One of the earliest accusations against Christians in the Roman Empire is that they were cannibals - that they actually ate flesh and drank blood during their worship gatherings. In this message, we will look at that awkwardness around the Christian celebration of communion and how vital communion is for us to keep a "common union" in a world that is splitting apart.
10.24.21 - Men & Women
Sometimes when we come to the Bible, we expect an overwhelming sense of peace and security, but when we actually open the pages we find stories that can be awkward, uncomfortable, or confusing. In this series, we are wrapping up our year-long journey through the book of 1 Corinthians, and we are tackling some issues that can make us go, “Huh?”
In this week's message, we will look at Paul's notes to the Corinthian church about the role of "headship" in the church, and what a healthy relationship between men and women and husband and wives look like in the church and home.
10.17.21 - Cancel Culture
It seems almost every week someone else gets "canceled" in our culture for something they said or did recently or a decade ago. (Remember, kids: the things you say online last forever!) And this environment kicks up the fear of rejection in many of us - fear of rejection from friends, family, or employers. In this message, we will look at the long history of followers of Jesus being rejected and see what we can learn from Jesus about how to handle that.
In this week's message, we will look at this genuine fear and see how the gospel offers us purpose and direction for our lives.
You can also watch the service in full by clicking here >>
10.10.21 - "Nothing Really Matters"
There seems to be a high level of angst in our culture. Maybe that can be blamed on a virus. Maybe it’s employment challenges. Maybe the media is making us crazy. Maybe we are too glued to our screens. Some of this angst manifests as a sense of purposelessness. Does anything really matter? Is anything worth spending our time on?
In this week's message, we will look at this genuine fear and see how the gospel offers us purpose and direction for our lives.
10.03.21 - "It's All Going To End"
All of our days are numbered. At some point, we will pass away and be gone from the earth. Why do we have a hard time talking about that? Why are we so afraid to die? This message will look at the genuine fear of death, talk about what God has taught us about life and death, and how that can give us comfort and peace.
09.26.21 - "I Won't Have Enough"
We all seem to have a common fear of running out of something: food, employment, money, relationships, or time. We tend to believe all of those things are finite, and we get panicky if it looks like we will miss out on some of that. In this message, we looked at the genuine fear of not having enough and look at a parable Jesus taught to show us about the reckless generosity of God.
You can also watch the service in full by clicking here >>
09.19.21 - What Are You Afraid Of?
What are you afraid of? What thought makes your heart sink to the pit of your stomach the moment you think of it? There are certainly plenty of obvious things to be afraid of, such as heights, death, failure, and more. But these days, it seems like culture is pushing to make us fearful of everything. We began our new series, Facing Your Fears, this past Sunday where we are looking at our greatest fears and how the teachings of Jesus help us combat those fears.
You can also watch the service in full by clicking here >>
09.12.21 - Laodicea: Lukewarm Faith
We all face the temptation to do things halfway. We put in half-effort at work, our health, or our finances—to "kind of" do something, and we end up getting halfway good results. In this message, we will look at Jesus's final letter to a church from the book of Revelation, where he challenges them to stop doing their faith halfway. This letter, written nearly 2000 years ago, is a compelling message for Christianity in America today.
You can also watch the service in full by clicking here >>
09.05.21 - Philadelphia: Preserved
You may have heard it said that "When God closes a door he opens a window." But does that really ring true? Sometimes it can feel like God closes a door and he makes sure all the windows are locked too. We can feel stuck and wonder what good God could possibly bring from our current situation. In this message, we talked about Jesus's message to the church in Philadelphia and how to respond when it seems like all of the proverbial doors of our hopes and dreams are getting slammed in our faces.
You can also watch the service in full by clicking here >>
8.29.21 - Sardis: Asleep
It’s popular today to refer to people as woke. Although we have all sorts of opinions on whether someone is "woke" or "woke enough," the idea that we should be wide awake and not sleepwalking through the world is a good one. In this message, we will look at Jesus’s words to the church in Sardis and how he challenges them to wake up and notice the threats around them.
You can listen to the audio version of this message here:
Or you can watch the service in full here:
8.22.21 - Thyatira: False Prophets
“Influencers” might sound like a new social media term, but we’ve always had influencers, good and bad, since the beginning of humanity. Whether we like it or not, what and who we choose to listen to has a huge impact on our faith. This week, we will look at the church of Thyratira and how they allowed the wrong influences to speak into their church, and how Jesus is calling all of us to evaluate who we allow to speak into our lives.
You can listen to the audio version of this message here:
Or you can watch the service in full here:
08.15.21 - Pergamum: Repent
"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."
What is in your core? What are your deepest convictions? We don’t often think about that much in our culture because we are busy chasing after the next thing. In this message, we will look at things like conviction and purpose and examine how God calls us to something more significant in this life. We will also investigate the role of repentance in getting ourselves back on track.
08.08.21 - Smyrna: Persecution Coming
"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."
Throughout history, the Christian Church has suffered under periods of intense persecution. Yet, followers of Jesus have actually thrived in some ways during these times. In this message, we look at the church in Smyrna, that Jesus warns about coming persecution, and we will see how his warning can also encourage us when we feel the pressure.
08.01.21 - Ephesus: Abandoned Love
"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."
In the book of Revelation, John records a vision: a message from Jesus Christ to seven of the churches existing in modern-day Turkey. His message to those churches still applies to us today. This past Sunday, August 1st, we began a new message series, SEVEN, where we will listen for what the Spirit is still saying to believers today.
07.25.21 - Choosing What Is Best
So much of life gives us options, not between good and evil or right and wrong, but between better and best. How do we sort through those kinds of choices? In this message, we will wrap up our series from I Corinthians 10 and look at Paul’s framework for his life. How can followers of Jesus choose what is best consistently? What principles can we look to when making those decisions?
You can watch the service in full on our YouTube channel by clicking here.
07.18.21 - The Universal Sin
"Idolatry" sounds like a very scary, biblical word, but it probably doesn't sound like an issue we deal with in our everyday lives... right? In this week's message, we will talk about what it means to have false idols in our lives, and what we can do to dismantle them so they don't get in the way of our faith.
You can watch the service in full on our YouTube channel by clicking here.
07.11.21 - Becoming All For All
We live in a culture that tells us life is all about us - that we are the center of the universe - but Christianity points us in a different direction. It challenges us to make our lives about God and other people. In this message, we will look at the challenge from the apostle Paul to the church in Corinth to become all things for all people and be disciplined in how we live.
You can watch the service in full on our YouTube channel by clicking here.
07.04.21 - Embrace Your Limits
All of us have limitations. There are things we just can’t do. And those limitations often cramp our sense of freedom. As much as we believe in our country that we can do whatever we want, the truth is- there are limits. In this message, we will look at the Apostle Paul teaching the church in Corinth about some limitations he willingly embraces, and we will look at how we can flourish when we embrace those limitations.
You can watch the service in full on our YouTube channel by clicking here.
06.27.21 - Read the Room
Americans love freedom. We especially love it this time of the year as we prepare to eat brats and blow up some fireworks. But freedom comes with some limitations. What are those limitations? What does it mean to have rights AND responsibilities? The early followers of Jesus ran into all sorts of problems with their newfound freedoms in Christ.
Watch this service in full by clicking here to view on our YouTube channel.
06.20.21 - The Main Thing
There are so many voices attempting to convince us that what they have to say is of utmost importance. There are so many influencers who want us to prioritize their content, product, and social media platform. With this comes a lot of confusion as to what in life is really of the highest importance. This Sunday, we will talk about what the Bible says needs to be our priority so we can experience lives that are full, free, and enriched in every way.
You can watch the service in full on our YouTube channel by clicking here.