Word and in your own life. God has a good track record of taking care of us. Remember what God has done for you when you’re tempted to let the stress of your ministry position or life overwhelm you.

Will you commit to surrendering your stress to God?

4) Be An Encourager.

“Let us make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification” (Romans 14:19).

As a Christian leader, you should build people up rather than tear them down. God has called you to be an encourager, not a discourager. Take the time to look beyond the problems and look at the potential of those you lead. People get discouraged in life; you need to be a source of encouragement.

As pastors, and leaders we should be pez dispensers of hope. That’s what it means to be a Christian leader. You bring the hope of Jesus into a hopeless situation. You help people who seem to be helpless. You let them know they can do it.

Will you be a voice of encouragement in your community, in your church, in your home?

Don’t keep it to yourself share your Graditude for others with others!!!

5) Be A Peacemaker.

“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3).

Leaders are called to make every effort to reduce conflict. Our society is filled with conflict. Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” How do you make peace in such a fragmented society?

You’ve got to deal with different points of view. Not everybody is like you in your church. And that’s good. Everyone has something to contribute. The perspective of those who see the world differently can add something indispensible to your ministry.

At CrossView we value unity, not uniformity. You can walk hand-in-hand without seeing eye-to-eye on every issue. God can overlook the lack of programs in your church. He can overlook the lack of ability. But God will not bless a divided church.

That means one of your most important jobs is to promote unity. Ten times in the first five chapters of Acts, the Bible says the church was unified. When you have the unity of Acts, you will have the power of Acts.

Will you have the courage to unify your church when it is being pulled in many different directions?

John Wesley wrote; In essentials unity, in the nonessentials liberty and in all things love!!
Keep the main thing the main thing!
Don’t major in the minors!

6) Never Stop Growing.

“Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive…” (2 Peter 1: 5-8).

Learning is the lifestyle of leadership. The moment you think you know it all, you’re dead in the water. You must never stop growing. Growing ministries require growing leadership. You’ve got to train yourself continually.

Keep reading. Get a mentor. Solicit feedback. Ask questions. Always look for ways to keep growing in your character and your skills. The very nature of leadership is tied to growth. You’ve got to grow if you are going to lead others to grow.

Take a regular look at yourself. Where do you need to grow? What do you need to learn? What’s the best way to get the training you need?

Make a learning plan every year. Your future leadership depends upon it. Will you commit to keep growing as a leader and as a person?

If your a “know it all” than you “don’t know it all”
Humble yourself! I learn from my children everyday!
Don’t allow pride stop you, because if you do you will miss out on tasting the fruit of Gods blessings!

i thought this post was dead on and I couldn’t keep it to myself. This post was right along with my sermon on negative, complaining and gossip!! Check this out and share it!!!

I know we can’t spend our lives on the defensive.
I also realize that, when it comes to personal offense, we’re called to turn the other cheek.
The best strategy for dealing with critical, nasty people is usually to ignore them.

Nevertheless, I think every once in a while, it’s good to check a hater.
Sometimes, God might want to use you to shut down a rumor cycle or a negative conversation.

When you hear someone talking crap about a fellow believer, slandering their character, or impugning their motives, why not speak up?

How about saying something like:
“I don’t agree with what you’re saying about him/her, and I’d appreciate it if you stopped.”
Or:
“I’d prefer we didn’t go there. ___ is a good man/woman from what I know, and besides, he/she isn’t here to defend himself/herself.”

I was in a situation recently where I felt I was being baited to drag someone’s name through the mud.
Three different times over the course of the conversation, I stood up for the person in question, and it felt good.
Other times, I haven’t done so well with this. I kind of cowered. Those times, I feel kind of sick to my stomach.

No, you’re not called to police the attitudes and actions of others.
But, if you get the chance to check a hater, and in so doing, defend someone, don’t be a wuss.