God is at work in all things-even in times of great suffering-to bring about his purposes. Those who are called according to his purpose will join in and cooperate with God's work, allowing the Spirit to form them to live into God's new work.
Jesus was born and we celebrate this fact because God loved the entire world. We also celebrate Christmas because God loves each one of us in a specific way. God so loves the world and God so loves you individually that he sent his son.It's WH tradition to share a story with coloring pages for kids on Christmas Eve. This year we hear about Jack the donkey's special journey in The Promised Star. Download coloring pages for your kids (or yourself!) at the link below!
How do we experience joy in the midst of struggle and suffering? Jesus and the early church provide a model for such joy, a kind of joy that does not ignore the reality of the difficulties that we face, but that gives us the ability to see beyond those circumstances to embrace the promise that God is making all things right.
The story of the encounter between Mary the mother of Jesus and Elizabeth the mother of John the Baptist offers a model for how we can bring peace in the midst of conflict. A plot twist that shifts the narrative from animosity to blessing. In this sermon, Osheta visits this story.
When Jesus was presented at the temple as a baby, Simeon saw the fulfillment of his hope for salvation. This weekend's sermon explores the nature of that hope, and challenges the common view that our hope is for an escape from the world.
This sermon asks what it means for God's people to be salt and light in practical terms. Dan proposes three practical ways that we can move toward and embrace this call of God upon our lives.
Jesus said that God's people are a city on a hill, a blessed people who are called to be a blessing to others, giving forth light and hope. What does this mean in an Old Testament context, one that lies behind the words of Jesus? And what does this mean for us today?
Jesus said, "You are the light of the world." In this sermon, we learn how being the light is much more than simply doing good deeds. It entails God's call upon God's people to be a distinct people who walk in covenant with him and shine forth an alternative pattern of living for all to see.
Jesus said, "You are the salt of the earth." What are the functions of salt, and what does this mean for us today? How does this shape the way we interact with the world? Greg explores these questions in this sermon.
This final sermon is a panel discussion that addresses practical issues of being a Kingdom ambassador who offers Jesus' kind of love in the divisive political environment that we experience today.
God has called us to seek the peace of the land in which we live, to be God's ambassadors who offer a third way. How do we do this? In this conversational sermon, Bill Doherty, from the organization Braver Angels, shares his experience of leading workshops that include Democrats and Republicans with the goal of helping each group understand the other.
One of the primary means the enemy uses to divide people today is social media. While social media has many advantages, it also is designed in such a way that it can easily be used as a tool of Satan. If we are not intentionally resisting the schemes of the enemy, we will too easily be played by them.
When we disagree, we usually assume that reason, not emotion, is driving the interaction, but actually the opposite is true. Greg explains how our default is to use reasoning to justify our emotions, and how knowing this can help us respond well during a heated discussion.
In the midst of a divided and polarized world, how does the church respond in a way that reflects God's kingdom? To answer this question, we must understand the nature of God's kingdom and how it stands in contrast to the kingdoms of this world.
What is the real cause of the persecution that Jesus says leads to blessedness? The answer is found in the refusal to make enemies of others or to embrace an "us vs. them" mindset. By opting out of this game, we no longer fit on either side and persecution becomes the norm.
In a world where violence is promoted as the solution to conflict, Jesus teaches us that God's children are to be those who live in and offer peace.
In Luke's version of the Sermon on the Mount, he includes Jesus' teaching on those who have embraced idols and are not blessed as they are on the path of woe. This sermon addresses what these "woes" mean and how we can fight against the woe road.
Our world offers continual distractions that overwhelm us and keep us from purity of heart, and therefore hinder our sight of God. To have purity of heart is to have a single-minded focus on one thing, the one thing that matters.
In the midst of a culture of perpetual judgment, God has called the church to be a people of mercy. We will receive mercy to the degree that we offer mercy, and judgment to the degree that we judge.
God created us with a homing device in our souls which causes us to hunger for LIFE that can only be filled through our connection with him. However, we too often fall into the trap of hungering and thirsting after idols that leave us empty and leave us restless.
Jesus taught that those who are meek will actually inherit the earth. What does this counter-cultural teaching mean? How does it relate to being humble and the reality that people are forced to be humble by those in power? This sermon explores these questions and then provides practical direction to embracing Jesus' teaching.
Jesus taught that those who mourn are blessed. This occurs as the people of God know how things should be and set God's beauty in contrast to the ugliness of the world. And thus, we mourn for God to come and bring his deliverance.
The Sermon on the Mount opens with a teaching on being poor in spirit, which refers to an attitude one has before God. It means not being self-reliant, but broken and dependent upon God for life.
This sermon introduces the Sermon on the Mount by asking why we should trust the words of Jesus found in Matthew 5-7. Jesus addresses big life questions and if we don't know why we should trust his answers, then we might place the authority of others on par with that of Jesus. Christ is the expert of all experts, which is the reason his teaching must be heeded.
This concluding sermon in our Race Conciliation series briefly addresses how prevalent racism has been in the history of the church. Then we hosted an extended panel discussion to answer questions we've gotten about race, and to discuss how to move forward as a reconciling people.
We are expected to go through life with friends who look like us. Being close with people who do not look like you is unusual in our culture, and the church tends to perpetuate this pattern. However, God's Kingdom is comprised of people from all kinds of backgrounds that don't look like our own. The question we all face is, "what will we do about it?"
We live in a world where Satan has laid claim to creation, while at the same time God is fighting to redeem all things through the work of the cross. These two fundamental forces are simultaneous, and we see them everywhere. Our calling is to participate in the good work that God is doing in order to advance the Kingdom.
Sin not only resides in the hearts of individuals; it also is woven through the systems and structures of our corporate way of life. Jesus entered into these systems to transform them and he now invites us to join him, offering our voices to bring liberation and reconciliation to our world.
God is inviting us to respond to the volatile issues around racism in a uniquely Kingdom way, a way modeled by Jesus. This Kingdom way provides concrete handles for battling against the rulers, authorities and powers that drive racism in our world.
We primarily think about the problems we face today in terms of individualism, pointing fingers at persons who are making bad choices. However, the Bible speaks of the struggle against systemic issues, what are called "principalities and powers" that shape the structures of how we live. The unique call of Kingdom people is to focus our struggle against these systems, rather than against people.
