New Community Church: Recent Episodes
New Community Church
When Jesus leaves the Earth he encourages his disciples that it's good! Because now the Spirit can come and be with them - be with us. Living in step with the Spirit takes effort and an intentional way of living to choose God's way -- how do we do that? What does it look like to live a Spirit-Filled Life?
It's easy to let others shape our identity - many of us hold on to things others say about us and take that as truth. We have to shift our minds to see what Yahweh says about us - the real truth and build our identity from that foundation.
We are created in the image of God! And he created us with emotions! Many of us believe some emotions are bad and try to stay away from them, but our emotions themselves aren't bad! How do we manage our emotions and honor God through them?
This week's message is inspired by STAR WARS: Return of the Jedi! Inspired by. The message is still coming from scripture. Forgiveness is something that every one of us has to work through and we need Jesus with us to do this well. How can we forgive and what happens when we do?
We're taking inspiration from some of our favorite movies! This week we're looking at the movie UP -- it's just bringing to light a theme that we all relate to and we're looking at what the Bible has to say about that theme -- this week? Disappointment. What do we do when life doesn't go our way? How do we deal with it and what does God have to say about it?
No matter what season we're in, we can learn a lot from the experience of marriage. 2 people coming together to support, love, and build up one another -- there are lessons there for any of us in our relationships with others. Today Pastor Aaron & Sara along with Pastor Hannah & Adrian talk about lessons they've learned through marriage.
When we talk about relationships it's important to talk about singleness! It's a real part of life that everyone experiences for atleast some time. God has something to say about singleness and the benefits / joys / difficulties of life being single.
Many of us would say we know 1 thing as a constant in relationships: CONFLICT. And many of us would say we know 1 thing should be a constant: COMMUNICATION -- how do these fit in our relationships and what does the Bible say about it?
Everyone has relationships in some form and as we follow Jesus - he has a lot to say about how these relationships look and how to keep them healthy!
The Church is about Community! God is about Community! and at NCC, we want to lean into that and talk about it - encourage it - give opportunity to build community. Let's talk about Community.
Prayer is a huge part of our regular faith and life with Jesus. If we're doing this consistently and we're together a Praying Church, what would happen? What does it mean to be a "Praying Church"?
The Church - God's people - shouldn't be an exclusive group to just hang out together. God has called us to be on mission with him to find those disconnected from him and help them find their way back. The Church should be growing, should be influencing the community, should be multiplying! What does that look like and how do we do it?
What kind of church is NCC? What is the church supposed to be? We believe that God's church should be based on Scripture - not opinion or ideas or some person. God's word leads our lives together and personally.
2023 is a year of NEW for NCC. God has something great for us together and something great for each of us personally. How do we step into this NEW season well and ready for what God has?
Christmas is proof of how much God loves us. He gave everything just because he wants to be with you. It wasn't our sin that forced God to give up his son -- he sent Jesus to save us because he wanted to be close to us. He does want to be close to us and that life with him is a simple invitation waiting for us to accept.
Many of us read the Bible and think 'these people are amazing and so beyond who I could be'... but if we look closer, the people God uses are very ordinary and usually broken, super normal people. The Christmas Story proves this fact -- look at Mary and Joseph and the first people who the ANGELS tell about the birth of Jesus are Shepherds! God is looking for people just like you to partner with in the world.
Christmas is a foundational moment in history and to our faith. Jesus came to fulfill God's promise to us. God keeps his promises and Christmas proves that -- in this season, it's easy to get distracted and overwhelmed and God is promising PEACE to you and your family.
Throughout the Gospel, we read of Jesus loving those who are outcast, forgotten, even hated! He gives an incredible example of loving those who are hard to love -- we all know someone like that.
There’s a story of a woman in the Bible who has a conversation with Jesus and he impacts her so deeply she can’t help but go tell everyone in her town about him! What did he say? What can we learn from this story about what Yahweh wants to do with OUR story for the people around US?
There's a story in the Bible of a few friends who bring their paralytic friend to Jesus -- their faith prompts Jesus to forgive his sins and heal his body. What friends are we praying for, inviting to Jesus, standing in faith for?
Describing God is an easy, and also difficult task. What does the Bible tell us about his character, about his nature? It's easy because there are such clear, important traits of his character and yet those very traits can be difficult to put into words. An important aspect of God's nature is his Immutability - how he does not change. What does that mean to us that God doesn't change? How does that help us understand him?
Describing God is an easy, and also difficult task. What does the Bible tell us about his character, about his nature? It's easy because there are such clear, important traits of his character and yet those very traits can be difficult to put into words. An important aspect of God's nature is his HOLINESS - how he is set apart. What does it mean to be holy and how does that help us understand who God is?
The song “Numb” has the lyrics, “I wanna get numb, and forget where I'm from”. This is a feeling that almost every one has felt at some point in that life to distract us from the pain we are facing. This is a hard place to be - to the point it can feel like there is no way out. In the Bible, Jesus meets a woman at a well and is able to bring a new meaning to her life and help her begin healing from that pain. Can Jesus do that for us? How can we experience that in our lives?
I just called to say I love you shares this idea to call someone up just because you love them - with no agenda. Love is a tricky thing. It’s not just a feeling, but it's a decision - and to love like Jesus is difficult to do. The Bible calls us to love even people who hurt us! How do we do that? How do we show love like Jesus?
Have you ever had a relationship or friendship that you had to walk away from to where they became someone you used to know? When we begin following Jesus, our old self becomes someone that we used to know because Christ has shown us a new way to live.
At NCC we invest in the next generation and we believe that it is important to know your role in raising up our future leaders. Our students and kids are capable and already have God given gifts and talents. In the Bible we see God moving through young people time and time again with the older generation championing them.
There's a very important part of our faith that most of us don't really like talking about - but this is part of the hope we have in Jesus! That when he comes back to this earth, he will judge those living and dead and bring justice once and for all.
A foundational belief in the Christian faith is gathering together - Gathering together as the Body of Christ edifies and builds one another up, and is not limited to how these gatherings can be done - The early church operated much differently compared to how the modern church does in America, but both are still necessary we're discussing why that is today
Another foundational belief in our Christian faith - as followers of Jesus - is our belief in the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God given to us to be with us and help us. Jesus has not left us alone - this is a key part of our faith.
Our Christian faith is defined by a few core beliefs - one of which being the Supremacy of Christ. That there is ONE TRUE GOD and that is Yahweh. There are many implications of this belief and we're talking about all of it today.
There are a few foundational beliefs of the Christian faith and all of those beliefs come from one core truth that Scripture is the ultimate authority - God's active voice in our lives. What does that mean for us and how do we know that's true?
Sabbath is a gift from God to rest and enjoy life - to help us keep from the mindset of producing and moving all the time. It's a difficult practice, but a life-giving one!
Father's Day! Today we'll hear from a few Dads at NCC - some fun stories, wise advice, and Godly insight.
Everyone has preferences and biases for food, but it is wrong to have preferences against groups of people. Jonah shows his preference against the Ninevites in Jonah CH 3 & 4, but then is able to see Yahweh's character displayed to have compassion for the Ninevites even though they had done wrong.
Everyone of us has moments where we end up having to say "I was wrong, you were right... I'm sorry." Jonah finds himself in a moment like this and prays to God in Jonah CH 2. Repentance is an important part of our relationship with God and an important part for any one of us.
This week is all about what NCC is all about. Being a disciple of Jesus means more than just agreeing with some of his teachings. What's the cost? How do we grow to be more like him?
Pastor AC shares about spiritual growth and discipleship at NCC
God has given NCC a vision to make 1000 disciples across 3 NCC campuses by 2025. If we are going to make it to a whole new future, we can't keep doing what we've been doing. This new frontier will require us to be obedient as God leads each of us. What is he calling you to? Let's listen and pray as He leads each of our families together.
Everyone of us experiences struggles and difficulties in life - and many of us live like we're alone in all of that! This Mother's Day we have a panel of women talking about Motherhood, the joys and struggles, and the impact of real community!
Many of us believe the lie that our life is about US - focusing on "me" can be distracting from what God's leading me to do sometimes. How do we live following the model of Jesus rather than just doing whatever feels good?
Many of us believe - whether we know it or not - that we're just not good enough for Jesus to love us. We disqualify ourselves from his love when we don't get a say in whether God loves us at all! We've never earned God's love and there's nothing we can do to lose it.
Easter morning is when we celebrate the RESURRECTION of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Before Jesus came, we were lost. And many of us are still living like we're lost today. That's why we talk about the good news of Jesus and celebrate this Sunday.
on Good Friday, we remember the moment that Jesus was betrayed, sentenced to die, and crucified on the cross. The pain and suffering Jesus went through made a way for us to be with God and have new life -- his crushing was our redemption.
It's Palm Sunday and we want to ask the question 'how are you welcoming Jesus?' The people cried Hosanna when Jesus rode into the city - calling on him to save them! There were many interpretations of this phrase and each one challenges us to welcome Jesus the right way - as our personal king and our savior.
Following Jesus takes us beyond our comfort zone -- we were put in our neighborhood, workplace, home for a reason. As followers of Jesus, we were always meant to CHANGE THE WORLD - bring transformation and the things of Jesus to people around us.
As followers of Jesus and as a part of NCC, we are defined by a few specific qualities -- one of those is that JOY IS SEEN IN WHO WE ARE. Joy comes from the Lord not our circumstance and is a key part of following him.
Following Jesus means that we cannot stay still - we will keep growing and giving and looking more like Jesus. As a church, we are committed to keep moving forward and being obedient as God leads us.
God has created us for community -- to live life with others not just alone. This defines who we are as followers of Jesus and especially who we are as a part of New Community Church.
Who is New Community Church -- as a part of this community, we take on these foundational statements of culture called DECLARATIONS. These declarations define who we are as a people and owning our spiritual growth for ourselves is a big one! How do we do that and what does that look like?
Good and Evil. How do we know what's good? What do we learn about this in the Bible? Deciding what's good and what's not has been a point of conflict between humans and God from the very beginning -- let's see what God's word has to say about it.
How easy is it to disregard our unique talents and gifts! Comparing ourselves to other people and listening to voices tell us were no good can derail us from seeing the unique gifts that God has given us.
To follow Jesus takes a lot of faith - to trust in something we can't yet see. We use faith all the time in our daily lives and it's up to us where we put that faith - why would we put our faith in God? The movie Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse helps us set the stage for what God wants to share about faith in our lives.
When we forget 'who we are' we can hurt ourselves and even those around us. It's so important that we remember our identity in Christ as that will define our entire lives and the health of those around us.
At NCC we want to be focused on THE ONE like Jesus. Jesus teaches us to care for the one lost sheep and look out for them. We want to be focused on how we can engage with those who don't know Jesus.
Our relationship with Yahweh takes intentionality and consistency. Studying Scripture is one of the most important practices for us to hear and be close to Yahweh.
But how do we do it? There are a few practical steps we talk about how to study scripture and understand what God has to say.
Fasting is deciding to NOT EAT for 24 hour or some period of time. This is a practice that Christians have done for centuries --- why? What does it do for our relationship with God?
Fasting is done in response to moments in our lives to express grief and uncertainty --- to just come close to God.
Work... Work is something that we'll stop doing when we're in heaven right?
God calls Adam to create and subdue the earth and move things forward BEFORE SIN! What does that mean for us today and our lives with God?
Mary and Joseph were the caretakers of JESUS!! But this is not how they planned their life. What do we do when God works in ways we didn't expect and changes our own plans for our lives?
God is all about diversity and variety -- the way we look, the way we celebrate, our skills and traditions. Heaven is going to reflect God and this diversity. When we think of Christmas, is it just about us and our city or do we realize that God sent his son for every person around the world - we are all made in his image!
Christmas is full of moments that God moved in a way that his people didn't expect. Jesus came to save us and redeem God's creation back to himself --- but he was nothing like we wanted. Israel wanted a KING - to rule and order them, but God knew what we needed. A baby.
Many of us are familiar with God and the Satan, but what about other spiritual beings and how do they fit into the picture? What does that mean about our God Yahweh?
Many of us have heard of 'the trinity' (father, son, spirit) to describe God. What does this even mean? How does it work? --- and the word TRINITY isn't even in the Bible!
What do we learn about the relationship between Father, Son, and Spirit and what does that mean for us?
Throughout the Bible we read the words God and Lord and sometimes LORD is all-caps -- There's more to God's name than just the title of God. What is his name and what does that tell us about him?
Throughout the Bible we read God's name as God or LORD but what do these names actually mean for who he is? God has an actual name and there's meaning behind it -- what is that name and what do we learn about God knowing his name?
This Sunday our Student Ministry team took over the whole service! Pastor Bree talked to us about being different and stepping out to what God leads us to.
God has called NCC to MULTIPLY! and the only way we are going to do this is if we each step up to participate in what God's doing through us.
God has called us at NCC to MULTIPLY! That we'll expand to 3 campuses by 2025. Where does this come from and what does that mean for those of us who call NCC our church home?
Discipleship. The last thing Jesus called us to do while he was on Earth -- go and Make Disciples. What does that look like? and is it really that important for us now?
As Christians, we have the greatest joy in the world because of Jesus! And this joy should be evident through any situation. How do we stay engaged with that Joy?
We all have questions about the Bible, God, our lives that we'd like to talk about but sometimes would rather not ask. We're answering those questions and this week we're tackling a few questions at a time!
What is Heaven? What is Baptism? What Old Testament laws should Christians follow? Should Christians go to war? What Bible translation is best?
It's difficult to know how to respond when God doesn't answer our prayers like we had hoped. We read about miracles in the Bible and may even hear stories of it today -- but what about the times it doesn't happen? What does that say about God?
Why does God only heal some people? Let's look at what the Bible has to say about that.
There are lots of world religions and lots of people who believe in those other religions. Why are there so many different beliefs and how do we know which one is right? -- if we're Christian, how do we know that our religion is the right one?
Everybody seems to be worried all the time -- maybe you're worried all the time. What is it that makes us all so worried, and what do we do with that worry?
Let's talk about what the Bible has to say about worry.
We all have questions that we're not sure how to ask -- so we're "asking for a friend."
Does God love transgender people? Many of us know of someone who is wrestling with gender identity or are working through these feelings ourselves -- it's important for us to see what the Bible has to say about it.
Today we're going back to basics of our faith --- the simple, foundational, important elements of our spiritual growth.
There are ideas and expectations many of us have about the church and about God that are NOT supported in scripture.
Today we're taking a close look at those ideas and clarifying what scripture says about the church because SCRIPTURE SHAPES OUR LIVES
Most of us have some picture of what we think Heaven will be like -- and many of those ideas don't have much basis in scripture.
We're talking about what we read in scripture about Heaven and our eternity with Jesus - what will it be like and what place does work have in eternity?
We've been talking about how important work is and the plan God has for us through the work we do --- however, with work we must balance rest.
That doesnt just mean sleeping enough. Real rest - taking a break from producing and having to do everything ourselves!
There's more purpose to our work than just to make money. The work we have to do - the things we move forward during the week is an opportunity to worship God.
The attitude we work with, the way we interact with others, the excellence we produce shows others who God is and what life with him is like.
WORK - it's not just something we HAVE to do because of the sin we live in. God created us to work and participate in his work on the earth to make things beautiful and make things new.
Many of us live our lives dreading work and waiting for it to be over -- we only work because it gets us to the fun parts of life.
Well on average, we work 90,000 hours in our lifetime! God wants to use that 90,000 hours and has a purpose for that part of our lives!
Sabbath is a gift from God to redefine the rhythm of our life. This isn't just time off of work, or some legalistic kind of rule. Sabbath is life-giving and helps deepen our relationship with God.
Fathers Day 2021!
We're talking about Playing the Man. Our culture has a pretty specific way we see "MEN" but the way Jesus shows us to lead and the way God talks in the Bible of a man's role with his family -- we see a very different kind of toughness and strength of a man.
the Bible is full of pretty incredible stories of real people in real moments in history.
One of those stories tells of a man who was possessed with a 'legion' of demons (6000)! Jesus meets this man and his interaction with the man and these demons gives us some powerful principles of life with Jesus.
Check it out!
the Bible is full of pretty incredible stories of real people in real moments in history.
One of those stories tells of a man who followed the directions of a prophet and literally washed off his leprosy in a river! This story has much more to say about the man's pride and how God speaks to us / challenges us.
Check it out!
the Bible is full of pretty incredible stories of real people in real moments in history.
One of those stories tells of a man who was given great strength by God, but he later in life made some mistakes and lost that gift. God still used him to fulfill his purpose in his life even amidst his mistakes.
Check it out!
the Bible is full of pretty incredible stories of real people in real moments in history.
One of those stories tells of a group of people who conquered a city - brought their walls down to dust - simply by walking around it and shouting at it! This story tells of the power of obedience and how God works in pretty awesome ways.
Check it out!
the Bible is full of pretty incredible stories of real people in real moments in history.
One of those stories talks of a moment where a man's donkey started speaking to him! What is God saying through this story and what in the world does it have to do with us?
Check it out!
It's Mother's Day and we're celebrating moms today!
There are a number of great moms in the Bible who show us some important values to challenge us to be more like Jesus.
Everyone has this dream to be 'successful' and many of us dream to be 'famous' - nearly everything in entertainment and media pushes us towards this 'American dream.'
Following Jesus gives us a new perspective on what success really is in our lives. Jesus helps us to have an Eternal Mindset and this changes everything.
Sexual temptation is one of the most destructive traps the enemy sets out for us. We are all sexual beings which means this is something we will all wrestle with in some way.
How do we protect ourselves from this trap and stay true to the way of life that God has laid out for us?
How many times throughout our week do we WORRY about what may or may not happen?
Worry is a real problem in our lives and can take over if we let it. How do we battle worry and anxiety?
Everyone of us wrestles with this idea that if we had just a bit more money, we could solve our problems and we'd be happy... The thing is, we ALL feel this is true -- even those who have more money than you think they need more.
This kind of thinking is a trap! So what does the Bible say about money and how do we avoid this trapped way of thinking?
In Jesus' last moments as he hung on the cross he spoke these words "It Is Finished." This phrase in the original language carried a deep meaning that still speaks to us today.
Tetelestai - It Is Finished. Jesus has changed everything.
Jesus redefined a lot of our ideas about how life should be. One of those things is how we eat - the social circles we create - the people we decide to sit down with. Jesus showed his love to EVERYONE through the moments where he sat down and broke bread with people. This is a great example of how we should love others.
Jesus was our greatest example of love - even though he deserved all the attention and glory and respect, he kneeled down to wash others' feet! Jesus' humility is an example to us of how to live.
How do we 'wash each other's feet' today?
Jesus was the ultimate example of how to Love people well. We want to love like that - but how?! If we're going to love people like Jesus did, then we have to step out of our comfort zone and show kindness and love to people who make us uncomfortable.
God has spoken some BIG vision over NCC and this week was all about coming together as the church to start moving forward into this vision.
We spent time in worship, prayer over things like loss and healing, and sharing where we're going as a community!
If you call NCC your church home, you need to engage with this service!
One of the most important elements of a relationship is knowing who's carrying what and having clear boundaries. This can be hard to do and sometimes painful, but having clear lines to define what each of you needs to worry or care about can make a relationship much healthier.
All of us have conversations we'd just rather avoid. These conversations are the very thing that will bring us closer together as a family in our homes. It's important that we lean into the awkward have difficult conversations.
Everyone's been single. Some people are married. Some people will never get married.
How do we show the love of Jesus through the season of life we're in right now?
Being single or being married both present unique opportunities to show the love of God to people around us through how we live in that season. Let's talk about it!
A Culture defines the 'way of life' of a group of people - the values and behaviors that they hold in common.
Every one of us has a family culture - is it the way of life that you want for your family?
A new year means new schedules, new goals, and new priorities. Many of us would agree with having Jesus first, then family, then friends and so on...
What if we told you that's still not quite right??
Jesus isn't just a PART of our list, he IS THE LIST! Everything else falls into place when we surrender completely to what Jesus has for us and make him our one priority.
So many things change from generation to generation - clothing styles, music, behaviors, technology...
It can be hard to live closely with someone who sees the world so differently than you, but that's what the church is all about! We are DIFFERENT GENERATIONS WITH THE SAME HEART.
God wants to use us TOGETHER to change the culture around us.
WE ARE THE CHURCH
God's desire for us in the church is to be ACTIVE - engaged with others and with him. We are meant to be IN THE GAME, not just sitting on the sidelines. Many of us have missed the potential of our life with Jesus because we've passed the responsibility of our growth to someone else.
It's time for us to STEP UP and be the church he has called us to be!
Every year things change - that can be scary, but change is good. It helps us release the old and step into something NEW.
God has something NEW for you - to become a new person, a new friend, a new spouse, a new co-worker. New is better. What does God have for YOU?
As we start this new year we want to focus in on how we love Jesus.
When Jesus is talking to one of his disciples, he asks him 'do you love me?' and his disciple says 'Yes! I do!' Jesus replies with, 'then feed my sheep.' Jesus is saying - if you love me, then do as I have taught you, help others to live this way - you love me through intentional action.
We're talking about how we can love intentionally and decide to love rather than waiting on a feeling.
Following Jesus doesn't mean things are easy or always go like we planned. Lots of times we find ourselves in uncomfortable or even dangerous situations. What we can find rest in is that with Jesus there is always PEACE. A peace that surpasses understanding - a Powerful Peace.
God sent his son Jesus to be born as a human and bring us back to himself. This was the greatest gift ever given.
This gift was EXTRAVAGANT. It was God giving all he had - more than he had to - simply because he loved us so much.
When God sent us his son Jesus, he gave us the Greatest Gift.
Many gifts we get around Christmas last for a bit and then get old or outdated or broken. Those gifts had a time, but they cannot KEEP giving entertainment, life, joy, fun.
Jesus is the gift that keeps on giving. He brings peace and joy and counsel to us EVERY DAY for as long as we will live with him. This is what makes him the GREATEST GIFT and why we celebrate this season when he was born to the earth.
Christmas is a time of giving - of love and happiness. And during this Christmas season we don't want to overlook the GREATEST GIFT ever given - Jesus.
God knew what we needed most and that's why he sent his son - he sent us himself. Because our greatest need was him.
How can we reflect this kind of self-giving in our own lives?
'you can learn from your past, but you can't live in it.'
The Past is gone and is behind us - often times we find ourselves stuck in the past unable to move forward and see what God is doing right now. Whether those are good moments from the past or bad moments, we can't let the past keep up imprisoned! God has more for us and it's ahead.
We all have tons of thoughts all the time. We don't have to be captive to what pops into our mind though. Jesus has freedom for us and a way to decide what we think on to effectively change our whole life!
Our pride can control us. When we're solely focused on 'me' and 'what I need,' we are captive to our own feelings and desires. Jesus calls us to put away our pride and to care for others. This is something we wrestle with throughout our lives, but as we see in the book of Philippians, there is hope for us still.
With everything that's going on in our world and all of the influence of culture and media - it's easy to feel blown around and subject to the changes around us.
In the book of Philippians, Paul is writing to a church from Prison. He's in terrible circumstances, but still has faith and trust in the Lord. His words in this book are encouragement for us to stay faithful and find our rest and foundation in the Lord rather than in the things around us.
WE ARE NOT A HOSTAGE TO FEAR
Jesus made it clear that for those who follow him, he will expect to go and make disciples - to take what they've learned from him and share with others.
It's a big deal that Jesus has commissioned his followers to make disciples and to share what he's taught. Each of us has a responsibility to make discipleship a priority in our life - to open our life to others and share what Jesus is doing.
We should be obeying the Lord with URGENCY! Where does that urgency come from?
Discipleship is a part of following Jesus. As we grow and learn and mature in our relationship with him, we naturally should be bringing others alongside of us - teaching them what we've learned and challenging them to grow.
Discipleship is not an option if we are disciples of Jesus. If we keep all that we know to ourselves, we are missing it.
To be a true disciple - follower - of Jesus comes with a cost. We can't just do whatever we want in life and simply ADD Jesus to the mix. When we start to follow him, our life is now in his hands. We abandon our comfort, our dreams, our lifestyle so we can live as Jesus did.
Immigration is a real issue in our culture today. Many people disagree about what should be done in regards to immigration laws, etc.
What does the Bible say about immigrants and how we should treat them? The more familiar we get with scripture, the more unity we will see.
This is our last week of Culture Wars - wrestling with issues that put us at war with each other.
There are many very passionate people on either side of issues like abortion or euthanasia. These issues ask a larger question: "When does life begin and end?"
Pastors Aaron and Sara Escamilla share what the Bible has to say about these issues and how we respond as the church in our series "Culture Wars"
If it's legal is it okay? Where does our 'right' and 'wrong' come from? How do we balance following the law of our nation with what the Bible says? Just because we won't get in trouble for doing something doesnt necessarily mean it's beneficial for us.
Politics is a real issue in our culture today and it can cause a lot of division. How do we respond as the church? If Jesus were here, how would he engage in politics - how would he vote?
The Church is God's people - the body of Christ. And as God's people, we have a great responsibility in the world: to carry out God's will and desires here on the earth. How do we all function properly and in sync with one another as the body of Christ? Ephesians 4 gives us great insight into our place in the Body of Christ.
There are lots of things that divide us in the world, but in Ephesians, Paul focuses on what unites us together -- God. By our love for God and his accepting us into his family, we are UNITED! We are different and diverse but united. And that is a beautiful picture to the world around us of how God has created us to live.
Ephesians gives us a big picture view of our place in the church and the church's place in the world. What does God have for us as his people and how do we interact with his world? This week Pastor Aaron Castellanos kicks off our new series 'a study through the book of Ephesians.'
This week our guest speaker is Hunter Brooks! He's speaking on stepping up and stepping out in faith as the church. We are called to change culture and bring Jesus to the world.
Each week of this series, you'll hear from someone new in NCC! This week is Rick Hill who is speaking on having boldness in our faith.
We all get busy and distracted, but we have to remember what God has done in our lives through it all! He has been faithful and loving and gracious to us. Let's not forget where he's brought us from as we look to what he has for us going forward.
This week we practiced Sabbath together. Work is an important part of our life, but without rest and refueling, we're missing God's plan for our life. Listen for a practical teaching on the place of Sabbath in our lives.
Daniel in the Lions Den is the most familiar story of Daniel's life. We're looking at the miracle of when Jesus shut the mouths of the lions to save Daniel. But the story goes further! Jesus shut the mouths of the lions all around Daniel throughout his life - those who were against him or didnt believe what he did. this is a great picture of how we can live boldly for God no matter the culture around us. Instead of culture changing us, we can change the culture.
Pastor Aaron continues our series on the book of Daniel looking at the differences of living and leading with Pride and with Humility.
Pastor Aaron Castellanos shares about the story of the three men who stood their ground and wouldn't bow to the gold statue of the King. Their punishment was a flaming furnace, but that's not the end of the story...
Who we are.. can be confusing to try and figure out. Where does it come from? What people say about us, what we feel? Well God has something to say about your identity and we're going to the Bible to answer this question "Can I really just decide what I wanna be?"
Pastors Aaron and Sara talk about marriage, singleness, and divorce in our series of answering tough questions together.
Corona virus. Businesses closed. People losing jobs. The entire world seems to be getting more and more chaotic. Is this the end of the world? We're wrestling with this tough question and looking at what the Bible has to say about it.
Why is there evil in the world? And why doesn't God stop it? Why do natural disasters occur? Does God let bad things happen to us? We're looking at what the Bible says about each of these questions.
Pastor Aaron shares the Easter message talking about how Jesus changes our perspective.
Guest Speaker Pastor Hadley Baker from City on a Hill Community Church in Garland TX shares about what God wants to do in us during this uncertain time.
Pastor Aaron talks about how Jesus stopped for the one. HE would take time to focus on a single person and speak truth to them. WE can do this in our lives!
Pastor Aaron talks about how Jesus had Rhythms of Rest. How do we do that in our lives?
Pastor Caleb Bagby continues our series on the life of Jesus talking about the humanity of Jesus.
Pastor Aaron starts our new series about the life of Jesus. Pastor talks about how Jesus interacts with his earthly family and how that's an example for us.
Pastor Aaron talks about how to listen to God. He's always speaking to us, but are we listening?
Pastor Aaron invites a panel of people from NCC to share from their perspectives on relationships. Our panel consists of 2 married couples and 2 single young adults.
Pastors Caleb and Aleda Bagby share about Sex in our lives. What does the Bible say about it and what is God's plan for it in our lives?
Pastors Aaron and Debbie Castellanos continue our series He Said She Said about relationships. They're speaking on boundaries and maintaining healthy relationships in our lives. This is for all relationships, not just romantic.
Pastors Aaron and Sara share about conflict in our relationships. It's not about avoiding the conflict, but dealing with it in a healthy way. Conflict can be good!
Pastor Aaron concludes our vision series talking about God's picture of the church and how we must be intentional about multiplying the right things.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla continues our vision series talking about what it means to make disciples like Jesus did.
Pastor Aaron shares the BIG 5 year goal for NCC and it all starts with each of us living a life that's worth reproducing.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla talks about starting the new year with prayer and fasting. What does prayer mean? How do we fast correctly? It's all in this message.
at New Community Church, we move forward. God has greater things ahead of us. We're reflecting on the things God has done as we look forward to this new year.
Today is all about reflecting on the story of Jesus coming to Earth. Make sure you spend some time this Christmas thanking God for what he's done for us.
Pastor Aaron finishes our Christmas series talking about the family community we find in the church. God has big things for the people of his church and we're a part of that!
Traditions are a big part of the holiday season and a big part of the Bible as well. Pastor Aaron shares about how our traditions can point people to Jesus.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla shares about how no family is perfect, but God still has a plan for you and your family this holiday season.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla shares about how Jesus encouraged us to be careful how we judge.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla shares about how Jesus has called us to respond to those who wrong us.
Sara Escamilla challenges us to realize how big our sin is so that we can accurately see how much bigger God is.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla shares about how we can get skewed ideas of what Jesus said. A lot of people think that Jesus taught that once you accept him in your heart, everything's easy! That's not what Jesus said.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla shares about how God has called us to put others first in our lives.
Pastor Caleb Bagby shares about the reality of Heaven and Hell. And how Heaven is real today and affects our lives day to day.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla shares about how God has called us to be unique and sometimes we try to be some alternate version of who he's called us to be. We talk about how to be 'authentically you.'
Pastor Aaron Escamilla share how God has called us to live for today even though we often get so caught up in the future or the past.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla shares about how God has called us to dance and sing and celebrate what he's done in our lives.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla leads a discussion with others from NCC about finances and what God has to say about it.
Pastor Aaron Castellanos leads a discussion with others from NCC about addictions and unbelief. What does God's word say about these things, and how can we overcome together?
Pastor Aaron shares about what worship looks like in our lives and what the Bible says about it for us.
Pastor Sara Escamilla continues leading us through 1 Peter. In this message, she breaks down what Peter is saying about suffering towards the end of this letter.
Pastor Aaron continues through the book of 1 Peter. In this passage, he talks about submitting to authority and submitting our will to others'.
Pastor Aaron continues to lead through the book of 1 Peter. The scripture referenced in this message is 1 Peter 1:13-2:12. The main idea in this message is that we need God's help to become more like him.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla begins walking us through the book of 1 Peter. We learn in the first few verses a lot about what our salvation means.
Guest speaker Pastor Chad Benson highlights the movie 'Toy Story 3' and talks about how we belong to God.
Pastor Caleb Bagby talks about the movie 'spiderman : into the spider-verse' and taking a leap of faith to do what God is calling us to.
Sara Escamilla highlights the movie "Walter Mitty" as she shares how the Bible has called us to live a life of adventure.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla starts our new series 'At the Movies' as we look at themes from popular movies and talk about the relevant message of the Bible. This week Pastor Aaron shares about how God has called us to 'keep moving forward' into all he has for us.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla starts a new series 'Labeled.' This week is all about how we are labeled Sons and Daughters of God.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla continues our series "When God Doesn't Make Sense" teaching about when God is silent.
Pastor Aaron Escamilla shares about moments when God doesn't make sense - how, as christians, do we respond to evil in the world?
Pastors Aaron and Sara Escamilla share about the moments in our lives when God may say 'No.'
Lead Pastor Aaron Escamilla teaches on the Victory we have because of the resurrection of Jesus.
Pastor Sara Escamilla finishes up our Respond series talking about Counting the Cost of following Christ.
Aaron Castellanos - Associate Student Pastor continuing our series RESPOND talking about how God has called us to love our enemies.
The Stories Jesus Told - God's Throwing A Party And You're Invited by New Community Church