“So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.” Romans 14:12

Filled, Sent, and Accountable

Understanding What It Means to Be Filled

In this message, Chad Everett opens Luke 4 and shows how Jesus began His ministry filled with the Holy Spirit and led by the Spirit of God. From the very beginning, Jesus did not operate from human ability. Instead, He lived in complete dependence on the Holy Spirit.

Chad emphasizes an important truth throughout the sermon: Jesus was not filled with a thing. He was filled with a person. Because of that, the power and authority Jesus demonstrated flowed directly from the presence of the Holy Spirit.

This foundation matters for every believer today. If the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in us, then the Christian life cannot remain passive or powerless. Instead, the Holy Spirit leads us, empowers us, and sends us into the world with purpose. Understanding this truth marks the starting point for living filled, sent, and accountable.

Sent with a Mission

Next, the message traces a clear pattern throughout Scripture. First, the Holy Spirit sent Jesus. Then Jesus sent the twelve disciples. After that, He sent seventy others into cities and towns to proclaim the Kingdom of God.

Therefore, the call of Jesus has never centered on simply attending church. Rather, Jesus calls His followers to go into the world with the gospel. Throughout the sermon, Chad challenges the church to rediscover this mission.

Too often believers shift their focus toward attending and listening instead of going and proclaiming. However, the Great Commission never changed. Jesus still sends His people into workplaces, schools, neighborhoods, and communities with the gospel message.

When believers understand that they are filled, sent, and accountable, their perspective changes. Instead of viewing everyday life as routine, they begin to see opportunities for ministry everywhere they go.

Equipped by the Holy Spirit

Because Jesus sends His followers, He also equips them. Scripture teaches that believers receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them. This power does not come from personality, confidence, or natural gifting. Instead, it comes from the presence of the Holy Spirit working through ordinary people.

As Chad explains in the message, believers should not rely on feelings to determine whether God can use them. Feelings change from day to day. However, the Holy Spirit remains constant.

Therefore, when believers encounter someone who feels broken, lost, or oppressed, they carry the answer within them. The gospel of Jesus Christ brings freedom, healing, and restoration. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, believers can speak hope and truth into the lives of others.

Living with Eternal Accountability

Finally, the message calls every believer to remember an important reality: one day each person will stand before God and give an account. God entrusts every believer with gifts, opportunities, and influence for His Kingdom.

Because of that, the call to live filled, sent, and accountable carries eternal significance. Jesus does not send His followers without purpose. Instead, He calls them to faithfully share the gospel and represent His Kingdom in the world.

You will be challenged as a believer to ask a simple question: will you live as spectators, or will you answer the call to go?

When the church embraces its mission, believers step forward with boldness, knowing they are filled by the Spirit, sent by Jesus, and accountable to God.

Key Scriptures

Luke 4: 1, Luke 9: 1–2, Luke 10: 1–2, Matthew 28: 18–20, Acts 1: 8

When We Forget the Cause, We Lose Heart

In this powerful message, Promise Bradley takes us to 1 Samuel 17 and brings us face to face with David’s defining question: “Is there not a cause?”

On the battlefield, trained soldiers froze in fear before Goliath. However, David recognized that the real issue was not the size of the giant. Instead, the army had forgotten why they were there. They had lost sight of the cause.

When the cause fades, courage follows. As a result, opposition feels overwhelming. Distraction increases. Conflict escalates. Eventually, we begin fighting the wrong battles.

Through 2 Corinthians 5: 18–20, Promise reminds us that we have been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. Moreover, we have been given the ministry of reconciliation. That is the cause. As ambassadors for Christ, we are here to represent Him and help others be restored to relationship with the Father.

Therefore, the real question is not whether giants exist. The real question is whether we remember why we are standing.

Knowing the Real Enemy Changes Everything

According to Ephesians 6, we do not wrestle against flesh and blood. Instead, we confront spiritual forces that oppose the knowledge of God. Consequently, when we misidentify the enemy, we misdirect our energy.

Rather than fighting people, we are called to tear down strongholds. Instead of reacting in pride or offense, we are invited to respond in love and authority. Once we remember the cause, perspective shifts. Forgiveness becomes faster. Jealousy loses power. Competition fades. Unity strengthens.

In other words, “Is There Not a Cause?” reframes conflict. The person in front of you may not be your enemy. In fact, they may be part of your assignment.

This message is not passive reflection. Instead, it is a rallying cry.

Remember Your Training and Use Your Weapons

Before facing Goliath, David remembered the lion and the bear. Because he recalled past victories, he stepped forward with confidence. In the same way, believers must remember what God has already done.

Promise emphasizes that our weapons are spiritual. The Word of God is a weapon. Prayer is a weapon. Praise is a weapon. Humility is a weapon. Our testimony is a weapon.

Furthermore, we are not fighting for victory. We are fighting from victory.

Since the battle belongs to the Lord, fear does not get the final word. Because the name of Jesus is above every name, no giant has ultimate authority. Therefore, when distraction rises or opposition intensifies, we return to the same question:

Is there not a cause?

This message will challenge you to reclaim your assignment, recognize your authority in Christ, and move forward in obedience with clarity and courage.

At The Roads Church, our mission remains simple: connecting people with Jesus from all roads of life.

AND THAT IS THE CAUSE!

Key Scriptures
1 Samuel 17: 28–32, 2 Corinthians 5: 18–20, Ephesians 6: 10–12, 1 Samuel 17: 45–47, Psalm 149: 5–6

“The excellence of the power is of God and not of us.”

The Treasure in Earthen Vessels — Living From the Power Within

In this message, Chad Everett unpacks the biblical truth of the Treasure in Earthen Vessels. Throughout Luke 4, Luke 9, Philippians 2, and 2 Corinthians 4, he answers a critical question:

How did Jesus function when He walked the earth, and what does that mean for us today?

Although Jesus was fully God, He chose to lay aside divine privilege. Instead of operating independently, He humbled Himself and lived as a man anointed by the Holy Spirit. As a result, His authority flowed from relationship with the Father, not self-exaltation.

Understanding the Treasure in Earthen Vessels begins with understanding this pattern of dependence.

Dependence Defined His Ministry

Philippians 2 reveals that Christ emptied Himself and embraced the form of a servant. Rather than grasping equality, He chose obedience. Because of this humility, His life displayed strength through surrender.

In Luke 4, Scripture shows Jesus returning in the power of the Spirit. He taught with authority, rebuked demons, and healed the sick. Yet even in power, He declared, “I can of Myself do nothing.” Over and over, He aligned His words and actions with the Father.

Therefore, the Treasure in Earthen Vessels does not produce self-reliance. Instead, it calls believers into Spirit-dependence.

Authority That Is Given

Later, in Luke 9, Jesus gathered His disciples and gave them power and authority. He did not instruct them to generate it. Nor did He require them to earn it. Instead, He delegated it and then sent them to preach the kingdom and heal the sick.

Second Corinthians 4: 7 clarifies this reality: “We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.”

While the vessel remains ordinary, the source remains divine. Because of this, the Treasure in Earthen Vessels describes Christ dwelling within His people today.

Living From the Treasure

So what does this mean for us?

Many people measure life by talent, personality, or experience. However, Scripture teaches us to measure by Christ in us. When believers live from the Treasure in Earthen Vessels, pride loses influence and fear loses control. Instead of striving, we begin trusting. Instead of performing, we begin obeying.

Ultimately, the question does not concern whether the treasure exists. Scripture already confirms that. Rather, the real question asks whether we live from it.

The excellence of the power belongs to God — and that truth changes everything.

Key Scriptures

Luke 4: 14–19, Luke 9: 1–2, Philippians 2: 5–8, 2 Corinthians 4: 7, Ephesians 3: 20

“Are you going to return the same way you came, or are you going to return in the dunamis of God?”

In this message Return in the Power of the Spirit from the Spiritual Authority – Restored In Christ sermon series, Chad Everett walks through Luke 4 and confronts a powerful question: How will you return?

Jesus did not leave the wilderness unchanged. Instead, He returned in the power of the Spirit. Luke 4 reveals more than a historical moment. It reveals a pattern for every believer who desires to return to the life God has called them to live.

If we want to understand spiritual authority, we must look carefully at what Luke 4 shows us.

Jesus Returned in Dunamis and Exousia

Luke 4:14 tells us that Jesus “returned in the power of the Spirit.” The word dunamis means miraculous power and ability. Later in the chapter, we see exousia, which refers to authority, jurisdiction, and the right to act.

This means He did not return with confidence alone. Rather, He returned empowered by the Holy Spirit.

As a result, He taught with authority.
He rebuked unclean spirits.
He healed the sick.
He commanded—and demons obeyed.

In other words, Luke 4 does not present spiritual authority as theory. It presents authority in action. True authority flows from dependence on the Spirit—not from position, title, or personality.

Guard Against Familiarity and Religion

When Jesus returned to Nazareth, the place where He grew up, the people initially admired His words. However, admiration quickly shifted. Although they heard Him, they struggled to receive Him.

Familiarity dulled their hunger.

Chad challenges the Church to examine this same danger. We can attend services. We can hear truth. Yet we can resist transformation if familiarity replaces honor. Therefore, hunger determines where God moves. Because Nazareth resisted Him, Jesus moved on to places that received Him.

Spiritual authority grows where humility and hunger remain strong.

The Church Must Enter-Train, Not Entertain

Chad draws a clear distinction. The purpose of the local church is not to entertain. Instead, it is to enter-train.

Rather than gathering crowds for inspiration alone, Jesus equipped disciples. He trained them. Furthermore, He gave them both power (dunamis) and authority (exousia). Luke 9 and Luke 10 show Him sending them out to preach, heal, and confront darkness.

In this sermon, Return in the Power of the Spirit, we are reminded that we do not gather for information. Instead, we gather for transformation. We return to the world differently because the Holy Spirit empowers us.

How Will You Return?

You will return to school. You will return to work. You will return to your home and relationships.

The question remains simple.

Will you return the same?
Or will you return in the power of the Spirit?

Spiritual authority looks like something in real life. The same Spirit who empowered Jesus now dwells in believers. Therefore, the same power remains available today.

Ultimately, this message calls the Church to walk in that authority—not in human strength, but in the dunamis of God.

Key Scriptures
Luke 4: 14–22, Luke 4: 23–39, Luke 9: 1–2, Luke 10: 1–9, Luke 10: 17–20

Alive in Christ: Not a Spectator Sport

In this powerful message from Romans 5–6, Justin Younger calls believers to examine what it truly means to live alive in Christ—not as spectators, but through a surrendered and obedient life shaped by real relationship with Jesus. This sermon confronts passive Christianity and invites listeners into a deeper understanding of identity, freedom, and transformation in Christ.

Romans teaches that righteousness is received, not earned. Justin reminds us that when someone is born again, their identity fundamentally changes. We are no longer defined as sinners trying to do better. Instead, we are sons and daughters who have died with Christ and been raised to walk in newness of life. To live alive in Christ begins with trusting what Scripture says about who we are in Him.

Righteousness Received, Not Earned

A central theme of this message is the biblical truth that righteousness cannot be achieved through effort, discipline, or religious performance. Instead, Jesus gives righteousness as a gift. While believers do grow in obedience and maturity over time, no one becomes more righteous by striving harder. Growth flows from relationship, not pressure or performance.

Because of this foundation, believers are freed from guilt-driven faith. As a result, they are reoriented toward living alive in Christ with confidence, rooted in grace rather than fear.

Beyond Sunday: A Daily Relationship With Jesus

This sermon challenges the idea that church attendance alone sustains spiritual life. Justin speaks clearly about the danger of living spiritually empty throughout the week and relying on Sunday gatherings to feel close to God again. God desires daily fellowship with His people through Scripture, prayer, and obedience.

For this reason, to live alive in Christ means cultivating a personal relationship with Jesus that extends into everyday life—not just moments of worship or teaching.

Filling the Void After Sin Is Removed

Justin teaches that when sin is repented of and removed, it leaves a space that must be filled. If that space remains empty, old habits and patterns often return. Drawing from Jesus’ teaching about the empty house, this message emphasizes that freedom is sustained when believers replace sin with devotion to Christ and the planting of God’s Word.

Scripture is described as seed. When believers plant it, nurture it, and protect it, growth follows. To live alive in Christ requires intentionally filling life with truth, not simply removing what does not belong.

Conviction as an Invitation, Not Condemnation

Another key emphasis of this sermon is the difference between conviction and condemnation. Conviction comes from the Holy Spirit and draws believers closer to Jesus. Condemnation leads to shame, hiding, and defeat. Justin encourages listeners to respond quickly and humbly when conviction comes, because it trains the heart and produces spiritual growth.

Those who want to live alive in Christ learn to respond to God’s voice instead of resisting it.

Not a Spectator Sport: A Call to Obedience

Ultimately, this message makes one thing clear: following Jesus is not passive. Christianity is not something to observe from the sidelines. It is something to live. Justin challenges believers to get off the bench, stop pretending, and step fully into obedience, even when it costs comfort or familiarity.

To live alive in Christ means surrendering control, saying yes to God’s leading, and allowing Jesus to shape every part of life. This sermon invites listeners into real freedom, real growth, and real discipleship in Christ.

Key Scriptures
Romans 5: 18–21, Romans 6: 1–4, Romans 6: 6–7, 2 Corinthians 5: 17, John 15: 4