I grew up in a wonderful home. My parents were great, we had all the comforts and advantages of southern suburbia, and we were very involved in church. In that kind of environment, it was easy to come to a subtle conclusion: while God loves...
Christmas is, by some distance, the most significant holiday in the world (at least in the West). It’s startling just how all-encompassing it is—school, economics, business, entertainment, travel, families, and church all revolve around it and submit to it....
Saturday evening, when the Sabbath ended, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome went out and purchased burial spices so they could anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on Sunday morning, just at sunrise, they went to the tomb. On the way they...
Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, because Jesus had often gone there with his disciples. The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the...
When the time came, Jesus and the apostles sat down together at the table. Jesus said, “I have been very eager to eat this Passover meal with you before my suffering begins. For I tell you now that I won’t eat this meal again...
When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, “As you know, Passover begins in two days, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.” At that same time the leading priests and elders were meeting...
Some of his disciples began talking about the majestic stonework of the Temple and the memorial decorations on the walls. But Jesus said, “The time is coming when all these things will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”...
In the morning, as Jesus was returning to Jerusalem, he was hungry, and he noticed a fig tree beside the road. He went over to see if there were any figs, but there were only leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear...
Each day this week leading up to Easter Sunday, we are providing you with some readings and events that directly correspond to what was happening this week in the life of Jesus 2,000 years ago. We encourage you to take time to enter into the...
For the start of this new series, we have created a series page for Philippians that will be updated weekly with the worship songs from service, study questions from each sermon, background information on Philippi, lock screens for your phone, teaching videos, Scripture to memorize,...
For many of us, Christmas Day is one of the most important days of the entire year, which is obvious given the intense amount of preparation that often goes into it. We adjust schedules, plan, and budget months in advance. Family members travel in from...
In the same way God set a star in the sky to lead the Magi to Jesus, He places His children in their neighborhoods, workplaces, PTA meetings, and lecture halls to do the same. You don’t have to go overseas to impact the nations. God...
We love hearing good news, especially when we’re the first to know. There’s a big difference between getting a phone call from your best friend about their pregnancy, engagement, or new job and finding out about it on Facebook. We cherish being invited to participate...
Throughout the Old Testament, the prophets spoke of the promised Savior, telling the people how to recognize His coming and reminding them that God had not forgotten. The Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, the Son of a virgin according to the line of David,...
Many of us grew up with the story of Advent beginning in a stable. But, really, the story begins in a Garden, a long time before the night of Christ’s birth. When God created the world, all things were just as they should be. Creation...
This weekend Matt Williams presented Matt Gaymon as a candidate for the governing elder board of Grace Church. Matt has been faithfully serving the church for 15 years, and we are looking forward to the possibility of this addition to our church leadership. As part...
One could easily be overwhelmed and confused by the many different translations available these days. The Scriptures were originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, which makes translation necessary—but why are there so many? And are they really all that different? Is one better than...
It is evident today that in this Information Age social media plays a large role in many of our daily lives. On average, we spend 20% of our waking hours on social media, equivalent to one out of every five minutes. There’s no denying that...
With many people within our body who have come from various backgrounds, we understand that baptism and communion can become a point of tension among believers. However, we feel that there are major practical questions to be considered of each....
In Kindergarten, I walked to the store with my next door neighbor and stole some candy. Actually, he stole it, but that’s not the point—I watched him and gladly agreed. Not long after, I understood the gospel in a very basic way and something began...
In our series on Christianity, we recently heard a sermon from Romans 8:18-39. One of the things that Paul only touches on very briefly in this passage is the question, “Where does suffering come from?”...
Suffering can be a stranger to some of us and a familiar face to others. It can be self-inflicted and directly correlated with our own sin, inflicted on us from someone else, or it can simply be inflicted by our world that is at enmity...
To be culturally engaged as the Church is to foster relationships that provide opportunities to share the gospel and care for those in need. This is a fundamental value of Grace Church that serves to further the mission to grow the local church by proclaiming...
Do not be anxious about anything. We all know the passage in Philippians 4 commanding us not to be anxious. But if we are honest, we all struggle with anxiety and worry on some level. Where is the disconnect? It comes in our attempt to...
Matthew 6:19 tells us not to store up treasures here on earth, which stands in stark contrast to the inclination of our hearts to focus heavily on the things of this world. When we are making choices with our money, we tend to operate out...