Highrock Church

Jesus sends out the twelve disciples on their own but with detailed instructions. Some of those instructions were just for those disciples, and even just for that particular moment. However, understanding what Jesus was doing in that moment can help us discern universal patterns and values that apply in all cases, even for us today, especially the promise that God's Spirit will be with us. Looking...

Jesus makes himself available to all kinds of people, both the privileged and the outcast. He embraces all kinds of interruptions, looking for the opportunity to bring people closer to God. He even encourages us to have the same kingdom focus -- to pray that God would raise up more workers to connect people back to God. Who knows? God might even invite us to become a part of the answer to that pra...

When did faith start feeling like another performance review? Jesus doesn’t say, “Become salt and light.” He says, “You are .” So why do so many of us live like we’re still trying to earn it? And what changes when you stop? · · 👉🏻 Check out other Highrock sermons: https://tinyurl.com/3rdw4x8n 👉🏻 Check out Highrock's 15-min daily devotionals: https://tinyurl.com/38d4aryd

Jesus closes his Sermon on the Mount with a parable about a house built on sand which is washed away by the storm vs. a house built on rock that survives. This, says Jesus, is the contrast between those who do and those who do not put Jesus' teachings into practice. Faithfulness does not prevent the storms of life, but it promises to sustain us through them. Faith in action is faith that endures!...

[An earlier version of this episode was missing the first scripture reading.] In this section of Jesus' sermon, he turns our attention to spiritual practices (fasting, praying, giving) as expressions of trust. He highlights money itself as a critical focus, one that can easily become a substitute for God in our hearts and minds. Money promises security but in the end, it creates even greater anxie...

[An earlier version of this podcast was uploaded without the first scripture reading.] Throughout this section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus continues to magnify the reach of God's Law, not just to our behavior, but to our hearts. God wants us to know God's heart and follow it in all ways, even to the point of loving our enemies. God's love is so amazing that it extends even to those who see t...

Jesus, much like Moses, brings God's covenant and God's instructions to the people from the mountain. Jesus is calling the people into a relationship with God, one that is richer and more connected with God than they may have ever thought possible. These opening words are called "beatitudes", from the Latin for "happy" or "blessed", but they are much more than principles of happiness. Jesus is rev...

Jesus faces temptation not with mere arguments or willpower, but with God's Word. His victory over temptations reminds us that spiritual strength is formed long before moments of testing arrive. Temptation often appeals to godly desires pursued in the wrong way, but God’s Word anchors us in trust and faithfulness. Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here: https://ww...

First Sunday of the year: fresh calendars, fresh goals, and fresh resolve. Then Jesus cuts through all of it with a different invitation - one that doesn’t start with “try harder,” but with “turn around.” What if repentance isn’t shame but a new and better direction? · · 👉🏻 Check out other Highrock sermons: https://tinyurl.com/3rdw4x8n 👉🏻 Check out Highrock's 15-min daily devotionals: https://...

In this holiday replay from September 5, 2024, we consider the Apostle Paul's encouragement to practice self-control. The Corinthians were well-acquainted with Olympic-style games; their city held similar games every two years. Paul uses these athletics as a metaphor for the Christian life, especially the need to say "no" to our appetites in order to achieve goals with a far greater value! Looking...

Happy New Year! In this holiday replay from August 29, 2024, we consider Jesus as our high priest. A good high priest is able to be gentle with wayward people because he shares their weaknesses and struggles -- and Jesus is our perfect high priest. When we fail to be gentle with others, could it be because we forget or deny our own weaknesses? Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a...

In this holiday replay from July 15, 2024, we consider kindness as a fruit of the Spirit. Do you keep any trophies, certificates, diplomas, or awards on display? What important events or achievements do they commemorate? God, too, has trophies; we are trophies of God's grace and kindness. What are some of the ways that you display God's kindness to the world? We will resume new devotionals in the...

In this holiday replay from July 31, 2024, Pastors Taylor and Dave discuss the relationship between patience and confidence in Paul's words to the ancient believers in Rome. We will resume new devotionals in the new year that track with our congregational read-through of the New Testament. https://www.highrock.org/newtestament Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start her...

In this holiday replay from August 15, 2024, we consider the Apostle Paul's encouragement to allow peace to "rule in your hearts." How might we finally live at peace with one another and experience the feeling of peace we so often desire? The Apostle Paul shares several steps that we can all take together today. We will resume new devotionals in the new year that track with our congregational read...

Christmas is supposed to be the moment everything changes. But the first Christmas passed almost unnoticed followed by years of ordinary life, silence, and waiting. What if faith is formed not in the miracle itself but in the long waiting that follows? · · 👉🏻 Check out other Highrock sermons: https://tinyurl.com/3rdw4x8n 👉🏻 Check out Highrock's 15-min daily devotionals: https://tinyurl.com/38d...

In this holiday replay from August 5, 2024, Paul instructs us to be continually joyful, and prayerful, and thankful. These are not separate commands. Rather, they are like a 3-legged stool that cannot hold us without all three legs. God deeply cares about our joy, and our joy is possible only when partnered with continual prayer and gratitude! We will resume new devotionals in the new year that tr...

In this holiday replay from July 8, 2024, we consider God's agape love -- the first fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). This love is very different from all the other kinds of love that we might experience. But in order to understand it and share it with others, we must first receive it ourselves. It is a fruit of the Spirit, not our own efforts! We will resume new devotionals in the new year...

In this holiday replay from last year, we see that Joseph faced a difficult choice -- the woman he loved was pregnant and the child was not his. What should he do? Though he likely felt betrayed, he chose a path that would spare Mary of any additional shame, even at great cost to himself. God gave Jesus parents who would raise Jesus in the path of true righteousness, a path of faith, mercy, and se...

Through the prophet Zechariah, God paints a picture of the coming messiah-king, a ruler unlike any other. Riding on a donkey rather than a warhorse, this king proclaims peace not just to Israel but to all nations. This picture is a foretelling of who Jesus would be and what he would do for us. Zechariah’s vision continues to invite us to expect and embrace the peace of Christ which will one day en...

God’s peace often comes in unexpected ways and places. The angels' announcement of "peace on earth" is given to shepherds - shift workers on the margins of society. God's peace is not reserved for the powerful and privileged, but offered freely to all in Christ. Advent invites us to listen for God’s good news in humble moments, and even dark circumstances. Pastor Dave's sermon on Luke 2 https://yo...

Peace on earth gets sung every Christmas—but the world still feels loud, fractured, and anxious. What if the peace promised that first Christmas was never meant to wait for the world to be fixed? · · 👉🏻 Check out other Highrock sermons: https://tinyurl.com/3rdw4x8n 👉🏻 Check out Highrock's 15-min daily devotionals: https://tinyurl.com/38d4aryd

A religious leader named Nicodemus came to Jesus under cover of darkness to seek answers but left with even more questions. One clear answer that Jesus gave encapsulates the entire Gospel, the fullness of the good news. In Jesus, God has come down to us (that's Christmas) and Jesus told Nicodemus that one day, he would be lifted up (that's the crucifixion and Easter). And behind that answer was th...

Many would agree that nothing matters more than love, yet those same people often disagree on what love actually is. What is love? What does it look like? The Apostle John insists that the answers to these questions is that God is love. We know what love is only because God first loves us, which is what Christmas is all about. Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start her...

Through the prophet Hosea, we see God as a loving parent whose tender love is ignored and even rejected. God teaches this child to walk, feeds them, and leads them with "cords of human kindness". And this is the love God expresses toward a rebellious, wayward child! God's love is not distant or conditional; it is patient and persistent. It is the love that comes to us with Jesus' birth, when God c...

God’s love is not distant or detached. In Jesus, God has drawn close to us, inviting us to be part of God's family. Jesus came for everyone, even those who would misunderstand or reject him. God is with us, full of grace and truth, and offers us the right to become true children of God. From Fast to Feast (Community Meal on 12/17) https://www.highrock.org/calendar/fromfasttofeast The registration...