Everyday Discipleship Wk 8
Everyday Discipleship with Real People
How to Do Spiritual Warfare!
Loving accountability from the first 7 sessions:
2) Use the S.O.A.P. Bible journaling technique: Y or N
3) Pray & meditate upon the Lord’s Prayer daily: Y or N
4) Memorize the assigned Bible verses, to include last week’s memory verse of Matthew 11:28-30: Y or N
5) Manage your calendar for the “Big Three” and for gathering with your church: Y or N
Review of major concepts:
+ Disciple = intentionally following Jesus’ way and teachings
+ Discipleship = intentional journey and life-long commitment to learn and manifest the fruit of who I am in Christ
+ The “Big Three” = transformative practices of Bible intake, prayer intimacy, and spiritual friendships
+ Church = intentional community of disciples who are called in love, gathered for love, and sent on mission
+ Walk by the Spirit = empowered lifestyle of focused surrender
+ Walk in the easy yoke of Jesus = covenant faithfulness
+ Disciple’s Desire = “Well done, good and faithful servant”
THE BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW IS
A SUPERNATURAL ONE, SO LET’S LEARN
HOW TO DO SPIRITUAL WARFARE!
Let’s look at the big picture to start.
+ Colossians 1:13-14
+ Acts 10:38
+ Matthew 17:14-21
+ Mark 5:1-20
Four Steps to Effective Spiritual Warfare
Step 1: Know there is an enemy.
+ 1 Peter 5:8-9
+ Matthew 12:43-45
Step 2: Discern/test/examine the spirits.
+ 1 John 4:1-4
+ 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22
+ 2 Corinthians 10:3-6
Step 3: Take cover by submitting your life to God.
+ Memorize James 4:7.
+ Acts 19:13-20
Step 4: Stand firm in your faith – the victory!
+ Ephesians 6:10-20
+ 1 John 5:1-5
+ John 16:33
Action Items for this week:
2) Write a SOAP journal entry for either each chapter or each day. Bring your notebook to take notes.
3) Review this handout as you prepare to read your Bible every day. Invite the Holy Spirit to help you “become” conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29).
If you would like to watch this lesson on YouTube, click HERE.
If you would like to view the entire service including music, etc. click HERE.
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Seize the Moment – Day 1453
Today’s worship song focus
Praise
Psalm 150:6 (NASB95)
“ Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!”
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
If you would like to listen to this song, click on this link:
Praise
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Seize the Moment – Day 1452
The Rest of God’s Hesed!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, March 8.
In Isaiah 63, after invoking the Divine Warrior imagery of the Messiah, Isaiah proclaimed the covenant faithfulness of God – His hesed. He made it very clear that it was not the people’s faithfulness that rescued them from Egyptian slavery and brought them into the Promised Land, the land of rest (Joshua 21:43-45). Rather, it was the covenantal love of God, His hesed, as proclaimed in Isaiah 63:7, “I shall make mention of the lovingkindnesses [hesed] of the Lord, the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord has granted us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which He has granted them according to His compassion and according to the abundance of His lovingkindnesses [hesed].” It was God’s hesed that persevered with the people of God and led them into His rest, as stated in verses 12-14:
Who caused His glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses, who divided the waters before them to make for Himself an everlasting name, who led them through the depths? Like the horse in the wilderness, they did not stumble; as the cattle which go down into the valley, the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest. So You led Your people, to make for Yourself a glorious name.
In the same way, it is Jesus who leads us into the rest of God’s hesed. As Paul declared in Colossians 1:13-14, “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” When we are in Christ, we enter the rest of Jesus’ covenant obedience to the Father, who bestowed upon Him the name that is above every name (Philippians 2:5-13). Find rest by taking on the easy yoke of Jesus (Matthew 11:28-30; Galatians 5:1).
Seize the moment and diligently enter His rest by walking by the Spirit (Hebrews 4:10-11; Galatians 5:16-25).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Seize the Moment – Day 1451
The Importance of Self-Identity!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, March 7.
Self-identity shapes how you view the world and relate to it. So much of your personal agency is determined by your self-concept. God knows this, which is why Paul proclaimed in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” In Christ, you are not who you used to be, the Spirit is transforming you into His likeness through the renewal of your mind (Romans 12:2). In Isaiah 62:1-4, God promised to give His chosen city a new name:
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet, until her righteousness goes forth like brightness, and her salvation like a torch that is burning. The nations will see your righteousness, and all kings your glory; and you will be called by a new name which the mouth of the Lord will designate. … It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,” nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”; but you will be called, “My delight is in her,” and your land, “Married”; for the Lord delights in you, and to Him your land will be married.
God has promised His people an unbreakable covenant, declaring His delight in choosing Jerusalem as His bride, the bosom of His eternal kingdom (Revelation 21:2-7). Receiving a new name is part of God’s redemptive work, as Jesus promised in Revelation 3:12, “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name” (cf. Revelation 2:17).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Seize the Moment – Day 1450
Stewards of the Spirit!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, March 6.
Jesus began His ministry by proclaiming the fulfillment of Isaiah 61. In Luke 4:17-21, we watch Jesus enter a Jewish synagogue:
And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the LORD.” And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
In quoting Isaiah 61:1-2a, Jesus was declaring the fulfillment of the whole prophecy, in which God promised in verses 6-8, “But you will be called the priests of the Lord; you will be spoken of as ministers of our God. … [to] make an everlasting covenant with them.” This is why Christ came – to establish the New Covenant between God and humanity, of which He is the only Mediator (1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 9:15). As disciples of Jesus, we are stewards of the same Spirit promised in Isaiah 61 and fulfilled in 1 Peter 2:9, “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
Seize the moment and live victoriously as a steward of the Spirit. The same Spirit that descended upon Jesus at His baptism (Luke 3:21-22) and led Him into the desert to be tempted by the devil (Luke 4:1-13), empowers your Christian life today (1 John 4:4).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Seize the Moment – Day 1449
Point to the Final Redemption!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, March 5.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is more than the forgiveness of your sins; it is the proclamation of the Kingdom of God, which culminates in the redemption of all things. Paul declared this about Jesus in Colossians 1:20, “through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.” God foretold this in Isaiah 60:18-22:
Violence will not be heard again in your land, nor devastation or destruction within your borders; but you will call your walls salvation, and your gates praise. No longer will you have the sun for light by day, nor for brightness will the moon give you light; but you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, and your God for your glory. Your sun will no longer set, nor will your moon wane; for you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, and the days of your mourning will be over. Then all your people will be righteous; they will possess the land forever, the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified. The smallest one will become a clan, and the least one a mighty nation. I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time.
This imagery concludes the Bible in Revelation 21-22, with a glimpse of the New Heaven and New Earth. At the appointed time, Jesus came to declare the Kingdom of God (Galatians 4:4-5), and He will hasten its completion in the Father’s prescribed time (Matthew 24:36; Acts 1:7). Until then, you are called to be a Spirit-empowered witness of the gospel of the Kingdom of God (Acts 1:8).
Seize the moment and point to the final redemption, demonstrating how God has rescued you through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus – “You are witnesses of these things” (Luke 24:46-48).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Seize the Moment – Day 1448
The Offspring of the Messiah!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, March 4.
Children say the darndest things. Often, it is just that children will simply parrot what they’ve heard a parent say, which sounds funny when they don’t really know the meaning of the words they are repeating. In the best of situations, a child will repeat something wise, upon which an awestruck adult will quote the Scripture, “Out of the mouth of babes” (Matthew 21:16, KJV). In the same way, you will know a child of God by how their speech reflects the One to whom they spend time listening. Isaiah 59:21 described the children of the coming Messiah, “‘As for Me, this is My covenant with them,’ says the Lord: ‘My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,’ says the Lord, ‘from now and forever.’”
To be an offspring of the Messiah, you must receive His Word as from God, just as John announced about the coming of Jesus in John 1:12-13, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” When you receive His Word, you are born again when the Spirit comes upon you, as Paul stated in Romans 8:15-16, “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God.”
Seize the moment and spend time with Jesus, meditating upon His teachings, so that when the Spirit brings them to your mind, you know what they mean and use them accurately (John 14:26; 16:13-15; 17:7-8).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Heart of a Child
Heart of a Child
- Are you currently up to 2 Corinthians 9? Y or N
- Are you using the S.O.A.P technique? Y or N
- Pray and meditate on the Lord’s prayer? Y or N
- Did you memorize Matthew 11:28-30? Y or N
- Did you work with Jesus (not for Him),do everything for His glory, and truly abide with Him? Y or N
Today’s scripture was one of those that “jumped out” at me during this current challenge. The disciples have been with Jesus now for over two years. They had heard His teachings, witnessed His miracles and had even seen thing happen in their own time of ministry. But this scripture points out just how ‘human’ the disciples were…and it can also be found in Mark 9:33-37 and Luke 9:46-48.
About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?” Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me.”
I don’t know about you, but ‘adulting’ can be tough sometimes and I would love to be like a little child with no responsibilities. To be able to be carefree, play games and enjoy life. I remember playing with my boys when they were kids, and now being able to repeat that with my grandkids.
Playing games like “Peek-a-boo” (tell ‘dad joke’ here)
Or “Hide-n-seek”, not the one where you tell them to go hide, and then ‘forget’ to go seek them…but where they are able to use their creative thought processes to find a spot to hide where you would least expect to find them.
Adam and Eve were the first ones to play Hide and Seek…not a good outcome. But God came up with a plan to seek and save that which was lost.
So for today, I would like for each of you to find the ‘inner child’ inside each and every one of us and become the child of God we are called to be. Let’s look at the scriptures on how we have our own version of ‘Hide and Seek’:
- Hide His Word (Psalm 119:11)
- Hide to seek (Matthew 6:6)
- Seek to find (Matthew 6:33)
1. Hide His Word
Psalm 119:11: “I have hidden your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.”
Much like when you save money back in a safe place to be able to buy a big ticket item, the same is true when we mediate and memorize God’s Word.
Psalm 78:4: “We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord, about his power and his mighty wonders.”
How will they know unless we tell them???
2. Hide to Seek
Matthew 6:6: “But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.”
Find a place to get away from the distractions of this life.
Jesus did it, so you need to also!!! (Mark 1:35; Luke 5:16)
Turn off the music, the phone, any distraction.
There is a time for the music/worship, but you also need the “BE STILL” time.
ILLUS: Intentional Time: Sabbatical: Katie Kinnaird
TBH….this is a difficult one for me.
3. Seek to Find
Matthew 6:33: “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”
Other translations…”Seek FIRST..”
The worlds says there is a proper order for things…. First things first!
*This idiom is used to tell someone that more important things should be done before less important things.
With God, we are told to keep Him first, seek Him and we are promised that we will find Him.
Matthew 7:7-8: “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
This is in no way a one and done thing
We have to daily be working on this, especially for us slow learners!
John 14:21: “Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.”
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Seize the Moment – Day 1446
Today’s worship song focus :
First Things First
Revelation 2:4-5a (NASB95)
and repent and do the deeds you did at first;”
The brotherly trio of Caleb, Jordan and Josh Ward make up the group “Consumed by Fire”. They grew up traveling with their father who was an evangelist, serving others through church planting and medical missions. After their father had a catastrophic stroke, the boys took a hiatus to care for him. Following his passing in the spring of 2022, they reemerged with a fresh passion and commitment to the calling of their ministry through song. Jordan said this song “spearheaded the creation of a new direction for us… We’re saying, ‘Lord, we want what You want.’”
First thing’s first I seek Your will Not my own
Surrender all my wants to you Keep the first thing first
We need to wake up and take the words of this song as a prayer for our own lives. By returning our hearts to our first love, Jesus, we are then moved to love others in the way that He loves us!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
If you would like to listen to this song, click on this link:
First Things First
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Seize the Moment – Day 1445
Fast to Break the Yoke of Slavery!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, March 1.
As I read Isaiah 58:6-11, I find myself contemplating the invitation to fast during Lent, which is an annual rhythm of preparation for Holy Week, which many Christians around the world participate:
Is this not the fast which I choose, to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free and break every yoke? … Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry, and He will say, “Here I am.” If you remove the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger and speaking wickedness, and if you give yourself to the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then your light will rise in darkness and your gloom will become like midday.
Throughout this 40-day period, the church has historically participated in the spiritual discipline of fasting as a means of focusing oneself on the crucifixion of Jesus Christ (Good Friday) and His resurrection from the dead (Easter). When I consider the invitation to join with the larger church body in this ancient practice, I seek wisdom from Jesus, who said in Luke 5:34-35, “You cannot make the attendants of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them, can you? But the days will come; and when the bridegroom is taken away from them, then they will fast in those days.” These are those days as we await the return of Jesus Christ, who has ascended to the right hand of the Father, where He is interceding for us (Romans 8:34). Until His return, we fast to remind ourselves that there is nothing of this world that can satisfy our needs; we are fulfilled in Christ alone!
Seize the moment and find your satisfaction in the easy yoke of Jesus Christ (Matthew 11:28-30), which shatters all other yokes that seek to enslave you (Galatians 5:1).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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