The Vine Church OC: Recent Episodes
The Vine Church OC
Listen to Sunday messages from The Vine Church in downtown Fullerton, CA. We pray you’ll be encouraged and challenged by God through these sermons. For more information about our church, visit www.thevineoc.com, or email hello@thevineoc.com.
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Website: https://www.thevineoc.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thevinechurchoc Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheVineChurchoc Receive Weekly Updates from The Vine: http://www.thevineoc.com/
Website: https://www.thevineoc.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thevinechurchoc Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheVineChurchoc Receive Weekly Updates from The Vine: http://www.thevineoc.com/
Website: https://www.thevineoc.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thevinechurchoc Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheVineChurchOC Receive Weekly Updates from The Vine: http://www.thevineoc.com/
Website: https://www.thevineoc.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thevinechurchoc Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheVineChurchOC Receive Weekly Updates from The Vine: http://www.thevineoc.com/
Website: https://www.thevineoc.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thevinechurchoc Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheVineChurchOC Receive Weekly Updates from The Vine: http://www.thevineoc.com/
Behind all that we do in the world, including prayer for healing, is the need for us to be attentive to what God the Father is doing. As messengers sent by God with the authority to speak life into a place of death, we understand the gravity of the responsibilities God placed upon us. Thanks be to the Holy Spirit and under the authoritative name of Jesus, we have the ability to make huge impacts in this world for the glory of God!
In showing His wounds, Jesus revealed that He really had been nailed to the cross. He really had been pierced with the sword. The wounds are real and inflicted upon human flesh. Now, this is His real self, His real body. A body raised by God, a body that is actually, really there. What would your response be to seeing Jesus again?
On this Easter, we celebrate the risen Christ! A testimony from the scriptures that resonates in our souls as we hear the echos of Jesus' resurrection and stories of new life that continuously emerge in the lives of the people of God!
Some of us have felt powerless over the past, pandemic year. Work, mobility, health, and other valued things in our lives have been threatened. We had to isolate and dress ourselves with the garments of safety. However, we serve the One, in whom true power dwells. While the pandemic made us more aware of our weaknesses, the power of God is being revealed to us in new ways, through our human weaknesses. The key is to let go of expectations and let go of what we think is is right, normal, and even deserved. The real lesson is to learn that God's power, the unexpected, unpredictable, and life-giving Spirit that blows through our lives like the wind is being made known to us in new and fresh ways (through our weaknesses).
Hospitality requires the embracing of the stranger in such a way, that a change to the community is allowed. When our physical churches open up again, what we will have will not be the the old thing we enjoyed in the past; it will be something new. It will not be a resuscitation, but something in the lines of a resurrection, a new kind of body. Letting go of hostility is just the beginning!
Especially during this pandemic, we find ourselves without physical temples. As dispersed people, we lack a single geographical center. As a major silver lining, we find the authentic life of the people of God expressed in faithful communities. Overtime, these have emerged from monasteries, mission outposts, underground gatherings, homes and open spaces. Anywhere that devoted followers of Jesus can find in order to share this life that God has granted to us; a life that is for us and also for the sake of the world!
We can be a people of goodness when we view our rights as gifts, that empower us to live a shared life of mutual responsibility and care. It's amazing how our own needs get addressed in the process of serving others. Letting go of one's "self-determination" and serve experience something profound going on in their own lives. It just might be that this experience may be directly tied to them participating in God's goodness.
It may be good for us to ask ourselves what our experiences over the last year have revealed about our own need for healing. What is God showing us about our need for His fresh touch in our lives? What does it mean to let go of our shackles?
The picture is this: The mission of the people of God is to be present and faithful in a broken world where God is working, to reconcile that world to Himself and not counting their trespasses against them. Our laments demonstrate our solidarity with the world and our devotion to the God whose mission is to redeem it.
The Subversive Acts of True Humanity (Hebrews 13:1-16, John 15:12-17)Mike McNichols 2021-2-14 by The Vine Church OC
Do we really need a High Priest? As the mediator for the new covenant between God and us, Jesus works in the present in-dwelling presence of the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 5:1-10, 7:26-28, Mark 1:21-28). Mike McNichols shares as fully God and fully man, Jesus is the perfect example as our merciful and faithful High Priest!
The rest that God always desired for His people is not a geographic location. Rather, it is a centering in the very life of God (Hebrews 4:1-12, Mark 1:14-20). The invitation is not into their rest, but rather into His rest!
As Jesus is fully man, He became one of us (Hebrews 2:14-18, 3:1-8, John 1:43-51)! In Jesus, God experiences the full extent of the human experience: conception, birth, life, suffering, and ultimately death. Today, Pastor Mike McNichols preaches on one of the most human aspects of Jesus: being tested.
Some predict that many church buildings will be lost or reduced in size due to the pandemic. Yet, the longing continues for many of us. Pastor Mike McNichols contends that this longing should not be focused on what used to be, rather, this longing should be for God Himself (Psalm 84, Matthew 2:13-23).
From the earliest days of the church, we look forward to the coming of Jesus (Isaiah 61:10-62:3, Luke 2:22-40). From Jesus’ birth and infancy, people understood there was something incredibly special about Jesus. Though there is sorrowful pain, suffering, evil, sin, and death in the coming of Jesus, these things do not have the last word. God, in Jesus Christ, comes with a message of reconciliation and healing for the world!
Today, Pastor Mike McNichols speaks on a sensical contradiction: how the gospels offer a counter-narrative to the world’s logic (Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26, Luke 1:26-38). Within the stories that insist on power and might, we see a triumphant emergence of strength in weakness and vulnerability; specifically, a story that leads from a birth of weakness, living in poverty, suffering helplessly, and dying brutally. Yet, a King will rise and through Him, God will be reconciling the whole world to Himself!
Whether we're experiencing, recounting, or rehearsing our stories of faith, we release the aroma of God that fills us with joy (Psalm 126:1-6, Luke 1:46-55)! Pastor Mike McNichols delves into how we might be able to find large pockets of joy in worship and intentional remembrance, especially during this pandemic.
Pastor Mike shares about expectations and hope (Isaiah 40:1-11, Mark 1:1-8). What does it mean to have not a passive hope, but an active hope? It's hope in Jesus in whom we might remember both who we are and be the people of God's intentions. In the midst of this turmoil, we are to be a sign that points to Jesus and the reality of the Kingdom of God that is at hand.
As hope seems so far away, we are encouraged to look for the new season (1 Corinthians 1:3-9, Mark 13:24-37). God calls us to watch the present and be prepared for the future. Pastor Mike preaches that especially during a pandemic, we need not collapse into fear. We should be attentive to the moods and actions of our nation, but dare not replace the power and glory of God!
We are to be a people who are at the forefront of care for the needy, the sick, the imprisoned, the disenfranchised, and the oppressed (Zechariah 7:8-14, Matthew 25:31-46). We are to be a people leading the train of justice. Pastor Mike McNichols covers one important aspect of being a Christian. We are to stand with the suffering people of the world, meeting Jesus in "the least of these."
What will you do with your God given talents? Join us as Pastor Mike McNichols paints a picture of peace and security as we wait for Jesus. We do not have to fear nor be afraid of the unknown. As Jesus prepares his followers, He calls us to be faithful with what God has granted to us, and to participate in the work that is the reality of the Kingdom of God.
Watching for the One Who First Loved (Joshua 24:14-15, Matthew 25:1-13) Mike McNichols 2020-11-08 by The Vine Church OC
Pastor Mike McNichols covers not only the power of prayer, but the power of being weak and vulnerable in it (Romans 8:15-17, Romans 8:26-27, Matthew 6:5-13). Praying while directly addressing God as Father, the blood of Jesus moves our prayers from a declaration to an intimate moment with God.
Digging into Isaiah 52:3-7 and Matthew 13:24-30, Pastor Mike McNichols speaks upon God’s kingdom at hand. With God’s kingdom generously poured out into the world, we are called to participate in the life of this Kingdom as the weeds are exposed for what they really are. Scripture offers the answer to the age-old question, “Why are so many problems, sickness, and death in this world?”
Pastor Mike McNichols illustrates a picture of the wedding banquet (Matthew 22:1-14). The dinner is prepared, and everything is ready. With God’s free grace and righteousness in hand, how are we going to respond to the greatest invitation ever given?
As we ponder the gospel of Mark (10:35-45), Pastor Mike McNichols shares the truth that to be first in this Kingdom, we must be slaves of all. Most of us struggle with the big question, “What is my life’s calling?” As Jesus’ calling is sewn among us, we dig deeper into our character of healing, forgiveness, reconciliation, and renewing of the whole world.
As we navigate through anger and division in this world, God calls us to offer up our bodies as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1-2). Pastor Mike McNichols offers several ways to do so while not only tolerating our neighbors, but loving them. In light of today’s discord and disunion, our response should be “a love that flows from our entire selves, being given to God.” Emphatically, we should be loving in a sincere, honorable, and hospitable way (Romans 12:9-21).
Pastor Mike McNichols expounds upon the story of Jonah (Jonah 3:10-4:11), focusing specifically on God and his generous nature. As Jonah reluctantly steps into the experiential reality of his vocation and God’s calling, he finds himself in God’s working and active presence. Even in light of Jonah’s own personal views on Nineveh, the God of the entire world responds with caring tenderness and kind generosity. The story of Jonah reminds us that God is present and at work in the most unlikely of places.
Referring to Jesus’ prayer to his Father in John 17, asking that we would be one, Pastor Mike McNichols considers the question: How can we consider ourselves to be one even while we are so scattered? The source of our unity is God’s love, and our work is to respond to that love. Our oneness comes from God alone and Paul offers a path towards that in Colossians 3:15 as he invites us to “let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts”. As we do this we can be “one” for the sake of others.
Pastor Mike McNichols considers the question: How might we experience God as present to us even in a time of multiple disruptions? As we at The Vine find ourselves in an “in between” time of transition from one pastor to another, disorientation is multiplied by COVID19-restricted gathering and raging fires across the West. How can we learn from the disciples of Jesus who faced similar feelings of disappointment and distress (Luke 24)?
Mike references the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake (magnitude 7.8) which leveled hills and raised others, leaving survivors disoriented by their changed landscape. Just as survivors relied on a compass to navigate their changed world, so we can orient ourselves around Jesus, our True North. As we do this together, we can experience Christ present to us in this time of multiple disruptions and transition.
Our bishop, Todd Hunter joins us for a special Service of Installation for our interim Pastor Mike McNichols and then shares a personal word of encouragement for The Vine. Drawing from Acts 13 and 16, Bishop Todd encourages us that we have reason to celebrate because we are living in a moment when we are being led by the Holy Spirit into a new season. He encourages us to continue seeking to be led by the Holy Spirit and find that according to Luke 11:13, there’s no way asking for the leadership of the Holy Spirit without receiving it. “It’s the reception of the Spirit, through the gifts of the Spirit, that gives the church the capacity to heal itself and the world.”
Pastor Michael Swanson preaches his last sermon to our congregation today. Drawing inspiration from Paul’s farewell sermon to the Ephesians in Acts 20, Pastor Michael says goodbye. He outlines the history and values of The Vine in Phase 1 and encourages the church to head into Phase 2 with hope in God’s goodness.
Kathleen Doyle of Vintage LA, concludes our summer series on Old Testament characters who encountered God. She shares about God’s care for the broken-hearted and his faithfulness to those who trust him, as seen through the story of Hannah in I Samuel 1:3-18. Hannah is someone who experienced significant loss and deep shame imposed on her by her culture’s values and expectations. Yet in the middle of this Hannah went straight to God in humility and poured out her whole heart. Kathleen encourages us to do the same, taking our hearts with all their emotions into God’s presence to find healing.
What are the cries and outcries that tug at your heart? God is allowing you to hear those particular cries because he has appointed you as a “priest” to intercede on behalf of those particular people. Pastor Ger Jones of Vintage LA explains how through Abraham we can discover our unique and surprising calling to be priests in God's kingdom. We are priests who are “in Christ” and invited to function in God’s love and authority. Will you step into this calling to be a priest that intervenes in prayer and action to see God’s kingdom break through?
Pastor Ash Meaney, associate pastor at Vintage Church, continues our series on how God uses Old Testament characters despite their brokenness and weakness. He looks at Moses through the eyes of Stephen in Acts 7:20-36. Ash describes the life of Moses as “the transformation of the soul through the crucible of wilderness”, drawing three key lessons out of his life: a) our stories always shape us more than we think b) the wilderness is a place of profound transformation and c) God calls us in our weaknesses and beyond our abilities.
Do you find yourself connected to a person or a system that holds you back from what you really want? Dr. Henry Cloud, psychologist and best-selling author of over 45 books, addresses this question, sharing wisdom from the life of Lot. The Vine continues to join our sister church, Vintage Church LA, for their series on Old Testament characters whose lives were changed as God met them.
Do we put our trust in the promise, or in the God who promises? The answer makes all the difference! Dr. Bill Dogterom, professor at Vanguard University, shares this message entitled Abraham: Leaning Into Relational Obedience. This is the second in a summer series on how God met and changed characters from the Old Testament.
Ger Jones, lead pastor at Vintage Church LA, brings encouragement from 1 Samuel 17. God made you to be unique. There is no one like you and he made you for a reason. Sadly, often we struggle to find the freedom to be fully ourselves. Instead we are enslaved to what others think of us and trying to be someone we are not to get their approval and attention. Real transformation and purpose in God begins with finding the freedom to be fully who God made you to be. God brings that freedom - it's time to be fully you.
Ash Meaney, associate pastor at Vintage LA, shares two essentials that are fruits of a transformed life: our prayers and our proclamation. Nothing signifies our transformation with God more than the our hunger and devotion to prayer and our desire to share our faith with others. So Paul leaves us with some really practical instructions on how and what to pray for knowing they will be a source of maintaining our transformation and spiritual life, listing four key ingredients: devotion, watchfulness, thankfulness and purpose.
“Transformed people transform the world.” Pastor Ger Jones, lead pastor at Vintage Church LA, shares about “Finally Becoming Your Authentic Self”. In Colossians 3: 1-17, Paul confirms that we are new in Christ and yet we so often live out of old selves of anxiety, fear, and anger. Paul tells us how to live into who we already are in Christ by becoming our authentic selves. Change is possible not by willpower, but by arranging our lives around Jesus.
We may be living in a moment of the greatest social unrest since 1968 says Greg Ganssle, professor of philosophy at Biola University. Greg shares a timely message reminding us of the authority of Jesus over chaos, over all other authority, and over eight other areas, seen throughout the Gospel of Luke. This same authority is available today, in this current time of uncertainty. How will we respond?
Each of us has been uniquely gifted and invited into a specific calling or ministry. Ger Jones, lead pastor of Vintage Church LA encourages us to step into that unique ministry wholeheartedly, remembering four ingredients that Paul outlined in Colossians 1:24-29. Your ministry is a) for the sake of others, b) probably not visible, yet still vital c) sure to experience suffering and opposition d) a partnership with the Holy Spirit. As we embrace these aspects of our calling we can joyfully join God in his work around us and through us.
This final message in a series of three on Acts 2 describes two dramatic changes the Holy Spirit brought to that small gathering of believers at Pentecost. First, they were moved out of their building and into the streets, filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Secondly, they were moved towards fresh unity with a those of diverse languages, cultures, and customs. Pastor Michael suggests that right now we may be seeing a fresh work of the Holy Spirit as COVID-19 takes us out of our church building into our neighborhoods and as we hear God’s invitation to racial reconciliation in this day. What if in the midst of all our current crises an outpouring of the Holy Spirit is on the way?
If ever there is a time we need an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, it is now. To the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic, have been added an increased awareness of systemic racial injustice and numerous riots in response. This second message in a series on Acts 2, explores our need for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit to help us thrive in these uncertain times. Pastor Michael unpacks two important gifts we are given when the Holy Spirit is poured out: the actual presence of God and transformative power. Both of these were experienced by the early church at Pentecost which radically changed their lives from that day forward. But how can we lean in to receive what the Holy Spirit has for us?
On this Pentecost Sunday 2020, we at The Vine find ourselves in a moment of transition. The state is gradually reopening and we can begin to transition into a gathered church. Pastor Michael announces our next step in that process, but first stresses that more important than when or what gathering will look like, is how we will navigate this transition. Will we allow the Holy Spirit to transform us, like the early church did?
Looking at the first Pentecost, described in Acts 2:1-12, Pastor Michael casts vision for this next phase in the life of our church, inviting us to pray, “Come Holy Spirit” as we seek to be empowered for humility, faith, and love. He reminds us that “the only thing that matters is faith expressing itself in love” (Galatians 5:6)
Are you seeing the real Jesus or a Jesus that has been reduced and diluted by the culture and popular voices around you? Pastor Ger explains: “How you see Jesus determines everything about your life. Your faith, your life, and your future all are in tune with how you view Jesus.” Pastor Ger Jones, lead pastor of Vintage Church LA and regional leader of our family of churches, invites us to take a step back and consider if we are truly seeing the REAL Jesus that is outlined here in Colossians 1:15-20. The more we see of the Real Jesus, the more our faith comes alive and the more we experience his Real power and presence.
Could our faithful perseverance through this long season of COVID-19 lockdown actually be producing hope in us? This third message, in a series that looks at the invitation to growth in this unique season, outlines the process by which hope becomes a part of our character. Using Romans 5:1-5 as his anchor text, Pastor Michael explains how we can become a “people of hope” so that we can offer hope to those around us. “And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love” (Romans 5:5 NLT).
What do you want to be true of you when this season is over? Seven weeks into our COVID 19 shutdown, many of us are experiencing “quarantine fatigue”. We wonder how we will endure and how long we will be asked to endure. In this second message in a series that looks at God’s invitation to be transformed during this unique season, Pastor Michael unpacks the virtue of perseverance. Hebrews 12:1-3 provides four strategies for running “The Race” with perseverance so that we will finish strong. Only as we persevere, will our character be formed into Jesus-likeness so that we come out the other side of this season changed and ready for the new season ahead.
What gave the Greatest Generation their name was not what they faced in WW2, but in how they responded to what they faced. In our present-day scenario of worldwide pandemic, how will we respond? How might God want to form us through this season so that we come out the other side changed? Pastor Michael begins a new series today looking at Exodus 13:17-22 and how Moses followed God’s lead. God wants to form us into people that follow him. He leads and we follow in this “dance of life” and as we lean into his love, we are changed to be more like Jesus.
Ger Jones (lead pastor at Vintage Church LA) encourages us to practice gratitude as a pathway to peace, patience, and joy. Walking us through Colossians 1:1-22, Ger unpacks what we can learn from the Apostle Paul who wrote this bit of wisdom to a small, vibrant church while he himself was experiencing the reality of being on lockdown in his house. Gratitude gives way to emotional, physical, and spiritual health as well as opening the door to God’s blessing.
Pastor Michael recounted Jesus' interactions with Martha and Mary around Lazarus' death, and explained how this was a time of grief - in some ways similar to what we are experiencing in our world right now. He explored how in the context of our grief and loss, Jesus wants to come and bring hope and new life (not just metaphorically - actual, real, resurrection-new life). Wherever Jesus is, hope is possible.
Pastor Michael looked at the story of Jesus bringing his peace to his disciples when they were in lockdown after his crucifixion. We, too, can find peace in a time of panic and faith in a time of fear, because Jesus is offering us the peace that comes from his presence, too.
Dr. Dave Horner began our Passion Week with the encouragement that Jesus' passion means he suffered, and that makes it possible for us to trust him when we, too, are suffering. It also means real hope - that we WILL be okay when the dust settles.
This past Sunday, Pastor Michael Swanson shared a special message exploring what opportunities God is inviting us into amidst the storm that is Coronavirus. We pray you will find encouragement, strength, and hope through this time of worship.
In the midst of the storm of Covid-19, the human tendency can be to worry, or even panic. Our reserves are being strained, and we are suddenly overwhelmed by unknowns and uncertainty. This was exactly the situation Jesus' disciples are experiencing in today's Scripture reading, and we see them crying out to Jesus. This is the invitation to us in this season, too - to turn to the one who has power to calm our every storm.
In the face of all that is going on in the news, and how the coronavirus is affecting all of us in different ways, this is a timely message of hope from Pastor Michael Swanson. He looks at the way this season mirrors times of fear in the life of Israel, and how God sustained them and sustains us. He invited us to lean into these times with our eyes open and hearts tuned in to what God may be up to right now.
We have been looking at Lent as a holy journey to the heart of God, so this week we talked about how we can worship in a way that draws us to the heart of God. We all worship something, and in our culture we can sometimes look to entertainment as the object of our "ultimate attention". What we need is a "Copernican revolution", where we reorient to God as the center and ask what can we bring (instead of "what can I get?" in entertainment culture).
One of our newly announced Assistant Pastors, Denis Cruz, spoke this week about our calling. We (anyone who is - or wants to be - a child of God) are called to return wholeheartedly to God. We looked at the story of Nehemiah and his grief over Jerusalem's broken walls, the work to fix it, and the ways that work was opposed by enemies (who even made themselves at home in God's house!). We, too, have an enemy trying to create chaos for us, but God is inviting us to step into the pasture of his peace.
If you consider yourself a part of The Vine and missed the Annual Meeting this weekend, here is the audio!
There are defining moments in our lives - an invitation from God and a choice we face about how we will respond. In the story of the Israelites spying out the Promised Land, Caleb had just such a moment (as did the other leaders!); and our church is at just such a crossroads. Pastor Michael talked about the "state of the church" and shared a vision for what it seems God is calling us into in this season.
In the second installment in our Discipleship Essentials series, Pastor Michael looked at the basics of prayer - what prayer is, why we pray, and some helpful tips about how to enter into prayer (particularly if we are unpracticed at it). God wants us to talk to him about the actual "stuff" of our everyday lives, and we get to see so much more of him at work when we talk to him about the little things (and not just the big ones)! Prayer is relational, and through that, it becomes a partnership with God in the world, too.
We began a new series this week, entitled "Discipleship Essentials". Pastor Michael took us through some of the WHY to read the Bible, and practical steps of HOW, too. Whether you have been reading the Bible your whole life, or you are brand new to it, Michael gives some helpful recommendations and an invitation to come [again] to the life-giving, God-breathed Scriptures.
Dr. Tony Baron joined us this week, speaking about Paul's concern for the church at Ephesus in Ephesians chapter 1, and how that connects with what we, too, need in our day. He described this age as one transitioning out of anxiety and into rage, and spoke about how God has given us every thing we need to live and bring light to this world.
Pastor Michael Swanson continued our series looking at what it means for the Kingdom of God to come in our lives, this time digging into Jesus' parables about the hidden treasure, and the pearl of great price. The Kingdom is better than we can imagine, and worth giving up everything for, and Michael invited us to do just that - to let this be a time of total surrender.
We spent another week in Matthew 13 with Jesus' parables - this time, the mustard seed and the yeast. Pastor Michael looked at these parables and how they describe the Kingdom of God. Its beginnings are small, and may seem insignificant; but when it is full-grown, it changes everything around it. Sometimes the growth seems negligible, and it's easy to be impatient, get frustrated, and give up that God is even at work. But kingdom growth is a gradual process, and even breakthroughs are preceded by a lot of time of simply being faithful. And in the seed of the kingdom is unstoppable power, so our job is to wait with anticipation, watching the kingdom come in our lives and participating in it.
In the parable of the Sower/the Soil, Pastor Michael asked this week: How receptive are we to the inbreaking of the Kingdom of God in our lives? If we pray the Lord's Prayer, "let your kingdom come", how would we know if that prayer was answered? We looked at the way Jesus used parables to evoke a response on the part of the listener, and considered our own response to hearing his voice.
Mike McNichols finished up our Christmas season by talking about Epiphany this week, looking at the revelation of Jesus as a displaced refugee, who ministered at the margins of society. Instead of remaining distant and detached from the human plight, he entered fully into it. And he came to rescue us ALL.
Dr. Dave Horner spoke this week, as the Christmas season continues, about Jesus as God with us. We looked at how influential Jesus as a person has been throughout the many centuries since his birth. As the incarnate Word of God, Jesus shows us both what God is like AND what true humanity looks like - and he chose to dwell among us, to be-with us.
Greg Ganssle finished our Advent series, Prepare The Way, by looking at the letter to the "lukewarm" Laodicean church. He noticed parallels between that city's church and America's. We tend toward independence and self-sufficiency, and all the while Jesus is knocking on the door of our hearts. How we respond to that knock affects the spiritual temperature of our lives.
We looked at Jesus' letter to the church at Pergamum this week, as Pastor Michael continued our Advent series: Prepare the Way. Pergamum was a city known for Emperor worship and was hostile to Christians in the first century. This tempted the Christians to compromise to the cultural coercion they experienced, but the invitation of Jesus was to turn away from the idolatry and to him. We explored how "repent" is a loving invitation, and what it might look like in our own lives.
We continued our Advent series, "Prepare the Way" this week, by looking at Jesus' letter to Smyrna in Revelation 2. In this letter, Jesus doesn't rebuke the church, but instead reminds them that he sees them and knows them, in the midst of their suffering. We, too, are seen and known by God, and the encouragement for us is to persevere in this season as we prepare for Jesus to come (again/in our lives).
This first Sunday of Advent, Pastor Michael began a new series, "Prepare the Way", exploring what it means to be looking not only to celebrating Jesus' first coming and anticipating his second coming in this season... but to prepare the way for his coming in our own hearts and lives now. We will be looking at a different one of Jesus' letters to the churches in Asia in this series, and we began with the church at Ephesus, who lost their "first love" - the love they had for God and each other when they first started out.
It was Christ the King Sunday in the church calendar, and our guest speaker was Josh Harrison, pastor to Canopy, a group of house churches in Orange County. Josh is passionate about nothing more than Jesus being king. Jesus is King because he is God, and he created and sustains all of life as we know it - it's all his. So often, we tend not to acknowledge the kingship of Christ in our lives and in the world - it is indeed a tricky subject for us in America where the will of the people functions as "king". Josh related this to the way we approach politics as Christians, and offered us a few challenges as we soon enter 2020, an election year.
Pastor Michael and others in the church have been sensing the moving of God's Spirit, inviting us to prepare for him to show up in new ways with us. He explored the parable of the ten virgins; and Maddie Hansen, Marsha Grim, and Carey Cruz all shared pieces of their experience with what God has been doing in their hearts as well.
This week, we looked at the life of Jacob and the ways God pursued him with his love throughout his life. For many years, Jacob couldn't receive it, and spent all his time manipulating the people in his life to get what he thought he needed. Jacob is a "scoundrel", completely undeserving of this love - and not even looking for it! - but God comes to him with his completely unconditional love anyway. Jacob awakens to the reality of God with him in a dream, and the invitation for us, too, is to awaken to the reality of God's love for us.
Jesus says, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink." This week, we pivoted in our series about God's love, to look now at our response to this love. It's not enough to read about God's love, or even to affirm it is true; we need to actually receive his love - to drink it in. If we're thirsty, all we need to do is ask. Jesus meets us right where we are.
Ed Piorek, author and longtime Vineyard pastor, joined us this week to talk about the Father's love that finds us in our weakness. He looked at the movements in the text about Jesus' baptism - seeing Jesus standing in a place of weakness, and the Father meeting him in that with his love. He sees this as a template for our lives, too - and the final stage is moving out into the world with compassion. The Love that finds you becomes the Love that sends you out.
What we need more than anything else is God's love - it is the foundation, and without it, everything else falls apart. But we have to begin with an awareness of where we are in this journey, so Pastor Michael Swanson asked two questions: "When you think about God, what comes to mind?" and "When you think about God thinking about YOU, what do you assume he feels?". Continuing to spend time attending to God's love for us, we looked this week at the revolutionary nature of God's love - that it is never based on our performance. God loves you, and you can't earn (or un-earn) it.
Continuing our Fall Series: All You Need Is Love, Pastor Michael talked about the assurance we have that NOTHING can separate us from God's love. Are you ever tempted to doubt God's love for you? In this passage in Romans (and elsewhere), Paul is wanting us to have assurance that no matter what happens in life, God's love will always be with us and for us. But if this truth is really going to anchor and transform us, we can't leave this at the level of abstract truth - we have to find a way for this truth to be deeply rooted in our hearts.
Pastor Michael continued our fall series, All You Need Is Love, by looking at Ephesians 3:14-21, where Paul reveals his passionate prayer for the believers at Ephesus: That they would know how long and high and wide and deep God's love is. God wants us not to just know about this love, but to truly experience it - it's what we need more than anything else.
We looked at the story of Hagar this week, and how she came to name God as the One Who Sees her. We talked about how people long to be seen, and Pastor Michael shared vulnerably about his own experience with feeling unseen by God, and how God met him in that moment.
In this third week of our Vision Series, our friends Denis and Carey Cruz shared with us God's heart for belonging. Without any guilting, they invited us to consider how we were made to live in community and what that may look like for each of us in this season. Recognizing that this is not always easy, and involves very real risk, they still pressed in to invite us to offer ourselves and our gifts in the context of real-life community.
Last week in our Vision Series, Pastor Michael spoke about how we are Called to Intimacy with Christ. This week, he talked about how we are also Called to Follow him as apprentices. We aren't meant to simply know ABOUT God, or know the Scriptures well, but we are supposed to JOIN him in his work of bringing the life of the kingdom of heaven, now, on earth.
At this year's annual Vision Sunday service, Pastor Michael shared some of what he believes is in God's heart for our community in this season. He talked about how what we need is not more "getting busy for Jesus", but time spent WITH Jesus - and how it is this being-with Jesus in relationship that produces fruit in our lives and the world. Our beloved Marsha Grim also shared her story of discovering God's heart for her, and what that has meant for her ministry.
Dr. Greg Ganssle wrapped up our mini-series on how Jesus is the revelation of what it is to live a truly human life. He looked at the Matthew 11 passage and talked about Jesus' promise of rest for those who come to him - and explored some of the reasons we have a hard time coming to Jesus for that promised rest.
Continuing our series about how the life of Jesus shows us what REAL life looks like, Michael Swanson spoke about how even the miraculous parts of Jesus' life and ministry are meant to be a model for us. In his earthly life, Jesus relied not on his own divine power, but on the power of the Holy Spirit in him, as he healed people and cast out demons. And he says we will do the same things as he did (John 14:12)! Michael shared examples from church history, as well as personal stories showing this kind of supernatural power at work in Christians' lives. He encouraged us to Ask, Seek, and Knock - knowing that the "normal" Christian life is meant to include the miraculous.
The second in our series on Jesus as the Revelation of Life, this week's sermon was about WHERE we find life. Pastor Michael looked at the life of Jesus, and where HE found life (spoiler alert: it was in a life of prayer connecting him with his father) - and how that speaks directly into how we, as humans, are meant to live our lives as well.
Michael Swanson started a new sermon series about Jesus as the Revelation of Life, planning to examine a different facet of the life Jesus invites us into each week. This week, he started with 'Purity of Heart' as essential to what a flourishing human life looks like. Kierkegaard says, "Purity of heart is to will one thing," and we looked at what a life of integrity - versus a fragmented one - looks like, and how that brings us to a place where we "see God" (Matt. 5:8).
Dr. Greg Ganssle looks at Jesus' statement, "The truth will set you free", and connects it with the work of two other, more recent, philosophers. Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, and Jesus all articulate a vision for what it is to be human - what is good, beautiful, and true. And Jesus, more than just a philosopher, is actually the embodiment of the Truth that sets us free.
When Jesus was on earth, his ministry consisted of teaching, preaching, and healing. This week, Nigel Morris looked mainly at the third of these, examining how the disciples, too, were sent out to heal. He shared stories from his own experience of miraculous healings, and our own Dr. David Horner shared his experience of recently being healed after 12 years of major health struggles. Nigel then encouraged us to take the next "baby step" of bringing this type of healing prayer to our world (for example: cultivating awareness of those around us, small acts of kindness, giving people the gift of our attention).
Nigel Morris continued our summer series on Freedom by talking about some of the times we tend to get "stuck" in our stories, our hearts rusted shut; but God has invited us into his epic Story, and we have the privilege of living that out in our worlds. He talked about how God intervened in the lives of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, and in Elisha and his servant's lives, letting them in on the behind-the-scenes story of a God who is always moving toward us in love.
Dr. Tony Baron, dean of Azusa Pacific Seminary's San Diego campus, and longtime friend of The Vine, kicked off our summer sermon series on Liberty and Freedom this week. He looked at some of the things that stop us from experiencing the freedom we were meant to live in, by looking at the life of Elijah the prophet and how he went from miracle-worker to running scared from a queen - because he underestimated God and didn't understand that God works in ways other than miracles.
Founding director of Biola's School of Apologetics, Dr. Craig Hazen, speaks about Fearless Prayer - the topic of his recent book - and how Jesus really means for us to "ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you". He looks at objections to this assertion, and revels in this glorious (true) promise. He defines prayer as asking, and encourages us to "ask wildly", as this puts us in a relationship of dependence on God - which puts us in just the right place for his work in us.
The God who spoke the cosmos into existence calls us his friends - and wants us to live out of that reality! Pastor Michael Swanson shared about his journey from God as "consultant" to "boss" to "friend" - a developmental trajectory many of us go through in our Christian life. He explored what it means to be a friend of God, and how to grow in this way of relating to God as an intimate friend.
It is sobering to realize you can be spiritually asleep, all the while thinking you're awake. Such was the situation of the church in Sardis that John delivers Jesus' message to in Revelation 3; and such is the situation in many of our lives. Pastor Michael Swanson explored how Jesus wants us to be spiritually awake, full of life, growing in relationship with him; and how every "wake up call" we receive in our lives is the call of love, an invitation to life.
Dr. Mike McNichols joined us this Trinity Sunday, speaking about the "Threeness" and "Oneness" of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as a call to worship a Triune God.
On this Pentecost Sunday, Pastor Michael Swanson invited us to notice what was happening just BEFORE Pentecost (and, he noted, before many movements of God's Spirit throughout Church history): people were gathered to intentionally seek God's face. This is "presence" language, and we are invited to actively seek the manifest presence of God in our lives now, too - persistent and united in our waiting.
Pastor Michael Swanson talked this Ascension Sunday about one of the most important - and most overlooked! - events in Christian history: the Ascension of Christ. He talked about why it is important, and why it is such good news for us. Jesus ascending to heaven - God's dimension of reality - meant that he can now be present to us at all times and in all places!
Dr. Greg Ganssle concluded out Easter series by talking about how Jesus' resurrection shapes our lives - our past, our present, and our future. We may have past wounds and "baggage" in that have shaped us, but we have the life of Jesus' resurrection in our "past" as well - and it gives us both hope for the future and life in the present.
Jesus came to the disciples Easter evening, met them in their darkest hour, and offered them peace. He does the same for us; we serve a God who loves to come to us in our darkest moments and offer us his presence. In our most anxious moments, he wants to bring us peace. Pastor Michael unpacked this passage in John 20 and how it connects with our anxious world today.
Continuing our Easter season series about the true life Jesus' Resurrection makes possible, Michael Swanson talked this week about one "roadblock" to experiencing that abundant life: failure. He asked the question, "What happens when the mercy of God meets your failure?" Looking at the "denial" of both Judas and Peter, we noticed their different responses, and how one led to death while the other led to restoration - to life. We saw Jesus paying attention to what Peter needed - and the root/heart issues that needed attending - as he worked to restore Peter not only to friendship, but to a future in ministry!
In this season of Easter, we are continuing to explore how Jesus came to bring life. Wherever Jesus goes, resurrection happens. We looked at Lazarus' resurrection and Martha's conversation with Jesus in John 11, and how he IS the life we are looking for. Death doesn't have the last word - Jesus conquered death on our behalf so that we might know LIFE.
On this second Sunday of the Easter season, we continued to explore the true, abundant life Jesus brings through the Resurrection. We looked at some of the metaphors Jesus used for himself in John 10, including being the Shepherd and the Door for the sheep - and how the shepherd's voice is always for life (while the Thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy).
When you think of the cross, what comes to mind for you? In this Good Friday service, we got to look at the "Great Exchange" that was made by Jesus that day: our guilt for his forgiveness, our woundedness for his healing... our death for his life. We have a God who enters our pain, who carries our sorrows. The message of the cross is that if you come to Jesus for this great exchange, you can know peace with God your Creator - real, objective peace with the God of the Universe.
The first Easter didn't start with celebration - it didn't start with joy. Instead, it began with confusion, with bewilderment. So, if you don't know what to do with this whole resurrection, you are in wonderful company; because Jesus' closest friends - his most committed followers - were actually completely bewildered that first Easter morning! Pastor Michael Swanson talks about what made the difference for them, and invites us to see the incredibly good news of the reality, the significance, and the power of Jesus' resurrection.
Dr. Tony Baron invited us to use our imagination to consider what the celebration on Palm Sunday would have felt like as the people welcomed in their liberator. He talked about the Preparation, Procession, and Passion of Jesus, the King of Peace - and how so many missed him then... and how so many miss him today in this "time of visitation", too.
Do you ever feel "stuck" spiritually? Pastor Michael Swanson invites us to look at the God who makes a way forward - as we remember what he has already done, and open ourselves to what "new thing" (Is. 43:19) he may be doing in our present reality.
As we journey with Jesus in the wilderness - a place of focus and preparation, but also often a time of trial and hardship - we can sometimes find ourselves struggling with fear, anxiety, depression, and loneliness. How do we journey WITH GOD through those things? Michael Swanson looked at the life of Elijah (a man like us - James 5:17), who struggled with many of these same things - and how he was cared for and called to LIFE in the midst of his fear and anguish.
Sharing vulnerably from his own experience, Nigel Morris spoke about when things go wrong - where God's love is when we find ourselves in a desert season. Nigel suggested we have become so accustomed to the cross, we often fail to see it as the "irresponsible love of God" that it is.
Last week, we spent time with Jesus in the desert. This week, we continued to look at what God is up to in desert seasons by spending some time with Moses in the desert. Pastor Michael Swanson brought out the intensity of the Israelites' time of waiting for the Promised Land, and how when it was finally offered - but at the exclusion of God's presence with them - Moses said, "No deal". And God honored this hunger for God's presence, going with them and giving them rest.
How do you navigate a spiritual "desert" season? What is God up to in those times? Michael Swanson looked at Jesus' 40 days in the desert and how it mirrors much of our own "desert" experience. This was the first Sunday of the 40-day Lent season (modeled itself after Jesus' time in the wilderness), and Michael asked very honest questions and temptations that might come up in a season like this.
Michael Swanson asks us the question, "Have we settled for the way things are?", looking at the life of Hannah in 1 Samuel, chapter 1. Hannah refused to give up, but instead took a stand and leaned further into prayer, desperate for God to "show up". We were invited to go "all in" like Hannah, looking to God to awaken a "sleepy" church.
Michael Swanson spoke about our church's vision this week - seeing our city transformed by the Love of Christ - and how that begins with transformation in each of our own individual lives. He spoke about the cycle we see in Judges, of a whole people group going through the cycle of spiritual decline and then revival - looking especially at the life of Gideon as one person who was transformed, and how that led to the transformation of an entire people.
Guest preacher Dr. Tony Baron, who is the Dean of Azusa Pacific Seminary's San Diego campus, an author, and a leader in our family of churches, spoke about the "awe moments" we encounter in life, and how they point to the majesty and mystery of God. He pointed out how Isaiah and Peter experienced their own "awe moments" in the Scripture passages we read, and how those revealed both God's holiness and love.