The Branch Church

This weekend we’re taking a tour through a few stories, back-to-back in Matthew 8-9:7. These stories share a common thread or theme that runs through them all. And, in case you’re thinking, “Hey, wait a second! We just finished Matthew 4 this past weekend? What about 5-7? What about the Sermon on the Mount?” We’ll circle back around to that after Easter. Stay tuned for more on that later.

We’ve been hearing the phrase “unprecedented times” a lot recently, and while these are turbulent times, they are not unprecedented. “…the people living in darkness have seen a great light, on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.” - Matthew 4:16

Have you ever been in the middle of a fight and didn’t know it? How about a war? In Matthew 4, we walk through a story which none of us would ever know about were it not for Jesus telling His disciples. Because no one was there when it happened. No one except for Jesus. Satan. And a few angels. But He wanted us to know about it. But why?

The story of Jesus’ baptism is actually a perfect setup for a new year! But to get there, we have to go through a man named John the Baptist who dresses like a Star Wars character and eats like a reality TV show contestant.

The King has come, but how do we live beyond Christmas? What does it mean to respond to the coming of Jesus?

The responses to the coming of Jesus are quite varied, and are embodied in the part of the real Christmas story found in Matthew 2:1-12. People talk about “being in the Christmas spirit.” But which one?

Kicking off our journey in the Gospel of Matthew, Chris brings up the front and back of Christmas trees, “coffin apartments,” and what in the world those things have to do with Matthew 1!

This weekend is the final (and possibly the most important) message of our series on the Holy Spirit. The thirteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians is often used to speak into marriages, but it’s not really about marriage. It’s about life with the Spirit!

This weekend, we find out what the Holy Spirit has to do with “body-building.” We also explore how the spirits of inferiority and superiority so often get in the way of us growing together in the ways and work of the Holy Spirit.

Do you have a Christmas gift list? Did you know there’s such a thing as a Spirit gift list? And did you know you can ask for the gifts on the list? We’re spending some time in 1 Corinthians 12-14 over the next couple of weekends. We’re called to be more than open to the ways the Holy Spirit operates in our lives. We’re called to eagerly desire and pursue such things by the grace of God. Let’s grow...

One of the most common references to the Holy Spirit in Scripture is as a “deposit.” This has implications both for our attitude and our mindset about the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives today, but also how the work of the Spirit points us to a future day.

There were varied opinions and reactions to the move of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2... but no one was indifferent about it. Something is happening. Come and see.

This weekend, some will be challenged and stretched by this particular part of the series. We are considering the power of the Holy Spirit. The power of the Spirit doesn't always work to get us out of a jam, or make our life easier or more comfortable. The One who walked in it more than anyone else ever has — Jesus — still had a cross in His future. But He also had a resurrection! The power of the...

This weekend we consider what Scripture has to reveal about the Holy Spirit as a person, and why that matters.

This weekend we begin a new series: Holy Spirit: Person, Power, and Presence. We’ll consider what Scripture has to tell us about the reality, mystery, and practical need for the Spirit of God in our lives. By God’s grace, we’ll grow in our understanding of what it means to be a Spirit-led people with Spirit-empowered lives.

There are no “finished products” for God to work through. Though God works through us, He is still working on us. This weekend we wrap up our Ancient Future series on the church in Antioch with one final message about ongoing change. Antioch was a place where not just new believers were emerging, but seasoned believers were being changed in an ongoing way. Have you ever believed something in your...

“When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done….” (Acts 11:23) This weekend, we focus on what the church in Antioch has to teach us about being a person and a church rooted in grace. The presence and absence of grace impacts every realm of life — marriage, parenting, business, friendships, relationships, etc…. And then there’s the grace of God in our own lives.

This weekend, we consider what it means to worship or minister to the Lord (Acts 13:2). You might be thinking, "Really? We minister to the Lord? I thought it was just to other people!”

180 million people in more than 2,000 languages are Bibleless. This weekend we’ve asked Greg Pruett, the President of Pioneer Bible Translators to bring us a special message from the work they’re doing to translate the Gospel into every language, and bring it to every tribe and tongue around the world.

This weekend we focus on another key description of the church in Antioch that is a theme for us to lean into as individuals, and as a church.

Sometimes you have to go backward in order to move forward.

There is something else “better left said” and it’s only three words. They aren’t “I love you.” They are three words that were actually the only creed of the early church, and in fact appear in quotes in multiple places in the New Testament. “Jesus is Lord.” These words can actually make some people angry when taking into account what we are witnessing around us right now. For others, they can be...

What would it be like for the confession, "Jesus is Lord" to be the lens through which we process life – with all of its wonder, complexities, mystery, and adversities? And how does this shape how we respond to others around us?

Jesus says in Matthew 18 to be humble like a child. This weekend, our Kids Ministry Director, Alexis Hall, teaches us what it means to have complete dependence and trust in God. Being reliant on God to tell us who He is and who we are. This means realizing who’s who -- who is the child and who is the parent.

Elton John said it was the hardest word to say. The band Chicago sang about it, too. We’ll talk about what “it” is this weekend in a message that’s been brewing in Chris for a little while. You’ve probably heard it said that “some things are better left unsaid.” This weekend, Chris tells us there are some things “better left said.” But the things better left said are often the hardest to say.