http://bible.com/events/48573915

Week 1:The road to the cross began the moment sin entered into the world in the Garden, when humanity and all creation were broken.”God finishes what He starts.” – Pastor Adrian

The road to the cross began in the Garden of Eden and that road wound through the Old Testament as a promise – communicated through covenants by God to His people.

Isaiah 43:1 NIV

1 But now, this is what the Lord says—he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

Jeremiah 31:31-33 NIV

31 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.  32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord.  33 “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord.“ I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
I will be their God, and they will be my people.This is the covenant formula expressing God’s relationship with His people.
The amazing thing about the story of God and His people in the Old Testament is that God doesn’t snap His finger and say, “Fine. If you don’t want me, then I don’t want you.” He certainly could have, but instead he kept promising, kept pursuing, kept chasing. He longs to dwell with his people, yesterday and today.
-Jefferson Bethke
Jeremiah 31:34 NIV34 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
His faithfulness to the Promise summons our adoration, and His promised return stirs up our faith-filled anticipation.

2 Corinthians 1:20-22 NIV20 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.  21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us,  22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

Revelation 21:1-5 NIV

1 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.  2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.  3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”  5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

http://bible.com/events/48554543

Many of us don’t understand where the road to the cross begins.

For some, we may think the road to the cross begins on Palm Sunday, or the Holy Week accounts in Scripture.-For others, we may think the road to the cross begins in a manger in Bethlehem, or in the Gospel accounts of the New Testament.-But that’s not where the road to the cross begins.

Genesis 3:1-13

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ” 4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. 8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” 10 He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” 11 And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” 12 The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

-The road to the cross began the moment sin entered into the world.
-Sin entered the world through Adam and Eve and all of their children, including you and me, would be born with an infected sin nature because of it.

Just as the first lie was uttered by the serpent in the garden, the enemy of our souls is still speaking lies today. Often we can believe the lie that “we are not sinners”, or “we don’t need a Savior”. We believe that if we can be good people, or moral enough, then we don’t need Jesus. But that’s a lie.

Romans 3:23

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 5:12

12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—The power of sin is great.

The power of the cross is greater.

http://bible.com/events/48538153

For What? Part 4: We’re for Hope

Week 1: We are for Jesus. 

Week 2: We are for holiness.

Week 3: We are for compassion. 

• • •

We believe that as a church we are transformed by God to bring hope to others through Christ.

• • •

This week: We are for hope

Hope is: the joy and peace that is found in knowing-truly knowing-that a trustworthy God holds our future in his careful hands.

• • •

Jeremiah 29:4-9NIV

4 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon:  5 “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce.  6 Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease.  7 Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”  8 Yes, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have.  9 They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the Lord. 

• • •

Jeremiah 29:10-11NIV

10 This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place.  11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 

• • •

1. God’s promise of hope has been fulfilled

– We have hope and a future NOW

– We pray to him and he listens to us NOW

– We find him when we seek him NOW

– We have hope NOW

2. Hope is a tool

3. We don’t keep hope to ourselves 

• • •

Romans 15:13NIV

13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

• • •

God doesn’t just give us hope, he is the God of hope.

http://bible.com/events/48533642

It’s far more important for those in our community to understand what we are FOR rather than what we are AGAINST. It’s not even close.
Week 1: We are for Jesus.
Week 2: We are for holiness.
This week: We are for compassion.
What is compassion? It literally means “to suffer with”. We know that it must always involve action, so we often say that compassion is “love in action”.

The story of God is marked by a God of compassion.
-“The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness” Exodus 34:6-“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” Isaiah 49:15-The compassion of God in the Old Testament continues in the New Testament. God sends Jesus as the ultimate display of His compassion.-Jesus’ ministry is marked by compassion, and He ultimately suffers on our behalf, dying on the cross for the sin of all mankind.

2 Corinthians 1:3-5
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.
-In our suffering, we experience the God of comfort and compassion. He suffers with us in our pain.-And we aren’t just comforted for our own good, but for the purpose of sharing that comfort with others.-We don’t have to conjure up comfort, because we can’t. Instead, we comfort because we have been comforted.

Compassion flows out of us because it has been poured into us.
Luke 6:32-36
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

http://bible.com/events/48528471

For What? Part 2: We’re for Holiness

It’s far more important for those in our community to understand what we are FOR rather than what we are AGAINST. It’s not even close.
Last week: We are for Jesus.
Being “for Jesus” is about an intimate relationship not some ideal reverence.


This week: We are for holiness.
There are many things about holiness we may not understand. Let’s focus on two important questions:-What is holiness?-Why does holiness matter?


1 Peter 1:14-16NIV14 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
First, what Peter is NOT saying:-You have to be perfect to be a Christian. (1 John 1:9)-You better never sin or no Heaven for you. (Luke 23:39-43)-You earn your way to eternal life. (Ephesians 2:8-9)-If you sin it means you aren’t really saved. (2 Corinthians 12:9-11)
What Peter IS saying:-You will be faced with evil desires and temptations.-When you are tempted, do not conform to them. Do not obey them for they are no longer your master. (Romans 6:15-23; 1 Peter 2:9; John 8:11, etc.)-Holiness is tapping into the power of Christ in you.-You are not relying on your power and your strength to somehow rise above, but tapping into His power to refuse to conform to evil desires that well up in you.-Holiness is not something you do, it is something you receive.


What is holiness?
Holiness is possible-We can walk in holiness by the grace and power of God Himself through Jesus.-Some teach that we are doomed to walk in the grip of sin, but we believe we can walk in the Light by His power, love and grace.
Holiness is freedom (not a burden)-Holiness is the reflection of the freedom bought by Jesus on the cross.-This is NOT something impossible we have to accomplish. It is something that Jesus has already accomplished – that’s where the freedom is.
Holiness is rooted in love (not duty)-God, our Father, desires for us to live in this freedom because He loves us and so we can be blessed.-The motivation is not one of fear or punishment if we fall short. There is blessing in living according to the freedom available to us in Christ.


Why does holiness matter?
-Holiness is God’s deepest desire for you. It is His redemptive vision for all humanity.-Holy is the way God is. He is incapable of being other than He is.-The whole purpose of God’s redemption is to make us holy and to restore us to the image of God.-Ultimately, we surrender to our God and leave our happiness in His hands.


Hebrews 12:12-14NIV12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13 “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed. 14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.

God’s ultimate goal is not your happiness, but your holiness.


“Go to God and have an understanding. Tell Him that it is your desire to be holy at any cost and then ask Him never to give you more happiness than holiness. When your holiness becomes tarnished, let your joy become dim. And ask Him to make you holy whether you are happy or not. Be assured that in the end you will be as happy as you are holy; but for the time being let your whole ambition be to serve God and be Christlike.” -A.W. Tozer