Public Church

To finish our series, Chris Walker and Jessica Brewster share their thoughts and experiences about reaching back to make disciples. Both of them are on staff with Fellowship of Christian Athletes at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, and they discuss their own stories and deliver a moving challenge to engage in a lifestyle of disciple-making.

This week we look at the stories of Eli and Samuel and their children to be challenged on what it means to reach back. Reaching back is taking an active, intentional, influential role in the lives of our children and in the lives of the children God places in our path.

At some point all of us feel like the darkness is overwhelming us. In those seasons, we often wonder if light wins. Whitney Stevison faced these doubts when suicide forever changed her family and changed her life. In the midst of this tragedy, Jesus proved faithful and over time, she saw that the light really does win. Whitney shares her journey of Jesus leading her to a place where it is well wit...

Jesus’ disciples ask a question that we have all asked at some point: who is the greatest in my area? Jesus doesn’t criticize their question; instead, he challenges them to turn and become like children because we need to learn from them. (Matthew 18:1-4) Jesus lets us know that reaching back is the only way to move forward.

We began 2018 with our Bandwidth series, so we returned for a well check to see how we are doing when it comes to our personal capacity to accomplish what we set out to do. In Nehemiah 10 and 13, we see that accountability is key to us fulfilling our God-given vision and becoming the men and women he has created us to be.

As we conclude our series, one word has emerged as a theme: trust. In Psalm 37:23-33, no one is asking us to have blind faith, but to listen to the experience of an older man who was the greatest king in Israel's history. Through his wisdom, we gain eyes to see why we should trust the Father's Heart.

The Father Is Delighted in Us When We Are Content in Him Psalm 37:16-22 shows the Father’s heart for us to find our contentment and satisfaction in Him. Our struggle is the temptation to look for these things in stuff, people, and status instead of in the Father.

As we continue reading through Psalm 37 we look at the difficult truth that sometimes evil people prosper while good people suffer. In these moments and seasons of difficulty we often hope to hurry through and get beyond to a time that would be easier or better. As we see in Psalm 37:34-40 we must instead learn to wait in the Lord and allow Him to be our refuge.

For the next 4 weeks, we are reading through Psalm 37 and asking this question, “What does Psalm 37 reveal about the Father’s Heart?” As we discussed verses 1-7, we saw that the Father invites us to linger to start our journey. We would love for you to join us as we let God’s Word refine our view of the Father.

Sam Landrith challenges us in this talk to consider the mission that Jesus has given the church: to tell the world about Him. God has a heart for all those who are far from Him, and we should too. This is clearly seen in Jesus’ parable about the lost coin in Luke 15:8-10.

Jesus tells a captivating story in Luke 15:11-32 that leads us to reflect on how we approach people. There are three characters in the story, and as we consider which one we are, Jesus wants to refine our approach. How will we respond to this paradigm-shifting story?

Jesus is a brilliant storyteller, and he tells a story in Luke 15:1-7 that captivates a tension-filled audience. Jesus leads them to agree that if they lose something that they consider valuable, they work hard to find it. Then Jesus drops a huge challenge: will they assign value to the people God values? For us, here is our invitation: will we join Jesus’ audience and let him extend this challeng...

Why would we serve in a culture that tells us to get ours? Jesus did not come to fight to get his, but to give his life away. (Philippians 2:5-8) If we choose to follow him, we must follow his pattern and give our lives away, too. In Philippians 2:19-26 we see how to practically serve like Jesus in our everyday lives.

We all worship something, it is a part of our nature. We were created to worship God, so we should be engaging in worship to him daily, and in every season of our life. Worship through music is an integral part of worshipping God but we must also worship him the through his word. We learn that we must take what is told of us in John 4:23, and be true worshippers who worship in both sprint and trut...

Following Jesus is not an individual endeavor, it’s a communal project and the community Jesus gave us is the church. Listen to hear what Jesus says about our need for community and what Paul says community provides.

Before we discuss the specifics of our mission, there is one thing that is essential for us to be successful in our mission: unity. If we are divided, there’s really no point in talking about the specifics of our mission. Robert Green brings a powerful challenge from Ephesians 4:13 and 4:2-6 about ingredients to the kind of lasting unity that Jesus offers us.

One of the hardest habits to break when it comes to speaking words of death is to stop grumbling or arguing, but that’s exactly what Paul tells us to do in Philippians 2:14-16. As we discuss why and how to make this change, we do so against the backdrop of communion, knowing that we need the power of the cross to make this seemingly impossible shift.

We all have room to grow in navigating conflict and tough conversations. Therefore, we need to define the win in conflict and begin moving towards that win. We discuss Romans 12:16-21 and the type of mindset that we need to cultivate if we are going to successfully navigate tough conversations.

How do we make the change from speaking words of death to words of life? James, the brother of Jesus writes in James 3:13-16 and 4:1-12 about how to make that change. As we discuss what he wrote, we learn that change begins in the heart, and Jesus wants to adjust our posture to produce words of life.

We often underestimate the impact of our words, but in James 3:1-12, we discover that everything we say matters. In addition, our words of death destroy life. Will we recognize the that warning signs that accompany our destructive words and take a step towards change?

Most of us the power of words, and when we read that Proverbs 18:21 tells us that Death and Life are in the tongue, that resonates with us. Since our words carry such weight, who are the most significant voices in your life? Does God make the list? We discuss Romans 8:1-4, 14-17, and 31-39 to see that God speaks life over us. Will we prioritize his voice and listen?

Miscommunication occurs when what we mean is not what is heard, and it is a common and frustrating experience for all of us. When Jesus spoke his last 3 words on the cross, his followers misinterpreted him. Only after the resurrection did they grasp what he said. Todd Stevison discusses Romans 6:5-11 and what Jesus meant when he said, “It is finished.”

One of the most frustrating aspects of life is when our plans are ripped up. How do we respond when God rips up our plans? What do we do when God says our plans are finished? That is the disciples’ situation find themselves in Matthew 21 and Matthew 26. Todd Stevison discusses these scenes in Jesus’ life and challenge us to decide if we will defer or defect.

Surrounded by distractions and multi-tasking how can you hear from God and know what He is saying? Taking time to pause and sit with Jesus puts us in a place to be able to better hear from Him.

Most of us love the feeling of being finished with a project, but we run into problems when we try to approach Jesus like a project. In Mark 10:17-27, Jesus refuses to be reduced to a project that can be finished and instead invites us into a never-ending relationship. The offer sounds enticing but is very difficult to accept. Todd Stevison leads us to discuss a project approach versus a relationa...