On Sunday, Pastor Jake continued our “Game Changers” series by teaching from the life Queen Esther. God orchestrated for Esther to be taken from no influence to influencing the King of a great empire at exactly the right time. She was able to save her people (the Jews) from extinction. But it wasn’t easy. Esther had to be willing to give up her own life. The law said that to approach the king without being summoned was punishable by death. So, Esther asked her cousin Mordecai to get all the Jews...
Mar 18, 2018•47 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake continued our “Game Changers” series by teaching from the life of the prophet Daniel. Daniel and his friends were exiled to Babylon from Judah. They were slaves and yet God showed them favor. Daniel was a game-changer in a very tough situation. He shows us what it means to have game-changing faith. Faith is more than just belief that gets you saved. Jesus talked about faith as if it is fluid – you can have none, a lot, a little, etc. It’s the outworking of true belief. It’...
Mar 11, 2018•48 min
http://bible.com/events/369470
Mar 04, 2018•46 min
http://bible.com/events/365744
Feb 25, 2018•52 min
http://bible.com/events/361798
Feb 18, 2018•48 min
In week 2 of our Game Changers series, Pastor Jake talks about the prophet Samuel and his game-changing righteousness. What does it mean to be righteous? Is there a difference between the "righteousness of man" and the "righteousness of God"? Listen to be challenged in the way of righteousness!
Feb 11, 2018•54 min
In week one of our Game Changers series, Pastor Jake talks about Deborah's game-changing wisdom. Everybody wants wisdom, right? But what is it exactly and how does one get it? The answer may surprise you!
Feb 04, 2018•48 min
In week 4 or our "My Passion" series, Pastor Chris talks about his passion -- the anchor of our souls, Jesus Christ. There's really only one thing, one answer, one purpose...it's Jesus! Jesus+nothing=everything.
Jan 28, 2018•35 min
http://bible.com/events/345279
Jan 21, 2018•38 min
Pastor Dan talks about his passion -- raising kids to live a God-honoring life. In this message, he gives you 3 creation truths that have to be in yours and your kids spiritual foundation.
Jan 14, 2018•34 min
Pastor Bill starts our "My Passion" series out with an awesome message about how to find your passion. Have you lost your passion or never really found it to begin with? If you have a passion that drives you, is it from God? Listen to this message from Pastor Bill to help you in your journey!
Jan 07, 2018•50 min
Pastor Jake preached a sermon on Mark 4, 5, and 7 called “The Power of One”. In Mark 4, Jesus and His disciples get into a boat to cross over the Sea of Galilee. But it’s not some mundane trip. They were going over a region of cities called the Decapolis that was known to be a very dark, pagan place. In fact, most Jewish families at the time believed that they would be cursed if they ever went there. So, the disciples were probably not very excited for this trip. And sure enough – they have prob...
Dec 31, 2017•53 min
Pastor Jake talks about what Immanuel (God with us) really means for you. http://bible.com/events/331689
Dec 25, 2017•49 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake wrapped up our “Rhythm” series with week 7 – Family Rhythm. God has created us to function in a certain way...a rhythm. That goes for every area of our lives, including our family. God, in His infinite wisdom, has set forth a specific rhythm for our family to operate in. But parenting is hard! There are ups and downs, and sometimes it seems more down than up. And yet that makes sense, because we will do nothing of more value with our lives than mold the little souls God ha...
Dec 17, 2017•53 min
Pastor Jake continued our “Rhythm” series with week 6 – Marriage Rhythm. God has created us to function in a certain way...a rhythm. That goes for every area of our lives, including our relationships, especially our marriage. God has made marriage to work in a rhythm. When He created Adam, a suitable helpmate was not found for him in all of creation, so God had to make something different – woman. Adam and Eve enjoyed God’s perfect rhythm in the first marriage – no mind games, pride, confusion, ...
Dec 10, 2017•55 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake continued our “Rhythm” series with week 5 – Present Rhythm. We were created by God to be image-bearers and agents of reconciliation in this world. And yet, most of us aren’t really here. We’re not fully present. We’re always somewhere else – stuck in the past, consumed with the future, or distracted by another place or someone else’s life (via our phones). There’s no way to hold on to time. There’s no way to slow it down or speed it up. It just is. It marches on. December,...
Dec 03, 2017•48 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake continued our “Rhythm” series with week 4 – Sabbath Rhythm. We were created by God to be image-bearers and agents of reconciliation in this world. And yet, most of us are too hurried, tired, and stressed out to even think about that. We’re out of step with God’s rhythm for our lives. God sees us and says, “you need the Sabbath!” The Sabbath is a rhythm that goes all the way back to creation – God created for 6 days and on the 7th He rested, making it holy. It’s one of the ...
Nov 26, 2017•48 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake continued our “Rhythm” series with week 3 – Thanksgiving Rhythm. God has created the world to function in a certain rhythm. He did that in Genesis 1 & 2 (on a big level), but He also does that with each one of us. Psalm 139 talks about how God has knit each of us in our mother’s wombs. He is intimately involved in making us the way we are – outwardly and inwardly. He is not a God who has created, gotten the ball rolling, and walked away. He is near. One of the ways you...
Nov 19, 2017•43 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake continued our “Rhythm” series with week 2 – devotional rhythm. Jesus said in John 10:10 that He came to give us “life, and life abundantly”. And yet most people are not experiencing that life. The good thing is that Jesus doesn’t just make that promise and walk away. He’s like the “master” in the dojo – patiently walking beside us showing us how it’s done. God has created the world and your life to work in a certain rhythm. But because of sin and the Fall in Genesis 3, lik...
Nov 12, 2017•53 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake started our new series “Rhythm”. Have you ever known someone who has no rhythm? They can’t clap, much less dance or play an instrument? Have you ever sat through a Middle School band concert? Painful, right? That’s because songs were written to work at a certain tempo and rhythm; in a certain key, etc. When that’s not followed, it causes a very unpleasant feeling. And even your heart is supposed to beat at a certain rhythm, isn’t it? And if it doesn’t, that’s called “arrhy...
Nov 05, 2017•41 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake talked about Kingdom Builders for the second week. Building God’s Kingdom is about global missions, local church expansion, and compassion ministry. We want everyone in our church to step up and be a Kingdom Builder by committing to 1) serve in a ministry at Great Oaks; 2) serve in a compassion ministry outside of Great Oaks; and 3) give financially to the Kingdom Builders Fund in a one-time gift and a monthly gift (above and beyond normal tithe). After Pastor Jake explain...
Oct 29, 2017•48 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake introduced a new Great Oaks initiative called “Kingdom Builders”. Before he got into the nuts and bolts of that though, he taught on the concept of “the Kingdom of God”. Jesus taught on the Kingdom of God (or Heaven) more than any other topic. In our American culture, though, it can sometimes be difficult to understand the idea of a “kingdom”. Kingdom just means “the King’s domain.” So in one sense, everywhere is God’s Kingdom. It’s all His. But in another sense...not so m...
Oct 22, 2017•50 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake wrapped up our “Neighboring” series with week 6 – Neighboring Church. We’ve talked over the last 5 weeks about taking the Great Commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves literally – to reach out to our actual neighbors individually. But what would it look like to not just be a neighboring person or family, but to be a neighboring church? What would it look like to do this individually and collectively (as Great Oaks)? After all, what is the true fruit of a church? Is ...
Oct 15, 2017•51 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake continued our “Neighboring” series with week 5 – Plans. If you really care about something and want to see it happen, you’ll plan for it. That’s when things get serious. You can talk about a vacation, but until you sit down and start researching pricing, tourist spots, and timing, it’s just an idea. You can talk about getting healthier, but it remains an impotent idea until you sit down and start planning the how. In life, you are only as effective as you are intentional. ...
Oct 08, 2017•46 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake continued our series called “Neighboring” with week 4 – Rewards. The greatest commandment starts with loving God with all our lives and then moves to loving our neighbor as ourselves. But it’s like hinges on a door...what good is a door with one hinge? Jesus said that all of the Law and Prophets hang on these (together) in Matt. 22:40. You cannot separate these two commandments. But to be clear, loving God with all of you isn’t about a feeling. It’s about loyalty, commitme...
Oct 01, 2017•48 min
Pastor Jake continued our series called “Neighboring” with week 3–Excuses. Loving your neighbor as yourself –your actual neighbor next door –isn’t easy! It’s a big task! With that in mind, our tendency is to make excuses and convince ourselves that we cannot possibly do this. But excuses are just reasons without reason. They don’t pass the sniff test. They’re easy to spot in kids, because they can be so ridiculous and unrelated, but they are just as prevalent in adults. Pastor Jake talked about ...
Sep 24, 2017•48 min
Pastor Jake continued our series called “Neighboring” with week 2 – Motives. Loving your neighbor as yourself begins with loving your actual neighbors. It’s not metaphorical or symbolic. The definition of neighbor may include other people, but it starts with those God has sovereignly placed next to you. But it can’t just be about making friends, right? It has to be more than that. There’s the Greatest Commandment that includes “love your neighbor as yourself”, but there’s also the Great Commissi...
Sep 17, 2017•51 min
Pastor Jake started our new series “Neighboring”. What if when Jesus said that you are supposed to “love your neighbor as yourself”, He meant it literally? What if He wasn’t talking about some metaphorical neighbor, but your actual neighbor? And it’s not just Jesus who said it. It’s all over the Bible –Leviticus, Romans, Ephesians, and James. Yet the many of us struggle to even list the names of and a little more information about the people who live in the 8 houses nearest our own. How could lo...
Sep 10, 2017•46 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake preached the final week in our 3-week miniseries “Church is _______.” Church is more than a hobby, an activity, or a social club. It has to be. And since behavior follows belief about what something is, defining what exactly the church is seems like a pretty important endeavor. So far, Pastor Jake has taught on the fact that church is family and church is mission. But really it’s even more than that. Church is life.
Sep 03, 2017•52 min
On Sunday, Pastor Jake preached week 2 in our 3-week miniseries “Church is _______.” Church is more than a hobby, an activity, or a social club. It has to be. And since what something is determines how we act in response to that thing, defining what exactly the church is seems like a pretty important endeavor. Last week, Pastor Jake taught on the idea that church is family. But really it’s more than that. It goes way beyond family. Church is bigger than you. It’s bigger than a hobby. It’s bigger...
Aug 27, 2017•43 min
