Riverwood Church - Waverly, IA: Sermons

To be human means to be a hypocrite. And that's a problem, because hypocrisy is a sin, and sin cannot be in the presence of a perfect holy God. So what is a human to do? In this week's message, we look at the challenging yet encouraging words written by the Apostle John so long ago that let us know we do not need to be trapped in the darkness of our sin and hypocrisy.

As humans, we long to be accepted by others. We want to connect with people through the things we enjoy, whether a favorite hobby, sports team, musician, movie, or something else. Because we find meaningful connection through these things, we often make them the most important things in life. But what if God has something else for you that can lead to meaningful connection with humans AND with Him...

If someone asked you, "What's your greatest struggle?" you might be tempted to respond something like "gossip," or "lust," or "overeating," or "spending too much money," or something else. No matter what your answer, though, THAT is not your greatest struggle. To learn what your greatest struggle actually is, listen in to guest teacher Patrick Ray, who explains from Hebrews 10:11-14 what our bigge...

In America, we are quite independent as people, and many Jesus-followers bring this same independence into their spiritual growth. However, the writer of the biblical book of Hebrews encourages Jesus-followers to NOT go it alone in their pursuit of Christlikeness. In this first message in the two-week "Grow in Groups" series, guest teacher Andrew Boone unpacks Hebrews 10:19-25, showing God's call...

There's a lot of confusion about what a church elder is expected to do. Do they manage budgets? Do they oversee the pastor and staff? Do they manage the projects of the church, or oversee the administrative details, or simply control all the happenings of the church? In this third and final message in the Elders series, Pastor Erin Bird helps us answer the question "What is an elder supposed to ac...

Last Sunday, we heard why a church would want elders to lead them. But who should these elders be? The most outspoken guy in the church? The bank president who has proven to be a success and great manager? The lady who has been a part of the church the longest or served on every other committee? In this week's message, Pastor Erin Bird walks us through the qualifications the Apostle Paul gave to T...

There are SO many types of church governance out there in Christendom: deacons, councils, boards, dictatorships, church staffs, and more. So why is Riverwood choosing to move to an elder form of leadership? In this first message in a three part series, Pastor Erin Bird explains why he believes Riverwood will benefit from installing elders to help continue the mission of inviting the spiritually di...

For many Jesus-followers, engagement with the spiritual disciplines can be tiring, frustrating, and difficult. Whether it is prayer, Bible reading, fasting, or something else, they find themselves drifting toward comfort and disengagement, eventually quitting the spiritual discipline altogether. But what if your best days are found on the other side of your spiritual funk? In this final message in...

No one accidentally wins an Olympic gold medal. It takes tremendous work and sacrifice to obtain something of such incredible worth. Likewise, to grow to love like Jesus loved and live like Jesus lived often requires great sacrifice. In this seventh part of the Disciplined, Pastor Erin Bird teaches from two parables the Jesus told to show the power of sacrifice. If you want to have an amazing rela...

Money. Yep, we're going there. The topic of finances is quite the sticky topic to discuss in church. And yet, if you want to love like Jesus loved and live like Jesus lived, you have to wrestle with the topic. In this sixth part of the Disciplined series, Jacob Tews helps Jesus-followers see the beauty of living generously, particularly when it comes to the area of finances. So listen in to be cha...

If you were to ask a random Christian to name some spiritual disciplines, "serving" would probably not be one of the first disciplines listed, if at all. And yet serving is an incredibly important discipline because it helps to change our selfish hearts. So listen in to learn how the discipline of serving can help you grow spiritually, as well as learn who you are to serve.

Ever felt like prayer is boring? Or have you felt like you couldn't pray because of sin in your life and/or past? Or maybe you're simply afraid to pray because it has just been so long since you've tried to talk with God and you fear He might be a bit upset that you've been ignoring Him? In this masterful sermon on the spiritual discipline of prayer, guest teacher Patrick Ray walks us through Roma...

You may not realize it, but you are almost always worshipping. The question is: who or what are you worshipping? In this third part of the Discipled series, we look at how easily we worship the things of this earth instead of the One who made the earth, and how to go about changing that. So listen in if you want to grow as a worshipper of God.

Relationships are hard. Hang out with someone long enough, and you will inevitably get hurt, whether through their words or actions. And when we get hurt, we often want to pull away from the relationship. However, humans were created as relational creatures. So we want to be in relationship, and yet we get hurt by those relationships. So how do we live in this tension? Listen in to learn how to al...

For the summer of 2018, Riverwood Church is taking a look at the topic of spiritual disciplines. Over 9 weeks, the Riverwood family will look at nine different disciplines Jesus-followers can engage in. However, there is a danger to this topic. In this opening message in the Disciplined series, Pastor Erin Bird helps us learn what the inherent danger is with spiritual disciplines, how to avoid thi...

What should a church family really look like? How should a church family operate? What should a Jesus-follower be willing to give up for the sake of others within the church family? In this final message in the "& Jesus" series, guest teacher Andrew Boone takes us to Romans 15 to challenge Jesus-followers to critically think about how they are to live within a church family. Listen in to this...

When it comes to the role of conscience in the Christian faith, things can get a bit sticky. The conscience of one Jesus-followers allows him to enjoy a beer while the conscience of another Jesus-follower won't let her even walk into a bar. Does this mean God is unfair? Or that one of the Jesus-followers is wrong in his or her conviction? Join us as Pastor Erin Bird walks us through this difficult...

Oftentimes, when a person feels stressed or uncomfortable in life, he or she will seek out pleasure to bring some relief. But sometimes, the pleasure they seek keeps them from the life they truly want. In this sixth part of the & Jesus sermon series, Pastor Erin Bird walks through Romans 13:11-14, which shows Jesus-followers that life on this earth is not the time to fill up with as much pleas...

Most people see the government as a bureaucratic nightmare that is focused on getting and keeping power. How should a Jesus-follower respond to the government, especially when government leaders make decisions that a Jesus-follower might disagree with. The answer might surprise you. Listen in as we learn from Romans 13 how a follower of Jesus should approach his country's government.

Many people within our American culture think of marriage as an emotional and sexual prison. Why else do 41% of all marriage experience emotional and/or physical infidelity? And why else would 74% of men and 68% of women be willing to have an affair if they knew they wouldn't get caught? Clearly, marriage is viewed by many as a shackle. But rather than be a jail that keeps us from joy, what if God...

In our modern American culture, some people view kids as trouble, or annoying, or just something to be ignored. But have you ever considered how God views kids? In this third message in the & Jesus series, teaching pastor Erin Bird shows us from Romans 12 and Ephesians 6 why we need to love and honor kids if we are going to be followers of Jesus.

The story of Batman isn't just a comic book story or a super hero story. It is actually a revenge story. It is a story about Bruce Wayne getting revenge upon crime for taking his parents from him when he was a kid. Living inside of you is an inner Batman - a character that wants revenge whenever something or someone is taken from you. This inner Batman makes us feel strong, but he actually robs us...

Have you ever had to make a decision that those around you thought was absolutely crazy, but you knew beyond a shadow of doubt was the right thing to do? Some times, that's what it looks like to follow Jesus. An unbelieving world thinks a Jesus-follower is nuts for some of the things he or she believes God is calling them to do. How does a Jesus-follower make these difficult decisions in the face...

Many people in our American society are familiar with the Easter story, even those who don't go to church. But do these miraculous events from over two-thousand years ago mean anything for people living in 2018? In this Easter message entitled Glorious Day, Pastor Erin Bird shows how the physical resurrection of Jesus points to a spiritual resurrection that God wants to do within you, changing you...

Most people in life spend their time trying to be happy. They selfishly focus on whatever they believe will make life easier, more pleasurable, or more memorable. But then there a few people who seem to devote the majority of their time to helping others. They are incredibly Unselfish. How do they do it? By having a shift in their motivation. In this message, Riverwood's teaching pastor, Erin Bird...