Grace Church Southern Pines

02-04-24 In the calling of Abraham, we find an example of how God will call and accompany those who abide in relationship with Him. You are called to identify and fulfill the purpose that God has for you. With His gifts, His protection, and promises over you. This flows out of your relationship with God. Abraham was not perfect, but he was faithful in the pursuit of God. And he never quit. “… but...

01-28-24 When you have an audacious vision that rubs with the impossible, it's accomplished by small steps of faith. Those small gestures are found in the consistent meeting of people gathered around the Presence of God with the Word of God. We look at accomplishing big things by doing small things. We see the mission of making disciples as Jesus' model of authentic community in a city t...

01-21-24 You live in a city that is perishing because of a lack of knowledge of who God truly is. (See Hosea 4:6) There was a time in Amos’ day that God sent a famine, not of food or water, but a lack of God's Word. (Amos 8:11) And the result was the slow death of people's hearts. So it is today, people's hearts are slowly dying on the inside for lack of vision and lack of knowing G...

01-14-24 There are stories in history that seem to fit perfectly with the moment in time we are in today. Zechariah is one of those stories. The people of God are coming back from exile and seeing their city in ruins. Our cities are filled with people who are in ruins, not destroyed, broken down and mangled physically, but spiritually. God calls His people back to a relationship with Him. Today He...

01-07-24 In Luke chapter 2, we read that Jesus was "about His Father's business". More specifically, He said He "must" be about it. He was 12 years old when He said this to His mom, Mary. This attitude of "must" (as opposed to should or could) was a common theme throughout Jesus' life. "I must go through Samaria", "I must preach the gospel&quo...

12-31-23 How Good Is God? What kind of God would do this? The purpose of the message is to begin to discover the true nature of our God. We can get glimpses into His nature by what He gives us. God gives us all good gifts. Let’s journey into the Word and discover just a few.  You can find this weeks sermon notes and groups guide here: https://gracechurchsp.org/groupsguide/ If you're ready to...

12-24-23 MIGHTY GOD | EVERLASTING FATHER, PRINCE OF PEACE, and WONDERFUL COUNSELOR  Once a year, we gather around a tree and open gifts. For some, this is a tradition that is as old as time, but it goes beyond trees and presents. The origins of Christmas are found with God’s Son being born on earth. A gift that we truly are still unpacking in all its riches and glory. Oftentimes, our prideful hear...

If you had 3 years to save the world from disaster, what methods would you use to reach as many people as possible to accomplish what is seemingly an impossible task? You probably wouldn't sleep much. you would always be on the move, occupying your time with doing as much as you can. Jesus's public ministry only lasted 3 years (still continues today through His followers), but even so, t...

There comes a time in the church when we need to get serious about what God is serious about. This world is not doing well, partly due because the Church is not fulfilling the role it's called to. The church is to forcefully advance the kingdom of God, to do good, to disciple, to seek God and make disciples. The prayer meeting, Leonard Ravenhill says, is the 'cinderella of the church.’ W...

What do we need that only God can provide? The list is long. Forgiveness, peace, joy, purpose, are just to name a few that we need today. We are invited to bring our needs before the Father. Through prayer an intercession, we can, and it is changing the world around us. The Christian life is supernatural. And it is prayer that we bring the supernatural to bare. You can find this weeks sermon notes...

11-26-23 Abide - How to Live the Word and not just read it  As we finish up our 3-part topic of the Word in this Discipleship Series, we are looking at how we can abide in the Word. How do we live the Word, not just read it? Eugene Peterson says there is an enormous amount of damage done in the way of Christian living… This is unfortunate and true in my life and in yours. Peterson goes on to say t...

11-19-23 There is an unsettling over the earth right now through wars, earthquakes, disasters, fear, and death. It's as if the entire creation is groaning for the Presence of God, yet the people of God are called to abide, to remain at rest in Him. There are many ways that we stay alive and connected to God, but over the next two months, we will be exploring how this is done through The Word...

One of the most important aspects of the Soldier's life in Christ is the ability to war. The battle that rages around you is targeted for your heart, and the weapon of your warfare is the sword, which is the Word of God. The question then rises, how familiar are you with your weapon, are you ready for battle, and are you equipped to fight for your heart, family, marriage? (Nehemiah 4:14) This...

There is a lot to be said about Water Baptism, as well as a lot of thoughts and understandings of what Baptism really is and what the bible teaches us about it. What we confidently know is that baptism is not something we do as Christ followers because it's the "church thing to do", or because it's a formality in our walks with God. We also don't do it as a means of repent...

There are some radical statements about the Church in the Bible. They talk about how the Church is the body of Christ on earth, how the very attacks of hell will not prevail against it, how everything has been subjected under its feet, and how the very wisdom of God is revealed through it. Understanding the church's significance and its power might make us think twice about sleeping in or com...

October 22, 2023 We trivialize God when we forget that He is Holy. He is loving, trustworthy, & good, but also just, separate, & righteous. He expects us to also be holy and this is for every disciple. We need to train those we disciple in holiness, which is the purifying, sanctifying, and maturing process. Ravenhill asked "are we more afraid of holiness than we are of sinfulness? Bel...

Jesus’ teaching was holistic in nature. It encompasses the whole person, not just a small part of our lives. His words and life were targeted towards the heart so that it would flow in every aspect of our life. But our hearts have been so wounded and calloused that we self protect and guard to the point we have hard hearts. Therefore, we are stuck, immature, lazy, and complacent in many parts of o...

In Christian culture today, the definition of a disciple of Jesus Christ has been blurred and diluted. When asked if people thought a disciple and a Christian were the same thing, the responses were varied. Some were crystal clear that a disciple and a Christian, are different and some believed that they were the same or should be the same. What is Jesus’ perspective on the subject? Christian is t...

The Church is advancing forcefully and the enemy hates it, but in Matthew 16, Jesus said the gates of hell will not prevail against the church. The church is the people, and we are being built from the Word of God. The revelation of who God is erects every brick of knowledge in our hearts as the temple of God. The very heart of man is the center of a great battle, to war for God, to fill, and to p...

Our service times changed a few weeks ago in order to extend our time in the Presence of God as a family. The first week we talked about the importance of seeing God for who He is and how seeing Him rightly changes everything. Last week we talked about how our hunger moves us, takes us deeper, and gets us closer. This week we are talking about how these all come together to transform us, free us,...

Is it possible to go to church and not meet God? Is it possible to read the Bible and not feed your soul? Is it possible to pray and not be transformed? Yes. It's possible; it’s common, and the enemy loves it. We are discussing why we go to church and why we are extending our service times to spend more time with God. Just being in God’s presence isn’t a fix-all. More of one thing doesn’t aut...

In this weeks message, pastor ryan peterson teaches from 1 Chronicles 29:1-5 and talks about why we do Church and how it is not just a place to meet people, but a place for God to meet us.  If you're ready to begin a relationship with Jesus, click here: https://www.gracechurchsp.org/jesus To support this ministry and help us continue to reach people all around the world click here: http://www...

Because God loves us so much, He has included us in His family. We were excluded because of the curse of sin, and we validated that exclusion by our own sinful behaviors. But by His own volition He sent us Jesus Christ His son. We are gifted with belonging, security, and eternal life in His presents. In a world of exclusion, we belong to God, and He belongs to us. If you're ready to begin a r...

We are entering an exciting time as a family. A new season that brings God’s blessings and abundance. Every time you enter a new season it can be highly anticipated, but it can also come with hesitation due to change. There are some things that are easy to let go of and others that are harder to part with. Changes are a part of maturity; it's a part of our journey following Jesus. However, it...

Lee McKinney of New Covenant Fellowship presented a message, mission of the church, in the We Are One sermon series. The church is God’s plan from the beginning, and our mission is imperative. That mission is to advance His Kingdom to all nations. The church is the line in the sand. We have been empowered by the Holy Spirit to restrain evil. He is with us, and evil cannot win! We are the Glory of...