The Cactus Church - Radically Changed by the Gospel

Radically Changed by the Gospel

1 Thess 1:8-10

Most of us would like to change something about ourselves – maybe alter our appearance or break a bad habit. We may also desire deeper change and wonder it is possible. In the gospel, the answer is a resounding yes. As we continue in 1Thessalonians we see that in Christ real change - radical, profound, lasting change in desires, character, and attitude is possible, even inevitable. Paul gives us a beautiful picture of this with his description of the deep changes that took place in the lives of the Thessalonians. We need a clear understanding of this for our own spiritual health and the health of the church.



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The Cactus Church - Sustained by a Sovereign God

1 Thess 1:4-7

Even without the vivid reminders from current events, we know that life is uncertain and that we have very little control over what happens. How do we endure? Our faith, love, and hope in Christ keep our lives grounded in a good and sovereign God. This week, God willing, we will see this in 1Thessalonians 1 as Paul continues his theme of gratitude for what God has done for the Thessalonian believers and how they responded.

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The Cactus Church - The Church in Christ

The Church in Christ

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

To thrive in the difficult seasons of life we need to understand our relationship to Christ. This is true for each of us, and it is true for us together as a church. Scripture describes this several ways; this Sunday we will consider together the opening verses of 1 Thessalonians and what it means to be “in Christ” and how that is reflected in our lives (spoiler alert: faith, hope, and love).

The Cactus Church - The Church in Christ
Preston Pearce
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The Cactus Church - The Chaotic Beginning

Acts 17:1-10

As I (Preston) prayed about where our attention should be focused after Proverbs, I felt drawn to Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians. This church faced great hardships from its beginning, but - like a cactus thrives despite being in a hostile environment - the Thessalonian church thrived despite the hardships. We must be able to do the same thing, for we live in tumultuous times. We will begin by looking this week in Acts 17 at the church’s chaotic beginning, and we will see the foundation Paul laid and the challenges they faced.

The Cactus Church
Preston Pearce

Job - Making the Right Choices While Life Doesn't Play by the Rules

Job is a very good man who is a part of the ‘wisdom literature’ in the book of Job. After detailing the places that wisdom can’t be found - he provides information, and an archetype for multiple New Testament authors to transcend his suffering, to lament, and to bring glory to God in his daily life.

Job - Marking the Right Choices when Life Doesn't Play by the Rules
Preston Pearce
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Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Wisdom and Relationships

We’ve seen it many times in our study of Proverbs—wisdom is not about how much information we possess but about what we love and desire. It’s no surprise that wisdom has a profound effect on all our relationships. Besides working relationships, which we looked at last week, Proverbs describes other important relationships—friends, neighbors, husband-wife, and parent-child. Trusting God’s wisdom is essential for these relationships to be healthy and fruitful.

Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Wisdom and Relationships
Preston Pearce
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Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Work and Words

Proverbs 6:6-11, 14:23 and more…

Does God care about our work? Absolutely. He cares about what we do (whatever that may be), why we do it, and how we do it. The fear of the Lord leads to wisdom; and wisdom leads to diligence and influences our priorities, understanding of success, planning, and working relationships, all to the glory of God.

Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Work and Words
Preston Pearce
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Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Wisdom and Words

Proverbs 16:24 and more…

We continue our exploration of various topics in Proverbs by considering how wisdom influences our listening and speech. We communicate often with others but sometimes forget that words can have an effect on those who hear (or read) them—sometimes immediately, sometimes even long after they are spoken. This alone should motivate us to lean constantly on God’s wisdom as we interact with others. We must bring the gospel to bear on this by guarding our hearts so that we may respond wisely to what we hear and speak wisely in what we say.

Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Wisdom and Words
Preston Pearce
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Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Wisdom and Wealth

Proverbs: 27:23-27, 30:7-9, and others

The new year often causes us to reflect on our priorities, and few things in life reflect our priorities more than our attitude toward money. This Sunday we will consider how Proverbs speaks to the matter of wealth. This is not about smart investments or an easy way to get rich, nor will there be a manipulative plea for you to give more. As always, the issue is the heart, and we must watch over hearts that we might treasure the right things and not fall prey to folly that costs us not only financially but spiritually and relationally.

Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Wisdom and Wealth
Preston Pearce
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Gaining a Heart of Wisdom: The Good and Wise Person

The Good and Wise Person
Proverbs 21:8,10,21,29

In the past weeks we’ve explored the beauty, goodness, and value of wisdom; last time, we heard about our good and wise God. What does wisdom look like in the life of those who embrace it? Wisdom (or folly) is a response to the good and wise God that is reflected in every area of our lives. Wisdom in character will be the focus of this week’s message.

Gaining a Heart of Wisdom: The Good and Wise Person
Preston Pearce
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To Know God

Ephesians 1:17
"...that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him…."

The main thing in Christianity is not doing something, but knowing someone. We do not need more „high tech“ things, what we need is „high touch“. It is possible to come close to God without knowing him. We need to know God because we were created to know Him….And if we come to know him, we come to know our real identity.

To Know God
Josef Pavliňák
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Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Our Good and Wise God

Proverbs 6:16-19, 18:10 and more

In the first part of Proverbs we learned about wisdom in its goodness, beauty, value, and desirability. The second part of Proverbs shows us how wisdom works itself out in our lives in practical ways. The wise person lives in light of who the Lord is—what he loves, what he hates, and what pleases him.

Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Our Good and Wise God
Preston Pearce
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Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Wisdom or Folly, Which Will You Choose?

As we walk through life, both wisdom and folly offer us a way forward. They call from the same place to the same people, with the same invitation: “Come to me to find what will satisfy you.” In reality, they could not be more different. One offers the way to life; the other, the way to death. If we are not walking wisely, in the fear of the Lord, we may listen to the wrong voice. The appeal in Proverbs 9 is to discern the voice of wisdom and live by it.

Gaining a Heart of Wisdom - Wisdom or Folly, Which Will You Choose?
Preston Pearce
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