CityLight Vineyard Church

Are you someone who tends to minimize when things go wrong, or someone who makes a big deal out of them - maybe too big of a deal? In this passage about Jesus, we learn that while sin is worse for us than we think, God’s overwhelming forgiveness is more than we could ever imagine.

Looking at the list of the twelve Apostles, one has to wonder, “What was Jesus thinking?” These twelve are so completely different from each other! However, maybe that’s the point. If God can work with them, He can work with you!

We all face temptations of all kinds in our lives. In order to resist these, we must understand that every temptation is a short cut around what God really wants for you life. And because of that, every time we are tempted, God offers us an escape route. We just have to learn to find them.

As we begin our walk through the life of Jesus, we start with His baptism. In this amazing moment, we find out a lot about His identity: the Son of God, the Messiah, the one who has been prophesied about for hundreds of years.  As the story unfolds we see all the ways that Jesus fulfills identity. In much the same way we have a choice in this life: to life according to who God says we are, or to try and forge a different identity outside of God’s plan.

Throughout the Christmas narrative we see the authors of the New Testament drawing our attention to the faithfulness of God. The repeatedly show us how God us fulfilled prophecies from hundreds of years prior in the person and life of Jesus. This faithfulness is something we can rely upon as well. His faithfulness invites us to trust Him, even when we aren’t sure what’s happening in the moment.

According to the Bible, we have a lot to look forward to! The Christmas Story sets in motion a timeline where Jesus will indeed return again to earth. This time he will bring an end to all evil and suffering. What does the Bible teach about the return of Jesus and how should it shape our lives today?

One of the greatest truths that we can learn about God from the Christmas Story is that God is indeed with us. In fact, there may be no greater truth! No matter what you are facing, the fact that God is with you changes everything. 

Idols seem like a thing from the very distant past. People aren’t bowing to wooden statues that much these days. But what our modern day idols are more “idols of the heart?” In what says do we make good things become ultimate things in our lives?

As we wrap up our series on Colossians, we are encouraged to be people who carry the message of hope in Jesus to all people. This is a message that changes lives, still! How can we make the most of every opportunity to share this hope with others?

When we think about family, we get a variety of feelings, thoughts, and memories. Some are good, some are painful, all seem to be powerful. What does the Bible have to say about the family who is following Jesus together? How can God use the family as a way to bring hope and love not only to our family members, but also to others in our community?