Messages on John
Risen, Reigning, and Coming Again
“On the third day he rose again.” It’s easy to say without a second thought. The people who lived the story didn’t have that luxury. Their teacher had been killed, and their hope seemed to have died with him. In this message, Pastor Amy looks at the last section of the Nicene Creed about Jesus and what these confessions say about our lives today. Starting with Mary Magdalene at the tomb, she explores what it means that Jesus’ resurrection is…
For Us
More than half of the Nicene Creed is about Jesus. That’s no accident. The nature of Jesus was the question that brought the bishops to Nicaea in the year 325, and it’s a question people are still asking today. In this message, Pastor Brent walks through what the creed says about the Son and why the church held so firmly to it. We look at the fight with Arius, who taught that Jesus was a created being, and at how…
We Believe In
In a culture full of competing claims about what “real” Christianity looks like, we’re going back to the ancient words the whole church has confessed for 1,700 years. This week: unpacking the first three words of the Nicene Creed — We. Believe. In. — and why the shape of that phrase might matter as much as anything that follows it.
Receive the Holy Spirit
We’d rather figure it out ourselves than ask for help — even from God. Pastor Brent explores Jesus’ invitation to receive the Holy Spirit, and what we tend to reach for instead.
Come and Eat and Drink
What does Jesus actually offer when he says “come”? In this message, we trace two invitations from John’s Gospel: Jesus standing at the Festival of Tabernacles declaring himself the source of living water, and Jesus meeting his disciples on a beach after the resurrection with breakfast already cooking. Together they show a Jesus who cares not just about the state of your soul, but the whole of your life — body, mind, and heart.
Humility
How many of us can say that we have a proper view of ourselves? Humility begins with an understanding of who you are and who God says you are. Humility also knows who God is. Listen as Pastor Brent concludes our Playing With Fire series, exploring a virtue that’s vital to walking with Jesus and often misunderstood in the Christian community.
The Speaking Spirit
What could happen if we had the same discipline in our lives for listening to the Spirit as we do for prayer and Bible study? The truth is, we can’t have life without the Spirit. We cannot hear God without the Spirit. We cannot come to God without the Spirit, and the Spirit of God is who ties it all together.
A Season to Weep & Laugh
As followers of Christ, we hold both joy and sorrow at once. Weeping is an acknowledgement that things are not the way God intended them to be, and laughter and dancing are an acknowledgement that the resurrection has the last word. God abides in both of these seasons of life, encouraging us to allow ourselves to feel the joys and pains of each authentically.
The Rule-Breaking Jesus
In a conversation filled with compassion and truth between Jesus and a Samaritan woman in the book of John, Jesus breaks all the rules. He doesn’t break them to rebel, however. He breaks them to redeem. This beautiful story gives us deeper insight into a rule-breaking God who sees His people, knows the depths of their hearts, and loves them anyway.
The Power of One
In Jesus’ final prayer before His arrest, He intercedes on the behalf of His followers — that’s us! — praying that we would be one just as He is one with the Father. The unity of the body of Christ is crucial to our witness, but that doesn’t mean we agree on every theological issue or tradition. Our unity ultimately comes from our unity with God.
The Mission and the Message
As Jesus continues his prayer in John 17:6-19, we find a message specifically for His disciples. Here, Jesus encourages His early followers that they belong to God, to one another, and in the world but not of the world. Listen as Pastor Brent explores the power this exhortation still holds for Christ’s people today.
The Glory of the Cross
As Jesus turns from teaching to prayer in John 17, we see the defining moment of His mission unfold. The hour has come—everything in history has led to this point. Jesus’ life, prophecy, and God’s redemptive plan all converge as He prepares for the cross. But instead of seeking escape, he asks for one thing: glory—not through power, but through sacrifice.