Sin - TravisAgnew.org

The Best Way to Fight Temptation

October 22, 2019 by Travis Agnew

We all face temptation, but how are you fighting against it? If we want to confront our disobedience, there is no better example to imitate than that of Jesus. Not only did he live his entire live devoid of sin, but he also showed us a powerful strategy in combatting Satan. In Matthew 4:1-11, we watch how Jesus defeated Satan …

If You Play with Fire, Someone’s Gonna Get Burned

June 19, 2020December 2, 2018 by Travis Agnew

Jesus never categorized any sins as acceptable in the life of His followers. Playing with sin has severe repercussions for our lives and great consequences for those closest to us. Mark 9:42-50 42 “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck …

How Should Worship Leaders Dress?

October 29, 2018October 29, 2018 by Travis Agnew

What standards should worship leaders hold regarding personal dress and physical appearance? While I am sure there is no shortage of opinions on this topic, I wanted to wade into such an important topic. We each possess a certain amount of preferences on the issue, but is there anything we can agree upon? I hope so. For starters, we should …

Why a Man Fails to Finish Well

December 30, 2021October 9, 2018 by Travis Agnew

Many men start strong but fail to finish well. Every person has stories of those men who became derailed overtime. In losing their integrity, their family, or their commitments, many of them have no one to blame for the crash other than themselves for walking dangerously upon the tracks. Why do men fail to finish well? The graphic story …

There’s a Fire Escape Plan for Every Flame of Temptation

October 3, 2018September 17, 2018 by Travis Agnew

Do you ever feel like the temptation is just too strong? The pull outside of you seems greater than the resolve inside of you. Guilt encompasses you because you mess up in the same area time and time again. I’ve got good news for you. There is a way out. Correcting a Dangerous Biblical Misinterpretation God’s words are true. His …

Jesus the Gardener

May 10, 2018 by Travis Agnew

After Jesus’ baptism (Mark 1:9-11), He is “thrown out” (ekballo) by the Spirit into the wilderness for a cosmic battle with Satan himself (Mark 1:12). Since God has said that this Son is well-pleasing in His sight (Mark 1:11), why is it important for Him to be tempted?

Make Your Father Proud

June 19, 2020May 6, 2018 by Travis Agnew

Jesus pleased His Father in what He did and in what He didn’t do. As followers of Jesus, we should seek to imitate His obedient lifestyle.

Overcoming Temptation

December 30, 2021March 18, 2018 by Travis Agnew

A critical element in discipleship is training someone how to overcome temptation. While everyone is tempted, particular people are more prone to certain temptations than others.

In order to overcome temptation, let’s identify Satan’s strategy, Jesus’ success, and our steps needed to succeed.

Satan’s Strategy

August 22, 2017August 21, 2017 by Travis Agnew

Curiously, in the Garden of Eden, the serpent begins his attack with Eve. The devious nature of this attack lies in the fact that God had instructed Adam concerning the law of the land, and yet the serpent approaches Eve to challenge those rules. The manner in which he comes also speaks volumes. Lucifer, known for his brilliant covering arrayed …

Where & When You Sin the Most

July 17, 2017July 17, 2017 by Travis Agnew

For every moment of strength in David’s life, there was often a subsequent weakness. For every Goliath, there was also a Bathsheba. I think that is why so many of us resonate with King David. We emulate him one moment and disdain him the next. That’s where so many of us live. We have more bloopers than highlight reels. King …

The Law’s Primary Purpose Was Not to Keep It

June 22, 2017 by Travis Agnew

You can’t understand the purpose of the Ten Commandments until you grasp the timeline of when Moses climbed the mountain to receive them. God gave the 10 Commandments to Moses in Exodus 20. In Exodus 14, the Israelites are walking through the Red Sea on dry ground. Why did God give the Law after this event? It would seem that …

The Ten Commandments [Storytellers]

April 25, 2017June 9, 2015 by Travis Agnew

“The Ten Commandments” was written for “The Word” project to cover the pivotal nature of the Law in the Bible. “The Word” is a project by North Side Worship telling the grand narrative of the Bible. It is available at North Side (May 3, 2015) and iTunes (May 5, 2015). You can’t really do a big picture of the Bible without addressing the Law – especially …

Financial Temptations

April 25, 2017February 1, 2015 by Travis Agnew

Services started out with baptisms this morning! So wonderful watching these folks getting baptized and being reminded of how God is transforming lives around here! We sang “Doxology” with a little instrumental intro. After that, we introduced a new song from “The Word” project entitled “Amazed.” The song focuses on the ministry of Jesus and people’s reaction to him. I …

No Adultery

April 25, 2017October 5, 2014 by Travis Agnew

You shall not commit adultery. -Exodus 20:14 Powerful day as we commissioned some of our own and continued through the Ten Commandments. We began our time together singing “Go” and ” I Will Follow” for a mission focus. After that, we watched an interview video with Taylor and Jessica Wolfe, some of North Side’s family who are leaving this week …

No Idols

April 25, 2017August 31, 2014 by Travis Agnew

While the first commandment from God tells us who we should worship, the second commandment tells us how we should worship. God expects His people to worship Him alone and in the right way. Worship the right God in the right way. That was the goal of today’s services. We started out our time together with baptism. We then sang …

Adam vs. Eve

April 25, 2017July 3, 2013 by Travis Agnew

The conversation continues to the point where Eve saw “that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate” (Gen. 3:6). As she commences this sinful snack, it is revealed that Adam has been present the entire time. If you read the first section of Genesis 3, every sign points to a conversation being held between the serpent and the woman.

There is no sign of the man anywhere.

You almost picture a seductive personality intruding in a home where the woman is left alone. Surely this slick-talking, charming intruder wouldn’t dare entice a man’s wife to apostate from her God if her husband was home. You get the feeling that the man of the house is gone, and someone has come to prey upon the unsuspecting wife in his absence.

Unfortunately, that is not the case. Adam is there. He is present the whole time. Adam’s silence in this moment speaks more volumes than his recorded remarks ever will.

His passivity leads to the Fall of Mankind.

The Temptation of the Christ

April 25, 2017February 23, 2012 by Travis Agnew

Continuing on through our Christology, we arrive this week at the Temptation of the Christ. This event reveals Christ’s holiness. He was set apart, and while he was fully God, he was full man, and he never sinned.

In his 33 years of life, he never rolled his eyes behind his mother’s back. He never kept more money than he should. Never had one lustful thought concerning a woman. Never used his words to demean another.

After his baptism by John, Scripture teaches that Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit to be tempted by the Devil himself. It also seems a test like Job’s in that God is leading Christ to the wilderness to prove to Satan his undeniable holiness. What’s interesting is that while Satan is a worthy adversary, his tricks have not really changed. He’s not the most creative of sorts. His temptation to Christ was the same as the temptation in the Garden of Eden: “Are you sure God’s Word says…”

He still uses it today, doesn’t he?

Here are some things to note:

Trading the Ultimate for the Immediate

September 17, 2018June 2, 2011 by Travis Agnew

At Passion 2011, Andy Stanley gave a great message concerning temptation. One of the lines he repeated over and over is that temptation is the act of “trading the ultimate for the immediate.”

The ultimate is faithfulness to your spouse, the immediate is the temporary meeting of a desire.

The ultimate is a godly legacy engraved in your children, the immediate might be another round of golf.

The ultimate is heaven’s rewards, the immediate is the passing riches of this world.

When we encounter temptation, one verse helps me more than any other verse in the Bible:

Overcoming Temptation

April 25, 2017August 8, 2010 by Travis Agnew

Powerful Sunday as we concluded “Tempted.” Jeff’s message was so powerful and practical. Today, we worshiped to: Break Our Hearts – Billy Foote Nothing But the Blood – Traditional Jesus Messiah – Chris Tomlin Jesus Paid It All – Kristian Stanfill The Cross of Calvary – Travis Agnew Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone) – North Side Worship version Before …

Understanding Temptation

April 25, 2017August 1, 2010 by Travis Agnew

What a Sunday! We started a new series at North Side entitled “Tempted.” Today was all about understanding temptation. From start to finish, it all was geared to us understanding what temptation is, how bad sin is, but how good God is to us helping us fight temptation. Jeff blew up his sermon. It was crazy. What’s even crazier is …

Upcoming Series: Tempted

July 26, 2010 by Travis Agnew

This upcoming Sunday we are starting a new series entitled “Tempted.” This 2-week focus will help believers utilize methods to combat temptation. We often blame our circumstances when we mess up. Sometimes we say “the Devil made me do it.” But each of us are tempted, and each of us always has a way out of escape for every temptation …

Labor Day Lack of Plans

January 1, 2018September 7, 2009 by Travis Agnew

Happy Labor Day! Hopefully, you are like me and have a lack of plans today. We are hoping to enjoy our family and rest. While I am thankful for a day off, it reminded me of the need of a weekly rest. Back in March 2008, I preached a message on “The Rest of God” in our Balance series. The …

The Most Important and Often Neglected Message to Deliver to Teenagers

January 20, 2014February 18, 2009 by Travis Agnew

I spoke at Greenwood Christian School this morning. This is their Spring spiritual emphasis week, so I will also speak on Friday. This morning, I spoke on what I considered the most important and often neglected message to deliver to teenagers: honor your father and mother. This message isn’t ever preached in churches to teenagers. In an ideal world, parents …

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