New Life Downtown

How do we live a good life? Do we strive to live up to external standard of morality? Do we need to be true to ourselves and do what feels right? As Christians, we don't follow either path. Instead, as Paul describes in Philippians 2:12-15, we live out our identity in Christ through an obedience made possible by the Spirit of God. For it is the Holy Spirit who works in us both the desire and abili...

All of Paul's theology, all of his pastoral instructions, and all of his prayer and worship flow out of who Jesus is. This passage is the centerpiece of Paul's letter to the Philippians. Pastor Glenn Packiam helps us to see Jesus as the true Human, the true God, and the revelation of what God is like. Christ's life of self-giving and sacrificial love is the pattern for the Christian life. Moreover...

Paul's plea at the beginning of Philippians 2 to the church in Philippi is to live out their unity in Jesus. The Church is the most revolutionary community in human history. Pastor Glenn Packiam unpacks why that is, and how we grow in that unity. Revolutionary Unity in Jesus

As Paul details his present circumstances (Philippians 1:12-30), he reveals his desires for the Church. He wants the Gospel to spread through us. He aims to serve Jesus in life and gain him in death and encourages us to follow his example. He implores us to let our lives match the message. This week Pastor Jason Jackson expounds on these ideas for our day. Let Jesus Be

The Christian life is all about love; everyone seems to know this. But in his prayer in Philippians 1, Paul asks that their love would lead to knowledge and insight. Pastor Glenn Packiam explains why loving Jesus means re-thinking everything. Knowledge and Insight

What is joy? Is it possible to have joy in the midst of adversity? In part one of this series on Philippians, Pastor Glenn Packiam explores the joy of Kingdom companionship and the basis of our confidence.

Every time Jesus took bread in His hands, He blessed it, He broke it, and He gave it. There's no doubt the bread speaks of His life, but what does that mean for all who are in Christ? Pastor Glenn Packiam guides us through the Scriptures with special attention to a few of the blessed-broken-given stories in Luke and Acts to help us see how our stories become sacred in Jesus's hands. Blessed Broken...

Christians are often known for our worship practices, our work ethic, and for our Sunday rest. However, we're typically not known as people who play. In the final sermon in our Whole Life series, Pastor Jason Jackson articulates a Christian theology of play. Based on the nature of God, the goodness of creation, the promise of redemption, he invites us to play as an act of prophetic defiance, child...

For Christians, marriage and singleness are equal albeit different vocations. Each guided by a particular and peculiar ethic. Each pointing beyond themselves to something greater. This week Pastor Jason Jackson explores how singleness is a gift from God and signpost to our new family, new commission and the new creation. Along the way, he provides some practical suggestions for both single and mar...

Is marriage simply about love between two people, or is that something more? In this detailed look at what it means to offer our marriage to God, Pastor Glenn Packiam discusses the theology of marriage, the purpose of sex, and the way power is distributed in the home. Sermon Slides: Marriage, Sex, and Power

How do we recover our kingdom vocation to do work in the midst of a fallen world where our efforts are continually thwarted? This week Pastor Jason Jackson explores this question and offers four ways to begin: connecting our work to God's ends, realigning our work with God's intention, doing our work well, and not letting our duties distract from our delight in God. Sermon Slides: Recovering Our V...

Why do we work? Is it simply to provide for ourselves and for the people we love, or is there a higher calling? Pastor Glenn Packiam continues our series on offering God our Whole Life by exploring work as a way of cultivating God's good world. Sermon Slides: Kingdom Vocation

Reading the Bible is essential for living our whole lives as an act of worship to God - for integrating our faith into every aspect of our lives, but it can be surprisingly difficult. This week Pastor Jason Jackson addresses three questions to help us read well. What is the Bible? Why do we read it? How do we read it? Sermon Slides: Reading Scripture

Pete is the founder of the 24/7 Prayer movement, which has reached half of the nations worldwide. He currently pastors the church, Emmaus Road, in Guildford, England. Sermon Slides: Prayer Whole Life Resources: Resources for Integrated Spirituality Crafting a Rule of Life

What do we learn about the Kingdom of God through the story of Prodigal Son? There's something about the father in the story that reveals the heart of God and calls us to become like him. Pastor Glenn Packiam includes in this message a special word to men about reframing our notions of strength in light of this good father. Sermon Slides: A Good Father

In Matthew 22, Jesus compares God's Kingdom to a king who throws a party to celebrate his son's wedding. This sounds like our kind of king and our kind of party. The story certainly opens that way. But it takes an unsettling turn as a guest is thrown out for not wearing the proper clothes. In this sermon, Pastor Jason Jackson explains this parable and challenges us to receive our invitation to God...

There's a kind of unfairness when you don't get what you're owed; but there's another kind of unfairness when someone receives something they didn't earn. Preaching from Matthew 20, Pastor Glenn Packiam helps us to see how the Kingdom looks like work not leisure, and how purpose has to be received not made up. But ultimately, this parable challenges us with God's extravagant generosity, which is b...

Pastor Glenn Packiam shares a brief message from Psalm 95 on Worship.

Jesus gives us the parable of a merciful master and unforgiving servant in Matthew 18, a story that helps us to reflect on the extravagance of God's merciful forgiveness towards us, and our needed response to forgive others. Sermon Slides: Forgiveness from the Heart

The economics of our world relate value to supply and demand or equate value with cost. But the Kingdom works differently. What is the value of following Jesus? These parables of hidden treasure and a precious pearl, as Pastor Glenn Packiam demonstrates, are not about sacrifice but about joy. If we could see how great a treasure Jesus is, and what is being offered us in exchange for our whole live...

We tend to idolize overnight success stories; Christians may even think that?s how God works. Yet the stories of the mustard seed and yeast remind us that the way of the Kingdom is hidden and slow. Pastor Glenn Packiam helps us to reflect on this for our own lives, and to embrace a different kind of growth?a growth that is for the good of the world. Sermon Slides: Seed and Yeast

In this first installment of a new series on the parables Jesus told, Pastor Glenn Packiam invites us to reflect on final judgment. Many of us either want God to act now and intervene to stop evil in our world, or we want to imagine that there will not be a final account that we will be required to give. Through this story on wheat and weeds, Jesus calls us to be patient and to trust the goodness...

The resurrection of Jesus Christ changed everything. But how? The world seems very much the same; in fact, in some ways, things seem worse. In this Easter sermon, Pastor Glenn Packiam draws from the life of one of Jesus's followers, Peter, to show us how following the risen Jesus leads to true freedom, a new family, and a good future. Sermon Slides: This Changes Everything!

In the last installment of our series through 1 Samuel, Pastor Jason Jackson preaches on David's exile in Gath. Forced to flee because of Saul's murderous pursuit, David seeks refuge among his enemies. There he establishes an outpost for God's kingdom, acquires territory, defends Judah, and gains the trust of a Philistine king. Though we shouldn't emulate David's actions, we too are exiles and we...