Sunday Message

Pre-Awaken: Fasting (Audio issues with recording)

Fasting is a forgotten spiritual discipline that Jesus expected His followers to practice regularly alongside prayer and giving. The modern church has largely abandoned this biblical practice, missing out on its spiritual benefits including developing self-discipline, bringing spiritual purification, and facilitating generosity. There are four main types of fasting: major fasts (abstaining from food and drink), minor fasts (abstaining from food for set periods), partial fasts (giving up certain foods), and soul fasts (abstaining from non-food items). The key is choosing a fast that requires genuine sacrifice while being achievable, and using the time normally spent eating to draw closer to God through prayer and spiritual reflection.
 
Due to technical issues, we have raw audio which picks up street noise and sounds from the A/V booth.

Blessed Assurance

John wrote his first letter to give believers blessed assurance about their eternal life. He addressed Christians who were confused by false teachers with complicated ideas, reminding them that faith is simple. Authentic Christian living involves three essentials: believing in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, obeying His commands, and loving others. John emphasizes that God's commandments aren't burdensome because they all sum up to love. Eternal life isn't just about living forever after death—it's about experiencing a quality of life that finds meaning and purpose in knowing God and Jesus Christ right now.
NOTE: We had technical issues with the end of the sermon. Our video back up picked up the image but we lose our microphone so we are using the native camera microphone that picked up some of the soundroom workers trying to fix the issue but you can hear the end of the message.

Blessed Assurance: Give Your Heart a Rest

Our hearts often condemn us because we struggle to love perfectly and doubt God's unconditional love for us. John teaches that God knows everything about us - our failures, weaknesses, and struggles - yet loves us anyway. This isn't frightening news but hopeful, as God's omniscience is connected to His mercy throughout Scripture. When we understand that God wants to make His home in our hearts rather than distance Himself from us, our hearts find rest. This rest transforms how we live: we obey out of joy rather than fear, and we pray with the confidence of children approaching a loving father. The key is remembering the cross and our baptism, knowing that our worth comes from God's unchanging love, not our performance.

Blessed Assurance: Dying to Love

The Apostle John reveals three key marks of true Christianity: believing in Jesus, walking in obedience, and loving fellow believers. In 1 John 3:11-18, he exposes two dangerous lies about love that our culture promotes. First, that love comes later after we get our doctrine right, when actually love has been foundational from the beginning. Second, that love comes naturally, when true Christian love is actually supernatural and only possible through God's Spirit. Real love follows Christ's example of laying down His life for us, moving beyond words to concrete actions that serve others in practical ways.

Blessed Assurance: Search and Destroy

Jesus didn't come to earth just to show love and mercy—He came on a search and destroy mission against sin and the devil's works. According to 1 John 3, real Christians don't take sin lightly because they understand it separates us from God. We can't settle for sin management, constantly asking for forgiveness while never addressing the root problem. God's plan required two moves: His incarnation as a sinless man to take our place, and our rebirth through being born again. When we receive a new nature in Christ, we react differently to sin—like a sheep that flees from mud rather than wallowing in it like a pig. This doesn't mean perfection, but it means progress in our walk with God.

Blessed Assurance: In His Image

From the beginning, God created us to bear His image and share in the family resemblance. When sin entered through Adam and Eve's disobedience, we lost that image and experienced shame and separation from God. But God chose to pursue us rather than abandon us, sending Jesus to restore our capacity to bear His image. Through faith in Christ, God adopts us as His children and begins transforming us from the inside out. This isn't just about forgiveness - it's about being remade into God's likeness with ever-increasing glory. One day we will see Jesus face to face and be completely like Him, with no shame or reason to hide.

While We Wait: Show Love

During seasons of waiting, Christians are called to demonstrate love that goes beyond feelings to active service. Jesus modeled this radical love throughout His ministry by putting others' welfare first, even loving His enemies. When we show love to others - whether family, strangers, or those who oppose us - God counts it as love shown to Him. True Christian love seeks the good of others above our own comfort, serves those who cannot repay us, and extends grace to those who have wronged us. This love transforms our waiting periods into opportunities to live out kingdom values now.

While We Wait: Choosing Joy

Life is filled with waiting seasons that can easily lead to anxiety and impatience. However, we can find joy during these times by focusing on two powerful truths. First, we can rejoice in God's incredible mercy, which becomes most evident during our trials and is ultimately demonstrated through Christ's incarnation. Second, we can choose to be joy for others who are also waiting by offering simple acts of kindness like genuine smiles, using people's names, and showing sincere interest in their lives. These small gestures create ripple effects that extend far beyond what we can see, transforming both our own experience and the lives of those around us.

While We Wait: Experiencing Peace

True peace isn't just the absence of conflict but complete wholeness, described by the Hebrew word shalom. Jesus didn't come to end all earthly troubles but to bring peace between humanity and God through his sacrifice. Paul provides practical steps for experiencing supernatural peace even during difficult circumstances: choose joy, be gentle with others, live with eternity in mind, turn worry into worship, pray about everything, and be grateful. Your thought life directly impacts your peace, so be mindful of what you consume through news and social media. While circumstances may not change, God can transform you from within, allowing you to experience peace that surpasses understanding.

While We Wait: Don't Lose Hope

Life is filled with seasons of waiting, from medical results to relationship healing. Throughout Scripture, God's people have always been waiting people - Noah, Abraham, Joseph, and even Jesus all experienced extended periods of waiting. The Hebrew word for wait is the same as hope, revealing that biblical waiting is active and expectant. During waiting seasons, we can maintain hope through three key practices: establishing consistent prayer to commune with God, trusting His character and timing rather than forcing our own solutions, and actively doing good works right where we are. Our hope as Christians is different because it's a living hope found in Jesus, who experienced waiting just as we do and serves as both our example and foundation.