Arbor Church

Alison begins a two-part miniseries entitled Prodigal . From Luke 15, it’s the story of the prodigal son, and a God whose plan to find us is so much greater than our plan to get lost.

From Mark 1:21-34, Ryan continues our series in Mark ( The Life and Way of Jesus ) with a look at what life in the Kingdom of God actually looks like.

If you grew up in the church, the word “Christian” might mean something very simple to you – praying the Sinner’s Prayer, believing certain things, trying to be good most of the time, going to church now and again. But the word “Christian” is not used very often in Scripture, and never by Jesus; he didn’t have Christians. He had disciples . Today, from Mark 1-3, Ryan helps us understand what disci...

Each of us probably has something slightly different come to mind when we hear the word gospel . What was the gospel according to Jesus? And what did He mean by the Kingdom of God ? Ryan continues our series in Mark with an in-depth look at Jesus’ words as He began His ministry.

As we’ve just learned in our Emotionally Healthy Relationships series, unmet expectations are the root of all disappointment. And boy , were people ever disappointed with Jesus. This week, Ryan opens a new series in the book of Mark, which shows a Jesus who is a lot different from the warrior king that people expected in the first century – and also a lot different from how we think of Jesus today...

We all know we’re supposed to pray … so why don’t we? Today, Bryan shares a message based on Jesus’ prayer in Gesthemane that addresses each of the common roadblocks to prayer.

Ryan closes our series Emotionally Healthy Relationships with a message on how to deal with the inevitable conflict that arises in our relationships – not by seeking fake peace but by becoming true peace-makers and fighting cleanly.

A special Mother’s Day message from associate pastor Alison Acone about heartweight + heartwait , Hannah, and waiting on God.

We continue our series Emotionally Healthy Relationships this week, with a message about listening deeply to those around us. Listening is more than just being quiet, and Ryan helps us understand what it means to listen deeply by following Jesus’ example and listening incarnationally . (What does that mean? Listen and find out. )

This week in Emotionally Healthy Relationships , the art of becoming self-aware, or: how to take a really good look at yourself and understand the part of the iceberg beneath the waterline… starring David, Saul, a lyre, and a spear.

This week, Ryan continues our series Emotionally Healthy Relationships with a message on how to avoid unmet expectations – both in our personal relationships and in our relationship with God.

Our new series Emotionally Healthy Relationships explores the idea that spiritual maturity and emotional health are inseparable . This week, Ryan talks about the innately human tendency to read minds and assume we know what other people are thinking and why they act as they do, and offers practical steps for challenging the assumptions we make about each other that so often lead to conflict.

In a world full of Bad news and Fake news … Easter is Good News, the miraculous and rare kind that doesn’t come with strings or a catch. Through Mary Magdalene’s story, Ryan shows us how Hope rises on the day of Jesus’ resurrection.

This Good Friday, we remember the death of Jesus, and ask: why did it have to be on a cross ?

Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone in good spirits? He should sing praises. Is anyone among you ill? He should summon the elders of the church, and they should pray for him and anoint him with olive oil in the name of the Lord. Ryan closes our series on James with a message drawn from the last verses of Chapter 5, wherein James shows us how to have patience in suffering throu...

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into this or that town and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.” You do not know about tomorrow. What is your life like? - James 4. Today, Scott walks us through James’ harsh words for wealthy oppressors, and shows us what it means to honor God with our wealth and our plans.

Where do the conflicts and where do the quarrels among you come from? – James 4. In the book of John, Jesus asks John: What do you want? This question is remarkably insightful – because we are what we want . Not what we think or believe or do – what we want . Pastor Ryan explains.

Who is wise and understanding among you? James’ rhetorical question in Chapter 3 opens a set of verses that help us distinguish true wisdom from counterfeit.

And the tongue is a fire! The tongue represents the world of wrongdoing among the parts of our bodies. It pollutes the entire body and sets fire to the course of human existence… okay, James, but how do you really feel? Today, from chapter 3 of James’ epistle, the story of how much trouble our tongues can get us into, and why.

Today, Ryan teaches on one of the most hotly debated passages in the New Testament, James 2:14: What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith save him? Surely James cannot be saying that we are not saved by faith alone … so what is James saying? And what does it have to do with a certain cormorant on the Galapagos Islands?

My brothers and sisters, do not show prejudice if you possess faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. From James 2, some challenging words about favoritism and prejudice, and the Royal Law that shows us how to rise above them.

Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters! Let every person be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger. Thanks much, James, but that’s a lot easier said than done. This week, Pastor Ryan unpacks this passage with some practical advice on how to live out this command, and explores the growing chasm between hearing and doing in the Christian life.

My brothers and sisters, consider it nothing but joy when you fall into all sorts of trials… So begins the book of James, and this week Ryan opens our new A Faith that Works series with a message on why James opens his epistle with what appears to a major bummer.

Have you ever tried to follow Jesus’ example of prayerfulness, only to find that you’re secretly bored … or don’t know what to do … or even aren’t sure if your prayers are actually doing anything? If so, today’s message is for you.

Jesus was never too busy for the people he encountered as he went about His ministry. Scott Hetherington shares three stories about Jesus bringing hope and healing in during unplanned and unexpected encounters, and encourages us, too, to live in the now as we follow Him.