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About a hundred times in the Bible, Christians are called to love “one another,” which refers to serving fellow Christian believers. John Michaelson unpacks six aspects of loving one another that we can apply in our life today: how to be present in the community, show hospitality, tend well to relationships, meet practical needs, use our gifts to serve the church, and how to disciple one another.

“Love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18). Our neighbor could be the person who lives next to us, or it could be anyone: refugees in our state, college students, Muslim believers, and all the favorite and not-so-favorite people in between. To what degree do we love? God has called us to love our neighbors as much as we ultimately look after ourselves, if not more. Neighbors we meet cannot only be those who are like-minded or cross our paths in the routines we establish, but we may need to go out of our way, change habits, and seek opportunities to serve people and display God’s goodness. Pastor Scott gives some practical ideas for how we might love people in our actual neighborhood, people in existing spaces that we visit, and people in spaces we create.

The great and first commandment, Jesus said in Matthew 22:37, is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” What does it look like to love God with all our hearts in everyday life? In this message Pastor Scott walks through ten principles, such as faithfulness and quality time, that will help us shape our lives toward pleasing God.

“Jesus loves you” is a truth that many churched people would find overfamiliar, but what if one really took time to ponder the vastness of God’s love? In this message Pastor Scott processes with us the impact of what Jesus did on earth for us out of love, and when we truly understand the gospel and respond to God, we’ll find that His love can satisfy the deepest part of our hearts.

In the midst of Christmas kitsch, high-volume holiday ads, and impatient shoppers, the peace of Christ cuts through the noise. Advent is the time where we celebrate Jesus and anticipate his arrival. The first time Jesus came, he created a way for us to be reconciled to God and be reconciled to people different from us. The next time Jesus physically comes, we will see peace fully restored through the earth. Ren’s CityLove Director, Katherine Gosnell, gives a message that studies Ephesians 2:11 - 22 to explore in depth how peace comes with Christ.

One element of the human life that is difficult to talk about is the fear of death. People may avoid the subject, use humor to deflect, or will hold onto vague sentiments about the afterlife, but death is a certainty in our future. Where do we hope beyond that? The good news is that Christ came to this world to give us a hope that solves the problem of our fear of death. Pastor Scott in this message shares how Christian hope is built on Christ himself who conquered death, and how His Spirit marks us for eternal life, giving us assurance.

In Acts 17, Paul and Silas continue their missionary journey through Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens: cities where Paul introduces Jesus to Greeks through philosophical presentation. What motivates Paul to reason with people in Athens is the sight of idols filling the city, taking precedence over God. Pastor Scott challenges us to evaluate what our motivation is for sharing the gospel with others. Do we take seriously the things in our culture that offend the glory of God? How often do we tolerate idols in our culture today instead of sharing the gospel to confront these idols?

Sean Carew is the founder and director of Providence Rescue Mission, an emergency shelter for the homeless population in Providence. In this message, Sean shares a little about his story and looks at the life of Peter in the Bible, a fisherman who follows Jesus, betrays him at one point, and returns to Jesus to end up leading His Church. A life like Peter’s—and Sean’s—shows how Jesus creates all of us for a purpose and God’s goodness, no matter what background we come from.

Pastor Scott shares three stories in Acts 16, in which God reaches the hearts of unlikely people and in bizarre circumstances. Paul and Silas’ missionary journey through Macedonia is a reminder to be led by the Spirit in the midst of life’s adventures, to let God do the work of changing people as we share the gospel and spend time with them.

It’s important to take a pause and remember why we do what we do. Why do we gather as a church? What is our mission? How are we doing? Renaissance Church is currently in a season of rebuilding, and we have been reshaping the ways we gather in order to fulfill three components of the Church’s mission: to love God, love one another, and love our neighbors. Pastor Scott highlights how the Ren community can embody components of our mission through corporate worship and prayer (love God), small communities (love one another), and mission initiatives (love your neighbor).

The Church has faced the problem of false teaching since its early days. In Acts 15, a false teaching contrary to the gospel message spreads through church communities, and the apostles and elders confront the claims. Pastor Scott emphasizes the seriousness of absorbing distorted teaching and gives practical wisdom for recognizing false doctrines today.

In Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas continue to preach the gospel, heal people, and encourage the church, despite nearly being stoned to death in Lystra. Looking at Paul and Barnabas’ example, Chris Waugh encourages Christians to persevere in the faith. Perseverance is one of the greatest character traits a Christian must develop, and is necessary in the face of spiritual attack and in faith-filled work.

In Acts 13, Paul and Barnabas begin their missionary journey through the mediterranean region. When they preach the gospel, Jews and Gentiles respond to the claims about Jesus with either belief or jealousy. The journey that Paul and Barnabas take gives a snapshot of the joy and the messiness that comes with obeying the Holy Spirit. Pastor Scott encourages believers to continue bringing the gospel into godless places. It is worth the cost, for believers partner with the Holy Spirit to reconcile people to God.

Our guest speaker of this message is Percy Ballah who pastors at Impact Center Providence. Percy preaches on the need to keep burning brightly as a Church, using the symbolism of fire. In Leviticus 24:1-4, God commands the people of Israel to prepare “pure oil” for a lamp in front of the tabernacle in order to keep the lamp burning continuously. Just as the Israelites needed to make fresh oil, we too as the people of God, the Church, need fresh fire from God to keep burning brightly and bring light into a dark world.

In Acts 12, the church prays for Peter’s release from prison, of which God sends an angel to break him free. Just as the early church was bold enough in their faith to pray earnestly, John Michaelson challenges us to pray big, audacious prayers in our day and time.

Tim Zulker is a founder and director of the network New England Urban Church Planting. Tim unpacks John 6, the story of Jesus feeding a crowd of over five thousand with five barley loaves and two fish. This message reiterates that Jesus came not only to preach good news to the poor and feed the hungry, but to become good news for the poor, become the bread of life. The good news is not only for the materially poor but for the spiritually poor, which is everyone.

Dr. Mike Caparelli is an author, public speaker, and a leader of a nonprofit, Unmuted, that helps trauma victims recover on a path toward healing. While much psychological activity is biological, there is a facet of mental health that involves a battle of the soul. Mike’s message looks at the story of a man with a demon that was healed by Jesus (Mark 5) and discusses the interplay of mental health with demonic forces.

This message comes from Greg Johnson, a local ministry leader who is launching a church training initiative called Revive New England. Greg discusses the need for God’s fire, the manifestation of God’s presence, to see revival in New England today, looking at 1 Kings 18 as an illustration of God's fire declaring his presence to people rebelling against Him.

Acts 9 tells of the conversion of Saul who, on his way to persecute more Christians in Damascus, encounters Jesus on the path and goes blind from the Christ’s heavenly light. After this supernatural encounter, Saul begins to preach the very gospel he once persecuted others for believing in. Pastor Scott points out that just as it took a move of God’s power to change Saul’s heart, so we need today a move of God’s power to change the hearts of those around us. It takes more than “being nice”—we need to ask God for him to move powerfully.

Our Youth Director Nicole Waugh preaches on Acts 8 about the turn of events in the early Church when various evangelists disperse into different regions and share the good news of Jesus, receiving different heart responses to the news. While Simon the Sorcerer used God to make himself look good, the Ethiopian eunuch responds with joy. How do we respond when we hear about Jesus,—selfish gain, or repentant joy? Nicole concludes by asking the listeners how we can respond to God with joy, and if we don’t, what is holding us back?