Gathering Recap - 05/26/2024 - Hebrews 5:11-6:13 - Hard Words and a Way Forward

Call to worship:

5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
    our God is merciful.
6 The Lord preserves the simple;
    when I was brought low, he saved me.
7 Return, O my soul, to your rest;
    for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.

Psalm 116:5-7

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

Who has given you hard words that helped? What was illuminated? What changed?

What does it look like to “be skilled in the word of righteousness” and “training discernment by constant practice?”

How do these difficult warnings lead us toward following the way of Jesus today?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

We thank you for the presence of Christ and the peace He brings. We are grateful for this grand story that centers on Your Son and shapes the entirety of our lives. May Your Spirit send us from this place with boldness, kindness, compassion, and love.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Hebrews 5:11-6:8 - Faith

Hebrews 5:11-6:12

Lincoln Picture

“What the writer here longs for is that people should become proficient in understanding and using the entire message of God’s healing, restoring, saving justice. He wants them to know their way around the whole message of scripture and of the gospel, to be able to handle this message in relation to their own lives, their communities and the wider world, and to see how all the different parts of God’s revelation fit together, apply to different situations and have the power to transform lives and situations.” - NT Wright

“It’s far easier to go to church once a week chasing a spiritual high and angle for a download from heaven than to do the daily, unglamorous work of discipleship.” - John Mark Comer

The assertion here must be considered in light of the broader context of Hebrews. In 6:1 the author has identified “repentance” as foundational in Christian teaching. In the view of the author of Hebrews true repentance can be experienced only in the shadow of Christ’s sacrifice, since there exists no other valid sacrifice for sin (10:18, 26). In the Jewish literature of the day, repentance was God’s gift, and Hebrews has taken that thought as specifically incarnated in the person and work of the Son of God. Repentance in 6:4–6 is “impossible” because there is nowhere else to go for repentance once one has rejected Christ. The apostate in effect has turned his or her back on the only means available for forgiveness before God. - George Guthrie

Matthew 13:24-30

“Everyday moments of epiphany are bestowed on everyone. Our role is to simply learn to pay attention. It is remarkable how often the parables handed down to us from Jesus end with the words: “Consider carefully how you listen,” and “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.” - Martin Schleske

Gathering Recap - 05/19/2024 - Hebrews 5:1-10 - The Best High Priest

Call to worship:

1 I love the Lord, because he has heard
    my voice and my pleas for mercy.
2 Because he inclined his ear to me,
    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
3 The snares of death encompassed me;
    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
    I suffered distress and anguish.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:
    “O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!”

Psalm 116:1-4

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What comparisons are made between Jesus and the high priest? How is Jesus not only “better” but “the best?”

Seeing the life of Jesus, how does he show us the ways he thoroughly understands the human condition?

What is the way for our lives with this high priest?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

We thank you for the presence of Christ and the peace He brings. We are grateful for this grand story that centers on Your Son and shapes the entirety of our lives. May Your Spirit send us from this place with boldness, kindness, compassion, and love.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Hebrews 5:1-10 - Linda B

Slide 1

Big Idea

Jesus our High Priest understands our lives, mediates between us and God,

and provides eternal salvation.

Slide 2

Phases of God’s Program to Restore His Creation

God dwells with His sinful people

God walks among His sinful people

God lives in His redeemed people (YOU ARE HERE)

God lives with, among, and in His glorified people

Slide 3 (and maybe 4)

“If you were an Israelite living under the old covenant, and you did not belong to the tribe of Levi, ninety feet is as close as you would ever get to the presence of God in the Holy of Holies.

God had fulfilled his promise to dwell among his people, but his holiness demanded separation. He was near, yet guarded; present, yet veiled; inviting, yet intimidating. The mere presence of the temple revealed God’s desire to be near his people. But everything about the temple said, “You dare not approach me on your own.”

The cherubim that once flashed a flaming sword at the entrance to Eden now blocked the way to the Holy of Holies. Any who broke through the barrier would fall before the consuming fire of Sinai. Safer for a man to walk on the sun than a sinner to stand unshielded before God.

Every day, the temple preached a silent sermon to any who had ears to hear: You need a mediator to make atonement. You need an advocate to intercede. You need a priest to make a way.”

Scott Hubbard

Slide 4/5

“And in the first century, as he laid his hand on the head of the animal, he would say ‘O God, I have committed iniquity and transgressed and sinned before thee, I and my house and the children of Aaron, thy holy people. O God, forgive, I pray, the iniquities and transgressions and sins which I have committed and transgressed and sinned before thee, I and my house.’ Only then was he able to minister on behalf of the people.”

Leon Morris

Slide 5/6

““This is what his training involved: learning to submit his natural desires to his Father’s will, even when it meant pain and hardship and self-denial—as it often did. And this is why he prayed with loud cries and tears. It wasn’t an act—he wasn’t faking. He prayed with loud cries and tears because the prospect of drinking the bitter cup put a terrible strain on his human nature.

Further, for this holiest man who ever lived, the prospect of sinning would’ve been more loathsome than sinners like us could ever imagine. It’s we who can’t understand his temptations. As C. S. Lewis noted, Christ, as “the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full what temptation means.”

Justin Dillehay

Slide 6/7

“His Sonship was perfect, and therefore raises the problem why he needed to learn obedience at all. Here we are faced with the mystery of the nature of Christ. In considering the divine Son it may be difficult to attach any meaning to the learning process (he learned obedience), but in thinking of the Son as perfect man it becomes at once intelligible. When Luke says that Jesus advanced in learning (2:52), he means that by a progressive process he showed by his obedience to the Father’s will a continuous making of God’s will his own, reaching its climax in his approach to death. The cry of acceptance in the Garden of Gethsemane was the concluding evidence of the Son’s obedience to the Father. No one will deny that there is deep mystery here, but the fact of it makes our high priest’s understanding of us unquestionably more real.”

Donald Guthrie

Slide 7/8

Big Idea

Jesus our High Priest understands our lives, mediates between us and God,

and provides eternal salvation.

Gathering Recap - 05/12/2024 - Hebrews 4:14-16 - Real Help for Real Life

Call to worship:

12 The Lord has remembered us; he will bless us;
    he will bless the house of Israel;
    he will bless the house of Aaron;
13 he will bless those who fear the Lord,
    both the small and the great.

14 May the Lord give you increase,
    you and your children!
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth!

16 The heavens are the Lord's heavens,
    but the earth he has given to the children of man.
17 The dead do not praise the Lord,
    nor do any who go down into silence.
18 But we will bless the Lord
    from this time forth and forevermore.
Praise the Lord!

Psalm 115:12-18

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

How has Jesus passed through, blazed a trail, and created a space?

What is the “confession” we are to hold fast to?

What does holding fast, drawing near and receiving mercy and grace look like for you today? What gets in the way of that?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

We thank you for the presence of Christ and the peace He brings. We are grateful for this grand story that centers on Your Son and shapes the entirety of our lives. May Your Spirit send us from this place with boldness, kindness, compassion, and love.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Hebrews 4:14-16 - Mike

Heb 4:14-16

1 Tim 3:16

“As I reflect on Jesus’ temptations … I realize they centered on his reason for coming to earth, his “style” of working. Satan was, in effect, dangling before Jesus a speeded-up way of accomplishing his mission. He could win over the crowds by creating food on demand and then take control of the kingdoms of the world, all the while protecting himself from danger” - Philip Yancey

AFTER CENTURIES of handling and mishandling, most religious words have become so shopworn nobody's much interested anymore. Not so with grace, for some reason. Mysteriously, even derivatives like gracious and graceful still have some of the bloom left. Grace is something you can never get but can only be given. There's no way to earn it or deserve it or bring it about any more than you can deserve the taste of raspberries and cream or earn good looks or bring about your own birth. A good sleep is grace and so are good dreams. Most tears are grace. The smell of rain is grace. Somebody loving you is grace. Loving somebody is grace. Have you ever tried to love somebody? A crucial eccentricity of the Christian faith is the assertion that people are saved by grace. There's nothing you have to do. The grace of God means something like: "Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are, because the party wouldn't have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid. I am with you. Nothing can ever separate us. It's for you I created the universe. I love you." There's only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can be yours only if you'll reach out and take it. Maybe being able to reach out and take it is a gift too. Fred B

"aid rendered to someone who is miserable or needy, especially someone who is either in debt or without claim to favorable treatment.” - Dictionary of Biblical Imagery

"Mercy is kindness exercised towards the miserable, and includes pity, compassion, forbearance, and gentleness, which the Scriptures so abundantly ascribe to God.”

Charles Hodge

I wrote a book on grace, and grace is a free gift, but to receive the gift you have to have your hands open. And a lot of people don’t have their hands open, there’s something they’re grasping because there’s a lot of things to grasp in a prosperous country.” – Philip Yancey

Love without truth is sentimentality; it supports and affirms us but keeps us in denial about our flaws. Truth without love is harshness; it gives us information but in such a way that we cannot really hear it. God's saving love in Christ, however, is marked by both radical truthfulness about who we are and yet also radical, unconditional commitment to us. The merciful commitment strengthens us to see the truth about ourselves and repent. The conviction and repentance moves us to cling to and rest in God's mercy and grace. - Tim Keller

Gathering Recap - 05/05/2024 - Hebrews 4:1-13 - Rest

Call to worship:

9 O Israel, trust in the Lord!
    He is their help and their shield.
10 O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
    He is their help and their shield.
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
    He is their help and their shield.

Psalm 115:9-11

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

Is it possible to know the gospel, but fail to live into the rest it provides?

How does Jesus reorient life in a disoriented world?

God’s word has the “ability to effect change on people” - How so? How has it changed you?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

We thank you for the presence of Christ and the peace He brings. We are grateful for this grand story that centers on Your Son and shapes the entirety of our lives. May Your Spirit send us from this place with boldness, kindness, compassion, and love.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Hebrews 4:1-13 - Kim

Title: Rest

“Our author is intent on demonstrating the possibility, with the hope that in doing so he will prevent its becoming a reality, that within the community of faith there may be hypocrites or defectors whose position is one of unbelief rather than faith. Any such, of course, do not truly belong to the church, except in a formal and external sense, and the rest that is promised does not pertain to them.” - R. Kent Hughes

“appears to have coined the word from the verb form sabbatizein, which means “to celebrate the Sabbath with praise.” Sabbatismos, therefore, may suggest the festive joy surrounding a celebration of the Sabbath, in which one joins in praise and adoration of God. Thus, the author joins the concept of “rest” to the concept of “Sabbath,” based upon his exegesis (interpretation) of the Old Testament.” - George Guthrie

“The Lord say to Moses, “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present an offering made to the Lord by fire. Do no work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the Lord your God.… It is a sabbath of rest for you, and you must deny yourselves.” (Lev. 23:26–28, 32)

“Living & Active: The former adjective stands at the head of the verse, perhaps for emphasis, and asserts that that word, rather than being outdated, a “dead” speech-act of a bygone era, still exists as a dynamic force with which one must reckon. “Active” proclaims the word as effective in carrying out God’s intentions. The same word that at creation set the elements of the cosmos to their appointed tasks and still governs the universe toward God’s desired intentions (1:2–3), has the ability to effect change in people. It is not static and passive but dynamic, interactive, and transforming as it interfaces with the people of God.”

- George Guthrie

Question:

What if I did actually spend a full seventh of my life embracing this rhythm living for a different priority? Who would I be if I knew actually how to rest in the finished work of Christ?

Gathering Recap - 04/28/2024 - Hebrews 3:7-19 - Warning and a Way

Call to worship:

4 The Lord is high above all nations,
    and his glory above the heavens!
5 Who is like the Lord our God,
    who is seated on high,
6 who looks far down
    on the heavens and the earth?
7 He raises the poor from the dust
    and lifts the needy from the ash heap,
8 to make them sit with princes,
    with the princes of his people.
9 He gives the barren woman a home,
    making her the joyous mother of children.
Praise the Lord!

Psalm 113:4-9

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

How does the warning of Psalm 95 apply to the Hebrew church? How does it apply to us today?

In what ways does “taking care” and “exhorting one another” prevent hardness of heart?

Why is there a call to persevere and hold the original confession of faith?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

We thank you for the presence of Christ and the peace He brings. We are grateful for this grand story that centers on Your Son and shapes the entirety of our lives. May Your Spirit send us from this place with boldness, kindness, compassion, and love.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Hebrews 3:7-18 - Josh Reading

The warnings show how unbelief erodes both inner and communal life.

The author gives the way to a life of equilibrium and sharing in Christ.

Romans 8:9: You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you.

Romans 8:17: Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Romans 11:22: Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that [lit., if] you continue in his kindness.

2 Corinthians 13:5b: Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?

Colossians 1:22–23: But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel.

“The author of Hebrews cannot give unqualified assurance to those drifting away from God that they indeed have a part in God’s house or are sharers in Christ. He addresses them collectively as believers, but realizes that some in the group may manifest a different reality as time goes on (They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. 1 John 2:19) Perseverance does not gain salvation but demonstrates the reality that true salvation indeed has been inaugurated. If the end comes and a person is not in relationship with Christ, it means that the person had never truly become Christ’s companion” - George Guthrie

Gathering Recap - 04/21/2024 - Hebrews 3:1-6 - Hold Fast

Call to worship:

1 Praise the Lord!
Praise, O servants of the Lord,
    praise the name of the Lord!

2 Blessed be the name of the Lord
    from this time forth and forevermore!
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting,
    the name of the Lord is to be praised!

Psalm 113:1-3

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

How is the idea of being “holy brothers” and having a “heavenly calling” brought about?

What does it look like to consider Christ?

In what ways can we tend to the soil of our lives?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

We thank you for the presence of Christ and the peace He brings. We are grateful for this grand story that centers on Your Son and shapes the entirety of our lives. May Your Spirit send us from this place with boldness, kindness, compassion, and love.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Hebrews 3:1-6 (Chris)

Title: Hold Fast

“doesn’t merely talk about where our calling originated or where our calling is taking us. It also describes the quality of our existence; the kind of person we are designed to be. Our lives now and forevermore are to be characterized by the values of heaven; energized by the power of heaven; shaped by the beauty of heaven. We are to live now, on earth, heavenly lives.” — Sam Storms

“Although Abraham and David and Isaiah and Daniel are critically important figures in the OT, none is greater than Moses. He was truly a national hero and “the architect of Israel’s corporate life” — R. T. France

“…If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him in a vision; I speak with him in a dream. 7 Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. 8 With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the Lord…” —Numbers 12:6-8

List:

(1) Whereas both Moses and Jesus were “faithful” to God, only Jesus was altogether obedient and never sinned or disobeyed.

(2) Moses was faithful in God’s house, whereas Jesus built it!

(3) Moses was faithful as a servant of God, but Jesus is the Son!

“He does not say that if you fail to hold fast your confidence this means you once had it but later lost it. Rather, if you fail to hold it, it means you never had it at all. If someone does not hold firmly to the end of this “faith” or “confidence” that he/she claims to have put in Christ, this reveals that they never truly and sincerely shared in Christ in the first place.” — Sam Storms

Gathering Recap - 04/14/2024 - Hebrews 2:1-18 - Perspective and High Priest

Call to worship:

1 Praise the Lord!
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
    who greatly delights in his commandments!
2 His offspring will be mighty in the land;
    the generation of the upright will be blessed.

Psalm 112:1-2

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What dangers of drifting existed for the first listeners? How about today?

How does the call to pay attention connect to the story of Scripture?

Jesus knows, is near, and able as our High Priest. How does this good news impact you today?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

We thank you for the presence of Christ and the peace He brings. We are grateful for this grand story that centers on Your Son and shapes the entirety of our lives. May Your Spirit send us from this place with boldness, kindness, compassion, and love.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Hebrews 2:1-18 - Chris

"Love does not mean the abandonment of justice and right; nor is it a sentimental benevolence which does not have the capacity for holy wrath.” George Ladd

“Pay attention to what you pay attention to.”

“The most basic form of love is attention”

“What you pay attention to expands”

Phil 2:5-8

“The drive for autonomous living—to control my own life and destiny—runs counter to Christian commitment. For the autonomous self the premier question is not “What do I owe to God or this community?” but “What can this God and community do to help me in my pursuit of self-actualization?” In other words, as long as God and the community are useful in helping me “get and keep it all together,” I will participate. When that ceases to happen or my autonomy is threatened by these relationships, I will drift elsewhere” - George Guthrie

Jesus, Savior, pilot me,

Over life's tempestuous sea:

Unknown waves before me roll,

Hiding rocks and treach'rous shoal;

Chart and compass come from Thee–

Jesus, Savior, pilot me!

As a mother stills her child,

Thou canst hush the ocean wild;

Boist'rous waves obey Thy will

When Thou say'st to them, "Be still!"

Wondrous Sov'reign of the sea,

Jesus, Savior, pilot me!

When at last I near the shore,

And the fearful breakers roar

'Twixt me and the peaceful rest–

Then, while leaning on Thy breast,

May I hear Thee say to me,

"Fear not– I will pilot thee!”

Edward Hopper

Gathering Recap - 04/07/2024 - Hebrews 1:1-14 - Is He Worthy?

Call to worship:

1 Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
    in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
2 Great are the works of the Lord,
    studied by all who delight in them.
3 Full of splendor and majesty is his work,
    and his righteousness endures forever.
4 He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered;
    the Lord is gracious and merciful.

Psalm 111:1-4

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What does the book of Hebrews address? How is it connected to our current cultural moment?

How has God chosen to reveal himself? (Heb 1:1-4)

In what area of your life do you need to behold Christ?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for the truth of your word and the beauty of Jesus. As we go from this place empower us by Your Spirit to see Your Son, follow His way, and represent Him well.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Hebrews 1:1-14 - Kim

“(1) Whereas pastors in the Christian communities were normally referred to as “elders” or “overseers,” in Hebrews alone among the New Testament documents they are called “leaders” (hegoumenoi) (13:7, 17, 24). Outside the New Testament this designation for church leadership occurs in two early Christian documents, 1st Clement and The Shepherd of Hermas, both of which we know to have been associated with the church at Rome.(2) First Clement, a pastoral letter written from Clement of Rome to the church at Corinth sometime around the end of the first century, demonstrates extensive use of Hebrews. One section in particular (36:1–6) shows direct literary dependence on the book, and the rest of the document bears the marks of Hebrews’ influence. Therefore, the earliest evidence of Hebrews’ use in the ancient church locates the document in Rome.” - George Guthrie

“32 But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, 33 sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. 34 For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one.” (Heb. 10:32-34)

“God’s Son—heir, agent of creation, sustainer of the universe, Savior, and sovereign—who now sits at the right hand of God… in 1:1-4 we find no fewer than ten weighty topics, which span from heaven to earth and from eternity past to eternity future. The list of themes reads like part of the table of contents in a systematic theology textbook! How can we focus our application when we are confronted with so much substance in such a short space?” - George Guthrie

"The story of divine revelation is a story of progression up to Christ. But there is no progression beyond Him."

- F.F. Bruce

"Just as the Spirit of God in this passage invites all to come as far as Christ, so He forbids them to overstep this last word of which He makes mention.”

- John Calvin

“There have been many attempts made by the fathers of the Church to explain the relationship between the two Divine Persons, the Father and the Son; but the explanations had better never have been given, fro the figures used are liable to lead into mistake. Suffice it for us to say that, in the most appropriate language of the Nicene Creed, Christ is “God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God.” He is co-equal with the Father; though how that is, we know not. He stands in the nearest possible relationship to the Father, — a relationship of intense love and delight, so that the Father says of him, “This is my beloved Son.””

- Charles Spurgeon

“The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God.” - C.S. Lewis

Dear God, thank You for speaking to us in the Bible, the writings of prophets, who wrote in so many different ways over such a long period of time that we have good reasons to believe in Your absolute truthfulness and faithfulness.

Father, we especially thank You for the gift of Your Son, Jesus Christ, through whom You made all things. Through Your Son, O God, You have spoken to us truly in the Bible and through creation. We thank You that in addition to speaking and demonstrating Your will and way of life for us, that Jesus died so You could forgive us and purify us in spite of our sins. We thank You Father that Jesus sits at Your right hand and always intercedes for Your people.

Oh God, we thank You for the angels who watch over us as Your servants, and we praise our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ because He is far superior to the angels, for He is Your Son. Indeed, all the angels worship Jesus and so do we, Your children, because He is worthy of our adoration and praise.

Lord Jesus, thank You were sitting on the throne of God, for indeed You are God. Unlike the leaders of this world, You rule with justice and righteousness. Indeed, we pray for You to come again quickly and visibly display Your just rule over all in the Kingdom of God. Amen

— How God Teaches Us to Pray: Lessons from the Lives of Francis and Edith Schaeffer

Gathering Recap - 03/31/2024 - John 21:20-25 - What is that to you?

Call to worship:

1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. 5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” 8 And they remembered his words, 9 and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. 10 Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, 11 but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. 12 But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.

Luke 24:1-12

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What do you tend to do when you don’t know what to do?

How do you see the gospel at work through the life of Peter?

When you hear “what is that to you? You follow me?” from Jesus, what comes to mind?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in heaven,

We thank you for the wonderful surprise of the resurrection. We ask you to shape us and send us by Your Spirit with this same power. May Jesus lead the entirety of our lives toward loving you above all else, and our neighbors as ourselves, until You return.

In the name of Christ we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

John 21:20-25

“The original creation of light itself is almost too extraordinary to take in. The little cookout on the beach is almost too ordinary to take seriously. Yet if Scripture is to be believed, enormous stakes were involved in them both, and still are.” - Frederick Buechner

“Jesus matters because of what he brought and what he still brings to ordinary human beings, living their ordinary lives and coping daily with their surroundings. He promises wholeness for their lives. In sharing our weaknesses he gives us strength and and imparts through his companionship a life that has the quality of eternity.” - Dallas Willard

1 Peter 1:3-5

“The disciples go fishing but catch nothing. Jesus then helps them to an enormous catch but proceeds to commission Peter to be a shepherd rather than a fisherman. There are many things going on simultaneously here, but at the center is the challenge to a new way of life, a new forgiveness, a new fruitfulness, a new following of Jesus, which will be wider and more dangerous than what has gone before. The resurrection isn’t just a surprise happy ending for one person; it is instead the turning point for everything else. - NT Wright

Gathering Recap - 03/24/2024 - Psalm 13:1-6 - Silence

Call to worship:

5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
    Let your glory be over all the earth!
6 That your beloved ones may be delivered,
    give salvation by your right hand and answer me!

Psalm 108:5-6

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What is (and isn’t) the silence of God? How does it differ from our silence.

What would help you to learn to love God in the waiting?

How do you see Jesus at work historically in “silent” seasons?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Psalm 13:1-6 - Jon

“Habakkuk lived in the final decades of Judah, Israel’s southern kingdom. It was a time of injustice and idolatry, and he saw the rising threat of the Babylonian empire on the horizon. Unlike the other Hebrew prophets, Habakkuk doesn’t accuse Israel or even speak to the people on God’s behalf. Instead, all of his words are addressed to God. The book of Habakkuk tells us about Habakkuk’s personal struggle to believe that God is good when there is so much tragedy and evil in the world”

— bible project

1 The oracle which Habakkuk the prophet saw.

2 How long, O Lord, will I call for help,

And You will not hear?

I cry out to You, “Violence!”

Yet You do not save.

3 Why do You make me see iniquity,

And cause me to look on wickedness?

Yes, destruction and violence are before me;

Strife exists and contention arises.

4 Therefore the law is ignored

And justice is never upheld.

For the wicked surround the righteous;

Therefore justice comes out perverted.

5 “Look among the nations! Observe!

Be astonished! Wonder!

(NASB)

Habakkuk 2:3

3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time;

it speaks of the end

and will not prove false.

Though it linger, wait for it;

it will certainly come

and will not delay.

(NIV)

“One of her colleagues attended a conference on Jungian dream analysis where people wrote questions on cards that were passed along to a panel of experts, among them was a grandson of Carl Jung.

One of these cards told the story of a horrific, reoccurring dream, in which the dreamer was stripped of all human dignity and worth through Nazi atrocities. A member of the panel, read the dream out loud. As she listened, my colleague began to formulate a dream interpretation in her head, in anticipation of the panels response. It was really "a no-brainer," she thought, as her mind, busily offered her symbolic explanations for the torture and atrocities described in the dream.

But this was not how the panel responded at all. When the reading of the dream was complete, Jungs's grandson looked out over the large audience. "Would you all please rise?" he asked. "we will stand together in a moment of silence in response to this dream." The audience stood for a minute, my colleague, impatiently, waiting for the discussion she was certain would follow. But when they sat again, the panel went onto the next question.

My colleague simply did not understand this at all, and a few days later, she asked one of her teachers, himself a Jungian analyst, about it, “Ah, Lois," he had said, "there is life, suffering unspeakable, a vulnerability, so extreme that it goes far beyond words, beyond explanations, and even beyond healing. In the face of such suffering, all we can do is bear witness so no one need suffer alone.”

- Parker J. Palmer, A Hidden Wholeness

“I know that, as night and shadows are good for flowers, and moonlight and dews are better than a continual sun, so is Christ's absence of special use, and that it hath some nourishing virtue in it, and giveth sap to humility, and putteth an edge on hunger, and furnisheth a fair field to faith to put forth itself, and to exercise its fingers in gripping it seeth not what.”

—Samuel Rutherford

“Honesty. David is in agony and can’t feel the presence of God. he cries out that God has ignored his pain and his sorrow. It is almost a howl, and the fact that it is included in the Bible tells us that God wants to hear our genuine feelings, even if they are anger at him. David never stops praying, however, and that is the key. As long as we howl towards God and remember his salvation by grace (verse 5), we will end up at a place of peace. If Christians do that, by hearing Jesus praying verses 1-4 on the cross, losing the Father's face as he paid for our sins, we will be able to pray versus 5-6 indeed.”

— Timothy Keller

It's enough to drive a man crazy; it'll break a man's faith

It's enough to make him wonder if he's ever been sane

When he's bleating for comfort from Thy staff and Thy rod

And the heaven's only answer is the silence of God

It'll shake a man's timbers when he loses his heart

When he has to remember what broke him apart

This yoke may be easy, but this burden is not

When the crying fields are frozen by the silence of God

There's a statue of Jesus on a monastery knoll

In the hills of Kentucky, all quiet and cold

And He's kneeling in the garden, as silent as a Stone

All His friends are sleeping and He's weeping all alone

And the man of all sorrows, he never forgot

What sorrow is carried by the hearts that he bought

So when the questions dissolve into the silence of God

The aching may remain, but the breaking does not

The aching may remain, but the breaking does not

In the holy, lonesome echo of the silence of God

- Andrew Peterson, The Silence of God

Gathering Recap - 03/17/2024 - Matthew 27:45-56 - Why Have You Forsaken Me?

Call to worship:

1 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
    for his steadfast love endures forever!
2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
    whom he has redeemed from trouble[a]
3 and gathered in from the lands,
    from the east and from the west,
    from the north and from the south.

Psalm 107:1-3

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What is going on in the cry of dereliction?

How does Psalm 22 shape our understanding of the cross?

In what ways is the abandonment of Jesus good news for His followers?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Slides Cry of Dereliction

Slide 1

“And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.”

Luke 24:25-27

Slide 2

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Where did the Cry of Dereliction come from?

What did the Cry of Dereliction mean?

Slide 3

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?

O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,

and by night, but I find no rest.

Psalm 22:1-2

Slide 4

But I am a worm and not a man,

scorned by mankind and despised by the people.

All who see me mock me;

they make mouths at me; they wag their heads;

“He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;

let him rescue him, for he delights in him!”

Psalm 22:6-8

Slide 5

“I am poured out like water,

and all my bones are out of joint;

my heart is like wax;

it is melted within my breast;

my strength is dried up like a potsherd,

and my tongue sticks to my jaws;

you lay me in the dust of death.

For dogs encompass me;

a company of evildoers encircles me;

they have pierced my hands and feet —

I can count all my bones—

they stare and gloat over me;

they divide my garments among them,

and for my clothing they cast lots.”

Psalm 22:14-18

Slide 6

Defeat ---> Victory = Defeatory

Slide 7

“And we ask the question, how can God be forsaken of God? And I can ask twenty questions for which there’s no answer. And let me say that that’s a good thing for us to be brought to the very limits of our understanding where we simply have to bow the knee and say, “Lord, I don’t understand it, but I accept it. It’s in Your word.” That’s a good thing for Christians to have to run into every once in a while.”

Ligon Duncan

Slide 8

“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

2 Corinthians 5:21

Slide 9

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.”

1 Peter 2:24

Slide 10

“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”

Galatians 3:13

Slide 11

He had known from the beginning that he would die a violent death, and in Gethsemane he had looked it in the eye, and shuddered. But now he is tasting it in all its bitterness, and the reality is infinitely worse than the prospect.

Never before had anything come between him and his Father, but now the sin of the whole world has come between them, and he is caught in this dreadful vortex of the curse. It is not that Abba is not there, but that he is there, as the Judge of all the earth who could condone nothing and could not spare even his own Son.

Donald Macleod

Slide 12

“Here’s what we must remember and treasure: Jesus willingly suffers this so sinners may escape it. Jesus’ abandonment means the sinner’s adoption. He takes our place on the cross so we can take His place in the kingdom. Because He was abandoned socially, we may be children in the household of God. Because He was deserted emotionally, we become whole again—renewed in the image of God. Because He suffered spiritual separation, we may be spiritually united to Him through faith so that we will never be separated from God’s love. Because He was forsaken, we are forgiven. Now He says to us, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Thabiti Anyabwile

Gathering Recap - 03/10/2024 - Matthew 23:25-27 - WOE

Call to worship:

47 Save us, O Lord our God,
    and gather us from among the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name
    and glory in your praise.

48 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
    from everlasting to everlasting!
And let all the people say, “Amen!”
    Praise the Lord!

Psalm 106:47-48

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

How do you see the tendencies of the religious rulers playing out today? How about in your own heart?

Jon Tyson says “In what way does my own faith and life embody & give a credible alternative to the things I criticize & condemn in others? The gap between what I criticize in others & fail to embody myself is the root of hypocrisy. Criticism is cheap, discipleship is costly.” - In what ways does this resonate?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Kim reading Matthew 23:25-27

1–3  “…The religion scholars and Pharisees are competent teachers in God’s Law. You won’t go wrong in following their teachings on Moses. But be careful about following them. They talk a good line, but they don’t live it. They don’t take it into their hearts and live it out in their behavior. It’s all spit-and-polish veneer.

4–7  “Instead of giving you God’s Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn’t think of lifting a finger to help. Their lives are perpetual fashion shows, embroidered prayer shawls one day and flowery prayers the next. They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions, preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees, and getting called ‘Doctor’ and ‘Reverend.’

8–10  “Don’t let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates. Don’t set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do. No one else should carry the title of ‘Father’; you have only one Father, and he’s in heaven. And don’t let people maneuver you into taking charge of them. There is only one Life-Leader for you and them—Christ.

11–12  “Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you’ll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you’re content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

(Matthew 23:1-12 MSG)

“In what way does my own faith and life embody & give a credible alternative to the things I criticize & condemn in others? The gap between what I criticize in others & fail to embody myself is the root of hypocrisy. Criticism is cheap, discipleship is costly.”

— Jon Tyson

“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not  consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.”

(Philippians 3:12–15 ESV)

“The church that listens to this indictment with good faith will remove from her midst the showy and pretentious; disciples who listen with good faith will question culture’s and their own carnal megalomania, successism, and title hunger.” —Dale Bruner

Gathering Recap - 03/03/2024 - Matthew 7:21-29 - Depart From Me

Call to worship:

1 Praise the Lord!
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
    for his steadfast love endures forever!
2 Who can utter the mighty deeds of the Lord,
    or declare all his praise?
3 Blessed are they who observe justice,
    who do righteousness at all times!

Psalm 106:1-3

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

How is the close of the Sermon on the Mount kind?

What comes to mind when you read that not all who say “Lord, Lord” enter the kingdom of heaven?

What does the foundation of your life reveal about your faith?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Matthew 7:21-29

Deut 30:15-20

”We learn at least that it is possible to work for Jesus and yet not live under him. We can be intoxicated by the power of Jesus and yet be hostile to his hard Commands. “I never ever really knew you; get out of my face, you doers of the very opposite of my teachings.” They believe that they know Jesus, but apparently they never gave him a chance to know them (“I never really knew you”), that is, they never gave him a chance to come into personal contact with their innermost life (the force of the biblical word “know”). It is strangely possible to serve and even to glorify Christ and yet in one’s own personal life not to obey him. The fact that Jesus says “many” will present their christocentric-charismatic credentials at the Judgment and that even then they will not get in should be frightening to us all. It means that just as a loving manner (sheep’s clothing) is not necessarily the real item, so a Christ-glorifying ministry (“in your name, … in your name.… in your name”) is not always the real thing either.” - Dale Bruner

“If I ever reach Heaven I expect to find three wonders there: first, to meet some I had not thought to see there; second, to miss some I had thought to meet there; and third, the greatest wonder of all, to find myself there.” - John Newton

“Obedience to Jesus’ words is not so much protection from troubles as protection in them, just as rock under a house does not shield from storms but supports during them” - Dale Bruner

The teaching of the Sermon on the Mount is not meant to be admired but to be obeyed - RT France

“The focus is on my ability, my creativity, and my potential. These become the pistons driving the engine of self (resulting, Jesus tells us, in the eternal loss of self). No place for weakness exists in this view of reality. More important, no place exists for God. We don’t reject God outright, but we retain the god of Deism, who once did some powerful things but is generally detached from our day-to-day lives. So instead of abiding, we pray for God to give us some of his power. Instead of growing into him who is our head (Eph. 4:15), we ask him to give us some magic (“Just make me stop sinning,” “Just make these temptations go away,” and so on). Instead of entering into the way of weakness, we try to use God to become something powerful.” - Kyle Strobel and Jamin Goggin

Gathering Recap - 02/25/2024 - Matthew 11:25-30 - Revelation and Invitation

Call to worship:

1 Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name;
    make known his deeds among the peoples!
2 Sing to him, sing praises to him;
    tell of all his wondrous works!
3 Glory in his holy name;
    let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!
4 Seek the Lord and his strength;
    seek his presence continually!
5 Remember the wondrous works that he has done,
    his miracles, and the judgments he uttered

Psalm 105:1-5

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

How is the exclusivity of Jesus both difficult and good news?

What kind of rest does Jesus offer? How is it experienced today?

In what ways does sabbath lead us toward replenishment and rest today?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Matthew 11:25-30

“At the heart of the revelation is this simple fact: God’s whole truth (“absolutely everything”) has been placed in and revealed through Jesus the Son. The key to divine revelation is Jesus. In Jesus, God gets a face. Jesus invites us to himself, and we feel quite naturally that we are invited to God.” - Dale Bruner

Hebrews 1:1-4

“Just in terms of allocation of time resources, religion is not very efficient. There’s a lot more I could be doing on a Sunday morning.” - Bill Gates

A yoke is a work instrument. Thus when Jesus offers a yoke he offers what we might think tired workers need least. They need a mattress or a vacation, not a yoke. Still more precisely: A yoke is not a sitting instrument; it is a walking instrument. Jesus does not say, “Take my chair and learn from me”; he says, “Take my yoke and learn from me,” which means that as we seek to live in obedience to Jesus we learn from Jesus along the way. Jesus realizes that the most restful gift he can give the tired is a new way to carry life, a fresh way to bear responsibilities. Life is a succession of burdens; we cannot get away from them; thus instead of offering escape, Jesus offers equipment. - Dale Bruner

“An easy life isn’t an option; an easy yoke is.” - John Mark Comer

Mike Gaston Slides:

“Thus says the Lord:

‘Stand by the roads, and look,

and ask for the ancient paths,

where the good way is; and walk in it,

and find rest for your souls.’

But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’”

Jeremiah 6:16

For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath

Matthew 12:8

Attached Image 1 (Eugene Peterson)

“Odd, isn’t it? We have more leisure hours per person per year as a country than anyone could have guessed a hundred years ago. But we are not leisurely. We are not relaxed. We are anxious. We are in a hurry. The anxiety and the hurry ruin intimacy and sabotage our best intentions in faith, hope and love – the three actions in which most of us set out to do our best.

That is why I as your pastor want you to keep a Sabbath. I want you to live well. I want you to live whole and mature, with appreciation and pleasure, experiencing the heights and depths of glory in your bodies and your work, your friends and your gardens, your minds and your emotions, at the ocean and in the mountains. You can’t do that if you are ‘on the run.’ You can’t do that if you are watching the clock.

Sabbath is the biblical tool for protecting time against desecration.”

Eugene Peterson

Sabbath = regular, intentional, contemplative, Christ-centered rest

Image 2 - Sabbath Rest

“The rest of God – the rest God gladly gives so that we might discover that part of God we’re missing – is not a reward for finishing. It’s not a bonus for work well done.

It’s sheer gift. It is a stop-work order in the midst of work that’s never complete, never polished. Sabbath is not the break we’re allotted at the tail end of completing all of our tasks and chores, the fulfillment of all our obligations. It’s the rest we take smack-dab in the middle of them, without apology, without guilt, and for no better reason that God told us we could.”

Mark Buchanan

Gathering Recap - 02/18/2024 - Luke 12:4-7 - Fear Not?!

Call to worship:

33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him,
    for I rejoice in the Lord.
35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth,
    and let the wicked be no more!
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Praise the Lord!

Psalm 104:33-35

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

How do you see people (including yourself) “plagued with paranoia?”

In what ways does our idolatry of security perpetuate our fears?

What does “getting small” and “singing a new song” look like this week?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Luke 12:4-7 - Mike

It's the age of doubt

And I doubt we'll figure it out

Is it you or is it me?

Age of anxiety

Fight the fever with TV

In the age when nobody sleeps

And the pills do nothing for me

In the age of anxiety

- Arcade Fire

“Unfortunately, many of us presume that the world is the ultimate threat and that God's function is to offset it. How different this is from the biblical position that God is far scarier than the world …. When we assume that the world is the ultimate threat, we give it unwarranted power, for in truth, the world's threats are temporary. When we expect God to balance the stress of the world, we reduce him to the world's equal …. As I walk with the Lord, I discover that God poses an ominous threat to my ego, but not to me. He rescues me from my delusions, so he may reveal the truth that sets me free. He casts me down, only to lift me up again. He sits in judgment of my sin, but forgives me nevertheless. Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but love from the Lord is its completion."

- William D. Eisenhower

Acts 10:39-43

“We are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, 41 not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. 43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

“And therein is an extraordinary paradox, for we live more safely than ever before. Though we are safer than almost any other society in history, safety has become the holy grail of our culture. And like the Holy Grail, it is something we can never quite reach. Protected like never before, we are skittish and panicky like never before…. How can this be? Quite simply, our culture has lost God as the proper object of fear. That fear of God was a happy and healthy fear that controlled our other fears, reining in anxiety…In ousting God from our culture, other concerns—from personal health to the health of the planet—have assumed a divine ultimacy in our minds. Good things have become cruel and pitiless idols. And thus we feel helplessly fragile, and society fills with anxieties…The suggestion that loss of the fear of God is the root cause of our culture’s anxiety is a real blow to atheism. For atheism sold the idea that if you liberate people from belief in God, that will liberate them from fear. But throwing off the fear of God has not made our society happier and less fretful. Quite the opposite…So, what does our culture do with all its anxiety? Given its essentially secular self-identity, our culture will not turn to God. The only possible solution, then, must be for us to sort it out ourselves. Thus, Western society has medicalized fear. Fear has become an elusive disease to be medicated. (I do not mean to imply here that use of drugs to curb anxiety is wrong— only that they are a palliative, at times an important one, and not an ultimate solution.) Yet that attempt to eradicate fear as we would eradicate a disease has effectively made comfort (complete absence of fear) a health category—or even a moral category. Where discomfort was once considered quite normal (and quite proper for certain situations), it is now deemed an essentially unhealthy thing.

- Michael Reeves

Psalm 8:3&4,

“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
    the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

what is man that you are mindful of him,
    and the son of man that you care for him?”

Psalm 96:1–4

Oh sing to the LORD a new song;

sing to the LORD, all the earth!

Sing to the LORD, bless his name;

tell of his salvation from day to day.

Declare his glory among the nations,

his marvelous works among all the peoples!

For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised;

he is to be feared above fall gods.

John 1:29

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"

Gathering Recap - 02/11/2024 - Luke 9:57-62 - Let the Dead Bury the Dead

Call to worship:

20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
    you mighty ones who do his word,
    obeying the voice of his word!
21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
    his ministers, who do his will!
22 Bless the Lord, all his works,
    in all places of his dominion.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!

Psalm 103:20-22

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What does being on the road with Jesus look like?

What does the process of following/attaching to Christ shape life?

How have you seen his call to hardship/obscurity/priorites/urgency/focus shape your life?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Luke 9:57-62

Throughout history various religious traditions have used the imagery of pilgrimage or journey to describe spiritual development. These journeys were focused on an eternal destination, a spiritual transformation of the individual. Today, however, the “pilgrimage” is all about the individual’s own life journey. The contemporary self does not have to literally be on the move to be on the road. Being on the road is primarily a state of mind, one that constantly is dissatisfied, looking for the next best thing, living in incompleteness, always engaged in a quest for a sense of significance. This search for meaning becomes even more problematic in a culture which flees from objective truth, which fears authority and the holding of belief too strongly. Mark Sayers

“we have a generation whose principal desire is to feel [God] rather than worship Him.” - Rabbi Shmuley Boteach

”By degrees, attachment to the law sank deeper and deeper into the national character…. Hence the law became a deep and intricate study. Certain men rose to acknowledged eminence for their ingenuity in explaining, their readiness in applying, their facility in quoting, and their clearness in offering solutions of, the difficult passages of the written statutes” Cyclopaedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature

“Prosperity knits a man to the world. He feels that he is finding his place in it, while really it is finding its place in him.” - CS Lewis, Screwtape Letters

How can the dead bury their own dead? This is normally taken metaphorically: "Let the spiritually dead bury the physically dead." This reading would make good on the change of life for which Jesus calls, particularly with regard to the reconstruction of one's dispositions and behaviors and of one's self-identity. Contemporary Jewish funerary customs make possible another reading. The practice of primary burial (in which the corpse is placed in a sealed tomb) followed by secondary burial (following a twelve-month period of decomposition the bones were collected and reburied in an ossuary or "bone box"') is well attested, with the additional twelve months between burial and reburial providing for the completion of the work of mourning. According to this reckoning, Jesus' proverbial saying would refer to the physically dead in both instances: "Let those already dead in the family tomb rebury their own dead." In either case, Jesus' disrespect for such a venerable practice rooted in OT law is matched only by the authority he manifests by asserting the priority of the claims of discipleship in the kingdom of God. In this way, Luke brings to a close his introduction to the journey narrative by asserting through the repetition of rigorous demands the nature of commitment required of those who would follow Jesus on the journey. Joel Green

“The Lord had not committed himself to my plans. The Lord had committed himself to me. Learning the difference was what was to make up the long arc of the Christian life. We are not most changed by what we think or feel or by what happened. We are most changed by what we depend on. And nothing has disfigured me more cruelly than my dependence on myself.” John Andrew Bryant

Gathering Recap - 02/04/2024 - Matthew 19:16-30 - If You Want To Be Perfect

Call to worship:

15 As for man, his days are like grass;
    he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
    and its place knows it no more.
17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
    and his righteousness to children's children,
18 to those who keep his covenant
    and remember to do his commandments.
19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
    and his kingdom rules over all.

Psalm 103:15-19

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

1. Do I think that God has a price? Am I transactional with Him?

2. Am I attempting to speed God up?

3. If God were to ask me for __________ could I and would I give it to Him?

4. Am I generous with my wealth and what percentage of it goes to Kingdom priorities

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

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Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Matthew 19:16-30 - Faith

“It is wrong if eternal life is an additional “acquisition,” if one wants the spiritual as a complement to all the other good things one has—physical, financial, social, and the like. “I am a successful businessman, a good father, and respected in my community; now I want to be a success with God as well.” Service clubs sometimes seek such well-roundedness in their members, but the idea of eternal life as the acquisition of an upwardly mobile person is offensive to Jesus. Eternal life is not spiritual real estate for a person on the make.”

— Dale Bruner

“It is not difficult in such a world to get a person interested in the message of the gospel; it is terrifically difficult to sustain the interest. Millions of people in our culture make decisions for Christ, but there is a dreadful attrition rate. Many claim to have been born again, but the evidence for mature Christian discipleship is slim. In our kind of culture, anything, even news about God, can be sold if it is packaged freshly; but when it loses its novelty, it goes on the garbage heap. There is a great market for religious experience in our world; there is a little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition of virtue, little inclination to sign up for a long apprenticeship in what earlier generations of Christians called holiness…Everyone is in a hurry. The persons whom I lead in worship, among whom I counsel, visit, pray, preach, and teach, want short cuts. They want me to help them fill out the form that will get them instant credit (in eternity). They are impatient for results. They have adopted the lifestyle of a tourist and only want the high points. But a pastor is not a tour guide. I have no interest in telling apocryphal religious stories at and around dubiously identified sacred sites. The Christian life cannot mature under such conditions and in such ways.

—Eugene Peterson

“Americans profoundly underestimate how rich they are compared to the rest of the world. The average U.S. resident estimated that the global median individual income is about $20,000 a year. In fact, the real answer is about a tenth of that figure: roughly $2,100 per year….What explains these misperceptions? Human beings draw heavily on their own local, lived experience to make judgments about the wider world. As individuals’ own incomes rise, and therefore the incomes of those around them, so too do their overestimates of the global median income.”

— Gautam Nair, PhD political science at Yale University

Questions:

1. Do I think that God has a price? Am I transactional with Him?

2. Am I attempting to speed God up?

3. If God were to ask me for __________ could I and would I give it to Him?

4. Am I generous with my wealth and what percentage of it goes to Kingdom priorities

Gathering Recap - 01/28/2024 - John 6:52-60

Call to worship:

10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

12 as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

13 As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.

14 For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.

Psalm 103:10-14

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What metaphor is Jesus getting at with eating his flesh and drinking his blood?

If belief is the bedrock of life, how’s your foundation looking?

What does eternal living and abiding look like today?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

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Notes//Quotes//Slides:

John 6:52-60 - Jack A.

“Jesus offers himself as God's doorway into the life that is truly life. Confidence in him leads us today, as in other times, to become his apprentices in eternal living. "Those who come through me will be safe," he said. "They will go in and out and find all they need. I have come into their world that they may have life, and life to the limit.” In other words, eternal life is not primarily duration but quality of life, "life to the limit." It cannot be stolen from us, and so it does go on. But the focus is on the life itself. "In him was life," the apostle John said of Jesus, "and that life was the light of men.” - Dallas Willard

“There have been five chapters of John's Gospel leading up to this point; they establish the frame of reference into which eating Jesus' flesh and drinking his blood actually fits. Come to him and believe in him as Nicodemus was taught to do (John 3), as were the woman at the well and the other folk from Sychar in the next chapter. And in chapter five, you've got the reality of Jesus healing the cripple, and restoring to him a life that he didn't have before.The Jews were understandably bewildered because they didn't know that Calvary was coming, and so they scratched their heads and asked the question which at that stage was unanswerable, really: "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” The reference Jesus made to eating his flesh and drinking his blood is a metaphorical way of describing the person who draws on, claims, or lays hold of the reality of his atoning sacrifice by putting personal faith in him. We've constantly got to come back to that. It all adds up, you see. And this is something that I find myself wanting to say over and over again to people who ask me about difficult Scriptures. If you read what leads up to them in the book from which they come, again and again you'll find that the problem answers itself, because the foundation for resolving it has already been laid.” - JI Packer

Hebrews 11:1-3,6

If Christ be anything He must be everything. O rest not till love and faith in Jesus be the master passions of your soul! Charles Spurgeon

Gathering Recap - 01/21/2024 - Matthew 10:34-39

Call to worship:

6 The Lord works righteousness
    and justice for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
    his acts to the people of Israel.
8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

Psalm 103:6-8

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

To whom are you truly aligned?

What threatens your allegiance to Jesus? How do you exist in the world with Him?

Does Jesus bring a sword, or you?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Matthew 10:34-39 - Karen W Reading

“Don’t think I’ve come to make life cozy. I’ve come to cut—make a sharp knife-cut between son and father, daughter and mother, bride and mother-in-law—cut through these cozy domestic arrangements and free you for God. Well-meaning family members can be your worst enemies. If you prefer father or mother over me, you don’t deserve me. If you prefer son or daughter over me, you don’t deserve me.

- Matthew 10:34–37 (MSG)

“Since the prophets always promise that under the reign of Christ there will be peace and tranquil times, what else would the disciples have hoped for, but that everything would at once be pacified, wherever they should travel?” - John Calvin

“Jesus enters earth, he enters the world, and he lays claim now, as a king from another kingdom, on every human heart. “I am worthy of greater affection, greater love, greater allegiance than any member of your family.” If all the family members respond to Jesus this way, you’ve got peace. But if they don’t, if there is anger because Jesus has become more important than family bonds and family affections, then a sword cuts right through the relationship. We’ve all tasted this in some ways.” - John Piper

“And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.”

- Colossians 1:18 (ESV)

“If you don’t go all the way with me, through thick and thin, you don’t deserve me. If your first concern is to look after yourself, you’ll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you’ll find both yourself and me."

- Matthew 10:38-39 (MSG)

“Jesus is not triumphalist about the future of Christian mission; he knows that his mission is a rugged minority movement, a tough, divisive affair, and he prefers to make this clear rather than to give false hopes. “The gate is wide and the way pleasant that leads to destruction, and many people [a majority] go this route; but the gate is narrow and the way is tough that leads to real life, and very few people [a minority] find this way” (7:13–14). The effect of this minority movement as it moves aggressively into the massive majority culture is bound to be friction. Jesus does not want his disciples to expect great triumphs and then, when persecution, hostility, and rejection are their experience, to feel betrayed. “This is the way it goes,” Jesus assures them; in fact, “this is the way I plan it to go.”” — Dale Bruner

Questions:

1. Am I a jerk?

2. In what aspects of my life am I tempted to tell Jesus to take a back seat in? What threatens my allegiance to Him?

“Anything that becomes more important and nonnegotiable to us than God becomes an enslaving idol. In this paradigm, we can locate idols by looking at our most unyielding emotions. What makes us uncontrollably angry, anxious, or despondent? What racks us with a guilt we can’t shake? Idols control us, since we feel we must have them or life is meaningless.” —Timothy Keller

3. To whom am I truly aligned?

Gathering Recap - 01/14/2024 - Luke 2:40-52 - Luke 2:40-52

Call to worship:

 1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and all that is within me,
    bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
    who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
    who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Psalm 103:1-5

Gathering Video

Questions for reflection:

What do you make of 12 year old Jesus?

How have your plans and understanding not aligned with the word and will of God?

In what ways has God’s plans and will been better and sweeter than your own?

Corporate Prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We thank you for this season that reminds us of who You are and what You've done. We ask that by the power of Your Spirt, we'd be enabled to behold Your Son and rest well. Shape us and use us for Your glory and the good of those around us.

In the name of Jesus we pray,

Amen

If you are able to support the church financially, we invite you to give securely by clicking the button below:

Notes//Quotes//Slides:

Luke 2:40-52 - Mike Reading

“If you believe what you like in the Gospel, and reject what you don't like, it is not the Gospel you believe, but yourself.” - Augustine

“You can safely assume you’ve created God in your own image when it turns out God hates all the same people you do.” - Anne Lamott

“I can state unequivocally that childlike surrender in trust is the defining spirit of authentic discipleship. And I would add that the supreme need in most of our lives is often the most overlooked—namely, the need for an uncompromising trust in the love of God.” - Brennan Manning

A faith without some doubts is like a human body without any antibodies in it. People who blithely go through life too busy or indifferent to ask hard questions about why they believe as they do will find themselves defenseless against either the experience of tragedy or the probing questions of a smart skeptic. A person's faith can collapse almost overnight if she has failed over the years to listen patiently to her own doubts, which should only be discarded after long reflection. Believers should acknowledge and wrestle with doubts — not only their own but their friends' and neighbors'. It is no longer sufficient to hold beliefs just because you inherited them. Only if you struggle long and hard with objections to your faith will you be able to provide the grounds for your beliefs to skeptics, including yourself, that are plausible rather than ridiculous or offensive. And, just as important for our current situation, such a process will lead you, even after you come to a position of strong faith, to respect and understand those who doubt. - Tim Keller

“Doubt your doubts. Be skeptical of your own skepticism. Why? Because you realize that you are not completely objective.” Tim Keller

"The longer I live, the more deeply I learn that love — whether we call it friendship or family or romance — is the work of mirroring and magnifying each other's light." James Baldwin