Gospel

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07/5/09 Pastor Alex's Sunday Sermon--Declaring Independence!! Matthew 16:13-26

Our country’s founding fathers made the Declaration of Independence. They invested everything they had for their freedom. They believed God was with them and leading them.. They believed that they were protected by God in their pursuit of freedom.

Vs. 13-17. Jesus was trying to establish his identity and asked who the people thought he was. Vs. 19 There is a battle going on and Jesus came that we can have independence from Hell. Hell/Satan wants to kick our butt and destroy us. We need to remember to keep our guard up!
I Peter 5:8-9 Stay alert!! Be sober, alert cause the devil wants to steal, kill and destroy us.

Vs.19 We have the keys to Heaven or Hell and we have the choice as to what we let come into our lives. Jesus gives us the key and nothing can get in unless we allow it, permit it to. Most of the hell we go through, we did it to ourselves. We have the keys to Heaven and we can permit love, and honesty into our lives; but instead we let hate, fear, stress into our lives. We can choose to have attitudes of mercy and grace or be stressed out and hellish. Jesus says we have the key to the kingdom. We can open the door to Heaven or close the door to Heaven and instead open the door to Hell. We should not let the Gates of Hell grab a hold of us. We should live life Large thru Jesus Christ. We must separate what the world says will make us happy from what the Bible says make us happy.

Vs 18. Jesus said the Gates of Hell cannot prevail against the Church. Unfortunately, the church is opening its doors and letting Hell and the world’s system come in. If we are going to name the name of Jesus then we need to declare independence from the world. We need to know that we are a marked person and that sinners/heathen/demons will be looking for any little thing they an find to take us down. As they did to Jesus, so they will do to us.

THE CROSS IS THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE!!
Jesus died on the cross for the freedom of the world and the freedom of mankind. We need to take up our cross and follow Jesus!! We need to give up our lives for Jesus. Who are we living for, Jesus or the world? We must die to our own way and take up the Jesus way. We need to be committed to God and his way. God’s way is kingdom living!

AMEN

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