Orchard Ridge Church

But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. - Acts 13:8 If you’re a follower of Jesus (aka a Christian), I can say with near certainty that God used someone in those early days of your new faith to act as a Spiritual mid-wife of sorts. This is the one who came along side of you to encourage you and to answer your questions....

While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. – Acts 13:2-3 We read in the beginning of Acts 13 that while they were worshiping and fasting, the leaders of the church in Antioch (a multiethnic group of men) h...

So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. – Acts 12:5 In Acts chapter 12 we read about the death of James by execution at the hands of Herod Agrippa I. Herod Agrippa I was the Grandson of Herod the Great (who was not so great at all)! Herod the Great was the one who killed all the little boys in Bethlehem age 2 and younger at the time of Jesus’ infancy becau...

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I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth. - Isaiah 49:6 In church world, if a person says ‘Chosen People’ you’d automatically think of Israel. And you’d be correct. They were ‘Chosen’ – for a specific purpose: To be a Light to the Gentiles and make God known throughout the world. The word Chosen was never meant to exist in isolation. It’s...

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There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. – Galatians 3:28 Who is outside the reach of God’s grace and forgiveness? If you’re a Christian you have been conditioned to say “nobody.” (And you would be correct by the way). But what we say we believe and how we act upon those beliefs often don’t line up. Exhibit A of th...

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Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. – Acts 9:31 We all face those seasons in life whereby things are coming at us faster than we can handle them. We have lost control so to speak. In the realm of our walk of faith in Christ, sometimes these seas...

As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. – Acts 9:3-5 It's a great question, isn’t it? “Who are you, Lord?” It’s perhaps the most important question a person will ever answer...

Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. – Acts 8:35 At the beginning of Acts chapter 8, Christians are facing intense persecution in Jerusalem after Stephen’s execution by stoning. To avoid prison, beatings and death they leave and go to the surrounding areas of Judea and even hide in the region to the north known as Samaria (a place Jews histo...

To what extent can we blend the ungodly practices and habits from our days before we received Christ Jesus into the “New Life” in the Spirit? Answer: We cannot. What does darkness have in common with light (2 Corinthians 6:14). This isn’t to say the transformation that we are undergoing is an immediate one. Becoming like Jesus is a lifetime pursuit; we are continually “under construction.” But the...

“The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.” – Tertullian – Apologeticus, 197 A.D. The word martyr over time has come to mean a person who dies for their faith. But that’s not the origin or true meaning of the word. It’s transliteration of the Greek word martus which means “witness.” This Sunday, in our sermon series on Acts, we will read about the Christian deacon named Stephen who, afte...

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. – Revelation 3:20 As we enter a new year, we enter the uncertainty that comes with it. I find great peace, confidence and courage knowing that my God and the Creator of all things lives “outside of time.” His Name (or one of them) is the great “I AM.” Wh...

All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. - Acts 6:15 One more message in the Book of Acts tomorrow morning, and then we will break for a series of Christmas messages. Our Acts series will resume on January 5, 2025! We’ve all made the mistake, at one time or another, of judging things, people and situations by appear...

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Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. – Hebrews 13:8 I am often asked, “Why is the God of the Old Testament different from the God of the New Testament?” The answer to that can be found in Hebrews 13:8 - He’s not! We sing a song called, “Same God.” There’s good theology in that song. Our God is Holy, slow to anger, full of mercy, abounding in love and compassion. He is also rig...

After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. – Acts 4:31 Wouldn’t it be amazing to travel back in time and sit in on an early 1st Century Prayer Meeting? Unfortunately, the Time Machine hasn’t been invented yet. But we can get a glimpse by reading Acts 4:22-31. Peter and John have just returned to t...

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved. - Acts 4:12 In Acts chapter 3, Peter and John heal a crippled man who begs for money on the Temple Mount at the Gate called Beautiful. By the power of the name of Jesus the man walks (and jumps) for the first time in his life. The man was over 40! Not so much for this act of kindn...

When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. 4 Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” 5 So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them. – Acts 3:3-5 The place this man knew best was a place called Beautiful. But his situation was far from beautiful; it was ugly! Beautiful was the name of the Gate on the Temple Moun...

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. – Acts 2:42 What is church, really? Say that word today and depending on the past experiences of those who hear you say it, you’ll get a wide range of reactions. Churches differ on methods, doctrines and practices. But are there “essentials” that all churches must embrace if they are truly...

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?" – Acts 2:37 For those of us who call ourselves “Christians” and use the term “saved” to describe our experience of receiving Jesus as LORD, we can relate to Acts 2:37. Maybe it was a sermon or a situation. Maybe it was a trial or a testimony of another. But whatever “...

That is why it was called Babel—because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth. – Genesis 11:9 We say things like, “What is he babbling on about?” to describe someone rambling on and on. But the origin of the word Babel goes back to Genesis 11. Most of us are familiar with the story from the Bible when the inhabi...

What does it mean to live a life led by the Holy Spirit? One way to approach this question is to illustrate what a life looks like when it is NOT directed by the Holy Spirit. We know that just before Jesus left the Apostles (now numbering only 11) He instructed them to go to Jerusalem and “WAIT” for the promised “power from above” or the promised Holy Spirit. The Spirit would guide them in all tru...