from Acts 2:42-47, Matthew 28:18-20, and 2 Peter 1:3-11
We have noted for the past several weeks that the disruption that was the persecution that the Acts 2 church experienced, instead of dousing the flame lit by the Holy Spirit, served only as a catalyst for explosive growth. What is different? Why does it feel like the church is struggling so much in this season of disruption? Perhaps one of the glaring differences is that the early disciples took SERIOUSLY the call from Jesus to go and make disciples! Imagine if your life began to be leveraged so that others might come to know Jesus!
w/ Vern Collins
from Acts 2:42-47, 1Corinthians 10:14-17, 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
When we examine the worship practices of the early church, we find that there is little difference between the elements of worship used then and the ones we use today…and yet, it seems that the early church was so ignited in their love for Jesus and their commitment to the sharing of the Gospel that we have to wonder where the difference lies…
It is possible that it is not the power of the Holy Spirit, or the power of the Resurrected Jesus that has diminished, but that we might be treating worship like an add-on as opposed to the lifeline for our walk with Christ?
w/ Vern Collins
from 1 Peter 2:4-5, 9-12
What does being the church in a world that might be fed up with the church look like? How do we not only proclaim who Jesus is to the world, but also reflect Jesus in this world?
w/ Vern Collins and Laura Byrch
from Ephesians 1:15-23
What is the foundation upon which you are building your life? What is the foundation upon which the church is to be built?
What if aligning your life and the life of the church under the Lordship of Jesus isn’t about stifling life, but about finding freedom and purpose. Looking at the early church in the disruption it experienced, one of the things that Paul and apostles sought to continue to uphold, was the headship of Christ as the catalyst for life to the full and a church that is flourishing.
w/ Vern Collins
from Acts 11:19-30
In a time of such uncertainty and disruption, many of us find ourselves asking questions around what it means to be the church and what it means to be a part of the church.
The hope we have in the midst of this, however, is that this is not the first time the church has been through seasons of challenge or a time of disruption.
If the church is still meant to thrive, and we are still meant to thrive as a part of it, then there must be something we can learn from those who have gone before us.
For the next 10 weeks we will “Reimagine Church,” by looking back at how the church began.
w/ Vern Collins
from Zechariah 8:1-8
While we long for God’s Kingdom to be made real on this earth, why is it that we have such a difficult time living like it is already present among us?
Perhaps we need to shift our understanding of what this Kingdom is meant to look like.
w/ Vern Collins
from Psalm 126:1-6, Psalm 103:1-5, and Philippians 4:4-7
w/ Lory Beth Huffan and Vern Collins
from Mark 10:13-16
w/ Colette Krontz and Jeff McClain (and Rodney and Jana Duke introducing Godly Play)
from Proverbs 9:22-31
w/ Jeff McClain and Vern Collins
from Jeremiah 22:3 and Matthew 7:12
w/ Mike Sciascia and Lory Beth Huffman
from: 2 Chronicles 7:14, 2 Corinthians 3:17-18, Romans 12:2, 1 Thessalonians 5:19 , Titus 3:5, 2 Corinthians 5:17
w/ Lory Beth Huffman and Patti Connelly
from Psalm 51
w/ Lory Beth Huffman and Jeff McClain
from Acts 16:9-15
w/ Laura Byrch and Jeff McClain
from John 16:12-15 and Romans 8:14-17
w/ Vern Collins and Laura Byrch
from John 14:15-17, 15:26-27; Genesis 1:1-2; John 3:8
(partial message *lost audio for the first few minutes*)
w/ Lory Beth Huffman and Jeff McClain
from Acts 2:1-12 and 2:42-47
More than simply being the agent that served as the catalyst for the birth of the church, the Holy Spirit is vital to the church continuing to live out God’s mission in the world today.
Perhaps more than ever, we need the invigorating, transforming, inspiring, leading, convicting, restoring power of the Holy Spirit to invade our hearts, and invade the church so that we might be an agent of hope in a hurting world.
w/ Vern Collins and Lory Beth Huffman
from Joshua 3:9-17, 4:1-7
w/ Jeff McClain and Lory Beth Huffman
from Galatians 6:2-10
Seasons of struggle naturally cause us to have an inward focus.
How am I going to get through this? Does anyone care what I am going through? How am I going to have what I need?
While this is natural, and while we know that struggle is inherent in life, and is profitable for our faith as Christ followers, God calls us to a focus that is not “self,” but “other.” In shifting our focus, we might just find that we begin to tap into that fullness that Jesus came to make possible.
w/ Laura Byrch and Vern Collins
from Romans 5:1-5
w/ Lory Beth Huffman and Vern Collins
