God's Word with Pastor Tom Smith

The resurrection of Jesus is the center of Easter. An empty tomb is not the end of the story. The presence of the living Christ is what resurrection provides. We don’t have to believe in the resurrection through blind faith; the evidence points to its truth.

This week, slowly read the story of Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection in the Gospel of Luke. Imagine the movement of the story, walk with Christ, see what He died for. Suggested passages:   • The Last Supper – Luke 22:14–23   • Gethsemane – Luke 22:39–46   • The Trial of Jesus – Luke 22:63–71   • The Crucifixion – Luke 23:32–49   • The Burial – Luke 23:50–56   • The Resurrection – Luke 24:...

John 12 provides details on the triumphal entry that help us understand the glory of Christ being displayed in that moment.

As we move toward Palm Sunday, Lent invites us to contemplate what kind of King we are receiving in Jesus. Is he the True King that directs your life, or a king of your own making? Receiving the True King reshapes the heart in several ways: It exposes our expectations. It calls us to surrender control. It deepens our trust in God's kingdom. In the time and space that Lent allows this week, practic...

1 Peter 5 calls for humility and dependence on God’s grace to endure the suffering in this world and promises glory in Christ.

After the interlude of chapters 12-14, Chapter 15 returns to the cycles of recapitulated judgments. But instead of being shown the judgments taking place, John gets a vision that prepares us to understand the judgments as ordered, directed by God, righteous, and just.

This week shifts outward: following Jesus leads to serving others. Serving and generosity are not simply good deeds — they are practices that shape the heart. The Christian life moves from receiving God's grace to expressing that grace to others. This week, choose one outward expression through serving or generosity to allow God to form Christlikeness in you Biblical Foundation Jesus’ model of ser...

1 Peter 4 provides important information for understanding suffering for Christ.

As chapter 14 closes, we get two pictures of God's final judgment. This is both a warning to remain faithful and promised vindication for the persecuted saints.

The focus this week is on active obedience. Obedience is expected of followers of Jesus (John 14:15; Matthew 7:24-27; John 6:38). Faithful obedience will form you spiritually as you actively follow Jesus' footsteps and commands. Small acts of obedience are how faith is grown. This week, choose one command of Jesus and be intentional in obediently following. Forgiveness: Matthew 18:21-22 Identify s...

Peter tells us that the underlying issue in suffering is lordship. What rules our hearts will control how we react.

We move from the image of the victorious Lamb to proclamations. There are three angelic proclamations that intensify the coming judgment and an encouragement from heaven for believers to endure.

As we near the mid-point of Lent, we are focusing on listening prayer this week. Use the time and space your Lent fasting provides to spend time listening to God. Guardrails: Don't go into this time with specific expectations. Don't judge how it went. Simply place yourself before God and practice listening to Him. We recommend four practices:  Reflective Prayer - Spend 10 minutes reading one short...

After the call to be witnesses to the world, Peter walks us through four spheres of relationships. We are told to submit and endure, to take the same path that Jesus walked, to display Him to the world.

After the apparent victory of the beast in chapter 13, the perspective of John's vision shifts from an earthly one to a heavenly one. And the first thing John sees is the victorious Lamb standing at the center of God's kingdom surrounded by all the saints. We also dive into the question of whether the vision's that John sees translate into actual seen acts on earth.

In week 2, we suggest you use your time in the "wilderness" to focus on repentance and dependence. Ask yourself, "What am I relying on that isn't from God?" Repent of any sinful habits or addictions and turn to God's Word. We suggest reading and meditating on Matthew 4:1-11; Psalm 51; Deuteronomy 8; Luke 15; Hebrews 12:1-11; John 15:1-11; and/or James 4:6-10.

1 Peter 2:1-12 builds on what God has done through Jesus Christ and the call to holy living. But before we read how to live a holy life, who we are told who we are in Christ. Identity comes before mission.

The Beast from the sea commands an idol to be built to the first beast, demands worship under the penalty of death, and uses allegiance as seen in our actions and thoughts (a "mark" upon our hand or forehead) to apply economic pressure.

Tom and Max discuss the origins of Lent and the purpose behind this practice. We invite everyone to join us in this season of preparation for Easter.

1 Peter 1 tells us what God has done through Christ and calls us to be grateful for and live in our salvation by being holy, as God is holy.

We reveiw the beast from the sea who represents empire and find there's a second beast, this one from the earth, who the dragon will use to persecute the people of God through ideological, cultural, and political pressure to worship the first beast. We must be vigilant and discerning, but not paranoid, about the dangers of this second beast.

Acts 2:42 describes the normal rhythms of church life. We must be intentional in these practices at our church and take personal responsibility to move us toward being a devoted church.

The dragon is raging against God's people. Chapter 13 shows us that he does not wage war directly, but conscripts a "beast," the world's empires and political systems, to persecute the people of God.

Revelation 12 has shown us that the struggle is cosmic. We see the defeat of the dragon at the cross of Jesus as the reason behind his rage. Now, in this final section, we see a recapitulation of the first six verses where the viewpoint moves from cosmic, to earthly consequences. We see why persecution is so fierce after the cross and God's promise to sustain his people.

Revelation 12 provides the cosmic perspective behind earthly persecution. The Messiah has come, he has defeated Satan, and is reigning. Satan is thrown down from heaven and is raging against the people of God.