Grace&truth Community Church's Podcasts

What we would call the second coming; meaning that it has yet to happen. God speaks to his enemies and ours and says, “get ready for war.” Get ready for judgment; sanctify and prepare yourself to the best of your ability because you’re going to war with God.  On one hand this is scary to think of; there’s a sense in which God is mocking the very people He’ll will one day judge. No one goes to war with God, He’s God! Also, wrapped up in this message of coming judgment is the sliver of hope that The Gospel message contains . . . “Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand.” There will be a day of judgement for all who’ve unrepentantly sinned against God and His people, the way of escape is to return to God.   Joel 3:9–13   "Repent, The Kingdom of God is at Hand!"     CALL TO WORSHIP   Psalm 145:1-5   “I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearc

This Passage highlights God’s character as a righteous judge.  In comparison to previous parts of Joel, we see God as: “gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster." (Joel 2:13) Today, we’ll see that those who unrepentantly abuse God’s people, then and now, are those who incur God’s perfect justice.  We also see that to sin against God’s people is to sin against God Himself.  This is wonderful news for God’s people, and a sobering truth for those who refuse God and abuse His people.    Joel 3:1-8  "GOD IS A GOD OF GRACE & JUSTICE"     VS. 1–3 - FORTUNES & JUDGEMENT   VS. 4 - INJUSTICE TOWARD GOD’S PEOPLE   VS. 5–6 - WRONG MY PEOPLE WRONG GOD   VS. 7–8 - VINDICATION       BENEDICTION     Psalm 37:27-31   “Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever. For the LORD loves justice; he will not forsake his saints.They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell up

In Joel 2:28-32, we see God’s Grace go from great to unbelievable! Joel prophecies of the day that will come when God will “pour out His Spirit on all flesh” culminating in a promise that “everyone who calls upon The Lord” will be saved! During this time God had only (mostly) made Himself known to the Hebrew people. Today, we live in the age where Joel’s prophecy is being fulfilled. Praise God indeed!   "From Great to Unimaginable"    Joel 2:28-32   Vs. 28-29 - God’s Spirit Spilled Out   Vs. 30-31 - Announcing The Day of The Lord   Vs. 32 - Salvation For All Who Call Upon The Name of The Lord          Admonition to Live According to God’s Spirit     Adapted From Galatians 5:16-18, 22-23   “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the God’s Spirit within you, and the desires of the Spirit are against the desires of the flesh. Satan’s task to keep you from doing the things you truly want to does anew creation. But if you are led b

Call to Worship   Psalm 145:1-5   “I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.  One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts. On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.”   Joel 2:26-27        Benediction    Adapted from Psalm 32:11—33:1–34:8    “Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!  Shout for joy in the LORD, O you righteous! Praise, worship & celebration befits the upright: those who have tasted & seen that the Lord is good.” 

We’ve turned the corner from the swarming locusts destroying the land, the people and everything else; to watching God not only relent but restoring to His people what they’d lost. “Fear not” and “be glad” convey the mood of this passage. This shows us that God is indeed “merciful” and “steadfast” when anyone turns away from sin and turns toward God’s in faith. For those who repent; the over arching message is that everything’s going to be restored and reconciled. Of course; we’ll only see this in part on this side of eternity, but we will ultimately and eternally see it. “Exceedingly and abundantly more than we could hope or dream.” Eph 3:20   Joel 2:18–25   From Fear to Rejoicing      Vs. 18-20 - Repentance Brings God's Mercy   Vs. 21–24 - Fear Not - But Rejoice!   Vs. 25 - I Will Restore You     Benediction   Taken from Psalm 113:2 – Ephesians 3:20-21   “Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and forevermore! Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, acco

The entire Book of Joel has been building up to this segment. The plague of locusts as they’re swallowing up the people of God and destroying the nation; just when they were at the point of being crushed . . . we read verses 12-13.  “Yet even now," declares the LORD, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments." Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.” Hence the title of this sermon series: “From Judgment To Reconciliation.” God offer to relent is still open to anyone who would rend their hearts and return to The Lord. This is such a great passage I can’t say enough about it.   Joel 2: 7-13 Vs. 7–10 - A Small Display of God’s Power     Vs. 11 - No One Can Withstand God’s Wrath     Vs. 12–13 - An Amazing Display of God’s Grace

Joel 2:13-17 This part of the sermon series focuses on the multi-faceted layers of God's character.      God is:   Gracious Merciful Compassionate Slow to Anger Does not Relent over Disaster Punishes the Guilty who do Not truly repent Offers Complete forgiveness and pardon to the sincere

Joel 2:1-6 God commands Joel to blast the alarm in order to strick fear in the hearts of the people of the nation; in order that they would return to God and God would relent of His all consuming plague. The overall theme of this segment is: be afraid, be stirred up, be shocked at the horror that ravages the land and threatens to destroy the people of God. The purpose for fear is so that the people then and now would reverence and honor God as we always should.     Vs. 1-2 - Wake Up!   Vs. 3–6 - Fire Devours & Anguish Grips The People       Benediction   Psalm 103:8-16   “The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father sh

Joel 1:13-20 God takes sin seriously, and God takes repentance seriously; so should we. In this passage Joel teaches the Israelites why they should repent; (us too). Namely because the wrath of God looms over the souls of all people, even God’s people (though not the ultimate wrath of Hell). In this segment Joel recounts how bad things are for the Israelites; and then gives voice to their need for God’s rescue in the midst of their circumstances.   Vs. 13–14 - Take Seriously God’s Call To Repent Vs. 15 - Why Repent? Vs. 16-18 - The Sky Has Fallen! Vs. 19–20 - Rescue Us From Our Suffering!

4/29/18 - Genesis 1:27-28   Book of Joel - Four Themes:   The Punishment of Plagues Brought on by the Sins of God's People  The Call to Turn Away From Sin and Return to God The Promise of Blessings from God for Those Who Repent  The Assurance Of Punishment for the enemies of God's People    PART I—JUDGEMENT (HOW WE GOT HERE?)   Genesis 3:1–13   Vs. 1-5 - Don’t Listen To God Listen To Me!   Vs. 6 - IT LOOKED GOOD   Vs. 7–10   Vs. 11 - YOU’VE BEEN LISTENING TO SOMEONE ELSE   Vs. 12-13 - NAKED & ASHAMED   PART II - RECONCILIATION (The Way Back Home)   Revelation 21:1-4         ASSURANCE OF PARDON Taken from John 6:37-40     “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me."   "And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son an

5/6/18 - Joel 1:1-4    As we begin in Joel 1:1-4, we learn that Joel is a book of prophecy given by God to His chosen servant during for a specific time to Israel then and to the His Church now and for all time.  God displays His infinite loving-kindness by speaking to His people, calling them to turn from their dark ways and turn to Him in humble repentance.  Just like any good parent, God is gracious even in His judgement and in His discipline.   He provides a way of escape from the destruction around them, as He does for us now through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.  

4/15/18  PART 1: THE WAGE EARNERS  Matthew 7:21-23 (Jesus is speaking here about Unbelievers)   Vs. 21 - SAYING & DOING ARE DIFFERENT THINGS   Vs. 22 - LOOK AT WHAT I’VE DONE FOR YOU JESUS   Vs. 23 - JESUS ANSWERS THE SAYERS     PART 2: THE STEWARDS   Matthew 25:34-40 (Jesus is speaking here about Christians)   Vs. 34 - INHERIT THE KINGDOM   Vs. 35-36 - YOU SERVED ME   Vs. 37–39 - WHAT HAVE WE EVER DONE?   Vs. 40 - BY SERVING OTHERS YOU SERVE GOD   BENEDICTION     Taken From Galatians 6:6-10   “Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of th

4/08/28 - Luke 19:1-10     From Thief to Steward     Vs. 1–4 Jesus Comes to Jericho   Vs. 5-6 Jesus & The Town Thief   Vs. 7 What’s He Doing?   Vs. 8-10 From Thief to Steward     Benediction:   Proverbs 30:5-9 ESV "5 Every word of God proves true;     he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. 6 Do not add to his words,     lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar. 7 Two things I ask of you;     deny them not to me before I die: 8 Remove far from me falsehood and lying;     give me neither poverty nor riches;     feed me with the food that is needful for me, 9 lest I be full and deny you     and say, “Who is the Lord?” or lest I be poor and steal     and profane the name of my God."

4/01/18 -  1 Corinthians 15:12-22 CSB     Resurrection Matters Eternally         Vs. 12-14 - Resurrection: The Foundation of Our Faith     Vs. 15-18 - If Christ Is Still Dead Then So Are We!      Vs. 19 - This Life Only?     Vs. 20-22 - Jesus’ Resurrection Ensures Our Resurrection!             Benediction   Adapted from 1 Corinthians 15:54-58 ESV     Call   “God’s people, When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:"     Response   "Death is swallowed up in victory." "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ by fulfilling the law for us."     Call   "Therefore, my beloved, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

3/25/18 - Ben Kauk - "On Stewardship" 1 Peter 4:7-11 "The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen."  

3/18/18 -"Lift Up Your Eyes" - John 4:35-42   VS. 35 - IT’S HARVEST TIME   VS. 36–38 - SERVING THROUGH SEWING & REAPING   Vs.39 - THEY BELIEVE IN JESUS   VS. 40-42 - JESUS STAYED WITH THEM TWO DAYS     Benediction     "Wherever you go, God is sending you. Wherever you are, God has put you there. God has a purpose in your being right where you are. Christ, who indwells you by the power of his Spirit, wants to do something in and through you. Believe this and go in his grace, his love, his power. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen"

John 4:27-34   Vs. 27 - Clueless Wonder   Vs. 28-29 - She Left Her Jar Behind   Vs. 30–31 - Devoted But Clueless   Vs. 34 - Sustained By Doing God’s Will      Affirmation of Faith   Psalm 40:8-11   “I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart."  I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; behold, I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O LORD. I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart; I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation; I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great congregation. As for you, O LORD, you will not restrain your mercy from me; your steadfast love and your faithfulness will ever preserve me!”

3/04/18 - John 4:22-26   Vs. 22–24 - God Seeks True Worshipers   Vs. 25-26 - I Am He!     Affirmation of Faith   1 Peter 2:1-5   “Put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

2/25/18 - John 4:16–21   Vs. 16–18 - The Heart of the Matter   Vs. 19-20 - Changing The Subject   Vs. 21 - Not Where, But Whom You Worship       Corporate Confession Adapted from:   The Valley of Vision & Augustine’s Confessions     "Eternal God, though I only understand in part of Your goodness I know enough to praise You for eternity. I thank You for Your personal mercies toward me. I thank You for family, friends, I thank You for the comfort of Your Church. God I confess that I don’t worship You as I should, I don’t hate my sin as I should, nor do I love my neighbor as I love myself. Despite my failures You permit me to live, so that I may seek You anew and point others to seek You. My Great God and Savior may You “command whatever You will and may you graciously give me over to to be and that which you command. May it be so, God The Father, Jesus The Son and God The Holy Spirit."

2/18/18 - Ben Kauk  Living Water - John 4:1-15 "Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), he left Judea and departed again for Galilee. And he had to pass through Samaria. So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob's well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour." "A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.”(For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” The woman said to