Highrock Church

When trust feels risky and control feels safer, how do we take the leap of faith? In this sermon, we explore what it really means to follow the Good Shepherd - and why letting go might be the key to a fuller life. · · · 👉🏻 Sermons in the "Witness" series: https://tinyurl.com/3c8564ku 👉🏻 Dive deeper into John: https://tinyurl.com/4vcwrfv8

When outsiders begin to seek out Jesus, he knows that the time has come for him to give his life. The world is ready and Jesus is ready. But the path forward is not one we might expect. Like a seed, Jesus must be buried in order to give new life. The path to a full life is the same for us. We must lay down our lives for Jesus in the service of others. That death is the only way to life! Looking fo...

As Jesus enters into the city, the crowds rush out with palm branches, singing songs of victory and welcoming Jesus as a king. But Jesus is not the kind of king they are expecting, and more than that, he knows that these same crowds will turn on him in just a few days when he fails to meet their misguided expectations. Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here: https...

Martha, Mary, and Lazarus host a dinner to honor Jesus and to express their love and gratitude. Mary's gratitude is almost embarrassing -- she pours a fortune in perfume over Jesus' feet and mops it up with her hair! Judas questions her extravagance but his practicality is actually a cover for his own selfishness. How do we show our gratitude to God? How much is enough? How much is too much? Looki...

Hearing about the raising of Lazarus, the high council of Pharisees and priests fears that they must act soon or risk Jesus soaring to heights of dangerous popularity. Caiaphas, the high priest, chooses this moment to reveal a word from God -- that Jesus must die for the nation, and for the world. Better that one man should die to save many from perishing. Caiaphas was unaware both of how right an...

When Jesus calls for the stone to be rolled away, Martha protests, "The smell will be terrible!" She had earlier confessed that Jesus could do even the "impossible" yet in the moment of truth, that confidence quickly fades. Like Martha, our faith so often fades in the moment of truth, but that is precisely the point. What Jesus does for Lazarus is really for all of us, that we might trust Jesus wi...

What if the very things we believe to be true are actually blinding us to deeper realities? Chances are, we all have moments of certainty that may turn out to be false. Are we willing to challenge our assumptions and embrace the transformative power of humility and curiosity? Tune in to this compelling story of Jesus healing a man born blind and discover how opening our eyes to the truth can lead...

Perhaps the shortest verse in the entire Bible, John 11:35 records that Jesus wept. Many in the crowd imagined that he loved Lazarus deeply but if that's the case, then why did he not save Lazarus in the first place? The gospel leaves us to wrestle with these questions even as we wonder how to grieve in the light of our hope in Jesus. Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? S...

After receiving news of Lazarus' illness, Jesus delayed two days before leaving. By the time arrives, Lazarus had been in the grave for four days. Martha is the first of Lazarus' sisters to greet Jesus. Her greeting seems like an expression of grief but it contains both an impossible request and an incredible faith in Jesus. Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:...

When Jesus hears that Lazarus is desperately ill, Jesus chooses to wait two days before responding. Normally, a delayed response indicates a lack of love but in this case, Jesus waits because he loves them. Jesus' delay is motivated by love for Lazarus, his sisters Mary and Martha, Jesus' disciples, and us! Sometimes God allows matters to go from bad to worse in order to show up in powerful ways....

The crowds are ready to stone Jesus for claiming to be divine. In a surprising response, Jesus points out that God refers to people as "gods" in Psalm 82. Whatever reason we might have for such elevated status, Jesus has more. If nothing else, the power of God was on display in him in clear ways, both through his miracles and through his courage in continuing to love even a crowd ready to stone hi...

The crowds press around Jesus, demanding that he finally come clean -- "Are you the one?" The reason they do not know the answer is not because Jesus hasn't spoken clearly. The reason they do not know is that they do not believe the answer Jesus has been giving them all along. For those who do not recognize God in Jesus, his answer might be deeply offensive. For those who do recognize Jesus, his a...

We all feel hunger - sometimes for food, but often for something deeper. In this sermon, we explore what it means to recognize and satisfy our spiritual hunger, rather than just filling up on the world's quick fixes. Drawing from Jesus’ miracle of feeding the thousands, we ask: What if the life we’re chasing isn’t actually the life that fulfills? And how can we make space for something greater? ·...

Jesus declares that he is the good shepherd. Unlike hired hands who may run when danger arrives, Jesus is ready to lay down his life for the sheep, for us. No one compels him; Jesus chose this! As we follow Jesus's example, it is important that we also take care of ourselves. "Self-care" is a constant refrain today but self-care must have the goal of sustaining us in the work of laying down our li...

After healing the man born blind, Jesus continues to engage with the crowds, including the religious leaders. In the case of those leaders, this engagement is confrontation. Specifically, he calls such leaders "thieves and robbers" who attack and scatter the sheep rather than leading them to the good life to which Jesus is the gateway. Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend?...

Jesus returns to the healed man after the man is kicked out of the synagogue. Although the man's physical sight has been restored, his healing is not yet complete -- Jesus intends to offer him spiritual vision as well. The man's eyes are opened to see Jesus for who he is, and he worships him. Indeed, Jesus adds that his entire mission revolves around exposing our blindness and restoring our abilit...

As the Pharisees call the blind man in for a second round of questioning, one thing becomes clear -- that anything but the truth sets a disastrous course. The Pharisees continue to press for an outcome that requires denying the truth about who Jesus truly is. The healed man only makes matters worse when he offers not only the truth, but verbal jabs as well. Earlier, Jesus had said that the truth w...

There is almost a dance going on between the religious leaders, the healed man, and the man's parents. Everything moves forward because of the fear of the truth coming from those religious leaders. Ultimately, the religious leaders simply refuse to see the truth at all (v18). The one person seemingly not affected by fear and anxiety is the healed man himself. Could it be that the best way to be fr...

Are you facing a decision that demands more than you have - even more than you are? What do you do when you sense that God's inviting you to take a difficult step when it's clear that you don't have what it takes to find success on the other side? · · · 👉🏻 Sermons in the "Witness" series: https://tinyurl.com/3c8564ku 👉🏻 Dive deeper into John: https://tinyurl.com/4vcwrfv8

Why does God allow injustice and suffering? One intuitive but mistaken approach is to blame the victim. This is the assumption of Jesus' disciples when they see a man born blind. If the man deserved his suffering, then there is no injustice to explain. Jesus gives another perspective. What Jesus sees in the man's suffering is not an opportunity to blame anyone. Rather, Jesus opens our eyes to the...

As the discussion becomes more heated, the crowd turns into a mob. Questions of identity are at the center of the storm. The crowd claims to be children of Abraham but Jesus insists that they are so unlike their physical ancestor. In fact, Abraham looked forward to the arrival of Jesus. Jesus thus claims to be someone greater than Abraham! They object, "Who do you think you are?!" Although offered...

Do you bear a family resemblance? The crowd around Jesus was claiming Abraham and even God as their father, but Jesus could not see a likeness. The crowd was turning into a mob and seemed to bear a likeness to someone far less positive, someone who thrives on violence and lies. When we claim to be part of God's family, do we bear a family resemblance? How might God be inviting us to more clearly r...

Daily Devo | The Truth Will Set You Free (John 8:30-36) This famous saying of Jesus is quoted by many but often in ways that fail to understand the conditions that Jesus placed on this possibility of freedom. Most importantly, Jesus said that this truth and freedom would come to those who faithfully follow his teachings. Believing in Jesus, like the crowds in this passage, would not be enough. Thi...

Still speaking to the crowd and the religious leaders, Jesus makes yet another appeal to any who might change their minds. Even so, Jesus knows that those who are stuck with their heads in this world will not understand. Only those who are open to what God is doing will be able to recognize that Jesus is leading them to God. Many, however, will not recognize who Jesus is until he is lifted up, lif...

"Do you want to get well?" At first, it sounds like a strange question - especially when Jesus asks a man who's been suffering for 38 years. But what if that question isn't as simple as it seems? What if, deep down, there's a hidden payoff to staying stuck? This sermon explores the surprising ways we resist healing, even while we long for it, and how Jesus offers freedom that's not just about gett...