New Life of Asheville Messages: Recent Episodes
New Life of Asheville
The encounter between Jesus and a Greek-speaking, Syrophoenician, Canaanite, Gentile woman can be confusing and even sound offensive. Her approach and response is instructive for Jesus’ disciples then and now, and Jesus shows a great priority in His mission that is critical for every one of His followers. From the Old Testament to Jesus’ time to the book of Acts, God has made it clear that His grace is for people from every tribe, people, nation and language.
The story of Jesus and Nicodemus is a famous one. In this dialogue with a wise, old religious teacher, Jesus drops a bombshell that reframed the human understanding of God’s Kingdom. It’s not enough to be moral. Or follow a list of do’s and don'ts. To see the Kingdom of God, you have to experience a new birth. Jesus didn’t come to make you better, He came to make you brand new!
Ever meet someone who seemingly had it all? Wealth, position, the picture perfect family Christmas card…only to find out they’re one of the most miserable people you know? It's a story as old as time. Jesus encountered a young guy that fit this mold to a tee. Though he was spiritual, he loved something else more than Jesus. The truth is, self-reliance will keep you out of the kingdom and disordered loves will keep you out of heaven. Following Jesus will cost you something, but not following Him will cost you everything. The call of Jesus is: go all in!
Life is full of storms. Literal storms like Helene, and figurative storms that threaten to swamp us relationally, emotionally, financially, and physically. Peter’s encounter with Jesus on the stormy waters of the Sea of Galilee, drives our understanding of faith into a deeper place. We learn that focusing on Jesus in the storms of life, allows us to stand even as others around us sink. Jesus invites us to look at Him in the storm, and in so doing, rise above our circumstances as we walk in freedom, peace, and joy.
There are certain times in life that allow for more clarity. A natural disaster like Helene is one of those times that allow us to recalibrate our lives. I believe God wants to offer us a hard reset rather than just resuming our old ways. We can walk this path of resetting into a healthier pathway by eliminating the non-essentials in our lives and turning from sin as we embrace the New Way of Jesus. We can’t reset our lives in our own strength, of course, but Jesus is our reset button. Press into Him, and reset your life around things that bring the abundant life instead of things that produce stress, toxic thought patterns, and destructive priorities in life.
Sometimes we can take our forgiveness in Christ for granted. We can lose perspective on just how great a gift Jesus and His redemptive work in our lives really is. In Luke 7, Jesus encounters a self-righteous man and a woman who was a notorious sinner in her city. Though the host neglects the customary kindness of greeting Jesus, providing a washing basin for His feet, and anointing His head…this sinful woman, broken by shame, but freed by forgiveness, does all of this in extravagant fashion. This encounter teaches us that Jesus can erase our shame and reframe our life, regardless of where we’ve been, what we’ve done, or what others think about us. There’s more mercy in Christ than sin in us!
When Jesus encounters perhaps the most despised man in the city of Jericho, the unimaginable becomes reality. Jesus not only speaks to Zacchaeus, He invites Himself to the tax collector’s home. The hated outcast and the savior of the world. The compassion of Jesus transforms the wicked traitor into a generous, joy-filled child of the new kingdom. Jesus changes everything!
A real encounter with Jesus changes everything. When a handful of people decided to risk it all to get their paralyzed friend in front of the healer from Nazareth, sins were forgiven, bodies were healed, and preconceived notions about the authority of Jesus were obliterated. This famous story teaches us about the power of Jesus, the faith of friends, and living in awe of the one who speaks and changes everything forever.
The Bible is foundational to everything that disciples of Jesus believe, but is that foundation solid? How can we know? Hasn’t it been translated countless times and changed over the centuries? We’ll discuss at least five reasons we can trust the Bible and confidently build our lives on the truth God has revealed about Himself.
Even though Joseph had forgiven his brothers years prior, they continued to live in fear after Jacob’s death. We too, need to be reminded of the forgiveness we possess in Christ, despite the feelings of shame and condemnation that assault our hearts at times. Joseph’s response to his brother’s ill-founded fear teaches us invaluable spiritual truths like: leaving justice in God’s hands, trusting the providence of God’s goodness over man’s malice, and leaving a legacy of hope for future generations. A life well lived for the glory of God is the “good life” we all seek!
After 22 long years, Jacob is finally reunited with his long-lost and treasured son, Joseph. The details of this reunion account are packed with deep spiritual insight for the people of God even today. Lessons like: • When God calls you, go all in! • God’s past faithfulness propels present confidence • We should bless the culture around us • Delight in God stills earthly fears • Embrace the pilgrim identity (this earth is not our home)...and so many more! May God do a deep work in us, just like he did in Jacob so many years ago, both for our good and His glory!
What does it look like to forgive and seek reconciliation in the Kingdom of God? In these chapters, we see Joseph finally revealing his identity to his brothers. Would he respond from his woundedness in anger and exact justice? Joseph teaches us what it looks like when we forgive as forgiven people. Forgiveness allows reconciliation to flow into restoration. And ultimately, this picture points us to the cross – where ultimate forgiveness flowed into ultimate restoration.
Learing to be Content in Christ - Daniel Dixon, Guest Preacher 07 21 24 by New Life of Asheville
The story of Joseph is all about God turning what seems bad into good. After great suffering, Joseph was raised up, taken out of prison, and given power. As the famine spreads across the known world, an unlikely reunion with the very brothers who sold him into slavery brings Joseph to tears. Instead of seeking revenge, he shows them grace, and puts them on a path of reconciliation while hiding his identity from them. We see the truth that nobody can thwart the plan of God. We bask in the truth that freedom begins where our hiding ends. And that what the enemy means for our harm, God means it for our good! Genesis 42
After over a decade of slavery + prison, God pulls Joseph out of the pit & places him in the palace. After interpreting Pharaoh's dreams, Joseph is elevated to the 2nd most powerful man on planet earth. Through this story we can draw almost innumerable applications like: God has a design in delay. We can’t microwave what God intends to crock-pot in our lives. Suffering is a test, but so is success. When things are going well…do we praise God, prepare for harder times ahead, walk in boldness, and step into purpose? Or do we put our lives in cruise-control and forget God?Read: Genesis 41
What does it mean to follow Jesus? Are there essentials of being a disciple? In Mark 1, Jesus gives us 3 components of becoming a disciple. At its core it's: relational, transformational, and missional. Said another way, it’s being with Jesus, becoming like Jesus, & doing what Jesus did. Unfortunately, many of us settle for being Jesus fan-boys/girls, when He’s invited us to experience so much more!
In Genesis 40, Joseph shows us what it looks like to serve others in suffering. He models overcoming evil with good, as he walks with compassion with an eye for those who are hurting around him. He also shows us the importance of speaking truth in love even as he navigates his own disappointment, feeling alone and seemingly forgotten. But as we’ll see as this story continues to unfold, Joseph was anything but forgotten by God!
Life is war. Our spiritual life is a battle, and we have a real, unseen enemy force working overtime to destroy our lives, the people we love, and everything that matters to us. What if so many of us fall to temptation over and over again, because we haven’t mapped out a plan to fight ahead of time? What does the story of Joseph and the teachings of Jesus and His disciples tell us about preparing for and winning the battle we’re engaged in?
Joseph, now a slave in Egypt, finds success because God is with him. Potiphar elevates him to chief of staff and gives him dominion over his land and possessions. Right as things seem to be taking a positive turn for Joseph, Potiphar’s wife tries to seduce him, and Joseph refuses to betray his boss or his God. Consequently, he is falsely accused and imprisoned. And yet, even in the dungeon of life, God’s presence is with Joseph, and favor follows him. This chapter in Joseph’s story has much to teach us about vocation, temptation, and frustration. Through it all, if we have God’s presence, our souls can feast in the penthouse or dungeons of life.
They say honesty is the best policy, so what happens when we get honest about ourself! Discover how your life and life in the body of Christ can become a place filled with honest people. Be reminded how good it is to come clean about your sinfulness and celebrate your forgiveness in God's redemptive plan!
In heaven all the tasks of the church will cease, no more sermons, no more missions, the only thing that will remain is worship. Our worship will bring us as close to heaven as possible until we get there.
Jesus closes with one final section that serves as the climax of His most famous sermon. We all have a choice in life, either we build the house that is our lives on the foundation of the shifting sands of culture, or on the immovable rock that is Jesus Christ. And the truth is that the strong foundation only gets built when we shift from hearing Jesus to applying His teachings to our lives. Let’s build our lives on the only foundation that will never crumble in the storms of this life!
As Jesus begins to turn the corner & put a wrap on the Sermon on the Mount, He issues a series of invitations and warnings to His hearers. Last week, He warned us to choose the narrow gate & the hard way over the easy way & wide gate. This week, He warns us to beware of false teachers. How can we identify the wolves who come cloaked as sheep? By examining their lives, their message, and their walk with Jesus. We need to live in lock-step with the Good Shepherd… immersed in His Word, and led by His Spirit, we can walk in safety & freedom, even among the wolves!
When we begin to live out of a vibrant relationship with God, trusting that He will meet all of our needs, we will inevitably experience the freedom and impulse to live out the golden rule. The truth is, a relationship with God changes every other relationship. But, we have to make sure we enter His Kingdom through the narrow gate. The world offers a wide and easy gate, but it leads to destruction and death. The narrow gate of the Kingdom is less traveled, more difficult, and few find it. And yet, it’s the only pathway to abundant life in this world and the one to come.
In this section of His most famous sermon, Jesus gives us a command and a promise. If you really believed that God is deeply good, and that He answers the passionate and persistent prayers of His beloved children, how would your prayer life be different than it is today? Ask, seek, knock…our God already knows, and He’s highly relational. He likes to be asked, so be bold, be consistent, be persistent. God is good & God answers the prayers of His children…so pray! Ask. Seek. Knock.
“Judge not, lest you be judged!” is one of the most quoted verses in the Bible by Christians and non-Christians alike. But did Jesus really mean it’s never good for us to make judgment calls or use discernment about other’s actions? What we see in this passage is Jesus teaching us how to judge without being judgmental. That begins with getting the log out of our own eye, so we can help others with the speck in theirs!
“Do not worry” is repeated three times in this classic teaching of Jesus. It sounds nice - but in our day and age, is this realistic? With all that is going on, how can we not worry? Jesus gives His disciples reasons they don’t have to worry, and a way to focus our attention and activities in a way that will have eternal value.
Money and possessions reveal the human heart like nothing else does. The lie of our day is: the more I have in my hands, the happier I’ll be in my heart. But both studies and our own experience tell us that’s simply not true. Money is a tool, much like a knife. Is a knife good or bad? It depends on who’s wielding it (a surgeon or a madman?). Jesus teaches us that as citizens in the new kingdom, it’s important for us to have the right treasure, right lens, and right master. The message is clear: invest your life in what really matters!
It’s amazing that out of everything the disciples could have asked Jesus to teach them how to do (walk on water, turn water into wine, resurrect the dead, cast out demons) they ask Him how to … pray? What follows is a pattern of prayer that’s remarkable not for its length, but for its exquisite depth. Jesus teaches us that prayer is personal–we come to God as our Father, not as a distant deity. We come to Him in adoration and worship for His greatness and love. We petition for heaven to breakthrough in our lives, marriages, families, careers and neighborhoods. We ask for our daily needs with boldness, seek forgiveness with confidence, and beg for deliverance from the snares of our enemy. In this way, we plug into God’s presence and power in our lives. May we increasingly become a people of prayer at New Life as we learn the ancient ways of Jesus!
As we step into chapter 6, Jesus is going to shift into some practical instruction surrounding 3 core spiritual disciplines: giving, prayer, and fasting. The primary focus here is on taking off our spiritual masks and learning to genuinely love God rather than trying to impress people. As citizens of the new kingdom of Jesus, we should give generously & quietly. We should pray sincerely and for the approval of our Heavenly Father. And finally, we should fast to please God and tap into His presence and power, rather than to impress our peers. So many of us fall into the subtle trap of hypocrisy, but Jesus came to free us from the chains of mask-wearing and people-pleasing!
The last couple of weeks in the Sermon on the Mount have been pretty intense as Jesus has peeled back the layers on several controversial topics like anger, lust, marriage, and divorce. This week, we’ll hear Jesus finish the last 3 of his “you have heard it said, but I say to you…” statements as He tackles oaths, retaliation, and love for our enemies. As people who belong to the Kingdom of Jesus, we are to be truth-tellers, entrust justice to God, and love the very ones who detest us. In these ways, we show that we belong to another Kingdom…and the only way we can live so radically, is with the help of Jesus as we walk in the power of the Holy Spirit.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus discusses many hard things. Among them, is the topic of marriage and divorce. This week’s sermon will focus on the beauty of marriage, the devastation of divorce, while pointing to the healing and hope found in Christ. We’ll look at the prevailing views for biblically permissible divorce, while also driving home the truth that marriage matters to God because of what it symbolizes, namely Jesus and His bride–the Church.
In the last section of this famous sermon, Jesus told His hearers that they would never enter the kingdom of heaven unless their righteousness exceeded that of the Pharisees. This week, He shows us what that deeper righteousness looks like. He tells us that an outward obedience that simply conceals a heart that is far from God is not what He’s after. The commands in the Law prohibiting murder and adultery might seem like some of the easiest to keep, and yet Jesus exposes us at the heart-level, so that He might point us to the new hearts we need that are only found in Him!
There are few issues in culture today that have generated more confusion than the topic of gender. Contrary to the popular thought of the day that gender is merely a social construct, the Scriptures teach that gender is actually a beautiful part of God’s good design for His glory and our flourishing. Men and women are equal in dignity, value, and worth, and yet have been given distinct functions in the church and home. Men and women together, with all of their unique differences and strengths, most fully display the goodness of God to the world around them. While Scripture teaches that the office of elder/pastor is reserved for certain qualified men, we believe that both men and women receive the full allotment of spiritual gifts. Our desire is to see our church flourishing as both women and men are fully empowered to use all of their giftings to the fullest both inside the church, and outside the four walls to expand the kingdom of Jesus far and wide!
Practicing the spiritual discipline of gratitude has always been a key marker of God’s people. As a church, we have so much to be grateful for over the past year. God has been big in and through our faith family! And yet, the mission isn’t finished. As Jesus reminds us in the parable of the hidden treasure, His kingdom is like a treasure so valuable, that it's worth giving up everything to obtain. It’s like a pearl you’d sell everything you’ve ever owned to get your hands on. The truth is, we all give our time, treasure, and talent to that which we value most. So let’s leverage 2024 to help those in our circles of influence find & follow Jesus, and let’s link arms together as we advance the mission of King Jesus as a church family in Asheville and to the ends of the earth!
As Jesus moves from teaching about being salt & light in a dark and decaying world, we shift into a section of this most famous sermon that helps us understand how to read the Bible. Jesus is reminding us of the total truthfulness of Scripture down to the smallest detail, even in the Old Testament. In fact, all of Scripture points to Jesus. That’s why He could say that He’s the fulfillment of the law. And yet, obeying the law without a new heart and the power of the Holy Spirit is impossible. Which is the whole point! In Jesus, we get a new heart and His Spirit which empowers us to obey not from a place of duty, but from a place of pure delight!
Last week we saw Jesus launch the Sermon on the Mount with a section called the beatitudes. If the kingdom principles found in the beatitudes seem somewhat theoretical, the next section on salt & light makes it all very practical. You see, in Jesus’ day–two foundational pillars of everyday life were salt & light. While salt preserves, flavors, and even ignites thirst–light illuminates. Jesus is telling us not to lose our saltiness or hide our light. As disciples of Jesus we called to preserve a decaying world and shine as light into the darkness so that others might know the true source of life and light: Jesus Christ!
It’s been called the greatest sermon ever preached by the greatest preacher to ever live. The Sermon on the Mount is Jesus’ most in-depth and well-known sermon. In it, Jesus describes His upside-down kingdom in glorious detail. He opens this famous sermon with a section commonly called the beatitudes. Eight marks of those who live in this upside-down kingdom of Jesus. Eight tenets of a new way of life for the citizens of a new kingdom. A way of life that’s so radical, that no one can achieve it on their own. Only the Spirit of God within us can empower us to live this new way for our good and His glory!
Wonder of Oneness - Jonathan Jones, Connections Pastor 12 31 23 by New Life of Asheville
Christmas Eve: God Made Known - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 12 24 23 by New Life of Asheville
Advent: Receiving the Light - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 12 17 23 by New Life of Asheville
Advent: Witness to the Light - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 12 10 23 by New Life of Asheville
BASICS: Believer’s Baptism - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 11 19 23 by New Life of Asheville
Compelled By Love: The Extraordinary Ordinary Life - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 11 12 23 by New Life of Asheville
Compelled By Love: The Missionary God - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 11 05 23 by New Life of Asheville
Compelled by Love: Impressed by the Gospel Alone - Welton Bonner, Guest Preacher 10 29 23 by New Life of Asheville
Rhythms: Community & Service - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 10 08 23 by New Life of Asheville
Rhythms: Simplicity & Generosity - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 10 01 23 by New Life of Asheville
Rhythms: Prayer & Fasting - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 09 24 23 by New Life of Asheville
Rhythms: Sabbath & Celebration - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 09 17 23 by New Life of Asheville
Rhythms: Silence & Solitude - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 09 10 23 by New Life of Asheville
Spiritual Warfare: The Kingdom of God Powerfully Advances - Rich Miller, New Life Elder 09 03 23 by New Life of Asheville
Spiritual Warfare: Our Identity in Christ - Steve Harris, Guest Preacher 08 20 23 by New Life of Asheville
Spiritual Warfare: The Strategist - Joe Dillon, Guest Preacher 08 13 23 by New Life of Asheville
Spiritual Warfare: The Epic War - Rich Miller, Church Elder 08 06 23 by New Life of Asheville
In this sermon we conclude our Romans chapter 8 study by looking at God's inseparable love for us and how, as His children, we respond to such love. Paul reminds us that a secured love in Christ leads to an assured life!
Romans 8:28-30 Rodney Howell, Local and Global Outreach Pastor 07 16 23 by New Life of Asheville
Romans 8: A New Identity - Rodney Howell, Local and Global Outreach Pastor 07 02 23 by New Life of Asheville
Romans 8 - Set Your Mind, Alan-Michael Sprinkle, Guest Pastor 06 25 23 by New Life of Asheville
Romans 8 - Delusion, Guilt, or Freedom - Joe Dillon, Guest Pastor 06 18 23 by New Life of Asheville
This little psalm of ascent was penned by king Solomon and is packed with wisdom. It reminds us that it’s possible to work hard, build a life, and raise a family and do it all in vain. Without reliance on God, all of our striving can lead us to a place of worry, anxiety, and empty toil. Solomon reminds us to rely on God for provision and protection. To rest in Him in the chaos of this life. And to trust Him to bless our families in ways we never thought possible in our own strength. It is God who builds, blesses, and provides rest. Learning to rely on Him is a huge key in unlocking the abundant life Jesus promised those who follow Him!
Psalm 126 is a community psalm of thanksgiving that focuses on the theme of restoration. We all need to experience restoration and renewal in different seasons of our lives. This psalm tells us several things about the supernatural restoration we all need; it’s God-supplied, awe-inspiring, joy-producing, and serves as a powerful testimony to the world. How do we get this type of deep life-changing renewal? Two ways: prayer and sowing. We pray for restoration and keep sowing the seeds of spiritual disciplines. Through tears even, we keep sowing the seeds of prayer, reading scripture, worshiping with the saints each Sunday, showing up to our community groups, practicing generosity–and when God sends the rains, and He will, we will reap a harvest of joy!
We’ve all experienced the pain of misplaced trust. Whether we placed our trust in a person who failed us, or perhaps an organization, or even a political party, misplaced trust can be pretty devastating. Conversely, placing our faith in the right things, can set us up for a life of success, fulfillment, and purpose. Psalm 125 gives us five things we can expect when we place our ultimate trust in God: stability, security, protection, goodness, and peace. Through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, we can experience an abundant life even amidst the chaos and pain of the fallen world we live in.
As pilgrims on this journey called life, we all experience danger in various shapes and forms. King David, who wrote this particular psalm, certainly was no stranger to danger. As God’s people, what should we do when we stare into the face of the dangers of a fallen world? David points our hearts to a three-step process in Psalm 124: remember, praise, and apply. Remember the ways God has delivered you in the past. Allow His track-record to inspire your heart to worship even in the face of danger, and finally, apply these truths to your life in such a way that brings a sense of peace and calm only the Holy Spirit can bring to those who have been bought & redeemed by the blood of Jesus.
The psalmist looks to God with humble dependence, recognizing His sovereignty and mercy. The psalmist acknowledges his own lowly position and lifts his eyes to the Lord, trusting in His unfailing love and grace. The psalm emphasizes the importance of seeking God's mercy and relying on Him in times of difficulty, and ends with a call to trust in the Lord and His steadfast love.
Ascent - Ascent into Joy and Peace - Steve Harris, Guest Pastor 05 07 23 by New Life of Asheville
In some real sense, the cry of every human heart is: “help!”. We all need help at times in life. The real question is: where do we turn for that help? The psalmist here is reminding us that the true source of help is found in only one place. Psalm 121 is one of the most beloved psalms throughout time & history precisely because it gives us an answer to the question at hand, and because it comforts the soul of the Christ follower. We learn that the Creator is our helper. That the Almighty is our protector through the flames & trials of this life. And that the Lord will keep us from evil as He works all things together for the good of those who love Him!
The Christian life is a pilgrimage. We’re on a journey from where we are to the heart of God. For centuries, it is believed that the people of God sang these 15 songs (Psalms 120-134) as they made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to worship God three times each year. These psalms are intended to take us on a spiritual journey closer to God. This book of short psalms begins with Psalm 120 which points us to several core truths about the journey with and to God. Things like recalling the faithfulness of God in the past, the importance of prayer when we are in distress, God’s deliverance, and His peace amidst the lies of this world and the pain inflicted on us by others. Buckle up, the journey ahead may be raw and messy at times, but it will lead us to the heart & presence of God!
He is risen! For Christ-followers, Easter is a celebration unlike any other. For non-Christians, Easter serves as the greatest invitation ever extended. The truth is, a man who was executed by Rome 2,000 years ago coming back to life seems to many like nothing more than a far-fetched fairytale. But a deeper look reveals that believing Jesus rose from the dead isn’t an unreasonable conclusion to arrive at. More than simple historical fact, the resurrection of Jesus is an invitation into abundant life. Not just in heaven one day when we die, but right here, right now. The devil could not stop Him, the cross could not defeat Him, and the grave could not hold Him. Jesus is alive!
Palm Sunday - Rodney Howell - Local & Global Outreach Pastor 04 02 23 by New Life of Asheville
The apostle John closes this powerful little letter with a flurry of incredible promises for the follower of Jesus. We can know that we have several assurances in Christ: eternal life, answered prayers, victory over sin, knowledge that we belong to God, and confidence that Jesus is the truth. These promises unleash the Christian to live life fully devoted to Jesus and the advancement of His Kingdom in both big and small ways!
Chapter five opens with John driving home the core message of the entire Christian movement: belief in Jesus = life. This life in Jesus (new birth) leads to a supernatural desire to obey God. Obedience shifts from drudgery to delight when we experience a love relationship with our Creator. This faith in Jesus makes us conquerors in this world. Finally, John points to the three-fold testimony of the water (baptism of Jesus), the blood (crucifixion of Jesus), and the Spirit (Holy Spirit) as evidence that Jesus is the Son of God and the source of true life for all human beings.
As we begin to land the plane on chapter four, John points our hearts to some exciting truths. God has given us His Spirit. Friend, we have the same Holy Spirit inside of us that raised Jesus from the dead! This should cause us to freely confess the Son. In a day and age when professing a Christian worldview has gone out of vogue, we ought to unashamedly testify to the Son who saved us and set us free. In turn, this should cause us to trust the Father’s love, even in the face of the day of judgment. Followers of Jesus have nothing to fear in life or death! This reality frees us up to love God with all of our hearts, and to love one another like He has loved us.
The number one mark of a born-again Christian is a love relationship with God that is evident in how we love one another. The command in this section is clear: love one another. John then gives several reasons why this is so critical in the Christ follower’s life. Firstly, we love because God is the genesis of love. We can’t possibly know the source of love and not live a life of love. Secondly, we love because this is God’s greatest gift to us, in the form of Jesus. Lastly, our love makes an invisible God visible to the world in a way that points them to their Creator and brings Him the glory He deserves.
Believe it or not, we were all born into a raging spiritual war. The invisible realm is every bit as real as the chair you’re sitting on right now. Westerners tend to either disbelieve in the spiritual world, or become obsessed with the unseen realm in an unhealthy way. Many spiritual teachers, even in the Church, are false prophets leading many astray. As Christ followers, we are called to test everything we hear, read or see. We test our own thoughts and take everything captive to the obedience of King Jesus. The filter of truth is the gospel of Jesus. He came, lived, died, rose and now rules & reigns at the right hand of the Father. If Jesus isn’t at the center, it’s not from God. We must learn to be a people of discernment and truth in a spiritually dark culture.
So far, John has focused the first part of his letter on the concept of God as Light. Now, he begins the shift into the second major section of his letter by focusing on God as Love. He does so by using the art of contrast. Love vs. hate. Cain vs. Christ. At the end of the day, the point is clear: no love = no life. Love for one another is a critical mark of the believer. As those who have been loved extravagantly, we in turn love our brothers and sisters in Christ sacrificially and generously. This kind of love serves as assurance that our faith is genuine and very much alive.
As we look back to some beautiful things God has done in us and through us a community of faith over the last year, we pause to celebrate God’s continued goodness to us. As we look forward to a future God already inhabits, we’re encouraged by the blueprint we find in Acts 2 of a church living in community, impacting the world around them, and multiplying disciples who found and followed Jesus joyfully in a hostile world. God has given each follower of Christ a role to play in His grand plan of redemption through time and history. The only question that remains is: will you play your part in His plan of drawing people from darkness to light through Jesus?
Last week, John introduced us to the first two tests of genuine faith. The test of obedience and the test of love. This week, John will give us the third and final test, the test of belief. But before he gets there, he aims to encourage believers by reminding them of who they are in Christ. Forgiven, known by the Father, and victors over the evil one. John reminds us that love for the ways of the world is not compatible with love for God. The truth is, right belief in Jesus, while being empowered by the Holy Spirit makes living for God instead of the world not only possible, but our greatest delight!
Throughout this little letter, John gives his readers three tests that can help determine whether they truly know God or are merely giving Him lip-service. The test of obedience, the test of love, and the test of belief are all great guides to help determine where we each stand with the Lord. This week, we’ll jump into the first two tests: the tests of obedience and love. The truth is, many people today claim to know God, but deny Him with their life. While none of us reach sinless perfection on this side of eternity, there should be a growing and evident desire to love God and obey Him as an overflow of that love.
The concept of sin is completely out of vogue in our culture. Even many churches have strategically removed the concept of sin from their teaching as to not offend the masses. And it sort of makes sense, right? It can be hard to admit that we’re sinners and that we've fallen short. And yet, when we refuse to hide or deny our sin and instead confess it, we find forgiveness and freedom in Jesus. Walking in the light means learning how to press into a life of obedience that actually leads to our joy and the glory of our Savior!
First John is a phenomenally practical letter from the Apostle John to churches in Asia Minor struggling with some of the very same issues we grapple with today in the modern church world. This powerful little letter is written to accomplish some core spiritual benchmarks in our lives: full joy, circumvention of sin, protection from false gospels, and assurance of salvation. Even in the four verse intro, we find immensely applicable truths about eternal life, fellowship, and true joy. Buckle up…this letter is going to challenge you to grow deeper in your faith this new year!
A prayer every follower of Jesus would be wise to whisper at the beginning of every year: “God, how can I make the most of this year?” In our spiritual journey, as with most areas of life, going back to the basics oftentimes leads to the most growth. Age-old spiritual practices like living in community, putting feet (action) to our faith, and looking for strategic ways to glorify God in our personal, professional, and spiritual lives can make 2023 one of our best years yet, both individually and as a church body.
We like to talk about love alot in our culture. We make movies about it, sing songs about it, and write poems about it. We say things like: “I love bacon.” And also things like: “I love my kids.” Love has become sort of a junk-drawer word that can mean almost anything. And yet, the greatest picture of love is found in the source of love itself. The advent season reminds us that God is love. He loves you. And that type of love requires a response. That kind of love invites us to be fully alive rather than merely existing. And that’s a Christmas truth worth celebrating!
Oftentimes we think of peace as the absence of conflict. And yet, the peace that Jesus offers is far more incredible than that. Jesus is the Prince of Peace, the One who reconciles sinners separated from their Creator. The truth of the matter is that our greatest need is vertical peace. Most of our horizontal dysfunctions in life are rooted in a vertical disconnect from God. While the world offers us temporary solutions to fleeting peace, Jesus offers us a different kind of peace that is unaffected by our circumstances. Unshakable peace. Indestructible peace. A flowing river of peace. Christmas means that peace has come! His name is Jesus.
In a world that feels tumultuous, unpredictable, and oftentimes overwhelmed by darkness, the Christmas season offers a reprieve from the harsh realities of our broken world. For a brief moment, hope flickers in the darkness of human chaos. The advent season begins with the theme of hope. It’s been said that hope is to the soul what oxygen is to the body. We all hope in something. Whether it’s money, relationships, political parties, careers, or any number of other things. But the message of Christmas is clear, real hope is found in one place. It’s found in the Savior prophesied about by Isaiah almost 3,000 years ago. The One who stepped into darkness & shattered it with His light. Christmas reminds us that Jesus is our only hope!
Big Questions - How Should I Live My Life - Steve Harris, Guest Preacher 11 27 22 by New Life of Asheville
The most important question anyone will ever ask themselves is: Am I Really Saved? So many people spend their entire lives plagued by this question. Have I done enough? Will God accept me? Why do I still struggle with sin? Here’s the bottom line: Jesus wants everyone who belongs to Him to know with absolute certainty that they are saved. The good news is that our salvation doesn’t hinge on our being good enough, or living a perfectly sinless life. Our salvation hinges on belief in what Christ has done on our behalf. This is a type of belief that goes beyond simple intellectual knowledge. This kind of deep-seated heart belief that’s rooted in relationship transforms us from the inside out. By trusting in Jesus, we can know with 100% certainty that our salvation is secure now and forever!
As we finish mission month ’22, we turn our attention to one of the most well-known parables of Jesus--The Parable of the Talents. This story teaches us several things, particularly in light of the Great Commission. Our salvation is not simply a golden ticket to heaven. We’ve been saved for a purpose. Namely, living in a way that makes Jesus famous across the street and around the world by investing our lives in ways that count in eternity. Secondly, this parable reminds us that God has given us everything we need to accomplish what He’s called us to. We’ve all been uniquely created to reflect the glory of King Jesus to the world around us. And the reality is, we’ll all give an account one day for whether we buried our talents in a hole or leveraged them for the Lord. The truth is, the abundant life we all seek is only found when we begin to orient our lives around the mission of God in the world. How is God stirring your heart to pray, give, and go in the coming months and years?
Church planting is not a new, trendy idea. Church planting is as old as the Great Commission. So much so, Church planting is nothing less than the practical outworking of the great commission. Churches plant churches because it is near and dear to God's heart. Churches plant churches because people are important, the gospel is important, and time is important.
As we have seen this month, there is still so much work to be done to reach people from every tribe, tongue, nation and language. And that includes the crucial task of completing the translation of the Bible into the heart language of 1.5 billion people. Jesus is delaying His return until the job is done. There is no greater task and no more significant way to invest our lives than in the expansion of Christ's kingdom. We may wonder, 'What can I possibly do that would make a difference?' 'Is there some way that God could use me in His plans to reach the world?' Often all kinds of objections and obstacles pop into our brains that can discourage us from even considering going...even on a short-term mission. In this message we will look at some of the more common concerns that God's people have to serving Christ in another culture and, Lord allowing, offer some helpful answers.
God desires for people from all nations to hear and respond to the gospel of Jesus. And yet, there are over 3 billion people who are considered unreached in the world today. People who are born, live their entire lives, and die without once hearing about the hope they can have in Christ. More specifically, 1.5 billion of those people do not have a full Bible in their language, and 145 million do not even have one verse of Scripture. If God’s goal is that all peoples would know and worship Him, we must value God’s Word enough to not only center our lives on its truth, but also make sure everyone on earth has access to what God has revealed about Himself.
God desires for people from all nations to hear and respond to the gospel of Jesus. And yet, there are over 3 billion people who are considered unreached in the world today. People who are born, live their entire lives, and die without once hearing about the hope they can have in Christ. This doesn’t simply mean that they haven’t chosen to follow Jesus, it means they live in places where they have little to no access to the gospel of Jesus. If God’s goal is that all peoples would know and worship Him, this must become the goal of every Christian and church in existence. The need is great, the task is urgent, and the people of Jesus have been sent. The only question that remains is: what’s your part to play in the mission?
As we step into these final words of the Apostles’ Creed, we reach the climax of our study. These are the hope of every Christian past, present and future: the forgiveness of sins, resurrection after death and life everlasting with King Jesus in the new heavens & new earth. Though all human beings are sinners, and deserving of separation from God for eternity–Jesus has made a way for every single human being to be cleansed by His blood. When we embrace Jesus’ sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins, we’re promised a real, bodily resurrection upon His return and everlasting life that’s too incredible for our finite minds to even fathom. Christ followers ought to be the most fearless & joyful people walking the planet since our past is forgiven, our present is purposeful and our future is sealed!
I believe in…the holy Christian church, the communion of saints. What is the church? And why does it matter? This line in the Creed begins the shift from vertical beliefs (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) to horizontal beliefs (how we live in light of the vertical). The bottom line is this: the church isn’t an afterthought in the Christian life, the church is central to the Christian life. The Christian who desires to thrive spiritually will unite themselves to the community of Jesus–the only institution Jesus promised would defeat the very gates of hell. As dysfunctional as she can be at times, the bride of Jesus is the hope of the world!
Apostles’ Creed: I Believe In The Holy Spirit - Joe Dillon, 09 25 22 by New Life of Asheville
Christians can be funny when it comes to the return of Jesus. People can either go a little overboard with charts, graphs and date predictions or they fail to see any practical significance of the return of Jesus to their everyday lives. The truth is, how you understand the return of Jesus has colossal implications for how you think and live as a modern-day person in the 21st century. Our core passages this week are clear about a couple of things: one, Jesus IS coming back & two, Jesus is both a loving and just judge. Because these things are true, we should live in a state of readiness for His return. We should engage the mission Jesus has given us. We should encourage one another as we see the day drawing near. Our King is coming for His people and that is great news!
“He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty” is one of the most fascinating lines in the Creed and yet one of the most neglected teachings in the modern church. Where did Jesus go after the resurrection? And what is He doing now? How you answer that question has huge implications for how you live your life now. The ascension & heavenly coronation of Jesus teaches us that: Jesus is reigning from heaven, He is interceding for His people, and Jesus is empowering us for His mission through the Holy Spirit. What a marvelous foundation to build our spiritual lives on!
Where was Jesus between His death on Good Friday and His resurrection on Easter morning? Did Jesus really go to hell? The writers of the Creed clearly do not mean that Jesus went to the eternal place of torment we call hell to suffer for 3 days. Jesus descended into death to pay for our sins, but He didn’t stay in that tomb, on the third day He rose. The resurrection of Jesus marks the death of death. As believers in Christ, we are now children of the resurrection. We are mile markers & outposts of the new creation. Because He lives, we can truly have life without fear of sin, death or hell!
One of the most ridiculed Christian beliefs outside the church has to do with the conception and birth of Jesus. For the writers of the Apostles’ Creed to use a portion of the very limited space in this creed on the virgin birth, this doctrine must be incredibly important to our faith. Why does it matter so much? Well, if Jesus was not conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, it makes Mary a liar, Jesus deceptive for never correcting her account, and the Bible totally unreliable. As you can see, this doctrine is massively important! This line in the creed teaches us once more that nothing is impossible for our God. Supernatural events, miracles, virgin births, resurrections–all in His wheelhouse! It also teaches us that when we had no way to get to God, He came to us! Because Jesus was miraculously conceived by the Spirit & born to a virgin, hope is alive, forgiveness is available, and freedom is possible!
Who is Jesus? This is perhaps the most important question in human history. In the 2nd line of the creed, we’re introduced to the 2nd person of the Trinity–Jesus Christ, God’s only Son–King and Lord of all. In this brief credal phrase, we’re introduced to 4 key facets of the Messiah. We see him as Jesus, reflecting His humanity by taking on a human name along with human form. We learn to see Jesus as the Christ–a title meaning “anointed one” or “messiah”. He was the long awaited Savior the ancient prophets had spoken of for many generations in the Old Testament. We then see Him as Son, showing his relation to the Father and His divinity within the Trinity. And finally, we are introduced to Jesus as Lord. This term denotes ultimate authority. Through Jesus Christ, God’s Son and our Lord we can experience forgiveness of sins and real freedom now and forever. What a Savior we have in Jesus!
We Believe: God The Father Almighty - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 08 07 22 by New Life of Asheville
So much of our thinking is built around the idea that we want other people to think well of us. We want to look good. We want to be right. We want to make a positive impression. Jesus speaks to this mindset here in Matthew 5 and he gives us a radically different way to live. Jesus tells us to live consumed by what others think, not about you, but about God. Live so that others see your life, hear your word, and observe your works and they don’t say anything about you. They give glory to God. The way to follow Jesus is to magnify God, not ourselves.
The final section of this book gives us the longest and most detailed prophecy found in Daniel. Verses 1-35 give us a history from the time of Daniel through the terrible reign of Antiochus Epiphanes, who we were introduced to in chapter 8. This ruler, though not the final antichrist, served as sort of an antichrist archetype. In verse 36, there’s a shift that seems to point to the time of the final antichrist. The culmination of this vision arrives promptly in chapter 12 with some good news, and inspiring practical applications. Just a few of the truths we can draw from this epic prophecy in our day and age: God is in control, suffering is temporary, the resurrection is coming and we have a glorious mission until King Jesus returns to make all things new.
Chapter 10 serves as the intro to the final vision we will see next week in chapters 11-12. The main take-away from this chapter is the seriousness of spiritual warfare. We simply cannot fathom the ferocious invisible war raging all around us. And yet, through prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit, we have all that we need to stand firm in our faith in the face of an insidious enemy. This chapter teaches us that like Daniel, we are loved, we are heard, and we can trust God to answer in His timing in some pretty amazing ways. Though many hardships and trials await us in this life, the ultimate victory is our in Jesus who has already defeated our enemy through His perfect life, sacrificial death, and miraculous resurrection. To Him be the glory forever and ever!
Chapter 9 teaches us many valuable lessons on the subject of prayer. We see that God delights to answer the sincere prayer of His children. Daniel 9 also teaches us that we should pray knowing that we are deeply loved by the Father. We even see a helpful model of prayer we can apply: pray promises, pray persistently, pray the biblical pattern (ACTS–adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication) and plead God’s mercy. The chapter closes with arguably the most difficult text in the entire Bible to interpret. Volumes have been written about decoding these final verses, but regardless of how one interprets these mysteries, the overarching point is gloriously clear: God is moving time & history to an appointed end with King Jesus defeating evil and establishing a new Kingdom of light, love and justice that will never dim.
Many of the dreams and visions in Daniel have centered around 4 kingdoms: Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome. In chapter 8, Daniel telescopes in on the 2nd and 3rd kingdoms–Persia (represented by a ram) and Greece (represented by a goat). We’re also introduced to a new “little horn” that represents Antiochus Epiphanes, a Greek king who intensely persecuted God’s people around 175 BC. Although not the final antichrist, he serves as a foreshadowing of antichrist. We must remember that this chapter (strange as it may seem) was written by Daniel to God’s exiled people to encourage them. The big take-away of this chapter is that difficulties are inevitable, but God is invincible. This should lead God’s people to stand strong in Babylon, be prepared for suffering, and to sleep like babies in the midst of it all because we know the story ends with King Jesus winning once and for all.
The first half of Daniel is historical narrative, while the back half is apocalyptic prophecy. This might be sort of like switching the channel from a historical documentary to a sci-fi thriller! While the last 6 chapters of Daniel are difficult to interpret in places, there are clear themes that are easily applied in a hopeful & encouraging way for God’s people. In this chapter, we open into a wild scene that parallels Nebuchanezzar’s dream in chapter 2. Four wild beasts representing Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome. We get a curious image of a small horn representing evil personified–the Antichrist. In the midst of this horrifying vision, we get a reminder that the Ancient of Days is still in control of history, and that the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, will one day defeat all the world’s kings and kingdoms to establish his eternal kingdom once and for all. In the final analysis, our life may be marked with suffering, but our destination is secure. In the end, we win because Jesus wins!
The 6th chapter of Daniel contains one of the most well-known stories in the entire Bible. This chapter also happens to be chock-full of practical applications to our modern day life. Things like persisting in prayer when crisis strikes, or the value of working hard at our jobs, or letting our faith be personal but not private. All of those applications are great, but the big-idea of the chapter is this: Christian, learn to walk faithfully with the God who rescues, even when the cost is great. Most Christians in Daniel’s day and in our day alike, tend to either assimilate into culture or isolate from culture. Neither is helpful. We must be in culture, working for the good of our cities, while living out the ethics of another kingdom. Salt and light. Different but delightful. Strange but powerful. In all of this, we remember that Jesus is the greater Daniel, who was also thrown into a den of death to face the lions of sin, death and hell. Who also walked out of that tomb to give us the ability to live an abundant life on earth that simply extends into eternity. What a Savior!
The 6th chapter of Daniel contains one of the most well-known stories in the entire Bible. This chapter also happens to be chock-full of practical applications to our modern day life. Things like persisting in prayer when crisis strikes, or the value of working hard at our jobs, or letting our faith be personal but not private. All of those applications are great, but the big-idea of the chapter is this: Christian, learn to walk faithfully with the God who rescues, even when the cost is great. Most Christians in Daniel’s day and in our day alike, tend to either assimilate into culture or isolate from culture. Neither is helpful. We must be in culture, working for the good of our cities, while living out the ethics of another kingdom. Salt and light. Different but delightful. Strange but powerful. In all of this, we remember that Jesus is the greater Daniel, who was also thrown into a den of death to face the lions of sin, death and hell. Who also walked out of that tomb to give us the ability to live an abundant life on earth that simply extends into eternity. What a Savior!
Chapter 5 gives us yet another window into the dangers of the subtle pride & arrogance that lurks in every human heart. This text teaches us that when God speaks, we should listen. Although God may not write a message for you on a wall, He’s written you a book called the Bible. This chapter also teaches us that God’s justice & judgment are very real. This should compel us to number our days, and live wisely & winsomely in light of the coming judgment day of Christ. The good news of the gospel is that those who are in Christ will be vindicated on the day of judgment because King Jesus has already paid the penalty for their sin & rebellion against God. Jesus is the true & better King and there is no meaningful life outside of Him!
Daniel 4 gives us the final glimpse we ever get of king Nebuchadnezzar, and the legendary king goes out with a bang! This chapter is essentially Nebuchadnezzar’s testimony. We see the poison of pride, the God who loves us enough to humble us, and the life transformation that’s available to those who look to God. We also see the importance of being a courageous witness (like Daniel) in our own Babylon. Ultimately, the story of this earthly king points us to a heavenly King who willingly humbled himself to lift His people out of sin, death & hell so that we could shine as lights in the darkness of this world.
Daniel 3 contains one of the most well known stories in the entire Bible. It’s also a story rooted in deep truths that are stunningly applicable for Christians living in secular places like Asheville in ‘22. We need to be reminded that the world will pressure believers to fold on their godly convictions. Which means that the people of Jesus desperately need Biblical convictions with deep enough roots to produce courage. Daniel 3 also reminds us that God may not always deliver us from the flames, but He will always walk with us through the flames. He is sovereign, good, and merciful!
As we jump back into chapter 2, the suspense has been building. No Babylonian wise-men can interpret Nebuchadnezzar's dream. As such, they’re all slated to be executed. But Daniel and his 3 teenage friends have prayed to the one true God and He has heard their prayers and miraculously given Daniel insight into the dream of a tyrant. As Daniel reveals the meaning of the dream to the most powerful man on earth, we get some crucial take-home truths as modern day followers of Jesus. Firstly, unlike the Babylonian gods, our God is the sovereign One. He knows all things and can do all things. Secondly, we see that faithfulness to God is always rewarded, either in this life or the one to come. Lastly, we can’t miss that this was written to encourage God’s people in exile. You may feel like you’re losing in life right now, but if you’re in Christ, the story ends with you winning with King Jesus. That reality ought to be a life-giving wind in our sails as we journey through life!
Daniel - A God of Dreams and Destinies - Jonathan Jones, Connections Pastor 05.01.22 by New Life of Asheville
Daniel is an exciting book that has it all: adventure, suspense, thrill, dreams, visions, heroes and villains. And yet, through all the excitement, the central theme of God’s sovereignty in all circumstances shines through in such a hopeful and encouraging way. Chapter 1 teaches us to embrace where God has us, regardless of circumstance. We learn to live convictionally and biblically in the face of cultures that despise people who do so. And, we learn the importance of seeking God’s favor by following His ways. Most importantly, this book will teach us that Daniel is a foreshadowing of the greater Daniel. The one who would come, suffer unjustly, and give His life as a ransom to rescue all who are enslaved to sin, guilt and shame.
Easter! The day 2.4 billion people around the world celebrate the most extraordinary event in human history. The last couple of years have been riddled with fear, anxiety, disease, wars and a heightened awareness of our own mortality. And yet, there’s an event in history that points our hearts to hope in this life and the one to come. Easter invites us to investigate the events and evidence of that day, while inviting us to experience resurrection of the heart in our own lives. The resurrection of Jesus is about freeing you to have real life in Him. Easter matters. Jesus is alive!
We finish up this letter with a series of super practical exhortations for believers. Rejoicing, praying and living in a posture of thankfulness are all key marks of someone who is walking with Jesus and being led by the Spirit. Living this way prevents us from quenching the work of the Spirit in us. Paul finishes this flurry of commands with a beautiful & hopeful reminder that it is God who accomplishes these things in us. It’s our job to walk with Him, & His job to produce fruit within us.
As Paul begins to close this dynamic little letter, he does so with a series of commands for how the Thessalonian church should live out their faith in community with one another. How they view and respond to their spiritual leaders is important. How the leaders lead and serve is critical. There ought to be a beautiful and loving symbiotic relationship between church leaders and the church body. Paul also teaches them what practical love toward one another looks like in the body. Pursuing peace, correcting the idle, encouraging the fainthearted, helping the weak, refusing revenge and seeking to do good to those in your local family of faith. This type of family isn’t easy. But it’s healthy, it’s beautiful, and most importantly, it’s a picture of Christ to the world around us.
Death and final judgment aren’t some of the most popular topics on first dates, in church, or really anywhere in our world. And yet, Paul argues that in order to really live fully and rightly, we can only do so with our eyes focused on that final day when Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead. On that day, a new kingdom will be established where all things are made new and right. For the believer, this is incredible news. Our King is coming! Our rescue is certain! So let’s encourage each other to live in light of these realities.
Last week, we saw what it looks like to love one another well in the family of God. This week we see how to comfort and encourage one another, specifically about believers we know who have died. That is the context in which Paul encourages the Thessalonian believers with a few key details about Jesus’ return and the resurrection of believers.
Last week, we saw that the primary purpose of our lives is to please God. We please Him by becoming more and more like Jesus (sanctification), which begins with pursuing purity in our sexual lives. Paul continues that train of thought, and extends sanctification to how well we love one another in the family of God. He then gives us 3 practical ways to love one another well: live quiet lives, mind our own business, and work hard. By loving each other in these ways, we display a winsome picture of Jesus and His Kingdom to the watching world around us.
Paul uses the first 3 chapters of this letter to encourage the Thessalonian believers. He shifts gears in the final 2 chapters to challenge them. Like the Thessalonians, we also need to be both encouraged and challenged! Paul is crystal clear that our primary purpose in this world is to live a life pleasing to God. A huge part of that, is learning to walk in holiness and sexual purity in a world that doesn’t share the Kingdom values of Jesus. Our walk in these areas speak to the world around us about the God we serve and the Kingdom He’s ushering in. Living a life of holiness is pleasing to God, good for us, and a message to the world that there’s a better and more beautiful design for life that can be found in Jesus!
Paul expresses his gratitude upon hearing of the Thessalonian Christian’s love for one another and faithfulness to God. Even in his own distress and affliction, hearing of their faithfulness brings comfort and encouragement to his soul. As believers, we ought to find comfort in one another’s faith. We weep with those who weep, and rejoice with those who rejoice. We are one family, never islands in the Christian movement. Paul also prays for them, that their love would grow deeper for one another and the world around them. His aim is to see them fully prepared for the return of Jesus. Living in light of the 2nd coming will be a strong theme from this point forward in Paul’s writings to the Thessalonians and should mark every generation of Christ followers.
As a community of faith, New Life has so much to be grateful for! God has been immeasurably faithful through a challenging season of history. We’ve seen God at work, and we’re trusting Him to do even more in us and through us in the days ahead. Vision is a picture of the future that produces action in the present. Jesus gives us quite a vision for His church. Advancing, conquering, building, knocking down the defenses of an evil kingdom. Not with swords or tanks, but with the good news of Jesus and by the power of the Holy Spirit enabling us to love gently and speak boldly. The question each of us must ask afresh is: what’s my part to play in this story? What step can I take in 2022 to advance the ekklesia (church) of Jesus in my context? When we align our vision with the vision of Jesus, the gates of hell will not prevail against us!
Have you ever heard someone say something like: “I’m cool with God, I’m just not into organized religion.”? When someone says that, what they usually mean is that they’ve been wounded or mistreated in a church setting. The truth is, many churches today look very little like what Jesus had in mind when He designed His Church. Paul helps us unmuddy the waters and understand what a church family should really be like in this part of his letter to this new church plant in Thessalonica. He models a deep love for the people of God that we should emulate in our community of faith. He reminds us that we should always be alert to the tactics of our enemy who seeks to divide and destroy. Finally, Paul reminds us that living out the gospel in affliction is part of Christian journey that should drive us closer to Jesus rather than cause us to pull away. The Christian life isn’t always easy, but it’s the best, most rewarding life possible on this planet!
Transformed and Transformational - Joe Dillon, Guest Preacher 02.06.22 by New Life of Asheville
Paul not only loves the believers in this new Thessalonian church plant, he’s also incredibly grateful for them! One of the reasons Paul is so grateful when he thinks of them, is because of how they received the Word of God when they heard it. Unlike the Jews who rejected Jesus, these Thessalonian believers eagerly accepted the Word of God not as the word of man, but as the Word from the Almighty Himself. And although they suffered greatly because of their new found faith in Jesus, they were being transformed by the work of the Word in them. May we increasingly become a people of the Word, being transformed by the Holy Spirit, by embracing the only message that saves–the gospel of Jesus Christ.
As we move into the 2nd chapter of this powerful little letter, we see Paul working to accomplish a couple of important things: firstly, he presents a robust defense against his detractors and false teachers. Secondly, he gives us a practical pattern we can follow as disciples of Jesus. At the end of the day, Christians living out an authentically bold life is one of the greatest apologetics for the gospel message. We should all desire to live worthy lives in light of our worthy Savior, and the truth of the matter is that we can only do that as we press into Jesus, lean into the power of the Holy Spirit, and trust Him to lead us through the difficult seasons of life.
Paul celebrates the faith of these brand new believers even in the midst of some pretty challenging circumstances. Instead of shrinking back when persecuted or marginalized, the Thessalonian believers have become ferociously bold in their faith. In fact, their faith has become an example for churches across that entire area of the Roman Empire! In verse 10, Paul commends them for three specific things that we should pursue as modern day followers of Jesus. Turning from our idols, actively serving God in our context, and learning to wait with expectation on the return of Jesus are keys to a fruitful Christian life in any and all generations.
The large and bustling city of Thessalonica wasn’t originally in the Apostle Paul’s itinerary. But God had other plans and rerouted Paul and his team to this strategic city on the coast of Greece. After only a few weeks, a new church was born and Paul was forced to leave because of intense persecution. Soon after this young-faith community was birthed, they found themselves embroiled in challenges and difficulties. And yet, they persevered and prevailed. This little letter is written to teach them (and us) about how to pursue hopeful and holy lives in the midst of difficulty by keeping our eyes on the return of King Jesus.
Advent: Joy - Christmas Eve Eve 2021 - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor, 12.23.21 by New Life of Asheville
Love has been called one of the building blocks of a happy life. Every human being has a deep-seated desire to love and be loved. The Bible teaches that God doesn’t just embody love…but that He actually IS love. This Christmas season, we’re reminded that Jesus came into the world driven by a relentless love for His people. When we experience this type of love, God enables us by the power of His Spirit to become conduits of His love to others around us. This Christmas season, let’s soak in the love of God that Jesus ushered into the world in the 1st Advent, while looking for ways to share that love with those around us!
Peace. Such a simple word, but something that seems so unattainable in our broken world full of pain, anger, disappointment and sadness. And yet, God’s design for His people has always been peace. From the garden in Genesis to the consummation of God’s Kingdom in the book of Revelation--shalom--real peace, is a gift designed for those who love Him. In a season of chaos and busyness, advent reminds us of the peace Jesus came to bring. Peace with God, peace with others and peace of mind can all be found in the person and work of Jesus alone. Do you long for peace during this season? Press into Jesus, the Prince of Peace who gives freely to all who are weary and in need of rest.
Throughout church history, the advent season has been one of the most anticipated & celebrated times each year for those who follow Jesus. The word advent means: coming or arrival. We’re both celebrating the 1st advent of Jesus nearly 2,000 years ago, and anticipating His 2nd advent when He will return to make all things new and right. The first advent theme we’re pressing into this season is hope. Our culture is operating in a hope deficit right now. The world seems dark, cold, violent--in much the same way it surely seemed the night Jesus was born into our broken world. But God has always been a God of hope, and as His people--we are a people of hope. If your hope has been lost, or even if it's just begun to dwindle a little--the advent season is the time to reclaim your unshakable hope in an unshakable king. Hope has arrived!
As we continue in our DNA series discovering some of the core fundamentals of the Christian faith, we can’t skip over the theme of biblical community. At New Life, authentic community is one of our 4 core values. The reality is, many Christians in Western culture struggle to live out the great commandment and the great commission precisely because they’ve neglected the call to live in authentic, christian community. By looking at the early church in Acts as well as a strong command in the book of Hebrews, we can build out a healthy view of our call to community as the people of Jesus. The truth of the matter is that authentic community serves as the springboard into fearless mission and multiplying disciples. It’s as vital to spiritual health as oxygen is to physical health. Even with all its challenges and flaws, authentic community is a gift from the Lord for our good and His glory!
Last week we launched our DNA series by looking at one of our four core values: multiplying disciples. This week, we unpack another New Life core value: fearless mission. The most common command in scripture is some version of: “do not fear!”. Fear seems to be one of the most common and besetting problems in the human heart. Before we fully engage in the mission of God, we have to deal with the fear that keeps us from all that He has for us. Once we begin living fearlessly, we can jump into engaging people and cultures that so desperately need the freedom only Jesus provides. Joining Jesus in His mission of reconciliation is the abundant life every follower of Jesus was created for! The glorious mission of Jesus awaits the fearless heart.
Vince Lombardi, one of the most decorated coaches in NFL history, famously began every football camp by holding up a football and saying: “gentlemen, this is a football.” Continuously going back to the fundamentals is crucial to success in almost every arena of life. Our Christian walk is no different. We begin our DNA series by looking at one of our four core values: multiplying disciples. It’s been so easy the last couple of years to get distracted with political debates, virus concerns, and even good things like church activities, that it can be easy to forget the foundational principles that drive our faith. Jesus opens and closes the gospel of Matthew with a clear and direct call to become disciples and make disciples. This is an indispensable part of the DNA of every Christian and at New Life, we want to be relentless about multiplication in all that we do!
As we put a wrap on our AND series during mission month, we’re going to look at one of the most neglected aspects of mission: vocation as mission. God instituted work in the garden before the fall, meaning work was part of paradise and not a curse resulting from sin. Seeing our vocation as worship and leveraging our work as mission is absolutely key to the church accomplishing the great commision of Jesus. We’ve all been supernaturally and strategically placed where we are to be salt and light to those around us. The only real question for the follower of Jesus is this: how will you use your vocation to press forward the kingdom of Jesus in meaningful and creative ways for the good of others and the glory of Christ?
Mission: Inward and Outward - Rodney Howell, Missions and Outreach Pastor 10.24.21 by New Life of Asheville
This week, we had a guest pastor "Rafiq" from the Middle East. For safety concerns, no video is available, but you may hear the message here!
The Bible is full of enlightening contrasts that help us understand Jesus and His upside-down Kingdom. Think about just a few of these prominent themes in Scripture: praying AND giving, sowing AND reaping, going AND sending. We will be exploring a few of these concepts over the next several weeks. This week, we’ll unpack the scene in Luke 9 where Jesus both models good news AND good works, and also sends out His disciples to do the same. For most Christians, we tend to gravitate to one or the other. We either lean toward bold proclamation of the gospel, with little good works that display the gospel, or we love doing gospel good works but rarely open our mouths to share the glorious good news of Jesus with others. And yet, Jesus calls us to both AND He promises to empower us for the task at hand. There’s absolutely no greater joy than joining Jesus in His mission of seeking and saving those who are far from Him!
As we put a wrap on our Good Design series, we can’t leave without digging into the subject of marriage. Our culture sees marriage as a means to self-fulfilment and satisfaction. The other person is supposed to “complete” us and make us happy. But is that the real purpose of marriage in God’s design? What if marriage was meant to paint a far more important and beautiful picture for the world about Jesus and His love? And what if by loving and sacrificing for each other in marriage and mirroring Jesus to one another, we created such a beautiful relationship that great sex was a natural byproduct of that type of self-sacrificing, honoring relationship? The truth is, sex was designed for marriage. It’s best experienced in marriage, and the best sex is only possible in marriage as husband and wife enter into a one flesh relationship of self-sacrificial love that points the world to the self-sacrificial love of Jesus for His Bride.
Who and how to date another person is a major question in a culture seeking answers about sex and relationships. In a world of dating apps, hook-up culture, casual sex, quick divorces and disposable relationships, does the Bible provide a healthier pathway through the maze of dating and marriage? The truth of the matter is that the Bible says nothing about dating, because it’s a concept that only appears in history about a century ago. Still, there are guiding principles to navigate the dating world that will help shape who and how we date and marry. As Christians learn to abandon the world’s cheap hook-up version of dating and embrace what we’ll call kingdom dating or intentional dating, we learn key principles that will guide us into a healthy marriage. Things like: run after Jesus harder than you run after anyone else. Find someone running in the same direction. Evaluate chemistry and character. Practice purity. Date in community. And finally, pray and relax. At the end of the day, God’s got this, and He has you. As you seek His Kingdom 1st, He will make sure you step into the right relationship at the right time, in order to bring Him glory & give you joy.
Who and how to date another person is a major question in a culture seeking answers about sex and relationships. In a world of dating apps, hook-up culture, casual sex, quick divorces and disposable relationships, does the Bible provide a healthier pathway through the maze of dating and marriage? The truth of the matter is that the Bible says nothing about dating, because it’s a concept that only appears in history about a century ago. Still, there are guiding principles to navigate the dating world that will help shape who and how we date and marry. As Christians learn to abandon the world’s cheap hook-up version of dating and embrace what we’ll call kingdom dating or intentional dating, we learn key principles that will guide us into a healthy marriage. Things like: run after Jesus harder than you run after anyone else. Find someone running in the same direction. Evaluate chemistry and character. Practice purity. Date in community. And finally, pray and relax. At the end of the day, God’s got this, and He has you. As you seek His Kingdom 1st, He will make sure you step into the right relationship at the right time, in order to bring Him glory & give you joy.
There are two primary narratives about sex in the world. One tells the story of sex as a mere phyiscal apatite along the lines of eating or drinking. The other storyline paints sex as something far deeper, with far reaching implications for the soul of humanity. One narrative leads to destruction, the other to flourishing. Our enemy has been feeding us lies since the garden: You’re missing out. It’s no big deal. You’ll finally be happy. But what if sex is a big deal? The Scriptures teach us that sex is designed for really deep things like unity, pleasure, procreation and ultimately a sign-post pointing to something greater: union with Christ. When people begin to worship a gift instead of the giver of that gift, things are sure to go bad. That’s why sex God’s way is never meant to restrict us, but to free us to enjoy Him and others in a full and life-giving way!
What is love? There’s so much confusion about what love is in our culture. Is love a feeling? Is it merely sexual? Why do I say I love filet mignon & I love my wife? Are those the same things? Closely related to love, I’d argue is our understanding of identity. If we don’t understand who we are & why we exist—it’s really impossible to love fully or receive love in a healthy, life-giving way. And it’s downright impossible to engage in sex, relationships & marriage in a healthy way without the foundation of love & identity. The Scriptures teach us much about both love and new identity in Christ. Understanding these, will help us build a healthy framework around sex, relationships and marriage--which were all created for our good and for the glory of King Jesus.
Sex, love & marriage are sacred gifts from God. In fact, God invented sex (& love & marriage)! God is very much pro-sex and not anti-sex despite what you may have been taught growing up in church. However, like all good things, we tend to (as fallen, sinful human beings) take what is good, and distort, mutilate, mangle what God designed for good and end up with some distorted version that causes more pain, loss, guilt & shame than good. To understand who we are and what our purpose is in the realms of sex, love and marriage, we must first understand where we came from and why we exist. As we look at our origin story in Genesis 1-2 (and Jesus’ commentary on those texts) we find some inescapable truths that must guide our lives as followers of Jesus. Firstly, we can’t define what we didn’t create. Secondly, we are all sexual sinners of one sort or the other. Thirdly, Jesus is the only antidote to our sexual and relational brokenness. The good news of the gospel is that there is freedom, forgiveness and redemption for all sexual sinners (that’s every single one of us) available through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus! We find our greatest freedom & flourishing as we align our lives with His design for human sexuality and relationships.
As James wraps up this letter that’s been all about a faith that bleeds into action, he ends on an important note: prayer. Prayer appears in every single verse of this passage. The importance of prayer in the Christian life cannot be understated. Spiritual life without prayer is like a vehicle without fuel. James tells us when we should pray, how we should pray and who we should be praying for. He also tells us that confession of sin is a really important component of a living faith. Finally, he challenges us to watch each other’s backs. We all have a tendency to drift spiritually at times, to wander from the gospel in difficult seasons of life, and God’s method to bring us back to Himself is very often other Christians. Following Jesus is an active and beautiful adventure!
James saves some of his strongest words and harshest rebukes for the rich who oppress the poor. As James addresses wealthy, non-Christian landowners who exploit others so that they can live lavish lifestyles, believers get a front row seat to the dangers of wealth. We learn that riches are a poor functional savior. In fact, wrongly acquired and sinfully managed riches will serve as evidence against those who worship wealth instead of Jesus on the day of judgment. James reminds us that the wicked will not evade the justice of King Jesus. He hears the cries of the oppressed! This should inform the way we live our lives and steward our finances. For those who are being oppressed, this passage should serve as an encouragement that God has not forgotten you. He is the Lord of Hosts (Master of Armies) and King Jesus is coming back to rescue His people, right all wrongs, and make all things new!
This week’s passage in James hits on the more subtle sins Christians oftentimes neglect in their own lives. It’s easy to point out what we consider to be “big sins” in others; things like murder, rape, extramarital affairs, homosexuality and the like. But James wants us to tackle sins of omission in our own lives just as voraciously as the more obvious sins of commission. James tackles two particular sins in this text that are rooted in spiritual arrogance. Speaking evil against brothers and sisters and living our lives like practical atheists. When spiritual arrogance affects our tongues and our plans in life, we are sure to go off the rails and experience disappointment and disillusionment. The antidote to this destructive spiritual arrogance, is radical dependence on Jesus which brings freedom, hope and healing to our tongues and our life plans!
In this week’s passage, James uses the common experience of friendship to teach us some important lessons about where we place our allegiances in this life. In fact, James is going to present us with a pressing problem that we all face, and then drive home a spiritual solution that we all desperately need. The problem, as it turns out, is friendship with the world, which he equates with spiritual adultery. We’ve all been tempted to love the things of this world (comfort, pleasure, riches, relationships, etc) more than we love God. But James reminds us that God is jealous for His people, and that we should pursue intimacy and friendship with God above all else in this life. The solution to our spiritual adultery is to humbly submit our lives to a good God by resisting the devil, drawing near to our Savior, and turning from our sin. Regardless of our past, our current sin struggles, or what the future holds...there is always more grace to be found in God!
As James continues to give us the marks of authentic faith, he shifts us to two pictures of wisdom. The truth of the matter is that we all live according to some code of wisdom. Whether you get wisdom from Hollywood, friends, Google or a religious system, we’re all on a quest to find wisdom that will lead us to a happier life. James says that there are two types of wisdom: worldly wisdom (3:14-16) which leads to chaos (4:1-3) and godly wisdom (3:13) that leads to a harvest of righteousness (3:17-18). James gives us a list of characteristics that mark each type of wisdom and the implicit challenge is clear: you need wisdom from Jesus, rather than wisdom from the world. Godly wisdom produces a gospel-centric life that will allow us to flourish now and in the future!
As James continues to flesh out his premise that authentic faith in Jesus leads to real fruit in our lives, he begins to talk about the power of words. The old saying we all heard as kids “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me” is one of the biggest lies ever told. Words destroy marriages, cripple children, divide churches, and drive nations into war. But words can also bring life, healing and hope. Jesus teaches that words reveal the heart. So the key isn’t just guarding our words, it has to be change at the heart level. We don’t need a tongue doctor, we need a heart doctor! And change that deep only comes by walking with Jesus and being empowered by the Holy Spirit to speak words of life into those around us. This is good fruit that flows from authentic faith!
This section of James’ letter to scattered and persecuted Christians across the Roman Empire is one of the more controversial passages in the New Testament. James makes a radically bold claim: faith without works is dead! In other words, authentic faith leads to real fruit. He goes on to paint a picture of 3 kinds of faith: dead faith, demonic faith, and living faith. James wants us to know that mere lip service to Jesus or simple intellectual assent to a set of beliefs does not equal saving faith. Real faith always bleeds out into real life. He’s not arguing for perfection in the life of the Christian, but he is arguing for progress as outward evidence of a living inward faith. Authentic faith in Jesus leads to real fruitful life in this world!
As we jump into the second chapter of this little power-house of a book, we see James address a super practical outworking of authentic faith. He’s already addressed how followers of Jesus ought to walk through trials, bridle our tongues and care for the marginalized. He now shifts to the subject of favoritism. James unapologetically proclaims that faith and favoritism are incompatible. He then points to God’s own character for the reason why God’s people should be impartial with others. The truth of the matter is that we all tend to drift toward favoritism, partiality and prejudice. We tend to want to impress those we think can benefit us materially or socially. And yet, the gospel of Jesus breaks down the very racial, social, and economic walls that the world naturally erects. James finishes this section by reminding us of coming judgment, and the fact that we ought to give mercy to the measure that we have received mercy from Jesus. The gospel screams “mercy triumphs over judgment!” Let our lives reflect that reality!
James: Life Through The Word - Ranjit David, Guest Pastor 06.13.21 by New Life of Asheville
The book of James is one of the most hard-hitting, practical and challenging books in all of Scripture. It was very likely penned by the younger half-brother of Jesus who rejected his big bro until after the resurrection. From that point forward, James became a ferocious follower of Jesus and a pillar in the Jerusalem church. He’s writing this letter to believers who have been scattered because of persecution and are suffering the immense weight of trials, pain, difficulty and temptation. He opens the letter by encouraging them to count their trials as joy, knowing that God is at work accomplishing great things in their lives through their trials. He challenges them to endure to the end, while asking God for wisdom in the storms of life, knowing that He’s a good God who wants the very best for His children.
Jesus closes this most magnificent prayer by praying for those who would follow Him in generations to come. It is stunning that almost 2,000 years ago, Jesus was praying for you and me! In this prayer, 3 things seem to be specifically on His mind. Unity, closeness and love. Unity with one another, according to Jesus, is how we authenticate the gospel message to a watching world. Closeness with Jesus is what He desires for our lives. We need relational connection with the Savior in order to thrive spiritually. Lastly, becoming agents of love in a world full of darkness and hate is crucial for those who would follow Jesus. If God is love (1 John 4:8) then His people should be the people of love.
As the scene in John 17 opens, Jesus is mere moments away from arrest, torture and eventual execution. Not surprisingly, we find Jesus praying in these crucial moments. This the the longest recorded prayer we have from Jesus, and thus provides a unique window into some of the most important things on His heart at this critical time in His life and ministry. In this chapter, we see Jesus pray for Himself, His disciples (the 11), and for you and me! Through His prayer, we learn how important our unity is, about the viciousness of our enemy, and that we’ve been set apart (sanctified) for a sacred mission.
With just hours before his arrest and crucifixion, Jesus amps up his preparation of the eleven with encouragement and direction regarding how to carry on and complete the mission in his physical absence. He understands that they will grieve Jesus’ death and the loss of their companion and Guide, but he instructs them that, as with following the pains of child-birth, there is great reward and joy. Their joy will again be complete as they understand Jesus is returning to the Father, his mission accomplished, and for them to begin asking the Father for their needs and to do so bearing the authority which comes through the name of Jesus. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus responds to our prayers and petitions out of His love for us because of our love for his Son.
As Jesus continues to teach the disciples just moments before His arrest, He makes a shocking claim. It was shocking then and it’s just as stunning today. He tells the disciples that it is better for them if He goes away. Why? Because then the Holy Spirit will come. For the Christian, the Spirit in you is better than Jesus beside you. Shocking! This is because of the powerful work of the Holy Spirit who convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. His work also includes comfort for the believer, guidance into truth, and the all important work of spotlighting Jesus. Any real movement of the Holy Spirit will always result in the exaltation of King Jesus.
As Jesus and His eleven remaining disciples walk toward the garden of gethsemane where Jesus is soon to be arrested, He is teaching them some of the most crucial lessons they’ll need in the days ahead. Firstly, Jesus is preparing them to be hated by the world. They need to expect it, and embrace it as a part of following Jesus. Secondly, He’s teaching them to embrace the new super power He’s about to give them. No, He didn’t give them the super power of flight or an invisible cloak, even better! He’s giving them the very Holy Spirit of God who will empower them to be effective witnesses for King Jesus, even while being hated. Finally, He wants to prepare them to endure. The Christian life is not a sprint, it’s an ultra-marathon. Many seem to start the race strong, but are nowhere to be found at the finish line. Jesus wants His disciples to start strong and finish strong, and the only way that happens is when we commit to a life of abiding in Jesus and living empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Have you ever wanted to grow in your spiritual walk, but didn’t know where to start? I think a lot of people are in that boat. Well, in John 15 Jesus gives us the key to unlock the spiritual growth code. And it’s far simpler (and deeper) than most imagine! Jesus uses the analogy of a vine and its branches to teach us how to grow. If we abide in Him and He in us, Jesus promises us a fruitful life that will lead to real joy. Abide means to dwell in, to stand in, to stay in a place with intention. This means a personal relationship with Jesus...staying connected with Him not just sometimes, but all the time. Abiding is also fleshed out in community rather than alone, because abiding teaches us to love each other the way Jesus loves us. Finally, abiding in Jesus teaches us to pray big Kingdom prayers...to join Jesus in His mission!
It seems like most churches these days either have bad teaching or no teaching on the Holy Spirit. In fact, it could easily be argued that the Holy Spirit is the most neglected power source on planet earth. As Jesus gathers His disciples into the upper room for one last time before the cross, He spends alot of time teaching them about the Holy Spirit. He even connects keeping His commandments to the presence of the Holy Spirit. The role of the Spirit is crucial in the Christian life. The truth is, we can’t love Jesus well or follow His commands without the power of the Holy Spirit living and breathing in and through us on a daily basis. He is our advocate, comforter, truth-giver and teacher. And the good news? Every single person who places their faith in Jesus has the Holy Spirit of God indwelling them!
In a world full of sorrow and darkness, we’re all looking for a lasting source of joy. Two thousand years ago, the disciples of Jesus were thrust into deep sorrow as their savior was nailed to a tree and then buried in a borrowed tomb. All was lost, or so it seemed. The Apostle John opens his Easter account with a woman weeping in the dark. By the end of the narrative, she’s clinging to Jesus in utter joy. At the end of the day, Easter reminds us that we are broken. It also points us to compelling evidence surrounding the resurrection. I love that the bible doesn’t ask us to check our brain at the door, but instead offers us proof for consideration. Lastly, Easter screams to us that joy can be ours in Christ. We don’t have to wait until the circumstances in our lives are perfectly aligned to find happiness. Jesus lived a perfect life, died a sinner’s death, and rose 3 days later. Friend, that tomb is still empty and our King is alive!
As we step into chapter 14, the disciples are understandably troubled. Jesus has just predicted his death, Judas’ cold-blooded betrayal, and that Peter would deny him 3 times that very night. Their world was spinning as angst filled their minds and hearts. In our day as in that day, many minds and hearts are filled with troubled thoughts and anxious feelings. Jesus says that the antidote to the troubled heart is belief in Him. Why? Because He’s the way to the Father and to Heaven. He’s the only way home. Not only does Jesus prescribe the antidote to troubled hearts, He makes a mind-blowing promise: His followers will follow in His steps as they receive the Holy Spirit and do great things to advance His Kingdom. Jesus’ people will ask for bold things in His name, and He will answer their prayers in astounding ways for His glory. What a beautiful and powerful promise for the follower of Christ!
As Jesus continues to press crucial Kingdom values into His disciples’s hearts before He goes to the cross, we come to some difficult and yet beautiful challenges in the back half of chapter 13. In Judas’ betrayal of Jesus, we see that we have a Savior who is well acquainted with our pain. We also come face to face with the terrifying reality that it’s entirely possible for people to play the part of being a disciple of Jesus, while actually being on the pathway to hell. In the final analysis, we see Jesus lay forth the way forward in His Kingdom; to love one another like He loves us. Our radical love for each other as followers of Jesus is actually how the world will know we belong to Him. In a day and age of cultural division over politics, masks, vaccines & so much more--the world needs to see a community of people unified by love for one another even in our differences! The gospel brings love, unity & healing to the places where our world tears apart, divides & wounds!
The night before Jesus was crucified, He gathered His disciples in a room for a final time of sacred friendship and teaching before his arrest. During this “last supper” Jesus not only instituted what we call communion or the Lord’s Supper for the first time, but also taught His disciples some of the most crucial lessons they would need as they launched into a hostile post-resurrection world. The first lesson would have been a shocking one, in Jesus’ school of the Upsidedown Kingdom. The way up is down. Leaders wash feet and serve others rather than being served themselves. Paradoxically, serving others leads to joy and a happy life in the Upsidedown Kingdom of Jesus!
As we come out of our Lament series we were reminded, maybe even for the first time, that it’s good and proper to lament before our God. However, lamenting isn’t the only good and proper rhythm we should establish as a people of God. We also need a sabbath rhythm of rest in our life. In fact, it’s not negotiable. We serve a creative God who established a holy day of rest. God rested. He established rest for Himself and for His creation. God didn’t rest because He was tired or exhausted, but rather because He had completed His creative work. Come and discover why God would establish a sabbath rhythm of rest for HIs creation from the very beginning, and why this type of rest is still critical for His people today!
As we come out of our Lament series we were reminded, maybe even for the first time, that it’s good and proper to lament before our God. However, lamenting isn’t the only good and proper rhythm we should establish as a people of God. We also need a sabbath rhythm of rest in our life. In fact, it’s not negotiable. We serve a creative God who established a holy day of rest. God rested. He established rest for Himself and for His creation. God didn’t rest because He was tired or exhausted, but rather because He had completed His creative work. Come and discover why God would establish a sabbath rhythm of rest for HIs creation from the very beginning, and why this type of rest is still critical for His people today!
As we close out our series on lament, we look at the words of Jeremiah who understood lament better than most. The context for Lamentations 3 is utter devastation. The Babylonians have sacked Jerusalem, people are dying, others are being enslaved, houses destroyed and the temple burned. It’s in the most hopeless of situations that Jeremiah pens some of the most hopeful words in Scripture. In this, he teaches us that for those who belong to God: mercy is our floor, waiting is our weapon and victory is our destination. For a follower of Jesus, no matter how bad things are in the present, our story isn’t over yet! The gospel of Jesus is irrefutable proof that the agony of Friday and the darkness of Saturday...leads to the resurrection of Sunday!
Where do you tend to turn when things go sideways in your life? Most of us turn to self, others or self-help resources before we even consider turning to God. But what if that’s one of our primary problems in life? Psalm 46 teaches us that where we place our trust makes all the difference. We learn to reject the fear of men, seek the presence of God and remember the power of God in our times of trouble. So many people are living lives shackled by fear. Fear of covid, fear of dying, fear of economic trouble, fear of political leaders, fear for their health, fear, fear, fear! But what if trust in God is the remedy for fear? What if He offers us life beyond the wall of fear? In John, Jesus said; let not your hearts be troubled, believe (or trust) in God, believe (trust) also in me! Friend, place the full weight of your trust in God, and begin to walk in the freedom He purchased for you through His perfect life, death and resurrection!
Has the last year been strange or what? Some days, it feels like our world is spinning out of control, but it’s precisely when we feel this loss of stability that we need to be reminded that God is fully in control. Not only is He in complete control, His mission is advancing all over the world! In Jeremiah 29, God’s people must have felt defeated as they were taken into exile by the evil Baylonian Empire. And yet, God gave them an incredible blueprint to continue pushing His mission forward during that challenging season. Similarly, the Apostle Paul, writing the church from prison, encourages believers to press on in the mission of Jesus even in difficult circumstances. Friend, let’s not wish away this season of life. God has purpose for us right here in the present. 2021 could be one of the best years yet in pushing the Kingdom of Jesus forward in Asheville and around the world. The only question left is: what’s your part to play in what He’s doing?
This week, we move into the 3rd element of a lament: asking God for help. A lot of us aren’t very good at asking for help, and even when we do, oftentimes we go to the wrong sources seeking it. King David teaches us how to ask for help throughout the psalms, but we’ll drill down into Psalm 22 this week. Here are some truths we can glean from this particular psalm: where you go with your pain, defines who you are. Remembering the past performance of God inspires future hope no matter how bad things seem in the moment. David also teaches us to pray ferociously bold prayers. Finally, having done all of this, we can park our hearts in praise as we trust God for the outcome knowing that deliverance belongs to the God who sees us, cares and loves us deeply.
As we continue diving deeper into the lost art of lament, we turn our attention to the element of lament that many find most uncomfortable. Pouring out our complaints to God. No other world religion or worldview offers this level of raw & real engagement with a God who actually welcomes it. Psalm 88 has been called the darkest psalm in the bible. It’s painfully raw, real and dark. And yet, it teaches us so much about the beauty of lament. Things like: silence is a soul killer--so put words to your pain and express them to God. Truths like: dark times platform God’s greatness in us. We must always remember to bring our complaints to God humbly, honestly and repeatedly. God welcomes our hurt, pain, confusion, and paradoxically, this becomes the pathway to healing the deep wounds in our souls. God is the great healer and redeemer--perhaps it’s time we stop burying our pain and pretending it doesn’t hurt and bring it to the One who can redeem & restore.
Lament is a prayer in pain that leads to hope and trust. It’s the song that the people of God sing between pain and promise. And modern-day Christians need to re-learn this historical practice like fish need water! In some sense, biblical lament must begin with self-examination. So much of the turmoil and pain in our lives, tends to be self-inflicted shrapnel wounds from our own sin. So how do we get right with God? And why does it matter? In Psalm 130, the psalmist teaches us to turn to God first (not last) when life seems suffocating. He is the source of our help, but far too often we use Him as a “break in case of emergency” last resort. The psalmist also teaches us the importance of acknowledging the problem of our own sin. This is a key component of lament. When we confess our sin, God cleanses, frees, and forgives us. We can breathe again! This rhythm of confession and forgiveness leads us to the art of slowing down, and waiting on the Lord during seasons of suffering. Whether you’re experiencing darkness and suffering due to your own rebellion, or simply due to the brokenness of our world, turn to God to find the freedom and redemption your heart aches for!
For thousands of years, God’s people have had a unique method of handling the storms, pain and disappointment of life in a broken world. Saints in the Old Testament practiced it, followers of Christ in the New Testament modeled it, and Jesus Himself embraced this practice in His most pain-filled moments. But over the last century or so, the Western church has seemingly lost this practice, and we are poorer for it. We are weaker, not stronger. This lost practice is called lament. In fact, over a third (40%) of the Psalms are psalms of lament. Entire books, like Lamentations and Job are books of lament. So what is lament? Lament is the space between pain and promise. It’s the prayer of tears that leads to hope and praise. Lament is learning to press into God in the pain instead of running away from Him. The most amazing thing? He welcomes our laments. Through them, we find a God who is ever-present, all-powerful, compassionate and willing to walk the dark valleys of life with us. We will discover that a lament is typically a 4 part prayer of faith. Each part honestly building toward a crescendo of trust in God. And this week, we’ll start by looking at the prototypical lament psalm, Psalm 13. If you’re suffering, God offers you the light of hope!
As we step into a brand new year after what has been a pretty difficult year in 2020, we need to be reminded of who Jesus says He is! In John 11, we get a glimpse into one of the most incredible miracles Jesus performed, as well as one of the most audacious claims He ever made. Jesus shows up at a funeral of a friend and says I am the resurrection and life. He then raises a dead man to life to authenticate His bold claim. At the end of the day, God’s plan for your life is better than yours. He doesn’t operate on our timing. And when all seems lost, Jesus is oftentimes just getting started. If Jesus has conquered death, the great and final enemy, what then should His children fear in life? Death is dead, Jesus is alive and we are free!
The Gift - Christmas Eve 2020 - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 12.24.20 by New Life of Asheville
The setting for this particular I AM statement is key. The Israelites were in the midst of a huge celebration called the Festival of Tabernacles/Booths. This is the time they set aside to celebrate being led by God in the wilderness. At night, they would light massive lamps or candles in the temple courtyard that would cast a warm glow over the city of Jerusalem to remind them of the God who led them as a pillar of fire by night in the desert. It’s in this setting, where Jesus says I am the light of the world! This claim was nothing short of an unmistakable claim of divinity by Jesus. This claim led to an incredible invitation: “anyone who follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Wow! In a world of darkness, there is light. In a world of chaos and pain, there is hope. His name is Jesus!
This particular I AM statement from Jesus may be the most controversial one in our age. For Jesus to claim to be the way, truth and life such that no person can come to the Father except through Him, flies in the face of our pluralistic culture that despises even the concept of absolute truth. And yet, this statement from Jesus isn’t so much a judgmental condemnation of those far from Him, as much as it’s an open invitation into life-changing relationship, freeing truth and abundant life now and in eternity. Friend, Jesus is the way, truth and life. He is the antidote to all that is broken in your heart and in our world. In fact, he’s the only hope this busted up world has. Let’s cling to Jesus as our way, our truth and our life and share this transformational message with the world around us this Christmas season!
If you’re familiar with vine imagery in the Old Testament, you probably know that the nation of Israel--God’s chosen people of the old covenant--were oftentimes referred to as a vine. And almost every time this connection is made, it’s made in the context of God’s judgment for Israel’s failure to produce fruit. And so when Jesus steps onto the scene and says: I am the true vine, He is in essence saying I’ve come to be for you, what you could never be for yourself. He’s saying I am the true source of life, and apart from abiding in me, your life will be fruitless of anything truly meaningful. Jesus also promised that those who abide in Him, would experience the pain of pruning that would lead to abundance. While painful, Jesus wanted His disciples to understand that many times growth comes through painful means that we would never choose for ourselves. Abiding in the true vine, leads to a fruitful life, which in turn allows us to experience the joy our creator desires us to live in as His chosen and dearly loved sons and daughters!
Jesus’ statement: I am the door (or gate in some translations) is likely one of the least spoken about I am statements of Jesus. It may not be as glamorous as some of the other I am statements, but it’s a practically important claim by Jesus with profound implications for your life. Jesus being the door for His sheep has all sorts of embedded truths that are truly life-changing. Jesus is saying that the world offers you and me many doors, but only one leads to life. Every other door will lead you to sorrow, disappointment and destruction. True sheep hear and follow the voice of their shepherd into an abundant life of purpose and satisfaction. Friend, choose your door like your life depends on it, because it does. And once you’ve found the door that leads to life, invite others to discover the riches of the door that is Jesus.
According to those who study such things, sheep are apparently some of the most unintelligent, stubborn, and hopelessly helpless animals on the planet. And so at 1st glance, when Jesus claims to be the good shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep, it could almost feel offensive that we are the sheep in this analogy. And yet, when we realize how perfectly loved and cared for we are by the Good Shepherd, it would be foolish not to follow Him all the days of our lives. The Good Shepherd is marked by several things that make Him distinctly good and far more worthy of our lives than any other shepherds this world has to offer us. The Good Shepherd guides, provides, corrects and protects His sheep. In doing all of that, He offers the abundant life that we all seek!
This week we kick-off a brand new series called I AM as we unpack the 7 I AM statements of Jesus in John’s gospel. You may have noticed that it’s almost impossible to know someone without first knowing their name. Contrary to popular belief in some cultural circles, God is not unknowable. In fact, He has clearly revealed Himself to us by giving us His name. The story begins to unfold in Exodus 3, and Jesus brings it full circle beginning in John 6 when He says: “I AM the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” Jesus was not only claiming His own divinity in that one powerful statement, He was also telling the world that the only bread that can satisfy soul hunger is found in Him. Through the course of this narrative, we learn 3 essential truths that can reshape our lives. One, authentic disciples come to Jesus to get Jesus. Two, Jesus is the essence of real life. And finally, Jesus offers us lasting hope. If you’ve found the bread of life, be sure you’re sharing that bread with a hungry and thirsty world!
The Drama of a National Destiny - Steve Harris, Guest Preacher, 11.08.20 by New Life of Asheville
What would you tell the people you love most if you knew what you were about to say to them would be the last words they would ever hear from you? Last words have lasting impact. After the resurrection, Jesus had some final instructions for His small, rag-tag band of followers that would change the trajectory of history itself. He gave them a mission and a purpose that was mind-blowing: the whole world. Tell the whole world. Start here, but don’t stop here. And Jesus didn’t just give them purpose, He also promised to give them the power to accomplish this stunning mission by sending the Holy Spirit to indwell and empower them to do things they never dreamed of. For 2,000 years now, this purpose and power has been passed from one generation of Jesus followers to the next. Friend, you have been given great purpose and even greater power in Christ. Let’s link arms and boldly take the good news of Jesus into our neighborhoods, into our city and to the furthest and darkest places left on planet earth for the glory of our great King!
One of our missions partners in Central Asia shares a message with the New Life family this week.
As we launch into October, which is mission month at New Life, we’re always reminded of Jesus’ final words to His disciples in Acts 1:8. You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the end of the earth. This week, we’ll examine the call to our city, our Jerusalem. In Luke 14, Jesus encounters a religious leader at a party and tells a parable that has huge implications for the modern church and how we interact and love those God has placed right around us. This also brings to mind a passage in Jeremiah where God commands His people to pray for and seek the welfare of the city He had placed them in. Through these passages, we are challenged to embrace truths about the church like; we must be shaped by the gospel, moved to action and known by our compassion in the city in which we live. May God raise up our church family to be a shining beacon of hope and love in our city for the sake of our King!
The encounter recorded in John 11 is one of the most moving scenes in the entire Bible. In this scene, Jesus’ earth-shaking power and his gentle care are both on glorious display. Jesus clearly loves this family found in John 11 deeply and is close to Lazurus and his sisters Mary and Martha. Through his interactions with Mary, Martha and Lazarus we learn truths that have the potential to be just as powerful in our lives today as they were on that fateful day 2,000 years ago. In this encounter, Jesus teaches us things like; God’s silence is never evidence of His absence. He teaches us that the God who is powerful enough to save is the God who weeps with His children. We learn that the resurrected life is not just a future reality, but a life that is currently available to us. We also learn that belief allows us to glimpse God’s glory in life-changing ways. Jesus is life!
The last two weeks we’ve learned through several encounters Jesus had with people that we are designed for healthy vertical and horizontal relationships. We were created for relationships with God and others! This week we’ll look at an encounter Jesus has with Peter and the disciples that has far reaching and exciting implications for us today. This particular encounter in Mathew 16 is the very 1st time Jesus mentions this new movement called the “church”. He promises to build the church and use His followers in breathtaking ways in that process. So what is the church and why is it important? What we learn from this encounter is that the church is central to Jesus’ mission. Being a part of a local church is critical to a healthy spiritual life and it’s also the way we join God in His mission of expanding His Kingdom of hope, healing, and new life in the world.
Our encounter for this week is found in the book of Luke where Jesus gets invited to a dinner party by a religious leader who hopes to expose Jesus as a spiritual fraud. Through this intimate setting things get heated quickly and Jesus, as so often is the case, turns the table on his host. Through this story our own heart gets revealed and we realize how desperately we need one another to help expose one of our greatest needs. By learning to live an authentic, transparent life with one another in small circles God helps remind us what posture is needed for the gospel to take root and transform our lives.
No matter what your worldview is or what you believe spiritually, we all know that something is broken in our world. What’s missing? What can fix what’s broken within each of us? By looking at some of the encounters Jesus had with people in the gospels, we’ll discover that Jesus not only exposes what’s missing within us, but offers a lasting solution that nothing else in this world can. We will discover that God is a relational god and that it’s only through a restored relationship with Him and others that we can truly find satisfaction in this life. This week, we’ll look at Jesus’ encounters with two individuals: a social outcast and a religious insider. Although they couldn’t be more different, and though Jesus engages them in completely different ways, He offers them the same solution to their inner brokenness. The good news is that Jesus still offers us inner healing today through a relationship with Him!
This week we wrap-up our study through this incredible little letter from the apostle Peter to suffering Christians almost two millennia ago. Peter has used this letter primarily to encourage believers in their suffering. He closes out his letter by giving us several keys to finishing the race of life strong for the glory of King Jesus. We learn that humbly trusting God through confusing seasons of pain actually leads to our exaltation in due time. We are reminded that God cares for us, and so we are to cast our anxieties on Him, instead of internalizing fears and trying to solve problems on our own. Peter encourages us to live life with our head on a swivel, because we have a real enemy who is in the business of destroying lives. And we are reminded that in the end, Jesus wins. And on that victorious day of His 2nd coming, He will right all wrongs and make all things new for those who love and follow Him. And because of that, we can walk confidently through this life of brokeness and pain knowing that only glory awaits us forever and ever!
As Peter nears the end of his letter to these suffering believers, he pivots his attention to the leaders in the church. In times of suffering, good leadership is crucial for the wellbeing of any community, and the church is no different. We know from the collective New Testament writings that elders are primarily called to lead, feed and protect the flock as shepherds. Peter is going to charge these elders leading in hard circumstances to lead in 3 specific ways that should inform the life of every Christian. Peter tells them to be willing servants, to lead with right motives and to live as examples worth imitating. The reward from Jesus in the age to come will be unimaginable! Finally, he encourages young believers to follow their church leaders as they follow Jesus--and all of this should be clothed in humility as we await the return of our Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ!
Hope In Exile - Rest in Troubling Times - Joe Dillon, Guest Pastor 08 16 20 by New Life of Asheville
What if you knew the world would end in precisely 24 hours? How would you live your last day on earth knowing the end is near? In this passage, Peter encourages believers to live in light of the end. Jesus has promised to return, and we are closer now than we’ve ever been. Because we eagerly await the imminent return of our Savior, Peter lays out 4 specific ways followers of Jesus should live their lives with this in mind. Our lives should be marked by passionate prayer, fierce love for one another, eager hospitality and serving one another with our spiritual gifts within the body of Christ. Living this type of life is both beautiful to an ever-watching world and it brings glory to our Heavenly Father.
As Peter begins to shift toward the finish line of his letter to these exiled Christians, he reminds them of several key truths. In this life of brokenness and pain, we look to Jesus who also suffered. He is our motivation. He is our model to imitate. We must begin to develop a warrior mindset in preparation for the battle that awaits as followers of the King who also suffered in this world. We do this because we've been given a new identity--we are no longer people who live for this world, but people who live for the will of God and His Kingdom. And so we put away our former life, and pursue something far bigger than ourselves. Why? Because in the end, there are only two pathways into eternity. One that leads to judgment, and one that leads to life. As people on the path of life, our lives should point to the Savior who redeemed us and placed on His path!
This week’s passage is one of the most mysterious and difficult texts in the entire bible, and yet one of the most encouraging scriptures you’ll ever come across. In writing to these suffering Christians in Asia Minor, Peter encourages them in their season of pain and exile by painting three pictures of hope for them. First, he points them to Jesus, the suffering king who walks with His people in their suffering. Peter then points them to Noah, who suffered persecution and rejection before being delivered in a triumphant way. Finally, he points them to the picture of baptism to remind them that Christ is the ark that shelters them from the stormy waters of God’s coming judgment. The primary message of encouragement to the Christian is this: the king who conquered suffering will bring you safely into His Kingdom! Your temporary suffering in this life will be swallowed up in the glory of His presence. You are safe in Him. Take courage in the Suffering King.
Last week we learned that Christ followers are called to love one another deeply within the church family as well as bless those who persecute us outside the family of faith. This week Peter will lay out how followers of Jesus can live a hopeful life in a world that is oftentimes hostile towards Jesus and His people. This hopeful life looks like doing good in practical ways, finding blessing by suffering well for Christ, fearing no one in this world and preparing to give a reason for our hopeful lives. By living this way in a hostile world, people will see Jesus through us in a compelling way.
The last few weeks Peter has shown us how followers of Jesus are to interact in different arenas of life even in the midst of suffering. We’ve looked at how Christians are to view and interact with the government, the work place and within marriage. Today, Peter closes out this section of his letter with instructions on how we are to interact with one another in the body of Christ. He gives us 5 characteristics that should mark our lives within the body of Christ as we live and “do life” with one another. As we seek to live this way within the church, we’ll be shaped and enabled to live that way outside of the church with those who don’t believe and even mistreat us. By living as people of blessing, we become agents of blessing as we point people to the hope we’ve found in Jesus.
As Peter moves through this section of his letter on submission, he gives special attention to the relationship of marriage. Last week, we talked about what godly submission for wives is not and what it actually is. This week, we’ll learn that husbands are also to submit to the Lord Jesus in how they view, treat and interact with their wives. In fact, husbands are commanded to love their wives just as Jesus loves His Bride--the church. Men are to care for, honor, love and serve their wives in such a way that the world would take notice of this unusual type of self-sacrificial love. It is as only as a husband loves his wife like Jesus, and as a wife submits to that loving leadership just as the church submits to Jesus, that marriage begins to paint a beautiful picture of the gospel to the world around us!
In this section of Peter’s letter to suffering Christians in exile, he’s been explaining that God-honoring submission is a key tool in kingdom expansion. The last two weeks, he’s talked about how Christ-followers are to relate to government and to their employers, and now he shifts into the dynamics of a Christian marriage. Peter first pleads with wives to be subject to their husbands, just as the church submits to Jesus. He encourages these godly women to focus on their inner soul beauty more than their external dress or jewelry. He points them to Sarah in the Old Testament as an example to pursue as he points out that the strength of submission is a mark of the daughters of the kingdom who fear nothing in this world. This may be one of the most unpopular texts in the whole bible because it flies right in the face of our modern sensibilities. And yet, it’s only as we structure our marriages as a picture of the gospel that we begin to flourish as husbands and wives. It’s only as we begin to live in God’s design for marriage that we show the world a glimpse of the beauty of Jesus who willingly submitted Himself to redeem us all.
Peter continues with another specific example of how followers of Jesus are to live from our new identity as elect exiles, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a people for God’s own position. Our job description is to proclaim His excellencies, as He has brought us from darkness and into His marvelous light. The first example (last week) was how a Christian responds to government. Now it gets down to more personal and day to day relationships as he addresses servants in households, who would have had a wide variety of jobs but would have been under the authority of a master who may treat them unjustly. This gets really practical for us as well, thinking about our jobs, our bosses, and the other people in authority over us, and how we are to respond to them.
So far in this letter, Peter has given us a beautiful definition of our new identity as followers of Jesus. Elect exiles, beloved sojourners, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, people with a heavenly inheritance and a bulletproof living hope. That is who you are, Christian. Now Peter shifts to how this new identity should be lived out in different areas of our lives. This week, he drills down into how we should respond to earthly governments. If there’s anything our independent, American spirit hates most, it’s probably submission in any form. And yet, Peter teaches that submission is actually connected to Christian freedom. Although there may come a time and place for civil disobedience when man’s law conflicts with God’s law, our baseline attitude and response to our governing authorities should be one of honor and submission. We do this for two key reasons: to please our heavenly king, and to proclaim Him to the people of this world.
We finished up last week by looking at our new identity in Christ in 2:9-10. (Go back and read that before moving on.) Once Peter establishes our new identity in Jesus, he spends the rest of chapter 2 and much of chapter 3 challenging us to live out our new identity in several key areas of our lives. He starts by addressing our personal lives and how we are to engage the sin we each deal with on a daily basis. Peter is reminding us that our new identity as Jesus followers isn’t a passive identity, it’s an active one. It’s transformative. The gospel really does change us and it gives us the ability to say no to sin. Sin doesn’t control us anymore, it doesn’t dominate or enslave us like it once did. As we learn to wage war against our sin-nature and live according to our new identity, the world around us will glorify our Father in Heaven when they see our good deeds birthed from our transformed hearts.
This week we dive into chapter 2 of Peter’s letter to a group of suffering churches. In light of their living hope and coming inheritance through Jesus, Peter challenges them in two key areas: putting away sin and growing in Christ through His Word. He then pivots and reminds them once again of their new identity in Jesus: living stones being built into a spiritual house with Jesus as the cornerstone. He then closes this section of his letter with a reminder of what they are to be doing while living this exiled life full of trials and pain: proclaiming the excellencies of Jesus to the world around them. If believers around the world would take and apply the rich truths in this one small section of Peter’s letter, our neighborhoods, cities and the nations would be transformed forever!
We’ve seen God do some really amazing things during this global pandemic! Perhaps more people than ever before have been reached with the gospel via so many live-streaming services across the globe. The stories of life change, baptisms, and the global church meeting needs in crisis have been incredible. And yet, there seems to be a dangerous disease quietly lurking in the dark recesses of the body of Christ. You see, love for one another and unity in the family of Jesus, is of the highest priority in God’s Kingdom. As we see fracture lines in our society forming over when and how to reopen, wearing masks vs. not wearing masks, weighing physical health vs. economic health, and a host of other issues that are quickly becoming toxic...a watching world desperately needs to see what unity in diversity looks like. For Jesus and the early disciples like Peter, unshakable unity among believers wasn’t optional for the follower of Jesus, it was a defining mark of those who actually knew and loved Him. Our unity, according to Jesus, is actually the one way the world around us will know that God sent Jesus to rescue them because He loves them. In light of that, is there really anything more important than our unity around the gospel above all else?
Last week, we watched as Peter unfolded a picture for his audience of their amazing inheritance in Jesus. He calls it a living hope. A type of hope anchored in the past, secured in the future and experienced in the present. This week, Peter will challenge these suffering believers to respond to this type of hope in bold ways. He’s going to challenge these believers to not only believe the right stuff about God, but to actually live it out in the furnace of suffering. Peter lays out 5 responses to living hope. Practical and yet difficult to live out truths like; getting your mind right, hope fully, chase holiness, fear rightly and love fiercely. As we learn to live out these astonishing truths, we begin to overcome trials and suffering by keeping our eyes on the source of all hope--Jesus Christ.
Last week we were launched into this incredible little letter by the apostle Peter. He reminded us of our true identity on this earth as followers of Jesus: elect exiles. Chosen and loved, and yet strangers in a foreign land who will suffer on our way home. This week, Peter tells these suffering Christians that they have a living hope. That because of the resurrection of Jesus, they have an eternal inheritance. This living hope in Jesus, is so powerful according to Peter, that it actually allows believers to experience joy even in the midst of deep grief. This mystery of the gospel, our salvation and hope in pain is so glorious that the prophets of old spent countless years marveling at it, and even angels long to look into it. We are people of the new covenant, and as new covenant Christians we don’t have a dead hope, a compromised hope or a half-way hope but a LIVING hope because of Jesus!
This week we begin a brand new series called Hope In Exile through the first letter of Peter. Peter most likely wrote this letter right around 64 AD when a psychopath named Nero ruled the vast Roman Empire. Nero set off a fierce period of persecution against the 1st century church, which meant that new Christians had to try to figure out how to follow Jesus when their world seemed to be spinning out of control. He writes to these suffering churches for one primary reason: to give them hope in exile. Right out of the gate, Peter reminds them of their identity. Elect exiles. Chosen, known, loved, blood-bought, God’s prized possession. He reminds them of who they are, and of the activity of the Father, Son and Spirit in their lives. See, we have to know who we are before we know what to do. For the follower of Jesus, there is great hope even in exile. Especially in exile!
This week we wrap up our Transformed series where we’ve been discovering what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. Matthew 4:19 teaches us that being a disciple has 3 primary components: follow, change, on mission. Two weeks ago we taught on part one of living on mission with Jesus, and looked at how to share the best story ever told. This week we’ll be looking at how as saved people we aren’t just saved from something, but we’re also saved to something. In short, saved people serve people. We first and foremost serve God and in response to His greatness and grace we use what we’ve been given to serve those around us. We pray God will continue to transform us all as we live on mission with Him!
Easter is a day that has been celebrated by hundreds of millions of people around the globe each year for nearly 2,000 years. As followers of Jesus, there really isn’t a more important day in the history of the universe. The amazing thing about the resurrection of Jesus is that we have incredibly solid reasons to believe that this is a historical event, rather than some feel good story or fable like the easter bunny or the tooth fairy. The fact that Jesus really did walk out of that tomb outside of Jerusalem 3 days after being brutally executed by the Roman government, means that real hope exists for every last one of us! The resurrection means that your past doesn’t have the final word. It means that the power that raised Jesus from the dead is the same power that’s available to everyone who places their faith in Jesus. The resurrection is a game-changer and the best news this world has ever experienced!
This week we continue in our series discovering what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. Matthew 4:19 teaches us that being a disciple has 3 primary components: follow, change, on mission. So far we’ve looked at what following and being changed by Jesus means. This week, we’ll begin looking at the last component: living on mission with Jesus. In Luke 5, Jesus turns a miracle into a parable for what “fishing for men” (another term for living on mission) means. From this parable we see that we are to cast the net of the gospel deep and wide. Jesus promises that there’s a quite a catch out there to be had if we’ll be faithful to share the best story in the world with the people in our lives!
This week we continue in our series discovering what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. Matthew 4:19 teaches us that being a disciple has 3 primary components: follow, change, on mission. Last week we looked at what it means to follow Jesus, so this week we’ll look at what it means to be changed by Him. This process of change is called sanctification. It’s a life-long process in which we learn to count ourselves dead to sin and live in our new identity in Christ. While salvation is work entirely of God given freely to us, the process of sanctification is combined grace driven effort on our part and the power of the Holy Spirit within us empowering life transformation. Christian, sin doesn’t own you anymore. Jesus has set you free!
As we saw last week in Matthew 4:19, a disciple of Jesus is someone who follows Him, is being changed by Him and lives on mission with Him. This week, we’re going to take a deeper look at the first component of being a disciple: follow. Many of us have grown up in a church culture where we were told (by well intentioned people) that becoming a Christian was nothing more than praying a prayer. But is that really what Jesus had in mind when He called His disciples? What if following Jesus isn’t about being religious at all? What if it’s not even about being a “good person” or praying the right prayer? Jesus viewed the act of following Him as more of an invitation to reorient your entire life around Him. As plugging into a relationship with Him as the power source for the abundant life. Following Jesus isn’t a call to pray a prayer or to adhere to a set of rules. While other religions offer paths to enlightenment, Jesus says “I am the path. I am life. Follow Me.”
Most Christians would agree that our primary purpose on this planet is to be disciples that make disciples. And yet, there seems to be great confusion about what a disciple of Jesus actually is. Is it someone who goes to church every week, never cusses, and reads their Bible for 30 minutes a day? Is it someone who shares their faith relentlessly with everyone they meet? Is it something that’s very private and only between that person and God? The truth of the matter is that Jesus gives us a really simple definition of what it means to be His disciples in Matthew chapter 4. We call it the disciple triangle at New Life. In essence, being a disciple means we: 1. Follow Jesus. 2. We are Changed by Him. 3. We begin to Live On Mission with Jesus. If we don’t know what we’re shooting at, we’re never going to hit it! Unfortunately, our modern church culture has created many Jesus fans, but relatively few disciples of Jesus. We want to be a community of disciples who make disciples, and we all have a part to play in God’s global plan of redemption!
Chapter 4 is the last act in one of the most incredible love stories ever told. Boaz finally marries Ruth, and spectacularly redeems both her and Naomi from a life of hopelessness and poverty. After their wedding, they conceive a son named Obed, who against all odds, ends up in the line of king David and eventually Jesus Christ himself. In the end, Ruth is a story of redemption through a baby born in Bethlehem named Obed, which points us to a greater story of redemption through another baby born in Bethlehem named Jesus, who came so that all might have hope, life & redemption now and forever. Our ultimate redeemer has come and he has paid the price to redeem you and send you on his mission of redemption & reconciliation in your neighborhood, city and to the ends of the earth for His glory and your good!
Last week we saw what amounted to the 1st date between Ruth and Boaz--a romantic meal over roasted grain! The chapter closed with a season of waiting, with the audience wondering what was going to happen between Ruth & Boaz. In chapter 3, things heat up as we watch Ruth make a bold & daring move. Even in a scene that contains what some might call sensual overtones, we see the character & integrity of both Boaz and Ruth on full display. And although, we must wait until chapter 4 for the climax of the story--we get some incredible truths in chapter 3 about what God-pleasing faith looks like when the rubber meets the road. We learn that this type of faith takes big risks, is vulnerable, intimate, waits patiently and that it actually works in a big way in God’s Kingdom!
In the first part of chapter 2, we saw a new character named Boaz, burst onto the scene of our narrative. Through Boaz, we got a glimpse of the provision and protection that we ultimately see fulfilled in Jesus. We learned that Boaz is intended to point us to Christ, as our great shelter through the famines of this life. This week, we see Ruth and Boaz experience what amounts to their first date. We see an almost comical amount of grace showered on Ruth as Boaz lavishes blessing upon blessing on his future bride. This chapter ends with Boaz, Ruth and the audience waiting to see what will happen next. We are reminded that God’s blessings are found in His presence, that our satisfaction is found at the table of our Redeemer and that in our waiting--God’s timing is always perfect. Our God is a God of astounding grace!
The 1st chapter of Ruth painted a pretty dark picture of chaos, famine and death. In chapter 2, a new character emerges that changes the entire trajectory of the story. Boaz is a man of strength, character and means. As Ruth--a new follower of God--displays her faith and trust in God--she’s introduced to Boaz and hope begins to shine through the dark backdrop of her story. In this chapter, we see rich truths that are just as applicable to our lives today as they were in Ruth’s day. We learn that even when God is silent, He is not absent. We learn not to lose faith in the famines of life. We cling to His promise of provision and rescue in His timing. Ultimately, we begin to see that in Boaz, God is pointing us to an even greater redeemer and refuge. Through Boaz and Ruth, would come King David and eventually Jesus. This little love story points us to the big love story of God and His people. God is our great refuge who has provided us the ultimate Redeemer in Jesus!
What if God is more interested in the formation of his son, Christ, in your life, than he is in you getting what you want? Thank you to Joe Dillon for this wonderful message!
Everyone loves a good love story! Ruth is a happy little book filled with captivating artistry that runs deep with theological roots. Chapter 1 starts by painting a dark picture of hopeless desperation that has struck an ancient family. Ruth 1 teaches us that while the path away from God’s presence promises us life, it actually delivers us death and disappointment. Ruth, a young woman from Moab, teaches us that turning back to God is the gateway to life and abundance. Ultimately, hope is found in the presence of God, and with the people of God. The chapter that begins with shattered dreams ends with a glimpse of hope in Bethlehem. The same Bethlehem that would 1,200 years later provide the true source of eternal hope and life!
Jesus gave His church her mission on a mountaintop in Galilee almost 2,000 years ago. And He made some pretty astounding promises about what His church would accomplish between His first and second comings. Foundational to the teaching of Jesus on the church, is understanding that it was designed to be a movement, rather than an institution. A living organism, rather than a dead building or event. Not only that, the church of Jesus was designed to function well and advance when every follower of Jesus took their place in the story God is writing. It was never designed to be a show for an hour a week, with an audience of spectators. As we consider the mission Jesus gave His church to make disciples and advance His Kingdom locally and globally, we must all consider what role God is calling each of us to play in and through His church body in order to push forward the mission He has given His Bride!
This week, we wrap-up our Unstrapped series on the subject of money. So far, we’ve looked at big-picture Scriptural principles about how God views money and how his people should view money in light of the gospel of Jesus. This week, we’re going to get really practical as we look at giving, saving and spending from a biblical perspective. In short, God’s principles for money can be summed up like this: give extravagantly, save wisely and live sufficiently. In this way, we begin to walk in the financial freedom that allows us to take our place in the story God is writing. Stewarding God’s money using his principles not only results in him receiving the glory he deserves, but it also results in our good as well. God’s plan is always for our best!
Last week we launched our Unstrapped series by looking at some pretty radical teachings from Jesus on the subject of money. In essence, Jesus told us that where we put our treasure (money) reveals what we really worship. This week we’ll drill down a little deeper into that truth by discovering that because God owns everything, we are stewards rather than owners of everything God gives us. We’ll also discover how the gospel transforms us from being primarily spenders or savers--into radical investors in the Kingdom of Jesus. Your trust in God will be most clearly seen in how you steward what He gives you!
The subject of money is one that makes many people squirm in their seats! There are some legitimate reasons people get squeamish when they hear the word “money” from a church stage. But the reality is that Jesus spoke on this issue so often, that a biblically faithful church simply cannot avoid teaching on it. In this short-series, we’ll attempt to unpack how God views money, and how His people should understand the purpose of the resources God entrusts us with. Jesus has set us free so that we might live free. And in order for us to truly live in this freedom, we must learn how to live “unstrapped”!
The final parable of Jesus we’ll look at is one of His best known but often misunderstood. He contrasts a Pharisee (who would have been understood as the “good guy” by Jesus’ original hearers) and a tax collector (who ends up being a most unexpected “hero”) who go up to the temple to pray. The story illustrates in vivid and unexpected ways what makes a person acceptable in God’s sight. This is the heart of Christianity and the pathway to entering His Kingdom!
This week, we’ll look at one of the shortest parables Jesus ever told. Actually, there are 2 short parables we’ll look at that are intentionally interconnected. Twin parables, if you will. The 1st parable is commonly known as the parable of the hidden treasure, and the 2nd, is often called the parable of the pearl of great value. In these short stories Jesus is driving home one main truth, and it’s this: Jesus’ Kingdom is more valuable than everything. This one sweeping, life-altering truth has dozens of potential applications, but we’ll focus on just a few. Truths like; we actually find joy in forsaking everything to gain the most important thing. Giving up our small dreams and ambitions for the great and glorious Kingdom of Jesus is a glad exchange. We see that the treasure of Jesus is only grasped by being willing to trade everything to find it. There’s no middle ground. Following Jesus is an all or nothing proposition, because Jesus is after our hearts & our hearts can only worship one thing at a time. So, what do you value most in life? If it’s anything less than Jesus & His Kingdom...your dreams are too small and you’re limiting your capacity for joy. The ultimate treasure is found in knowing Jesus & enjoying His Kingdom!
Think of the best meal or the most enjoyable party you’ve ever experienced. All of us can think back fondly to experiences like this that we’ve enjoyed with family and friends. Even Jesus spent much time eating with people during his earthly ministry. In this parable of the great feast, Jesus tells a room full of feasting self-righteous, religious people a story about a great king who invites ungrateful people to an epic feast. The invitees come up with lame excuse after lame excuse for why they can’t attend. This king eventually fills his epic party with the poor, sick and marginalized of the day. Jesus’ point was that not everyone who is invited to the great feast in his Kingdom will come. In fact, many who think they’re in, will miss it entirely. We can also learn much by observing the king’s servants who were sent out to the streets and alleys to compel people to come to his feast. This story challenges us to consider whether or not we are on our way to the King’s Great Feast, or whether we’re making lame excuses. For those of us who are servants of King Jesus on the path to the feast, it also begs the question: who are you currently inviting to come to the king’s feast? He wants a full party! Are you doing your part to fill it up? Christmas season is the perfect time to invite people in your life to the Great King’s Great Feast!
Persistence is a key ingredient to a happy and meaningful life. If you want a happy marriage, to be a good athlete, musician, business owner, small group leader at church ...you name it--all of it requires a great deal of persistence. We understand that concept in our everyday lives, but oftentimes miss it in our spiritual lives. Jesus tells a parable highlighting 2 main characters; an evil judge and a persistent widow. As we get a window into their interaction, Jesus paints us a picture of how He intends for us to interact with God. We learn incredible truths like the importance of remembering who God is when we pray. Jesus reminds us to remember who we are, as chosen and beloved children of the Father, when we pray. We see that persistent prayer activates divine action. Jesus is looking faithful, relentless people who know their Father and refuse to lose heart in their relationship with Him! Jesus explains this parable right before he tells it, and gives us some great practical application--your Father loves you, so pray a lot and never lose heart!
Last week, we looked at the 1st half of the prodigal parable and the younger rebellious brother. We saw the father’s scandalous grace in welcoming him home with love and forgiveness. Most people end the parable there, but Jesus didn’t. There’s another brother, and there’s much to learn from him as well. The older brother teaches us that there are really two ways to be lost, rebellion and religion. It’s possible to be outwardly moral and obedient, and yet be distant from our Father’s heart. The truth is, for most of us we are in more danger of following the path of the older brother. We are easily angered when God doesn’t give us what we think we deserve. We are blinded by our own sin. We inwardly develop a superiority complex with people who’s sin we see as darker than our own. And yet, the Father pursues both his younger rebellious son, and his older outwardly-obedient son, and invites them both into the party. Two ways to miss God’s heart; rebellion and rule-following. One way of salvation and relationship with the Father, and that’s through His son, Jesus who is the better and perfect older brother!
As Jesus began to preach about the Kingdom of God, he attracted quite the crowd of social rejects, outcasts and sinners. The fact that Jesus hung-out and even befriended these people infuriated the religious elite of the day. In response to their anger, Jesus told one of the most scandalous stories of grace found in the entire bible. This parable, commonly known as the parable of the prodigal son, is actually a tale of two sons and a father. This week we’ll look at the younger son, and next week the older son. The father’s reaction to his rebellious younger son, is a window that allows us to see just how much God loves his children and how deep his grace really runs. This parable teaches us that we’ve never gone too far for God’s love to reach us. You can walk away from this parable understanding that you are the object of God’s relentless love. In Christ, we are sons, never slaves. That’s grace, and grace changes everything!
This week we continue in our new parables series with one of the more familiar parables of Jesus, commonly known as the parable of the Good Samaritan. Jesus tells this parable in response to a question from an expert in religious law who was trying to trap him. The lawyer asked: “what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus’ answer would have rocked His Jewish audience because he taught that love for God is inseparable from our love of neighbor. This parable teaches us revolutionary truths like: love overcomes inconvenience, fear and heart-level bigotry. We see that loving God by loving others is often times inconvenient and costly. We also learn that our “neighbor” isn’t just the person we like or the person who is like us. Our neighbor includes anyone who God places in our path who needs compassion. We also see that loving God is always more than just having right theology. Loving God rightly, always leads to a life of loving others sacrificially in a way that points them to the sacrificial love of Jesus. Jesus is the better and truer Good Samaritan who rescued us when we were stripped naked, beat-up and bloodied by sin, and he paid the price for our freedom with his own blood!
This week we launch into a brand new series on the parables of Jesus. Jesus often taught in parables as a way to compare one thing to another, typically using an earthly story to unearth a deeper spiritual truth. Jesus’ parables were often times marked by an unexpected twist, something that shocks his audience and grabs their attention. The parable of the sower and the soils is one of the most well-known and challenging parables in the New Testament. In this parable, Jesus describes every human heart as one of four types of soil, and the gospel as a seed that lands on those soils. There’s hard soil, rocky soil, thorny soil and good soil. Only one of these bears fruit and proves to be the stuff that genuine faith in Jesus is made of. This parable offers us a lens into our own hearts. Jesus means for this parable to cause us to peer into the window of our hearts and examine whether or not our faith is genuine, and whether or not the gospel has taken root in our hearts and begun to produce fruit in our lives. The good news is that Jesus offers us his love and grace at every stage of our lives. So whatever condition your heart is in right now, Jesus offers to give you a new heart; one that is a fertile landing spot for the gospel that will produce incredible fruit in your life and in the kingdom of God!
This week we wrap up our fall missions series by diving into one of the most incredible passages in the New Testament. In this chapter, God is giving the apostle John a glimpse of the end of this age as he gets to watch a magnificent story unfold in the throne room of God. John is broken by the hopelessness of humanity and longs for a worthy redeemer to open the heavenly scroll and usher in the consummation of God’s Kingdom when all will be made right and all that is broken will be restored. As John begins to lose all hope, Jesus--the victor-- shows up to open the scroll and set in motion the liberation of all of his people and the restoration of all creation. All heaven erupts into worship as they sing that Jesus has ransomed people from every tribe, language, people and nation. From this glorious scene, we see that God’s mission is not complete until people from every tribe, tongue and nation are worshipping Jesus. Currently, there are roughly 6,000 unreached people groups in the world that have little to no access to the only gospel that can save them. That’s over 3 billion people. The only appropriate response for the redeemed follower of Jesus is to fully engage in God’s global mission of reconciling all peoples to Himself. Will you pray relentlessly, give sacrificially and go confidently? We all have a role to play in this incredible mission...what’s yours?
This week we move into the New Testament, continuing to see the theme of God’s heart for all nations, all peoples, from Genesis to Revelation and from the beginning of time to the end of history.
Genesis 12:1-3 showed us from the very outset of God’s plan that He blesses His people abundantly, but that is not to be an end in itself. Psalm 67 is one of many more places in the Old Testament that we see this described. His people are to be conduits of His blessing to others in general, and in particular to every nation, tribe, people and language on earth.
Moving into the New Testament, this plan extends to the church as we join His mission to make disciples of all nations (all peoples). And as Paul reflects in his letter to the Romans about his part in the mission, he says some amazing things about what he has done, how he has done it, and that he is, well, done (at least in certain regions).
Will we be people like Paul who passionately go for the sake of God’s glory among the nations? Will we be people like those who sent Paul to the least reached peoples and places? What part will each of us play in finishing the mission to bring God’s blessing to all nations, all peoples?
God's Heart for all Nations - Psalm 67 - Ranjit David, Guest Preacher 10 13 19 by New Life of Asheville
If you spend any time at all on social media, you’ve seen the “hashtag blessed” trend. It’s usually just a way for people to humble-brag. But as American Christians, God really has blessed us both materially and spiritually in ways most people throughout human history could never have dreamed of. But what is God’s grand purpose in blessing us as He has? The Scriptures are saturated with the scandalous truth that God has blessed us so that we would be a blessing to others. Jesus commanded His disciples to go into the nations and make disciples. In Genesis 12, God called a pagan man named Abram and his barren wife, Sarai, to go to a foreign land. God promised to bless all the families of the earth through them. It was through the lineage of this most unlikely couple, that God would eventually send the Messiah to bring salvation to all peoples. Abraham teaches us a lot about how we should respond to God’s call to go. We see that blessing motivates mission. That the promises of God are experienced in obedience. That risks in the Kingdom of God are worth it, and that faith is the currency of Jesus’ Kingdom. God has called His people to go into their neighborhoods, cities and nations with the blessing of the good news. If you love Jesus, you have been blessed and you have been blessed in order that you might be a blessing to others. Will you put your yes on the table and let God put it on the map? Will you pray a radical prayer like that and trust God with whatever He asks you to do?
This week we finish up our series on conflict by addressing conflict in the context of a church family. Jesus was so serious about his bride being unified, that in John 17 he said the world would know the Father sent him by the unity of his disciples. In John 13, Jesus tells us that the world will know we are his disciples by our love for one another. This is a REALLY big deal to Jesus. So big in fact, that He lays out guidelines for how we are to deal with conflict & sin with each other in the church. By looking at these passages we see important truths about overcoming conflict in the church family by following the “4 G’s of conflict resolution” in the church. When conflict comes, we should: glorify God in how we handle the situation, get the log out of our own eye before engaging, gently restore our brother or sister & we should get together to seek reconciliation & forgiveness. Jesus even gives us detailed steps in how to do this. We have an enemy who comes to steal, kill & destroy. One of Satan’s most effective tactictics is division. A unified church family is a dangerous & powerful thing! By following biblical guidelines for conflict resolution, we can not only survive, but flourish as a unified church family that honors God & advances the Kingdom of Jesus together!
Resolving conflict is one of the most important life skills to master if you want a happy life. You need to know how to resolve conflict at work, school, with friends, in marriage, with parents, with that annoying neighbor, and well...you get the idea. Conflict is all around us—most of us spend our lives running from it or making it worse. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, conflict is something God can use for good to make us more like Him & to give us healthier relationships. God gives us the keys to getting off the relational crazy train in the Bible. By looking at these passages we will see that the source of relational conflict comes from within. We are our biggest problem. Once we realize that, we can humble ourselves and work toward healthy relationships with some simple steps. When it comes to conflict we must: expect it, engage it, own it, and forgive like crazy. God wants us to live in harmony with one another, and it is actually possible not to allow relational conflict to steal your joy and derail your relationships!
We started our series on conflict last week by going all the way back to the beginning and looking at the fall of Adam & Eve in the garden. As sin entered the world and fractured the cosmos, every human being since that fateful day has been born with a sin nature, spiritually dead and separated from God. This conflict and separation between mankind and God is the most tragic result of the fall. We try to fix this brokenness in a variety of ways but always end up failing because what’s broken, is broken at the heart level. At our core we are sinners. And yet, God’s love for His people is so relentless, that He has made a solution to the conflict and brokenness between people and their Creator. The book of Romans tells us that while we were still sinners, God sent Jesus on a rescue mission for us. Jesus is the truer and better Adam. Just as sin entered the world through one man (Adam), reconciliation with God is offered through one man (Jesus.) It is through His shed blood that we can now been reconciled to God and forgiven of all of our sins through His sacrifice on our behalf. Jesus is the cure to our conflict and separation from God! This is the greatest news!
This week we launch into a 4 week series on one of the most important and least talked about topics on planet earth: conflict! We’ve all experienced it, and there’s no avoiding it. In week one, we’ll look at the origins of conflict by going all the way back to the beginning. One little event so many years ago injected brokenness and conflict into our relationship with God and one another. Nothing has been the same since. Shalom has been shattered. By looking back at the fall in the garden, we’ll see some patterns that play out over and over again in our own lives. We will see that conflict typically flows from things like a shallow trust in God, developing a god-complex and full-blown rebellion against God. Once conflict has a grip on our lives, we tend to hide/retreat and then blame shift just like the 1st humans ever created did so long ago. We live in a state of brokenness and conflict, and there’s absolutely nothing we can do to get ourselves out of this vicious cycle. That’s the bad news. Come back next week for the good news!
Paul closes out this powerful little letter to the church in Philippi by encouraging and challenging the believers there in several specific ways. In this section of his letter, Paul really hits home on his gratitude for his church family, the secret to contentment, and the importance of partnership in advancing the mission of Jesus around the world. He finishes the letter by circling back to the grace of Jesus. In all of Paul’s letters it’s interesting that he always brings it back to the gospel of Jesus. The truth of the matter is that it is impossible for us to live contented lives full of joy apart from the power of the gospel. May we constantly come back to the glorious news that our Savior lived a perfect life for us, died to pay the penalty for our sins, and rose to give us abundant life now and in eternity! This is our hope and this is our fuel to live a sold-out life for Him!
It’s easy to do. We look at our life and the lives of others and begin to focus on behaviors. We try harder to control our own behaviors and we slip into condemning others for their bad behaviors. However, Romans teaches us there’s something else going on behind all these behaviors that’s critical to understand. It turns out our behaviors are simply indicators of who is really ruling our life, and Romans exposes who those rulers in our life are and how they operate in our life. Therefore, it’s critical to realign our life with the understanding that relational obedience will always come before behavioral change.
Spiritual Realities in The Lord's Supper - Dr. Steve Harris, Guest Teacher 08 18 19 by New Life of Asheville
You may remember that last week Paul challenged believers to run their race well in chapter 3. To press, strain and strive to the finish line of knowing Jesus & becoming like Jesus. As Paul launches us into chapter 4, he’s going to give us 5 keys to running that race well. Five simple and yet life changing keys to spiritual health. If you’ve grown up in church, little of this will be new to you. But it’s only as we take truths like: standing firm in Jesus, guarding unity, fighting for joy, killing anxiety and fixing our minds on good, and begin to apply them, that life change actually happens. And when we imbed these truths into the rhythms of our everyday lives, we begin to live in the joy God intends for us, as His peace becomes a mainstay in our hearts and minds.
Paul is going to close out this portion of his letter to the church in Philippi by giving them (and us) a really vivid mental picture of what a life given to the pursuit of Jesus actually looks like. Paul is going to encourage us to acknowledge that we haven’t arrived or become perfect in our faith. He’s going to inspire us to press into the race of pursuing Jesus by forgetting our past and striving forward in our faith. He’s also going to point us to the importance of anchoring our life in the gospel and living our lives in this world as citizens of heaven, unlike many who claim Jesus with their mouths but deny Him with their lives.
Philippians - When Loss is Gain - Joe Dillon, Guest Pastor 07 28 19 by New Life of Asheville
Thus far, Paul has spent the bulk of the first two chapters of Phillipians laying out a clear and compelling picture of what the Jesus-centered life looks like. We’ve seen that the Jesus-centered life is characterized by joy, fearlessness and a focus on others rather than self. This Jesus-centered life should also be absent of qualities that are not compatible with the gospel. Things like: rivalry, selfish-ambition, grumbling and complaining. In this section of his letter, Paul puts forward two real-life examples of people who are faithfully living this life as examples we can emulate. From the life of Timothy and Epaphroditus we see clearly that the life of the Christian should be deeply marked with things like: gospel faithfulness in the ordinariness of life. We see that we actually love and serve Jesus by loving and serving our brothers and sisters in Christ. And we learn that our lives should reflect sacrificial risk for the sake of Jesus as we live humbly and honor one another.
We ended last week with Paul pointing us to Jesus as the power source to live a gospel-worthy life. This week, Paul points us--again--to Jesus, as he encourages us to work out our salvation. This verse has been misunderstood by many to mean that we should work in order to earn our salvation and that we are at risk of losing it if we don’t. Instead, Paul is simply saying that what God has worked in us, we should work out or live out in a tangible way. Our faith should result in more than mere words, but a life lived in pursuing Jesus and His mission for us. The way we live our lives matters. Obedience to Jesus is a fruit of a heart that’s being changed by Him. The only way we can live this life of authentically working out our salvation and shining as lights in a dark world is by holding fast to the “word of life” as we look to Jesus as the author and finisher of our faith. We rest in the fact that our salvation is secure in Jesus, while at the very same time, working hard to shine His hope to the world around us!
In this portion of Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi, Paul tells them--and us--that there are certain qualities or distinctives that should be marks in the Christian’s life. He will compel us to live lives worthy of the gospel of Jesus. We don’t live this way in an attempt to earn our salvation or to pay God back in some strange way, but this is the life that overflows from a person being transformed by Jesus from the inside out. Followers of Jesus should be marked by unity, fearlessness, the ability to suffer well for Jesus and a life of humility as we put others ahead of ourselves. This life is radically different from anything and everything we see in our culture. It is the opposite of the selfish “me first” mindset we see in our world. The motivation and power to live this type of revolutionary life only comes as we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who modeled this life of self-sacrifice perfectly for us. This is the worthy life, may we live it well and make Jesus look big!
People will do almost anything to live. Diets, exercise, incredible feats of courage...all to stay alive. But what are you living for? Many people, sadly, have absolutely no clue! 2,000 years ago, a guy sitting in a prison cell facing his own possible execution tells us exactly what it is that’s worth not only living for, but dying for. Paul connects our joy with relying on Christ, which allows us to live courageously. He encourages us to live a life worthy of the gospel by living in unity with our brothers and sisters in Christ, living fearlessly, and suffering well for the cause of Jesus. To live is Christ, to die is gain. Jesus was everything to Paul. That’s who he lived for and it unlocked incredible joy and freedom in his life. What are you living for?
Last week we saw the incredible and unlikely start to the church in the city of Philippi. Paul loved these brothers and sisters deeply! This week we pick back up in this powerful little letter as we uncover deep-rooted truths like the power of authentic community we experience when we join God’s family. We see counterintuitive truths that help us understand the purpose of suffering in our lives. Paul shows us that our trials can serve to not only advance the gospel of Jesus but also embolden other believers to follow Jesus in the storms of life. Paul also demonstrates for us the primacy of gospel advancement, and the fact that our ego and reputation must be laid down so that we can see Jesus made famous in Asheville and around the world!
Paul wrote to the Philippian church in a way he wrote to no other church. His affection for these believers was amazingly deep. This rag-tag church plant that began with a wealthy fashionista, a demon-possessed slave girl and a violent soldier was about as unlikely a group as you could imagine. They were undoubtedly persecuted and suffered for their faith in pagan Philippi. Paul writes to them to encourage them and gives them the key to navigating the ups and downs of this crazy life as a Jesus follower. That key? Indestructible joy. This entire letter will unlock the mystery of joy in all circumstances. This little book is a power-house and life-changing in so many ways!
Our series concludes with a panel discussion addressing questions submitted by our congregation.
I Doubt It -Can I Really Know God Personally? Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 06 02 19 by New Life of Asheville
One of the biggest questions about the Christian faith is based on whether or not the Bible is historically accurate and reliable. How can smart people believe a book written long ago by flawed men, especially when it contains so many offensive things? Wasn’t it manipulated and changed over time by church leaders trying to consolidate power for themselves? These are good questions, and we have good answers not just from the Bible, but by looking at history objectively. We will see that we have great reasons to believe that the Bible is historically reliable and accurate. We’ll tackle the primary objections to the Bible’s accuracy and show why it’s trustworthy historically, and why it’s the one book that introduces us to God in a way that nothing else can.
The question of the existence of evil and suffering and why God allows it is probably the most challenging question for atheists, skeptics and even Christians to answer. In fact, there is probably no answer that would completely satisfy us. God, through the Bible, does not seem to give us the satisfaction of His complete answer, yet having a functional and confessional theology concerning suffering is important. While we may not have a complete understanding of suffering and evil this side of eternity, we can experience and discuss suffering’s transformative power and how God can graciously use it in our life.
Isn’t saying that Jesus is the only way to God intolerant? What about all the kind and morally upright people in other religions? Does this exclusive claim make Christians bigoted, narrow-minded bigots, as our current culture seemingly implies? The reality is that God provided a way for everyone to get to Him. You could say that Christianity is the most inclusive, exclusive worldview on the planet. Most every religion teaches that humanity has to sacrifice to get to God. But the gospel of Jesus teaches us that God sacrificed Himself to get to us. This should make Christians the most humble, loving people on earth. The door is open for all to enter into God’s Kingdom through Jesus. He is the way, the truth and the life!
Have you ever wondered if God really exists? It’s such a simple question but a challenging one nonetheless. Is faith just a tradition that’s been handed down to us by our parents or wishful thinking? Or is there actual evidence in our world that points us to the existence of God? Fortunately, there is much evidence that points us to God! We will look at creation, morality and personal experience as some of the primary evidences that point us to God. Once we establish that the evidence points us to the existence of God, we are ready to discover who He really is!
This week we start our new series called: I Doubt It. We’ll start by talking about doubt, and whether or not it’s ever okay to experience doubt or to have troubling questions about God or life. The 1st step to answering many of our doubts, begins with answering the foundational question of purpose. Why am I here? Is there a point? Am I a part of a bigger story, or does my life really matter at all in the grand scheme of things? All other questions really flow from this one—and until we answer this, we’ll have a hard time working through anything else. The good news is that God has something incredible to say about our purpose, and when we discover that, everything else begins to make more sense.
Everything in life has a beginning. Your life had starting point, your job did, and your most significant relationships all did. Faith has a beginning point too, and sometimes we need to go back to the beginning to understand things clearly. In the garden, all the way back in Genesis, after humans chose sin over God and hurled the world into a tailspin of sin, death & destruction, God made a promise that He would send a Savior to rescue His people from sin, death & hell. People waited in great anticipation for this chosen rescuer to arrive for centuries. And then one day, Jesus stepped onto the scene proclaiming the good news of God’s Kingdom. He told people that He would suffer, die & rise again. Three days after Jesus was brutally executed by the Roman government, His tomb was indisputably empty. The only question that remains is; what happened? Did His disciples steal His body? Did Jesus just faint on the cross and come to in the tomb so He could sneak out? Or, did He do exactly what He said He would and walk out of that grave 3 days after He was executed proving that all of His claims were in fact true? What you do with Jesus is the most important thing you will do in your life. He was either a lunatic on the level of Charles Manson...or He’s the King of the universe and worthy of your life and devotion. Spoiler alert...that tomb in Jerusalem is still empty and Jesus is alive!
This week we shift from our David series to focus on Jesus, the Son of David who came to fulfill God’s promises in the Old Testament. Before we get to the celebration of the resurrection, we have to go to the cross. Before Jesus experienced that final victory, He suffered and died. But why? If God is loving, why couldn’t He just forgive us? Why was the cross a necessary part of the story? Whether we’ve been in church our whole lives or if all of this is new to us, we know Jesus died on the cross, but many of us misunderstand why He had to. In this week’s message, we will look at one of the clearest explanations in all of the Bible, in what many would call the most important paragraph ever written.
This week we’ll step into the final scene of David’s life. By this time, many years have passed and David is no longer the young warrior-king out conquering nations on the battlefield. He’s now an old and frail man as the sun is setting on his journey in this life. It’s a sobering picture as we imagine David contemplating his own death. That’s a healthy practice for us all. What’s our legacy going to be? As we dive into this scene, we’re going to see that David had one final thing to say, one more battle to fight, before he goes to be with the Lord. The final thing he wanted to lead his people into, wouldn’t be a battle this time, rather, he would lead them into a heart posture of worship, trust & generosity toward God. That’s the legacy he leaves with his final words. Through this beautiful and sacrificial final act of David’s life, we draw some important lessons about generosity, trust and worship when our hearts belong fully to God. He is so worthy of our whole hearts and all of our lives!
Last week we watched David walk into sin and trainwreck his life in a spectacularly sad way. This week, we see that God pursues His children who are enslaved to sin because He loves them. God knows that our joy is rooted in a right relationship with Him, and repentance is the pathway to that right relationship when we find ourselves mired in sinful patterns in our lives. While our sin always comes with consequences, because of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection on our behalf, God’s forgiveness is always a repentant heart and prayer away. God’s desire is for His children to live in freedom and joy. Lets stop running to sin, and run to the One who can set us free!
For the last couple of months, we’ve learned from David’s strengths, his unwavering trust in God, his ferocious love for God & his unprecedented success as he walked with the Lord. But this week, we’ll get the opportunity to learn from his failure. By looking at David’s failure, we can draw out some tell-tale warning signs that we too, may be about to trainwreck our lives in sin. We see that sin is often times birthed in complacency. Once we become complacent spiritually, we open ourselves to compromise, which can then lead to sin, cover-up and destruction. The good news is that Jesus offers us grace and forgiveness for the deepest, darkest sins in our lives. He stands ready to restore and make new when we confess, turn from sin, and find our hope in Him!
2 Samuel 7 is one of the most important passages in all of the Old Testament. It’s known as the Davidic Covenant and contains a beautiful messianic prophecy. In this chapter, we see David’s desire to build God a magnificent temple to display His greatness to the world. God’s answer to this noble desire is simply and somewhat shockingly; no. Why would God deny David such a generous request? Well, God was teaching David that in His Kingdom, it’s not about us working for Him, it’s about what God has done for us! We learn that our motivation to live for God shouldn’t come from a place of guilt or duty or trying to pay God back for what He’s done for us, but rather from an overflow of our love for Him. David also teaches us that our response to God’s greatness and the gospel itself, is a heart of gratitude and love that flows into a life of worship and service of our great God!
Building a Gospel Centered Marriage - Steve Harris - Guest Preacher - 03 10 19 by New Life of Asheville
After years of trusting, obeying, struggles, pain, betrayal and clinging to God’s promises, David is finally crowned king of Israel. It was a long time coming! In this part of David’s story we see that our faith unlocks the favor of God. We also learn, as we did with Saul, that our disobedience to God leads to painful consequences in our lives. But through it all, God’s presence should produce real worship in our lives. The good news is that all of God’s favor, power & presence is available to us, in Jesus. We don’t have to work for or try to attain God’s favor, we have it in full in Christ. As believers, we must learn to live and rest in His favor. As we do that, the natural overflow of thankfulness is a life of worship to the One who set us free!
David - The Tragedy of a Life Apart From God - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 02 24 19 by New Life of Asheville
Vision is important. Without it, we can wander aimlessly through life with no real purpose. Jesus gave His Bride a compelling vision & mission that has driven His people and expanded His Kingdom for the last 2,000 years. Sadly, somewhere along the way in our culture, we’ve turned the Jesus movement into an institution where people have become more spectators than active players in God’s mission in the world. At New Life, we’re convinced God has more for us than simply attending an event for one hour a week. We’ve been called to reach our families, neighbors & nations with the gospel as we work together to multiply disciples who follow Jesus, are being changed by Jesus and are living on mission with Him!
Our lives in many ways are defined by how we handle crisis. When things get messy in our lives, our functional saviors tend to be revealed. In moments of pain or fear, we run to the things that we really worship. David teaches us that the crises of life are great opportunities to remind ourselves of just how strong our God truly is. We learn that we get grace from God so that we can be grace-givers in this world. We also see that God is the great rescuer and restorer, and that giving ourselves away to God and His mission is the best life we can possibly live.
Sometimes life just doesn’t go the way we’d hope or plan. In those moments we really have 2 choices; we can take short-cuts and compromise or we can choose to trust God and wait on Him. 1 Samuel 24 & 26 give us an incredible picture of how David handles life when things don’t go the way he’d hoped or planed. We learn that trust in God releases us to live the good life God has planned for us. Trust in God’s goodness frees us from trying to manipulate our circumstances, frees us from seeking revenge and releases us to live lives of forgiveness and love. Of course, the power to live this life only comes through a relationship with Jesus. It’s through Jesus that we can walk through the difficulties of life and trust God completely as we enjoy the good life He has for His children.
Our culture is at a major cross-roads and standing on the verge of a crisis of epic proportions. The latest national surveys reveal that the lack of friendship, loneliness and isolation are at all-time highs in America. The results promise to be catastrophic. The good news is that God offers a better way and a better life. Through David’s friendship with Jonathan we get a picture of the type of true friendship God has designed for us to experience both with Him and with other people. We see that true friendship is a gift from God, is fuel for our spiritual lives and is found in community. We also see that the DNA of this type of friendship is is built on counter-cultural principals like; humility, self-sacrifice, loyalty and honesty. Ultimately, this points us to the truest and best friend one can have in Jesus. It’s through that friendship that we’re enabled to become the type of friend and build the type of friendships we all need to thrive and flourish in life!
Last week we looked at one of the most famous stories in history as we saw David slay Goliath and defeat one of the most feared military powers of the day. This week we watch as David goes from a nobody to a national hero & celebrity overnight. We learn of the toxic dangers that the fruit of envy can produce in our lives as we watch king Saul lose his mind with jealousy. We also see that obedience to God can lead to spiritual victories in our lives, and that success comes with its own set of challenges and pitfalls. David teaches us that though obeying God comes with a price, living in God’s Kingdom is always worth the cost!
David - The Savior and the Giant - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 01 13 19 by New Life of Asheville
This week we launch into a study on one of the most epic stories ever told. David towers above every figure in Scripture, outside of Jesus Himself. We can learn much from the life of a man who was called a man after God’s own heart. For all of David’s accomplishments, he wasn’t perfect. He stumbled and failed in spectacular ways more than once. David points us forward to the king who would never fail, to the king of kings--Jesus Christ. In this passage we learn that God looks at the heart. He isn’t looking for the most talented, most wealthy, best looking person--He’s looking for devoted hearts. And when He finds a heart like this, He does amazing things!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: “Samuel did what the Lord said.” We get that from v. 1-4. God instructed Samuel to get over Saul’s fall from grace and go choose a new king. Doing as God commanded, (which included only telling Saul he was going to Bethlehem to sacrifice to the Lord) this meant Samuel would not be telling Saul the whole truth. What purpose would God have in instructing Samuel to withhold information from his king? “Greatness” is something many people desire but few understand. We usually recognize the “great” only after they have achieved. What we see is the finished product, not the process. We tend to romanticize greatness. What are some of the qualities that make your list for “greatness?” What are the things you think God values as great when He considers men and women? Too often we, as Christians, yearn for the product but try to avoid the “process.” How in your life have you experienced pain, disappointment and challenge and seen it add value to who you are? The scene of David’s triumph is not the beginning of his story. He began in obscurity, the youngest of many brothers and assigned to keeping flocks out in the hills. Granted there were many tests he encountered and fears to overcome as he worked alone in the wild. Where have you had to draw upon your courage to meet a challenge and how, if at all, was God invited to share in this “invitation to growth?” If you neglected to seek God’s involvement, talk about that too. When God sent Samuel to anoint Israel’s new king (which turned out to be David), Samuel looked admiringly at David’s tallest and good looking brother. God reminded his respected prophet “The Lord does not look at the things a man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” That’s quite an indictment. How often do we miss it by looking at the obvious, the outward, the physical rather than trying to see people with the lens of God? Can you share any errors in judgment you have made like this and what came of it?
Week 3 of our Advent series brings us to Simeon’s Song in Luke’s Gospel. We know very little about this old man who waited patiently to see the Messiah with his own eyes. He appears in Luke’s narrative for a brief moment and then fades out of the story, never to be heard from again. And yet, his brief appearance, leaves us with much to ponder and apply to our own lives. Throughout all of these songs, God is teaching us--in a sense--that He delights in using nobodies to flip the world upside down. It was so with young Mary, old Zechariah and now an obscure old man named Simeon. Simeon teaches us deep truths about how Jesus helps us live and die well. How the salvation of Jesus is personal, but also global and how Jesus makes neutrality with God impossible. Christmas drives us all to answer the core question of humanity: what will you do with Jesus?
The Songs of Christmas - Zechariah's Song - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 12 16 18 by New Life of Asheville
The Songs of Christmas - Mary's Song - Bryan Robbins - Guest Preacher 12 02 18 by New Life of Asheville
Paul concludes his letter to Titus and the young believers in Crete by reminding them of what their lives and attitudes should look like to the outside world. We should be obediently submissive to the authorities God places in our lives. We should live with a grace-filled, gentleness that reflects the grace we’ve received from Jesus. Christians should be the greatest citizens on the planet, living out good works, and looking for ways to do good to people. We live this unique way of life so that people would see the beauty of God in us and be drawn to the God who compels His people to live such beautiful lives.
As we move into chapter 2 of Paul’s letter to Titus, we shift from the need for godly leaders in a healthy church, to how believers are to live out the gospel in practical ways. See, the gospel of Jesus isn’t just for our salvation. It’s also for our sanctification (the life-long process of becoming more like Jesus.) Our lives should reflect the new life and new heart that Jesus gives us. This should play out in our marriages, how we parent, how we work, how we speak and in every other area of our lives. Our lives ought to be a mirror that is constantly pointing those around us to the beauty of God as we pour into the lives of others and make more disciples of Jesus!
In the New Testament book of Titus, Paul writes to his young friend & partner in ministry, whom he left on the island of Crete to help structure new churches there. As Paul paints the portrait of a healthy church for Titus, he starts by painting the picture of healthy leaders in the church. These elders are to be marked by lives that look like Jesus, they are to teach God’s Word rightly and also correct false teaching in order to protect the flock God has entrusted to them. This week Paul lays out the marks of false teachers and how the elders of a church family should respond to such destructive and toxic people within the church. We learn much about our own walks with Jesus in this portion of the letter, and how our lives should match our beliefs.
Through the month of October, we’ve talked about living on mission in our city and how we have a role to play in reaching the 45 million in slavery around the world, the 8 million children who die each year due to poverty and starvation and the 2.8 billion people who have never heard the good news about Jesus. We must go to these people and these places. But in going to them, we must not neglect the mission field God has placed right under our noses with our family, friends and neighbors. The home was designed by God to be our first mission field. Our children were given to us by God in order that we might introduce them to Jesus and teach them the joys of living life with and for Him. And yet, studies show we’re losing our kids at an alarming rate. Why is that and how can we stop the bleeding? We’ll unpack that today by diving into Ephesians and Deuteronomy to explore how God has designed the home to function as a mission field.
What does it mean to be a Christian? What distinguishes the life of a Jesus follower from the life of anyone else in this world? As believers, our lives should look an awful lot like the life of Jesus. In order for us to give our lives away to what Jesus is for, we have to look at why He came and what He was about. We get a really clear answer to those questions in Luke 4 as Jesus bursts onto the scene in His hometown synagogue and He launches His earthly ministry. We see that Jesus was all about good news for the poor, liberty for captives, sight for the blind and jubilee for all who would believe in Him. Those traits should mark our lives as His disciples, as we live our lives on mission caring for the poor, orphan, widow, abused and marginalized in our culture, while pointing them to their ultimate hope in Jesus.
The book of Titus is a fascinating little letter that is jam-packed with insightful truths that give us a portrait of a healthy church. The apostle Paul writes this letter to his protege, Titus, who is on the island of Crete helping organize these young and fledgling churches. Paul gives us several themes throughout this book as he paints a picture of what a healthy church should look like. Among these themes are godly leadership, sound doctrine and lives changed by belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ. This week we’ll look at why godly leadership is foundational to a healthy church, and how the qualifications for elders should be the goal for every follower of Jesus.
A lot of times we think that living “on mission” with God means getting on an airplane and going to some far-away place to be a missionary. Going to the nations is certainly a part of God’s mission, but living on mission is a part of everyday life for the follower of Jesus. Matthew records in amazing detail how Jesus lived His life every day on mission, and how He instructed His disciples to live on mission. The reality is that we can live on mission right where we live, work and play. With a little intentionality, we can turn our ordinary lives into amazingly powerful and exciting lives on mission with Jesus!
There is a Bridge - The Why of the Mission - Joe Dillon, Guest Teacher 10 07 18 by New Life of Asheville
This week we wrap up our DNA series on 5 of the distinct traits of the local church--the Bride of Jesus. We’ve unpacked local church membership, baptism, biblical preaching and fellowship. This week we’ll tackle a topic that may be the biggest elephant in the room in most American churches, the subject of biblical generosity. Jesus talked more about money than anything else outside of the Kingdom of God. Paul wrote very specific instructions to 1st century churches about their giving practices. In fact, generosity has been one of the marks of the follower of Jesus since the beginning of the movement. This week we’ll learn why we give as followers of Jesus, how we give and how much God expects us to give. As we learn to live generous lives, we learn to trust God in new and exciting ways that bring us great joy and God great glory!
We’re now in week 3 of our DNA series where we’re discovering what the church is designed to be by God, and why we do some of the things we do. We’ve looked at local church membership and baptism the last two weeks, and this week we’ll look at probably the most important trait of a biblical church; the practice of preaching God’s Word in our gatherings. This is the one trait of a biblical church that determines everything else in a church. If a church gets this one wrong, it’s only a matter of time before it falls apart or drifts away from Jesus’ design for His Bride. This ancient practice is absolutely critical for any church to be what God desires for her to be. At New Life, we’re committed to being a word-rooted community!
Last week we launched into our new series on the DNA of the church! We saw that church is not a building, institution or an event that happens on Sunday AM. God’s design from the beginning for believers was and is for them to commit to and flourish in a local church, which becomes their spiritual family. This week we take a look at something that has marked the people of Jesus from the very beginning, and that’s baptism. As we dig into the Scriptures we see a clear picture emerge about what baptism is, who it’s for and why it’s so important for the follower of Jesus!
This week we launch into our brand new series on the DNA of the church. So many people seem to have the misconception that church is a place, a building, a social club or an event. But the Scriptures paint a far deeper and more compelling picture of what the Bride of Christ is designed to be. Paul teaches us in his letter to a local church in a city called Ephesus that the church is a spiritual family and that it’s members need one another. In Hebrews, we see how critical it is for the believer to belong to a local church body and the reason why it’s so important. At the end of the day, God’s design for His people is to belong to a local church for their good and His glory!
This week we finish our 12 week study through the book of Galatians. Paul puts the finishing touches on this powerful little letter by summarizing the entire letter and challenging his readers to stick to the gospel of Jesus. Paul warns us, as he has before, of the dangers of following false teachers peddling half-truths and false gospels. He also encourages us to find our identity in nothing but the cross of Jesus. He is everything to the Christ-follower, we boast in nothing but Him because of what He’s done for us! In Jesus, we are set free to live free!
Last week Paul contrasted the fruits of the flesh that lead to death with the fruit of the Spirit that leads to freedom and life. This week, Paul is going to show us what the Spirit-filled life looks like, practically speaking. He leaves us with 4 marks that should characterize the life of the person who has been set free by Jesus. We are to be marked by restoring those trapped in the brokenness of sin, by bearing one another’s burdens and pain, by living lives of generosity, and by doing good to people. If every believer began to live out these 4 principles in their everyday lives, our neighborhoods, city and world would never be the same!
Paul wraps up chapter 5 by moving from the freedom that we have through the simple gospel of Jesus, to the fruits that freedom produces in the life of the follower of Jesus. At the end of the day, we all desire change/transformation in our lives. Especially at the heart level where our secret sins live. Change at this level is possible, but we can’t get there through sheer willpower or just trying harder. We’re too weak, and the pull of our flesh is too strong. Rooting our hearts in the simple gospel and walking in the Spirit as we focus on falling more in love with Jesus, is the key to unlocking good fruit in our lives in an organic way. Only Jesus can transform us in this way!
In this section of his letter to the new Christians in Galatia, Paul emphasizes the freedom we have in Christ. He encourages them not to return to the slavery of religion and trying to earn salvation, since Jesus had already accomplished all of that for them. He also warns them of the danger of buying into even a small amount of false teaching, as even a small amount of toxic belief can corrupt the whole. He finishes this section of his letter by encouraging the Galatians to live out their freedom in such a way that their lives would produce unity and love for one another rather than using their freedom for license/sin. In other words, Jesus has set you free to live in true freedom!
In this section of his letter to the churches in Galatia, the Apostle Paul dives into an incredibly deep and liberating truth that separates the Christian faith from every other religion and spiritual philosophy in the world. The doctrine of God’s fatherhood to His children, the truth of rebels adopted as loved sons and daughters seems almost too good to be true. And yet, because of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, we can all go from orphans to cherished children of God by placing our faith in Jesus!
The whole purpose of this letter from the Apostle Paul to the young believers in Galatia is to draw a line in the sand and make a clear distinction between the gospel of Jesus and false gospels that either add to or subtract from salvation by grace, through faith in Jesus alone. In this portion of his letter, Paul reinforces the truth that God has always saved people by faith in the Messiah, even in Old Testament times. This promise, Paul argues, was not changed by the Mosaic Law given several hundred years after His promise to Abraham in Genesis. Rather, the law was given to us as a temporary guardian/tutor/nanny for several good purposes until such time as the Messiah would burst onto the scene and change history forever.
Paul turns his attention from the hypocrisy of Peter in chapter 2, to the foolishness of Galatian Christians relying on their religious works for salvation or spiritual growth in chapter 3. Paul is driving home the truth of the simple gospel, and pointing out how foolish trusting in anything other than the life, death and resurrection of Jesus truly is. He amplifies this truth by giving us the example of Abraham as proof that salvation was and is by faith in the Messiah alone, even under the old covenant. It’s always been Jesus, and nothing else!
In this section of Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia, we get a peek into one of the biggest heavyweight confrontations in history. And from it we get a stark warning about the disease of hypocrisy in the Christian life. It turns out, none of us are immune to this spiritual virus! Paul also gives us the cure to this disease with a powerful explanation of what the gospel is, and how rooting our identity in Jesus pushes us into a life of freedom in God’s Kingdom!
In the 1st chapter of Paul’s letter to new Christians in Galatia, we’ve seen Paul’s deep care and concern for them. These new believers were being tempted to compromise the gospel by adding religious works to what Jesus had done on the cross, in order to earn salvation. In chapter 2, Paul travels to Jerusalem to establish that his gospel and the other Apostles’ gospel are one in the same. After confirming the centrality of the gospel and it’s simplicity (Jesus + Nothing), they all agree to the priority of caring for the poor. There are some profound applications in this passage for modern day disciples of Jesus, such as: the importance of Christian friends for spiritual growth and the fact that grace always moves us to action. The bottom line is that the gospel of Jesus frees us to live lives that count in His Kingdom!
As Paul writes to new believers in danger of being deceived by legalistic false teachers in an area called Galatia, we learn that the gospel of Jesus is beautifully simple. Jesus + Nothing = Everything. This week we see Paul move from explaining what the gospel is not, to defending the origin of his gospel message. His backs up his claim that he received the gospel message from Jesus Himself by pointing to the radical transformation of his own life. We draw from Paul’s words here a treasure trove of life-giving truths for our own lives. Truths like; religion won’t save you. Sincerity won’t save you. But Jesus will revolutionize your life! Furthermore, Jesus has saved you to send you. You are uniquely gifted and wired to be a missionary for Jesus right where you live, work and play. Your story is a part of the greatest story. When we learn to play our part in the story, we become fully alive!
Galatians: The Fight for Freedom - Chris Dillon, Lead Pastor 06.10.18 by New Life of Asheville
Anxiety seems to be an epidemic in our culture ravaging the lives of millions and millions of people each year. And yet it’s nothing new. People have struggled with anxiety since the moment sin entered the world. And yet, Jesus commands His disciples not to be anxious. Not only does He tell us that anxiety is not a part of His design for our lives, Jesus actually tells us how to overcome anxiety. The reality is that no matter how hard life is, no matter how dark and scary things appear to be around you, there is always hope and peace available through Jesus. You don’t have to live as a slave to anxiety!
Jesus taught hard things. Really hard things. We’ve established that over the last 6 or 7 weeks. But He gives us hard truths because He loves us and wants the best for us. Jesus continues dropping truth bombs in Matthew 6:19. In this teaching, He challenges His disciples to store up treasures in heaven, rather than on earth. He compares storing our treasures on earth to darkness, and then draws a pretty offensive line in the sand. He says nobody can serve both God and money. Nobody. If you love and serve money or what money can buy you, Jesus says you despise and even hate God. Hard. Really hard stuff...but potent and truthful. What is Jesus asking you to do differently going forward? How are you investing in eternity? Are you building His Kingdom or your little kingdom with the money He entrusts to you? Your heart is at stake.
This week we continue in our series on the hard sayings of Jesus. People often come to Jesus wanting to know what they have to give up for the gospel. Others are more interested in letting people know just how much they've given up for the gospel. But what is the gospel really about. Our culture often rewards those with power, influence and talent. The rich get richer and those who've put in their time should be compensated accordingly. This isn't a new phenomenon. In fact, Scriptures reveal that this train of thought has been around for a very long time. If we're not careful, as a church, we can begin to overlay this principle on top of the gospel message. What did Jesus mean when he told the rich young ruler to give up his possessions and come follow him? Why would Jesus say the last will be first in his kingdom? Come and discover what Jesus has to say about our attitude toward the gospel as he continues to flip our way of thinking upside down.
This week we continue in our series on the hard sayings of Jesus by looking at one of the most perplexing and mystifying teachings in the entire Bible. This particular teaching has caused much anxiety for Christians throughout the centuries. Jesus teaches us that He will forgive all sins…except one. Is the unforgivable sin denying Jesus? Suicide? A sexual sin of some sort? Surprisingly, Jesus says the one sin that will never be forgiven is the blaspheming of the Holy Spirit. What does that even mean? How can we be sure to avoid the most egregious sin that is sure to send people into an eternity separated from God forever? By looking at the role of the Holy Spirit, we will discover what Jesus was teaching, and the implications are massive for us, and those we love.
Matthew 12: 22-32
This week we continue in our series on the hard sayings of Jesus in Luke 12. In this passage, Jesus has some shocking words about bringing division. Even division within families. The reality is that the gospel is, at times, both offensive and divisive. In following Jesus, we declare that we love nothing in this world more than Him. That type of allegiance and commitment can be costly. It can cost us relationships with family members and friends. And yet, even though following Jesus comes with a cost, He is infinitely worth it!
READ: Luke 12:49-53
READ: Matthew 7:1-6
INTRODUCTION: We’re now in week 2 of our new series called The Hard Sayings of Jesus. Even His own disciples struggled with some of His most radical and challenging teachings. This week, we’ll be talking about one of the most famous hard teachings of Jesus. In fact, even if you’re not a Christian, you probably know it well: Judge not, lest you be judged. This is the most popular teaching of Jesus—hands down--in our culture today. It gets used to support the popular idea in our culture that there is no absolute truth, and thus, we should never challenge or correct one another. But is that what Jesus really meant? And if not, what did this teaching really mean? Imbedded in this teaching from Christ are some absolutely stunning truths. Things like how seriously God takes it when we condemn or write-off another person created in His image and how seriously we should take the sin in our own lives.
Matthew 5:43-48
When Jesus stepped onto the scene in the 1st century, He began to teach in such an amazing and authoritative way that people were astonished. Huge crowds gathered, but instead of appeasing the masses, Jesus taught many radical and difficult things. Even His disciples questioned how difficult some of His teachings were. As modern day disciples, often times it’s easy to gloss over the hard sayings of Jesus. In doing that, we miss out on much of the deepest, richest teachings of Christ. We begin this series by examining one of the most radical teachings of Jesus. Love your enemies. Love those who hate you, abuse you, injure you, stab you in the back and betray you. It’s so hard it seems humanly impossible and yet that’s exactly how Jesus commands His followers to treat their enemies.
Roughly 2,000 years ago, hundreds of people claimed to be eyewitnesses to the most shocking event in world history. A man named Jesus, who claimed to be God, predicted He would prove it by raising from the dead 3 days later. If this event is true, and the overwhelming historical evidence suggests that it is, nothing can ever be the same. In Matthew’s Gospel, we see two sets of people that witness the resurrection or the resurrected Jesus; the Roman Guards and Jesus’ disciples. Both groups saw, they both believed, and yet their responses were completely different. What we do with the resurrection of Jesus will both define our lives in this world, as well as our eternal destiny. Who do you say Jesus is? Do you merely believe? Or do you follow Him?
Matthew 12:38-41 We’re wrapping up the Jonah series by looking at what Jesus had to say about Jonah. We learn that Jonah was a sign pointing to a greater truth. Signs aren’t the point, signs point us to the main point. In Matthew 12 as Jesus engaged the religious Pharisees who were trying to kill Him, He explains that Jonah isn’t simply a story about a fish...Jonah was a sign-post pointing to the Messiah who would come. From this teaching, we learn critically important truths about the importance of making our lives count in God’s Kingdom and the fact that rejecting Jesus, like the Pharisees did, will ultimately cost a person everything. As Jonah was buried in the belly of that great fish for 3 days so that the Ninevites would be saved, so Jesus—the better and truer Jonah—was buried in death for 3 days so that you could have new life in Him!
After running from God, surviving a storm and 3 days in the belly of a great fish, Jonah finally arrives in Nineveh and preached God’s message to these depraved and wicked people. Shockingly, the entire city believes God and repents of their evil! In chapter 4 we see Jonah’s reaction to one of the greatest revivals in history. We learn alot about the dangers of self-righteousness in our own lives and how that idol can poison us in so many ways. We see how we can fake obedience, but God knows and sees our hearts. The book ends with a question. God is on a mission, will you join Him?
We pick up the historical narrative of Jonah this week as he’s sitting on a beach having just been vomited ashore by a great fish. God tells Jonah, for the second time now, to go to the wicked Ninevites. This time, Jonah obeys…he arrives in Nineveh and preaches God’s coming judgment. To the surprise of everyone, not only do the people of Nineveh not kill Jonah immediately, they believe God and repent of their evil ways. From this incredible story we learn some life-transforming truths about who God is. Things like; He’s the God of second chances, His Word is powerful beyond imagination and He loves and pursues people that most hate. He is truly the God worthy of our lives and affection. And He wants to use you in His Kingdom just like He used Jonah!
Last week we left off with Jonah running from God and getting tossed into a violent storm on the Mediterranean Sea. This week, we pick it up with Jonah getting swallowed by a great fish, where he spends the next 3 days and nights doing some serious soul-searching. In the pit of the belly of that great fish, Jonah acknowledges his sin, repents/turns from his idolatry, and rejoices over God’s salvation in his life. Like Jonah, how we handle our times in the storm and in the belly of the fish will determine the trajectory and effectiveness of our lives in God’s Kingdom.
Jonah is one of the most fascinating books in the entire Bible! From what we know of Jonah, he was a godly man who walked with and heard from God regularly. In fact, he was one of the primary prophets of Israel in his day. He was a big deal. And yet, when God calls him to go to the fiercely brutal and evil Ninevites, he packs up his bags and runs as far as he can in the opposite direction. Jonah was revealing that he hid an idol in his heart, underneath all the godly trappings of being a prophet. What happens on his journey away from God is stunning stuff, and we can learn much from Jonah’s run from God and His mission to reach all peoples.