As we celebrate our church's 233rd anniversary (incredible), we look at what the purpose of the church is. It's important that we occasionally step back and ask ourselves "What are we doing here?" Using the Great Commission and Acts 2 as an example, we talk about the purpose of the church. To Connect to God and Community, Grow in our Faith, and Serve inside and outside the church. 

Paul repeats the call to unity repeatedly in His letters. We are called to not just tolerate each other, but to be unified. Pastor Blake talks about what it takes from us to have unity in the church. 

The church in 1 Corinthians had a lot of issues. They had a lot of issues that still face the church today. As we look at this series it's important that we hold up a mirror to see what we struggle with that Paul addresses. What are areas that we need to work on, to be a better version of the church?

As we wrap up Exodus we see God Establishing His temporary dwelling place among His people: The Tabernacle. This involved people giving their resources to God. They give material goods, as well as their talents. There is great detail given in the instruction and construction of the Tabernacle. Which shows us that God cares about the details. We should do things well when we are doing them for the Lord. His attention to detail also extends to our lives. This God of the universe cares about the details of your life. Our incredible God can see the whole of the big picture, and the tiniest details simultaneously. God loves you and desires for you to be the dwelling place of His spirit. 

Moses had an audacious statement when he told God: "Show me your glory." Moses wanted more of God and sought after Him. What an inspiration for us as believers to follow in Moses's desire for more of God. It is not a one-sided relationship though. We know God wants us because He later says "I am jealous," because God wants our affection. We serve a God who can fulfill us more than we can be fulfilled by things on this Earth, and He desires a relationship with us. The chapter ends by showing the change that happens in Moses because of His time spent with God, and how God wants us to be new creations. We should live letting the old things of our lives pass away and embrace the new fulfillment from God. 

In Exodus 33 we get to see an amazing image of what time spent with God can look like. Our relationship with God is only going to be as good as what we put into it. There are so many ways we can spend time with God, and there is an enormous benefit to it. We look at the example Moses set of spending time with God, and what we can take away and apply to our daily lives as a result.  

In Exodus 32 we see the people of God fail completely. They forget nearly everything that the Lord has told them and completely forsake the worship of God they had been called to. There are a lot of punishments that happen as a result. God is deserving of our worship, and we have to be careful that we aren't putting God into any kind of box, or changing Him into our image. We cannot fathom how massive God is, and we should not attempt to make Him smaller to better understand Him. 

There is so much in God's word that is trustworthy. God spoke to the Israelites and told them what He wanted to do them and how they would hold up their end of the deal. Similarly, God has given us promises that He will keep if we turn and trust Him. We just need to live in obedience and there is so much that God will take care of. God's word is true, and He always follows through.