Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, December 31, 2023

Text: Micah 6:8

Scripture Reading: John 14:27; Psalm 34:18; Psalm 145: 18. “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart” “The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,” (NKJV)

Background: Micah 6:6-7

#1–“He has shown you, O man, what is good;”

#2–What the Lord requires.

#3–Do justly.

#4–Love mercy (kindness).

#5–Walk humbly with your God.

Prophecies of Micah

• Fall of the northern Kingdom-1:6-7
• Invasion of Judah by Sennacherib in 701 B.C.-1:9, 12
• Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple–3:12
• Judah’s Babylonian captivity–4:10
• Judah’s return from captivity–4:10
• The exact name of Christ’s birthplace–5:2

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, December 17, 2023

Text: Luke 2:8-10

Congregation Advent Reading: We wait as people who experience hardship and pain, yet we are called to witness to the persistent joy that sustains our life as God’s people.

#1–GREAT JOY–

Joy–Great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; a source or cause of keen pleasure or delight; something or someone greatly valued or appreciated.

#2–The Gospel of Luke and the theme of “JOY”–

Luke 1:44–

Luke 24:52–

#3–Antonyms for JOY–“sorrow,” & “darkness.”

Psalm 30:11-12–

John 8:12–

JOY “displaces” sorrow & darkness.

#4–Life on a roller coaster–

JOY & happiness not based on circumstances.

Our challenge: When tough times, when doubt and fear are knocking on our door, remember the message of the angel to the shepherds: I bring you good tidings of GREAT JOY which will be to all people.

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, December 10, 2023

Text: Luke 2:8-14

Congregational Advent Reading: We wait as people who yearn for peace that bears the fruit of community, equity, and flourishing for all.

Text: Luke 2:8-14

#1–Shepherds–Levitical Shepherds watching or guarding the flocks to be used in Temple sacrifices.

#2–Heavenly Host of Angels–hundreds, perhaps thousands of angels.

• Heaven’s Army–

#3–Peace of God–

#4–Peace of Mind–

• 1 Peter 5:8-9–
• Isaiah 26:3–

#5–Peace that surpasses all understanding–

• Philippians 4:6-7–

#6–Peace with God–

• Romans 5:1-2–
• Ephesians 2:8-9–
• 1 John 1:9–

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, November 26, 2023

Matthew 7:24-27

Bible Reading: Titus 3:4-6 “When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior.” (NLT)

#1–Matthew 5-7–Sermon on the Mount

          Character of Christ followers

          Being salt & light

          Guarding your heart

          Loving your enemies

          How to pray

          Don’t worry, seek God’s Kingdom

          Be wise, not foolish.

#2–Wadis

#3–Wise and foolish

#4–John 15:4-5–How to abide (remain) in Him.

#5–John 15:10–Making the effort; living with respect towards God.

#6–John 15:12–Choose love.

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, November 19, 2023

Text: Luke 18:9-14

Bible Reading: 1 Chronicles 16:31-34 “Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice! Tell all the nations, “The Lord reigns!” Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise! Let the fields and their crops burst out with joy! Let the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever.” (NLT)

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

#1–To whom did Jesus tell this parable?

          Luke 18:9–

#2–The logic of heaven.

          A good guy.

          A bad guy.

#3–The Pharisee’s prayer–Luke 18:11-12

#4–The Tax Collector’s prayer–Luke 18:13

          Hebrews 4:16–

          Ephesians 2:8-9–

          Isaiah 64:6–

#5–Two take-a-ways–

• Stop comparing.
• We don’t earn our way into heaven by our good deeds, nor do we earn our way into hell by our evil deeds.

#6–Romans 3:23–All have sinned.

#7–1 John 1:99–God will cleanse us of our sins if we ask.

#8–2 Corinthians 5:17–God will make all things new.

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, November 12, 2023

Luke 15:11-32

Bible Reading: 1 John 4:9-10 “God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a Sacrifice to take away our sins.” (NLT)

Luke 15:1-3–The audience for three parables.

Luke 15:11-13–

          The younger sons request–

          The father divided his livelihood–

          A far country–

Luke 15:14-16–

          He lost it all–

          He joined himself to a citizen of that country–

Luke 15:17-19–

          He [the younger son] came to himself–

          Mark 5:15–a man with an unclean spirit

          Proverbs 22:6–“Train up a child….”

Luke 15:20-24–

          The Father was looking for the younger son–

          A Robe, a ring, and sandals–

          Romans 8:1–

Luke 15:25-32–

          The older brother–

          “All that I have is yours”–

          “Was dead and is alive again”–

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, November 5, 2023

Luke 15:1-10

Bible Reading: Titus 3:4-6 “When God our Savior revealed his kindness and lave, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior.” (NLT)

Luke 15–Three Parables

Luke 15:1-3–The setting for these three parables

• Tax Collectors
• Sinners
• Pharisees
• Scribes
• Matthew 11:19–A friend of sinners

The Parables–

The Good Shepherd–Luke 15:4-7

The Lost Coin–Luke 15:8-10

Five things we know for sure:

#1–The sheep was lost.

#2–The coin was lost.

#3–Someone searched for the sheep; someone searched for the coin.

#4–Both the sheep and the coin were found.

#5–Great rejoicing over the sheep and the coin being found.

Luke 19:10–“The Son of Man [Jesus} came to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Who was lost? We were lost.

Romans 3:23–All have sinned….

Isaiah 59:1-2–

1 John 2:2–Jesus is our propitiation.

          Propitiation–to “satisfy the wrath of God against sin;” “to turn away God’s wrath;” or “to offer a sacrifice that appeases God’s just judgment and righteous anger against us and our sin.”

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, October 29, 2023

Matthew 18:23-25

Bible Reading: Isaiah 40:29-31 “He gives strength to those who are tired and more power to those who are weak. Even children become tired and need to rest, and young people trip and fall. But the people who trust the Lord will become strong again. They will rise up as an eagle in the sky; they will run and not need rest; they will walk and not become tired.” (NCV)

#1–The extra milers–Matthew 5:4 & Matthew 18:21-22

#2–Part I–Matthew 18:23-25–

          An unimaginable debt–

          Compassion & Forgiveness–

#3–Part II–Matthew 18:26-27

          Debt forgiven.

#4–Part III–Matthew 18:28-34

Take-a-ways from Part III:

• Our debt, our sin, is something we cannot pay.
• We should always be willing to extend forgiveness.
• This eliminates the question of whether we can or should forgive.

#5–Part IV–Matthew 18:35

          Heart–Our emotions, our will, our intellect, our choices, and our thoughts.

Here are some questions for you to consider:

• What if God treated you the way you treat those who offend you?
• Would he stay away from you?
• Would he not show up because you were going to be there?
• Would he not talk to you?
• Would he not listen to you?
• Would he go the other way when he saw you coming?
• Would he try to make you feel guilty?

Matthew 6:14-15–

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, October 22, 2023

Text: Luke 10:25-37

Bible Reading: Zephaniah 3:17 “The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you but will rejoice over you with singing.”

Parables: Teaching tools used by Jesus, and others, taken from real life situations. These stories were used to explain God’s kingdom and challenge the listeners to examine their lives and adjust along the way to be more Christ-like.

#1–The Lawyer—

Deuteronomy 6:5—

Leviticus 19:18—

We need to do more than “just get by.”

Matthew 5:4–“extra milers”

Matthew 18:21-22—unlimited forgiveness

#2–The traveler—

#3–The Priest—

#4–The Levite—

#5–The Samaritan—

Loving our neighbor and being a good neighbor is not the same as simply not hating them. According to Scripture, love has form and content and it compels us to act. It compels us to actively seek the wellbeing of others.

Troy Mills Christian Church

Sunday, October 15, 2023

Text: Ephesians 2:19-22

Bible Reading: Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know what I have planned for you,’ says the Lord. ‘I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you a future filled with hope.” (NET)

1–Looking back—

2—Lessons learned?

          Importance of “one another.”

          Importance of being “salt & light.”

3–Looking forward—

          Acts 2:46-47—

          1 Peter 3:15—