As the book of James comes to a close, we're reminded to bring every season of life to the Lord in prayer, whether we're walking through suffering, celebrating joy or battling sickness. He encourages the church to make prayer our first response, trusting that God works powerfully through dependent and faithful hearts. James also calls us to pursue those who have wandered from the truth, not giving up on people, but patiently seeking to lead them back to Him.
It can be easy to get discouraged when we look at the brokenness of our world. While our culture would encourage us to become cynical or even seek out an escape, God calls us to patience. Patience isn’t something that comes quickly or even naturally. But when we remember that we’ve already been redeemed through the gift of grace through Jesus Christ, we can lean on His strength to help us endure. Jesus promises that he walks beside us even through the darkest of days, calling us to fix our eyes on the hope of eternity to come.
God cares deeply about how we steward the money he entrusts to us. There's no sin in having wealth, but if we put all our efforts into collecting and keeping our wealth, we can end up cutting corners and devaluing people. James warns against the ‘wicked wealthy’ and provides a stern reminder that the pursuit and love of money above everything else can only lead to sin.
We spend so much time and energy chasing success in this world that it can be easy for our priorities to get out of order. James chapter 4 reminds us that our life here and now is just a tiny fraction of the eternity ahead of us. As we lift our eyes up from the temporal and toward the eternal, our call is to submit to God’s will in all things, seeking Him and His righteousness first.
James concludes his warnings about our words by warning us not to speak evil against our brothers and sisters in Christ. It can be so easy for us to slip into moments of gossip, or to try and make ourselves look better by putting others down in judgment. But James reminds us that God is the only true judge. The purpose of our words should be for building others up, encouraging one another toward Jesus Christ.
Conflict is inevitable in our broken world, but where does conflict come from? The book of James reveals that conflict isn’t about what happens around us, it’s about what’s happening inside us. When we put our own wants and desires ahead of our relationship with God, we’ll soon find ourselves living a life of conflict as our desires go unmet. But when we humble ourselves and submit to God, He brings peace to our conflict inside and empowers us to live a life of purpose and eternal perspective.
Living out our faith should allow others to see a difference in our conduct when compared with the rest of the world. The world encourages selfish ambition: do everything you can to get ahead, no matter the cost to others. But Jesus gives us a completely different goal: put the needs of others before our own. When we interact with others in a gentle, peace-filled and sincere way, it becomes a powerful witness to the love of Christ working in us and through us.
Our words carry more weight than we realize. When we use our words in anger or to criticise or tear others down, we can cause huge amounts of relational damage. Jesus reminds us that our words reflect the nature of our heart, and James compares the power of the tongue to a fire - even a small spark left uncontrolled is capable of catastrophic damage. So how do we tame our tongue and discipline ourselves to use our words carefully?
He is Risen! If that’s not a true statement, 1 Corinthians 15 tells us that our faith is in vain, and we’re to be pitied among all men. But since Christ has risen indeed, his resurrection changes everything. The story of his resurrection reveals the truth of his identity, and the transformation that happens in the lives of those who see and believe in him. Will you see and believe in Jesus, and respond to go and tell the world as he commands?
Salvation is a free gift of grace through Jesus Christ, not a result of works we do. With that salvation comes a lifelong transformation as Christ works in our lives to make us more like Him. The works he gives us to do are a response to that good gift of grace, and those works also serve as a witness to the world around us to the power of Jesus to transform lives. Without these works of faith, we can miss out on both the joy that comes from serving the Lord as well as the encouragement we can be to the world around us.
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How does our faith in Jesus Christ work its way out in our daily life? That’s the question the book of James answers for believers. His letter is an incredibly practical guide for what it looks like to live out our faith in our everyday lives, loving and serving others here, near and far.
The word advent means "arrival" or "coming," and for the Christian, the advent season is marked by both remembrance and anticipation. This year we'll be examining the life of John the Baptist - a man who's calling perfectly reflects the idea of advent. Even before he was born, John was chosen by God to prepare the way for His promised Messiah, the Savior of the world.
We are revisiting several Old Testament Bible stories that many of us learned in Sunday School. In these stories people struggled with holiness, forgiveness, confession, repentence, materialism, provision, goodness and suffering. Far from being outdated, these stories from God's word hold many important truths for us today.
1 Corinthians is a letter written by the Apostle Paul to a church in the country of Greece called Corinth. It's full of both encouragement and loving correction as Paul reminds the church of who they are in Christ, the importance of love and unity, and a warning not to stray into the immoral practices of the culture around them. His encouragement and direction proves completely true and relevant to the American church in 2025 as we also strive to follow Jesus well in the midst of a culture that's drifting further from God's truth.
The arrival of Jesus means the gift of a Savior - the one who would restore our relationship with God the Father. With that gift also comes the arrival of a hope, love, joy and peace that goes far beyond anything this world can offer.
With beautiful and vivid language, Psalm 23 reminds us of the character of God, His care and provision for His children, and the peace and rest we find in Him. We'll also see how every quality of God revealed in the Psalm points directly to what would be fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
Through the birth of Jesus, we received the gift of a Savior who lived life as a man, experiencing everything we experience on this earth and offering himself as the perfect sacrifice to save us from our sin. Because of that gift, we can draw near to God with confidence, holding fast to that promise of salvation.
Reaching a big goal takes hard work and training. If the goal of the Christian life is to be like Christ, how do we train for that? What daily habits, rhythms and exercises should a Christian do to help train for the goal of godliness? This series will examine God's Word to learn simple, everyday practices we can have in our lives as we strive to be more like Christ.
The Gospel of Luke is the most detailed and comprehensive telling of the life and ministry of Jesus. It presents Jesus - the hero of the gospel - in every aspect: teacher, servant, healer, miracle worker, savior and King.
The miraculous account of Jonah reminds us of God's limitless ability to get our attention. When we look at the brokenness of our world and start to think there's no hope, God's interactions with Jonah reveal His desire to move our hearts toward compassion for others as we realize we're all in need of His grace and mercy.
The season of Advent is all about anticipation. In a world that can feel lost and even hopeless, Jesus is a beacon of hope; God Himself coming to us as a man in an act of perfect love and sacrifice. The hope of the world is here!
