Oak Pointe Church • Novi

Whose Kingdom Come? Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church Main Scripture: Acts 12:1-5 From generations past, humans have crafted stories of good vs. evil. Whether Red Riding Hood encountering the Big Bad Wolf or Batman bringing The Joker to justice, our bookshelves and TVs tell the same age-old tale. This Sunday, we’re continuing our study in the book of Acts by uncovering the sou...

One Small Step for Man Scripture: Acts 11:19-30 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church A true superfan will do anything to prove their devotion. From a sports fan tattooing the team jersey over their entire torso to a boyband groupie eating a lock of their celebrity crush’s hair, the bumper stickers and t-shirts just don’t cut it for these hardcore fans. This Sunday, we’ll begin a...

A Deeper Storm Still Scripture: Jonah 3:10–4:11 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church Throughout human history, millions have taken comfort in the notion of karma. At its simplest, karma says, “Do good, get good. Do bad, get bad.” But how do we make sense of it when an embezzler buys a Ferrari with your hard-earned pension – or a human trafficker lives in the lap of luxury? When g...

Turning to God Scripture: Jonah 3:1-10 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church The nerds. The jocks. The cheerleaders. Perhaps nowhere is the human tendency toward “us vs. them” more obvious than a high school cafeteria. Whether teenagers finding their clique or adults drawing battle lines over political views, theological stances, or football teams, we’ve all found a reason to thin...

Journey to the Bottom Scripture: Jonah 1:17–2:10 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church Who doesn’t love an underdog? When someone at rock bottom makes it to the top, we can’t help but feel inspired. Whether overcoming poverty, addiction, or physical debilitation, many have said that coming to the end of their rope is the very thing that made them who they are today. At some point...

Running from God Scripture: Jonah 1:1-16 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church “Run, Forrest, run!” Since the 1994 debut of Forrest Gump, millions of viewers have watched the famed Forrest literally run from his problems. Whether outpacing childhood bullies, dodging bullets in Vietnam, or nursing a broken heart, time and again the film’s protagonist flees the scene. Confronted wit...

Reconciliation: The Goal of the Gospel Scripture: Genesis 45:1-15 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church With bookshelves lined with titles like “Success in 3 Steps” and advertisements boasting “60lbs in 60 days!” we find ourselves in an age of self-help. Whether you’re looking to get organized, become a millionaire, or find your soulmate, there’s a book for that. From the podcasts...

True Confession Scripture: Genesis 42–44 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church "Brush your teeth." "Say 'please'.” "It’s time for bed." "Don’t eat that!" Do you remember what it’s like to be a kid and have to do all kinds of things you don’t want to do? Whether getting a shot, eating your vegetables, or having to ask permission to cross the street, it’s tough to be a kid. But some...

Bitterness  Genesis 31:22-44  Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church  “Eh...what’s up, doc?"  If you’re like most Americans, your mind can’t help but read those famous words in the voice of a certain well-known rabbit. Bugs Bunny was king of what some have called “the golden age of American animation” and his perpetual rivalry with would-be hunter Elmer Fudd goes down in history. ...

Greed Scripture: Genesis 29:20-30 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church If you think your family is dysfunctional, wait until we get into the story of Jacob and Laban! Over the next two weeks, we'll explore their tumultuous family dynamics and apply gospel remedies to our own brokenness. The first topic is greed, which is easily dismissed but lurks in every heart. It shows up when...

Generational Sin Scripture: Genesis 26:1-11 Teacher: Adam Mashni, 707 High School Ministry Pastor You’re probably familiar with the phrase, “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” It illustrates that children’s thinking and behavior patterns are often inextricably linked to their parents. But have you noticed it is typically used only in the negative sense? That’s because our failures are usua...

Fear Genesis 20:1-18 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church Judges often warn first-time offenders with the phrase, "I don't want to see you in my courtroom again." A mistake can be forgiven, but repeated offenses are not taken lightly by the criminal justice system. In Genesis 20, Abraham makes the same blunder as before by claiming his wife is his sister. This raises the question...

Being On Mission for Jesus Scripture: John 4:4-30, 39 Teacher: Mark Kaminski, Oak Pointe Church Canton Pastor Jesus crosses over cultural boundaries in order to share spiritual truth. When he encounters a woman at a well in Samaria, she quickly embraces his mission. What led to this abrupt change of her life’s direction? And what exactly is required to be on mission for Jesus?

Deception Scripture: Genesis 12:10-20 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church Have you ever played a game of "What if?" It's an exercise that can help you prepare for future scenarios by developing a plan for each. However, sometimes it's easy to fall into the trap of assuming the worst and emotionally preparing for something that might never come to fruition. This is what happened...

Anger Scripture: Genesis 4:3-16 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church We begin week two in the book of Genesis, studying a question asked seven times and each time answered incorrectly. The question is: What have you done? It exposes our inadequate responses to the wrong things we do. Last week we explored shame, which continually whispers that we are not enough and prompts us to...

Shame Scripture: Genesis 3:7–13 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church “Don’t confront me with my failures. I had not forgotten them.” At the ripe age of 16, singer/songwriter Jackson Browne penned that lyric. The pang of shame is felt early in life and is foundational to the many dysfunctions of the soul. None of us like to be shown our sin. But fortunately, in the face of our hea...

Pentecost: Be Filled With The Spirit Scripture: Ephesians 5:18-21 Teacher: Charlie Koopman, Worship & Creative Arts Pastor On the day of Pentecost each year, we want to place a particular focus on the Holy Spirit. This Sunday, we'll open the Bible to Ephesians 5 and observe the Apostle Paul's command to "...be filled with the Spirit." This phrase, interpreted quite differently over the years, may...

Yesterday. Today. Tomorrow. Scripture: Isaiah 43:1-21 Speakers: Ethan Barrons, Maya Camanho, Noah Minard, Ana Silva Amid an ever-changing world, our students seek to put their faith in an unchanging God. This weekend we'll open our Bibles to Isaiah 43 and take comfort that we serve a God who remains constant throughout time. This passage reminds us that God's presence, power, purpose, and plans ne...

The Sacrifice of Motherhood Scripture: Mark 8:34–35 Teacher: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church Motherhood is the most fundamental institution of human existence – everyone has a mother! Yet today, it is undervalued, underappreciated, and culturally under assault. After all, why would anyone sign up for a role this exhausting with such an elusive sense of accomplishment? But scripture p...

Our Only Hope for Loving God Scripture: Psalm 63:1–11 Speaker: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church As our Prayer series concludes, we’ll look at the totality of Psalm 63 and note the not-so-subtle shift in vs. 9–11. For the first eight verses, the focus is firmly on David’s love and admiration for God. But suddenly, his attention turns to those who would be threats to the king. The langu...

C’mon, My Soul! Scripture: Psalm 42 Speaker: Adam Mashni, 707 High School Ministry Pastor This week we study a psalm that embodies life on the struggle bus. The psalmist longs to be at the Temple praising God as he has done before. But life has him somewhere else, in far more challenging circumstances, and he’s yearning for relief. Yet, we see a beautiful refrain where he turns, pauses, and begins...

Training to Love God for God Scripture: Psalm 63:1–8 Speaker: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church Late in 1965, in Detroit, Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston recorded “It Takes Two,” a song that depicted many things in life (dreams, love, wishes, etc.) being better with two people instead of one. But human relationships require diligent and ongoing work to flourish, and both parties must contri...

Intimacy With God Scripture: Psalm 63:1 Speaker: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church When David wrote Psalm 63, he did so from an experience of being captivated by God. He is so enamored with who God is and what God does for him that his heart overflows into these eleven verses. But clearly, this is not a normative experience for people of faith. Even though hundreds of millions around t...

The Overthrowing Power of The Resurrection Mark 16:1-8 Speaker: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church “He has risen!” These three words are the foundation of the Christian faith. You would think they would provoke celebration, especially by those who had walked with Jesus and were devastated by his death. But that wasn’t initially the case. This Easter Sunday, we’ll consider how the hurts...

The Overthrowing Power of Sacrifice Mark 11:1-11 Speaker: Jon Morales, Lead Pastor of Oak Pointe Church Noteworthy people are easily overlooked. It’s not that they’re always incognito, more like everyone else is unaware of who they are. Jesus was like this. During his ministry, people came to know a teacher named Jesus. But it took the overthrowing power of his sacrifice to begin opening eyes and...