Church on the Hill, McMinnville

Meals have the power to shape and reshape community. At the table, over a meal, we can have a life-changing experience not because of the food, but because of the company. As a sinful woman crashes a dinner party with Jesus, she embraces Him because He is the hope she has been looking for. As Jesus sees her devotion and love for Him, He forgives her sins and teaches a lesson to all of us: at the t...

You read that right! Two sermons with one big challenge. Sermon #1 will focus on the depth of God and end in the celebration of communion, while Sermon #2 will focus on the power of prayer and end with a time of intercession for one another. Don't miss two-sermon Sunday at Church on the Hill! GROUP LIFE QUESTIONS: 1. What has the Lord been teaching you through your prayer time this past week? 2. R...

God makes us wait for many reasons...among them to increase our faith and to allow us to build trust in Him. Today, we hear the testimony of James Roach, an attendee of Church on the Hill who was been on a journey back to God. James' journey has taken him through a rough home life, seasons of deep anger & atheism, and God has brought him back to a place of worship and faith. Today, we will hear Ja...

God’s “NOs” help us fulfill our purpose, protect us from the enemy, and form our faith. Group Life Questions: 1. What is the worst no you have ever received from God? 2. What spoke to you most from the sermon today? 3. Read Mark 14:36, Genesis 2:17, and 2 Corinthians 12:7-9 and meditate on the reasons why God’s answer was NO. 4. After listening to the sermon, - A. Can you think of some ways that G...

The depth of our friendship with God helps us to understand why He says yes and sometimes says no. Today, we journey into the depths of that relationship and examine all the times in life when God said yes to inviting us in, our salvation, our calling, our friendship, and our place in the family of God. Our "yes" to growth will lead us to greater depths in our friendship with God.   Group Life Que...

The Sermon on the Mount concludes with Jesus calling His listeners into true discipleship. He presents us with a choice between two paths, and warns us about those that may take us off of the path that leads to life. BUT the Sermon on the Mount does not truly end in Matthew 7, but is fulfilled and made real by Jesus’ ministry off of the mountain in chapter 8. There is power in the words of the Ser...

How can we get freedom from all the worry and anxiety in our lives? Today, we take a look at Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus' teaching on worry and his provisions. We desire to give all our anxiety over to the Lord once and for all and not let stress and worry affect who we are, our health, or our relationship with Jesus. Let's lay it all down at the altar and don't worry about a thing.   Group Life Questi...

Jesus taught about prayer many times. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus narrowed it down to three words: Ask, Seek, Knock. Asking God for things as one of his children, seeking God with complete trust and confidence, and knocking on the door of heaven knowing we can approach the throne boldly. God is relational and provides for us our needs.  Group Life Questions 1. What stood out the most about t...

Nothing makes us feel smarter, more "spiritual," or better than to pass judgment on someone. We focus on the speck in another person's eye while we look right past the plank in our own eye. This weekend will be a challenge to have the Lord search our hearts, remind us of the grace given to us, and to view others through the eyes of Jesus. Group Life Questions: 1. What stuck out most about the mess...

Don't work for blessing, work from blessing! Jesus flips the idea of blessing upside down, revealing how we are truly blessed, which is the opposite of what we have always thought. Through the intro of the sermon on the mount, we will see what Jesus meant by 'blessed' and then challenge us to be salt and light. Salt and light! Be these! Group Life Questions: 1. What stood out the most about the me...

Talk to God. Listen to God. Be With God. Let's refocus on what is most important on our journey with God.  #PracticetheWayofChrist Group Life Questions 1. Take some time to pray in a contemplative form: Talk To God/Listen To God/Be with God. Give the group 15 minutes to pray in this way. Distribute scriptures to the group to focus on during that time to set the tone. Collect again and discuss your...

What keeps the Lord from shaking the nations? Could it be that our attitudes and practices prevent a move of the Spirit? Today, we journey through chapter 2 of the prophet Haggai and see what the Lord instructed him to say to the people of Judah. He was quick to uncover some areas that were still present in their hearts so He could shake the nations and bring all back to a place of holiness.   Gro...

Over time, we lose focus on what is most important. When that happens, we tend to look more inward to what we think gives us the most pleasure and purpose. Our Time Is Now will focus on our priorities and how they can reflect the challenge that God is calling us to at this time. Let's look ahead, let's get motivated again to serve the Lord, and let's respond to the call of God. Our time is now! Gr...

The 10th Commandment not to covet calls us to stay on the life giving course God has given. We are tempted to shift our focus, to covet something that won’t last. Joy comes as we trust Jesus in all our circumstances and celebrate following Him! Group Life Questions: 1. How does the coveting dialogue begin in your mind. 2. What is it like to transition from coveting in your mind to taking something...

Israel was given a very clear instruction: Do not take the life of another human. They got very caught up in the physical aspect, and Jesus came to show us that it is not enough to simply stay your hand from physically stealing a life. Your thoughts, words, actions and inactions either contribute to the flourishing and growth towards Jesus of someone, or they leave them marching towards death. Who...

"You shalt not steal" is one of the ten commandments that prevents us from damaging our relationship with God and with our neighbors by trusting that what God gives us is good and sufficient for us. Group Life Questions: 1. What spoke to you most from the sermon today? 2. After listening to the sermon, can you think of a time when you stole intentionally or unintentionally? (maybe copying work ide...

Honoring our Father and Mother was a command given by God to the children of Israel, but it was also a promise to inherit the promised land. At the depth of this commandment is the call for strong households, strong families, which lead to strong societies. Education, nurturing, modeling, discipleship all happens first in the home. Today, we will look at ways that we can honor our father and mothe...

Stephen is a case study into what it looks like to practice the Way of Christ amidst suffering. We cannot practice the Way of Christ and experience the Life if we aren't ready to face the pain and suffering that this world forces on us. Our response and the life we lead amidst our suffering becomes a testimony far more powerful than giving someone a run down of the gospel with your words. The peop...

If it were only us in an open space with the anointing of Jesus and the charge to change the world, where would we begin? This was a picture of the early church. As we conclude our series on Practicing the Way of Christ, we will dive into what it means to Gather and then scatter like the church did in Acts 8. Our community needs more of us to carry the light of Jesus to them. God is just getting s...

Our vision is to have a healthy, spiritually growing Church through practicing the way of Christ. One of the pillars in a healthy church is a deep, meaningful community. Today, we will explore how God is a community within himself and has established the same for us to participate in. Part of our growth is done in the community. The challenge is to break through that which might be hindering you f...

The apostles and the early church of Acts were on fire! They were adding to their number daily, people were being healed, and lives were being changed! We are wanting 2024 to be the year of miracles. We prayed for it during 21 days of prayer. Why do we not see miraculous signs and healings today as what was experienced in Acts? I submit that there is a dichotomous relationship between Faith and Fe...

Am I trying to follow Christ or am I training in the practice of following? Our efforts to try things can be unsuccessful and that can lead to burnout, disappointment, and giving up when it comes to following Christ. If we look at following Christ from the lens of training in his practices and the continued routine making us stronger each day, then we will see our growth over time. Today, we dive...

No matter where you are in life, it is never too late, early, or you are never too important to practice the way of Christ! Diving into Acts 3, we will take a look at the practices of the early apostles, more specially Peter and John, as they practiced prayer, service, and multiplication as they shared the good news! We will look at how the practices they were participating in formed them and shap...

This week we continue with part 2 of our 8-week series, “Practicing the Way of Christ”. Today we dive into Acts chapter 2, and walk with the disciples through the day of Pentecost. This is the day that changes everything. The Holy Spirit is poured out, the first Gospel message is given, and the Church begins! GROUP LIFE QUESTIONS: 1. What about today's message stuck out most to you and why? 2. How...