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The last in this Wisdom of God series, this sermon looks at the wisdom that is found and demonstrated in the life and teachings of Jesus himself. This sermon came the Sunday following the tragic shooting at a high school in Florida, and thus Pastor Josh spends some time reflecting on how the wisdom we find in Jesus impacts the broken and hurting world we find ourselves in, specifically in such horrific events as this.
VCHS's own William Simkiss shares his insights with us this week on the wisdom of heeding God's reproof before we require a rebuke. Pastor Josh wraps it up with a note of application on what it means to be our brother's keeper and operate as a family of faith.
Having wisdom does not guarantee obedience, blessing, or God's favor. Solomon was given wisdom, discernment and wealth but in the end found it all to be meaningless when his heart turned away from the Lord and he stopped following God's ways. Late in his life, he looks back and realizes that his best chance for a happy and fulfilled life was to follow God's commands. The tragedy of Solomon is the tragedy of what could have been. But his writings give us direction to avoid the same folly.
The lesson of Ecclesiastes is not that we should be depressed all the time because everything is meaningless, the lesson is that God has provided a way that we can enjoy life by putting things in their proper perspective. We must make the right choices and value the right things. King Solomon had spent time, money and energy on all the wrong things that do not satisfy and he writes to offer wisdom to avoid his error.
The wisdom of Job is the mystery of suffering in light of the sovereignty of God. God is sovereign over both the trouble and the blessings. If you've ever judged yourself and thought that you were experiencing trouble because you failed, if you've ever given counsel to someone in error like Job's friends did, or if you've received counsel that was errant and that left you dismayed and wondering where to turn, then we hope this lesson from Job's life will help you heal, forgive, and see your circumstances in light of God's sovereignty.
Proverbs 9:10 says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." Wisdom is more than just knowledge - it is the application of knowledge combined with obedience to God. Wisdom must by sought and cultivated not in the times of crisis and distress but in the day to day of life so that when we encounter the unexpected and difficult times, wisdom is at the ready. But we must start from a place of revering and respecting the Lord, or we will learn the wrong lessons and grow in fear or cynicism instead of wisdom.
What does it mean to be a seeker? It means that you are relentlessly looking for something. The Bible directs us to "seek the Lord while He can be found". The journey of the Magi to find the newborn King gives us an amazing illustration of persisting in our pursuit of Jesus and the surprising ways that He unexpectedly reveals Himself.
Pastor Josh looks at the Shepherds' role in the birth of the Messiah and the good news we see in God giving an extraordinary, extravagant gift to the most common man.
In the first week of Advent, we celebrate hope, and specifically the hope that we've been given through prophecy and the prophets. Jesus himself fulfilled hundreds of prophecies about the Messiah. John the Baptist is the prophet of Advent who came to prepare the way for the coming of Jesus. As we prepare our hearts for Christmas, we prepare ourselves for the coming of Jesus as the prophets have by embracing a message of hope and being confident in what the Lord has said He will do.
Continuing in the Malleable sermon series, Josh Pavel speaks about the necessity of being Christlike and being constantly shaped into the image of Jesus.
William Simkiss talks about the need for change and growth in our lives because things are either growing or dying. We are made "fit for heaven" by being shaped into the image of Jesus, and our emotions play a critical role in this process.
Continuing in the "Malleable" series, Pastor Josh Pavel teaches on humility and how it is essential to being formed and shaped in the image of Jesus. After digging into scripture to discover the meaning of what it is to be humble and what that looks like, this teaching is wrapped up with a very practical list of things we can begin to do right now to grow in humility.
Board member Pam Cannon shares with us about her gift of faith, how a gift of faith is different from other kinds of faith such as saving faith, and shares the story of how her faith was instrumental in the process of leasing our new church facility.
Amy Bruton takes us through the scriptures to learn the who, what, when, and how of the prophetic and shares some of her own stories about hearing and discerning God's voice.
Jeremy Geelen shares his experiences of hearing from the Lord and learning to discern what he hears as well as encouragement for the church in learning to discern the prophetic, teaching, and personal experiences with hearing from God.
David and Melanie Macon, who faithfully administer hospitality at The Vineyard Church, share their stories of the Holy Spirit guiding them in using their gifts of hospitality and helps as well as what the Lord has shown them about the nature of spiritual gifts as a whole.
Jessica Geelen shares her story of becoming worship leader at VCHS and how her gift of craftsmanship has shaped that role and the way she hears from God.
Jack Kelly, staff pastor of Expression 58 church in Los Angeles, CA and missionary to the entertainment industry in Hollywood brings a message to The Vineyard Church about being people who bring God's shalom and operate as thermostats instead of thermometers wherever we are.
Pastor Josh discusses the types and purposes of the gift of tongues as well as shares his own relatable experiences with tongues.
Administrative Pastor, Leah Pavel, shares with us about the gift of administration and what it is that distinguishes the spiritual gift of administration from the commonplace, secular administration that we are all so familiar with.
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10:30am Sunday @
190 Rosewood Centre Drive
Suite 101
Holly Springs, NC 27540
E: office@hollyspringsvineyard.org
P: 919-391-8247
