The work of Christ doesn’t stop at uniting and reconciling us to God. The cross also reconciles and unites us into one body, one group, no matter our social class, our race, our knowledge of God, or our past. Paul reminded the gentiles they were included, no longer separated from God. The gentiles inherited by faith in Christ, the same blessings and promises of the Jews. It would take a miracle (or the blood of Jesus) to unite Jews and Gentiles into one new people group or family. The hostility between these two people groups goes very deep. The blood of Jesus accomplished this miracle!

How do you explain good news without explaining the bad? Paul sets out to remind the church of who they used to be, how bad it was, but how God changed everything through Jesus. Pastor Ryan broke down verses 1-3 to show us what it’s like to live life without Christ. In just two words, “But God,” everything changes!

As if verses 3-14 weren’t deep enough, Paul seems to go deeper but for good reason. Paul wants the church to realize, to see, to have a spiritual awakening and experience of the spiritual blessings we have inherited. Paul thanks God for the church because of their strong faith in the Lord and love for one another, but it doesn’t stop him from praying specifically that the church gains spiritual wisdom and experience these spiritual realities.

We dug deeper into Ephesians 1:3-14 today. Pastor Ryan helped us understand that this portion of scripture in the greek and original manuscript is one very long sentence. Some say it was Paul’s hymn of praise. When we read these 12 verses in their full context we get a better understanding of how critical Jesus is to our lives.

Today, Pastor Ryan launched our new series and study through the book of Ephesians. We learned a lot of the background and set up for Paul’s reason and purpose of this letter to the church. We learned that Paul wasn’t addressing any particular issue in the church like he typically does in other letters. This gave Paul the opportunity to proactively teach and strengthen the church on a variety of topics.

Who are you following this year? Who is leading your life? Who’s teaching you how to live, what to think, how to treat others, and what to focus on? It’s a new year, so where are we headed? Do we have a plan or vision for who we want to become and where to go? Pastor Ryan urged us to follow Jesus and he used a scripture we all probably didn’t expect…

There were days my mouth could have really stirred the pot but I waited, prayed, and decided that my post or article wouldn't change millions of minds. While I do think my influence is important, I concluded it would be better for the world to hear words that came from the mouth of Jesus. Millions of people have yet to hear everything Jesus said and they are words that offer eternal life…

Pastor Ryan unpacked the truth that Jesus, the Prince of Peace, and Emmanuel, God with us came to earth. In Jesus, we find peace for our journey through this life. We’ve had a challenging year. The promise of God is while we will have trouble here on earth, Jesus overcame it and lives with us…

Christmas. “The most wonderful time of the year.” When everything is just a little bit more bright and cheerful, when light and love abound . . . but what about when in the midst of the most wonderful time of the year, you feel anything but wonderful?

Christmas can be one of the most difficult times in the grief journey because we associate this time with being together with those we love, sharing in the joy, and gift-giving…

We can only scratch the surface of understanding God’s love, and other characteristics of God, through our own understanding. God is so much more than we can see and understand, and that includes the depth of His love. When we look at Christmas, we see Him punching through the darkness of this world to bring His love and strength to us.

We can only scratch the surface of understanding God’s love, and other characteristics of God, through our own understanding. God is so much more than we can see and understand, and that includes the depth of His love. When we look at Christmas, we see Him punching through the darkness of this world to bring His love and strength to us.

If you attend church chances are you’ve heard a Christmas message about Jesus being the “Prince of Peace” and have seen Christmas cards that say, “Peace on Earth.” But maybe you’ve been confused because as you read through the book of Luke or Matthew you run into the verse where Jesus says, “Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other!” (Luke 12:51)