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The Ascension of Ordinary Life

Bible Text: Ephesians 4:1-10 | Preacher: Jon Medlock | Series: Guest Preacher

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We often approach life with either fear or a tendency to fight, having forgotten that Christ is actively at work. As we remember that Jesus is our reigning king, we can ask, how can we follow where he leads without fear? How can we love one another?

Worthy by Disqualification

Bible Text: Mark 2:13-17 | Preacher: Kyle Wells | Series: The Gospel of Mark

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It seems that everything in our world requires some sort of qualification; “What are your qualifications? “Is she qualified for the job?”, “He qualified for the Olympics”. What about grace? What are the qualifications?

Are you well?

Bible Text: Mark 2:1-17 | Preacher: Kyle Wells | Series: The Gospel of Mark

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This Sunday we remember the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. As we consider the Spirit’s mission to build God’s kingdom, we also ask, what qualifies a person for life in the kingdom? Come and hear God’s Word from the book of Mark.

Strangers in a Strange Land

Bible Text: 1 Peter 2:11-17 | Preacher: Alex Watlington | Series: Guest Preacher

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Why did God save us and how do we live as his people in our our vocations, neighborhoods, and schools; communities which often leave us feeling like strangers in a strange land? This Sunday we look at 1 Peter 2 to look for answers to these questions.

The Gospel on the March

Bible Text: Mark 1:14-28 | Preacher: Kyle Wells | Series: The Gospel of Mark

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We don’t usually think of ourselves as being enslaved or oppressed, but the gospel of Mark reveals that Jesus is the liberator, and if that is so, from what might he want to free you?

Introducing Mark’s Good News

Bible Text: Mark 1:1-13 | Preacher: Kyle Wells | Series: The Gospel of Mark

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What do you do, or to whom do you turn, when your problems are too big for you to solve? Mark’s gospel provides a solution that might seem counter intuitive to our world of self help books and solution based seminars.

Following Jesus Into the Dark

Bible Text: Mark 16:1-8 | Preacher: Kyle Wells | Series: The Gospel of Mark

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The way of trust is a movement into obscurity, into the undefined, into ambiguity, not into some predetermined, clearly delineated plan for the future.  The next step discloses itself only out of a discernment of God acting in the desert of the present moment. The reality of naked trust is the life of a pilgrim who leaves what is nailed down, obvious, and secure, and walks into the unknown without any rational explanation to justify the decision or guarantee the future. Why? Because God has signaled the movement and offered it his presence and his promise.
—Brennan Manning, Ruthless Trust
Sermon Summary: This week we begin a new sermon series in the gospel of Mark. We worship Jesus as our risen Lord, and we are called to follow him as our King. But what does that mean, and how can we follow him when we can’t see where he is leading? Come and hear what the gospel of Mark teaches us about following Jesus.
Passage to Consider: Mark 16:1–8

When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

 

Confession of Sin:

Almighty God, in raising Jesus from the grave, you shattered the power of sin and death.

We confess that we live as if we remain captive to doubt

and fear, bound by the ways that lead to death.

We overlook the poor and the hungry,

and pass by those who mourn.

We despise the weak

and abuse the earth you made.

(Silent confession)

Forgive us, God of mercy. Make us new, through the power of Jesus Christ, our risen Lord.

Amen.

What the Resurrection Can Mean for You

Bible Text: 1 Peter 1:3-9 | Preacher: Kyle Wells | Series: Easter Sunday

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And ah for a man to arise in me,
That the man I am may cease to be!
—Alfred Tennyson
 
If life had a second edition, how I would correct the proofs.
—John Clare
 
Oh, wretched ephemeral race … why do you compel me to tell you what it would be most expedient for you not to hear? What is best of all is utterly beyond your reach: not to be born, not to be, to be nothing. But the second best for you is—to die soon.
—Silenus
 
Sermon Summary: The grave is empty–Christ is risen! That was world-changing news for Jesus’ disciples, but what does it mean for us? How does an event from 2000 years ago offer hope in the midst of life’s trials and challenges today? Come and hear how Easter changes everything.
 

Passage to Consider: 1 Peter 1:3–9

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

 

Confession of Sin:

Almighty God, you have raised Jesus from death to life and crowned him Lord of all.
We confess that we have not acknowledged his authority
or trusted in his commands.
We have boasted in our own achievements
and failed to give him thanks.
We have been deaf to his call
and blind to his work in our world.
(silent confession)
Forgive us and raise us from sin, that we may be your faithful people, following our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.