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Though the age in which we find ourselves calls us to self-preservation, the call of Scripture is toward self-sacrifice. Not only is this the call of Scripture, but it is the model of Christ himself. How, then, do we mitigate risk while still doing good, loving our neighbors, and serving those in need? This sermon in the book of Genesis seeks to provide insight into this predicament, calling us not towards self-preservation or recklessness, but towards godly, biblical self-sacrifice for the glory of God.

The spirit of the age, around the world, is self-preservation. But is this really living? Are we really exempt during this season from a life of purpose and meaning and left to settle for an indefinite pause to our Christian living? Does the Bible offer any relevant answers to the present course of the world? Genesis offers clarity when clarity is needed most.

Receiving God’s call is not about the initiation of the greatness of our plans, it is an invitation into the goodness of God’s promises. As we begin a new year, let us all remember that God’s call for each of us is first to himself, and that it is only through his call that we are set forth to live in the purpose and adventure he has set forth for each of us as we make him known.

Joy is elusive when you can't see, when loss is high, when God seems far, when the world is at war and when seasons fail. An apt description for a majority of 2020. But before your heart goes too far down the road with the narrative that better days are just around the corner in 2021, Pastor Allen reaches a startling conclusion: 2020 had all the joy we could want. Further, 2021 doesn't have any more that we need.

This portion of Scripture deals with the brokenness and fracturing that sin causes in families and generations. Our decisions impact more than our own lives, and our rebellion always catches up with us in the end. However, no matter how dark the days around us, God always preserves a remnant of his people to carry his promise, a promise fully expressed in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

While we often wrestle with our individual “callings” from God, Scripture is abundantly clear that the one calling we have all received is that of obedience to the Lord. In studying the life of Noah in Genesis we learn that obedience is hard to ignite, hard to sustain, and hard to finish; it is a lifelong decision that we live out by God’s grace and with God’s help.

Family is complicated and has always been so, even back to the first family recorded in Scripture. In the story of Cain and Abel we see sin’s crouching, consequences, and continuation. When we sin, we are confronted lovingly with the God of the Bible; we can either acknowledge, repent, and master our sin with the help of God and others, or we can carry on, dealing with the consequences of our rebellion. The choice is ours, and God is always ready to receive humble, contrite hearts through the person and work of Jesus Christ.

In Genesis 3, the very good, perfect landscape of God’s creation is introduced to the presence, power, and penalty of sin. Satan’s empire here expands, focused intently on the destruction of humanity through the discrediting of God’s word and goodness. Condemnation, division, exhaustion, and separation are now the painful legacy of humanity. However, we look forward in hopeful expectation, through the covenant of the gospel, to the crushing of Satan’s head under the bruised heel of Jesus.

One of the primary, significant foci in Genesis 1-2 is the creation and union of man and woman. While certainly these texts provide us with God’s mandate and desire for complementary marriage, they also reveals to us core truths about who we are as image-bearers. It is not good for us to be alone; we were created to live in community, together surrendered to the God who desires good for us under his order and care.

What if our modern tellings of the creation story are wrong? What if the point of "in the beginning" is not primarily about the creation of the universe or the Earth? What if the author of Genesis had a much more profound intent in the opening verses of the first book of Moses? What if there was a way to read this text, so it not only harmonized with our modern, scientific understanding of the world...but it was also Biblically credible, faithful and literal? As Pastor Allen opens our series through Genesis, he offers us this viable perspective.

This week Pastor Andrew turns our attention from the heart of church membership to the hands of church membership, or what it looks like to practically be a member of a church. Deep down we all desire to be a part of a genuine community following Jesus, and as members of such a community we need sacrificial living, renewed minds, holy self-awareness, and genuine service to and for one another.

In the first installment of a two-week series, we examine Paul’s writings to the church regarding involvement and commitment as members of a body. The love of Christ is the prerequisite and the sustaining force in biblical church membership; as we cling to Him, we learn to love, serve, and honor one another in the gospel of Christ.

While the nations rage and the people plot in vain, God sits on his throne, ruling over all. How do we bring this truth into the reality of today’s political firestorm? This sermon by Pastor Allen reminds us to be fully integrated followers of Jesus, letting our theology lead to biblical practice in all we do, from the voting booth to the rest of our lives.

In this strange season we all find ourselves in, it is terribly easy to focus only on all the things we don’t have or on all the things we have lost. While this pain and loss is real, let us not forget to also be grateful for all of the good things we have been given by God himself. We are richly blessed in Christ and in each other.

How do we reconcile an almighty, all-knowing God with the suffering we experience in this world? This homily by Deacon Joel Maginnis reminds us how to rightly view and handle our pain, placing our hope fully in our Redeemer, who lives, loves, and gives us eternal hope.

"Rejoice always" - a beautiful sentiment, and a reality we would all like to experience, but what does this commandment really mean for God's people? Far from a trite cliché, Deacon Cody Bartrug shows us in this homily the great depths of the reality of hope and joy for God's people.

Loving God with all of your heart, soul, strength, and mind, and loving your neighbor as yourself; these are simple commands, but as we all know living them out is a completely different story. In this sermon we confront the true question: what does it mean to be a neighbor to those in need, loving them as we love ourselves?

We will face trials, pains, and heartache as followers of Jesus - we might as well do so together, bearing one another's burdens.

It is fitting that the conclusion to Colossians emphasizes the need to end well. The Apostle Paul was a fitting model for us all and yet, even he, reminds us we can't do it alone. In the finale to this 12-week series, Pastor Allen introduces us to the Disciple's Dozen: 12 personalities every church member needs to finish well.