Several of you have asked how you can personally grow in deepening your relationships with others in our church since we do not have Community Groups as a formal ministry currently. In this post, I want to think through some ways we as a church can invest in relationships outside our weekly rhythms of Celebration Gatherings on Sundays and Mid-Week Gatherings on Wednesdays.  A Biblical Mandate Scripture tells us that love for other Christians shows us to be true Christians (1 John 2:10–11). Love for other Christians demonstrates the power of the gospel to the watching world (John 13:35). L ..read more

WHAT IS THIS NEW SERIES? "AfterWords: Lives Affected by What We Believe" is a brief series that is meant to connect our Statement of Faith (from the We Believe series) with other key aspects of the Christian life as we enter this new year of 2023.  ___________________  PRIMARY TEXT “Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.” (Titus 3:1–2 ESV) INTRODUCTORY THOUGHT AND GUIDING QUESTION Titus 3 tells us about the follo ..read more

WHAT IS THIS NEW SERIES? "AfterWords: Lives Affected by What We Believe" is a brief series that is meant to connect our Statement of Faith (from the We Believe series) with other key aspects of the Christian life as we enter this new year of 2023.  ___________________  PRIMARY TEXT “Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall! My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me. But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your fa ..read more

WHAT IS THIS NEW SERIES? "AfterWords: Lives Affected by What We Believe" is a brief series that is meant to connect our Statement of Faith (from the We Believe series) with other key aspects of the Christian life as we enter this new year of 2023.  ___________________  PRIMARY TEXT “And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ For a while he r ..read more

TWO GUIDING QUESTIONS DURING THIS SERMON SERIES Are you growing in the knowledge of God? Are you growing in loving God and loving people? ___________________  PRIMARY TEXT “Oh sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. The LORD has made known his salvation; he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations. He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; bre ..read more

TWO GUIDING QUESTIONS DURING THIS SERMON SERIES Are you growing in the knowledge of God? Are you growing in loving God and loving people? ___________________  PRIMARY TEXT “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who a ..read more

TWO GUIDING QUESTIONS DURING THIS SERMON SERIES Are you growing in the knowledge of God? Are you growing in loving God and loving people? ___________________  What do we believe about the church? This has always been an important question to answer, but today it’s just absolutely vital. The idea of church for many, if not an antiquated idea that needs to just pass away, is that it’s generally optional and unneeded. Thirteen years ago, Kevin DeYoung tried to put in plain words the cultural view of the church was at that time: Community is hip, but the church is lame. Both inside the c ..read more

TWO GUIDING QUESTIONS DURING THIS SERMON SERIES Are you growing in the knowledge of God? Are you growing in loving God and loving people? ___________________  A Backdrop for the Sacraments: Union With Christ In his book Deeper: Real Change for Real Sinners, Dane Ortlund highlights the biblical reality that the "immovable truth" at the center of every Christian is that they ahve been united to Christ. One key to understanding the ongoing significance of baptism and the Lord's Supper and elevating them from ritual to something much greater is by understanding that we have been united t ..read more

TWO GUIDING QUESTIONS DURING THIS SERMON SERIES Are you growing in the knowledge of God? Are you growing in loving God and loving people? ___________________  MAIN TEXT “And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”” (Luke 24:49 ESV) “… you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,… (Acts 1:8 ESV) _____________ What does the Spirit do? His works are ineffable (indescribable) in majesty, and innumerable in quantity. How can we even ponder what extends beyond the ages? What did He do before c ..read more