Cedarcrest Church

This message challenges us to rethink what hospitality truly means in the biblical sense. While our culture often reduces hospitality to aesthetic surroundings, nice candles, and clean homes, Scripture calls us to something far deeper: creating spaces where people feel welcomed, seen, and can encounter Jesus. The story of Zacchaeus beautifully illustrates this radical hospitality. Here was a man d...

Learning to hear God's voice transforms everything about our faith journey. This powerful message introduces us to five practical lighthouses that help us discern when God is speaking: commanding scripture, compelling spirit, counsel of the saints, common sense, and circumstantial signs. The beauty of this framework is that we're not left guessing whether we've truly heard from God. Like ship capt...

This message challenges us to examine the gravitational pull that our possessions can have on our spiritual lives. Drawing from Matthew 6 where Jesus teaches about seeking first the kingdom of God, we're invited to consider a powerful question: What would be hardest to leave behind if Jesus asked us to do it? The answer often reveals where we've allowed things to become masters rather than tools....

In our always-on, 24/7 culture where information floods us constantly and leisure time has become just another platform for consumption, we're invited to rediscover an ancient spiritual practice that Jesus himself modeled: solitude. This message challenges us to examine how our weekends—once designed as sacred rest—have become filled with travel sports, endless notifications, and the relentless dr...

This exploration of biblical community reminds us that our faith was never meant to be lived in isolation. Drawing from John 13:34, where Jesus gives us the new command to love one another as He has loved us, we're challenged to move beyond surface-level relationships into authentic, transformative community. The message unpacks what it means to truly do life together through the lens of 59 'one a...

This message from the final First Wednesday of the semester follows the journey of young Samuel as he learns to recognize and respond to the voice of God. Through Samuel’s story, we’re reminded that intimacy with God is cultivated through intentional time in His presence and a heart willing to listen and obey. The message challenges us to move beyond simply knowing about God into a genuine relatio...

This message dives into the life of Joseph and the tension between “slowly” and “suddenly.” After years of hardship and waiting, Joseph’s rise to influence in Egypt reveals how God uses seasons of waiting to shape our character and deepen our trust in Him. Rather than chasing breakthrough moments, we’re challenged to embrace the intimacy with God that’s formed in the waiting. Through Joseph’s stor...

In this exploration of Genesis 39, we follow Joseph through a difficult reality many of us face—doing the right thing and still paying a price for it. As a slave in Potiphar’s house, Joseph resisted temptation and chose faithfulness, asking, “How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” His integrity led not to immediate reward, but to false accusation and imprisonment. Yet through eve...

What if the hardest seasons of your life are actually part of God’s plan to move you forward? In Genesis 37, Joseph goes from being favored by his father to rejected and betrayed by his brothers. This message explores the tension of trusting God in difficult seasons and reminds us that even when life feels like it’s moving backward, God may be preparing us for something greater. The question is: w...

Jesus promises a full life (John 10:10), yet so many of us feel exhausted, stressed, and empty—despite everything we’re chasing. This message explores why, pointing to a simple but often missed truth from Mark 3:14: the secret is to “be with Him.” The invitation is to re-center your life around His presence and discover how every moment can become meaningful—not by doing more, but by turning your...

This powerful exploration of Jacob's journey in Genesis reveals an uncomfortable truth: spiritual growth often requires heat. Just as steel must be heated to smooth out imperfections and create a more accurate barrel, God allows trials in our lives to refine us for the assignments He has prepared. We witness Jacob's transformation from deceiver to patriarch through a pattern that repeats throughou...

This powerful message takes us deep into the story of Esau and Jacob from Genesis 25, revealing a sobering truth about how our uncontrolled appetites can cost us everything we hold dear. We discover that Esau traded his birthright—his inheritance, leadership, and God's best plan for his life—for a simple bowl of stew in a moment of hunger. This ancient story becomes a mirror for our modern struggl...

In this message from Genesis 22, we step into one of the most challenging moments of Abraham’s journey—the test on Mount Moriah. God’s tests are not meant to harm us, but to reveal what is truly in our hearts and to strengthen our faith. Abraham’s willingness to trust God, even when he didn’t understand, points to the power of obedience and the refining work God does in us through difficult moment...

In this message from Genesis 11–15, we follow Abraham’s journey from settlement to promise and uncover powerful truths about our own walk with God. Abraham’s father began the journey toward Canaan but settled short of the promise. How often do we start strong in faith, only to grow comfortable and stop short of where God is leading? This teaching challenges us to examine whether we’re truly walkin...

This sermon redefines greatness through the lens of Jesus' teaching in Mark 10, challenging the world's understanding of power, status, and achievement. Pastor Richard Hopkins contrasts worldly greatness—measured by authority, position, and accolades—with kingdom greatness, which is measured by servanthood and humility. Drawing from Jesus' conversation with His disciples as He prepared for His cru...

What happens when humanity attempts unity without God? In Genesis 11's Tower of Babel story, Pastor Van explores how civic religion—using religious symbols for earthly gain—leads to division and destruction. Through God's mercy, He scattered people into different languages and nations, not as punishment but as protection from human pride. Yet in Acts 2, we glimpse God's ultimate plan: true unity t...

Have you ever wondered what true, unshakeable commitment looks like in a world of easy exits and broken promises? Through the timeless story of Noah, Pastor Van reveals how God's covenant love offers both justice and mercy. In this powerful message, we discover that the flood narrative isn't primarily about destruction—it's about God's desire for lasting relationship with those whose hearts are fu...

In Genesis 3, Pastor Van unpacks humanity's first taste of regret through Adam and Eve's story, revealing how sin's allure leads to immediate remorse. Through vivid examples from modern life to ancient Scripture, he shows how God's response wasn't condemnation but compassionate pursuit, calling out "Where are you?" to His hiding children. Whether you're wrestling with past choices or current strug...