CENTRAL THOUGHTAs we remain yielded to the Lord, His glorious plans for our lives unfold like the sunflower at sunrise. TEXT: JOSHUA 1:1-9 INTRODUCTION:It is a certainty that the Lord has a good and purposeful plan for all of humanity, but the realization of this plan by the individual requires the cooperation and obedience. The plan is encapsuled in the work of redemption by which the Lord Jesus Christ took the place of the sinful man in an agonizing death on the cross. That sacrificial work is summarized in the all-too-popular verse of the Bible: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son: that whosoever believeth in Him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). When an individual accepts Christ and repents from the sin, the plan of God embedded in this work of Grace begins to unfold. At first, there is the experience of inner peace and profound joy which overtakes the burden that arises from sin. Then as we continue in a walk of obedience, other aspects of the plan of God begin to unfold. If it is in full-time Christian service, the Lord opens doors of ministry with excellent results. If it is in a profession or career or...
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TEXT: GEN.12:1-3; 15:1-7, 13-16; 37:5-11; ECCL.3:1-8 AND ACTS 9:11-15 CENTRAL THOUGHTKnowing and accepting God’s plan for your life enables you remain steadfast no matter what you may be passing through. Hymn: To God be the glory! Great things He hath done. INTRODUCTION:Right from creation, man has been faced with the problem of knowing who he is, why he is where he is, where he would go from, where he is, and what lies ahead of him. In his efforts to find answers to the problem, man has fashioned out various philosophies and methods which unfortunately have not helped him in getting the needed solution. Man has also found it difficult to understand why certain things should happen to him.This consequently has kept him in a state of dissatisfaction with himself, leading him to propound theories like self-actualization, self-discovery etc. But all these cannot provide solution to his problem. The answer to his problem can only come at a point when man realizes that he did not come to the face of this earth by accident, but that he was made by God and that God has a purpose and plan for his stay on earth.Christians are not supposed to be taken in this web of ignorance, but it does...
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Comments Off on THE AFTERLIFE OF THE BELIEVER, DECEMBER 29TH, 2024
xr:d:DAFDFqCCnyQ:20,j:28217326057,t:22060906 CENTRAL THOUGHTThe Believers’ victorious living onearth is a foretaste of the gloriouslife hereafter. TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 12: 15-23; PHILIPPIANS 1:21-23;1 CORINTHIANS 15:42-44INTRODUCTION:“…for what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeared for a little time, and then vanished away”, James 4:14. The physical life of man is brief. However, death is a universal experience for all of mankind. There’s no individual, whether rich or poor, wise or foolish, great or small that has power to resist in the day of death. Psalm 89:48 says, “What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? shallhe deliver his soul from the hand of the grave Selah?” The appointment with death is compulsory for both the believer in Christ and the non-believers in Him. The Lord Jesus conquered death for the believers and defeated Satan that had enslaved mankind in the fear of death. To the believer death is gain, triumphant, and to be greatly desired. The believer in Christ does not fear death, Psalm 23:4, but has hope in his death, Proverbs 14:32. Whether alive or deadphysically, the believer belongs to the Lord, and liveseternally with the Lord. Unfortunately, when the unbeliever dies he/she is lost forever in hell, because his/her inner man is dead in...
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Comments Off on THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST
CENTRAL THOUGHT Celebrating the Lordship of Jesus Christ. TEXT: LUKE 2:1-20 INTRODUCTION: The birth of Jesus Christ is the essence of the Christmas celebration. Ironically, many people celebrate Christmas without recourse to the significance of the celebration. In other words, many celebrate the birth of whom they do not know.Worse still they are not even willing to consider the purpose of the celebration or how it affects their personal life, even when someone tells them. To some, Christmas is just an annual Christian festival, an opportunity to wine and dine.This study will help us look beyond the glamor of the season and get hold of the essence of the birth of Jesus Christ. LESSON OBJECTIVES 1. Understand God’s ability to fulfill all His promises. 2. Understand Christ’s humble nature. 3. Understand the purpose of Christ’s birth. 4. Learn what is expected of Christians at the season of the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. BIBLE TRUTH: QUESTION 1A) WHAT DO WE LEARN ABOUT GOD AS THE DECREE OF CAESAR AUGUSTUS HELPED TO FULFILL HIS PREDICTION CONCERNING CHRIST?Lk.2:1-5; Micah 5:2 The decree of Caesar Augustus went out by the will of God in order to fulfill His plan to bring His son into the world. In the garden of...
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Comments Off on TRIUMPHANT THANKSGIVING, DECEMBER 15TH, 2024
CENTRAL THOUGHTThanksgiving is a necessity for all believers. TEXT: 2 CORINTHIANS 2:14; 2 CHRONICLES 7:1-16. INTRODUCTION: As a believer in Christ, you can give thanks because you are a part of His triumph; you are more than a conqueror through Him. No matter what you have gone through in this passing year, you can give thanks to God because Christ, not you, not your smartness, not your financial assets, Christ alone has made you to triumph over the world, the flesh, and the devil. Nothing that is happening in our society today, neither death, nor natural disasters, nor war, nor political turmoil, nor scandal, ought to cause you to be ungrateful or unthankful on this day or any other day. Christ has overcome the world, and you have overcome through Him.LESSON OBJECTIVES The objectives of this study are to: 1. Understand what triumphant thanksgiving means. 2. Know from scripture how king Solomon offered thanksgiving to God. 3. Learn what it takes as believers to give thanks unto God. 4. Appreciate the elements of a triumphant thanksgiving from scriptures. 5. Draw valuable lesson(s) from the believers of old that gave thanks unto God. BIBLE TRUTH:QUESTION 1A) WHAT DO YOU UNDERSTAND BY“TRIUMPHANT THANKSGIVING”?Triumphant thanksgiving refers to a victorious or successful thanksgiving....
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Comments Off on THE LIFESTYLE OF A DILIGENT CHRISTIAN, DECEMBER 8TH, 2024
CENTRAL THOUGHT: Being diligent in everything we do is profitable.Hymn:“ When we walk with the Lord”. TEXT: 2 THESS.3:6-15; PROV.6:6-11. INTRODUCTION: Diligence is a necessary virtue (habit) to be cultivated by an individual if he/she is to make success of life’s endeavors. It is an attitude that affects remarkably every area of one’s life-spiritual and physical. A diligent lifestyle is revealed in steady effort and careful hard work. An individual with a diligent lifestyle shows tremendous care and effort in his/her duties and work. On the other hand, an indolent (lazy, slothful) lifestyle is manifested in an attitude of unwillingness to work.Today, some persons are unable to maximize their potentials and achieve success in life because of a lack of an attitude of personal devotion to work. The failure of some believers in life’s endeavors is not because they have not been endowed with qualities that enhance success but rather such failures can be traced to indolence (laziness) or a lack of devotion to life’s duties.This study therefore seeks to encourage believers to maintain a diligent lifestyle because diligence is a virtue that is profitable in all areas of life. LESSON OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this lesson is to make us:-1. Understand what diligence is.2. Know the elements of...
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