Are you a "justice" Christian, or a "forgiveness" Christian? I know some believers whose favorite phrase is, "It serves them right." And justice is a good and necessary thing. The problem is, us. We often don't have the necessary information, or perspective, or impartiality to make good judgments. We had better forgive, and offer mercy, like Jesus did. But how do we do that when those other folks are just so, so wrong? Pastor Jim says the answer is "prayer."

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

In the devil's tackle box are a number of different lures, for different kinds of fish. We'll talk about 3 of them, today. You probably know people who had some kind of experience with Christ...then they heard something new; some secret, "deeper" knowledge that pulled them away. Maybe they discovered a philosophical Jesus, or a traditionalist Yeshua, or the Lord of the holy diet plan. As we continue our study of the book of Colossians, we'll hear Paul condemn these as "hollow and deceptive." Here's Pastor Jim to open the sermon, Do People Mistake Me for Jesus?

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

If the Jewish dietary laws applied to everyone, that would defeat their purpose! God gave the Israelites laws about diet, and holy days, and even clothing... to make them different. Their odd customs would set them apart from their Gentile neighbors, and provide a picture of holiness. A picture of holiness. Real godliness goes deeper than these skin-deep matters. Paul gave the Colossians the same advice he gave everyone: Let Us Beware of those who teach shadows over substance.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

In the kingdom of God, being comes before doing. In recent episodes we've heard Paul say that we're to "put off the old self;" and that former "us" had to go - he was no good. When we come to Colossians 3:12 the Apostle will tell us to "put on" some things... but not before he reminds us that these are not "good works" as we used to think about them; ways to earn "brownie points" with God. They're expressions of a new nature, and He is the sovereign Source. Here's part 1 of the sermon The Proof is in the Product from Pastor Jim.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

The Apostle Paul advised the Colossians to "...put to death whatever is earthly in you...." What does that mean, and how can it happen? Today we'll get a wide-angle view of the first 17 verses of Colossians 3. But we'll also focus-in on this issue of "mortifying our members," as the King James puts it; or, "considering ourselves dead to worldly contacts." Paul gives us some things to "put off," some things to "put on," and some to "put away."

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

Sometimes the best way to understand something is to look at its opposite. We've been orbiting around the tight cluster of imperatives and theological facts in the early verses of Colossians 3. We have died with Christ; but we are raised. We should, in light of that truth, live a higher life, liberated from the slavery we suffered in the kingdom of Satan. Easier said than done, Paul! It's even difficult for us to find models for that level of Christian experience. So what if we look at negative examples - people so worldly-minded they're no heavenly good? Today we'll turn left one book, and open not to Colossians, but to Philippians, chapter 3.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

How can you miss seeing a mountain? Like a painter who forgets that there should be a large geological feature right about "there," we often leave out significant details in the pictures God has shown us. Maybe we're too close to the subject. In our contemplations of Colossians, and what it means to "set our minds on things above," let's try actually seeing things from above - from God's perspective. If we see only with our physical eyes we may miss something. Like a mountain.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

God's secret plan is out in the open, but many of us don't understand it. The secret, or "mystery," is "Christ in you, the hope of glory." That's from Paul's letter to the Colossians, which we're studying. But to say the words, isn't to grasp their meaning - much less to appropriate this truth for ourselves. It brings a supernatural life above where most of us are living. Today Jim opens the sermon Alive in Christ.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

When the glass is full, stop pouring! False teachers insist that we should add something to Christ; old rituals, new books, something. These "Jesus Plus" liars have been around since Jesus left, and Paul gave us the antidote to their poison in the book of Colossians: We are full. No more can be added to what God has done for us, in Christ. Here's Jim to open his sermon, Death to Life.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

How could a Gentile believe in Messiah when he didn't know what a "messiah" is? The gospel could not be confined to a small, Jewish sect. The message was reaching Gentiles who had no context for it - and yet were attracted to Jesus. Their lack of knowledge put them in danger, as it often does. Paul's remedy was prayer, and a letter: we call it the Epistle to the Colossians.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.