Downtown Community Church

Were the disciples faithful followers, or fallible failures? The answer may shock you.. We can have a visceral reaction to want to protect the character of the 12 disciples. However, a true reading of the Gospels reveals that these men failed constantly on their way to becoming faithful followers of Jesus.  In the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand, the disciples are shown to be initially ve...

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Hear from our families director, Delaney Stoney, on how the simple action of attending a kids soccer game impacted a relationship. Music by @SofiaCamille. Support the show

Learn more about our "For The Future" building expansion and why we're excited to have you partner with us during this next season! Learn more at https://downtowncommunitychurch.com/forthefuture  Support the show

It is very unlikely that many of us identify the idol of emotions as one of our main struggles. However, we can find this idol in ourselves when we ask questions like “Is my obedience towards God dependent on my feelings?” or “Do I follow Jesus less in a season when I feel disconnected?” In fact, for most of us, our obedience is bound to our emotions. Evidence of this fact is the self-medication o...

Besides just the cheesiness of doing a relationship sermon on Valentine’s Day, this sermon was originally scheduled on another day so as not to rain on the parade of everyone. Yet, here it is. Because all humans are made in the image of God, it makes sense that it is easy for us to idolize another human. To start with the bottom line, relationships were never meant to be used for the fulfillment o...

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Many of us care deeply about what others think about us. Almost all (if not all) of us seek approval from at least one person. We live in an approval-seeking culture, we just call it by the inverse: “cancel culture”. Whether it be in seeking out attention and likes on social media or in simply hating to feel like we’ve let someone down, the idol of approval has the ability to crush us. As is true...

Whether it be assuming that our car breaks will work when we apply them, assuming that a chair will hold us when we sit down, or assuming that our friend will be on time (or late, depending on their personality), we all walk through life with a set of assumptions. More consequentially, we assume that the things at the very center of our lives will fulfill our needs. Anything that isn’t Jesus that...

We all have something that stands at the center of our life. Whether it be family, career, success, or comfort, there is inevitably something in our lives that is of ultimate importance to us.  And we have placed it at the center of our lives for a reason. Whether we think about it or not, we believe that whatever we center our lives around can meet the main need we have. However, we never revisit...

We carry assumptions into every aspect of our life. We assume that what makes us feel good is what makes others feel good, we assume that rational people will accept our rational statements, and we even assume that acquiring more money or losing more weight would fulfill us. We carry such assumptions with us into every aspect of life, even into the sphere of our most core needs. Yet, we find ourse...

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The story of the Exodus from Egypt is one of God raising up a leader, Moses,  to lead his people out of slavery. However, as things get difficult throughout the trek between Egypt and the Promised Land, the people of Israel cry out in complaint to Moses: “You should have left us in Egypt! It was better for us in Egypt!” The reality is that there were very few things that were good about the 430 ye...

In the same way that getting berated over leaving a bowl in the sink is a disproportionate reaction to the offense, political opinions are also prone to elicit disproportionate responses. In fact, politics are more divisive than religion. The majority of us would respectfully agree that we each have a freedom to practice religion, yet have no problem lobbing insults at the opposing political camp....

When Jesus walked on planet earth, his kingdom was open to everyone. With a diverse population of believers come diverse sets of beliefs and opinions. This is the tension we feel as Christians. The truth is that every political position claims a part of Jesus. Yet, we should be united as a body of believers, and, as Jesus prayed, our oneness will be our witness. Yet, where does our unity end and d...

Voting season is the most polarizing time of the year in our country. While common sentiment would lead you to think that religion and politics are the two things that  you should never bring up in conversation, the reality is that either the world will teach us how to think about politics or the Word of God will teach us. Politics are so divisive because we all have skin in the game. For many of...

To this point in the book of Nehemiah, almost every outcome has come out ideally; enemies plot against Nehemiah, but they are not effective in their attempt to halt his leadership. Despite all adversity, the wall is built in 52 days. The Law is read to the people, and they repent emphatically. In verse 13, the narrative shifts a little bit as Nehemiah spends years away from Jerusalem. When he retu...

This sermon series has been going on for 15 weeks now. While we may have gained some insight or new convictions, many of our lives look the same now as they did 15 weeks ago. How do we begin to implement God’s plan for us to influence others with our lives? Why don’t we start? Nehemiah 11 shows the slow beginnings of reinhabiting the city of Jerusalem after the wall was complete. It is apparent th...

Most of us would agree that we as Christians are largely not as influential as we are called to be. As we have been working through the book of Nehemiah, we find that when we add value to those around us by meeting practical needs, it causes spiritual renewal. We know that we are called to be “in the world and not of it,” but we all lean more heavily to one side. Either we are so set apart that we...

We often take for granted the faithfulness of God throughout the entirety of our lives. Yet, when we remember the faithfulness of God, it restores our faith in God. The Lord has shown us covenant faithfulness that is based not on our own faithfulness, but on His faithfulness. Nehemiah 9 shows a glimpse into the history of Israel, focusing particularly on God’s faithfulness standing in juxtapositio...