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949 messages
11mZac Poonen · Mar 22
11mZac Poonen · Mar 21
11mZac Poonen · Mar 20
12mZac Poonen · Mar 19
10mZac Poonen · Mar 18
9mZac Poonen · Mar 17
12mZac Poonen · Mar 16
8mZac Poonen · Mar 15
12mZac Poonen · Mar 14
11mZac Poonen · Mar 13
15mZac Poonen · Mar 12
8mZac Poonen · Mar 11
14mZac Poonen · Mar 10
10mZac Poonen · Mar 9
12mZac Poonen · Mar 8
14mZac Poonen · Mar 7
11mZac Poonen · Mar 6
10mZac Poonen · Mar 5
12mZac Poonen · Mar 4
11mZac Poonen · Mar 3
15mZac Poonen · Mar 2
8mZac Poonen · Mar 1
15mZac Poonen · Feb 29
10mZac Poonen · Feb 28
Zac Poonen · 11m · CFC Daily Devotions
True blessing under the New Covenant is not measured by material wealth and health, but by spiritual transformation and union with Christ. The mark of God's blessing is internal holiness and a clear vision of Christ, not external prosperity.
11mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 22, 2024 · 11m
The central message is that the ultimate goal of life is to know God personally, which Jesus defined as eternal life. The speaker argues that God often uses trials and suffering—rather than comfort—to bring us to this intimate knowledge of Him. He encourages listeners to endure suffering patiently, not complain, and always focus on the final, positive outcome of God's dealings in their lives.
11mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 21, 2024 · 11m
To see Jesus clearly, one must be willing to undergo a profound 'brokenness,' much like a grain of wheat that must fall into the ground to produce much fruit. This willingness requires prioritizing the desire to see Jesus over maintaining one's earthly attractiveness or reputation within the church. True fruitfulness comes not from being preserved, but from being broken open, echoing examples like Mary breaking the costly perfume jar.
11mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 20, 2024 · 11m
The message emphasizes that Christian life requires continuous spiritual progress, comparing it to the daily progression seen in creation. The speaker warns against complacency, stressing that true security must come from the internal witness of the Holy Spirit confirming one's identity as a child of God, rather than external validation like baptism or church commitment. Believers must continually seek this assurance to live confidently knowing God's care and provision.
12mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 19, 2024 · 12m
The central message is that the 'new commandment' to love one another, as exemplified by Jesus' love, requires a self-sacrificial commitment. This love demands that believers be willing to die to their own self-will, even when facing criticism or correction from others. Furthermore, the speaker notes that a sign of God's love in mature Christianity is not just encouragement, but also discipline and rebuke.
10mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 18, 2024 · 10m
The central message is that anxiety is often rooted in misplaced trust in money or in the habit of judging others. The speaker emphasizes that to overcome anxiety, one must adopt a holistic approach by making money a servant rather than a master, and by ceasing to judge others. He points to scripture passages surrounding the command 'do not be anxious' to illustrate this comprehensive lifestyle change.
9mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 17, 2024 · 9m
The central message addresses anxiety by distinguishing between serving God and serving money, emphasizing that one cannot be a master to both. While earning a living is necessary, one must ensure God is the master and money remains a servant. True faith involves trusting in a God who perfectly cares for one's daily needs, as demonstrated by the speaker's personal experience of relying solely on God's provision.
12mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 16, 2024 · 12m
The central message is that pleasing God is impossible without faith, which is defined not merely as intellectual belief but as a deep, trusting relationship. True faith involves believing that God, whose name is 'I Am,' knows every detail of our lives and genuinely cares about every circumstance, even those we struggle with. This foundational trust in God's omniscience and care is the prerequisite for all other spiritual efforts.
8mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 15, 2024 · 8m
The central message is that to enter God's Kingdom, one must become like a little child, characterized by profound humility. The speaker contrasts this childlike humility with the tendency in the church to compare oneself to others or seek status. He emphasizes that true discipleship involves decreasing self-importance so that Christ can increase, and warns against looking down on or stumbling over the vulnerable, especially children.
12mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 14, 2024 · 12m
Effective prayer is characterized by genuine, two-way communication with God, rather than performing for an audience. The speaker advises praying in secret, as God sees in private and rewards openly. Furthermore, prayer should avoid meaningless repetition, emphasizing that listening to God is often more important than speaking, drawing an analogy to phone conversations.
11mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 13, 2024 · 11m
The central message emphasizes developing a consistent habit of listening to God's voice, comparing it to recognizing a familiar voice amidst many others. The speaker advises believers to study the Bible regularly to make God's word clearer and to be mindful of one's tongue, drawing parallels to Jesus' temptation and the need for disciplined speech. Ultimately, consistent listening, starting from the morning, will guide one through life's decisions and interactions.
15mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 12, 2024 · 15m
The central message emphasizes that true Christian life requires being filled with the Holy Spirit, which produces unselfishness and humility, contrasting it with artificial humility. The speaker draws parallels between the law of gravity and God's law: God gives grace to the humble and opposes the proud. Ultimately, the Christian's calling is to be a servant, following Jesus' example of emptying himself, rather than seeking to rule or be exalted over people.
8mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 11, 2024 · 8m
Building a church requires more than just following doctrine or pattern; it demands the 'fire of God,' which comes through humble, God-fearing individuals. The speaker emphasizes that true service involves radical self-denial, mirroring the selfless love Christ showed the church. To build God's church, one must be willing to sacrifice everything, acting out of love rather than selfishness or pride.
14mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 10, 2024 · 14m
The central message emphasizes adopting the attitude of Christ by abandoning selfishness and pride, as taught in Philippians 2. True Christian living requires a commitment to pressing on to perfection, which means prioritizing the building of the church over personal gain, honor, or reputation. The speaker stresses that genuine holiness is selfless, seeking the good of others rather than personal glory.
10mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 9, 2024 · 10m
The central message emphasizes that true grace involves self-discipline, specifically suffering in the flesh to overcome sin, rather than finding comfort in sinning. The speaker also stresses the importance of humility, submission to elders, and maintaining modesty in dress, drawing parallels to the choices available in Eden. Ultimately, true grace empowers believers to resist the devil and stand firm in the truth.
12mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 8, 2024 · 12m
The true grace of God, as exemplified by Christ, is demonstrated by following His sinless example in life. The speaker emphasizes that true spiritual fullness comes not from external displays like shouting, but from an inward attitude of thanksgiving and freedom from sin. Furthermore, the message advises wives that true grace in marriage is shown through respectful behavior, not external adornments or preaching.
14mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 7, 2024 · 14m
The core message emphasizes that true grace requires completely putting aside all malice, hatred, guile, and hypocrisy, testing one's heart by considering what one wishes for those who have harmed them. The speaker stresses that genuine new birth is evidenced by a deep longing for God's Word, comparing this desire to a newborn baby crying for milk. He warns against superficial Christianity and encourages believers to live in a constant state of repentance.
11mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 6, 2024 · 11m
The true grace of God is understood not as a license to sin, but as the power that prevents sin from ruling or mastering a believer. This grace requires believers to live in fear and conduct themselves holy in all behavior, recognizing that their redemption is far more valuable than any earthly wealth. The message warns against false teachings that minimize the seriousness of sin or the preciousness of Christ's blood.
10mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 5, 2024 · 10m
The message emphasizes living a balanced Christian life characterized by constant gratitude and freedom from grumbling or complaining, citing Philippians 2:4-15. The speaker stresses that this requires acknowledging our inability to live righteously on our own, necessitating reliance on the Holy Spirit's work within us. True spiritual breakthrough, like Lazarus's resurrection, only occurs when we reach a point of complete personal depletion, yielding to God's timing and power.
12mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 4, 2024 · 12m
The central message is to live by one's will rather than one's fluctuating feelings, as feelings are deceptive. The speaker emphasizes that true forgiveness is a choice made in the will, not merely a feeling, and that one must not condemn oneself over past sins. Ultimately, the goal is to achieve a balance where the inner life perfectly mirrors the outer life, which is only possible through a deep, heartfelt seeking of God.
11mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 3, 2024 · 11m
The central message is that a Christian's ultimate ambition must be to be well-pleasing to God, rather than achieving worldly success or experiencing supernatural miracles. The speaker contrasts the Israelites, who experienced daily miracles but were not pleasing to God, with Jesus, who lived a sinless life over 30 years, which earned the Father's praise. True spiritual ambition means overcoming sin, complaining, and lust, even if it means foregoing visible miracles.
15mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 2, 2024 · 15m
The central message emphasizes that true spiritual life comes from valuing the 'Breath of God' over worldly things, as the physical world is dust. The speaker argues that genuine anointing and ministry are not dependent on status or time spent preaching, but rather on humility. Furthermore, achieving victory requires reaching 'Rock Bottom,' and the greatest danger after receiving blessings is falling into pride, which ultimately leads to defeat.
8mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Mar 1, 2024 · 8m
The speaker uses the story of Job to illustrate that God places three protective 'hedges' around a godly man: his property, his family, and himself. These hedges represent divine protection, which can only be breached by God's permission, even when Satan attacks. The central message is that a true child of God has this assurance of protection over their life, family, and possessions, leading to the declaration, 'The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.'
15mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Feb 29, 2024 · 15m
The message emphasizes that Christians should follow Jesus' principles rather than merely admiring his life. It teaches that overcoming life's challenges requires drawing upon God's grace, which is accessed by asking Him for power, not by trying to obey through personal effort alone. Furthermore, the speaker stresses the importance of filling one's mind with God's Word to counter temptation, contrasting this with filling the mind with unnecessary worldly information.
10mCFC Daily Devotions
Zac Poonen · Feb 28, 2024 · 10m
The highest goal in spiritual life is to partake of God's nature, which is holiness, rather than merely avoiding sin for fear or reputation. This transformation is a process where sin becomes unnatural, like water off a duck's back. Furthermore, the speaker emphasizes that love must increase in both knowledge and discernment, which is crucial for leaders to correctly guide and protect others.