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This podcast is a library of the weekly Biblical lessons presented at Highway 20 Church of Christ in Sweet Home, Oregon. You will find simple, yet truthful insights and applications to the Biblical texts in these lessons. The majority of these sermons are done by Machiel Greyling, the evangelist of the church. These lessons strengthen and encourage the church here in Sweet Home, and we believe it will do the same to those who listen to them from wherever the Spirit will will send it.
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In this opening sermon of a new series entitled "after God's own heart" the rejection of Saul and the election of David is described. The pivotal mark of the story is that one guy had a heart like God while the other's heart God had to change in order to be useful. It makes us deeply reflect on our own hearts. What type of people are we?…
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John sees in these visions the souls of those who have been martyred crying out for vengeance on those who have killed them. Then John sees, upon the opening of the next seal, the material universe being shaken and all the leaders of the Earth begging rocks and mountains to cover them and protect them from the Lamb. The Lamb is angry and has come i…
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In this lesson we look at the first four seals that the Lamb opens up. He reveals four powerful forces that has been, is, and will move throughout the world. These forces are the continual conquering of the Gospel, war and hatred, economical difficulty and death. These forces permeate human life on Earth and will continue to do so. The only hope in…
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In this great chapter John sees the most powerful imagery. A Lamb, bleeding, looking like it had been slain stands in the presence of God. But the Lamb looks strange, he has seven horns and seven eyes. He is all powerful and full of God's Spirit. He takes the last Will and Testament from the hand of the Almighty God. And at that moment every creatu…
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To grow spiritually the Word of God needs to enter our Heads, move down into our Hearts and then move over to our Hands. Spiritual maturity happens when the Word of God collides with our actions and brings them into submission. But often, somewhere between the Head and the Hands the Word of God gets lost and we never mature. So what is the problem?…
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Becoming a Christian is not just to be saved, to gain access to heaven. To be a Christian is to become like Christ. Before time began God decided that he will transform Christians into the image of His Son. So when a person claims to be a Christian, but still behaves like his old self, he has not been born again. The Apostle Peter gives us two ways…
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Revelation means "the unveiling". For the 1st Century Christians of pagan Rome it felt like Christianity was weak and failing. The Emperor was powerful, Rome was strong, but Christians were being persecuted like criminals. They were weak nobodies. The Apostles had been killed. John is old and weak. Can you imagine the thought processes of the avera…
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If you meet Jesus and stay the same, something is wrong. If you meet Jesus and give over your life, you will change. You will transform. This is why Jesus and the Apostle John speaks about "being born again". It is a spiritual birth. How do you know you are born again? What can you do to let the seed of the Holy Spirit grow in your heart?…
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Spiritual growth starts with a death. A seed needs to die before a plant can develop and produce fruit. In a sense a seed sacrifices itself in order for a plant to come to life. This is how the spiritual life works. You have to die, give up your own life, your own wants and needs and decide to live for Jesus. Only then can your spiritual growth jou…
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When Jesus comes into your life, He doesn't just come to save you but to change you. He meet us where we are at - that is grace. But He doesn't want us to stay where we are at. He wants us to grow. But how does a Christian grow spiritually? Why do I need to grow? How do I know if I am spiritually mature or not? Here are some thoughts...…
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The main character in the story of Acts is Paul. He made it his life mission to take the Gospel to the ends of the world. But more specifically, he wanted to go to Rome, to stand before the Emperor, to preach the Gospel in the greatest city in the world. God permitted him that opportunity. In this homily you will get an overview of the Book of Acts…
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The more popular Jesus became, the more enemies he made. In this story he has some enemies that try to catch him out, accuse him and perhaps get him killed. But Jesus knows how to deal with conflict. He understands how people with hard hearts think. For those who often struggle with interpersonal conflict, this teaching might just have some nuggets…
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That friend, that annoying friend always inviting you to church, or "praying for you", or inviting you for Bible study, that might just be the best friend you have. In this life we have good friends, and we have great friends. Great friends are not only good to you, but they bring you to Jesus. In this story we see four friends help a very desperat…
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Jesus never touched a demon-possessed person, he just spoke to them. But whenever someone was physically ill, Jesus would want to touch them, even though it wasn't necessary. On this particular day Jesus was faced with a different challenge, he came face to face with a leper. A leper was considered cursed by God, a sinner and highly contagious. Lep…
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In this beautiful story we see Jesus heal the mother-in-law of his friend, his disciple. Jesus is staying at Peter's house, he seems to be a couch surfer. After a long day of preaching and doing miracles Jesus is still not consumed with himself, but rather with others. So he heals this lady, probably from Malaria. Then he goes to bed, but gets up e…
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It sounds like a scene out of a movie. While Jesus is preaching in a synagogue a demon-possessed man suddenly addresses him. Talk about a sermon interruption. The demon launches a host of questions at Jesus. But Jesus doesn't answer him. He just tells him to "shut up and leave". And the demon obeys. Isn't it interesting how easily evil spirits obey…
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A mighty God-ordained storm moves across the Levant and hits this ship in a hard way. For days and nights there was no hope to be saved and everyone pretty much thought they were going to die. Everyone except one person: Paul. During the night Jesus appeared to him and gave him courage and told him that there would be a shipwreck but they would all…
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In this great chapter we see the Apostle Paul preach a great sermon again that includes his testimony. He talks about visions and resurrections. To the mind of a Roman pagan like Festus this must have sounded ridiculous. But Paul was not a fool and didn't speak like an educated man. And the only way Festus could make sense of this man is to say he …
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Festus, the poor new guy on the block finds himself ion a pickle. The case of Paul is so complicated. The Jews hate him, and his predecessor put him in prison in Herod's palace. And now Paul is appealing to Caesar. And when a Roman appeals to Caesar it cannot be denied. So Festus finds himself in a difficult position. He needs to find a legitimate …
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Paul stands stands trial before the new governor. In this text we see Paul face his accusers again, after two years. And they are still mad. Festus finds himself in the middle. Paul is bold, he cannot plead guilty. Not because he fears death, but because his conscience doesn't allow it. Paul is not scared of dying and he makes that clear.…
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There are three types of people who experienced Jesus and His miracles: (1) Those who saw and believed. (2) Those who saw and didn't believe. (3) Those who didn't see but believed. This latter group of people really intrigue me. These are people who didn't see any miracle, who didn't see a resurrection, but they believe simply because they have hea…
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The first miracle of Jesus took place at a wedding, a feast. The second time Jesus performs miracles according to John is in Jerusalem at the Passover. But before Jesus performed these miracles and many believed he first entered the Temple area, made a whip and beat the animals and people out of the place. Jesus can be festive, but he can also be a…
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Jesus didn't do miracles to amaze people, but to show them who he was. Jesus had five disciples in Cana at this wedding. They had followed him primarily because someone they trust had told them who he was. But they haven't really seen who he was for themselves. Well, here at this humble wedding in a small village Jesus performs the first of his mir…
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The Jews, especially the Sadducees had now become unbearably uncomfortable with Paul. So a group of 40 assassins made a commitment to kill Paul. They designed a plot to have Paul brought from the Antonia Fortress to the Chamber of Hewn Stones. During this trip they planned on taking his life. But God was in control, as He always is. And Paul's "no …
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When Lysius couldn't have Paul flogged, he decided to bring him before the Sanhedrin, the judicial head of Israel. He hoped that they would be able to resolve their conflict and give him some direction as to what he needs to do with Paul. That didn't turn out great. He had to save Paul from the Sanhedrin, even they wanted to kill him. For Paul, thi…
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The mob listened quietly to Paul speak, until he mentioned one word: "Gentiles". And then they erupted, the quiet listening turned into a riot. The commander was in charge of peace, so he took Paul away and ordered to have him flogged in order to get a testimony that might shed light on the rift between him and the crowd of Jews. But Paul was a rom…
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The Roman solders had saved Paul from the Jewish mob that was trying to kill him. Paul is being led into the Antonia Fortress next to the Temple. He is chained. From the steps of the fortress Paul is allowed to address the crowd. And he does this well, He tells his story that culminates in the proclamation the Gospel. The crowd is silent, the power…
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Warning: This is an offensive lesson. John says we cannot be born again Christians and continue living in habitual sin. This message is offensive because there is a strong flavor of cultural Christianity in our communities where Jesus is great, but we don't conform our lives to Him. Unfortunately there is also a false theology regarding grace that …
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Sometimes our experiences contradict what the Bible promises. One of these promises is God's promise to listen to our prayers and answer them. Yet, we sometimes hear nothing from God. So there is this contradiction, God promises to listen and answer, yet sometimes we get no answer. We pray and only hear the crickets outside... What does the Bible s…
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The Early Christians wrote a song about Jesus. It contains lyrics that illustrates the attitude that Jesus had as he endured life on Earth and his ultimate persecution and death. Although Jesus was treated like a nobody, the song says He is now somebody...for sure. In actual fact, He is the highest authority in the Universe, every knee will bow dow…
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