Grace for New Life

Fear is a natural response to any stimulus that we think might threaten or overwhelm us. But what kind of fear do you want to have in your heart? Do you want to fear death, condemnation and all the turmoil in the world? Or do you want to fear the God who can cause you to tremble with astonishment over what he does to save you? Choose your fear wisely. (Based on Mark 16:1-8.)

Two thousand years ago, as now, there were differing opinions about who Jesus really was. Peter got it right when he identified Jesus as the Messiah, the One sent from God to save his people. Jesus is the King who went to the cross to save us and make us one of God’s people. In thanksgiving for what he has done for us, we focus our minds on the concerns of God. (Based on Mark 8:29-38.)

Why do some believe in Jesus and others do not? In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus teaches us that God’s Word always has the potential to produce abundant faith within us, but sometimes the condition of our heart hinders the growth God wants to give to us. Therefore, we tend our heart like a gardener, keeping it soft, clean & fertile so that God’s Word is better able to do its work within us....

“I’m a good person,” is a common way people describe themselves, but an honest self-assessment will soon reveal that this statement is not true. The only human hope for goodness is found outside ourselves in Jesus Christ, God’s Son and our Saviour. He won the gift of goodness for us through his life, death & resurrection & he applies his goodness to us personally in the waters of Holy Bapt...

We humans are greatly influenced by our environment, and when the brokenness inside us connects with the brokenness in the world, it can lead to devastation. Thankfully, God’s Word creates faith in our hearts which connects us to Jesus, who saves us and transforms us to become more like him from the inside out. (Based on 2 Timothy 3:1-17.)

Having goals in life can be a good thing, but it is best to hold them loosely, for a self-directed life will always fall short of the life God wants to give us. He invites us to live our life in the world yet live differently from the world. By living in the grace he gives us, we grow into the purpose he has for us, and those around us are blessed as we do that. (Based on 1 Timothy 1:12-2:7.)

Being a person of hope requires that we hold in our heart two seemingly opposite truths at the same time. First, the world, including us, has been thoroughly infected and broken by evil and that brokenness is beyond any human ability to repair. And second, Jesus Christ, through his life, death, and resurrection, paid the full cost for all the evil and brokenness in the world to be forgiven and hea...

There can be little doubt that the world is broken. A brief survey of world news provides sufficient evidence of that fact. But how can the world be healed? Our best human efforts, though well-intentioned, will always fall short. Only a powerful, holy, and righteous God can make all the wrongs in this world right. And that very God is inviting us to follow him in faith now so we can join in singin...

Guilt can be a force for good when it moves us to repent of our sins and make amends to those we have harmed. But we also need to be aware that we have an enemy, Satan, who accuses us of sins already forgiven to drive a wedge between us and God. Thankfully, Jesus, through his death and resurrection, defeated Satan for us. In Jesus, our troubled souls have peace. (Based on Rev. 12:7-17.)

What is the goal of human life? To gather wealth, gain power, or be liked? None of these things will matter in a hundred years. Jesus offers us a much greater vision for our life, for now and forever. He saved us from our short-sighted flaws and failures so we could be celebrating and singing praises at the end of time. And we get to invite others to join the choir. (Based on Rev. 7:9-17.)

Having a passionate faith is a wondrous thing for our heart soars with joy as we experience intimacy with God. But our passionate faith often fades, especially when we face challenges, and then our heart wanders away and begins to love created things instead of the Creator. How do we get back to loving God primarily and passionately? By remembering all that he has done, is doing, and will do for u...

We tend to think of love primarily as an emotion, but true love always expresses itself in action, doing what is best for our beloved, even when we aren’t feeling “love” in our heart. We turn away from our inherent selfishness and give ourselves to our beloved because we want to be one with them. Jesus not only loves us with the greatest love of all, he has also expanded our circle of loved ones t...

With all the disorder in and around us, it is hard for us to have peace. Who can calm the storm within our heart? Jesus. He has defeated all the threats we face and gives us a greater and grander new life with him. How do we know this is true? Because Jesus has risen from the dead. How do we receive peace from Jesus? Through faith in him. (Based on John 20:19-31.)

The natural inclination of humans is to think that the path to greatness requires gathering more: more power, more wealth, more people, and more possessions. But Jesus shows us that true greatness is found on a Path of Sacrifice. As we give up our lives for Jesus’ mission to love, restore and renew the world, we find that he has given us a life that is greater than anything we could ever ask or im...

Bombarded by online scammers and opposing opinions on paths to health and wholeness, we are naturally skeptical. How do we know who really has our best interests at heart? The One who laid down his life for us to give us eternal life with him. Let’s listen to his voice and follow him. (Based on John 10:1-10, 27-30.)

This Sunday, we continue to celebrate the birth of our Savior in song as the choir blesses us with their Christmas Cantata. As we begin this New Year, may our hearts still be filled with Christmas joy!

It may seem like life has no meaning or purpose, but the Bible tells us that God created all things and still loves this world even though it has fallen into brokenness. He is directing human history toward a Grand Conclusion when He will restore and renew all things for a new forever life with him. And we find our purpose in life when we find our place in His story. (Based on Rev. 20:11-21:7.)

It might seem gloomy to think of the Day of the Lord in the days leading up to Christmas. But this broken world needs to be set right, and the Messiah born in Bethlehem is the One who will banish all evil and make all things right, including us. The Day of the Lord is the day when our faith will be vindicated. Therefore, we can look forward to that day with hope and thankfulness. (Based on 2 Peter...

Join us as the Sunday school presents “Little Benjamin and the First Christmas”. The children of Walnut Grove Lutheran church will share the story of the first Christmas in a reader theatre style. Come and see what happens when Benjamin discovers the very special guest that comes to his father’s inn.

Holiness is an impossibly high bar for us humans to reach. However, with Jesus, holiness is not an accomplishment we achieve, it is an identity we receive, an identity that will be fully revealed at the end of time when Jesus comes back to make us and all things right. In the power of the Holy Spirit, we are able to be who God created and redeemed us to be, his holy people in this world, glorifyin...

Advent is all about God's preparations for Jesus first coming affirmed through Old Testament predictive prophecies.  What makes this so exciting is that all the First Coming prophecies were filled precisely, and because of that, we can look to at least 614 Old Testament prophecies about Jesus' Second Coming being fulfilled as certain as well.  On this first Sunday of Advent, our message...

This Sunday our focus will be on Jesus and his teachings about the End Times. These are found in Matthew 24 and 25; Mark 13; and Luke 21. These give us the Signs of the Times. But there is so much more, as we examine Old and other New Testament scriptures. Join us as we see what Scripture says and how we as Christians try to put all these Scripture texts together.

Each day we cross another finish line, with an evaluation of how we can live and serve others and the Lord better.  It's like running a race with a finish line - a few minutes to a few hours.  But there is a final end of life finish line as well that we all must pass through. It's the one that really counts.  What are the personal and Biblical preparations we make for crossing that finis...

When people don’t get what we think they deserve, we consider that to be an injustice and we are offended. But there would be no hope for humanity if God gave us what we deserve. In spite of the fact that we are all sinners, God gave us what we do not deserve: grace, his love and salvation. (Based on 1 Timothy 1:3-17.)

Being skeptical about anything that we cannot detect with our senses may seem logical, but it cuts us off from comprehending the mysterious nature of God. It takes the wisdom of faith in Jesus for us to see the wonderful treasure we have in him. (Based on Col. 2:1-15.)