Redeemer Church

Jesus was popular, make no mistake. At this point in His ministry people were coming from far and wide to see His traveling road show of miracles. But Jesus wanted something more from them. He wasn’t interested in massive crowds as much as He desired calling disciples. These are far different roles with clearly different tasks. Come and consider what it is to be a disciple of King Jesus.

Some people use their power and rules to control others, while Jesus puts the freedom and dignity of people first. Sadly, the Jewish leaders around Jesus were more concerned with what was lawful rather than what brings life. King Jesus not only brings good things to His children, but also the ability to enjoy those good things.

We are often in conflict about choices and perspectives. Over and over, Jesus encountered opposition that stressed religious piety and personal holiness but was shown to be shallow without the power to change lives. We see Jesus redeem Matthew and, with a parable, illustrate what truly following Jesus looks like. Jesus shows us the way to live as Christ followers and those who have been changed.

Men need forgiveness. Only God has the power and prerogative to provide it. The condition of a man’s heart to receive it is faith alone. Jesus saw in this paralytic, both a deep need and great faith. The comfort all Christ-followers need is that our sins have been forgiven, and that forgiveness is finished in total freedom from sin and total healing in the Kingdom yet to come!

The Son was seeking to always do the will of the Father. His mission was returning hearts to the Father, not merely healing bodies and casting out spirits. He resisted fame and mere miracle-chasers. What He wanted was repentant, believing, surrendered disciples … devoted followers not fair-weather fans. Jesus always sought the right things while the people sought the selfish things.

Like the prophets of old, Jesus possessed authority to speak on behalf of the Divine, but in this case, He was the Divine. He had a greater authority than the Jewish scribes, so they could not conclude that He was simply a good rabbi. He had power over the physical and demonic realm, and they could not conclude that He was simply an earthy king. He is the Sabbath rest foreshadowed from Genesis and...

The way has been prepared by John. Jesus has passed the test of the wilderness, and now he emerges proclaiming that the time has been fulfilled. A massive pivot point has been reached in the story of God which marks a new chapter in redemptive history: the king has arrived with his kingdom. Jesus proclaims the good news and calls people to follow him—to enter life in his kingdom. This comes with g...

There is no sanitized hospital delivery room nor even a mention of a dirty stable, just the wilderness. Mark has a point to make as he begins his gospel narrative – The Servant of God has come. He is on a mission to accomplish what those who had gone before Him could not … not Adam in the garden, not Moses on the mountain, nor even Israel in the wilderness. The beginning of the story is all about...

God works where we pursue our joy in Him. “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” This is far more than a bumper sticker John Piper made up, it is at the heart of pursuing Christ. We flee “working to achieve” (Pt 1), we “die to self” (Pt 2), and we run to Him with a heart stirred with delight, joy, and pleasure. There He works for our Joy and for His Glory!

God works to bring spiritual life and power where there is first a death. The death of Christ frees us from the natural self-preservation that loves this life and labors to protect ourselves and our comforts. Yet it is in a daily dying that spiritual power is discovered … and where God works!

Our God does not work in ways men can watch and duplicate. He is not merely a great craftsman who has honed His skills. His power is not of this world and His works are not explained by human reason. People need to see power, and they need to know there is more than what they can see. We alone can show then that. Do you believe?

Christ, who alone could have accomplished the mission of the Father, chose a team to walk with in life and ministry. How much more then, did the apostle Paul, and do we today need a community to accomplish the mission of making disciples. The joy outweighs the mess, so jump on in!

Christ is the center of the mystery of God’s plan for redemption. We must be prayerful for His name to be declared and ready to declare His name. It is in our persevering-prayer and wisdom-walking that Christ is honored in our everyday living. Ultimate truth is made clear through the gracious speaking of God’s people.

Christ was a faithful servant of the Father. Though He was the Son, He became a slave to free us from slavery and make us sons. Because of the work of the Suffering Servant who gave Himself to make us sons, we are those most free to serve in every situation under any leader. Therefore, both earthly Christian workers and earthly Christian bosses have been set free to be the greatest servants of all...

In Paul’s treatise on the Christian family, he now addresses parents and children. We see two interrelated commands that produce powerful emotional responses – good or bad. A changed heart changes the manner of a father’s leadership … and that changes the whole family.

In Colossians 3:18, 19 Paul provides gender specific commands for the Christian husband and wife to properly live out their distinct roles within the marriage. These principles follow the overarching theme of marriage seen through scripture and allow Christian marriages to ultimately reflect Christ and the Church.

If you are a Christian, you have been made new! The Bible says you have a new heart, have been regenerated, have the Spirit within you—you have a new identity in Christ. But, just as we live in the already-not-yet kingdom, our experience in the Christian life is already-not-yet. We are free from the condemning power of sin, but not yet free from its presence. Nevertheless, just like clothes, we ne...

In Colossians 3:5-11, the Apostle Paul instructs Christians on how to live out their faith by “putting to death” and “put away” the sins in his or her life. Paul specifically instructs the believer to put to death sins of immorality and put away sins of the tongue because they have died in Christ and are now hidden in Christ. We are to put on the new self, which is being renewed in the knowledge o...

Having extolled the Gospel and provided some necessary warnings to the Colossian believers in chapters 1-2, Paul now is ready to instruct this local church on the Christ-like behavior that ought to characterize their ordinary Christian living in chapters 3-4. Doctrine must always lead to stirred affections and holy obedience. In these opening verses, the call is to look up to the things above – Se...

What do we want people to say about our local church? Our prayer is that above all they recognize a group of people who are committed to holding high the beauty of our Lord Jesus Christ. We want others to see that our main preoccupation is not to make a name for ourselves, but to make the name of Jesus famous. These are other ways of simply saying – We want to be all about the glory of God!

Discipleship isn’t a spiritual mystery. It is simply the progress and joy of our Christian faith. It is never done alone; it is always deeper than information; and it ends not only in the growth of one person, but the growth of many. If we are growing and multiplying disciples, then we are a healthy church.

The New Testament calls every believer to several identities which we will seek to live out at Redeemer. We are trusting God that every member would be a minister—using their spiritual gifts to edify the body. A missionary—seeking to live and speak the gospel to people they are naturally in relationship with. A disciple-maker—seeking to be part of winning people to Christ, building them in their f...

Where there is authority, there is submission; and where there is ultimate authority, there is ultimate submission. Let’s just be clear right from the start – Ultimate authority only rest in the hands of the Creator of all things. God alone has ultimate authority. For the Christian, submission isn’t a dirty word, but one to be embraced with joy and delight.

Everyone who has trusted Christ is connected to God’s Kingdom. Everyone who is connected to the Kingdom has a commitment to their local embassy of the Kingdom – the local church. Therefore, church membership is not something you join like a social club, rather it is something you embrace as true and submit to as a loyal subject.

When Christ saves an individual, He unites them to every other Christ-follower as brothers and sisters. These brothers and sisters, now connected at a level deeper than blood, recognize they need each other to sustain and deepen spiritual life. A healthy church is one that takes seriously the New Testament calls to life and mission centered on King Jesus.