Words To Live By

June 10, 2021

God’s words in the Bible are living words. And we are not just to hear them — but to live them!

Pressing into this challenge is the point of our new Sunday message series titled “Words to Live By.” Following Jesus means becoming more like Him, and applying God’s Word in our lives is the way this takes place.

This begs the question of whether or not we spend quality time in the Bible — not simply reading it, but allowing it to read us. Only God’s Word, guided by the Holy Spirit, can reach the deepest parts of us to bring light where there is darkness, to effect forgiveness where there is guilt, and to release power in us to become new. Again, we must not only hear God’s Word, but prayerfully seek to apply it in our daily lives.

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Hebrews 4:12

Over the next seven weeks you will hear a variety of speakers who will each bring a message based on a single verse from one of the New Testament letters of Paul. This verse will represent a core truth the speaker finds particularly powerful and is working to apply to their lives today.

This past Sunday I launched this series with my own verse and personal application. If you missed it, I encourage you to catch it by clicking below:

What I hope you will learn from this message and those to come is the importance of emotional honesty in our relationship with God. This is the starting place for spiritual transformation. We come to appreciate how powerful God is only when we acknowledge the certainty of our own weaknesses.

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.‘”

Matthew 4:4

At the end of each service additional verses will be distributed for each of us to take home (and a digital version will be sent to everyone who signs up by texting “WORDS” to 585-299-5115). In addition, Browncrofters will also be sharing their own life applications in short video stories on our church social media channels throughout this series. Be sure to check in with us on Facebook or Instagram to hear these brief words of encouragement — and leave one of your own!

Over the course of these weeks we will all have the opportunity to experience a greater engagement with God’s Word. I look forward to journeying with you this summer as I seek to live out more fully the Word of God in my own life. I believe we will discover afresh that the words of the Bible are not just true words but words to live by.

As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Isaiah 55:10-11

About The Author

Further reading

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A Hope That Heals: Sarah’s Story

This past week, I had the privilege of meeting with Sarah Etsler, a newer congregant in our church, to hear her story. In the short six months that she’s been attending Browncroft, Sarah has seen God work in ways she never expected or imagined.
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