Get Involved in a Life Group

By Tony Hammack

These notes are best when used in conjunction with the audio or video of this message.  Please click here for the audio or click here for the video.  Thank You.

Koinonia

Introduction:
Every believer needs a place where they can ask specific questions and get specific answers.  We all need to be able to connect in relationships with other Christians or we won’t mature.

Koinonia means to have in common partnership, to share, fellowship and contribute.

Koinonia

1. Sharing
2. Fellowship
3. Contribution

1.  Koinonia translated Share
Hebrews 13:16
And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

1 Timothy 6:18 (KJV)
18Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.

2.  Koinonia translated Fellowship
1 Corinthians 1:9
9God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.

Acts 2:42
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

Galatians 2:9
9James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews.

3.  Koinonia translated Contribution
Romans 15:26
For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.


2 Corinthians 9:13 (NASB)
13Because of the proof given by this ministry, they will glorify God for your obedience to your confession of the gospel of Christ and for the liberality of your contribution to them and to all,

Body:
8 Benefits to being a part of a Life Group

1. Expression of grace gifts
2. Accountability
3. They are Fun
4. Discipleship Happens
5. Leadership Development
6. The Jethro Principle
7. Synergy
8. Friendships

1. Expression of Grace Gifts
Life groups give the Christian an opportunity to communicate with other members of the body of Christ and release the ministry gifts that God has given them.
1 Corinthians 12:27
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
1 Peter 4:10
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.

2. Accountability
Sharing your life with others causes the light of accountability to shine into everyone’s heart.
1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship (koinonia) with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
1 John 2:9,10 Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.

3. They are Fun
Proverbs 17:22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Nehemiah 8:10b Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength."

4. Discipleship Happens
Matthew 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
2 Timothy 2:2  And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.
   A.  Paul
   B.  Timothy
   C.  Reliable Men
   D.  Others

5. Leadership Development Happens
"I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand." – Confucius

A popular quote by William Glasser says “We learn… 10 percent of what we read, 20 percent of what we hear, 30 percent of what we see, 50 percent of what we see and hear, 70 percent of what we discuss with others, 80 percent of what we experience, and 95 percent of what we teach to someone.”  The percentages might be somewhat off, but they are close enough to actual values to internalize this information for future learning.

6. The Jethro Principle
Exodus 18:17-26
17 Moses' father-in-law replied, "What you are doing is not good. 18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. 19 Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people's representative before God and bring their disputes to him.  20 Teach them the decrees and laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform. 21 But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.  22 Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. 23 If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied."  24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. 25 He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 26 They served as judges for the people at all times. The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.

7. Synergy
Synergism - interaction of people so that the total effect is greater than the sum of the individual effects.
The people in your life group can bring the best out in you and actually take you to a higher level than you could reach on your own.

8. Friendships
You can get closer to the people in your life group due to the content and honesty that goes on. This creates an environment where close friendships can be established.

If you'd like to learn more about becoming a Christian please click here.

Visit with us at Jubilee Family Church this Sunday at 10:00 AM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or Wednesday evening at 6:30 PM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or via internet video on Jubilee T.V.

Jubilee Family Church
45 Thunderbird Dr.
Batesville, AR 72501
(870) 793-9124


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by Tony V. Hammack

Do Barbers Exist?

This is a great explanation on the nature of God...

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed. As the barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation. They talked about so many things and various subjects. When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said: 'I don't believe that God exists.'

'Why do you say that?' asked the customer. 'Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist.

Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children?

If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain.

I can't imagine a loving God who would allow all of these things.'

The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument.

The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.

Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard.

He looked dirty and unkempt. The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber:

'You know what? Barbers do not exist.'

'How can you say that?' asked the surprised barber. 'I am here, and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!'

'No!' the customer exclaimed. 'Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside.'

'Ah, but barbers DO exist! That's what happens when people do not come to me.'

Exactly!' affirmed the customer.
~Author Unknown.

If you'd like to learn more about becoming a Christian please click here.

Visit with us at our Jubilee Family Church internet campus this Sunday at 10:00 AM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or Wednesday evening at 6:30 PM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or via internet video on Jubilee T.V.

Jubilee Family Church
45 Thunderbird Dr.
Batesville, AR 72501
(870) 793-9124


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by Tony V. Hammack

The Power of the Tongue

Life and Death

Proverbs 18:21
The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.

Psalm 19:14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Jesus Spoke in Faith to Situations
Jesus Operated in the faith principles found in Mark 11:23 and Matthew 17:20 while on the Earth.

Mark 11:23 
23"I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.

Matthew 17:20
20He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

Jesus spoke to demons, to sick people, to storms, to trees, even to the dead. As he spoke to them in faith they responded to his faith and authority.


We're called to be like Jesus
Ephesians 5:1
1Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children
This faith and authority isn’t just for Jesus, it's for us also, look at the amazing truth below in John 14:12
John 14:12
12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

The Apostles flow in faith and speak to situations
Acts 3:4-7
4Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!" 5So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.  6Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." 7Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong.

Today
Amazingly Jesus has told us we can have what we say, if we say it in faith. (Mark 11:23) but our meditation and speech is on what we have, our circumstances.

As long as you say what you have you will have what you say. However, you can have what you say if you learn to release faith from the heart in your words.
Matthew 8:13
13Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go! It will be done just as you believed it would." And his servant was healed at that very hour.

The Word of God conceived in the human heart and then spoken in faith has amazing power to shift things into proper heavenly alignment.

The Devil is a defeated foe but still operates where He’s not challenged.

Colossians 2:15
15And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

Words can create faith like faith creates words. If you don’t have faith find a scripture and begin to declare that word over your life until faith is birthed in your heart. Then when you speak the word with faith you will see God move in the miraculous.

Faith can move mountains in any area of life. However let’s take a look at the area of identity. Who you are in Christ.

People have all kinds of ideas and tend to believe all kinds of lies about themselves as it relates to their identity in Christ. The following scriptures should help a person walk in victory of a false self image.

One of the enemies tactics is to get us to believe lies about ourselves.

1 Peter 5:8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Scriptures to help you understand

I am faithful (Ephesians 1:1)
I am God's child (John 1:12)
I have been justified (Romans 5:1)
I am Christ's friend (John 15:15)
I belong to God (1 Corinthians 6:20)
I am a member of Christ's Body (1 Corinthians 12:27)
I am assured all things work together for good (Romans 8:28)
I have been established, anointed and sealed by God (2 Corinthians 1:21-22)
I am confident that God will perfect the work He has begun in me (Philippians 1:6)
I am a citizen of heaven (Philippians 3:20)
I am hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3)
I have not been given a spirit of fear, but of power, love and self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7)
I am born of God and the evil one cannot touch me (1 John 5:18)
I am blessed in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3)
I am chosen before the creation of the world (Ephesians 1:4, 11)
I am holy and blameless (Ephesians 1:4)
I am adopted as his child (Ephesians 1:5)
I am given God's glorious grace lavishly and without restriction (Ephesians 1:5,8)
I am in Him (Ephesians 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:30)
I have redemption (Ephesians 1:8)
I am forgiven (Ephesians 1:8; Colossians 1:14)
I have purpose (Ephesians 1:9 & 3:11)
I have hope (Ephesians 1:12)
I am included (Ephesians 1:13)
I am sealed with the promised Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13)
I am a saint (Ephesians 1:18)
I am salt and light of the earth (Matthew 5:13-14)
I have been chosen and God desires me to bear fruit (John 15:1,5)
I am a personal witness of Jesus Christ (Acts 1:8)
I am God's coworker (2 Corinthians 6:1)

If you'd like to learn more about becoming a Christian please click here.

Visit with us at Jubilee Family Church this Sunday at 10:00 AM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or Wednesday evening at 6:30 PM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or via internet video on Jubilee T.V.

Jubilee Family Church
45 Thunderbird Dr.
Batesville, AR 72501
(870) 793-9124


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by Tony V. Hammack

Just Stay

A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside.

"Your son is here," she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened.

Heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand. The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement.

The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed. All through the night the young Marine sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength. Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile.

He refused. Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and of the night noises of the hospital - the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and moans of the other patients.

Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his son all through the night.

Along towards dawn, the old man died. The Marine released the now lifeless hand he had been holding and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, he waited.

Finally, she returned. She started to offer words of sympathy, but the Marine interrupted her.

"Who was that man?" he asked.

The nurse was startled, "He was your father," she answered.

"No, he wasn't," the Marine replied. "I never saw him before in my life."

"Then why didn't you say something when I took you to him?"

"I knew right away there had been a mistake, but I also knew he needed his son, and his son just wasn't here. When I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son,knowing how much he needed me, I stayed." I came here tonight to find a Mr. William Grey. His Son was Killed in Iraq today, and I was sent to inform
him. What was this gentleman's name?

The nurse with tears in her eyes answered,

Mr. William Grey

The next time someone needs you, just be there, stay.

If you'd like to learn more about becoming a Christian please click here.

Visit with us at Jubilee Family Church this Sunday at 10:00 AM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or Wednesday evening at 6:30 PM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or via internet video on Jubilee T.V.

Jubilee Family Church
45 Thunderbird Dr.
Batesville, AR 72501
(870) 793-9124


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Faith

The Key that Unlocks the Power of God
by Tony V. Hammack

To listen to this message (podcast) on faith please click here.  To watch the video please click here.
Introduction:

Faith according to Hebrews 11:1 is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

Hope that is sure
Hope - to desire with expectation of obtainment
The invisible made certain

The Importance of Faith
Hebrews 11:6
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Believe and Receive
Matthew 21:21-22
21Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. 22If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."


Body:

Faith and Unbelief?
Mark 9:17-26
17A man in the crowd answered, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. 18Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not."  19"O unbelieving generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me." 20So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. 21Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?" "From childhood," he answered.  22"It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.“ 23" 'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes." 24Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"  25When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf and mute spirit," he said, "I command you, come out of him and never enter him again." 26The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, "He's dead." 27But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.

Some points from the above passage:

1. Take your problems to Jesus
2. Not all unclean spirits are the same
3. Unbelief is the reason the disciples cannot drive out the unclean spirit
4. The unclean spirits can see the anointing and will manifest in the presence of God
5. Asking diagnostic questions is important to know what you’re dealing with
6. Because Jesus is in faith for the boy he can expel the unclean spirit. The father does not expel the spirit.
7. Prayer and spending time with God builds faith

1.  Take your problems to Jesus.
Today with so many solutions to all our problems I encourage you to take your problems to the Lord first.
Mark 5:26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.


2. Unbelief hinders God from moving in the miraculous.
Because of this reality Jesus is selective
Mark 5:36-43
36Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, "Don't be afraid; just believe." 37He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James. 38When they came to the home of the synagogue ruler, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. 39He went in and said to them, "Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep."  40But they laughed at him. After he put them all out, he took the child's father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41He took her by the hand and said to her, "Talitha koum!" (which means, "Little girl, I say to you, get up!" ). 42Immediately the girl stood up and walked around (she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished. 43He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and told them to give her something to eat.

3. Unbelief is the reason the disciples cannot drive out the unclean spirit
Mark 11:23 "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.


4. The unclean spirits can see the anointing and will manifest in the presence of God
Mark 5:6,7
6When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. 7He shouted at the top of his voice, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won't torture me!"


5. Asking diagnostic questions is important to know what you’re dealing with
Jesus asks the father in Mark 9:21, how long has the boy been like this. I believe Jesus is trying to determine the spirit’s entry point. Sometimes this gives the minister a strategy to know what they are dealing with, perhaps a generational spirit or maybe a more recent intruder.


6. Because Jesus is in faith for the boy he can expel the unclean spirit. The father does not expel the spirit.  What seems to motivate Jesus to act is the approaching crowd (v. 25). Perhaps he would’ve worked with the father and or the disciples to get him/them up to speed had the crowd not been running to the scene.

• Often in scripture we see Jesus avoiding the crowds and telling people to not speak of the miraculous work he’s accomplished. My belief is that Jesus wants to be able to travel freely in towns and other areas but the crowds end up hindering him.
• Mark 1:45 – A Leper Healed Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere.
• Another reason we see Jesus wanting to avoid crowds is so he can focus his attention on his disciples. 
• Mark 9:30b-31  Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were, 31because he was teaching his disciples.

Sometimes we can have the same prayer to the Lord, “I believe help me with my unbelief.” However I don’t think we’ll see the miraculous as long as were in this condition. I believe we need to experience the mercy and grace of Christ to help us with our unbelief but until we get the unbelief out the father of the boy doesn’t have the authority to drive the unclean spirit out and neither will we.

Faith Comes by Hearing
Romans 10:17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.  The word for “word” here is rhema, it’s the spoken word of Christ meaning that you need a spoken word of God for faith to come.

The significance of rhema (as distinct from logos) is exemplified in the injunction to take "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God," Eph 6:17; here the reference is not to the whole Bible as such, but to the individual scripture which the Spirit brings to our remembrance for use in time of need, a prerequisite being the regular storing of the mind with Scripture.

The spoken Word of God comes as we meditate in the logos word of God, the written Word. I encourage you that if you need a miracle meditate in the logos word of God speaking the word over yourself quoting scripture until the rhema comes.

Jesus only does ministry today through people who are filled with Christ. Very often I believe we are praying for God to do something he’s given us the authority to do.

• 2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
• Colossians 2:9,10  9For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.

7.  Prayer and spending time with God builds faith
It’s interesting to note that Jesus says this kind comes out by prayer. However we see that Jesus doesn’t go into a long drawn out prayer time to his Father regarding this boy's condition but speaks to the unclean spirit commanding it to come out.  To me the obvious conclusion is that Jesus is “prayed up” before this situation occurs. The disciples however are not. Now if they had more time there’s a good possibility that Jesus would’ve allowed the father to get prayed up or the disciples and let them cast the spirit out.

It’s important that we practice the presence of God. We should pray continually, always having the Lord on our hearts and prepared for every good work   Getting into the presence of God is where we hear from heaven and learn about our authority. How we get free from sin and develop a real love for God.

Take some time to pray and ask God to drive out any unbelief by speaking His rhema word into your heart.

If you'd like to learn more about becoming a Christian please click here.

Visit with us at Jubilee Family Church this Sunday at 10:00 AM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or Wednesday evening at 6:30 PM Central Standard Time U.S.A. or via internet video on Jubilee T.V.

Jubilee Family Church
45 Thunderbird Dr.
Batesville, AR 72501
(870) 793-9124


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