Chestnut Mountain Church

The whole purpose of 1 John is to give us confidence in who we are, whose we are in Christ, and where we will spend eternity. John reminds us that we can have confidence in our access to God because when we ask according to His will, He hears us. We pray boldly not because we always receive what we ask for, but because we know who is listening and trust His will. John also reminds us to have confi...

The whole purpose of 1 John is to give us confidence in who we are, whose we are in Christ, and where we will spend eternity. John reminds us that we can have confidence in our access to God because when we ask according to His will, He hears us. We pray boldly not because we always receive what we ask for, but because we know who is listening and trust His will. John also reminds us to have confi...

Psalm 91 reminds us that when life happens, we all run somewhere. Dads, your children are watching. As they follow your tracks, where are you leading them? When you need security, strength, courage, comfort, and hope, where do you go to find it? The psalmist declares, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.” We are not God, and there will be days when we need what our children ne...

In 1 John 5, John revisits familiar territory as he reminds believers why he wrote this letter: that our joy may be full, that we may not be deceived, and that we may know we have eternal life. Surrounded by false teachers and competing beliefs, John points us back to the truth that everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God. John reminds us that loving God's children...

John reminds us that God is love, and because He has loved us, we also ought to love one another. This is not a love based on feelings or emotions, but a self-sacrificing, servant-hearted love that we see most clearly in the person and work of Jesus. In this is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Jesus showed us what perfect...

Psalm 116 begins with a spoiler alert. David tells us where he landed on the other side of the trial: he loves the Lord because God heard him and turned His ear toward him. Even when it seemed like God was not moving, David kept praying, kept watching, and kept expecting. God showed up in David's darkest valley, and the reminder for us is simple: God hears you and God sees you. When David was...

In a world with increasingly more information, opinions, and beliefs, how do we know what is true? John calls us to test the spirits and discern the difference between the real and the counterfeit. Not everything that claims to be from God is from God, and not every version of Jesus is the real Jesus. John gives us a belief test and a behavior test. The belief test asks what we believe about Jesus...

John reminds us that God is light and God is love, and because we belong to Him, we should love one another with agape love, a deep affection that moves beyond words into action. The longer we follow Jesus, the more we will bear the character of our Father and love people the way He loves people. This is how we know love: Jesus willingly laid down His life for us. The cross is where we see love mo...

This Mother’s Day, special guest speaker Jason Britt from Bethlehem Church reminded us that we are not staying in the valley — we are walking through it. Psalm 139 and Psalm 23 show us that God knows us fully, stays the same through every season of life, and walks with us through every mountain, valley, cave, and crown. The question “why” does not offend God. We can be honest with Him, feel deeply...

What does it really mean to have all that you need, especially when you are grieving? Psalm 23 reminds us that the Good Shepherd does not remove the valley, watch from a distance, or lift us above it. He walks through the valley with us. Grieving is the appropriate response to life not being as it is supposed to be, and grieving is a gift from God on the pathway to healing. God the Father comforts...

John writes to help us have confidence in who we are and what it means to be a child of God. He uses contrast to make it clear. Either you are a child of God or you are not. Either you are walking in righteousness or living in sin. This is how we know where we stand and how we can have confidence in Him. Before Christ, our lives move with the grain of the world. Sin feels natural and smooth. But w...

Seasons of uncertainty can feel paralyzing, but John writes to move believers from not knowing to knowing, from uncertainty to assurance. His desire is that we would be confident in our salvation and the finished work of Jesus. If we get Jesus right, we can walk free and confident in Him. John makes it clear that talk is cheap. It’s not just about what we say, but how we live. If we truly know Jes...

If we get Jesus wrong, we get our lives wrong, and we will live wrong. John writes to remind us that Jesus is not partly God or just a great teacher. He is fully God and fully man. He has always been and always will be, and what we do with Jesus is the most important thing for us to get right in life. Jesus is not a light. He is the Light. There is a difference between saying we know Him and actua...

Today we gather to acknowledge and celebrate the greatest victory in history. Over 2,000 years ago, Jesus did the impossible. He beat death. This is the victory that has brought people from all backgrounds together, and it is still the victory we are talking about today. This is more than an acknowledgment. God wants to transform our acknowledgment into a celebration. Through faith in Jesus, anyon...

Today is a moment we will look back on as the day we said yes to what God has invited us into. Over the past month, we have walked through surrender, trust, generosity, and sacrifice, all leading to this moment of response. Don’t miss what God is doing or take for granted what we get to be a part of. Throughout Scripture, we see that our obedience is often the pathway to God’s promise. Like Noah,...

As we step into what’s next, we are reminded that a generous heart is cultivated by doing life with Jesus, not trying to do life for Jesus. We don’t give to get. We give because of what He has already done. In Exodus 35, God invited His people to be a part of His work, and they responded open handed, not because they had to but because they got to. They remembered His goodness, and their response...

We often look at Christianity through a moral lens, creating a list of what we can and cannot do. When we live that way, we end up trying to do life for Jesus instead of doing life with Jesus. But when we spend time with Him, the lens shifts from moral to redemptive. The more time we spend with Jesus, the more grateful and surrendered we become, and that gratitude leads to a life of generosity. Tr...

Trust is the currency of every relationship. When we face major decisions or concerns, we go to the source we trust the most. Proverbs reminds us to trust in the Lord with all our heart and not rely on our own understanding, living in awe of God and looking to His Word for direction. Trust means patiently waiting on the Master, knowing He is our provider. But trust also requires obedience. Saul le...

God is sending people to us. As His church grows, so does the responsibility and opportunity before us. Our responsibility is to steward the growth that is already here and the growth that is to come. God is entrusting us to disciple people and to send people. He is inviting us to be a part of His plan. There have been pastors and leaders who have put their yes on the table before us. Now it is ou...

Prayer is an invitation to meet with the Creator in a face to face exchange. Prayer is not a wishing well, magic 8 ball, or genie in a bottle. It is engaging with the Almighty God who humbles Himself and inclines Himself to listen as we pour out our hearts before Him. We can wrestle with Him, whisper, cry out, and tell Him all the struggles without needing perfect words. David reminds us that prai...

Fasting is us saying no to us and saying yes to Him. Jesus was getting ready to begin His ministry, and He had just fasted. Even when we are doing all the right things, it does not mean obedience will be easy. Obedience will always come with a challenge, and that challenge is our flesh. Satan tried to derail what God had for Jesus by appealing to His flesh. He knows when we are weak and wants us t...

As a church, we are living in a season of anticipation for what God has next. But we cannot get so focused on growth as a church that we forget growth begins with individuals. At the end of the day, it comes down to how committed we are personally. The question is not just what would Jesus do, but what did Jesus do in preparation to be used by the Father? Before His public ministry began, Jesus to...

As a church, we are being corporately called to a fast. Jesus never commanded fasting, but He assumed we would. In Matthew 6, Jesus does not say if you fast, but when you fast. People come to fasting from many different places, which is why we are fasting together as one body, pursuing unity and alignment. A fast is the practice of saying no to our flesh in a world that tells us to feed our desire...

After being rescued from Egypt, the Israelites stood outside the Promised Land and were told not to be afraid or discouraged. Instead, fear halted their obedience, and the consequence was forty years in the wilderness rather than stepping into the promise. At the end of those forty years, God raised up Joshua to lead His people forward. Standing on the brink of the Promised Land once again, God re...

In 2026, God has an assignment for every one of us, and answering that call requires faith. Throughout Scripture, God’s promises are clear, but stepping into them often feels impossible and uncomfortable. The people of Israel experienced this as they stood at Kadesh, on the brink of the Promised Land. God had already delivered them from Egypt, parted the Red Sea, and promised victory, yet fear and...