Gateway Church - MO

IF JESUS IS A FRIEND OF SINNERS, THEN WE MUST BE FRIENDS OF SINNERS.

We have been working through a teaching series called Sweet Little Lies. Through this teaching series we have found several common sayings or phases that we as Americans use quite often. Most of which makes us feel better about a situation or kinda dismiss our poor behaviors, or even give us an excuse when we aren't living very Christ like. These are saying like “it's the thought that counts” or “...

‘I’m not THAT bad.’ We all think it and some of us say it. When we look at the culture around us and compare ourselves to that standard, most of us feel pretty good about ourselves. But the world is not the standard we are to be measured against. When we compare ourselves to the standard of Jesus, we recognize that we all are in need of God’s amazing grace and infinite forgiveness. It’s only throu...

We think that happiness is important; we think it’s so important that it’s a part of the Declaration of Independence. (Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are considered inalienable rights.). But what if God wants more for you than just your happiness? What if God wants you to be holy and blessed more than He wants you to be happy? What if what God wants for you is better for you than just...

“It’s the thought that counts” has been used to excuse untold late birthday gifts, poorly done projects and careless words. Sadly, many who claim to follow Jesus have the same sentiment when it comes to their walk of faith. We often tell ourselves that as long as we believe in our hearts, then what we say or do – or what we neglect to say or do – doesn’t matter. God knows our hearts so we’re OK. B...

It’s popular to think that choosing to follow Jesus will solve all our problems; health, financial, relational, you name. it. We tell ourselves that if we believe in Jesus, go to church, and do all the right things, he will make our lives easier. But nowhere in the Bible are we promised an easy life in return for choosing to follow Jesus. In fact, Jesus promised just the opposite. He said we would...

Jesus told us to “go and make disciples.” We often assume this applies to ‘professional Christians’ like pastors and missionaries. But Jesus intended for every follower to make disciples. And we don’t have to wait to be sent. He has already sent us. His plan was that as we go through life, as we get ‘out there’ we are to point other people to the reality of a God who loves them and will radically...

Our natural tendency is to hang on to what we have. Letting go of and giving away our resources seems kind of ‘out there’. But Jesus tells us that when we choose to be extravagant with our generosity, not only will our faith grow stronger, but he’ll use our resources to transform our world.

When we’ve been wrong, we want to get even. When we’ve been wronged, we want someone to make it right. We want someone to pay. But our demand for repayment poisons our souls and wreaks havoc on our relationships. However, Jesus calls us to do something that’s unthinkable, something that is out there. Jesus calls us to forgive the unforgivable. Not because they deserve forgiveness, but because God,...

Almost every world religion is based on the teachings and writings of a great teacher. Christianity is different. The basis for our faith is an historical event that changed the world. A dead man came back to life and offers the promise of a new life for those who will trust in and follow him. It may seem like an ‘out there’ claim, but it’s one that is worth investigating and will radically reshap...

JESUS COMES TO DELIVER THE CAPTIVE. JESUS COMES TO GIVE PEACE TO THE RESTLESS. JESUS COMES TO RESTORE THE BROKEN.

​Listen in this week as we have our district superintendent Dr. Devon Smith preach about taking a stand in faith and living in love.

We all want to live happily ever after. We want the job, the relationship, the future of our nation, whatever to have a happy ending. But many of us have come face to face with the reality that our ‘Happily Ever After’ looks more like a ‘Happily Never After’. What do we do NOW when we are unsure of the future. The Bible shows us that the right course of action is to obey Jesus now and trust him to...

Learning to master a new skill is always a challenge. We usually do it wrong before we do it right. If we’re impatient, we’ll either give up or settle for less than excellent. But if we are willing to do the hard work of being patient, we become more than we expect. Maturing as a follower of Jesus is no different. If we are willing to be patient and remain in him, we will become more and more like...

Sexuality is one of the “hot button” issues of our day.  It divides churches, friendships, and families.  It even divides some people against themselves.  But what does patience have to do with our sexuality?  In a world so much is not as it should be and where there seem to be more questions than answers, God promises that he is working to make all things new.  We must learn to be patient and jus...

We've all seen examples of evil people who seem to prosper, and we wonder "why do the bad guys win?" We aren't the first to ask that question, in fact several of the writers of scripture asked the same thing. And while it seems that life can be unfair and that the wicked seem to go unpunished, God promises that if we will be patient, he will take care of it. When we have the faith to be patient in...

We all know that pain and suffering are a very real part of our journey. Whether from illness, circumstances or other people, pain is a part of life. We also know that there are times when we ask God to ease our pain and there doesn't seem to be any answer. Why is God silent when life hurts? Why, after turning to him does life STILL hurt? We may never know the answers to those questions, but we ca...

Sometimes if feels as if God is a million miles away and isn’t listening. Sometimes it feels like your prayers are bouncing off the ceiling. You pray, you ask God, and you get silence in return. What do we do when it seems like God isn’t answering my prayers? You keep on praying. It’s not easy, but patient persistence in prayer – even when God seems silent – will increase your faith and grow your...

“Live your truth” is the mantra of our day. We are all encouraged to live out what is true to us. But what happens when my truth collides with your truth? What happens when my truth collides with reality? You can’t build your life on a foundation that is constantly moving. The only truth worth building our lives on is Jesus; the Way, the Truth and the Life.

We’re constantly told to we just need to believe in ourselves. But even a cursory glance at our lives reveals that believing in ourselves only makes a mess. If we can’t believe in ourselves, then what should we believe in? Jesus said, “whoever believes in me will have eternal life.” When we are willing to deny ourselves and believe in Jesus, our lives become a life worth living.

"Just follow your heart" is one of the most popular and loved pieces of advice people receive today. It sounds great. There's just one problem: our hearts are a mess, and we can't trust them. Just follow your heart has led to all kinds of relationship catastrophes, deep wounds, and empty lives. Rather than follow our hearts, we need to focus on following Jesus who will change our hearts if we let...

We frequently focus on getting just the right gift at Christmas. For many of us it’s about receiving. We drop hints or just flat out make it known that we want something spectacular for Christmas. We have expectations that we want met. And when we don’t get what we were hoping for, the disappointment is very real. And sometimes we make other people pay for our disappointment. But Jesus came to giv...

We often make Christmas all about the ‘event’. It’s the production that matters. Everything has to be just right. We will run ourselves ragged trying to make it all perfect. We fill the holidays (and our lives) with anxiety, stress, and anger, often running over the people around us. Jesus wasn’t focused on events. He was focused on relationships, especially the relationship between man and God. J...

We tend to make Christmas about impressing others. We want to have the best decorations, the best parties, put on the best show, give the best gifts. For many of us, Christmas is a chance to look good. And we'll spend ourselves into debt to pull it off. But Jesus didn’t come to impress. Jesus came to humbly serve. His birth went unnoticed except by the Angels and a few poor shepherds.

We tend to make Christmas about spending. We want to buy the biggest most extravagant gifts. And we will put ourselves into debt to do so. If you could sum up the modern day, American Christmas with one word, it could be “Spend.” However, while we tend to spend, God chose to invest. That first Christmas, Jesus came to invest. He came to invest in us and in the world he created. And if we want to g...