Worship Center - Messages

The truth will set you free. But how do you know what is true? How do we know what's not true? We can learn to develop a lens when reading scripture to know what is true. To build a lens, we need to acknowledge the four important influences on our lives that affect us: truth, the devil, deception, and discernment.

Jesus was moved with compassion for the people around him. As believers, we're called reflect his heart of compassion and serve others, but what does that actually mean? In this last sermon of our series Why Church? we'll take a look at how we can help people the way Jesus did — through seeing them with his eyes, showing compassion, sharing the gospel, and cultivating a willingness to be sent.

"I love Jesus but not the church." Have you ever heard anyone say this phrase? Maybe you've personally said or felt this way. Maybe you've experienced disappointment in the church. Maybe you've experienced hurt from the church. The word "church" can bring up a variety of understandings and expectations, which can lead to misunderstandings and unmet expectations. God's word helps us understand the...

Do you actually know Jesus? Not just know him, but do you believe in him as more than just a historical figure? To know Jesus means to believe in him as the son of God, follow him, live like him, and be transformed to be like him. Do you know Jesus?

What do you treasure? Jesus said, "Wherever your treasure is, the desires of your heart will also be." God isn't after your money, he's after your heart. When we practice generosity, our hearts become aligned with the mission of Jesus.

What's the purpose of the church? Church is not just a gathering that happens on Sunday mornings. The church is a gathering of people aligned with and actively participating in the mission of Jesus. We find the mission of Jesus through his great commandment and the great commission in the Bible. When we align our lives with the great commandment and the great commission, we continue the mission of...

Do you feel like you never have enough time to get things done? Do you feel pulled in a million different directions, making it hard to focus on what's important? We are surrounded by a sea of distractions every day, but that doesn't mean we have to be over-ruled and consumed by them. But deciding to rule over our distractions will help us maintain a healthy soul and have a focused relationship wi...

If we don't choose to take time to rest, our bodies will eventually force us rest. Our bodies were designed to rest. That's why God created a day of rest, The Sabbath, in order for us to find time to restore our souls and minds to find strength for the tasks we do throughout the week. The Sabbath is not a ritual to follow, but is designed to be away to enjoy the fruit of our work, have time away f...

What's God's design for work and rest? What's our purpose here on Earth in the eyes of God? Through his word, we discover the answer to all these questions and to what God has called each and every human being. Each of us were created in the image of God to be used for his purposes. Is your life aligned with God's design for work and rest? God wants to use your time.

Do you have a restlessness in your soul? Peace is something we all long for but don’t always experience. St Augustine’s noteworthy prayer captures the tension well, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until we find rest in you.” The good news of Christmas is the gospel of peace. Isaiah 9:6 says, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will res...

The good news of Christmas is the good news of the redemptive love of God. In the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew Chapter 1, we discover that it took generations for God's promise of a Messiah to be fulfilled. We might think that this long list of names is an unexciting way to start the Christmas story, but each name represents an imperfect, flawed individual. Each individual represents a story of G...

Joy to the world the Lord has come. How can we live with lasting joy all throughout the year? In this sermon, we learn how Mary, the mother of Jesus, is a model for us in how to respond to God’s invitation to receive his promise, participate in his plan, and experience lasting joy. Our response to Jesus should not be for what he will do through us or in us but to simply love him for what he alread...

Hope can be an expression of confidence or it can be an expression of doubt. Hope, as defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is "to expect with confidence." Another definition by the Merriam-Webster dictionary is "to want something to happen or be true and think that it could happen or be true." Measuring our level of hope is like taking our temperature. It reflects something going on deeper b...

Are we living in an age of unprecedented anxiety or has this always been a problem throughout history? Is anxiety an inevitable consequence of simply being alive? Many books have been written about this topic. The stats of people in our nation who are dealing with anxiety, fear and worry are staggering. Many are looking for answers. Jesus addresses anxiety and gives the pathway to breaking free fr...

In the sermon on the mount, Jesus addressed lust explicitly by dealing with the attitudes and intents of the heart, not just external behavior. He taught that looking at a person lustfully treats them like an image to satisfy your own desires rather than a person created in the image of God. This sermon will help you understand God’s intent for sex, addresses pornography, and will give you the pat...

Depression is complex. There are spiritual, mental, physical, emotional, genetic and circumstantial factors that can cause us to fall into the grip of depression, pull us away from those we love and impact our ability to deal with every day life. There is hope. We can find confidence in Jesus and encouragement from one another. Breaking free from depression does not mean you will never have a down...

Have you ever heard someone say ‘your past does not determine your future?’ That sounds good, but for many people, past decisions and experiences can turn into regrets which can easily keep people stuck in the shame of their past. In Luke 4:18-19, Jesus announced freedom to the captives, accomplished it, and invited every person to experience it. Following Jesus leads to finding freedom. We may no...

Most of what we do in life starts with a prompt. There are people in our lives or situations that we go through that inspire us to action. Hunger prompts us to eat. Paying bills prompt us to get a job. What prompts us to know Jesus? And, what does obeying Jesus prompt us to do? Throughout scripture we find patterns to help us understand that obedience to God is the evidence of faith in God. Faith...

A popular axiom in our world today says, ‘pursue your happiness.’ That may sound good on the surface but consider where that leads. If a person is not happy with what they have, they’ll pursue buying something or doing something that they think can make them happy. There’s a different way. In John 15:1-11, Jesus uses a word picture of a vine to help us understand what it means to be a disciple. Je...

Division is everywhere we look — in our social spheres, political arenas, and especially our churches. We can sometimes tend to blow up bridges with other people instead of building bridges. According to Paul, unity within the church is of utmost importance. So how do we pursue it in a world where beliefs and opinions differ wildly? Pastor Chris Lautsbaugh talks about being a bridge-builder within...

God created us to think. Scripture teaches us how to think clearly. Everyone can have and should have the experience of thinking clearly but so many don’t. Life is hard and can be complex. Thinking clearly is learning to control our thoughts so that our thoughts won’t be out of control. Philippians 4:8, the apostle Paul gives a filter that will help us determine what thoughts to eliminate and what...

We’ve all made mistakes in our faith journey and experienced regrets, but does God really want to help us or is he disappointed in us? In John 21:15-22, we see how Jesus restored one of his most passionate and influential disciples, Peter, by addressing three specific areas: pride, regret, and comparison. Maybe you can identify with Peter. His pride caused him to stumble, he experienced regrets th...

The church should be known as people who love with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. The Bible clearly calls us to honor our parents, leaders, bosses, children, spouses, government officials, people we lead and work with, friends, and dating relationships. If they are human we should honor them. Just like David and Saul, we have a choice when it comes to honoring others....