Pastor Nate brings the message, "Pleasing God with Purity” from 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8. It's no secret that sexual freedom has been a focal point of our society. Why not? We are pleasure-seekers after all. As we open up chapter 4 of 1 Thessalonians, God's Word directs us in a better path forward, one that keeps the pleasure of sexual activity within the safe boundaries of obedience to God.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Comfort of the Coming King” - Part 2 from Isaiah 42:1-9. As we continue our Advent series this Sunday, we see that the coming Savior would be gentle with His people. "A bruised reed he will not break; and a faintly burning wick he will not quench." No one is a cast-away. No one will be written off. Jesus is for His people.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Comfort of the Coming King” - Part 1 from Isaiah 40. Do you find comfort in your circumstances or in the character and promises of God? As the Jews were agonizing in exile, God gave them a promise of comfort. It's a promise anchored in His unchanging character that extends to our lives today. A Savior would come and those who wait on Him shall renew their strength.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "My Shepherd: He is Enough" from Psalm 23. Pastor Nate reminds us, from a familiar text, of God's care for and provision in our lives.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Increasing and Abounding in Love” from 1 Thessalonians 3:6-13. What role does your love for others play in your standing before God? That's a question that Paul answers at the end of 1 Thessalonians 3. When we see love flowing through our lives God is establishing us in holiness.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Who is This?" That's the question people asked when Jesus came into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Is he a prophet? A king? Just a good man in the history books? As we anticipate the arrival of Resurrection Sunday, we first need to know who Jesus is. And Matthew answers that question by using the prophecies of the Old Testament to show that He's the Savior whom everyone needs.
Rich Kolmus brings the message, "Comfort, Comfort My People.” If you've lived long enough, you know that life isn't always easy. At one point or another, we will all wrestle with suffering or sickness simply because we are part of Adam's fallen race. Other times, we face sorrows and pains that are the direct result of sin - our own or someone else's. Often, the adage "God won't give us more than we can handle" will ring completely hollow as we face difficulties that are well beyond our capacity.
When you are at the end of yourself, is God still there? Does He remember you? Does He care? Can He help? Isaiah 40 reminds God's people that the answer is... Yes!
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Sow to the Spirit.” In Galatians 6:6-10, Paul completes his theology of Spirit-led relationships with a picture of sowing and reaping. Our role within the context of relationships can be compared to the planting of seeds. Each seed being a selfless act of love under the authority of the Spirit or a self-seeking act carried out in the flesh. The passage urges us to answer, "Are we living by the Spirit or the flesh?"
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Keep In Step with the Spirit" from Galatians 5. What does a church family look like that is "keeping in step with the Spirit"? A church that is governed by the Spirit will treat others, especially those who have fallen into sin, with a certain kind of care and gentleness. A Spirit-led congregation is also made up of individuals who are worshiping the Lord through their own personal obedience to Him.
"Walk By The Spirit" from Galatians 5:13-21. Every day we face a crucial decision: will we follow the Spirit of God or our flesh? In Galatians 5, God's Word commands us to walk by the Spirit and in doing so we will not gratify or fulfill the desires of the flesh. What would it be like if we followed the Spirit into every aspect of life?
Dr. Thomas Schreiner brings the message, "Making It By Faith" from Hebrews 11. Tom is a NT scholar who teaches at Southern Seminary in Louisville, KY. He also pastored for 14 years at Clifton Heights Baptist Church. Schreiner has written many books and commentaries and has a unique gift of being able to make complex truths in Scripture very understandable.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Freedom to Love” from Galatians 5:7-15. When you think of personal freedom, you might think of it as someone who gets whatever he or she wants. However, that's not freedom, but slavery to impulse and desire. Paul shows us that freedom is a Spirit-empowered ability to genuinely love and serve others.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Stand Firm.” You’ve seen people slip on the ice. Maybe it was you that recently felt the pain. In a spiritual sense, it’s easy to “slip.” We slip into wrong thinking and eventually slavery to sin. However, in Galatians 5 we are instructed to stand firm and given practical help to do so.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Son of Hagar…or Sarah?” When God promised the aging Abraham and Sarah that they would have a son, and when the timing of their coming son seemed to be too far gone, Abe and Sarah took matters into their own hands with another woman named Hagar. The outcome was disastrous. The lesson is that either we believe God will fulfill His saving promises in His strength, or we foolishly think that we can become the primary acting agent. One path is freedom for the soul, the other is slavery to a task we can never complete.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Loving Those Who Are Erring” from Galatians 4:9-20. How can we respond to those who have gone off (or are in danger of going off) the “tracks?” In this section of Galatians, Paul’s example is practical and helpful for us. His goal for these dear friends is God-honoring and his appeal is grounded in Christian love.
Pastor Nate brings the message, "You’re a Son, Not a Slave.” Galatians 4:7 - “You are no longer a slave, but a son…” Why would a freed slave ever return to his life of bondage? It makes no sense, yet that’s what many Christians do. We trust in Christ for salvation (we are free from the law), but then we revert back to a mentality of using our own works to try to secure our relationship with God. Through Christ our relationship with God is secure and we are His sons…forever.
Rich Kolmus brings the message, "Our All-Sufficient Christ." Do we need some new things for the New Year? New Year, New You! Every year millions of people make New Year's resolutions in an attempt to improve their lives. As we reflect on 2023 and think to the new year ahead, what will we need to love God like we ought? Paul, writing to the Colossians and Laodiceans, shares exactly what we all need. Read Colossians 2 and join us on Sunday to learn Paul's "not so secret" formula (hint: there is only one ingredient... and his name is Jesus).
Pastor Nate brings the message, "Great Expectations" from Isaiah 11:1-5. Two thousand years ago the people of God desperately longed for the Messiah to come. His arrival would mark the beginning of a new era characterized by freedom and peace. Today, the advent season not only reminds us of Christ's first coming, but also causes us to desperately long for (and expect) His second coming. Oh, how we will be set free!
Sunday Morning...Pastor Nate brings the message, "Who We Were, Who We Are" from Galatians 3:22-29. As we come to the end of Galatians 3, Paul explains how the law was our guardian in the past. However, as Christians, we are no longer under the law. Rather we have come into a new relationship with God by faith in Christ, and now we are His sons.
