New Vision Fellowship: Recent Episodes
New Vision Fellowship
As Jesus arrived in Jerusalem on the first Palm Sunday, throngs of people sought to honor Him. Their example encourages us to do the same. Listen in for examples on how you can honor Him in an age of Coronavirus pandemic.
As the 18th chapter of Luke winds down, we find Jesus on His way to Jerusalem, where He will carry out the long-awaited rescue that God had promised since the fall of mankind. No work could be more important than what He was bound to do. Still, Jesus was willing to be bothered along the way by a blind beggar, as He stopped in His tracks and healed the man who came to Him by faith. Tune into this message to hear how we're all ultimately blind beggars in need of mercy, and yet Jesus still has mercy and grace in abundant supply to hear our cries and respond to our needs.
When a rich, young ruler comes to Jesus in search of a way to inherit eternal life, he seems like the ideal prospect - a very "good" guy on many accounts. But the words of the Great Physician diagnose a severe problem with his heart - good people aren't good enough for a perfect God. "Good" people, like all people, have a missing ingredient in their lives. They need God's grace to make the difference. So Jesus challenges the man to give up the idols which hold his heart behind the veneer of outward goodness, and this man's sad refusal presents a challenge for any of us who would allow something less than what Jesus offers us by His grace take the throne of our hearts. Could you be missing that key ingredient? Listen in to find out.
When we measure with the wrong ruler, we come out with the wrong results. In today's passage, we see Jesus teaching that's true in the spiritual realm as well. Through a short parable and a real-world encounter that Jesus' disciples face, we learn how dangerous it can be to measure our righteousness and the Lord's value for other individuals by using the wrong rulers.
When the Pharisees ask Jesus about the timing of the coming kingdom, He redirects their attention to the spiritual kingdom, which is already in their midst, led by Himself as the true king. He also gives several warnings that teach us how we can ensure we are not led astray such that we miss His future, physical Kingdom as He returns to the earth. Listen in to learn about the nature of these two kingdoms and how we can keep our eyes peeled so that we don't lose hope.
When 10 leppers came to Christ with a cry for mercy, He sent them to the priests. Along the way they were healed. Yet only one of them returned to give glory to God as he fell at the feet of Jesus in worship, leaving the Master to ask "where are the other 9?" Likewise, we see a much higher number of individuals who claim to know Christ than what we actually see returning to praise Him. Listen in to hear why these others may be missing out on the best of what Jesus has to offer.
As He ministered among a crowd including many individuals who were only focused on themselves, Jesus compelled His disciples to live out duties of discipleship which would shift them out of selfie mode. Are you struggling with broken relationships or content to steer clear of some who have upset you in the past? You may be living in selfie mode. Listen in to hear challenges from Jesus on refusing to be a stumbling block, rebuking fellow sinners, and forgiving fellow sinners.
In the parable of Lazarus and the rich man, 3 hearlds give testimony to the urgently important decision we each must make regarding our eternities, which Jesus make clear will be spent either in heaven or hell. Listen in to the warnings of these hearlds, which compel those of us who know Christ to become heralds ourselves in carrying the good news that makes all the difference.
As Joshua gave his final address to the nation that God had allowed him to lead into the Promised Land, he urged them to make a singular choice: serve the Lord. As Pastor Jeremy shows us in this week's sermon, that's a decision that all of us would be wise to consider afresh and anew as a new decade has begun. Listen in to this special Covenant Sunday message in which our members are encouraged to renew their membership covenant, and everyone is encouraged to take the next step in his or her growing walk with Christ.
When Jesus' teaching on money greets the scoffing of the Pharisees, He confronts them for their pursuits of self-justification and high esteemed among men. These Pharisees wanted to be the heroesoes - of their own salvation and in the eyes of the people. But Jesus shows them and us that it's not our place to be the heroes. He has come as the Hero to bring the rescue we need and the Lord we ought to serve. As a new decade arrives with 2020 and resolutions are made for the new year, each of us should pause to ask: Am I aiming for hero status, or Hero service?
God, through Isaiah, gave a promise long ago of a coming Child who would bring light to people living in spiritual darkness. Christmas is the celebration of that Child's arrival in the person of Jesus Christ - and His coming is good news for those then and now who struggle with the darkness in the forms of ignorance, iniquity, and insecurity.
Do you ever get the idea that the best celebrations of Christmas are enjoyed by kids? Or perhaps even that celebrating Christmas is no longer for you? Listen in to Zacharias' song in Luke 1:67-80 to discover why God's Gift, which we celebrate at Christmas, is worthy of a song and worthy of great celebration from those who are young and old alike!
As Zacharias and Elizabeth awaited the birth of their first child in their advanced years, there's much they could've been miserable about leading up to the first Christmas. Late-stage pregnancy pains and a lingering curse of muteness for unbelief could have easily been the focus of their attention and the loss of their joy. But they found merriness in the mercy of God - a mercy which is available for all of us as we, too, prepare to celebrate Christmas. Listen in to hear how you might cling to the mercy that makes us merry during this season.
What can you learn from a crook of a manager who steals from his employer to prepare for his own future? While that may sound like a bad source to learn lessons in godliness from, Jesus presents that sort of character to teach His disciples about God-honoring stewardship. Listen in for instruction on how all of Jesus' disciples -past and present- likewise serve as managers who must give an account of how we handle our earthly wealth. Take heart: in this brief testing ground of life, our wealth can be invested in unfailing rewards!
In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, the older son leaves his seat at the Thanksgiving celebration empty after his prodigal brother has come home. Here, we find some rich lessons on why we ought to give thanks to God in all things. Is your life short on the act of giving thanks, in essence, leaving your own chair at the thanksgiving celebration empty? Tune in to hear some rich lessons from God's word on how this parable might be aimed at you.
The Prable of the Lost Son- Part 2: When we look to the father of the prodigal son in Luke 15's famous parable, we encounter a father who is searching for a reason to celebrate. And when he sees his lost son coming home, the celebration begins. Listen in this message to catch a glimpse of God the Father's heart for the lost and the church's calling to join in the search for a reason to celebrate when one lost sinner repents.
When Jesus told the beloved Parable of the Prodigal Son, he spoke not only to the notorious sinners and self-righteous religious leaders who were gathered around Him; He laid out a story in which we can all find ourselves if we look closely enough. The message that rings clear for all is that you're not yet too far gone. If you are still living, there is still time to come to your senses in repentance and go beyond your senses to find God's wonderful grace and mercy.
What is the value of just one lost soul to Almighty God? While we may assume He is completely satisfied with the multitudes who have already found their hope in Him, in the Parable of the Lost Coin Jesus shows us that God actively searches for and rejoices upon finding just one sinner who has fallen from grace. Listen in and catch a glimpse of the worth of just one who is lost.
When Jesus fills his fellow Jews in as to why He welcomes tax collectors and sinners to come near and listen to Him, He begins with a parable of a shepherd of 100 sheep who leaves 99 of them behind to go after one that has gone astray. Though that sounds like a risky endeavor, Pastor Jeremy explains that the hope of the 99 lies in the fact that the shepherd goes after the one that has gone astray. Likewise, the hope and the joy of the church is that her Savior goes after the one that has gone astray.
When Jesus issued the costly call to discipleship, He did so by compelling individuals who were already "going along with Him" to "come after Me" with the costly discipleship that yielded all other concerns-family, fanfare, freedom, and finances- into His control. Anything less than coming after Jesus is obviously not true discipleship, which means that this challenge is one that every person who desires to be or claims to be a Christan must take to heart. Jesus, through a few small parables, shows those of us who are willing to count the cost the gravity of the decision we must be sure we're making if we want to come after Him in true discipleship. Listen in as Pastor Jeremy explores this high cost to discipleship in part 2 of his message on this important passage.
With so many self-proclaimed "Christians" in our present world who give no real evidence of a daily, whole-hearted pursuit of Christ, individuals have apparently gotten the impression that following Jesus is a simple, uncostly thing to do. But, Jesus never taught that discipleship is uncostly. Nor does He hide the costs in the fine print. On the contrary, Jesus compels those who want to come after Him to take up a daily life of costly discipleship. And He teaches that anything less than costly discipleship is not discipleship at all. Listen to learn more.
Excuses, excuses, excuses! That's what the Jews were giving in Jesus' day when their Messiah came and compelled them to come after Him. In the Parable of the Great Banquet, Jesus relays to us the danger of being left out because of our silly excuses when He holds a great banquet to welcome in those who have accepted His invitation to eternal life.
When He is invited to a meal at the home of one of the rulers of the Pharisees where individuals are jostling for social position and holding tight to oppressive traditions, Jesus compels His host and His fellow guests to take the route of humility. Listen in on this passage as Pastor Jeremy shows us how humility is the path a higher status in the Kingdom of God, where the least are given the greatest acclaim, and where those who forsake their own interests for others are granted eternal rewards.
In Luke 13:31-35, Jesus ' steadfast purpose to save and heart for those who have rejected Him are clearly on display as He presses' ugh an attempt to throuw Him off track and laments over the city of Jerusalem on His way to prove Himself as their long-awaited Messiah. The pleading in his words likens His desire for the children of Israel to the desire of a mother hen to draw her brood under the safety of her wings, but so many in Jerusalem would have none of that. As Pastor Jeremy shows us from this passage, the question we should each ask ourselves is "will I reject the safety of the Savior's wings?"
In this week's message, we encounter Jesus' teaching about how the narrow door that enters into the Kingdom of God. Listen in as Pastor Jeremy explains how the Master compels us to strive to come into the door that leads to eternal life while there's still time.
In this week's message, we encounter in Luke's gospel a healing and two parables that show how Christ and the Kingdom He brings exceed our expectations. But, not everyone is willing to allow their expectations to be exceeded. Two individuals in this passage show us the extremes of having or not having room for Christ to exceed one's expectations, compelling all of us to ask, "Is there room in my life for Christ to exceed my expectations? "
Tragedy, tragedy-all is tragedy. Sometimes when tragedy strikes, we wonder what lesson God would have us to learn in the aftermath. When God in the flesh preached to His people, He gave us a message about what any tragedy should teach us. Tun in to this week's message to hear Pastor Jeremy's exploration of this topic from the lips of Jesus in a message titled "The Greatest Tragedy."
When we think of Jesus as "The Prince of Peace," we may get the assumption that He has come to bring harmony among all the peoples of the earth in its current, unregenerate state. Yet, as Jesus clearly proclaims in Luke 12:49-59, He has come not to create peace on the earth, but division. In this week's message, Pastor Jeremy explains how Jesus has come as the great Divider of all of humanity, and how the division He creates must drive those of us who are in His church to multiply His glory on the earth.
Why should followers of Jesus buck against hypocrisy or steer away from greed or avoid worry or store up treasures in heaven? The pinnacle of the Christian’s hope, which ties together the directions of Christ in Luke 12, is the simple truth that Jesus is coming again. And His coming could happen at any time. Hear Pastor Jeremy elaborate on this foundational doctrine to the Christians’ hope in this message.
There should be marks of maturity in our spiritual lives the same as there are marks of maturity in the lives of children. The apostle Paul says we are to not remain spiritual babes, but we are to go on the maturity in Christ.
If worrying is worthless, as Jesus clearly shows that it is in His teaching to His disciples in Luke 12, what's the proper alternative? In this message, Pastor Jeremy digs deeper into Jesus' teaching. Here, we find that Jesus calls for His followers to re-orient their priorities in a kingdom-first pursuit such that the things they are seeking will have no need to be worried about because they are stored up in an incorruptible heavenly realm guarded by a loving and providing Father.
Do you worry about things that are out of your control? Jesus commands His followers not to worry, and thereby establishes that to worry is to sin. In fact, as Jesus turns His teaching toward His disciples in Luke 12, we find some stern instructions against a life of worry that show us just how worthless worrying can be. Listen in as Pastor Jeremy guides us through an examination of the worthlessness of worry, and shows us how true faith is such a better alternative
Greed. It’s a simple word, but it’s tentacles can reach deep into the human soul, and when they do, greed will drag an individual into a life that is far from God. Take a listen to Jesus’ teaching on greed as Pastor Jeremy identifies the dangers of greed from Luke 12:13-21 and guides us into a consideration of whether greed may have gotten past our guards.
After confronting the Pharisees directly, Jesus warned His disciples about the dangers of hypocrisy that ran rampant in the Pharisees' ranks. We all may be tempted at times to put up an outward facade - a costume, perhaps - of Christianity. But as he applies Jesus' instructions in this passage to our daily lives, Pastor Jeremy shows how we all must be careful to confess Christ while leaving the costumes behind.
In this message, Pastor Jeremy returns us to the lunch table conversation in which Jesus issues 6 woes to his legalistic dining companions. In these stern words, Jesus warns all of us about the lack of merit in any religion that has anything other than the transformation that only He can bring as He transforms the inside of who we are through His work of grace.
When Jesus is invited to lunch by a Pharisee who is offended by his refusal to observe the custom of ceremonially washing His hands before the meal, Jesus gives the Pharisee and his lawyer friend some stern lessons on the dangers of an outside-only religion through 6 woes which He pronounces upon them. Pastor Jeremy reflects on how we all have tendencies to practice a religion that is outside-only at times, and how we must heed Jesus' warnings as we seek to live a faith that permeates all that we are on the inside and the outside.
It is important that we understand that not only is God real, but he is present universally. We cannot hide from God no matter where we go. As believers, we need to read and understand the Word of God so that we understand how to live our lives. Listen as it is also explained how we learn to take responsibility for our actions and accept the consequences that come along with them.
Good fathers seek abundant opportunities to relay words of wisdom to their children. Like a letter sent with priority, signed, delivered with wisdom, and expecting a response, Jesus reveals that hearing and obeying the word of His heavenly Father is the path of blessing for those who want to be truly blessed.
David Woolwine shares a message with us about love. He teaches us about what love really is and how we should recognize and cherish the love of God. He also shares with us how important it is to remain in love with our Savior and how to share that love to those in the world.
What if you’re wrong about Jesus? Through the example of some who accuse Jesus of doing His miraculous works by the power of Satan and others who never consider His works as enough, God’s word calls all of us to consider how we may have some misunderstandings about who Jesus is and what He has come to do.
As Jesus continues to teach His disciples how to pray, He urges all of His disciples past and present to pray compassionately, courageously, consistently, and confidently.
When a disciple comes to Jesus and asks how to pray, our Lord replies with a model prayer. This prayer has rich applications for each disciple who desires rich fellowhip with our Heavenly Father.
When Jesus visits the home of Martha and Mary, Jesus's response to Martha's intended rebuke of her sister gives us insights into the one thing that is necessary in Jesus's eyes.
In response to a lawyer's question of "Who is my neighbor?," Jesus lays down a parable that challenges every follower of His to love our neighbors by stepping closer, showing compassion, sparing no cost, and shaming our critics.
When a lawyer stands before Jesus, he asks an important question that we all must consider: "What must I do to inherit eternal life." Jesus's response to this man's question is edifying to each and every person as He draws this man to the Law of God in order to show him that more is needed.
After Peter's three denials of Jesus, he wept bitterly. Peter needed a second chance, just as we all do in light of our sins and slips. The Resurrection of Christ from the grave, just as it did for Peter, offers all of us a second chance.
When the 70 return from their evangelistic campaign, they rejoice together, along wtih Jesus about the results. All of this rejoicing contains some lessons on what produces lasting joy for each of us.
As Jesus sends out 70 disciples to prepare the way for Him, He instructs them how they should be going. On this side of His resurrection, Christians likewise have a Great Commission which calls for us to go, and Jesus' instructions give us rich insights into how to get going.
3 men encountered Jesus as He called together disciples to send out to the cities where He Himself would be going. In His call, Jesus refused to sugar coat the high demands of true discipleship, teaching all potential disciples important lessons about the radical call of true discipleship through the hesitations of these 3.
After an extended focus on Jesus' ministry in Galilee, Luke shifts focus to show how Jesus has now prepared His disciples to hit the road as He sets His sights on Jerusalem for much of the remainder of the book. As the disciples head out with Him, we find great lessons on traveling with the Master, as each of us is called to do.
Shortly after witnessing His transfiguration, Jesus' disciples are found spiritually weak and prayerless and prideful as they, having witnessed the Greatest One who ever lived, argue amongst themselves as to which of them is the greatest. Jesus rebukes their pride and teaches us all lessons about true greatness in heaven's Kingdom as He does.
When Jesus takes His 3 closest disciples up on the mountain for prayer, His prayer is answered with a greater revelation of who He is as the disciples capture a glimpse of His glory through the transfiguration. What we find is that things are not as they seem when it comes to this One.
"Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it," Jesus says, as He makes it clear that we can't keep what we can earn. Hear this powerful second part of Pastor Jeremy's message on why we must come after Christ through daily death.
Just after they come to recognize that Jesus is the Christ, He begins to explain to His disciples the great cost and the even greater reward that comes with following Him. As Luke 9:23-27 reveals, nothing less than daily death to self for every one who knows Him as Lord is worthy of this great Redeemer.
In Jesus' day, there was a great difference between Who the crowds said He was and Who His disciples said He was. As Peter steps up to confess Jesus as the Christ, his confession gives each of us insight into how we, too, ought to answer this most important quesiton - a question weighing heavy on all minds, but a question with only one answer that Jesus calls blessed.
In the miracle known as the Feeding of the 5,000, God's word teaches us some rich lessons about how God intends to use us to meet the needs of others, just the way He stepped in to meet our greatest needs through His personal sacrifice.
As Luke juxtaposes the sending of Jesus' disciples out into their home region for ministry with Herod's questions of who Jesus is, we find some important lessons about how each of us has an account to give.
When Jairus' 12 year old daughter died, someone from his house told him not to trouble the teacher anymore. But through His words and actions of compassionate healing, Jesus shows us that our troubles are no trouble for this Teacher.
In a populated world where we often just feel like one in the crowd, we find some deep truths from a woman who stood out among a great crowd and was commended by Jesus for her stellar faith. Her example encourages each of us to trust in His timing, His compassion, His power, and His plans.
In the first service of 2019, we gather to renew our covenant to the Lord and to consider what's the next step each of us should take in our walk with Christ. Paul's letter to a younger pastor named Titus gives us some insights into how we need to be reminded of things like this that grace should spring forth in our lives.
As a man with a legion of demons is healed by Jesus and faces a new day in his own life, his conduct teaches us some rich lessons about the business each of us shoudl be striving for in the new year.
As we dig into Luke's gospel account of the Christmas story, we find something like a Broadway musical with Luke's narration intertwined with songs of joy from those who encountered love come down in the form of Christ. As the first of these, Mary's song has lessons for us to learn about finding the joy of what God provides in the midst of meager circumstances.
When we read the account of the shepherds in the fields watching over their flocks by night, God's word says that the glory of the Lord shone about them. Brother Keith Richardson draws our attention to that oft-overlooked facet of the first Christmas and calls us to consider all that God's glory means for us.
As Jesus stills the sea, He shows Himself to be a fierce-weather friend who is willing to bear the storm to guide those He loves to safety.
"Take care how you listen," Jesus teaches us in Luke 8. And as He teaches this lesson, He provides rich insights into how we ought to listen to the Word of God.
Do you exercise selective hearing when it comes to God's word? Through the Parable of the Sower, Jesus teaches us how to rightly hear the Word of God.
Through a sinful woman's great display of love as she anointed His feet, Jesus teaches us a lesson about how to find and how to live in light of the greatest love.
As Jesus explains John the Baptist's ministry to the crowds who have heard his question about whether Jesus is the expected One, Jesus gives greater clarity to the truth that He is the One all of history has been waiting for.
Luke records an important question from John the Baptist that we would all be wise to consider: is Jesus the Expected One? Is He the One that all of humanity has been waiting for? All of our hope rides on this one question.
As Jesus heals the son of a widow from Nain, His heart of compassion and His power over death are greatly on display.
When a Roman centurion requests Jesus' healing for his deathly sick servant, something about the centurion's faith is so remarkable that even Jesus marvels, drawing our attention to lessons we all need about the faith that honors Him.
In the closing verses of what is known as the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus calls for every one of us to consider the foundation that we are building our lives on.
In what is known as the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus teaches His disciples how to live life with a mercy that multiplies. God's mercy instructs the way we judge, lead, correct, and inspect others as we keep the mercy we've received at the fore of all we do towards others.
As we dig deeper into what Jesus has to say that directs us to live with a one way love, we find that the source of this love is none other than our great God Himself.
Jesus shocks our senses with His call to love others even when there's no chance of a positve return on our investment. It's a call to One Way Love from the One Way to eternal life.
As Jesus calls His disciples and flips the script in His teaching on who is blessed or woeful from a heavenly perspective, we catch a glimpse of the sort of holy hunger that ought to characterize the lives of His followers.
Even as Jesus shows others that He is the Source of ultimate rest that they need, we find that He sets an example of restlessness for others to follow in doing the Lord's work until that ultimate rest is fully realized.
As Jesus corrects the misperceptions of the Pharisees about the Sabbath, He ties into a larger narrative even from the dawn of creation which shows us that there's a greater rest we need, and it's a rest that only He can provide.
In Luke's telling of a difference in religious practices of Jesus' disciples, we learn that Jesus comes to make things new in a way that the old system cannot bear.
Keith Richardson brings a stirring message on how to slow down and bring meaning to che chaos of our lives.
In Matthew's call to follow Jesus we find God's word debunking some common assumptions about following Jesus.
As Jesus heals a paralized man, he shows us His willingness to address the outcasts of society and His authority to address the greatest ailment we all possess.
When a leper comes to Jesus for cleansing, we learn some important lessons about what Jesus is willing to do and how we should come to Him.
After a fruitless night of fishing, Jesus works a miracle to bring a few fishermen to a point where they are ready to leave everything and follow Him. Pastor Jeremy summarizes confessions of a true disciple that are exemplified as these men, and especially Peter, anaswer the call.
In this final message on "A New Vision for New Vision," Pastor Jeremy urges us to live all of life on mission by emphasizing that mature disciples go.
Focusing on the final objective of A New Vision for New Vision, Pastor Jeremy leads the flock to understand that the vision is in transition until each individual is living life on mission.
As a continuation of presenting a new vision for our flock, Pastor Jeremy explains how God has designed for disciples to be filled with the expertise of other disciples through the mentoring relationships of relational discipleship.
Continuing through our "New Vision for New Vision" series, Pastor Jeremy explains our objective to see individuals filled with truth and purpose for God's glory and how we long to see a church where every member is a minister, serving Christ.
Pastor Jeremy continues to present a new vision for our flock as we press on in the Lord's work by showing how this must be a place where commitments are made to be a part of God's family and servants of His work.
In this installment of our focus on "A New Vision for New Vision," Pastor Jeremy tackles how Christian transformation takes place and how we as a body ought to be focusing our efforts on helping others to find transformation by reflecting Christ.
In this third message in a series of messages introducing a new vision vision for our church, Pastor Jeremy introduces the second emphasis of our vision: we desire that through this fellowship Christ would cause multitudes to be formed into a new vessel by God's transforming power.