River City Church

What if the person you're holding captive through unforgiveness is actually you? This week we explored a powerful truth: "To forgive is to set a prisoner free and to realize that the prisoner was you." Like Leonardo DiCaprio's character in Inception, we often trap ourselves in the prison of unforgiveness, thinking we're holding others accountable when we're really hol...

We're in a season of transition at RCC, stepping out before our new building is ready. It feels uncertain, maybe even uncomfortable. But here's what God keeps reminding us: "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Just like Joshua stood at the Jordan River, facing the unknown after Moses died, we're at our own crossing point. God told Joshua three times to "be strong...

Whether you had the best dad or the worst, we all carry wounds from our earthly fathers that sometimes spill over into how we see our Heavenly Father. The truth is simple but profound: we're hurt in relationship, and we're healed in relationship. You can't do it alone. The younger son had to face his shame. The older son had to name his pain. The father had to extend grace that wasn...

We're in a season of transition at River City Church, and honestly, it can feel a little unsettling. We know where we've been, we know where God is leading us, but the in-between? That's where faith gets real. Just like the Israelites standing at the Jordan River, staring at the Promised Land, we're learning that God is more concerned with our obedience than our understanding....

We live in a world obsessed with finding the right diet, the perfect health regimen, the magic supplement that will transform us. But Jesus offers something far more radical and sustaining. In John 6, Jesus declares, "I am the bread of life." He doesn't just feed our bodies—He feeds our souls. When He tells us to eat His flesh and drink His blood, it's not about cannibalism; it...

Ever wonder what happens when our deepest convictions collide with the risen Christ? Paul's Damascus Road encounter wasn't just a conversion—it was a complete inversion of his moral universe. The man breathing threats and murder against Christians became Christianity's greatest ambassador. Why? Because he met the resurrected Jesus, who asked one piercing question: "Why are you...

What if God's greatest gift wasn't just being WITH us, but being IN us? This Pentecost Sunday, we explored an incredible progression: God's presence moved from the ark, to Jesus walking among us, to the Holy Spirit dwelling within every believer. That's not just theology—it's transformation. When Jesus told His disciples to wait for power from on high, He was preparing the...

Ever feel like you're working hard for God but somehow missing Him in the process? Jesus met His disciples after a long, fruitless night of fishing and asked them to throw their nets on the other side. When they obeyed, they couldn't haul in the catch—153 fish that should have torn their nets but didn't. Here's the powerful truth: Peter had denied Jesus three times. Yet Jesus d...

Have you ever felt that low-grade heaviness that won't seem to lift? You're not alone. This week we explored how God wants to break the chains of depression and oppression that have held us captive—sometimes since childhood. Here's the truth that sets us free: God calls things that are not as though they are. Just like Abraham's impossible promise became the foundation of our f...

This sermon centers on the story of the Road to Emmaus in the Gospel of Luke, where two disciples unknowingly walk with the resurrected Jesus. Pastor Jared highlights how they initially fail to recognize Him, even as He explains the Scriptures, until their “eyes are opened” in the breaking of bread. This moment—described as a kind of “holy heartburn”—illustrates how Jesus can be present with peopl...

What an incredible Baptism Sunday we celebrated! Watching 12 people publicly declare their freedom in Christ was a powerful reminder of God's transforming grace. In Ephesians 2:1-10, Paul reveals three enemies we all face: the world, the flesh, and the devil. But here's the beautiful truth—through Christ, we are SET FREE from the enemy's grip, SET APART to live differently than the...

Mary Magdalene experienced exactly that. In the garden where Jesus was buried, she encountered the resurrected Christ. At first, she didn't recognize Him—but the moment He spoke her name, everything changed. John's Gospel intentionally shows us there's a "new man in the garden." Where the first Adam brought sin and death, Jesus brings new life and freedom. This Eastertide...

This Easter season, we're diving into 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul declares something revolutionary: "Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your sting?" Through Christ's resurrection, death went from being an executioner to just a gardener—planting us in God's soil so we can become something extraordinary. Your body may be weak, broken, or struggling w...

We often stride into life with excitement and anticipation, thinking we know how things will go—only to face unexpected disappointment. But here's the truth: God's way is always better than ours, even when we can't see it yet. This Palm Sunday, we remember that the crowds shouting "Hosanna! Lord, save us!" didn't understand what kind of saving Jesus came to do. They w...

This sermon centers on Psalm 27’s declaration, “The Lord is the stronghold of my life,” and calls believers to establish a godly stronghold by building their lives on God’s Word, depending on the Holy Spirit, and remaining anchored in the Father’s unshakable love. Drawing from David’s life, Pastor Jared emphasizes that storms, fear, and spiritual attacks reveal where we run for safety, and that tr...

Jesus understands every bit of your pain. He was a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. The Father planted His most precious seed—Jesus—so He could harvest you as His beloved child. You were the joy set before Christ as He endured the cross. The hardest seasons you walk through will make heaven's joy even sweeter. Your scars will become proof that God rescued you, carried you, and was alway...

God doesn't want your spiritual resume. He wants your surrender. He's not asking you to get everything together before you come to Him—He's asking you to bring Him your weakness, your struggles, your honest mess. Because when we finally stop trying to be strong enough and admit we need Him, that's when His power can truly work through us. Stop waiting until you have it all figu...

The difference isn't about avoiding hard news. It's about where your security lies. When you fear the Lord through reverent obedience, walk in generosity rather than greed, and let your heart be truly secure in Him, bad news loses its power over you. Freedom starts with receiving truth we don't want to hear, but on the other side is healing, restoration, and joy. You don't have...

Ever feel like you're drowning—underwater, overwhelmed, and out of options? Psalm 130 reminds us that crying out from the depths isn't weakness—it's exactly where breakthrough begins. When we finally stop trying to fix everything ourselves and call out to God, that's when real transformation starts. The Psalmist knew what we often forget: God doesn't keep a record of our f...

What if the spiritual life we're living is perfectly designed to produce the results we're getting? This powerful message confronts us with an uncomfortable truth: we are all being formed into something, whether we realize it or not. Just as our physical systems adapt to our environment, our spiritual lives are shaped by a constellation of choices—the media we consume, the relationships...

When was the last time you truly considered what happens when we gather together as the church? It's more than just a Sunday routine—it's a powerful statement to the spiritual realm that Jesus is Lord. We are the ekklesia, the called-out ones, assembled in His name. We're not just consumers showing up for a service or lone producers doing our own thing. We're His body, interdep...