Peace In Aiken

The most important things in life get most of our time, attention and resources. In fact, the amount of time and money we devote to something can often be an indicator as to how important it is to us. In our reading, Jesus challenges us to give serious thought to our priorities with one question in mind: are GOD'S priorities OUR priorities?

Families are complicated. There are dynamics and methods of communication that are understood only by those within the family. In every family, there are roles, spoken or unspoken, which Mom, Dad, and children make their own. So how do we know if our family is functioning according to God's model? Take a look at Ephesians 5:21-6:4 and see God's template for a loving marriage and healthy family lif...

The angles of God serve a purpose. That purpose is illustrated by the encounter that Elisha had with God's angel army. While God doesn't give us much insight into HOW he uses the angels, he does show us WHY: to protect and defend his church physically and spiritually.

Followers of Jesus are equipped for anything? Jesus has made sure of that. Learn how you can use the truths of God's Word about your life to combat every assault of evil!

His miracle was for one man and one man alone. He brings him to a private place, heals him, and then tells him to tell no one about it. Why was Jesus willing to take the time to make such a narrow impact when he could have made this man well in front of hundreds? Because it wasn’t about the crowd. In this moment, the Savior’s focus was on one man. And Jesus used this moment to bring this man heali...

If we are looking for a good person, we’ve found one. No, she’s not living under our roof, he’s not staring back at you in the mirror. We find one “good person” in our life: Jesus. It is Jesus who knows what perfect obedience is. It is Jesus who knows what perfect love is. Jesus is the only “good person” we know. But he doesn’t keep it to himself. He gives his goodness to us so that we can share i...

In general, when people are faced with an idea that they find offensive, they do one of two things. 1. They turn their back on the idea, the person, or the movement. Or 2. They wrestle to get comfortable with this scandalous thought. In John 6, as Jesus ends his Bread of Life discourse, the disciples wrestle with Jesus' teaching and give us a path forward when we are presented with a section of Go...

Jesus continues his “Bread of Life” discourse as he reminds that disciples that God himself is the one who draws sinners to himself. This is a stark reminder that the wisdom of God is NOTHING like the wisdom of this world.

Tragically, the best meals don’t last forever. Whether it’s the steak that you spent WAY too much money on or it’s that Thanksgiving meal that you fondly remember, we always find ourselves being hungry again. In these beginning verses of Jesus’ conversation about the bread of life, we find him reminding the people that he offers something better. He offers something that is not temporarily satisfy...

What does Jesus mean when he tells us he will be with us? And how is that helpful? When you are going through scary situations or rough patches in life, why does the presence of God matter? In our reading for this Sunday, we are reminded of a simple truth: there is no one we would rather have with us than our Savior.

What can be used to serve Jesus? Often, we shrink the scope of service far beyond the way God presents it in Scripture. God has filled each and every Christian up with exactly what they need AND MORE so as to serve others and serve him. God is so generous with his blessings toward us and allows for so many opportunities for service that we are forced to stop asking what can be used to serve God an...

When Jesus looks at you, what do you suppose he see? I’m sure he sees your day to day desire to walk in his ways. However, whether we want to admit it or not, he also sees our shortcomings. He sees the deep rooted sin. He sees the ways that we stray from him. But instead of being disgusted or disinterested, he is compassionate. His heart breaks for us. This is the heart of the gospel. This is our...

When we take on the awesome task of serving Jesus in life, we can overlook the fact that we aren’t just to speak his words, but we are to model his behavior. That is the standard that God places on those who want to be overseers in his kingdom. Our first concern might be that we can’t live up to that calling… who can?? The same way that we depend on God’s grace for our salvation, we depend on his...

When a couple breaks up because one party is dissatisfied with the relationship, you might hear him or her say to their partner, “It’t not you, it’s me.” The person is taking responsibility for what is objectionable in the relationship. God tells us that when we face rejection for the gospel, we need to keep in mind that the person isn’t rejecting us… they’re rejecting God and his Word. This remin...

In the account of Jesus dealing with a grief stricken father and raising his daughter from the dead, Jesus’ attitude astounds us. In the face of mourning and tragedy, Jesus shows calm, cool confidence. Why? He knows who holds all of the cards. This attitude is an attitude of faith. It’s an attitude, by grace, we can mirror. Mark 5:21-24,35-43

Did he even care? This was the question on the minds of the disciples as they scurried around the boat trying to make sure that it wouldn’t sink. They were doing their part, but by all accounts, Jesus wasn’t doing his. But this was not even remotely true! Even if Jesus didn’t frantically spring into action, it wasn’t as if the situation was out of control. Jesus was still in the back of the boat.

Do we make it more complicated than it is? Spreading the Kingdom of God can seem like such daunting work. But do we overthink it. God says, “preach the gospel.” We have to do more than that, right? In his 2 parables that Jesus shares with us today, he tells us not to overthink it. Go forth with the gospel, and let him worry about the rest.

Is Christianity winning? I think most who examine the falling church attendance throughout the country and the lack of respect for Christian institutions would say no. Christianity seems as if it’s on the ropes. But don’t let your eyes deceive you. Christ still sits on his throne. Knowing this is key to reading the book of Revelation and is vital to your walk in the faith.

People get burnt out when they continuously work without a rest. It should be no surprise, then, that the same applies to our spiritual lives. If we spend our time loving and serving those around us without any time for spiritual R&R for ourselves, we inevitably burn out. Thankfully, the rest we have a God who knows that. He knows you so well that he is willing to say, “for your own good, take a b...

Every other religion has a god. This god is described in a variety of ways: powerful, wise, angry, loving, perfect, flawed… every religion thinks something about their god. What should we think about our Triune God? Who he is is revealed to us by what he has done. This week, we discover a God who reveals himself as a God who is more complex than we could possibly imagine. We understand more and mo...

The power of God is present inside the walls of our church on Sunday morning. Some people might even say that they can feel it. But as you exit the doors, it might feel like things go “back to normal.” Just you, your strength, and the problems of the day. In our reading from Acts, we learn that on the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was poured out on the church with a purpose. Jesus wanted his p...

In many ways, the ascension of Jesus ties a bow on his earthly ministry. He had defeated sin, the devil and hell itself. But that doesn’t mean Jesus is done. He still has an agenda even as he sits at the right hand of God the Father. Hear about that agenda in this Sunday’s sermon.

Even the most casual Christian understands a basic principle of Jesus’ teaching and the teaching of Scripture: love those around you. Rarely, the problem is not knowing if we should love our neighbor or our God. The problem is execution. So how do go from a place of understanding God’s call to love to making it happen? We look to the model of our love.

Your connection to Christ need not be tenuous. When he says, “Remain in me,” he isn’t calling on us to do the impossible. Instead, he is calling us to make use of the means that he has established to keep us near to him. In all of this, we understand a critical point: Jesus and Jesus alone is the one who keeps our relationship strong. In that resolute relationship, we find ourselves bearing fruit.

Paying someone to do a job usually works out. You give them a sum of money, sometimes a large sum of money, and they do their work well and on time. But that’s not always the case. Sometimes, the one motivated by simple money isn’t willing to sacrifice what it takes to get the job done well. In John 10, Jesus points out the difference between the Good Shepherd and the hired hand. See the differenc...