“Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him.” There are times we fear that God has a sense of humor, right? But what if … what if he is serious? What if God meant them to be so? And what if there was a way to make it so? Not a guarantee but a strategy. What if there was a strategy for raising kids you can be proud of, for raising…

"How do I live like Jesus when it comes to disagreements? How do I live like Jesus when it comes to the ways in which we don't agree? And then, here's the big idea. Here's the answer at the end of the message. I’ll give it to you on the front end. Here’s the big idea: live in unity and peace with one another. The answer – which feels like it's lack…

Let’s start with the word of the day, the question of the day, and the attitude of the day. • The word of the day is “agape.” There it is in the Greek: ἀγάπη. It means “love,” … but it’s a very special kind of love. We’ll get there. • The question of the day is, “What would agape do?” As Jesus followers, we need to ask this question: “What would ag…

“'Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellow man has fulfilled the law.' Guys, I want you to hear it: overcome evil with good. Be a good citizen. Give what is owed, whether that's taxes or revenue, respect or honor. You give what is owed. And everyone is owed love. I promise you that …

"So, we’re kind of like a family, right, a family of Jesus followers? It’s kind of like God is our dad, and we’re his kids. So, we’re going to treat this kind of like a family meeting this morning. Did your biological family ever have family meetings? Maybe your dad or mom laid down some of the family rules … You know, where you could go, what you …

"We’re going to walk through the first few verses of Romans 12 and see what they say about you, what they say about me, and we're going to see what they say about our responsibilities to each other. But it starts with this word, “Therefore …”. When I was in high school, my youth minister taught us that whenever you come across the word “Therefore” …

Do you ever doubt God? Jesus? I mean, some guys doubt Jesus even existed...which is crazy. But, have you ever doubted Jesus went around working all those miracles, raising the dead, and raising from the dead? Although, if there really is a God, it's kind of weird to deny the possibility of a resurrection, isn't it? But, have you ever wondered if Je…

So, don’t forget where we started. The quality of Jesus as guest is directly related to your quality as host. Meaning, the way in which you welcome him will determine the level of impact he's able to make. Have you welcomed him simply as a guest … or have you made him ruler of your home? Have you welcomed him? If so, you should see him welcoming yo…

"Jesus—The I AM—is the true vine, he says, and we are kind of like branches created to be connected to the vine. And God is kind of like the gardener. And, like a gardener … Well, have you ever pruned bushes or trees? What do you do if a branch is dead? You know, it’s flat-out dry, brittle, and dead. You cut it off, right? Throw it away; burn it up…

It's something that we struggle with because we love having options. The ability to choose is something that God gave us in the very beginning. He gave us free will. He gave us the ability to choose. And it may be the biggest gift that God gives us. It's one of the things God gives us that make us distinctively human. It's one of the things that se…

Philippians 1.21, do you remember it? Can you say it with me? … “To me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Yeah, there it is: “To me, to live (living, life to the fullest) is Christ, and to die is gain.” We’re getting there.Let me come at it this way. Ben and I are drawing some of the big ideas for this series from a book called, “Jesus Manife…

"Which version of this Jesus should I follow? Because while we can say that we ought to imitate Jesus, there is a wide spectrum of what our world believes Jesus to be. A few weeks ago, when we started this series, I shared a host of different versions of Jesus in a somewhat humorous way. We live in a culture where there is a wide spectrum of differ…

"Now, sometimes it’s not your choice who you will imitate, right? You can’t choose your parents, but you’re going to imitate them … especially when you are little. And sometimes, even when you’re older, right? Have you old guys ever said something or done something, and you’re like, “Holy cow! That was my dad or my mom.” If you haven’t, you will. “…

The truth is, God is writing your story … but you don't have to accept it. You don't have to accept it. God will actually let you write your own story. One of the more shocking things that God does is that he allows free will, which means that we have the right to hijack the story. That we can take the pen from his hands, and we can begin writing o…

"It means that creation rebelled against the Creator. It means that what God created as good fell; it broke; what it became was not what God meant it to be. It means that the Creator watched his creation fall, and it broke his heart! He cared! He watched us fall, and it broke his heart ... he cares! Do you get that? And do you know how much he care…

Every generation has had to answer this question: “Who do you say that I am?” Who do you say that Jesus is? We answer those questions in lots of different ways … and if we get it wrong, we get everything wrong.Par Ben Webb, Associate Minister

You see, we believe God meant it to be this way from the beginning. This is what God meant for his church to look like. Let me show you two weird verses: weird in that world and still weird in ours. The apostle Paul says, “There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one … in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3.28) Tho…

"What do we need to grow spiritually? Last week we used this verse over and over, Ephesians 4:15. It says, “We will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.” Plants physically need space, temperature, light, water, air, and nutrients. Humans physically need food, water, clothing, shelter, sleep. At Ca…

Now, whether we understand the importance of spiritual maturity or not, we are Jesus followers, right? We believe there is a real God. And we believe that the real God is revealed in and through Jesus. And we want God to be … God. And … And … God expects us to mature spiritually. He thinks it’s good for us. He thinks it makes for the best life poss…

What is our purpose as Christ-driven, 24/7 Jesus followers?Par Ben Webb, Associate Minister

"Is there a God? This is our starting point. This, I believe, is every human … every person's starting point. " Ben Webb, Associate MinisterPar Ben Webb, Associate Minister

"What if Easter is true? What if the one who claimed to be the Son of God actually predicted his death and resurrection and pulled it off? What if … what if you really are the mess God thinks you are? And what if … what if God is right and you can’t fix your mess? And what if Christmas is about God providing a way out, a way back? What if Jesus rea…

One of the reasons Jesus shows up in a manger in Bethlehem is so that the mystery around God would be removed. Jesus would demonstrate to us who God is, who God likes, what God wants, what God values, and what God does. All those questions that we may have. This mystery around God is revealed in Jesus.…

"To really understand the Christmas story, you have to go back even further … to the first chapters of Genesis … to the creation story … and the fall. You see, we learn from the creation story that we humans are special … we bear the “the image of God,” somehow. We are designed so we can do life with God, somehow. And, we learn that we humans rebel…

"Marriage calls us to become servants of each other’s welfare. And that's not why you got married. In fact, you got married for the opposite reason. If we told people that's what marriage was all about, I think less people would get married. When I got married, it was because I thought she was going to bring some good stuff to my life. I got marrie…

This … big G God invented marriage, the coupling of a man and a woman till death do us part. Because our Creator, our Designer, thinks that model will work best … He thinks it will work best for your spouse, your kids, your clan, your community. And, our Creator, our Designer, thinks it will work best for you … it will help grow you into what you w…

"I'll tell you the best funerals that I have ever been to have been for those who are Jesus followers. It may be weird to you, but it's true. At the end of life, having hope is so incredibly valuable. It changes the dynamics of a funeral. But … I've also seen people who were great Jesus followers have a significant burden at their funeral. I've see…

There's a conflict between the world's way and God's way. The world loves getting respect, but Jesus followers are called to focus on giving respect. We're all about getting respect, but God says as a Jesus follower, you should focus on giving respect. It's an obligation. It's even a command. It's all throughout scripture. It's all over the place. …

God has a design and a plan for marriage. And in this marriage series, we're going to look through what it looks like to follow God's design. But it's not just for married people. In fact, the things that we talk through are going to apply to any relationship you may find yourself in. Now we will talk specifically about husbands and wives, and that…

Following Sunday's message, Doc, Ben, and Kari discuss what the Bible says about homosexuality and how Christians should respond. For more, listen to the full message, "At Odds: Sexuality.Par Ben Webb, Associate Minister

What does the Bible say about homosexuality?"Last week, Doc started this series that we are calling “At Odds” by talking about controversies surrounding gender in our culture right now. Today, I get the opportunity to talk about sexuality, specifically sexuality concerning same-sex relationships. Some of you may be wondering why a preacher would ev…

"What does the Bible say about Gender?"In a nutshell, our culture has been changing at light speed. Even the definitions of words have been changing at light speed. So, it’s hard to know the right words to use. Because what we mean by the words we choose may not be what you hear. And, what concerns us most – as Jesus followers – is that some of the…

As part of our At Odds series, Doc, Ben, and Kari dig deeper into how Christians should respond to gender issues. They will examine "Is there a binary or a spectrum? Should parents affirm their children's gender dysphoria? What if I believe God made me this way?" and more.Par Dr. Stephen "Doc" Pattison

When God nudges us, what does that look like? Two of the most prominent ways in which God nudges us are these two other lighthouses that Sweet names: conscience and instincts. And they are linked together really well this morning because they both come from this inner dialogue. But they are different. They are unique from one another. They function…

How much does … “God’s will” matter to you? If you are a Jesus follower, is it important to know and to follow God’s will? Isn’t that kind of what being a “Jesus follower” means? And what if “God’s will” clashes with your will for your life? Because it will! When they clash, who wins? And, if you are not a Jesus follower yet, and if there really is…

"You have people who've pushed you and pulled you, encouraged you and challenged you. And spoke into your life. And it's the fulfillment of Hebrews 10.24-25. The writer says, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds…” I am the fulfillment of people who have spurred me on toward love and good deeds. I am the res…

If someone is speaking about something and it doesn't fit my agenda right now … if it's not the most important thing I can do at that moment … then I'm not interested. I don't want to hear it if it's inconvenient for me. And if it's terrible news, I sure don't listen to it, right? This is why most of us have these apps on our phones – these bank ap…

"Now, I am good at not listening. In fact, when I was writing this part of the sermon Thursday morning, there was quite a bit of chatter in the office. So I popped on my noise-canceling earphones, earphones flipped them on, and there was this blissful silence. • Some of you guys, when you don’t want to listen, turn up the volume on something else. …

"The Gospel of Matthew … the book they chose to be first in our New Testament … it opens up with this genealogy of Jesus. And it’s a weird genealogy … on purpose, I think.• You see, Jesus didn’t track his family tree so he could “find himself.” That’s ludicrous! How could his “human ancestors” make the Son of God any more or less?• And … even thoug…

I want to ask a very simple question. If you were God, what would you do? If you were God, what would you be excited about? What would be the things that would thrill you – things that you could finally address or want to do? Like, what are the things that you would care deeply about and do something about if you were God?…

In an interview with NBC, Dahmer reflected on his previous depravity. He said, “If a person doesn't think that there is a God to be accountable to, then what's the point of trying to modify your behavior to keep it within acceptable ranges? That's how I thought anyway.” In other words, if there is no God, then who cares what you do, who cares what …

One of the most gracious things God could do for the people he had chosen, by grace, would be to give them some rules on how to do life together. You see, community requires either morals or rules, and these refugees had neither. And morals take time to cultivate. What they needed now were some rules. Rules, borders, guardrails regarding all kinds …

"Does God ever feel awkward? Is God ever uncomfortable or awkward? What if it's bigger than that? What if by this word uncomfortable I'm talking about something much bigger? Something like this: over the course of my life there have been a few times – not many, but a few times – when I have heard someone speak inappropriately either to or around a …

"Okay, I am going to preach this sermon in two different parts this morning. And just in case you get lost, let me tell you what the two big ideas are. The bottom line, guys, is that it’s not about you. It’s not about how good you are or how bad you are. It’s not about what you think of yourself or what other people think of you. It’s about God. #1…

"We're tracing this "Trail of Grace" through the Old Testament because some of you probably still think grace isn't shown until Jesus. But the Old Testament drips with grace... if you look for it. And this story of the Fall drips with grace. Have you noticed that before? And it's not just the story of Adam and Eve; it's my story, and your story... …

"Why does God create anything? Here’s a big philosophical question: Why is there something instead of nothing? Why is there existence as opposed to nothingness? Weird questions, right? But seriously, why did God create anything? Why is it that when God created, he created with an unnecessary diversity? Why is it that he created such a high level of…

What if, in humility, we rightly see ourselves as deserving nothing from God? And what if we shifted our thinking away from what we do or didn't deserve and looked at the beginning part of that definition? What if we begin to look at everything we've received from God as being a way that God has graced us?…

"Humility is about getting honest with ourselves, and honest with God, and honest with those we do life with. Humility is about embracing reality, instead of the fantasy worlds we tend to live in. Humility is about taking my eyes off of me and focusing on God... which can be a real pride killer."Par Dr. Stephen "Doc" Pattison

The apostle Paul says, “The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5.22-23) … Here’s what he’s talking about. When we become Jesus followers, the Spirit of God- the Holy Spirit- makes a home inside us. He’s always on the outside, w…

"But I think there's one fruit of the spirit where our standard matches God's. God expects that we will be 100% faithful. If you knew someone who was 90% faithful, you would think that isn't good enough. No wife would be appreciative of a 90% faithful husband; she expects that her husband would be faithful 100% of the time. No employer would apprec…