Grace Chapel Church Podcast | Franklin, TN: Recent Episodes
Grace Chapel Church Podcast | Franklin, TN
What if worship has less to do with the songs we sing and more to do with who or what sits on the throne of our lives? Psalm 150 reminds us that we were created to give God our whole selves, and no matter the season, circumstance, or condition of our hearts, He is always worthy of our worship.
What if the greatest barrier between you and freedom isn’t your past, but your willingness to bring it into the light? Psalm 51 reminds us that God’s mercy doesn’t just cover our sin; it transforms our hearts, replacing shame with joy, brokenness with restoration, and guilt with the hope of becoming new.
The invitation of Psalm 91 is not simply to visit God's presence, but to make it our home. As we learn to live from a place of rest rather than exhaustion, we begin to see every circumstance through the peace, security, and righteousness that Christ has already given us.
Fear and faith often share the same landscape. In Psalm 27, David stands between confidence and desperation, yet fixes his eyes on one thing above all else: the presence of God. When every other pursuit fades, we discover that His nearness is not only our refuge—it is our deepest treasure, our truest vision, and the anchor that carries us through every season.
The Shepherd knows every valley, every wound, every wandering step... and still He leads with goodness, mercy, and grace. Psalm 23 is more than a promise of comfort; it's an invitation to trust the God who walks beside us, restores our souls, and prepares a place for us at His table. When the shadows grow long and the path feels uncertain, the voice of the Good Shepherd is still calling. And because Jesus has defeated the enemy, the story ends not in fear, but in the house of the Lord forever.
Many of us have learned how to study God without ever slowing down enough to simply be with Him. But the invitation of Jesus has never been toward performance—it’s always been toward intimacy. Through stories from Scripture and the beauty of Revelation 5, we’re reminded that the God who pursued humanity from Eden to the cross still desires closeness with you today.
Fear says you’re abandoned. Shame says you’re condemned. But Romans 8 tells a different story. Through every struggle, accusation, and valley, the love of God remains relentless. And for those in Christ, nothing in heaven or earth has the power to separate them from it. To be “more than conquerors” is a reminder that the battle is real, but so is the victory already secured in Jesus.
Suffering has a way of making us question everything—God’s goodness, His presence, even whether our pain means anything at all. But Romans 8 reminds us that even in a groaning world, God is still weaving redemption through every unanswered prayer, every loss, and every tear. Hope for the future isn’t wishful thinking—it’s the promise that one day, we’ll finally see the masterpiece He was creating all along.
The war within doesn’t end in defeat—it gives way to a verdict that changes everything. What once felt like guilt and striving is silenced by a truth stronger than our feelings: there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. This is the turning point where struggle meets freedom, where the weight you’ve been carrying is lifted, and a new life, led by the Spirit, begins.
The tension you feel—the pull between who you want to be and what you keep doing—isn’t failure, it’s a battlefield. Beneath the surface, a war is raging between flesh and Spirit, and the struggle itself is proof that something in you is alive. Freedom doesn’t begin with pretending you’re okay, but with lifting a flare to the only One who can pull you through the fight.
You’re not who you used to be, and you’re not who your struggles say you are. Buried with Christ and raised to new life, a new identity has already been spoken over you—one that breaks sin’s grip and calls you into freedom. The life you’re longing for doesn’t start with trying harder, but with believing what God has already declared to be true.
Death doesn’t get the final word—resurrection does. In a world fractured by sin and searching for life in all the wrong places, Easter reveals a Savior who doesn’t just fix what’s broken, but makes all things new. Because Jesus walked out of the grave, new life isn’t just a promise—it’s available right now.
The Book of Jonah closes with a surprising ending exposes the tension between obedience and a heart out of alignment with God, revealing how anger, control, and unmet expectations can quietly take root. Through Jonah’s raw emotional spiral and God’s relentless mercy toward Nineveh, this chapter confronts the truth that we can want to do God's will without having God's heart.
In Jonah 3, we see what happens when God's Word is not only heard, but obeyed. Jonah finally responds to God's call, and an entire city was changed because of it. This message challenges us to move beyond secondhand faith and step into a personal, daily engagement with Scripture. When we get in God's Word ourselves—and actually live it out—God can do more through our obedience than we could ever imagine.
This message explores the story of Jonah, showing how God can use our lowest moments to draw us back to Him. From the belly of the fish, Jonah prays Scripture and learns that even when nothing seems to change, God is still working. The sermon reminds us that when we feel helpless and overwhelmed, prayer and trust in God can turn our deepest crisis into restoration.
When Jonah runs away from God’s calling, his disobedience brings chaos to his life and others, showing how easy it is to rationalize sin and delay obedience. This message calls us to stop running, respond to God’s word, and trust that even in our storms, God is pursuing us to restore and use our lives according to His purpose.
In this message, we unpack what tithing really is (and what it’s not). It’s an act of worship, trust, and aligning your heart with God’s, which makes an eternal impact!
God never intended our faith to plateau—we were made for mission! Rooted in Luke 19:10 and Matthew 28:19, this message reveals the heart of the Father who seeks the lost, runs toward the prodigal, and invites us into the greatest rescue mission in history. No matter why you’re lost, Jesus wants you found—and heaven rejoices when you come home.
In this message, we unpack what the Apostle Paul meant by “spirituals” and charismata—supernatural grace-gifts given by the Holy Spirit to build up the Church and advance God’s Kingdom. Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4 explain how each believer is uniquely gifted and positioned by God to serve with purpose, humility, and obedience. Discover how to discern your spiritual gifts, grow in godly character, and embrace your role on God’s team!
In week three of our Made for More series, we’re reminded that there is no spiritual status quo—you’re either growing or drifting. Drawing from 1 Timothy 4:7–10, this message challenges us to stop trying and start training for godliness through intentional habits, especially pursuing Jesus through His Word. God never intended your faith to plateau—He made you to grow.
In this message, we’re reminded that we were never meant to follow Jesus in isolation—we were created for belonging. Throughout Scripture, we see that God Himself exists in perfect community and invites us into a life where love, growth, and healing happen through relationships with Him and with one another. True transformation doesn’t start with having it all together; it begins when we find a place to belong and allow God to shape us through authentic, life-giving community.
What if God had more for you than just getting by, surviving the week, or maintaining the status quo? In John 10:10, Jesus tells us that He has come to give us abundant life! In this message, we dive into what it looks like to stop settling and take intentional steps toward the full, meaningful life God has designed for us.
In this message, we’re reminded of the most essential truth of the Christian life: God loves us, and He’s calling us back to Him as our first love. Throughout Scripture, God constantly calls His people to turn from the mindset of obsessively doing things for Him without first being deeply in love with Him and letting that love be shared. The path back to our first love isn’t trying harder—it’s beholding the fact that we love because He first loved us.
Prayer is not just something we do, but it’s a way we encounter God! In Luke 11, Jesus teaches us how to pray bold, specific, faith-filled prayers that transform our lives.
We’re kicking off 2026 with First Things First, a practical three-week series focused on aligning our priorities with what matters most to God. In this message, we unpack Matthew 6:25–33 and Jesus’ call to “seek first the Kingdom,” discovering how our daily priorities shape our sense of peace, purpose, and the way we live.
Celebrate Christmas Eve with us as we rejoice in the birth of Jesus! When we crown Him King over our lives, we experience the hope, freedom, and new life that only He can bring.
Servanthood—grounded in love—produces true worship when we stay close to God, let His love purify our motives, and serve with the sacrificial posture Jesus has.
It’s easy to become so familiar with Christmas that we lose sight of its wonder and holiness. This message invites us to slow down and behold Jesus the Son with fresh eyes—the God Most High who became most low to invite us into His family. Christmas isn’t the story of us finding God, but of God coming to us.
In this final message of our Revelation series, we explore the signs and seasons pointing to the return of Christ. From global chaos to gospel expansion, Scripture shows us that things are intensifying—but Jesus calls us to live ready, not fearful. As we wait, we commit to the mission: reaching the nations, planting churches, and staying faithful until He comes.
Revelation 21 gives us a stunning picture of the world we were truly made for—a renewed creation, a perfect reunion with God, and every sorrow turned into victory. God promises He is making all things new and invites us into eternal life with Him!
Having faith in the face of mystery produces hope (confident assurance) when we learn to trust what God has revealed and rest in His mercy for what remains concealed.
In Revelation 19:6-9, we’re reminded that Scripture begins and ends with a wedding—Jesus is coming back for his bride, the Church! The promise of His return fills us with both incredible hope and urgency to live out our faith and invite others to the marriage supper of the Lamb.
In Revelation 17–18, Scripture unpacks how evil operates—not just in end-time imagery we think of, but in the subtle compromises that creep into our everyday lives. Here, we see how pride, comfort, and corruption lead to destruction, but Christ’s victory invites us to run our race with endurance and hope. God calls us to throw off what slows us down and live for what will last forever—the kingdom of the Lamb.
God’s wrath and judgement is often misunderstood. It isn’t explosive or cruel—it’s redemptive and rooted in love. His wrath is not the opposite of HIs love, but the very expression of it, and through it, He opens the door of mercy for anyone willing to turn to Him.
In this message, we dive into Revelation 7-14 to unpack key events of the End Times—tribulation, the rapture, the second coming of Christ, and more. But beyond charts and timelines, the central call is clear: to follow Jesus above all else. No matter your eschatological view, Revelation is meant to lead us deeper in our faithfulness to Christ.
This week we are in Revelation 6-7 and begin our study of the "Great Tribulation". We look at each of the seals mentioned and unpack the theological questions that they bring.
Revelation 4–5 transitions from Christ’s letters to the churches into a vivid, symbolic vision of the heavenly throne room. This message explores the imagery of God’s sovereignty, the identity of the 24 elders, the meaning behind the seven spirits, and the Lamb’s worthiness to open the scroll.
Are you living on the fence—lukewarm, half-in, half-out with God? In Revelation 3:14-22, Jesus rebukes the church in Laodicea for their compromise and spiritual apathy, calling them to zeal, repentance, and full commitment to Him. This message challenges us today to get off the fence, open the door to Christ, and experience the power of a fully surrendered life.
The church in Philadelphia was a small but faithful church that stood firm in the face of pressure, persecution, and adversity. Jesus commends them for their faith and keeping His Word. It’s an example to us to be a church that loves the lost, loves the Word, and lives as unshakable pillars for the Kingdom of God.
In Revelation 3, the church in Sardis is given a stark warning: you can have the appearance of life and still be spiritually dead. This message calls the Church to wake up, repent, and place our salvation in Christ alone.
In this message on Revelation 2:12-29, we’re warned not to give into the subtle comprises that can destroy our faith from within. Jesus commends the churches in Pergamum and Thyatira for their faithfulness, but also confronts the danger of tolerated sin, distorted truth, and moral compromise. Jesus calls us to hold fast to Him in a world that pressures us to give into sin.
In this message on Revelation 2:8-11, we explore the church in Smyrna who was faithful, persecuted, yet promised the crown of life. Following Jesus doesn’t mean an easy life; it actually means a costly love, but one with eternal reward.
In this message, we explore Jesus’ sobering words to the church in Ephesus—a faithful, doctrinally sound church that drifted from its first love. Through this powerful call to return, we're reminded that no matter how far we’ve wandered, the invitation from God still stands: “Return to Me with all your heart.”
The book of Revelation is not a code to crack or a timeline to fear—it's a revelation of Jesus Christ! In this series, we’ll explore the mystery, beauty, and power of Revelation through a pastoral lens, keeping our eyes fixed on the One who holds the keys to life and death.
In this message, Bill Spencer wraps up our series by diving into Hebrews 11:32. This one verse contains the entire Gospel story and shows God's plan for His people.
This week, we dove into Hebrews 13, which we look to as an example of how to live out faith with intentionality and purpose. By following His commands, our actions reflect a deep love for God and the grace that He extends.
Hebrews 12 is written to encourage believers who are weary from suffering and doubt. This message reminds us that in every storm, God has not abandoned us. He is our unshakable foundation, shaping and securing us through Jesus.
Hebrews 11 tells us the importance of reading and believing the Word, but even more importantly, putting our weight behind the Word and God’s promises.
In this message, we continue in our series on Hebrews by diving into chapters 9-10 and exploring the call to “draw near” to God.
In this message, we dive into Hebrews 8 and explore the new covenant through Jesus Christ—our perfect King, perfect sacrifice, and perfect High Priest who offers forgiveness and transformation from the inside out. This new covenant welcomes us in and invites us into an everlasting relationship with God.
This week, we continue in our Hebrews series and dive into what spiritual maturity looks like within the life of a Christian with special guest, Chris Whitney.
In the Bible, Melchizedek is a mysterious king and priest who points us to the ultimate King and High Priest: Jesus. In this message, we unpack how Jesus perfectly fulfils both roles, offering grace and truth, and why His eternal priesthood changes everything about how we relate to God.
Our culture is driven by fear, unrest, and constant movement, but Hebrews 4 offers a radical invitation—to enter into deep, soul-level reset. This message explores what true rest looks like, why we struggle to find it, and how Jesus offers the peace our hearts desperately crave.
What does it look like to let Christ live His life through us? In this message, Pastor Bill Spencer unpacks Hebrews 3:1-2, calling us to fix our thoughts on Jesus and walk faithfully in the purpose and life He has given us.
Whether you’re wresting with fear, shame, or discouragement, Hebrews 2 points us to our true hope—Jesus, the Champion of our salvation. He stood in our place, defeated death, and now calls us His family! When we fix our eyes on Him, our lives are transformed, bringing freedom, victory, and abundant life.
The book of Hebrews is a powerful letter that reveals Jesus Christ as the final and complete Word of God. In a world full of uncertainty. Hebrews calls us to fix our eyes on the glory, supremacy, and unshakable truth of Jesus, who invites us into relationship with Him.
What if our biggest obstacle to faith isn’t intellectual—but personal? This week, we tackle the deeper reason so many resist Jesus: not because He hasn’t proven Himself, but because if He is who He says He is, it means we’re no longer in charge. It’s not just about answering our questions—it’s about surrendering our autonomy. Whether you’re a skeptic, a seeker, or a longtime believer, it’s crucial to confront the deeper issue behind unbelief and consider what it really means to trust Jesus with your whole life.
Are science and religion incompatible? With the advancement of technology and science, some would argue that science has disproved Christianity. But while science can observe and describe what we are, it cannot answer who we are—we must look back, look within, and look up.
If God is good, why is there so much suffering in the world? If you’ve asked this question, you’re not alone. We live in a fallen world where sin has broken into the fabric of every good thing God has created. But here’s the good news—the Bible tells us that God is not indifferent to our suffering. He responds to it with His presence, purpose, and a promise to ultimately make all things new.
Why is God so violent in the Old Testament? This is one of the biggest questions that people wrestle with when it comes to the Bible. But God’s character is the same across both the Old and New Testament. God is never against people, He’s against evil.
Easter Sunday is a day to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus who rose from the grave—defeating death and offering new life to all who believe in Him! But did Jesus really rise from the dead? Is Christianity just a myth? The resurrection of Jesus is not just a story, but is rational, powerful, and personal.
One of the biggest questions people wrestle with is: How could a loving God send people to hell? But the better question is: Why would God die to save me from it? In Luke 16, Jesus’ teaching on the reality of hell isn’t just a warning—it actually helps us to better understand ourselves, live at peace in a broken world, and truly receive God’s love.
If you’re exploring faith, you may be wrestling with the question: Hasn’t Christianity caused injustice? Hasn’t it promoted slavery and violence, like during the Crusades? But when we dig into Scripture, we see these actions do not reflect God’s heart. The truth is, not everything done in God’s name is of God.
As universalist statements have become increasingly popular, it leaves us asking the question: Is there only one way to God? How do we know if Jesus is the only way to God or if there are many paths? But what seems exclusive in the person of Jesus is actually the most widely inclusive invitation and worldview in human history.
One of the biggest rejections to Christianity today is simply, “Can I trust the Bible?” How do we know that it wasn’t made up, or that the stories didn’t change over time? Asking the hard questions is imperative, and this week, we dug into the historical accuracy and authority of the Bible.
Even in the most painful and difficult situations, God can transform what was meant for evil into something good. Whether your marriage and relationships are flourishing or struggling, God relentlessly pursues to redeem the lost and broken.
God designed marriage as a sacred covenant, but in a fallen world, what does Jesus say about divorce? Even in the midst of the most painful circumstances, God has grace and redemption for every one of us. He can transform our greatest trials into testimonies of His grace.
God created both men and women in His image, His character, and His nature, designing His children with intrinsic value. The Bible holds both male and female, masculine and feminine, as distinctly different but unbelievably important and equal in value.
Singleness is a gift from God, and it is a noble calling—one that is given for the purpose of serving Jesus and advancing His Kingdom. Biblical singleness, or celibacy, goes far beyond abstinence. It is about fully dedicating one’s time, talents, and resources to serve God.
There are two common worldviews of sex: that it’s just physical, or it is something to be ashamed of. But the Bible tells us that it is deeply spiritual and a sacred gift, designed to be enjoyed within the confines of marriage. When we align our lives with God’s design for relationships, it brings life, healing, and freedom.
How did God design the marriage relationship to function? How do healthy marriages thrive? By growing in our love for God and looking to Him to meet all of our needs, we are then able to show Christlike love to our spouse and center the relationship on biblical values.
Just as the disciples were apprentices of Jesus, reflecting His way of life, we are called to do the same. The question isn’t just “What would Jesus do?” but “How would Jesus live His life if He were me?”
In John 15, Jesus invites us to abide in Him — but how do we live this out? By cultivating spiritual practices such as prayer, reading Scripture, and building community, not only does our outward behavior change, but our character is transformed and made new.
Like Simon Peter, in Luke 5:1-11, we are called to surrender our plans and follow Jesus, trusting Him even when it doesn’t make sense. Jesus invites us into a new, transformative life that is set free from the power of sin.
Today marked our first official Sunday as Southall Church! As we step into this new season, Pastor Rob shared about how we, as Christians, embrace and enter a new chapter with a renewed commitment, as a new creation.
In the midst of darkness and despair, God answered by sending His son, Jesus, bringing light and hope to a weary world. Through His life, death, and resurrection, Jesus offers redemption and victory over sin to anyone who receives Him.
1 Peter 5:1-11 tells us that by trusting God’s timing, humbling ourselves before Him, and resisting the enemy, we can hold onto the hope that Christ will restore and strengthen us, no matter what we are facing.
In 1 Peter 4:12-19, Peter calls Christians in “fiery trials” to remain sober-minded, rejoice in the glory of God, and resist the devil’s tactics by standing firm in their faith.
Are you focused on things that truly matter? We want to live radically different lives—lives that are armed with the mind of Christ, lives that swim against the current, and lives that are focused on the return of Christ!
How do we find strength, hope, and courage to preserve in the midst of the disappointments, toil, and pain of life? In 1 Peter 3, Peter says to respond to these difficulties through seeking peace, standing firm, and celebrating the Gospel.
How do we patiently and persistently show up in a way that is pleasing to God in our work, our homes, and our relationship to the government? How do we honor Christ in all of our complex and difficult circumstances? We are to look to the founder of our faith and follow the example He set for us in 1 Peter 2:22-24.
As exiles and sojourners, our role is to engage faithfully, endure patiently, persevere through injustice, and know that Jesus is the King.
1 Peter 2:4-10 tells us that God is the builder, Jesus is the cornerstone, and we are living stones. We are being fashioned together by the master builder to become a dwelling place for the Spirit of God!
In Christ, you don’t have fading life. You have everlasting life. For the rest of our time here on earth, as exiles, waiting for our true home, we are invited into a life of grace and growth.
In 1 Peter 1:13-16, Peter gives us five commands in light of a purified faith, salvation, and the inevitable return of Christ: Prepare your mind, be sober-minded, set your hope, don’t go back, and be holy!
How do we navigate the days in which we’re living? What does it mean to be faithful citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven while living in the empires of men? One simple fact remains: Empires come and go, but the Kingdom of God remains forever.
In the good and difficult seasons of life, how do we know that we’re making progress as followers of Christ? How do we know what our next steps are? The Discipleship Pathway lists the five stages of spiritual growth in which we can identify where we’ve been, where we are, and where we want to go.
Centering on the Gospel, bridging generations, building strong families, and living beyond ourselves are our values that keep us focused on the mission to follow Jesus, become like Jesus, and live as Jesus lived.
In Matthew 4:19, Jesus says, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” From this passage comes our mission statement and the definition of a disciple—someone who is following Jesus, becoming like Jesus, and living as Jesus lived!
This Sunday, Pastor Rob kicked off our Vision series and clarified the vision that is taking us into the good future that God has for our church!
Why is it that we’re not more courageous in sharing our faith with others? What’s keeping us from speaking up about Jesus? If we want to grow in our boldness and willingness to share our faith with others, we must 1) Be with Jesus and 2) Ask for courage.
We’ve all experienced the grace of God, and sharing our story has the power to change lives! Even though we might be timid about sharing our story when the doors open to conversations about our faith, let’s step out of the boat and trust the Holy Spirit to guide us in those moments.
We serve others because God served us! He laid down His life for us before we knew Him or even believed in Him. By serving the people around us, we are building an incredible relational bridge that God uses to open the door to conversations about Jesus.
What would happen if we prioritized loving our neighbors in the same way that Jesus modeled? If we take ownership and personal responsibility to “love our neighbors as ourselves” by breaking bread with those in our community, it will open doors for Biblical conversations and remove obstacles so that people far from God can come to know Him.
How do we fish for men? Jesus alone can give us a perfect picture of how to navigate difficult conversation with people in a way that shows the love of God to a hurting and broken world.
We can love the lost, serve, be a blessing, carry burdens, and overcome obstacles, but we must start with prayer because God is ultimately the only one who can change the human heart! So, we follow Jesus’ example in Acts by praying for open eyes, open doors, and open hearts.
This week, Pastor Rob kicked off our Fishers of Men series. When we recognize that Jesus came for the lost and broken, and when we recognize who He is and what He’s done for us, our only reasonable response is to give our whole lives to Him and His mission to make disciples of all nations, to do whatever it takes to carry burdens, and overcome obstacles to get people to Jesus, and to become fishers of men.
This morning, Pastor Rob ended our Faith that Works series by preaching on James 5:13-20 and answering questions like: What is the prayer of faith? Does the prayer of faith guarantee healing? Why do we use anointing oil?
In James 5:7-12, James gives three examples of how to patiently wait for the coming of the Lord: The endurance of a farmer, the long suffering of the prophets, and the perseverance of Job.
Today, Pastor Dave Buering guided us through the Sermon on the Mount and recited Matthew 5-7 to create an intentional moment to reflect on the words of Jesus.
In James 5:1-6, James warns against greed because it leads to hoarding, self-indulgence, and injustice. But the antidote to greed is intentional financial generosity.
In James 4:13-17, James says that human life is like a mist, here for a moment and gone the next. Knowing this, how do we approach the future? By trusting in the providence of God.
Today, Pastor Dave Buehring preached on James 4:1-12. In this passage, James is addressing Jewish believers on the war within themselves, their friendship with the world, and the importance of submitting to God.
In James 3:13-18, James tells us there are two types of wisdom: heavenly wisdom and worldly wisdom. Wisdom from above is pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy, fruitful, impartial, and sincere, and God invites us to pursue it!
Our words have power. They can build others up or tear them down. James 3:1-12 warns us that the tongue cannot be tamed, so how do we watch our words? It’s a matter of the heart.
Growth in Christ isn’t for us; it’s for the world! And the world is in desperate need of a savior. What would it look like for us as a church, with people from every generation, to walk in unity and say, “God use us”?
In James 2:14-26, we see that there are three different types of faith: dead, detached, and devoted. It is only when we see and experience the love of God for ourselves that we will be compelled to devoted faith, not out of self-preservation but out of gratitude.
God does not ask us to be the Judge. He is not asking the Church to be his Jury. There is no room for partiality in the family of God. We are all guilty and Christ stands as our defender, offering himself in our place. That is Jesus. That’s how Mercy Triumphs over judgment!
Like a fish that is only free in water, we are only truly free to the degree that we refuse to compromise, live in alignment with his Word, and obey Him in all things. There is a difference between hearing and doing. We are called to put the bible into practice.
James illustrates through the tales of three men how we can react in the face of our circumstances. We can be a people who remain steadfast under trial if we cling to Jesus because He remains steadfast. When we avoid suffering, we avoid the opportunity to look like Jesus. Our lives are meant to be a constant submission into the hands of our Creator, like gold in the hands of the Refiner.
This first sermon of this new Faith That Works series specifically addresses the testing of your faith, the purpose of trials, and trusting with doubt. The book of James goes after a “Faith that doesn’t just work in us, but a faith that gets to work".
Celebrating 20 years of partnership with Narrow Gate, a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating, inspiring, and empowering Christian discipleship, to equip and train young men, develop business discipleship platforms, and serve the Church locally and globally.
The person of Jesus changes everything. Jesus didn’t leave us alone, he left so that he could always be with us in the person of the Spirit. Access to heaven when we die is a promise. Access to relationship with Christ until we die is a lifeline.
"And he who was seated on the throne said, 'Behold, I am making all things new.'" (Revelation 21:5 NIV)
When we come to God, He doesn’t just redeem from this point forward, He redeems all. He redeems every aspect of our lives that we entrust to Him, and repurposes it for our good and His glory.
On April 6, 32AD a man rode into Jerusalem on the foal of a donkey, and for the first time allowed Himself to be worshiped as the Annointed One. Jesus came down, not as a conquering King but as a suffering servant. He denied Himself, and through the death of Christ, new life springs forth, eternal life springs forth.
Faith is far more about trust in every circumstance than it is about getting the outcome that we’re after. Faith is about trusting God in all circumstances… not just trusting Him when He fixes our circumstances. God can do all things. He is all powerful, all present, and all knowing! God can do all things… including bringing dead things back to life.
We desperately need to keep in step with the Spirit in all aspects of our lives. Obedience allows God’s servants to hear and be open to change. Philip’s encounter with the Spirit kept him in step on the way, and Peter’s kept him in step as he prayed. God found Philip and Peter willing to live with the uncomfortable which helped them be open/flexible to the lead of the Spirit.
Joseph has been changed by life and changed by God, and his brothers are standing right in front of him and they even don’t recognize him. Down in the valley, we can’t see the complexity of life. Only when we view life from the peak can we actually see what it means when Joseph said to his brothers, "What you meant for evil, God means for good.” It is only when you get off God's throne, and Gain God’s Perspective will we ever be able to come close to moving beyond forgiveness.
God wants to teach us through the life of Joseph, how to respond when we’re walking through the valleys of life. Valleys of life expose what was there all along and if we focus only on the end of a hardship then we may miss what God is doing through those trying times. If you’re just waiting for the current season to be over, you can’t be faithful NOW because you’re only thinking about THEN! God is preparing you and orchestrating the details of your life that will eventually lead you to His promise over your life.
We have been following the story of how God humbled Joseph, then God exalted him, and now all of the Egyptian empire is bowing before him. Joseph was faithful with little, now he’s been trusted with much. God frequently uses seemingly unimportant, uncomfortable and unexpected events and people as catalysts for significant transitions in life. You couldn’t see it at the time, but you’re not the same person today as you once were. God was with you and he’s producing something in you that is going to provide hope and life to those around you.
As humans, we all face the temptations of power, pleasure, and pain. In the story of Joseph’s life, we see all three of these temptations and the character building that God grows in him throughout his life’s complicated circumstances. If you’re struggling with temptation today, don’t give in or fall into despair. God is with you in your situation, and just like he did with Joseph, He will give you a way to succeed.
When we're experiencing unfortunate circumstances or heartache, we want God to just show up and make it all better, but often times, God will use the lowest moments of our lives to bring about the greatest good. In Joseph's story, God could have just rescued him from the pit his brothers threw him in, but instead, we see that God used the pit to save Joseph from his arrogance and to deliver him from the pride that was destroying his life. All throughout the story of Joseph, we see a God that continually takes what the enemy meant for evil and turns it around for good.
This morning, Pastor Rob kicked off the Valleys series, where over the next 8 weeks we will walk through the story of the life of Joseph. The purpose of stories like Joseph’s are not to show us how we need to get our act together, try harder, or be better. Rather, the purpose of a story like Joseph’s is to show us that at every point, even in the darkest moments, in the valleys of life where God is seemingly absent and we’re convinced that there is absolutely no hope of redemption, God’s grace breaks in and He rescues us from the nightmares of our own making.
This morning, Pastor Rob shared stories from his recent trip to Israel, as well as the importance of us paying attention to what’s happening in Israel today and standing with God’s chosen people–the Jewish people and the nation of Israel.
This is the time of the year when we all make plans to transform our lives, like, losing weight, getting more organized, and being more productive, which are all good things! But above all things, in 2024, we hope you decide to root your life in the ways of Jesus more deeply. He is inviting us to walk with Him, learn from Him, and be His students. This morning, Pastor Jimmy gave us some practical disciplines to engage in this year so that we can be more deeply rooted in Christ.
We're instructed in Scripture to encourage one another, but God isn't just telling us to compliment someone's outfit. Biblical encouragement is about seeing and calling out the good in others, building into them God’s perspective of them, pointing out how He has uniquely wired them or gifted them, or how you see God changing them, growing them, or using them to impact other people’s lives. As we head into the new year, let's resolve to be more intentional in encouraging others and to not pass up opportunities to do so.
The Christmas story is good news of great joy for all people because the creator of heaven and earth left His throne, came down as a baby, and set aside all of His rights and privileges in order to save us from a world broken by sin, selfishness, and shame because of His great love for us. Light entered into the darkness, joy entered into our sorrow, grace entered into our shame, and Christ has extended an invitation to all of humanity to enter into an eternal joy that will never fade away. That's good news of great joy!
In the Old Testament, when Moses would speak with the Lord, his face would be shining–he was reflecting the glory of God. When you're freed from your shame, and you're living in the joy of the Lord, you can see the Face of God smiling all over you. God has invited you into His joy, not just for your benefit, but for the benefit of others–the world needs to see what God has put in you. Let the light of His face reflect off of you!
The path away from joy began with shame, and the way back to joy is bringing Jesus into your shame and allowing Him to do the deep soul work that will set you free. Fear of being fully seen and fully known may cause you to want to hide, but Jesus is not ashamed of you–you are His joy, He loves you, and He gladly endured the cross to free you from your shame and bring you into the fullness of Joy He has for you.
During the Christmas season, we don’t just celebrate that God became man, but that Jesus Christ was the only person in human history who wasn’t just born, He was given. God gave us the greatest gift we could ever be given in the person of Jesus. We are made in the image of God, made to live in alignment with God’s ways, and when we’re generous, we’re molded more into His image, and we give the world a picture of who God is, and what He’s like. When we grow in joy, we grow in generosity; and when we grow in generosity, we grow in joy.
Not only has God created us for joy, but He has invited us to cultivate it and live in it. This morning Pastor Rob gave us practical ways to build our joy because joy is not limited– we can cultivate it, exercise it, develop it, grow it, and increase our capacity for joy!
This morning, Pastor Rob kicked off the JOY series that will lead us into the Christmas season. Joy is one of the primary themes, not only in the Christmas story, but throughout the entire Life of Jesus. Everywhere Jesus went, He would heal people and work miracles, and people would erupt in celebration…everywhere Jesus went, Joy would follow. God is a God of joy, and being made in His image, we were created for Joy.
This morning Pastor Rob wrapped up the Enjoying God series of walking through the Lord's Prayer with teaching on The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory. This is a reminder that God is in control, and it is an invitation to rest in God, enjoy Him, and to trust Him completely no matter what the outcome. When you bring your requests to God, put all of your hope in Him and Him alone because His is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever and ever.
As followers of Jesus, we all have an enemy that is always planning and scheming to destroy the good work that God wants to accomplish in us and through us. While we can't avoid hardship or challenges in life, we can be prepared to overcome the enemy's temptations by expecting to be tested, preparing in advance, and predetermining our limits.
This morning, Pastor Jimmy spoke on the importance of forgiveness, the dangers of unforgiveness, and the practice of forgiving. The purpose of forgiveness is to create a community that is full of grace, where imperfect people live together, overflowing with God’s love.
With the events unfolding in Israel, Pastor Rob is joined by Pastor Don Finto to talk through what is happening on the other side of the world, how it relates to what we see described in Scripture, and what it means for us as the church in America here and now.
Last week we talked about being bold in prayer, and this week Pastor Rob shared with us the importance of being persistent in prayer. There are things that happen when we pray that wouldn’t happen if we didn’t. Jesus invites us to relentlessly bring our requests to the Father with a childlike audacity – like a child pestering their parent, we are to ask, and ask, and ask until we get what we're asking for. If you have been asking for a long time and have grown weary, God's invitation for you today is to ask again, seek again, knock again, and continue to do so until you get an answer.
By teaching us to pray "on earth as it is in heaven", Jesus extends an invitation for us to pray prayers that change earthly realities by finding broken things of this world and praying Heaven into those situations with boldness. We tend to pray vague, general, and safe prayers because we don't want to be disappointed by God. If we get specific there is potential to be disappointed by God if He says no, but we’ll also never see the power of God as long as we pray vague prayers. Start praying bold, specific prayers that have power to move mountains!
God cares about our desires, and He wants us to express them to Him, but when we pray "Your will be done", we are choosing to trust and submit to God because we believe that what He has planned for us is far better than anything we could come up with on our own.
This morning Pastor Rob reminded us that the Kingdom of God is not just in heaven, but right here in our midst! When we pray “Your Kingdom come” from Matthew 6, it means we are desiring others to experience the Kingdom of God and for us to be more present in it. It also means we're clinging to the incredible hope that no matter what our circumstances look like right now, one day the One True King will return, His kingdom will be fully established, and there will be no more tears, no more suffering, no more hate, no more division, no more injustice, and no more heartache.
Hallowing the name of God is about recognizing and honoring the greatness, power, holiness, and majesty of God. However, Jesus didn't tell us to hallow the name of God for God’s benefit – it’s for ours. As humans we were made to worship, and because of this, everyone hallows something, but the only way we ever find peace and rest for our souls is if we hallow God. Praying this way is a reminder to ourselves that God alone is holy, distinct, set apart, the One all of our love and worship must be set upon.
In Jesus' model prayer, He teaches us to start with “Our Father” because not only does this change how we think of God, it radically changes how we think of ourselves. It’s not only a reminder of who God is, it reminds us of who we are. God invites us to address Him as our Father. Our prayers aren’t heard because of rhetoric, ritual, or religion; our prayers are heard because of relationship.
Today, go to God as your Father and be His child. Remember who He is, who you are, and who we are to one another as you pray “Our Father.”
This morning Pastor Rob broke down the passage in Matthew 6 that we know as the Lord's Prayer into six themes, each of which we will be diving deeper into in the coming weeks of the series. Whether you're new to prayer or you consider yourself a prayer expert, grab 5 or 10 minutes this week with your Bible in a quiet place where you won’t be distracted or interrupted, and work your way through the Lord’s Prayer. As you invite God to teach you to pray, as you learn to be with Him and enjoy Him, prayer will eventually no longer be a discipline, but a delight that you cannot go without. Prayer isn’t a formula, it’s a relationship that changes us.
This morning Pastor Rob kicked off the Enjoying God series on prayer with the obstacles of prayer, the purpose of prayer, and the practice of prayer. God is deeply personal and relational, and He’s created us to enjoy Him forever! We can’t enjoy someone we are not in relationship with, and we can’t be in relationship with someone we never communicate with. Prayer is our primary connection point with God and it is our means by which we get to enjoy Him.
Our hope and desire is for our body of believers to become people deeply formed into the image, the character, and the ways of Christ. That through growing in the spiritual disciplines, we would be people that go deep with Jesus and experience the life that He invites us into by living the way that Jesus lived and doing the things that Jesus did.
We have a million reasons to do life on our own, but we were made to be in relationship with others. God’s strategy to reach the entire world is through discipleship – the call on every believer is to make disciples. When regular, imperfect people step up, and step in to invest in a few the Lord moves in powerful ways. Pastor Jimmy's challenge to us today was to step up and step in, and watch what God will do!
This morning, Pastor Jake Spencer from Grace Chapel Knoxville, preached from Joshua 23 & 24 on what it means to live a legacy. As Christians, it is important for us to understand our legacy, carry our legacy, and endure our legacy.
In Ephesians 6:13-20, Paul tells Christians to put on the whole armor of God. Putting on the Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, the Sandals of Peace, the Shield of Faith, the Helmet of Salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit are vital to fighting the spiritual battle around us.
In Ephesians 6:12, Paul tells us we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but that there are evil spiritual forces at work against us that we need to be prepared to withstand. We are not called to live a safe Christian life. God has created us to live a dangerous, risky, and courageous life! While the devil wants to keep us comfortable, entertained, and distracted, God wants to fill us with a vision that will compel us to get radically uncomfortable so that the world would know the goodness and glory of God.
This morning we were reminded from Ephesians 6:1-9 that as followers of Christ, we can make a kingdom impact by serving with a sincere heart in both work and family life. All (moral) work is a calling from God, which should affect how we view and approach our daily lives. No matter what your vocation is, do it with all your heart as serving the Lord.
This morning Pastor Dave Buehring brought wisdom and clarity to what Paul is saying in Ephesians 5 about how godly marriages should function. Both man and woman are to live first unto and for the Lord – the real “head” of the marriage is always Jesus – and to live in mutual submission to one another, seeking to come alongside each other in fulfilling the calling and purposes of God in their lives.
This morning Pastor Jimmy dug into the first half of Ephesians 5 where Paul explains how to be imitators of God and says, "At one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light." As God's beloved children, we are all called to walk in love, in purity, and in wisdom.
In the second half of Ephesians 4, Paul says to put off your old self and put on the new self, and what he’s telling us is how we are to live now that we’ve been rescued and redeemed by Christ. Becoming a follower of Jesus is not about behavior modification, it’s about identity transformation. You don’t have to get your life cleaned up before you come to Christ. However, when we become followers of Jesus, even though we are a new creation, we must be intentional about putting off the old life and putting on the new by the power of the Holy Spirit living inside us.
In chapter 4 of Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church, Paul is telling us that biblical unity is the byproduct of inner character. It is the result of the people of God cooperating with the spirit of God, as He sanctifies us, matures us, a grows us in godly character. When there is unity in the body of Christ, when we're growing in God's character, and operating in the gifts that He has given us for the benefit of those around us, we grow to maturity in Christ as a result.
This morning we had the privilege of Pastor Don Finto preaching on embracing the power of the Holy Spirit, embracing the power of love, and embracing the power of Godly imagination, through sharing stories from his own personal walk with the Lord.
In the first half of Ephesians 3, Paul is telling us that whatever hardships we face as a result of obedience to Christ, we face as a prisoner of Christ, not as a victim of circumstance. See, Paul was so thrilled about the gospel that not even a prison cell could keep him from moving the mission forward. He understood God’s perspective and purpose in his imprisonment.
If we grasp the enormity of the grace we’ve been given through what Jesus did for us, it allows us to surrender our will for God's will, and like Paul, our circumstances may throw us, but they will never crush us.
This morning was such a sweet Student Takeover Sunday with students on our worship, serving all throughout the service, and a message from our Student Pastor, Dylan, from the second half of Ephesians 2.
Praise God that because of the amazing grace that He has extended toward us, we’ve been found, and in Christ, we never have to be far from home again, because we have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
Sin isn’t just the bad things that we do or our selfish motives for the good things that we do – sin is actually the condition of our hearts. It’s who we are apart from God’s miraculous work in our lives. We were spiritually dead…BUT GOD.
"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved" Ephesians 2:4-5
When we were all dead in our trespasses, we were utterly hopeless...and yet God made us alive, not because of our own doing, but because of His great mercy and love for us.
Paul never once prays for believers to have easier circumstances, but that they would know God more deeply as a result of their circumstances. Becoming an apprentice of Jesus doesn’t rescue you from hardship, instead, God gives you the ability to persevere through hardships that would have previously crushed you apart from Him. See, it's knowing God, who you are in Christ, how valuable you are to Him, and the future hope that you have been called to as a child of God that gives you the power to endure and persevere in times of hardship and suffering.
This morning Pastor Rob kicked off our summer sermon series on the book of Ephesians with what it means to be in Christ!
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places," – Ephesians 1:3
What Paul was telling the church of Ephesus and the message for us today is know who you are – remember that God chose you, appointed you, empowered you, called you, and in Christ, you have been blessed with every. spiritual. blessing.
This morning Pastor Jimmy wrapped up the Parables series and in this parable from John 12, Jesus is saying if we are truly going to live, we have to be willing to die. The seed that dies bears much fruit.
"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose." – Galatians 2:20-21
We can't rule and reign over our own lives. King Jesus is inviting us to lay everything down and completely surrender with nothing held back in order to follow Him and make Him the Lord of our lives.
In this parable from Matthew 13, Jesus is telling us that the byproduct of a life wholly surrendered to Him is to bear fruit and multiply the Kingdom. Through His Word, Jesus is sowing seed in our lives, and maybe you haven't seen fruit because you've been living with a hardened heart toward God and your relationship with Him has grown cold, or you love Jesus but when hard times come you get easily uprooted, or maybe your fear of man has caused you to be choked out...If this is you, ask God today to till up the land again, and remove the rocks and thorns from your life so that you may begin to bear fruit.
In the parable of The Ten Bridesmaids from Matthew 24, Jesus is giving a warning and an encouragement to the Church. Jesus is coming back for His bride, and He is telling us here to get ready and stay ready because if you wait until the Bridegroom shows up, it’ll be too late.
We need to be ready not only for the return of the Bridegroom, but also need to be ready to love and serve our neighbors, the lost, the hurting, broken, and confused…to bring light into dark places. Church, we have a responsibility to be ready with light in a world that gets darker by the day because as it gets darker and darker, the light gets brighter.
On this Easter Sunday, we looked at the three parables found in Luke 15; The Lost Coin, The Lost Sheep, and The Lost Sons. Through these parables, Jesus is showing us that God cares about lost things. He is absolutely set on pursuing and finding what has been lost. His heart is for lost people because you are His highest treasure! So much so that He sent His own Son to die – but Jesus didn’t just die, He rose! He conquered death, hell, and the grave so that through Him what is lost can be found.
Maybe today, you need to come home. Maybe you’ve wandered off, maybe you’ve been running, and today God is searching for you. And as soon as you take one step toward Him, He will run to you, embrace you, and say "Welcome home."
In light of the horrific and unimaginable tragedy at The Covenant School in Green Hills last Monday, we decided to push pause on our Parables series this week to speak to some of the questions we all may be asking and to create space to come to God in prayer.
God can handle our biggest questions, our deepest sorrows, and our greatest fears. He not only allows it, but He also invites it. And the truth is, if we’ll make room to pay attention to those things and bring them before the Lord, we can come to know Him far more intimately through our pain than we ever will in prosperity.
With this parable, Jesus is reminding us that if we, like the rich man, place our entire identity in wealth or other temporary comforts, when those things are taken away there is nothing left. Riches, reputation, beauty, and possessions will all fade away, but when our help is the Lord, even after every single pleasure this world has to offer is faded and gone, God is still our help. He remains constant through eternity, which is why He is the only One worth centering our life on.
This morning we had the privilege of being taught by Bill Spencer, the Executive Director of the Narrow Gate Foundation, on the Parable of the Talents found in Matthew 25. Bill has a special way of breaking stories down, putting them into the full context of Scripture, and helping us gain so much understanding.
This morning Pastor Dylan taught on the parable of The Pharisee and the Tax Collector found in Luke 18 in which both men go into the temple to pray and the Pharisee uses his prayer to elevate his righteous actions while condemning the shortcomings of others. The problem wasn’t his behavior but that he believed that he could be justified by his behavior. We can easily fall into this self-righteous trap of comparison by thinking that we are better than other Christians because of what we do for God or the way we live our lives, but we must humble ourselves, stop relying on ourselves for justification, and admit that we need Jesus to transform our lives and restore us to who God made us to be.
Every single one of us is like the fruitless fig tree in the parable from Luke 13 that deserves to be cut down. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, but that's not the end of the story. In this parable, the caretaker is committed to making this tree fruitful. That's Jesus! He is doing all the work in order to create the conditions in us through which we would come to repentance. Our job as the tree is to simply cooperate with what the caretaker is doing so that we may bear fruit.
We have an enemy who loves to sow division, discouragement, duplicity, and distraction in an effort to sabotage the work of King Jesus in the world and in our lives. In this parable, Jesus is warning us of that and telling us it's not our job to worry about the tares. One day the farmer is going to take care of the tares. Our job is to mature and multiply, and trust that the farmer knows what He's doing.
This morning the Holy Spirit was moving in powerful ways during worship, so we decided to lean into that and follow His lead.
The parable of the workers in the vineyard found in Matthew 20 is not actually about the workers or the vineyard, it is about a gift that you’ve been given by an extravagantly generous God in heaven, who kept seeking out the one’s that no one else wanted. The brokenhearted, the beaten-down, the overlooked, the forgotten.
This story tells us that life is not fair, and thank God it’s not because when we deserved justice, God gave us mercy. When we deserved dismissal and rejection, He chose us and welcomed us in. He pursued us, He came down to invite us into His vineyard – to give us a place to belong, a purpose in life, and a home in heaven where we will be with Him for all of eternity. It is a gift that we could not earn, and do not deserve.
In Mark 2, Jesus is saying that you wouldn't use an old piece of cloth to patch a garment or put new wine into old wineskins. Similarly, we can't just patch God onto our lives. We can't combine our way of life and God's way – we have to be totally transformed. We cannot receive the gospel of grace and remain the way that we are! We need a whole new wineskin, we need to be reborn, and we need to be “refilled” with the Spirit of God.
Sometimes when we pray God says "yes." Other times, God says "no." And then there are those times when God says, "not yet" – those are the times that we're tempted to stop asking, seeking, and knocking. We live in a world of immediate gratification, and we’ve forgotten how to persist.
It’s in the “not yet” where we find out if we really trust God, His character, and His timing.
Is there something you’ve stopped praying for because you’ve lost sight of God’s purpose in it? Something you'd spent so long begging God for and it still hasn’t happened, and what began as a fervent prayer just began to fizzle out? Well today, God wants to breathe new life into those little embers, and reignite that fire. He wants to give you hope to begin again, to pray again, and not quit. He is a good, gracious, and just judge, and you can trust Him even when the answer is "no" or "not yet."
This morning Pastor Rob taught on the parable of the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18 who was forgiven an enormous debt that he could never repay and then turns around and demands repayment of a much less significant debt from another man who owed him.
Jesus uses this illustration because the reality is, we are all the first servant in the parable who owes a debt that cannot be paid. It's a picture of the sin that Jesus paid for us. Some of us refuse to forgive because we just don't feel like it or because we want the person to know how much they've harmed us, but some of us are unwilling to forgive others because we have forgotten how much we have been forgiven.
The danger is if we do not forgive from our heart, and we hold onto bitterness, resentment, and grudges, we are the one who pays the price for it. We will experience the torment of being consumed by the thing or the person we are refusing to forgive.
At the end of Matthew 7, Jesus tells a parable of two builders – one who built his house on the rock, and one who built his house on the sand. Jesus says in verse 24 "Everyone then who hears these words of Mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock." He's saying we have two options here...if we obey His commands and put His teachings into practice, we're wise. And if we don’t, we're a fool.
The modern Christian is not suffering from a lack of information, but a lack of application. See, you could show up to church for your entire lifetime, binge all the sermons you want, and complete every bible reading plan, but that is not going to do a single thing in you, for you, or through you unless you put His words into practice!
God’s invitation to us is to become active in our cooperation with Him as we live as people of the kingdom in a foreign land.
Fasting is not just self-denial, it’s self-denial for spiritual investment. You’re fasting in order to develop greater levels of intimacy, dependence, communion, and communication with God.
This is why biblical fasting is always intimately linked with the practice of prayer.
In today’s message Pastor Rob outlines what fasting is, 7 benefits of fasting, and different types of fasting in preparation for our church-wide 21-day fast starting on Tuesday, January 10.
Do you want to increase your faith this year? Do you want to see God work miracles in and through your life? Do you need guidance from Him for this next season? Fast and Pray with expectancy that God will speak to you.
Maybe you've thought your entire life that being saved and accepted by God was about your behavior or your morality, but the good news is, it's not about what we can do for Jesus, it's about what He has already done for us.
Christ came down from heaven for you, of all people. He came so that you would know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God is with you, He is for you, not against you, and He loves you more than you could ever imagine. Like the father in Luke 15, God is waiting for you to take a step towards Him, and when you do, He runs to embrace you. That’s the good news Jesus came down to bring to the poor.
Spiritual blindness in is an impaired ability to recognize Truth, and unless the Holy Spirit opens our spiritual eyes, we will not be able to perceive or accept spiritual reality. Apart from the work of God in our life, we are blind to our own blindness, to the glory of grace, and to the purposes of God. We need the Spirit of God to give us Revelation so that we will be able to perceive and understand the glory of God’s grace.
The beauty of the gospel is that Christ came down, and entered into every aspect of the brokenness of the human experience, to heal the brokenhearted. His mission is to bind up the wounds of your broken heart, to gather you under the shelter of His wings, and to breathe life into your soul.
He took on your brokenness so that you could be made whole. He was rejected so you could be accepted. He was ripped apart on the cross so that the fragmented pieces of your heart could be mended back together.
He came so that you would have a life of purpose. Don’t waste the healing He came to give you.
Jesus came down to bring us freedom from not only the penalty of sin but also its power over our life. He paid the price to set us free for a life of purpose. A life of Kingdom impact. We’re freed not only for our sake, but also for the sake of the people around us who need us to walk in freedom. Some of us aren't walking in that freedom from the power of sin in our lives, but it is available for us today because Christ came down to set the captives free – not partially free, completely free.
Extravagant generosity is born out of a grateful heart. Grateful people are generous people. And God always rewards His people that are generous. But the reward is not our motivation. Biblical Generosity is when you give without any expectation of receiving anything in return. No strings attached.
God is the most extravagant giver, and when we’re generous, we become like Him.
This morning Pastor Rob taught on the difference in offerings from Cain and Abel found in Genesis 4. While the offering was not a priority at all for Cain, Abel brought his best to God – his first to God, withheld nothing from Him, and trusted God to provide for him.
Only when we believe that God really is as kind, loving, and as generous as He says He is will we then be able to make a sacrifice that significant.
God doesn’t need our money, but he asks us to give because we need to have a radical, deep, dependence, and trust in God as our unbelievably generous provider.
When we obey God with money, we are actively tearing down the idol that has more pull on the human heart than almost anything else. God is inviting us to trust Him with our money and to trust Him to be our provider.
If we will trust God with the tangible, practical resources that He’s entrusted to us, and do it with cheerfulness, we believe God will begin to open doors that have been closed, soften hardened hearts, bring new life to those whose faith has long been cold and lifeless, and we’ll see revival again.
This morning we had the pleasure of hearing Bill Spencer, the Executive Director of Narrow Gate, teach on Mark 5, and the abundant life that trusting in Jesus brings.
We live in a self-seeking culture of scarcity, but we believe in the God of abundance. There is nothing that you need that He can’t give. He’s a God of abundant, radical, overwhelming generosity toward those who trust in Him.
When we truly grasp who God is, and trust that He will provide like He says He will, that enables us to live generously to those around us.
Walt Heyer shares his redemptive story of life transformation and coming to relationship with Christ after enduring years of trauma, sexual abuse, and also identifying as a woman for 8 years of his life. Now Walt travels all around the country to share his testimony and help others who also have sex change regret.
You can learn more about Walt's story and find additional resources here: sexchangeregret.com
This morning Pastor Rob wrapped up the Disciplines of a Disciple series by talking about what it means to be faithful stewards of all God has entrusted to us. We do this by living submitted to God, living simply, and living generously.
These practices that we've talked about throughout this series aren’t about earning something from God, but about delighting yourself in King Jesus, and living fully in the life of His Kingdom.
Our encouragement to you is to listen to the Lord and ask Him what areas He’s wanting you to grow in, and be intentional about them.
In Kingdom Stewardship, Part 1, Pastor Rob explains the importance of understanding what Jesus means when He speaks about the Kingdom of God and how it impacts every single aspect of our lives.
As followers of Christ, we need to know and understand what this Kingdom is so we can align ourselves with King Jesus, and measure success the same way He does. To live according to His value system, His will, His priorities, and His commands.
If we’re going to see change in our world, we first have to honestly assess which kingdom is dominating our values, priorities, and decision-making, and if it isn't the Kingdom of God, we need to turn back to Him.
Shodankeh Johnson joined us from Sierra Leone to preach such a powerful message on the hope for the Church in America! 🙌
God is calling the Church in America to repent, turn back to its first Love, and go out and make disciples that make disciples. But if we are going to see a disciple-making movement sweep through the Church in America, we first must see a prayer movement begin in the Church in America.
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Amidst the Coronavirus outbreak, Pastor Jimmy brings a much-needed message on fear. We look at the biological basis of fear, Jesus’ response to fear, and decision-making made from a place of fear. Our prayer is for God to open our eyes to see our part in the coming days; to give us spiritual eyes to…
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On the heels of 2020, we wanted to have a unique prayer service where we intentionally give space in the service to pray for any family who would like prayer. Pastor Steve also gives a brief vision cast for where Grace Chapel is headed in the new year with a special emphasis on increased worship,…
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Immediately following the birth of Jesus, the angels proclaimed, “Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth, goodwill toward man!” The angels are praising God for the salvation that the Christ-child would bring – this salvation brings glory to God in the highest, brings peace between God and man, and demonstrates God’s goodwill toward…
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The post Whatever Happened to the Golden Rule? – Immigration, Part 2 appeared first on Grace Chapel.
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In Part 4, Pastor Steve takes on the issues of Homosexuality and Transgenderism. Both of these topics are plaguing the world, our nation, and the Church. This sermon discusses Homosexuality in the Bible. Want to learn more about what the Bible says about homosexuality? Check out these other series and sermons that Pastor Steve preached.…
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