Special guest Reggie Alderman shows us the significance of the fact that Jesus didn’t stay in the grave but that he went all the way to the resurrection. Not only that, but he challenges us not to think of the message of Jesus like a baton in a relay race. It’s our responsibility to pass that baton on to the next generation of believers.

Speaker: Reggie Alderman :: Passage: Various

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Pastor Jeff unlocks a Christmas passage that no one generally speaks about. However, Luke 4 and Isaiah 61-65 together give us a Christmas message with life-changing implications!

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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Pastor Jeff takes us 700 years before the birth of Christ to an ancient prophecy describing the incredible significance of the virgin birth.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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In this final message of our Big Questions series, Pastor Jeff addresses the question ultimately underlying all the others. “Will I trust Jesus?” The claim of Christianity is that Jesus validates the Bible, Jesus rules the church, and Jesus reveals God to us, so the question of our relationship to him is really the most fundamental one of all.

In addressing this question, Pastor Jeff explains the three barriers to trusting Jesus: Intellectual, Emotional, and Spiritual, and discusses how to overcome them.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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Beginning with Matthew 16:13, Jesus guides his followers into an understanding of what his followers should do and be after his death. In this message, Pastor Jeff addresses the questions related to all the different kinds of churches in the world. Why are there so many churches? Why can’t they all get along? More importantly, the big question underneath it all is whether we are willing to trust our church or any church for that matter.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Matthew 16:13ff

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In this message, Pastor Jeff tackles what he claims is actually the most important spiritual question of them all. Where do you get your spiritual authority? or What is your spiritual authority? To answer that question, we are pointed to the Bible and are taught the three key elements to trusting the authority of the Bible.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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The oldest spiritual question is the one that remains unanswered today. Though many good answers have been given, none are fully satisfying to us. This should tip us off that maybe the question itself is misguided. Perhaps, rather than putting God on trial for his management skills, we should address the Big Question behind this popular question. Pastor Jeff addresses the question we often ask by helping us see the question we need to ask.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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In this introductory message, Pastor Jeff opens the discussion of how to approach the big questions of life and faith. We see that even John the Baptist faced serious doubt, and we learn from his example that we need to bring our questions directly to Jesus and be ready to hear even a surprising answer from him.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Matthew 11:1-15

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Next week, we begin our new series called “Big Questions” in which I tackle some of the largest questions of life… yours.

Seriously, for the next few weeks, we will be addressing YOUR questions about life, faith, family, anything. We’ll even have live question / answer sessions at the end of every Sunday lesson. You won’t want to miss it.

Last Sunday, we asked people to submit questions for consideration, and here are just a few of the ones that came in:

Questions from November 1, 2009

• I’ve been struggling to understand if it’s right for us to celebrate Halloween. The history of this holiday is in evilness and witchcraft and even pumpkins with faces cut in them and candles were originally rooted in keeping evil spirits away. How do we know that God is ok with us celebrating this even though we don’t celebrate it for the same reasons as in the past. Aren’t there places in the Old Testament or elsewhere that discuss the sins of nations by celebrating festivities aimlessly that were previously rooted in evil not God?

• When Jesus says “give to Caesar what is his, then give to God what is His” about tithing, doesn’t that give us a clue that the 10% we must tithe on is the amount after taxes are removed, not before?

• 2 Timothy 3:16 says all scripture is inspired by God. When Paul wrote this, what was defined as “Scripture” and to what extent was it “inspired?” Was he talking about the Old Testament or can we interpret this as the canonized Bible we have today? Since it is inspired by God (yet written by sinful, imperfect men) is the Bible completely error free? Can we interpret “inspired” as men transcribing God’s every word, or did God lead them to a topic, give them an outline and they prayerfully filled in the blanks?

• Why is it so hard to believe and live as if God truly loves me?

• Is it wrong to believe that I am special and important to God?

• Can Satan be saved?

• When we get to heaven, will we have NASCAR? (Just kidding!) but seriously, will we be married, have kids, have brothers, etc?

• What does the Bible teach about savings?

• What is the correct way to stand up for yourself without passing judgment?

• Which is better, to purchase quality at a high price or to get lower quality for a good price?

• How much caffeine could Pastor Jeff ingest before he started to act like Twitchy from the movie “Hoodwinked”?

• Why is it so hard to reach out to strangers and share about Jesus?

• We seem to always have debt. How do we get out and stay out of debt?

More questions are coming! To add your question, leave a comment here or visit http://myquestions.org and post your own.

The real dilemma God faces constantly is this: How do you bless people who are never satisfied? God could give us the universe and we’d still want more. No, in fact, the only way to truly bless us is to get us to willfully release our grip on something, and to choose to be limited. Is it possible that by giving our money away, we could know greater joy in what we have?

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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In this message, Pastor Jeff addresses the topic of investing for eternity. As Jim Elliott said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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Pastor Jeff tackles the specific issue of tithing in this message. Many people differ on the purpose or the specifics of tithing, but the Bible is pretty clear. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament address the principle of giving God the first 10% or more of our income. Listen up to hear Pastor Jeff Mikels explain these passages and tackle a few tough questions related to tithing.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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God is the giver of all good things, but regardless of all he has given us, we often take what he has not given. It’s a pattern that began with Adam and Eve and continues to this day. In order for us to regain a right relationship with this world around us, we need to learn to receive what he has given and not take what he has not.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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In this final message of our Family Secrets series, Pastor Jeff describes the secret of passing on your values to the next generation. It basically boils down to this: The Life You Live is the Legacy You Leave.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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Families that know joy and purpose live by good rules. What are the ground rules that should govern every family? Pastor Jeff carefully tackles this important topic.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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Love, as shown in the Bible, is the one-sided full abandon effort of a holy God to heal his enemies. In this second message in the series Pastor Jeff explains that love is a top down thing.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: 1 John 3:16

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Ever feel like your family life is crazy? In this series Pastor Jeff will share what scripture tells us about building a strong family.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Various

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Jesus came to seek and save the lost. In this second message in the series Pastor Jeff shares how to find the lost.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Luke 19:10

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Jesus claimed his purpose for coming to earth was to seek and save the lost. In this message Pastor Jeff shares about understanding the Lost.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Luke 19:10

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The Lord God Almighty is in charge and he is going to win, so be patient, faithful, and alert.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 20-22

God has promised to finally and fully eradicate evil.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 14:14-19

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In this message, Pastor Jeff deals with the most difficult passage in the book of Revelation to show us that we don’t need to decode every detail to get the obvious message: Satan is going to lose!

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 12-14:13

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In this third message in the series Pastor Jeff shares about the seven trumpets from Revelation.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 8-11

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A time is coming when Christ will return as King, the dead will rise, and his followers will join him. In this message, Pastor Jeff leads us through a study of the seven seals in Revelation.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 6:1-8:1

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For the second message in this series, we considered the disturbing fact that God sometimes seems distant, absent, or “lost” in the midst of a world where bad things happen to good people.

How are we to understand times like that?

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The life God has for us is not about rituals and doctrine but about love, faithfulness, truth, and ownership. Ultimately, it’s all about Jesus.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 3:14-22

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Religion is about us, but following Jesus is all about Him.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 3:7-13

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Religion can put you to sleep. In this message Pastor Jeff shares from the letter to the church in Sardis. The church in Sardis was sleepwalking.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 3:1-6

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Stephen Covey identified four basic human needs; to live, love, learn, and leave a legacy. Religion gains power by addressing these four basic human needs. In this message Pastor Jeff uses the letter to the church in Thyatira to illustrate that religion has power, but Jesus has all authority.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Rev 2:18-29

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Deception starts with – that makes sense – and leads to something distracting or destructive.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Rev 2:12-17

Religion is easy, but following Jesus is tough. Following Jesus is where the true reward lies.

Speaker: Brandon Biggs :: Passage: Revelation 1:3

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In this message Pastor Jeff focuses on the letter to Ephesus in Revelation and what it teaches us about finding our first love.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 2:1-7

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Religion is the reliance on rituals and doctrines for spiritual gain. What is Christianity? If the accounts of Jesus are accurate, then Christianity is not a religion. It is the reality of a relationship between the Creator and his creation.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Revelation 1:3

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Believe in Jesus and you will live.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: John 11:25

In this message Pastor Jeff explains there is a place for everyone, a job for anyone, and a rebuke for someone.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Isaiah 56:7

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We live in a world of uncertainty. Our current challenging economic times can make it feel even more uncertain. One thing you can be assured of is that God will be with you.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Isaiah 43:5

When your character is attacked it’s really easy to jump to defend yourself. In this message, Pastor Jeff explains that God is our defender.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: 2 Samuel 16:12

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In this message Pastor Jeff shares some common growth strategies and what scripture tells us about growth.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Ephesians 4:15

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A topic as timely as it is unbelievable with the current state of our global economy.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: 2 Corinthians 8:9

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Politicians make promises, but Gods promises are guaranteed. In this message Pastor Jeff shares three lessons on freedom.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Exodus 6:6-7

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We often want to make choices, but retain the power to choose again. In this message Pastor Jeff explains that if God has our heart, then we have his strength.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: 2 Chronicles 16:9

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Concerned about making a commitment to God? Your commitment to God is guaranteed because his commitment to you is bigger. In this message Pastor Jeff shares about what the bible tells us about commitment.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: 2 Peter 1:3

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Making commitments can be a threatening and sometimes scary experience. Just a couple weeks ago, we had our annual commitment Sunday, and many people signed the commitment books.

But perhaps you are wondering, “Will I be able to keep the commitment that I’ve made to God for this next year?” “Will I want to keep this commitment?”

I’ve met many people who are hesitant to make commitments of any sort (much more so when it comes to commitments to God) because of this hesitation and concern about the longevity of that commitment.

However, what we fail to realize well enough is that no matter how committed we are to God, he is far more committed to us! In fact, God is so committed to us that our commitments to him are guaranteed.

During this series, we will consider some of the biggest promises God has made to us in the Bible to prove the point that he is far more committed to us than we are to him!

In this series, we’ve discussed the four core values of our church from the perspective that they are the four most important things we need for 2009. We finish the series with personal commitments and baptism.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Acts 2:38-39

Life’s greatest blessings come through the labor of selflessness. Ministry, the fourth core value of Lafayette Community Church, is the focus of this message. Pastor Jeff also shares about and helps us prepare for Commitment Sunday.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Hebrews 12:2

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Time spent with Christianity does not produce maturity. In this message Pastor Jeff explores the third core value of Lafayette Community Church, growth.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Hebrews 5:11-14

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In this second message of the series Pastor Jeff shares about the Lafayette Community Church core value of community.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: 1 Samuel 22:1-4

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Because of who God is, he must be first in our life. In the first message in this series Pastor Jeff share about who God is and how to make God first in our life.

Speaker: Jeff Mikels :: Passage: Exodus 3:14

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It’s January 2009, and we have the chance to begin a brand new year with new hopes and new challenges. Perhaps your 2008 was a little stressful. Begin 2009 with a breath of Fresh Air.

In this series, we discuss the four core values of our church from the perspective that they are the four most important things we need for 2009.