Harris Creek Baptist Church

What does it mean to be in ministry? Do you know someone in ministry? As we continue our series, Ecclesia, Nate Hilgenkamp teaches through Galatians 6:1-5, teaching us that all Christians are in ministry.KEY TAKEAWAYS-There is only one quality needed to be in ministry: the Holy Spirit. If you are a Christian, you are in ministry!-If someone in your life group talks to a “pastor” before you, that should bother you.-As ministers, we restore sinners.-Confessing your sin should be a regular part of your life group meetings.-Make no mistake, sin will destroy your life.-Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.-When Christians confess sin, we should remind them of their identity in Christ and that He died for their sins.-As ministers, we carry burdens.-We generally don’t like asking for help; however, that runs completely contrary to the gospel and to living life alongside other Christians.-When you help carry someone’s burden you are living out the Great Commandment: love God and love others.-As ministers, we carry our own load.-Different seasons call for different tasks, but each season calls us to prioritize our faith and to focus on what God has given us (not what He gave someone else).-In order for the church to advance, everyone has to be in the game. Christianity is not a spectator sport.MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: Galatians 6:1-5; 2 Peter 2:9; Exodus 18:13-27; Proverbs 28:13; Mark 12:30-31-Sermon: The Gift that Keeps on Giving

Have you ever received a gift that you didn’t use? What about given someone a gift that they didn’t use? As we continue our series, Ecclesia, JP teaches through Romans 12:1-8, teaching us about spiritual gifts and how we can use them faithfully and to the glory of God.KEY TAKEAWAYS-Nothing lacks appreciation like not opening or using a gift from someone.-Spiritual gifts are gifts (talents) the Holy Spirit gives you to build up God’s church and glorify Him.-The church is a people given gifts from and for God.-100% of Christians are given spiritual gifts from God. Only 45% of people in the church are serving (national average). As of today, 35% of people at Harris Creek are serving.-There are four ways to misuse your spiritual gift(s): use the gift for selfish gain, neglect the gift, resent the gift, & covet other gifts.-You have met very few people who have given themselves as a living sacrifice to God.-A surrendered Christian is focused on serving others.-When you say someone is “gifted” you are really saying they have been given something. It’s no different with spiritual gifts...they are given by God (not something you work for).-Your gifts are hidden by pride and used with faith.-Your giftedness will not develop godliness.-If you think the church exists to serve you, then you have never seen or been part of a biblical church.-There are a diversity of gifts among the church.-You need to grow in appreciation for other people’s gifts. You want a church to have a diversity of gifts, not a bunch of people that all have the same gift.-You being a right member of the local church will be sanctifying. It will be hard at times...which means you are doing it right!-Identify your gifts and use them.-One way to find out what your spiritual gift is is to ask the people closest to you what they think it is.-You will only be held accountable for what you did with the gift(s) you were given, not what you were not given.MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: Romans 12:1-8; Matthew 25:28-30-Resource: Bible Knowledge Commentary

We all have different preferences when it comes to what church should be like. However, more importantly, how close are we to being the church God had in mind? As we continue our series, Ecclesia, JP gives us a peek into the window of a church that met 2,000 years ago.KEY TAKEAWAYS-God’s church is marked by devotion.-What are you willing to miss life group for?-God’s church is marked by biblical teaching.-We are going to teach from the Bible every week, and we expect you to be reading the Bible every day.-When you gather as a life group, do you talk about and counsel each other from the Bible?-God’s church is marked by fellowship.-Does your group have a “fun guy”? Do you have fun together?-God’s church is marked by communion.-When you are with your life group you can take communion together.-God’s church is marked by prayer.-Do you pray when your life group gathers? Never come together without spending time in prayer. Pray big!-God’s church is marked by awe.-Our issue is not our knowledge of the gospel, but rather, our application of the gospel.-Every time you meet as a life group celebrate what God is doing.-God’s church is marked by generosity.-When you are with your life group, talk about finances and where your money is going. Nothing should be off limits to talk about.-God’s church is marked by worship.-Worship is not just singing songs...it’s everything we do and how we live.-God’s church is marked by joy.-Joy in relationships isn’t found, it’s forged.-God’s church is marked by conversions.-If someone were to look through the window of your life group gathering, what would they see?MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: Acts 2:42-47; Acts 1:32-33; 1 Peter 2:9; Romans 12:1-2-Resource: www.biblereadingplan.org-Resource: www.gotquestions.org

When you think of a church, what comes to mind? What makes a good church? What is the church? As we start our new series, Ecclesia: A People Not a Place, JP teaches us that when we think about the church, a lot of us think something that Jesus never meant.KEY TAKEAWAYS-It’s easy to take a new convert to Christianity and tell them what the Christian life is all about. It’s very, very difficult to take someone who has been “in the church” for a long time and teach them a different way.-The biggest problem in Waco, in the Bible Belt, is cultural Christianity.-Cultural Christianity is when you think Christianity is for and about you. It’s about your preferences and making sure you are comfortable and like how things are.-Jesus is the one who started the church, and because of that, He gets to determine what the church is, not us.-When Jesus first talked about and used the word “church,” he would’ve been using it more like an army...the idea of “calling out His people;” assembling His people.-The church is: People who belong to Jesus.-You can’t go to church and you can’t watch church. “Going to” or “watching church” would be like watching AT&T Stadium play the Philadelphia Eagles...it’s a categorical mistake.-When the disciples heard Jesus talk about the church they would’ve thought about the equivalent of Seal Team 6, not potlucks and Sunday school.-To “bind” on earth means to forbid and to “loose” on earth means to allow.-Again, the greatest evil in Waco is cultural Christianity. It doesn’t care about the things of God.-The church cares about what God cares about.-The very first spiritual force to oppose the church happened immediately after Jesus talks about the church for the first time: selfishness (or said differently, personal preferences).-Do not let your preferences rob you of paradise.-Holding the line for Christianity is no longer good enough. If you aren’t up for a battle, just fold. The church does win and it will prevail, but not in America based on the direction our country has been going.-The church is always marked by people making sacrifices.-What does it look like for you to give your life...your entire life, every single area of it...to Jesus?-We gather so that we can go.-Being enlisted in the military is extremely similar to how it should be in the church: “Here I am. How can I be deployed? How can I be of service?”-The solution to all the problems in our land is the very thing Jesus started on a hillside 2,000 years ago.-There is a war going on and we, Christians, are the soldiers Christ assembled to fight it with Him.MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: Matthew 16:13-26; Romans 12:1-2-Sermon Series: Fresh Start

What are you most often tempted by? Did 2020 bring new and more temptations into your life? As we wrap up our series, Hindsight is 2020, JP teaches through Matthew 4:1-11, teaching us all about temptation.KEY TAKEAWAYS-There are five main things the enemy uses: despair, disunity, deception, disease, & death. Do you think he was at work in 2020?-We are culpable. The enemy will tempt us, but we always have the option to say no.-Temptation: a proposition to not trust God.-Where and what are you tempted by: fear, laziness/apathy, prejudice, cynicism, materialism, alcoholism, drugs, isolation, anger, despair.-When tempted with His wants, Jesus trusted God’s Word.-Sometimes your greatest temptations come after mountaintop moments.-Where in life do you feel entitled?-Trust yourself the least when you really really want something.-Not all of your desires are from Got. You have desires that you should NOT act on...they are from your flesh and of this world and you should put them to death.-Trust God’s Word over your wants.-When tempted to display power, Jesus trusted God’s plan.-The enemy knows Scripture. He will twist and distort it to tempt and lie to you.-Are you able to sit in a conversation and keep the focus on the other person, or are you always trying to make the conversation about you?-Test this: every time you seek power, the enemy is at play.-When tempted with a shortcut, Jesus trusts God’s schedule.-When faced with suffering or temptation, do you lean on the Lord, your Master, or your own strength and feelings?-The Christian life is not about following your feelings. It’s about acknowledging them and then trusting and following what God and His Word says.-Not a single person in Scripture or history has gotten away with taking a shortcut.-If the only way you were going to overcome the temptation of satan today is to quote Deuteronomy, how would you do?MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: James 1:13-15; Matthew 4:1-11; Deuteronomy 8:2-3; Psalm 91:11-12; Deuteronomy 6:16; 1 Corinthians 10:13; 1 Peter 5:9-Book: The Freedom of Self Forgetfulness by Tim Keller-Bible Reading Plan: biblereadingplan.org

Do you find yourself prone to panic when chaos comes? When the foundations are being destroyed, what will the righteous do? As we continue our Hindsight is 2020 series, Nate Hilgenkamp unpacks Psalm 11 and we'll see David's response to the chaos and confusion around him. While his friends suggest fleeing, he reminds them why he knows that he can stand firm no matter the situation. KEY TAKEAWAYS-The advice of fear.-Our enemy has a plan and a purpose in a crisis. Don’t buy his lies! He’s trying to change how you view God.-Protection provides peace. Find your protection in the Prince of Peace.-Danger is real, and life in a fallen world is hard. But, you need to identify words of faith vs. words of fear in times of crisis and hardship.-Words of fear will always be about you. Words of faith will always be about God.-The answer of faith.-Our situation doesn’t change God’s goodness, closeness, protection, or love for us.-When your protection is in God, the world can’t take it away.-There never has been and never will be something in your life that God is surprised by.-God always sees you and you can always have His full and undivided attention.-The activity of the righteous.-The world flees, but our God sees, so I’ll stay.-How you take refuge in the Lord when crises comes can be predicted by how you are taking refuge in the Lord right now. MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: Psalm 11; -Sermon: The Power of Jesus’ Name

A lot has changed in the last year, but not everything has changed. In an ever changing world, we need to hang on to never changing truths. As we continue our series, Hindsight is 2020, Shane Pruitt teaches us three things we will never have to regret about Jesus.KEY TAKEAWAY-In an ever changing world, we need to hang on to never changing truths.-Jesus hasn’t changed and neither has our identity in Him. We are still—always!—called to know Him and to make Him known.-COVID-19 has not changed the great commission.-You never have to regret experiencing Jesus’ power.-You won’t understand resurrection and life until you understand Jesus.-The only thing that can overcome death is life, that can overcome the grave is resurrection, the very thing Christ did!-Sin spreads worse than any virus has ever spread.-Sitting inside a church doesn’t make you a Christian. We are not born Christians...we are born sinners in need of a Savior.-Have you ever noticed that when someone else sins we become judges but when we sin we become defense attorneys?-Sin is powerful, but Jesus is infinitely more powerful.-You will never be too far gone for Jesus. Never!-Why would we ever follow someone who can’t do anything different than we can do all by ourselves? Jesus is the only person to ever defeat death...the one thing we can not do all by ourselves. Buddha, Mohammad, Joseph Smith...all other major religions central figure died and stayed dead, but not Jesus!-You never have to regret walking in Jesus’ victory.-The gospel of Jesus is not about making good people better or bad people good but about making dead people alive.-The power of the gospel doesn’t just change our identity, it changes our actions.-Grave clothes are for the dead. They are no longer appropriate for the living.-Lost people are supposed to live like lost people. What’s sad is when found people still live like lost people.-What are some old grave clothes that you are still holding on to? Gossip? Complaining? Fear? An addiction? Anger? Social media?-One of the greatest tragedies is when people who are spiritually alive in Christ walk around and live like people who are dead.-The world needs the hope of Jesus and God’s plan A is that His people, Christians, would live out that hope day in and day out, outside the four walls of the building we gather in once a week.-You never have to regret pointing others to Jesus.-Most of the things we do in response to fear we regret.-When our flesh sees something difficult our faith sees an opportunity.-Lazarus used the most difficult thing in his life (death) to point people to the most powerful thing in his life (Jesus).-Who needs to hear about Jesus in your life?MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: John 11:17-44; Hebrews 13:8-Sermon: A Walk to Remember

Do you have any regrets as you look back on 2020? As we start a new year we are starting a new series: Hindsight is 2020. Jim Underwood teaches through the story of Jesus and the fig tree in Mark 11:11-24, teaching us about bearing fruit through a relationship with Christ. KEY TAKEAWAYS-What if you knew this was the last week of your life? How would you live? Would you do anything differently?-Fruit is a symptom of true, saving faith.-If we belong to God, the fruit of the Spirit should be increasingly evident in our lives over time.-Jesus had the most problems with the Pharisees...the religious people who had a bunch of leaves and no fruit.-Christianity isn’t about checking boxes for God.-We do not earn our way to God through producing fruit. The fruit comes because of our relationship with God.-Bearing fruit is impossible on our own.-No matter who you are and what you’ve done, it’s never too late to put your faith in Christ.-Are you trying to store up for yourself treasures on earth or treasures in heaven?-Fruitful living has no regrets.-This is not a sermon—nor is Christianity—about trying harder.-What will Christ find when He examines your branches? Make no mistake, the day will come when He does. MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: Mark 11:11-24; Ephesians 2:10; Galatians 5:22-23; Romans 12:1-2; John 15:5; Psalm 1:1-3; 2 Corinthians 7:10-Sermon: Missed Expectations

Has 2020 gone like you originally planned? Have you had any missed expectations around Christmas? As we celebrate Christmas, JP teaches through the Christmas story in Luke 2 and Matthew 2, showing us the many missed expectations of the first Christmas ever. KEY TAKEAWAYS-Your greatest disappointments in life come from missed expectations.-Maybe 2020–in the midst of many missed expectations—is helping us return to the basics of Christianity.-There are many similarities between the first Christmas and this one.-The first Christmas was full of missed expectations.-Good people do not go to Heaven, and bad people do not go to hell.-Jesus gave us the vaccine for eternal punishment and separation from Him forever.-When you believe Jesus died on the cross for your sins and God raised Him from the dead, everything changes.-God may not give you what you are asking for, but He has a purpose for it.-There are two types of people: those that are on mission or those that are the mission. MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: Luke 2:1-7; Matthew 2:1-3; Isaiah 9:6-7; Luke 1:32-33; -Sermon: The Greatest Apologetic

Do you ever look back on financial decisions with regret? Made a choice that you thought would be good but turned out poorly? How did it affect your ability to be generous? As we finish studying the book of Philippians, Nate Hilgenkamp teaches us about generosity and its relationship to the gospel. KEY TAKEAWAYS-Being generous isn’t about the amount of money you have or don’t have, give or don’t give.-“Yet” is never going to come on this side of Christ’s return.-Generosity is at the heart of the gospel.-The most generous moment in human history was 2,000 years ago when Christ went to the cross.-We often think, “How much do I have to give?” whereas God thinks, “What’s the most I can give?”-Generosity pleases God.-God doesn’t want our money, He wants our heart. (It’s not our money anyways...it’s His!)-Money makes a terrible master.-Generous people are happier people.-Our God is generous.-God delights in being generous toward us. It can look different at different times (physical, material, spiritual, etc.), but He loves to be generous toward us!-Most of us have more excess than we want to admit. MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES-Suggested Scripture Study: Philippians 4:14-23; Ephesians 5:1-2; Matthew 7:9-11-Sermon: Finding Contentment-Sermon: The Peace that Follows Belief