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Some of you know what it’s like. There you are, at Walmart, and you find yourself toward the back of the store. You’re near the electronics section. And there’s a bin. You have to go through it; you have no choice. You need that $5 DVD, even though everything in that bin is currently streaming for free.…

1 Peter 3:18-22

How do we handle pain, suffering and the evil around us? This is the question we have been exploring the past couple weeks. I am hoping to wrap up by the beginning of November our series on suffering. Joseph experienced a lot of pain and suffering. Some of this was because of his choices and many times…

Last week: sin causes suffering. This was a major, if not THE major takeway from last week. Because of the sin of humanity, starting with Adam & Eve, suffering, unbearable pain, and evil is part of our world. The Bible does not teach Karma. In a concept very similar, from what I can tell, to Karma the…

20 years ago life took a turn for the worst. At least that is true of our nation. But for many people life was already at a pretty low point. But it was a day when we say close to 3,000 people die, without any warning. The big problem: evil, suffering and a “good God”. This is the number one reason why…

Where are you looking? This is an important question. Where are you looking for love, hope, truth, grace, relationships, authority, perspective? We go where we look. We will become like that which we look at. For some we look in the past. This is the “good old days”. This is appropriate and we at times…

Our world is broken. This much most of us can agree on. In our journey of evil and suffering we must be reminded of this truth from the beginning. Sometimes we say things like, “why do bad things happen to good people” which can undermine we are all broken. I don’t mean to minimize the statement because…

Two ways: positive thinking or resignation. These tend to the be two ways of handling pain, suffering or evil in our culture. If we can just think happy thoughts the pain will go away. If I just act as if it is not really happening I will be okay. Or this is just who I am. Look at my pain. Look at what…

The connection of suffering with grace. Have you ever stopped to notice the connection between God’s grace and those in suffering? As you read through Scripture do you notice some things about God’s character because of the stories of suffering and evil in the world? The Lord said, “I have indeed seen…

Learn to suffer well

Suffering; Why does suffering happen? What is God's purpose in suffering?

Big Idea - There is so much that divides us - but gratitude can unite us. The early church understood the place of Gratitude in Worship . Communion is the great unifier . 44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their property and possessions and…

1 Peter 4:7-11 The final stages or steps of any journey, program, or strategy are crucial ones because they determine the outcome of all that has come before and whether the journey, program, or strategy will ultimately be successful. Highschool and college or university seniors, for instance, follow…

Text : Remember the earlier days when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings. Sometimes you were publicly exposed to taunts and afflictions, and at other times you were companions of those who were treated that way. For you sympathized with the prisoners and accepted…

When coming to this text in 1 Peter, the wise and learned reformer, Martin Luther had this to say: “A wonderful text is this, and a more obscure passage than any other in the [New] Testament…I do not know for a certainty what Peter means…I cannot understand and I cannot explain it. And there has been…

Evening 8 Oct 23

Based on Hebrews 5:7-10. Jesus endured pain & suffering with little physical support from followiers or friends, even while on the cross. Suffering is a part of life, but we should not face pain and suffering alone.

Intro: This morning we are continuing our study through 1 Peter and 2 weeks ago we started talking about a word that everyone loves to hear… Submission. The first area of submission that Peter talked about was, our submission to government… and we spent the last two Sundays talking about that. I quoted…

History Written to the early church, to the “exiles” who were scattered abroad. There could have been different levels of persecution taking place in different regions which is why Peter states “if that should be God’s will.” Today we have different levels of persecution around the world and even in…

1 Peter 3:8-12 If you’ve followed Christ for any significant length of time, you’ve probably experienced some special difficulties because you’re a Christian. These may include broken relationships, cultural marginalization, social isolation, ethical and professional challenges, and more. Still, let’s…

Welcome Good morning everyone, today we are finishing our series on the book of James. He has been speaking against them doing a lot of different things, arguing, slandering one another, looking out for themselves, but in the last part of James he speaks more pastorally to the church, offering sympathy…

Psalm 3 Somehow or another, every good movie finds a way to place the main character(s) in an excruciating dilemma with seemingly no way out. After squeezing out every last second of agony and horror from the audience through the twists and turns of the crisis, the plot finally resolves in some clever,…

Introduction: So often you hear the phrase “suffering for Jesus” and people are referring to someone who actually is not really suffering at all. It might be someone who is on some tropical island on a mission trip, or someone who is in a place that we would love to visit. At one point in time, did you…

The Suffering Servant My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? God’s Silence in Our Suffering O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. In you…