“The Gospel of the Triune God”

“The Gospel of the Triune God” (Romans 1:1–7)Pastor Cameron JungelsEastside Baptist ChurchSunday AM, January 15, 2017
Romans 1:1–7 (NIV) Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God—2 the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3 regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, 4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake. 6 And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. 7 To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
     1. The Gospel’s Messenger (1).          a. Paul          b. A Servant of Christ Jesus          c. Called as an Apostle          d. Set-apart/Appointed for the Gospel of God
     2. The Gospel’s Promise (2).          a. The Gospel promised beforehand by God          b. The Gospel prophesied in the Holy Scriptures
     3. The Gospel’s Central Person: Jesus Christ (3–4).          a. The Son of God          b. Descendant of David          c. “Appointed as” the Son of God               i. In power              ii. By the Holy Spirit             iii. Through his resurrection from the dead          d. Our Lord
     4. The Gospel’s Mission (5).          a. Call the Gentiles/Nations to the Obedience of Faith               i. Through the grace and apostleship received from God              ii. For the sake of God’s name
     5. The Gospel’s Beneficiaries (6–7a).          a. You: Roman Christians (Predominantly Gentile)               i. Among the Gentiles              ii. Called (effectually)             iii. To belong to Jesus Christ              iv. Loved by God               v. Called (effectually) to be his saints/holy people          b. Us: Predominantly Gentiles
     6. The Gospel’s Blessings (7b).          a. Grace          b. Peace               i. From God our Father and              ii. From the Lord Jesus Christ

“A Prayer for the New Year”

“A Prayer for the New Year” (Colossians 1:9–14)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, January 1, 2017
 
Colossians 1:9-14, NIV
9  For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives,  10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,  11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,  12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.  13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,  14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
      1.  The prayer’s pattern: purposeful and perpetual.
      2.  The prayer’s petition: knowledge of God’s moral will.
      3.  The prayer’s purpose: to live a life worthy of the Lord.
      4.  The prayer’s product:
                a.  Bearing fruit in every good work.
                b.  Growing in the knowledge of God.
                c.   Being strengthened with God’s power for endurance and perseverance.
                d.   Giving thanks to God for his gracious gift of salvation.

“Jesus, Made Human for Us”

“Jesus, Made Human for Us” (Hebrews 2:5–18)
Communion Message
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Christmas Sunday AM, December 25, 2016
 
Hebrews 2:15–18, NIV
     5 It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking.  6 But there is a place where someone has testified: "What is mankind that you are mindful of them, a son of man that you care for him?  7 You made them a little lower than the angels; you crowned them with glory and honor  8 and put everything under their feet." In putting everything under them, God left nothing that is not subject to them. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to them.  9 But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.  
     10 In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered.  11 Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.  12 He says, "I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters; in the assembly I will sing your praises."  13 And again, "I will put my trust in him." And again he says, "Here am I, and the children God has given me."  
     14 Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death-- that is, the devil--  15 and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.  16 For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants.  17 For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.  18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

“The Song of the Angels”

“The Song of the Angels” (Luke 2:8–20)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, December 18, 2016
 
Luke 2:1–20 (NIV)
2 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
 
 

Main Idea: The song of the angels is that Jesus Christ is the only way to peace with God.

“The Song of Zechariah”

“The Song of Zechariah” (Luke 1:68–79)Pastor Cameron JungelsEastside Baptist ChurchSunday AM, December 4, 2016
Luke 1:68–79 (NIV)
68 “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,      because he has come to his people and redeemed them. 69 He has raised up a horn  of salvation for us         in the house of his servant David 70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), 71 salvation from our enemies      and from the hand of all who hate us— 72 to show mercy to our ancestors      and to remember his holy covenant, 73 the oath he swore to our father Abraham: 74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,      and to enable us to serve him without fear 75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. 76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;      for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, 77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation      through the forgiveness of their sins, 78 because of the tender mercy of our God,      by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven 79 to shine on those living in darkness      and in the shadow of death,      to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
 
     1. Zechariah praises God for fulfilling the Davidic Covenant. (vv. 68–71).
     2. Zechariah praises God for fulfilling the Abrahamic Covenant. (vv. 72–75).
     3. Zechariah praises God for fulfilling his promise regarding John (vv. 76–77).
     4. Zechariah praises God for the rising Sun that will scatter the darkness. (vv. 78–79)
Main Idea: The Birth of our Savior Jesus Christ is a reminder that God keeps his promises.
 

“The Song of Mary”

“The Song of Mary” (Luke 1:39–56)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, November 27, 2016
 

Luke 1:39–56 (NIV)
     39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”
     46 And Mary said:
         “My soul glorifies the Lord
     47  and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
     48 for he has been mindful
         of the humble state of his servant.
         From now on all generations will call me blessed,
     49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
         holy is his name.
     50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
         from generation to generation.
     51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
         he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
     52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
         but has lifted up the humble.
     53 He has filled the hungry with good things
         but has sent the rich away empty.
     54 He has helped his servant Israel,
         remembering to be merciful
     55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
         just as he promised our ancestors.”
     56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then                            returned home.
 
 
Main Idea: Our response to the coming of Jesus Christ into the world should be to break forth in song and share the message with every one we can.

“Wake Up and Fight for the Battle Is Won”

“Wake Up and Fight for the Battle Is Won” (Rom 13:11–14; 16:20)Pastor Cameron JungelsEastside Baptist ChurchSunday AM, November 13, 2016
       1. Our Call (Rom 13:11–12)
11 And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. (Romans 13:11-12, NIV)
       2. Our Struggle (Rom 13:13–14)
13 Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. 14 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh. (Romans 13:13-14, NIV)
       3. Our Hope (Rom 16:20)
20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. (Romans 16:20, NIV)
 

“The One Who Bore Our Sins”

“The One Who Bore Our Sins” (1 Peter 2:24–25) 
Communion Message
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, October 2, 2016
24 "He himself bore our sins" in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; "by his wounds you have been healed."  25 For "you were like sheep going astray," but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. 
(1 Pet. 2:24-25, NIV)
1. Communion reminds us of our sin (“our sins”).
2. Communion reminds us that Jesus came to earth in flesh and blood to save us from our sins (“his body” / “his wounds”).
3. Communion reminds us that Jesus, though righteous, gave his life in bloody sacrifice to bear our sins away in atonement (“bore our sins” / “by his wounds you have been healed”).
4. Communion reminds us that Jesus’ atonement guaranteed our salvation, and he came to seek and save his lost sheep (v. 25).
5. Communion reminds us that having been brought into the fold of the good shepherd, we are dead to sins and we are alive unto righteousness (“so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness”).
6. Communion reminds us that we look forward to a coming day when all suffering and sorrow will be no more and we will be perfected in glory (see preceding context of suffering and Christ’s perfect example in suffering on the way to glory).
18 ¶ Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.  19 For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God.  20 But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.  21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.  22 "He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth."  23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. (1 Pet. 2:18-23, NIV)

“Hospitality and the Truth”

“Hospitality and the Truth” (3 John)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, September 4, 2016
3 John (NIV) 
1 The elder, 
To my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth. 
2 Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. 3 It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. 
5 Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you. 6 They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God. 7 It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. 8 We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth. 
9 I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us. 10 So when I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, spreading malicious nonsense about us. Not satisfied with that, he even refuses to welcome other believers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church. 
11 Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God. 12 Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone—and even by the truth itself. We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true. 
13 I have much to write you, but I do not want to do so with pen and ink. 14 I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face. 
Peace to you. The friends here send their greetings. Greet the friends there by name. 

1. Gaius: A spiritually healthy person lives and loves the truth. (1–8).
2. Diotrephes: A spiritually diseased person is a hindrance to the truth, because their own self-interest gets in the way (9–11).
3. Demetrius: A spiritually healthy person has a good reputation and is faithful to the truth (12).
Main Idea: A spiritually healthy Christian who loves the truth will seek to advance it by providing hospitality and help to its messengers.

“Loving the Truth”

“Loving the Truth” (2 John)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, August 28, 2016
2 John 

1 The elder, 
To the lady chosen by God and to her children, whom I love in the truth—and not I only, but also all who know the truth—2 because of the truth, which lives in us and will be with us forever: 
3 Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love. 
4 It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 5 And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love. 
7 I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. 9 Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take them into your house or welcome them. 11 Anyone who welcomes them shares in their wicked work. 
12 I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete. 
13 The children of your sister, who is chosen by God, send their greetings. 
1. Believers must love the truth (1–3).
a. We love the truth when we love its believers (1).
b. We love the truth when we defend its purity (1-2).
c. We love the truth when we remember its source (3).
2. Believers must live the truth (4–6).
a. Live the truth.
b. Live in love.
c. Live in obedience.
d. Living in truth, love, and obedience is not only our duty but is a demonstration that we are genuine children of God.
3. Believers must guard the truth (7–11).
a. In order to guard the truth, we must recognize error (7).
b. In order to guard the truth, we must not embrace error (8-9).
c. In order to guard the truth, we must combat error (10-11).
Main Idea: True believers love, live, and protect God’s truth.

“Reality, not the Illusion”

“Reality, not the Illusion” (1 John 5:13–21)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, August 21, 2016
1 John 5:13–21 (NIV) 
13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. 
16 If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death. 
18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. 19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. 20 We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. 
21 Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. 
1. Real Faith (13)

2. Confident Prayer (14–15)

3. Compassionate Intercession (16–17)

4. Divine Protection (18–20)

5. Loving Exhortation (21)
Main Idea: May we have a true faith, not an illusion of faith. And may we worship the true and living God, not a fake imitation. 

“Genuine Testimony”

“Genuine Testimony” (1 John 5:1–12)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, August 14, 2016
1 John 5:1-12
​1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
6 This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. 9 We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. 11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.   12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

1. The Genuineness of our Testimony of Spiritual Birth (1–5).
a. The one born of God believes that Jesus is the Messiah (1, 5).
b. The one born of God loves God (1, 2, 3).
c. The one born of God loves God’s children (1, 2).
d. The one born of God keeps God’s commands (2–3).
e. The one born of God overcomes the world through faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God (5).
2. The Genuineness of Christ’s Testimony as the Son of God (6–12).
a. The Three-fold Witness to the Genuineness of Christ’s Testimony (6–8):
i. The water
ii. The blood
iii. The Spirit
b. The Witness of God the Father to the Genuineness of Christ’s Testimony (9–12).

“We Love Because God Loves”

“We Love Because God Loves” (1 John 4:7–21)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, August 7, 2016
1 John 4:7–21 (NIV) 
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 
13 This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. 
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 
19 We love because he first loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. 
1. True Believers Love God and People (6–10).

2. There is an inseparable connection between God’s love for us and our love for other people (11–12).

3. There is an inseparable connection between faith in Jesus Christ and love for other people (13–16).

4. There is an inseparable connection between our love for other people and our confidence that we belong to God (17–18).

5. There is no connection whatsoever between love for God and hatred of other people (19–21).
Main Idea: “If God loves us then we will love others, because God’s love for us is transformational and effective, resulting in our love for God and for other people.”

“Acknowledging Christ”

“Acknowledging Christ” (1 John 4:1–6)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, July 31, 2016
1 John 4:1–6 (NIV) 
4 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. 
4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood. 
1. God’s people must exercise discernment (1).

2. God’s people agree with the Holy Spirit’s witness regarding Jesus’ person (2–3).

3. God’s people will experience the victory of God, even though they face the world’s opposition (4–5).

4. God’s people agree with the true apostolic witness regarding Christ (6).
Main Idea: Those who belong to God and truly have God’s Spirit within them will acknowledge the truth about Jesus Christ, that He is God and Man and our Savior and Lord.

“From Jacob to Israel”

“From Jacob to Israel” (Genesis 32:1-32)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, July 24, 2016
Genesis 32:1–32 (NIV) 
32  Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him. 2 When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God!” So he named that place Mahanaim.  
3 Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom. 4 He instructed them: “This is what you are to say to my lord Esau: ‘Your servant Jacob says, I have been staying with Laban and have remained there till now. 5 I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, male and female servants. Now I am sending this message to my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes.’” 
6 When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 
7 In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. 8 He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape.” 
9 Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, Lord, you who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ 10 I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps. 11 Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. 12 But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’” 
13 He spent the night there, and from what he had with him he selected a gift for his brother Esau: 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. 16 He put them in the care of his servants, each herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Go ahead of me, and keep some space between the herds.” 
17 He instructed the one in the lead: “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘Who do you belong to, and where are you going, and who owns all these animals in front of you?’ 18 then you are to say, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a gift sent to my lord Esau, and he is coming behind us.’” 
19 He also instructed the second, the third and all the others who followed the herds: “You are to say the same thing to Esau when you meet him. 20 And be sure to say, ‘Your servant Jacob is coming behind us.’” For he thought, “I will pacify him with these gifts I am sending on ahead; later, when I see him, perhaps he will receive me.” 21 So Jacob’s gifts went on ahead of him, but he himself spent the night in the camp. 
22 That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. 24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. 26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” 
But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 
27 The man asked him, “What is your name?” 
“Jacob,” he answered. 
28 Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” 
29 Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” 
But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. 
30 So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” 
31 The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon. 
Textual Outline
1. Jacob’s Journey to Meet Esau (1-21).
a. Jacob at the Camp of God (1-2).
b. Jacob’s benevolent message to Esau (3-5).
c. Esau’s ominous response (6).
d. Jacob’s fear-inspired plan (7-8).
e. Jacob’s prayer (9-12)
f. Jacob’s over-the-top gift to Esau (13-21). 
2. Jacob’s Wrestling Match with God for His Blessing (22-32).
a. The all night wrestling match (22-29).
i. Jacob’s fear (22-24a)
ii. Jacob wrestles with a “man” until daybreak (24b).
iii. Jacob’s hip injury (25).
iv. Jacob’s refusal to let the man go without a blessing (26).
v. Jacob becomes Israel (27-28).
vi. Jacob cannot know the “man’s” name (29).
b. Jacob’s Response to his Struggle with God (30-32).
i. Peniel – Jacob’s awareness of God’s presence (30).
ii. Jacob’s permanent hip disability and reminder of his weakness (31).
iii. Israel’s perpetual memorial of this event (32).
Sermon Lessons/Applications
1. God reassures his people of his abiding protection and presence.
2. We should be willing to humble ourselves before others as Jacob did before Esau and admit our faults.
3. When faced with fear or difficult situations, we should not trust in our own abilities or our own wisdom; instead, we must trust in God’s provision and strength.
4. God is faithful to his promises and responds to earnest prayers that are prayed in line with God’s Word and God’s glory.
5. When God chooses and calls us, he radically changes us and causes us to renounce our self-sufficiency and depend wholly on him.
6. God cannot be controlled or manipulated by people, but he is a gracious God who delights in blessing his people.
7. Sometimes, God leaves permanent reminders of the weakness of self-sufficiency, so that we can be reminded to trust in Him.

“Assurance in God’s Presence”

“Assurance in God’s Presence” (1 John 3:19–24)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, July 24, 2016
1 John 3:19–24 (NIV) 
19 This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: 20 If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. 21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. 24 The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us. 
Working through the passage in reverse:
Main overriding question: “How do we know that we belong to God?” (v. 24)
Main overriding answer: “By the Holy Spirit he has given to us” (v. 24).
Clarifying question: “How do we know that we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us?”
Clarifying answer (3 works of the Spirit): John weaves together all 3 of the main indicators that we are the children of God (vv. 23–24).
1. Faith in Jesus Christ (v. 23).

2. Obedience to the commands of Christ (v. 24). 

3. Love for one another (v. 23). 
*All three of these indicators are produced by the indwelling Holy Spirit. These are not human initiated, self-produced works. These are works of God. 
*The presence of these three works of the Spirit provides two great benefits to us as believers:
1. Boldness/confidence in prayer (vv. 21–22; cf. 5:13–15). 

2. Assurance/confidence in God’s presence when our hearts (consciences) accuse us (vv. 19–20; cf. 4:13–18). 
Main Idea: “The fruit that the Holy Spirit produces in our lives gives us confidence before the presence of God in judgment and in prayer.”

“The Mark of Love”

“The Mark of Love” (1 John 3:11–18)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, July 17, 2016
1 John 3:11–18 (NIV) 
11 For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. 12 Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, my brothers and sisters, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death. 15 Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. 
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. 
1. We have been given a clear command to love one another (11).
a. The Message: The gospel compels us to love.
b. From the beginning: From the point of conversion, love for one another is a primary act of obedience to Christ.
c. One another: Love is personal. We are to care for one another in the body of Christ. 
2. The devil and the world are characterized by hatred, not love (12–15).
a. The devil is characterized by hatred and murder. 
b. Cain was a child of the devil, and revealed his family resemblance when he killed his brother in anger.
i. Cain was an evildoer (1 John 3:12; Gen 4:6–7).
ii. Cain lacked faith (Heb. 11:4)
c. The world is characterized by hatred.
d. Hatred is a mark of worldliness, unbelief, the family resemblance of Satan, and confirmation that one is still in death/condemnation (14).
e. Hatred/lack of love is murder. Murderers are not children of God.
3. Christ and his church are characterized by love, not hatred (14a, 16–18).
a. Jesus Christ gave us the ultimate demonstration of love when he gave his life for ours (16).
b. As disciples of Jesus Christ, we must follow the example of Christ and give our lives for our brothers and sisters in Christ (16).
c. Our love for one another is demonstrated in real life actions, not thoughts and words only (17–18).
d. Love for one another is a clear mark that we are God’s children and disciples of Christ.
e. Love for one another gives us assurance that we have crossed over from death to life (14a).
Main Idea: Love for other people is a clear mark that we have been born into God’s family.

“Bearing the Family Resemblance”

“Bearing the Family Resemblance” (1 John 3:4–10)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, July 10, 2016
1 John 3:4–10 (NIV) 
4 Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. 5 But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. 6 No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him. 
7 Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. 8 The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. 9 No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. 10 This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister. 
1. Sin is incompatible with the righteous character of God (v. 4).
2. Sin is incompatible with the Work of Christ (v. 5)
3. Sin is incompatible with the ministry of the Holy Spirit (9–10).
Main Idea: If sin is a part of your life, then it presents evidence that you may not be a child of God. However, an attitude of repentance and growth in righteousness prevents evidence that you are a part of God’s family.

“Confidence at His Coming”

“Confidence at His Coming” (1 John 2:28–3:3)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, July 3, 2016
28 And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.  29 If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.  1 John 3:1 See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.  2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.  3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.  (1 John 2:28-3:3, NIV)

1. Confidence for the day of Christ comes by abiding in Christ now (2:28).
2. Confidence for the day of Christ comes by the righteous character that is produced in us by the regenerating and indwelling Holy Spirit (2:29).
3. Confidence for the day of Christ does not ultimately rest in us, but rests in God’s love for us that has made us his children (3:1).
4. Confidence for the day of Christ comes through the development of Christlikeness that will one day be perfected at his coming (3:2).
5. In light of Christ’s coming we have a responsibility to purify ourselves and in so doing nurture a confident expectation for his return (3:3).
Big Idea: Christians can have confidence that they are in Christ now, which will lead to confidence and not shame at the future coming of Jesus Christ.

1.    

“Abiding in the Spirit and in Truth”

“Abiding in the Spirit and in Truth” (1 John 2:18–27)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, June 26, 2016
 
1 John 2:18-27, NIV
18 Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.  19 They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.  
20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.  21 I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth.  22 Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist-- denying the Father and the Son.  23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.  
24 As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.  25 And this is what he promised us-- eternal life.  
26 I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray.  27 As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit-- just as it has taught you, remain in him.
 
1.              1. Those who walk away from the faith give evidence that they were never truly God’s children (18–19).
 
2.              2. The anointing of the indwelling Holy Spirit is a gift from God to keep his true children from error (20–23).
 
3.               3. The abiding presence of the Word is a gracious gift from God to keep his true children from error.
 
Main Idea: The Holy Spirit and the Word are the primary means that God uses to keep his children from falling away from the faith. And those who are truly his will abide in the Spirit and in truth. So abide in Him!