Calvary Chapel Of Crook County - Main

The podcast of Calvary Prineville contains the latest sermons from Pastor Rory Rodgers, and occasionally live recordings of the latest worship service.

The Church is like a living organism, with every member needed to play an important part. God gives each person one or more spiritual gifts to mae this happen.

Christianity was never meant to be doctrine only, but also a way of living. Romans chapters 12-16 are all about application, how we transfer doctrine to our daily lives. We need to live a certain way based on what God has done for us – it’s not what we do but why we do it. Paul tells us to present our bodies as living sacrifices. This means all of us, the whole person. Are we giving it all to the Lord or just our Sunday best? We need to not think like the world thinks or act like the world acts – not conformed to the world’s pattern – and our minds need to be renewed through biblical teaching and fellowship.

Israel has been disobedient and rebellious, and in some respects was cast aside when the Gospel was given to the Gentiles and the Jews didn't believe. But that does not mean God is done with Israel. As the Gentiles were grafted into the Jewish olive tree, so too will the Jews be grafted back in at some time in the future. Israel is still loved and chosen by God as His people. What God promised toward Israel in the Old Testament is still valid; He never goes back on His promises.

Some people believe that the destruction of the Temple in AD 70 marked the end of Israel as God’s chosen people. Not so. God has not cast away His people but promised a covenant with them forever. Paul’s conversion was a sign that God had not abandoned Israel and today’s Messianic Jews are a living demonstration of His covenant. These Jews are God’s remnant, based upon nothing more than divine grace. It is a free gift from God. Salvation isn’t a contract but a covenant. Having a remnant suggests the majority of Israel is not saved but blinded. Hardened. The majority, the whole, has failed, but the elect have obtained it. Israel’s belief that they’re the chosen people and are secure in this is their downfall. Are we in that condition? Are our hearts hardened? Do we have sensitivity to the things of the Lord? Is our faith built on anything but faith in Jesus alone?

The podcast of Calvary Prineville contains the latest sermons from Pastor Rory Rodgers, and occasionally live recordings of the latest worship service.

The podcast of Calvary Prineville contains the latest sermons from Pastor Rory Rodgers, and occasionally live recordings of the latest worship service.

A great chronological teaching about all the "twists and turns" of the Bible, beginning in Genesis, that lead to the Resurrection of Jesus, who is our hope.

The podcast of Calvary Prineville contains the latest sermons from Pastor Rory Rodgers, and occasionally live recordings of the latest worship service.

Paul explains that even though Israel was the people of promise that not all Israel has been chosen and those Gentiles who have been born again are actually spiritually Israel. God is sovereign and can do what He wills, and has chosen people apart from human expectations. Election is based on grace and not race.

We need to have a passion or the lost and hurting in our world, as Paul had for the Jews, even as he ministered to the Gentiles.

Earlier in Romans 8 Paul declares four spiritual freedoms we enjoy because of Christ: freedom from judgment; from defeat; from discouragement; and from fear. We can have a fear of losing God’s love but we are secure in the love of Christ. Paul gives us five immutable facts: God is for us; Christ died for us; God has justified us; Jesus and the Holy Spirit intercede for us; Jesus loves us. Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. There is no condemnation, obligation, frustration or separation.

Romans 8, verses 28-30, deals with a topic that has been divisive for centuries: are we predestined to be believers in Christ or does it depend on us? On the one hand, Calvinism says it’s all up to God. We are predestined to believe and when called we do. Arminianism says it’s up to the individual to make their own decision about salvation. Of course, the controversy is way deeper than this but these two viewpoints encompass two pillars of the faith: God’s sovereign calling vs. man’s responsibility. It is one of the “secret things” of God and not really comprehensible.

This is one of the most-beloved verses in the Bible. However, it’s not a universal truth for all mankind but only for those who love God. The Father and the Spirit will work all things – the good as well as the bad – together for our good but this might be our character, perseverance, hope, genuineness of faith, etc. and might have nothing to do with circumstances but glorifies God. We need to learn to relax and stop being anxious and to love God for Who He is, not for what He gives.

Jeff Patterson, pastor of Renew Church in Oregon City, and the guest speaker at the Men's Muster, teaches today on Psalm 44. We often question our own experiences vs. the reality of God. God is faithful but we often don't recognize His faithfulness. If we’re honest, we ask God “why?” We can become disappointed, feel forsaken, and have difficulty trusting God. It’s the language of lament; a prayer spoken in pain that leads us to trust. We need to understand that this does not separate us from the love of Christ. He has taken care of this. He’s the one who hears our lament, having lived a life of lament and victory.

We are adopted and heirs of Christ, and as such we get to share in His suffering as well as His glory. All of us, including all of creation, wait, and groan for His appearing. But we wait patiently with expectation, and the Sprit helps us.

We have been bought with a price and owe nothing to the world, so why would we serve the flesh? If we live by the flesh we will die; if we die to the flesh we will live. We need to put the old (fleshly) man to death and mortify, or kill, the fleshly deeds. Mortification is not 1) perfection; 2) deceiving others about your sin; 3) improvement toward a quiet, sedated nature; 4) simply diverting a sin; or 5) occasional conquests over sin. It is a constant duty of believers, and sin must be killed, whatever it takes. In the end, it’s accomplished by the Spirit, not by self-strength. We labor, but it’s the Lord’s power.

One can either live according to the flesh or set their mind on things of the Spirit. A fleshly mind results in death; a spiritual mind results in life. If you have been born again and have the Holy Spirit inside you, your mind should be set on the things of God.

The podcast of Calvary Prineville contains the latest sermons from Pastor Rory Rodgers, and occasionally live recordings of the latest worship service.

Advent is a season of hope, but it’s a different hope than the hope the world has. The world’s hope is nothing more than wishful thinking. Biblical hope is the trust and confidence that we have in God, knowing He’s forever true and will keep His promises. It is this latter hope that kept the Israelites going, and God provided for them as they had need. In our case, we need to have the hope and expectation that Jesus will return. This is our hope for the future, that He will return and has prepared a place for us.