Grace for New Life

How does one live a life that is fruitful? In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we see that faith in Jesus Christ produces fruit from our lives that will last forever. As we believe in the message about our ultimate Rescuer, Jesus, he transforms our lives and produces fruit like faith, hope, and love in our lives. So we follow Jesus to become like him and we show others how to do the same. (Based o...

We don’t get a choice about whether to suffer losses or not in this life. But how can we make something positive happen from our life when much has been taken away from us? God the Son saw that humanity’s need for salvation was so great that he wrapped Himself in human flesh and suffered in order to save us. With the new life Jesus gives us, we can look for human needs around us and give to others...

Humans usually think of themselves as being right, good and true, and we like to think that God would agree. But how do we know what God thinks of us? The Bible tells us that God delights over us and Jesus is the One who makes that happen. (Based on Isa. 61:10 - 62:5 & Luke 2:22-40.)

We don't like to admit that we might need to be rescued because that would be admitting that we are helpless. We are afraid of the hopelessness that would result if our needed rescue didn't come. But God is a faithful rescuer, and with the rescue He has given us through Jesus, we can live our lives with confident faith. (Based on Isa. 43:1-13 & Luke 1:26-38.)

The Good News from heaven first told to shepherds resonates down through the ages: "Do not be afraid… Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord." Jesus moved into the neighborhood to be with you because He loves you! (Based on Isaiah 9:1-7 & Luke 2:1-20.)

A judgment that things need to change is often the first step toward making things right. God’s judgment is that we are lost and broken without Him. But God has also paid the cost to make us right. Jesus moved into our neighborhood and paid the cost for us to have healing and hope forever! (Based on Ps. 98:4-9, Isa. 61:1-4, 8-11 & Luke 1:39-56.)

Receiving comfort when we grieve has become much more difficult because of Covid. But when we consider the various kinds of grief and God’s comfort for each kind, then we are better able to receive the comfort He gives us through Jesus. With the comfort we have from Jesus, we can share that comfort with others. (Based on Ps. 100:1-5, Isa. 40:1-11 & Mark 1:1-15.)

If we have ever wondered if this world is broken, the Covid-19 pandemic should remove all doubt. But how do we live a life of significance as a broken person in a broken world? We fix our eyes on Jesus, for He has not only started the process of restoring us and all creation, He will give us strength to endure until that process is complete. (Based on Psalm 23:1-6, Isaiah 40:21-31 & John 3:1-1...

This pandemic is an opportunity for us to pause and reflect on what is really important. While this world values power, Jesus has shown us that choosing to be powerless before God is the way of faith, hope and love. Through His own powerlessness, Jesus began the process of gathering people into life with God now and forever life with Him in the new heaven and earth to come. (Based on Ps. 46:1-7, I...

When we are small children, if we have good parents, it is easy to believe that all things are possible. But as we grow older, life begins to box us in and we become small people living small lives. But the risen Jesus gives us peace, the Holy Spirit and faith, and sends us into the world to carry His love and peace to the broken & hurting people around us. (Based on Rev. 7:9-17 & John 20:...

Changing our habits can be a good thing, but it’s the brokenness in our heart that really need to be addressed. Thankfully, Jesus loves us with unconditional, infinite love, and as we remain in His love, He helps us to heal and bring healing to others. (Based on 1 John 4:7-21 & John 15:1-17.)

As we follow Jesus, we might reflect on how our life with Jesus begins or what it will be like in the future, but less so on our life with Jesus now. How can we have hope as we live as broken people in a broken world? The hope that Jesus gives us for now and forever comes out of the shared life that we live with Him. (Based on Gal. 2:11-21 & John 14:15-27.)

Prayer is something that many people do. But why should we pray and how? Does prayer really do anything or are we simply casting our wishes into the empty void of the universe? Jesus helps us to see that prayer is powerful because we have a good and loving Father in heaven who wants to give us good gifts. (Based on 1 John 5:1-15 & Luke 11:1-13.)

It is human nature to love only those who love you. But God doesn’t love like that. He loves all people, even those who are His enemies, and His Son Jesus died and rose again to pay the full cost for all people to be reconciled to God. Therefore, as His children, we love as He does. We are unconcerned whether others love us in return. We have all the love we need in Jesus. (Based on Rom. 12:9-21 &...

Before He ascended into heaven, Jesus gave us one thing to do: go and make disciples. But how do we do that? It is much the same process as starting to follow a sports team. When we are clear about which team we are following and how people encounter Jesus, disciple-making will happen through us. But it all starts when we let our roots grow into Jesus, and let our lives be built on Him.

There are times for all of us when we face challenges that threaten to overwhelm us. But because God the Father has entrusted everything to Jesus, He has the authority to bring us the right solution at the right time that will not only be good for us, it can give us a platform to point others to Jesus too. Therefore, we can trust Jesus unconditionally.

Freedom may be something that we desire, but struggle to attain because we always have people to whom we are accountable and responsibilities that we need to fulfill. Jesus shows us that true freedom is a matter of the heart and mind. When our faith and values are re-aligned by Jesus and we seek His Kingdom first, and then we are truly free.

Having His followers fish for people is the way that Jesus brings people into His Kingdom. Though many things have been stripped away from us as a church because of Covid-19, this is still something that we can do. Using a net of Jesus’ love, we fish for people so that Jesus can give them a life with Him that will last forever.

Times have changed and it seems like we no longer know how to make disciples of Jesus. But Jesus is doing the heaven lifting in the disciple-making process, and as we share our lives with others, as He did, He is able to draw people closer to Him and give them new life.

Because of Covid and secularism, there is a lot of uncertainty for churches these days. How will we make disciples now? But just as He did after His resurrection, Jesus stands in our midst and says, "Peace. I am with you, I love you and I have a plan." Because Jesus is with us, the Church is always able to adapt.

Having a strong sense of home in our hearts can give us a sense of belonging, identity, security and confidence. But even a strong sense of home can cause anxiety when it is rooted in this world because something can always go wrong at home. Jesus has given us a new forever home with God and the way to that home is the way of love. Therefore we make God’s love the driving force in our lives so tha...

There are times when it seems like Covid-19 has stripped away our society’s veneer of congeniality and we can see what other people truly care about by what upsets them. But what about us? In the race of life, what are we running for? When we see what Jesus has done for us, we are moved by His sacrificial love to run our race for His Kingdom.

Feeling foolish about our faith can prevent us from fully living life as God intended us to do. But faith is about seeing ultimate reality as it really is and when our faith is anchored in Jesus, we are freed from our fears of being foolish and able to faithfully live and love others.

All of us have the power to make decisions, but what guides us as we use our God-given power? Will it be love or self-interest? Both Jesus and Avengers: Endgame show us that sacrificial love brings us the Endgame result we desire.

Our natural response is to fight against or flee from our fears, but both responses pull us away from the abundant life Jesus wants to give us. With a turning point of love and faith, we can head off in a new direction with a far better result, all because of the transforming power of love.