Today, Easter Sunday, we celebrated the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. 'He is Risen!' is the most incredible and important declaration in human history. Jesus' resurrection changes everything. Because He rose from the grave, all of the claims He made are true and He is worthy of our absolute love and devotion and obedience.
Because Jesus rose from the grave, the idea of our faith being a 'Christmas and Easter' only faith is nonsensical as is the idea of being a 'Sunday only' Christian. If we belong to Him, we belong to Him every hour of every day and we give Him our best-not our leftovers.
Because He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords and because He is the Head of the Church, died for the Church, loves His Church, we do as well. It is in the context of the church, in community, where we learn and grow together, help each other become more like Christ, encourage each other and challenge each other to grow. We learn to love one another, to be patient with one another, to forgive one another, to persevere with one another. We build each other up. We are on mission together. That is Christ's intent for His people and His Church.
While it is true that we can worship Christ anywhere, it is equally true that we are saved into community and there are certain things that can only happen in terrms of our growth, in a corporate context. Much of the growth He desires for us cannot take place in any other context than in the community of believers, the Church.
Today we celebrated the resurrection, as we should, as is fitting! May we never grow dull and complacent as we consider the incredible reality: Jesus Christ, God the Son, took on flesh, dwelt among us, willingly laid down His life as a ransom for many, was crucified, paid the penalty for our sins, died, was buried and three days later rose from the grave!
But, even as we celebrate today, we must remember something very important: now the real work begins. When we look at the Gospels, after Jesus has shown Himself as the Risen Savior to His disciples, He does something very important: He commissions them (as He has us) to make disciples of all people. We are not to keep this incredible news of the Risen Savior to ourselves! Too much is at stake. Everything is at stake.
So, as a church as we look to the next few months, we ask the Lord to grant us the grace, wisdom and strength needed to pesevere, to lean into the things He has for us, to press forward to the calling He has for us individually and as a congregation. As we saw today in our sanctuary, a sanctuary that was for all practical purposes in overflow condition, we cannot reach more people if we do not move to a second service and Bible study. We have already begun taking first steps toward that. We are in process.
For the sake of the King and His Kingdom, let us stay in prayer, stay focused and move forward in faith! The Love of the Risen King compels us!
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Kevin
Jesus made amazing claims about Himself. There are only so many options when it comes to these claims. Jesus was either a legend, a liar, a lunatic or He was who He claimed to be, and if He was and is who He claimed to be, we must respond to Him. ...
Our God is simply amazing! Pray for His will and he will open doors....
There is so very much to be thankful for! We journeyed far in 2016, and we have more to look forward to in 2017....
The great need for our church, for all churches, for our communities, our city, our nation and our world is for God to show mercy to us, and to revive us and reform us, that we, His people, might glorify Him and reflect Him to a lost and dying world. Our great need is to be consumed with a passion for the glory of God and to love Him more than we love anything or anyone. O...
Keep ReadingWe live in a culture that is increasingly hostile to historical, Biblical Christianity. As we approach the new year, how are we to live as Christians? What does God expect from us in a rapidly changing culture and world? How are we to live as a church? It is my prayer that 2023 would be a year of profound Christian maturation and growth for us individually and as a church,...
Keep ReadingOur church is in a season of prayer and fasting. We are praying for revival in our church and for an awakening in our nation. As we entered this season of prayer, Russia invaded Ukraine. The world is watching in horror as an evil autocrat with a large nuclear arsenal seems prepared to do anything to regain the 'former glory' of the old Soviet Union, even to the point of th...
Keep ReadingMany people struggled the past two years with their faith and in their personal lives. As we enter into 2022, these things are necessary if we are to grow spiritually on an individual, familial and church level. ...
Keep ReadingReading good Christian books is a great way to grow in your faith. Here are a few books I am reading (and re-reading) for your consideration. ...
Keep ReadingWe said, as a nation, after 9/11, that we would 'never forget,' and yet, on the 20th anniversary of 9/11, we must ask ourselves if we truly have remembered, and, if we have truly wrestled with what it means for God to be Sovereign over all things, including 9/11. What is He saying, and how should we respond?...
Keep ReadingFollowing Jesus is an amazing adventure. It can also be an uncomfortable thing at times as He calls us far beyond our comfort zones. That said, don't miss the blessing of the abundant life He promised by shrinking back and not following!...
Keep ReadingIt was a dark day for America today. The American withdrawal from Afghanistan has been a painful and terrible situation. What are we to make of such times? How can we pray? What can we do?...
Keep ReadingAs the culture continues to buy and sell lies, and to demand conformity to the lies, Christians must be a people who walk in Truth, even if it is costly. ...
Keep ReadingWe live in angry times. There is much anger in our culture over many different issues. There is a great sense of fragmentation taking place. In addition, those who are leading the culture's moral and spiritual revolution, see Christians who are committed to the authority of Scripture as 'the opposition.' As such, there is greater hostility toward the Biblical worldview and...
Keep ReadingMuch has changed in our culture over the past year. Many have isolated themselves over the past year and many experts report increases in cases of depression, anxiety and loneliness as a result. In addition, many report a general sense of fear, anger and frustration as they have tried to navigate the past year of Covid-19 as well as the economic uncertainty, social upheava...
Keep ReadingThe coming cultural storm is ultimately a spiritual storm. Christians in America have not seen anything like it in our history. Are you prepared? How are we to live and what do we need to do?...
Keep ReadingIf Jesus rose from the grave, He is exactly who He claimed to be and is worthy of all praise, glory and honor. He is worthy of our everything. If He did not rise from the dead, then He is of no importance whatsoever....
Keep ReadingTo follow Jesus means the world will not like us. We have a choice to make: please God or man. The great danger for Christians in America is to believe the lie that we can both be liked by the emerging culture and approved by God at the same time. We must choose...
Keep ReadingTrials and tests (and suffering) are a part of our Christian life. Jesus calls us to trust Him, even if we do not always understand what He is doing (or why). Our Lord is Sovereign and Good and is working in our circumstances for His glory and our ultimate good, therefore we can rest in Him, and, we must....
Keep ReadingIf you found yourself drifting in 2020, the new year offers a wonderful opportunity to refocus on the One who truly matters. As a church, we have an opportunity to refocus on Christ's mission....
Keep ReadingThere are many problems with the emerging trend of 'progressive Christianity,' but the root issue is a fundamental denial of both the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Lordship of Christ...
Keep ReadingOur culture is experiencing a war of ideas unlike anything most of us have seen in our lifetime. There is much darkness and anger in the culture. As the Cancel Culture expands, will Christians stand in faith or compromise?...
Keep ReadingAmerica is fragmented. There is anger in the streets and there is fear, accusations, hatred and mistrust and pain. As Christians, we believe the gospel changes everything. We believe that Jesus truly saves and changes us and our life trajectory. Instead of retreating from the cultural chaos, we must lovingly engage with the gospel of Christ. Instead of clinging to secular ...
Keep ReadingThese are uncertain times, and people are justifiably concerned, but the Lord is at work! We must stay in prayer and in the Word and fix our eyes on Christ to run the race before us....
Keep ReadingYoung men (and even men in their 40's) are turning to a group of men who have much to say about manhood, some of it good, some of it slightly off base, some of it the gospel of self-help as opposed to Gospel, and most of it a form of Stoicism because they were not taught what it means to be a man in the home, did not see it modeled, are taught by the culture that manhood i...
Keep ReadingWe must implement a comprehensive discipleship platform that impacts families if we are to build strong disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ and if we are to make disciples in this ever changing culture....
Keep ReadingJesus' primary concern is not our comfort, rather our becoming more like Him. He desires our ultimate good which means our sanctification and intimacy with Him, and that God is glorified in our lives. There are times in which those primary purposes are accomplished through trials, troubles, hardships and pain. ...
Keep ReadingEverything in Christianity hinges on the resurrection. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, Christianity is a lie and irrelevant. If Jesus did rise from the dead, Christianity is true and the most important issue in life is how one responds to the Gospel of Jesus Christ...
Keep ReadingWe are not free to edit out the parts of Jesus that make us uncomfortable. We are not free to worship a Jesus made in our image. The only Jesus who can save us is the Jesus Who Is....
Keep ReadingEvangelical Christians can learn much from our brothers and sisters in Christ who live in Western Europe. As America slides into a Post-Christian culture, there will be new challenges for most believers in the culture. We can learn from those who stand firm overseas....
Keep ReadingWith recent events in the states of New York and Virginia, and calls for more similar legislation in more states, Christians must have a clear, Biblical understanding of the sanctity and value of human life. And, Christians must be willing to lovingly but clearly and firmly articulate Truth and take redemptive, positive action to minister to the unborn to save lives. ...
Keep ReadingIf you're going to grow in Christ, you must be stretched. Trials and tests are God's ordained means of growing our faith....
Keep ReadingTwobooks have profoundly grabbed my attention the past few months. One is "Impossible People," by Os Guinness, the other is "The Benedict Option," by Ron Dreher. Both books address something we may not want to hear, but if we are honest, can sense, because the evidence is all around us: Rome has already fallen (the West-and that includes America) and we (Christians) have ...
Keep Reading