The Invitation Rodney Gehman – December 24, 2023 – Isaiah 55:1-13 We say this from time to time but you did not choose a perfect church this afternoon. We don’t…
The church in Acts continues to grow, is marked by generosity and is experiencing the grace and favor of God at every turn. But when a certain husband and wife try to play games and get in on the favor, God acts in a unique and decisive way to make sure everyone knows – God will not be mocked.
The Spirit came, and a crowd assembled when they heard the noise. But, upon hearing these Galileans speak other languages fluently, they assumed these hillbillies had been drinking before prayer. Peter, now filled with the Spirit, stands up and corrects them, giving the first explicitly Christian sermon ever given.
Jesus had promised his Holy Spirit will come on the disciples, then he ascended, and now the disciples head back to Jerusalem to wait. What do you tend to do when you have to wait? These 120 disciples waited by praying and making a major decision about who replaces Judas.
Jesus warns the disciples that when he goes back to the Father, the “world” (anyone who rejects Jesus as God’s Messiah) is going to turn and aim their hostility at Jesus’ followers instead. But even though they will face all kinds of hardship, they can be confident that they are never alone. The Counselor will be right there with them wherever they are.
If you’re seeing a counselor, the idea is that you’ve called in someone to help you do something you are unable to do on your own. To help you. To intercede for you. An advocate that fights for you. That’s the word Jesus uses to describe the Holy Spirit. So, according to Jesus, the Holy Spirit is like having a perfectly wise Counselor, who knows everything about you and everything about God and his commands, his plan, and his will, which means he’ll only ever give you perfect advice, inside of you to help you live your life and obey Christ’s commands. You never need to schedule an appointment!
Is there a right way to be a parent? Is there a way of raising children that is in fact "God's way"? Or is it up to us to figure out the best way on our own? In this message, Pastor Steve Hall leads us through how Jesus' life, death and resurrection informs the way we think about parenting and grand-parenting.
According to a survey compiled by Pew Research Center just 3 months ago, only 50% of Americans say they are extremely or very satisfied with their jobs. And what I want to look at this morning, is how the good news of Jesus tells us to think about work, and how the good news of Jesus is the only motivation we need to get out of bed in the morning and hit the grindstone again – even if your job feels uninspiring.
Resurrection Sunday, 2023 – Every one of us has a dominant story that shapes the way we view the world, ourselves, and God. For some it's a story of pain, loss, rejection. For others it's a story of hard work, effort put in, and reward or accomplishment. But all of those stories are but smaller stories inside the Greatest Story...the Story of God as spoken in the Bible.
Jesus drills the whole conversation about being prepared for his return to three simple but powerful words: Repent or Perish.