Christ Community Chapel (Audio)

We have a strange relationship with kings. There is a part of each of us that wants a king, fascinated by their power and portrayal as heroes in our stories. There is another part of us, however, that rebels against the idea of a king, resenting the idea that they might lord over us and tell us how to live our lives. We love kings, but we seem to hate them at the same time. That, fundamentally, is the problem of a king. But the fact is we need a king on an innate, spiritual level. God is the ultimate king, demonstrating complete authority over all things; yet as with any king, we pull away as part of our sinful desire to rule our own lives. If, however, we can learn to obey his commands, accept whatever he brings into our lives and look forward to the fulfillment of his kingdom, we can begin to experience the endless joy God intends for us as a part of his kingdom.

In Matthew 13:44-46, Jesus says that the kingdom of heaven is like a great treasure hidden in a field or a pearl of great value that, once discovered, inspires people to sell all they own to acquire it. Even though we don't spend much time hunting for pearls or surveying fields these days, the message is an important one as it tells us three things: the kingdom of God is hidden, it is valuable and it is paid for. This week, we hear about this "kingdom that's worth it" - a hidden treasure worth seeking because it is valuable enough that Jesus gave his very life for it. And like the men in Jesus' parables, we are created to be overjoyed once we discover the immensely valuable treasure that God intends for our discovery.

We often try to satisfy ourselves with meaning and worth, but it's almost like trying to fill a black hole; we are never filled up nor satisfied no matter how many earthly desires we feed ourselves with. It is a hole that can only be filled up with Jesus. It is a satisfaction that can only come from knowing the love of Christ. Join guest speaker Daniel Rangel of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries as he talks about having a relationship with Jesus Christ, the satisfaction it can bring and the pitfalls of making it about yourself.

In Luke 10:25, Jesus is asked by an expert of the law, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" He responds by confirming that we should not only love God with all our heart, soul, strength and mind, but also love our neighbors as ourselves. It was hardly a shocking response to the crowd, but Jesus went on to tell a parable that did challenge them: the story of the Good Samaritan. As Jesus explains, our neighbors aren't just people like us, but anyone who needs our help, whether they believe the same things as us or not. It's an important reminder in today's polarized political climate. And as Pastor Joe reminds us this week, people are never more willing to listen to the gospel message than when they're experiencing the love of a good neighbor, and that alone is a good enough reason for us to be more neighborly.

Throughout our series "Thy Kingdom Come Here," we've learned about what it looks like to bring God's kingdom to fruition in the places that seem most obvious but are often overlooked. We've heard about home and church, and this week, we hear from guest speaker Sean Ammirati on why we shouldn't overlook the workplace as fertile grounds for growing God's kingdom. Citing the example of Nehemiah towards the end of the Old Testament, Sean explains that God has a lot to say about how to use your work to further his kingdom and how he's used common people to grow his kingdom on Earth for millennia. If we recognize what we're uniquely equipped to do well, harness our strengths and know when to tap into the unique talents of others around us, we'll quickly find that God reveals opportunities to accomplish his plan and purpose in ways we may never have expected.

While it might seem like the church is a natural place for God's kingdom to flourish on earth, that's not always the case. We sometimes act like the church is a club that affects what we do for a day or two each week, like a cruise ship where we go to have our needs served or like an organization that primarily exists to do good works... but that was never God's plan. Rather, the church should be a place where people come to experience the transcendent love, life and majesty of Jesus Christ and be transformed because if it. This week, Pastor Coffey reminds us what we can learn from the earliest Christians - that we should ultimately make the church a place where people can be molded by the gospel and brought nearer to God.

As we focus on helping God's kingdom to shine in this world, it's important that we don't overlook some of the most obvious spots in which his kingdom should be present in our lives... including in our homes. At the center of many homes is a marriage - a reflection of Christ's relationship with the church. That marriage not only has a major impact on the husband and wife, but their children and many others around them as well. However, as anyone who has been married knows, marriages take work, and thanks to sin's influence on our lives, we're often driven by selfishness over love for our spouses.

This week, Pastor Todd explains how a winning marriage takes more than hard work - it also takes the right fuel (wives feeling cherished and husbands feeling respected) and the right focus on one goal (putting Christ at the center of your marriage). That framework makes for an unbreakable marriage and empowers us to unleash the kingdom in our homes, leaving a strong legacy for generations to follow.

In Matthew 7:24-29, Jesus concludes his Sermon on the Mount by imploring his listeners to put into action what they have heard and build their lives on a foundation of their profession of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and a life lived in obedience to him. He says that those who hear his words and do not do what he says are fools - they are laying a foundation that will crumble in the present and future storms. If you do not have a relationship with Jesus, there is reason to fear when the final storm of judgment exposes and lays bare your foundation. Build on the rock, on the firm foundation, so there is no fear for you in the present storms nor the one to come. Are you confident in your foundation?

As Jesus wraps up the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7:13-14, he says to "enter through the narrow gate, for wide and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." Jesus isn't talking about a physical city gate, but rather the path to Heaven... And he means that we aren't all simply going to end up in Heaven by believing whatever we want in life or trying to earn our way in. While some might say this view on salvation is "narrow minded," in this case, "narrow" is exactly what we're looking for. It is trust in God's grace alone through Jesus' sacrifice that leads us to eternal life, not trust in our own good works. Repent and be saved, and just like anyone else, you too can enter through Heaven's narrow gate.

In Matthew 7:7, Jesus says to "ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." This begs the questions... Why doesn't prayer always seem to work? Why do some prayers seem to go unanswered? It isn't because Jesus is lying but rather that our perspective probably isn't right. In the same way that a parent doesn't give a young child everything he or she requests, God recognizes that there are repercussions to our desires and prayers that extend far beyond what seem like simple requests; what we believe are good things may not be so good after all. Listen this week as Pastor Joe explains that we must realize that behind every request is a deeper desire, behind certain treasures are more valuable ones and that what we need mostdespite what we may think in the momentis the love of Jesus, who answers our knocking.