Advent means waiting. While the rest of culture is in full swing gearing up for Christmas, the birth of Christ, and all of the consumerism that goes with that celebration, the church is waiting. We are not waiting for the birth of Christ, we are waiting for the second coming of Christ, the realization of […]
As we close our sermon series journeying through the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans, we recognize the tangible implications of Paul’s words for our current cultural climate. There is much in society that divides us from one another and we can learn from Paul who tries to unite a similar divide. The challenge for […]
When we look to the saints, we often place them on a pedestal. Saints are, after all, better than us, right? When we look at the lives of saints, they embody an ethic not of perfection but of humility and self-giving. The saints are people that see themselves as sinners in need of God’s grace […]
One of the challenges of our faith is how to view people who live their lives, and believe, differently than we do. Many people interpret Paul as condemning those that are different, but this interpretation overlooks the very basis of Paul’s mission. Paul’s entire mission to the Gentiles was to include a disenfranchised people into […]
Most people read the first chapter of Paul’s letter to the Romans as a prescription of the problem of sin. No one is without excuse because God has disclosed God’s laws and commandments in the order of creation. The way to God is Jesus, and that is it. The challenge, however, is that the first […]
Grace, God’s gift to us in Jesus Christ, is not something we earn. Grace is a complete and utter gift. Nothing we do earns God’s love for us, rather, we are caught up in God’s love. As such, the only thing that can change the love of God for us is our participation or reception […]
Paul believed the Kingdom of God was both present and a future hope. When tragic events like the shooting in Las Vegas happen, we cry out with “sighs too deep for words.” Even though we question God during difficult times, Paul reminds us that God’s story is always a story of love. The question, then, […]
Paul’s two profound and straightforward keys to the Gospel. Nothing can Separate us from God’s Love. Paul makes his understanding of the Gospel clear in his letter to the Romans. The heart of his understanding is located in chapters 5-8. He says, “While we were weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” […]
Join us as we begin our Romans sermon series. Explore the book of Romans with us throughout the fall. ‘sRomans chapter 5 heart of the Apostle Paul’s argument to the people in Rome. Paul’s personal experience grounds his entire understanding of the Gospel. God met and transformed Paul, or formerly known as Saul, when he […]
Many people explain Jesus’ parable of the mustard seed as a metaphor of something small growing into something beautiful. Anyone who knew about gardening in ancient Israel would know, however, that the mustard plant is an intrusive weed. In Jesus’ parable, Jesus describes the uncontrollable and sometimes undesirable growth of the Kingdom of God. So many times we […]