Renewal Church

This week we celebrate Easter and the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Pastor Ulysses takes us through a passage in Acts where Paul shares about the one true God to the people in Athens, who were at the time completely consumed by daily news—much like we are today in the Bay Area. He explains how each of us can experience the resurrection life today if we look upon the cross and a...

This week Pastor Ulysses teaches through the 12th chapter of Zechariah, in which both victory for Jerusalem and a time of deep mourning are described. He details how Christians today often swing too far one direction, either towards victory where we know we are forgiven so we ignore our sin, or towards morning where we feel total despair or worthless and unloved. We should truly morn and weep over...

This Sunday we read through Zechariah 11:1–17, where God's judgment unfolds through powerful imagery and prophetic sign acts. Pastor Jonathan walks us through Zechariah’s portrayal of both a faithful shepherd and a worthless one, revealing Israel’s rejection of God and the consequences that followed. This sobering chapter ultimately points us to Jesus, the Good Shepherd, reminding us that true pea...

This week, as we continue through Zechariah 10, we’re challenged to ask: What are we trying to handle through our own strength and control? Pastor Ulysses reminds us that God is our ultimate provider. Yet, like the Israelites, we often foolishly turn to “false idols” and worldly solutions instead of seeking Him first. Through this Sunday’s sermon, we learn about trusting in His provision and rejec...

Pastor Ulysess teaches us that only through God will we find everlasting peace with this passage in Zechariah. It is too easy and tempting, when we are young, to put our peace in worldly things. But the trials and slings of fortune will come in time. If we are to truly stay steadfast and unshaken by this life, we must put our faith in the one place where no one can take it away. That in the arms o...

This Sunday we continue our series in Zechariah with a message of blessing. This world is a broken place due to our sin. But in spite of all of that, God wishes to bless us. There is freedom from the tyranny of the present if we look at the blessing God has given us and the final blessing He has in store for us. If we accept this in our hearts, it will renew and repair us until the day we join Him...

Pastor Jonathan continues our series through the book of Zechariah with the 7th chapter. From this passage we learn about the dangers of religiosity, self-righteousness, and having a hardened heart. We also discover how his grace has freed us from a need to do spiritual acts to earn his favor, and accordingly what it looks like to instead live for God out of a humble spirituality.

This week, Pastor Ulysses continues teaching from the book of Zechariah, this time from chapter 6. The passage details Zechariah’s 8th and final vision, as well as a prophetic sign that Zechariah is to perform upon Joshua. We dig very deep into the text to gain a strong understanding of who Jesus the Messiah is - Is he a king? Is he a priest? Can he be both? And we also learn about the price one m...

This week, we delve into Zechariah's sixth and seventh visions, which call us to reflect on our lives. Are we living with integrity and obedience to God's commands? These visions not only reveal God's justice in addressing sin but also His grace in removing wickedness and restoring His people. Even in our shortcomings, He invites us to walk in holiness, reminding us that His ultimate plan is not j...

We continue our series in the Book of Zechariah with the fifth vision he sees, that of a lampstand and two olive trees. Pastor Ulysses teaches us with this parable that greats works are done with small steps of obedience to God. And that to build a joyful, radiant relationship with God also takes small, thoughtful and deliberate actions. There is no fast track to spiritual growth despite what we m...

This Sunday we are blessed with a guest message from Pastor Mark. He teaches us how we are to grieve as Christians and how we can bring comfort to one another. Through the suffering of Job, we learn how to lament, mourn together and maintain our faith through difficult times.

On this Sunday's message, we discuss the fourth vision of Zechariah: "The High Priest". Through his vision we see how unclean God's people are and that we have no right to receive His blessing. But because of God's grace and the coming sacrifice, we are restored. Satan stands ready to condemn us and we are helpless, but God chooses to defend us.

As we continue our series through Zechariah, Pastor Jonathan leads us through the second chapter of the book. Here Zechariah describes his third vision, which is one of a man with a measuring line and a wall of fire around Jerusalem. Through the chapter, Pastor Jonathan helps clarify for us what it means to be secure in the Lord, and how this vision demonstrates the depth of God’s love for us.

This week Pastor Ulysses continues our series through the book of Zechariah. In this section, we read about the first two of the eight visions that Zechariah has—one of horsemen and one of horns and craftsmen. We learn that God sees everything that happens in this world, and also that He is a God of perfect justice. The message is one of hope, however, because the sins of those who put their faith...

This Sunday, Pastor Ulysses begins a new book from the Old Testament, Zechariah. From these verses, we learn that God wants us to return to Him and repent from our evil ways. It is a message of love, of grace and mercy. Similar to how the prodigal son returns to his father with open arms, through Jesus' sacrifice, we too can return to His fold.

As we prepare for our congregational fast, Pastor Ulysses guides us through Ezra 8, where Ezra takes a bold leap of faith by choosing to forgo military protection on their journey to Jerusalem. Similarly, we are sometimes called to embrace "impractical" acts, like fasting, as an expression of trust in God. In this sermon, we explore how such actions demonstrate humility and deepen our commitment t...

For our last Sunday gathering of the year, Pastor Ulysses takes us through 2 Kings 22 where we read about King Josiah and his rediscovery of the Book of the Law. In this story, we observe a nation so far away from God’s will and heading towards it’s demise. While you might be amazed to observe the state of the nation, we should recognize that it’s just as easy today as it was then to drift away fr...

This week, we celebrate Christmas and reflect on its profound implications. While we sometimes adopt a superficial view of Christmas, often enamored by the idealized portrayal we see around us, we should also remember that Christmas is more than just a perfect image. In this Christmas sermon, Pastor Ulysses takes us behind the scenes of the airbrushed Christmas image to reveal the messy reality su...

As Christmas approaches, Pastor Ulysses begins to take us through the birth of Christ as described in Luke. He helps to clarify the true meaning of the season of Christmas, and the impact on how we view our lives. We don’t need to have fame or power or success in the eyes of the world, because we can rest on the fact that we are children of God, and he has a purpose for each of us.

This week, Pastor Jonathan takes us through the very last section of the book of John, thus concluding the series! In this final passage, Jesus has a conversation with Peter, through which we learn about Jesus Christ as the great Redeemer. Not just from death to life, but in every aspect of our lives as well—nothing is wasted when we bring it to Jesus for him to redeem.

In the final chapter of John, the disciples return to their ordinary lives, settling back into routine despite the miraculous events they witnessed just months earlier. Yet, in a powerful moment, Jesus appears to remind them of his unwavering presence and provision. How often do we as believers lose sight of God in the busyness of our daily routines? In this sermon, Pastor Ulysses challenges us to...

During Pastor Pete's concluding sermon he emphasizes the importance of us slowing down our busy lives and intentionally focusing on our relationship with Jesus. God can do wonders, bring healing and joy amidst darkness. But if we do not spend time with Him, He cannot build us up. 

At our third session at Renewal's Annual Retreat, Pastor Pete talks about how all of us have much mourning and suffering through the ordeals we have endured in this broken world. But there is great light and renewal ahead of us with Christ.

In our second session at retreat Pastor Pete talks about to how we need to identify things that may seem to fill us, but are actually harming us. At the same time, we need to do things that reaffirm our identify in Christ.

Welcome to Renewal’s Annual Retreat. In this first session titled "Racing for Death" Pastor Pete talks about how it is critical we stop and meet with God routinely amidst all the limitless distractions and obligations we face in daily life. We need to remember what our true priorities are.