Grace Community Church Sunday Morning Messages

This Psalm highlights God’s character understood through His Creation (vs. 1- 6) and through His Word (vs. 7-11). It then moves into understanding our great need for our Lord to help us (vs. 12-14), culminating with the hopeful reality we have with the Lord as our firm and steadfast Rock and Redeemer.     There is a grandeur in nature that leaves us awe-struck, it shows us how big and powerful and...

The context for Psalm 51 is David’s sin of adultery, murder, covering over his sin, and a hardness of heart towards repentance. It took a visit from the prophet Nathan with storied words to prick David’s heart - and break it - over all that he had done. It might be easy to look upon David and think; how could he be so dull to the evil in his heart? It seems so obvious to us. So true, often, are th...

There are countless sources of distress in our lives. External tragedies and brokenness that threaten our sense of well-being along with our inner sins that take away our peace. But we are not ones who face these things alone or without hope. We have a God we can turn to in our distress, a God who hears us and who comforts us as nothing and no one else can.  In this psalm, David cries out to God i...

According to the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia , Psalms 113-118 are part of the Hallelujah Psalms. These were sung during Passover, with Psalms 115-118 sung after drinking the last cup of the feast.   Passover was a celebration of God’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt. God had shown Himself mighty and demonstrated His power over the pagan gods of Egypt. At the Last Supper, Jesus and...

Our lives are full of shakable things - many good and wonderful things, yet temporary all the same. It's comforting to know that there are some things and some One we can count on that cannot, ever, no matter what, be shaken: Jesus and His kingdom, Jesus' forgiveness, Jesus' covenantal love, Jesus victory, and Jesus' ability to hold all things together - including us! Prepare for this week's messa...

Psalm 13 opens with the heart cry of the oppressed; How Long? This is an ache you may know well, either from personal suffering or from your love of another who is suffering. This world is not as it is supposed to be.   The cry of lament is a faithful practice of taking our pain, our complaints, and our sorrows to the Lord, trusting that He will not turn away from us. If we struggle to find words,...

Praise comes not just from emotion, but from intentional thought. In Psalm 145, David says he will meditate on the Lord’s wonderful works, implying a choice rather than a feeling. To give thought to the amazing things the Lord does is always a good practice, but especially so when our hearts are downcast and struggling for hope. As we give careful and intentional thought to the Lord’s character, H...

The psalmist begins by inviting us as a community to sing to our God in humble worship. For He is the rock of our salvation, the One who has formed this earth, the One who made us and takes care of us. And then the psalmist reminds us of the choice before us – to enter God’s rest or harden our hearts towards Him. Those referenced in this psalm saw God’s work, they were given reason to trust Him, a...

"Praise the Lord, my soul;     all my inmost being, praise his holy name.  Praise the Lord, my soul,     and forget not all his benefits—  who forgives all your sins     and heals all your diseases,  who redeems your life from the pit     and crowns you with love and compassion,  who satisfies your desires with good things     so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s." So begins our next Psa...

At our Vacation Bible Week we learned that Jesus is our true North! When we wonder, feel alone or powerless, when we need hope or help, we can trust Jesus! Join us in celebrating all the ways Jesus has shown Himself trustworthy and deepen your understanding of these foundational truths through our review of select stories found in the book of Matthew! Prepare for this week's teaching by reading Ma...

To identify with the Lord's position as my Shepherd, I must also identify with my position as His sheep; needy, foolish, and dependant. We are creatures full of desires and needs and no amount of our own striving, our own thinking, or our own providing will ever truly satisfy. This Psalm has brought an abundance of comfort over the centuries to people suffering, struggling, and muddling through li...

Oh to see God's ways, His salvation, and His praises spread throughout all the earth. What a glorious thing that would be!  The psalmist opens with words that ring familiar to the Aaronic blessing; "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace." --Numbers 6:24-26 Continuing with a call...

I once read a poem titled; *Jesus Volta*. While finding the poem to be clear, by not realizing it was a Sonnet nor remembering what the term Volta meant, it was difficult for me to truly understand it. The term *Volta* describes the turning point in a sonnet. Just that information alone even makes the title more clear!   Why all this talk about poetry? Over the next 15 weeks we will be moving into...

It is not hard for us to imagine the destruction a storm can do, nor is it unlikely that we will face storms throughout our lives. In this final parable, Jesus describes two outcomes of facing the same storms based on what ones life is built upon. Building our lives upon listening and acting on Jesus words provides a foundation which cannot be shaken when the storms of life rain down.  As we wrap...

After pointing out how to tell between true and false prophets, Jesus goes on to describe the reality of those who claim to be His disciples, but who in fact are not. He reveals that we cannot discern a disciple based on amazing and good works they do in His name.   “In the end, there is one basis of salvation; it isn’t mere verbal confession, not “spiritual works,” but knowing Jesus and being kno...

Galatians 5:13-26 tells us what type of fruit is produced by our flesh vs. the fruit that comes from the Holy Spirit. In our next section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warns us to beware of those who are false prophets and that we will be able to tell based on their fruit. It can be challenging to discern when we use the standards the kingdoms of this world use to determine if someone is a goo...

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the...

Today marks the beginning of Holy Week - Jesus enters Jerusalem on His way to the cross. The disciples and the crowds don't understand, they have a completely different perspective on all the things happening in what to them is the yearly celebration of Passover. Pages 17-18 of our 40 days guide gives space for you to walk with Jesus from Palm Sunday, to the cross, culminating with Easter Monday....

Jesus says He came that we might have life and have it to the full, that it comes through the Holy Spirit, and cannot be found any other way. (John 10:10, 6:62-64) Without Jesus there would be no way for us to be citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven or to have the fullness of life He offers. The way to enter is narrow – it is only through Jesus. Let us seek to understand the implications this has for...

Isn't it amazing how gracious, generous, and welcoming God is to us - all we need to do is ask for His help and He comes to our rescue! His Throne is a Throne of Grace, not a throne of performance, and He responds to our pleas for wisdom, mercy, and forgiveness with such care. Since we are treated in this way by the God of the Universe, we can in turn treat others with the same care we have receiv...

Knowing Jesus changes the way we see ourselves, others, and the world around us. This perspective shift is necessary for living as Kingdom Citizens with Kingdom attitudes towards our self and others. God gives us wisdom whenever we ask Him and helps us to see our own sins and to know how to walk in wisdom towards outsiders. (See Colossians 4:5-6 with Hebrews 4:14-16) Prepare for this week’s teachi...

In light of Jesus’ words about God being our Master rather than wealth, we are next challenged to set God as our sole provider too. The result, Jesus says, is that we will no longer worry. This is only possible for us if we understand the character of God rightly. He is a good Master. He is a good Provider. He takes care of us and gives us what we need. As our trust in God’s faithfulness grows, ou...

It can be difficult for us to keep our relationship with money in its proper place. We often are unaware of the ways we have allowed wealth to cloud our perspectives, our loyalties, our true level of need and where our hope lies. Jesus challenges us to make a choice – and to recognize again that this choice relates to which kingdom we are pouring our time and attention to, either this world or our...

This week wraps up the section about three religious practices Jesus addresses in His Sermon on the Mount; giving, prayer, and fasting.  As we enter into our [40 days of preparation](https:// www.gracecomm.org/40days ), how timely that we will begin learning and better understanding the practice of fasting!   Prepare for this week's message by downloading the [40 days Preparation Guide](https:// w...

Simply put, Prayer is talking with God. Jesus contrasts what it looks like to pray as a matter of showing off or thinking you must jump thru hoops so that he will pay attention, vs. relating to God as your Father in heaven who listens and responds to you as His child.   Prepare for this week's message by reading Matthew 5-7 giving special focus to 6:5-15