Redemption Hill Church

This passage shows the continuation of Paul and Barnabas' first missionary journey, as they went on to a city called Lystra. There Paul healed a crippled man, similar to the beginning of the ministries of both Jesus and Peter. The people of the city started to worship the two men as gods before making a quick turn against them. This passage shows vividly that when we idolize, we will demonize.

This section shows us the ways that people responded to Paul and Barnabas as they preached the gospel in various cities. They preached to Jews and Gentiles, and got responses that ranged from belief and repentance to plots to kill them. The passage shows us the ways that our hearts are prone to respond to the gospel.

Paul and Barnabas continued their journey to a city called Antioch in Pisidia. There they focused first on preaching the good news of Jesus to the Jews in the city, which was a pattern for all of Paul's ministry. This passage is unique in that it captures Paul's sermon, and illustrates for us the approach that he took as he preached about Jesus in synagogues. We will see an emphasis in this passag...

The lens of the book shifts to the ministry of the Apostle Paul, as he pursued the call Jesus placed on him to be a witness to the Gentiles. Paul's journeys take the gospel to the nations. We begin with Acts 12:25-13:12, which tells the story of Paul and Barnabas being sent out from the church in Antioch and preaching the gospel on Cyprus. This passage will show us what it looks like to live our l...

This Sunday is the final Sunday of our series in Haggai. We close it out with Haggai 2:20-23, which is addressed to one of the all-time-great Bible names, Zerubbabel. We will see in this passage that God has a promise for His people and that Zerubbabel is declared to be God’s signet ring. In our time together we will explore the implications of big Z’s status as a signet ring, and the significance...

This second section of Haggai highlights the promises of God and the centrality of the Temple in the worship of the Israelites. We will take some time to consider the importance of the glory of God and the way His presence manifested itself throughout the history of His commitment to His people, extending to us today.

This passage starts off pretty bleak. James the Apostle is killed, Peter is imprisoned and awaiting execution, and Herod is triumphing over the church. But God...This passage helps us to see that in the darkest of times, God can surprise us by bursting through with glorious light. His work can be surprising and confusing. The one thing we need to have confidence in is that His Word will continue t...

This passage shows us a glimpse of the founding of the church in Antioch. The church in Antioch was the original church planting church. This passage shows us how we as a church can join God in His work as His Word advances. It’s an incredible passage that shows the power of the gospel and the value and role that each one of us has in the church.

After Peter witnessed the movement of the Holy Spirit extended to the Gentiles in the salvation of Cornelius and his entire household, he returned to Jerusalem. The homecoming could not have been what Peter hoped for. His church family back home heard reports of what Peter had been up to and met him with criticism and questioning. This is not an unfamiliar story. When the Holy Spirit moves, it wil...

This passage is pivotal for the book of Acts and God’s work in saving all people because it shows us the moment that the gospel went to the Gentiles and the Holy Spirit fell on them. We will take a look at the pathway of both Peter and Cornelius as we spend time reflecting on the barriers that keep us from being part of God’s work in saving all people, and consider the barriers that had to be over...

One of the biggest challenges Christians face in the public square with rapidly shifting ethics is the criticism of inconsistency. You've heard it before - "If you believe in ______, then why do you eat shellfish? Why do you wear mixed-material clothing?" People will point to Old Testament laws on food and clothing, and then claim the ability to extend similar fluidity to other moral and ethical l...

This passage brings the Apostle Peter back into the narrative as we see his pastoral care for Christians who were scattered throughout the region. We also see the ministry of Jesus extending through Peter in power as he heals a man and raises a woman from the dead. It's a stunning and miraculous set of stories. It also shows us something important for our lives. Every one of us is fighting against...

This section shows us the immediate aftermath of Saul’s conversion to follow Jesus Christ. In the face of intense pressure and attack, the Church still multiplied. We talk about multiplication a lot at RHC. This passage helps us to see the means God used to multiply the church, which shows us what we can focus on if we want to see His multiplying work in and through us.

This is a critical moment for the early church. We have seen already that Saul was ravaging the church, overseeing the execution of Stephen, and persecuting and arresting Christians. In this text, a crazy turn is taken as Jesus met Saul on the road to Damascus. It's a powerful story and helps us to understand what happens in our own salvation. The power of the gospel is on full display for us as w...

Philip, who was introduced last week, follows God's leading from Samaria to a roadside encounter with an Ethiopian man south of Jerusalem. The evangelism we have seen in Acts thus far was proclamation to large crowds of people. This is the first of a series of individuals' stories that we see in the bigger story of the advancement of God's Word. We have a lot to learn from Philip's approach, as we...

We begin with Acts 8:1-25 as we see that the persecution erupted in Jerusalem following the martyrdom of Stephen. The suffering was real and intense, but had an unexpected consequence that the Word of God and the gospel spread beyond the geographic and ethnic lines that we see represented in Acts 1-7. The first chapters of Acts are dominated by the ministry of Peter and the Apostles. In chapter 8...

To close the series, Pastor Bill Riedel recapped the journey through the previous weeks and cast vision for the future. This combined a vivid picture of what Jesus has called His Church to, in every time and place, as well as a particular vision for what this church is called to at this time in this place.

With a theological foundation and an understanding of church history, this sermon will turn toward understanding our own story and place in God’s work through history. This will include a survey of Christianity in America, including a clear-eyed look at the role Christians have played in racial division and injustice. It will also look at the history of DC, and work toward an understanding of the...

From the Day of Pentecost forward, the Church reflected a broad diversity of people, cultures, and backgrounds brought together in a new community. The Early Church felt growing pains in the friction that so often accompanies proximity, as people were brought together. In this sermon, Pastor Chuy Rodríguez will look at the earliest history of the church, and the admonishment from the Apostles on u...

Our current cultural moment is consumed by discussion of race. Biblically and theologically, there is only one race – the human race – made up of a multiplicity of ethnic groups. Race is a construct that was developed in the 19th century in order to subjugate entire people groups as inferior based on skin color. The gospel of Jesus Christ is that a new, restored humanity has been established and i...

The foundation for Christian anthropology is rooted in the very first chapter of the biblical text and storyline. Every person, male and female, is made in the image and likeness of God and, therefore, has a divinely ascribed dignity. This sermon will explore the beauty of this foundation as well as the ongoing implications. If the church believes that all people carry equal dignity, then it is cr...

Pastor Doug Logan joined us to open God's Word for us to Revelation 7:9-12. The portrait of Jesus’ throne in Revelation 7 is that people from every tribe, tongue, and nation are gathered together to worship Him. This beautiful portrait is often a point of reference when discussing diversity in the church. The passage is focused less on diversity, though, and more on the glory of Christ. In this fi...

Pastor Josh Soto of Remnant Church in Richmond, VA was with us this week. God is majestic and worthy of our praise. The Psalms call us to praise Him and to remember the myriad reasons that God is worthy of that praise. Psalm 103 is packed with vivid imagery that calls us to praise God.

Eddie Cole, District Superintendent of the EDA, kicked off our first week of this series by introducing the Psalms through Psalm 1. We are called to pray expectantly for wisdom throughout Scripture. We will see that the ultimate expression of God’s wisdom has come to us through the cross of Jesus Christ, which is the only hope for our lives and our redemption.

Understanding God's design for work and how to invest in our work for His glory can still leave us open to exhaustion and overwork. Finding sustainable patterns and rhythms of rest is an essential part of life. We will take time to explore the biblical concept of sabbath rest and see how it applies to us today.