Chepachet Union Church

We continue to look at “How Christ Refines Our Identity,” by looking at Peter's introduction in 1 Peter 1:1-5, where he gives us three strong pillars on which to build our lives: First, that We Are Chosen by the Love of God, Second, that We Are Called to Live as Pilgrims, and, Third, that We Are Called to be Made Holy for Jesus.

As we introduce the book of 1 Peter, in the first two verses (1 Peter 1:1-2) e will see what happens “When God Gives You a New Identity.”We will unpack this by looking at two questions. First, What is Peter’s New Identity? Second, What is Our New Identity?

In "The Parable of the Hidden Treasure" as well as the parable of the Pearl of Great Price found in Matthew 13:44-46, we see Jesus using the picture of treasure to call us to do three things: call us to do three things: 1st) See that We are All Treasure Hunters, 2nd) See the All-Surpassing Value of God’s Kingdom, 3rd) Seek (or Live in Light of) the Treasure of God’s Kingdom.

As we look at Jesus' forgiving of a sinful woman and "The Parable of the Two Debtors" in Luke 7:36-50, we see an amazing picture of the grace and forgiveness of Christ and of what it truly means to be sinners and righteous. We also 1st) See How Much We Need Jesus, 2nd) See How We Can Love Jesus More, and 3rd) See How We can Live with the Joy of Christ.

In Part 2 of our look at The Parable of the Sower, we examine Jesus's explanation of the four soils as pictures of different kinds of hearts. Jesus warns us about the dangers of a hard heart, a shallow heart, and a divided or distracted heart, and then encourages us about the blessings of an obedient heart.

As an introduction to a short series on Finding Jesus Through His Parables, we start by looking at the first part of the Parable of the Sower in Mark 4:1-20, which introduces us to the idea of parables and where Jesus explains one of the primary reasons he uses parables, to reveal our hearts and encourage us to truly seek him.

In the heart-warming ending of the book of Ruth (4:13-22), a surprise connection to the story of David and of Jesus makes us consider how, in the everday struggles and joys of our own lives, we can also be "Finding Our Redemption in the Story of Christ."

In Ruth 4:1-12 we see Boaz seeking to redeem Ruth, and as we see the character of Boaz, the scripture calls us to think on and savor the love and character of Christ our redeemer.

As we look at the third part of Ruth 3, we will reflect on "Finding Redemption in Romantic Relationships" and the example of Ruth and Boaz shows us the principles of 1) Learning to Trust First in Our True Redeemer, 2) Seeking the Blessing of Purity, and 3) Loving Generously.

As we look at the second part of Ruth 3, we will reflect on "Finding Redemption in Romantic Relationships" and the example of Ruth and Boaz shows us how, in romance, we should seek spiritual character above all else.

As we look at the first part of Ruth 3, we will reflect on "Finding Redemption in Romantic Relationships" the plan that Naomi and Ruth come up with reminds us of how God calls the single, the married, and the community of the church to be godly and intentional in our cultivation of Romantic love.

As we reflect on America's 250th birthday as well as both Psalm 33 and the book of Ruth, we will be discussing “Finding Redemption for Our Nation," and we will see that the primary way we bring redemption to our nation is being a people rooted in God's word and God's love.

As we review Ruth and finish chapter 2, we will see a number of principles for how to “Find Redemption in Bitter Times.” 1st) Keep Moving Towards God, 2nd) Keep Working in Faithfulness, 3rd) Live with Godly Humility and Gratitude, and 4th) Trust That You Have a Redeemer.

Ruth 2 shows us a number of principles for “Finding God’s Redemption in Our Work.” First, See Our Work as a Good Gift and Calling, Second, Seek to Bring Redemption Through Our Work, and Third, Trust in God’s Redemption in Our Work.

Ruth 1:6-22 reminds us of the incredible “Redeeming Power of Steadfast Love,” encourages us to find redemption by, first, Seeing the Redeeming Power of Showing Steadfast Love, and, second, Trusting the Redeeming Power of God’s Steadfast Love.

As we look at Ruth 1:1-7 we are introduced to the book and the tragedies faced by the family and how God puts them on “The Road to Redemption.” This passage gives us three reminders as we seek to face God in our struggles. First, Some Problems Are Outside Our Control. Second, Some Problems Are Inside Our Control. And Third, All Problems Have One Road to Redemption.

As we conclude our study of the Gospel with John 21:15-25, we see “The God Who Restores,” and two ways Jesus encourages us to live as his followers. First, How Jesus Restores Us in Our Failures, and Second, How Jesus Reassures Us for Our Future

As we look at Part 1 of John 21, verses 1-14, we see lessons on “Life with Our Resurrected Lord,” First, Life Looking for Jesus, and Second, Life Living with Jesus.

By looking at John 15-16, we see how Jesus prepares his disciples for the future by talking about, “The World, Trouble, and Victory in Jesus," with two principles, First, that We Must Expect to Find Trouble in This World with Jesus, and, Second, that We Must Look to Find Victory in this World through Jesus.

What does it mean to “Receive the Holy Spirit?” In John 14-16 Jesus introduces us to the ministry of the third person of the trinity, and calls his disciples to, 1) Receive the Person of the Holy Spirit, 2) Receive the Presence of the Holy Spirit, and, 3) Receive the Power of the Holy Spirit.

As we look at the famous story of “doubting Thomas” in John 20:19-31, we explore two facets of the relationship between "Doubt and Faith." First, this passage encourages us to reflect on How We Experience Doubt, and, second, this passage shows us How Jesus Responds to Our Doubt.

Like a letter promising a rich inheritance, the story of Easter each year promises to bring life-changing wealth into our lives if we respond to its message. As we review the Easter story in John 20:1-21 we discuss what "Living in Light of the Resurrection," looks like.

As we look at Jesus's Crucifixion and Burial in John 19:16-42, we will unpack the meaning of his final words, "It Is Finished," in two ways: First, see how “It Is Finished” means that Jesus Has Fulfilled All the Promises of God to Us in Scripture. Second, we see how “It Is Finished” means that Jesus Has Fulfilled All We Need to Find Salvation.

As we prepare our hearts to remember Good Friday and Easter, like Pilgrim's walking the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem, we are going to walk through the first part of Jesus's Journey to the Cross in John 18:1-19:16. We will walk through three scenes: 1) Jesus's Arrest in Gethsemane (18:1-11), 2) Jesus's Trial before the High Priest and Denial by Peter (18:12-27), and 3) Jesus's Trial before Pontius Pil...

in John 17 we look at “The Lord’s Parting Prayer,” and see the lessons contained in the three parts of this prayer: First, we look at How Jesus Prays for Himself in verses 1-5. Second, we look at How Jesus Prays for His Disciples in verses 6-19. Last, we look at How Jesus Prays for Those Who Will Believe in Him in verses 20-26.