Pastor Mac Hammond | March 21, 2021

Recap: 
“Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:” –Colossians 1:26–27 KJV

The moment you enter into God’s kingdom, you receive “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” What exactly does that mean? As Pastor Mac talked about this past weekend, “glory” refers to the manifestation of God. Since God is nothing but good and He is the King of glory, the most succinct definition of God’s glory is the manifestation of God’s goodness.

When we enter into God’s kingdom, we receive “Christ in us, the hope of God’s manifested goodness.” That means we can walk through every day, hoping—or you could say, confidently expecting—God’s goodness will be manifested in our lives. It may not always appear that way, but that’s where faith comes into action. Dare to believe that God’s goodness is ready to change the temporal truth you are facing and align it with the spiritual reality of God’s goodness.

Dive Deeper:
A lot of Christians don’t experience the goodness of God on a regular basis; as a result, they may struggle to expect that God will be good to them. What they may not realize is that we all have this same challenge: to come to a point of believing what the Word says is true, even when it can’t be empirically validated. This isn’t easy, but this is where faith is put into action.

If you want to increase your faith in God’s goodness, start by reading your Bible, praying, and attending church. These regular spiritual disciplines don’t make you good. They remind you that God is good. They bring your mental thought patterns into alignment with the truth that God is ready to pour out His goodness in your life. As you increasingly think about God’s goodness, you’ll increasingly expect to see His goodness manifest.

Now, the more you realize that Christ is in you, the more you move yourself to be “in Christ.” You begin to identify yourself as a child of God, the source of God’s glory and manifested goodness in this earth for others to see. You’ll begin to see your days as an opportunity for God’s goodness to be manifest to you and through you to others.

Read More:
Colossians 1:27 (TPT)
Living within you is the Christ who floods you with the expectation of glory! This mystery of Christ, embedded within us, becomes a heavenly treasure chest of hope filled with the riches of glory for his people, and God wants everyone to know it!

2 Corinthians 3:18 KJV
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

2 Corinthians 3:18 TPT
We can all draw close to him with the veil removed from our faces. And with no veil we all become like mirrors who brightly reflect the glory of the Lord Jesus. We are being transfigured into his very image as we move from one brighter level of glory to another. And this glorious transfiguration comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Romans 12:2 KJV
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Discussion Questions:
 1.    How have you seen God’s goodness manifested to you today? over this past week? over this past year?

2.    How have you seen God manifest His goodness through you to others today? this past week? this past year?

3.    What are the biggest detractors to our ability to display God’s goodness to others? How can we point people back to Jesus without coming across as overly spiritual?

4.    How can we become more aware of helping others in our daily life? What is your favorite way to bless others?

Recent Sermon Notes

The Gift of Righteousness or System of Truth | Mark Hankins

Mark Hankins, delivered a message entitled, “The Gift of Righteousness or System of Truth.” He explained that everywhere the Apostle Paul preached and in all of his letters to the churches, Paul consistently taught a “form of doctrine.” The Weymouth translation called it a “system of truth.” This system of truth was designed to create champions, those who would reign in life like a king! 

Bringing Your Flow to the Corporate Anointing | James Tan

we were blessed to have as our special guest minister, Dr. James Tan. He used Hebrews 5:14 as his text: “But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” He cautioned that there were far too many believers who have never grown up and are still drinking milk when they should be eating solid food. A mature believer is someone who is able to discern the manifestations of Holy Spirit and the anointing. Dr. James went on to teach that there are primarily three manifestations of the anointing. 

Thy Kingdom Come, #4 | Mac Hammond

Pastor Mac was back this past weekend! He continued his series, “Thy Kingdom Come.” His text was out of Hebrews 12:26, “Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.” He reminded us that things are going to get shaken… not only on earth but in the unseen realm in the heavenlies! How you respond to the shaking will determine your quality of life. You’ll either be removed or transformed. Which one will be your future?

GRACE UNVEILED, #23: “Depriving the Power of Sin” Jim Hammond

Pastor Jim taught the 23rd installment of his teaching series on the book of Romans entitled, “Grace Unveiled.” In this message, he taught how, through the salvation process, the spirit of a person comes alive, or is “born again.” The Bible says he becomes a “new creature in Christ.” And because he is a new creature, Paul teaches us in Romans chapter six, that he now has the ability to deprive sin of its power over him. He has the power to resist sin. And that’s good news!

Covenant and Chesed | Billye Brim

we had our long-time friend of the ministry, Dr. Billye Brim, as our guest minister. She taught us about covenant and a very special word tied to it—chesed! God is a covenant-keeping God and He wants to enter covenant with us. She reminded us that He has a glorious plan for all His children. Because He is a covenant-keeping God, He will honor His plan for our lives as long as we honor and live under His demands for our lives.