This Sunday, as we reach the final chapter of I Corinthians and the end of our series, we reflect on all of the ways the body of Christ has struggled with political division and cultural controversy since the very first century. Yet in this final chapter was also see Paul encouraging us to continue to strive for unity and generosity in the faith, and demonstrates that love is not measured in quantity – but in quality. Join us at 9 a.m. as Ministry Coordinator Tara Farrell brings a message on how to love the church with generosity, abundance, and joy.
In Christ in Culture
“Gentlemen,” he said, holding a pigskin in his right hand, “this is a football.” Vince Lombardi was coaching a group of three dozen professional athletes, yet he started from the beginning. Reminders are always helpful and often essential. Join us this Sunday at 9 a.m. as we receive the Apostle Paul’s reminder of the Gospel that he preached and in which the church lives. May God meet with us, restore our clarity in His Gospel and send us into the week abiding in and abounding for the Lord Jesus Christ!
One of God’s gifts to the church is worship! Yet, sometimes worshipers do things that we don’t like while we praise God together. Worship gatherings for the Corinthian Church were lively but also chaotic and in many ways, disrespectful. Though many aspects of first-century worship were different than ours, the solution Jesus unveiled through the Apostle Paul’s pen is the same. Join us on Sunday at 9 a.m. as we unite to worship God and discover the intermingling of worship and love!
An ordinance is a Christian experience with physical elements (water; bread and cup), that is celebrated when the church of Jesus comes together. This word is closely associated with the term sacrament, which is an outward and visible sign of an inward and invisible grace. Join us at 9 a.m. this Sunday 10/30 as we meditate on Jesus and the significance of His table, followed by an invitation to participate in the ordinance of communion together.
As the inventor, designer and overseer of marriage, singleness and sex; God communicates His intentions and guidelines for His people throughout the Bible. One of the places where He does so is in 1 Corinthians 5-7. Join us this Sunday at 9 a.m. as we worship our Great God in song, prayer and further meditation on what union with God looks like in our single and married lives.
Like gravity, photosynthesis, germination and everything beautiful in our world, sex was God’s idea. As the inventor, designer and overseer of sex, God has been comfortable communicating His intentions and guidelines for sexuality among His people. One of the places where He does so is in 1 Corinthians 5-7. Join us this week and next as we consider God’s vision for this mysterious reality and what fidelity to God’s plan looks like.
This Sunday, we welcome back our Lead Pastor Dean Wertz from his sabbatical! In order to reconnect as a community, Dean will be leading our congregation in a time of sharing words of encouragement and testimonies of the work God has been doing in our lives. Then, next week, Dean will continue us in our study of I Corinthians.
Being simultaneously “In Christ” and “In Culture” can create some real tensions for God’s people, especially when we find ourselves in a dispute with a brother or sister in the Lord. From Paul’s stern rebuke of the Corinthian church on how they handled things, we can learn to succeed where they had failed.
Last week we studied Paul’s exhortation to the Corinthian church to prioritize loving others by not exercising personal freedoms when love and freedom conflict. This week we will study the reverse: prioritizing loving others by not restraining freedoms when restraint is unnecessary and deters people from receiving the Gospel message. Love restrains freedom for the sake of other Christians but love also frees restraint for the sake of those who aren’t yet Christians. Join us as we seek to better understand this way of living that Christ himself lived.
We’re Christians. We’re people of deep conviction; primarily about the lordship of Christ but also about lesser things, even things that Scripture doesn’t directly address. When we believe that we’re free to do something that another Christian believes is wrong or is tempted by, should we do it? Should we exercise our freedom or restrain it? Though the Corinthian church had different circumstances than ours, they too grappled with this difficult question and Paul, an Apostle of Christ, answered it, for them and for us.