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In the opening of Colossians, the Holy Spirit through Paul, communicates three qualities that God delights in when he looks upon the church: a church that delights in discipleship (v. 3-6), a church with faithful ministers of the gospel (v.7-8, 1 & 2), and a church praying for Christ to actively work in their midst according to his will (v. 9-14). While these qualities invite us to evaluate our expectations of the church, we hope they will inspire us to delight in Christ's will and shape our hearts and habits as a congregation as we strive to grow in Christ this summer.

At the end of the beatitudes, Jesus pronounces perhaps the most paradoxical of all the beatitudes, “Blessed are the persecuted for righteousness’s sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” 2000 years later, Christianity is the most persecuted religion in the world. Persecution doesn’t seem like a blessing. Furthermore, Christ tells us to “rejoice and be glad,” likely the last thing on the mind of those who face regular persecution. This Sunday, as we wrap up our study of the Beatitudes, we will discover how persecution is a kingdom blessing, and how we are to respond.

As we near the end of our series in the Beatitudes, we turn to Jesus’ blessing on those who make peace. They shall be called “sons of God,” the Son of God assures us. In a world filled with war and turmoil, the prospect of peace seems like a distant dream. In a church that has recently undergone conflict, the pursuit of peace may seem hopeless. So, how do we live into this Beatitude? What must be true of us to be peacemakers? And how do we live, as far as it is possible, at peace with all men? This Sunday will be a personal and vulnerable exploration of a Beatitude that may seem out of reach for many of us today but is a blessing Jesus has bestowed on his church.

Each year, on the Sunday following Pentecost, we set aside a week to remind ourselves that the God we worship is Triune: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Rather than being “extra credit” for really serious Christians, understanding the Trinity is essential to our faith. Our Confession of Faith this Sunday will be the Athanasian Creed, which says we can’t be saved without believing the doctrine of the Trinity “firmly and faithfully”! To help us grow in our understanding of the Trinity, we’ll turn on Sunday to 1 Peter 1:2, one of the many verses in the Bible that talks about the Trinity. More than just a theological lesson about the Trinity, I hope our time together impresses on us the deep commitment God has for us and for our good. Each person of the Trinity—Father, Son, and Spirit—are at work to rescue us from our exile and secure a place for us in the new creation.

The story of the Tower of Babel is one of the most fascinating accounts we can read in the Old Testament. Although it may seem mythical to some, its reality continues to bear bitter fruit in the interpersonal problems of our own day. We read this section of Scripture at Pentecost to remind us that by the Holy Spirit, God is at work reuniting what has previously been divided. The gift of the Spirit is a downpayment on the new reality when heaven and earth will be one—not because we have ascended to heaven by our own ingenuity and strength of will but because the New Jerusalem will come down and God will forever dwell with his people. Join us on Pentecost Sunday for all this and more!

Message from Rev. Jon Herr on June 1, 2025

Message from Rev. Marcus Serven on May 29, 2025

In “The Merchant of Venice," William Shakespeare wrote, "The quality of mercy is not strained. It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven upon the place beneath. It is twice blest: It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.” Mercy is the quintessential character trait of a Christian because it is born out of our own reception of mercy from God. Having received mercy, Jesus says we are blessed because we are merciful and we will in turn continue to receive mercy as we give it—a perpetual motion machine of mercy. It is a deeply Christian ability to forgive great atrocity and extend love to one’s enemies. When it happens the world takes notice. How can we lean more and more into this blessing that belongs to us by faith in Jesus Christ? Join us this week, as we continue our study of the Beatitudes.

One of the great advantages of coming to the end of yourself is that there is nowhere else to go but to God, to find from him the satisfaction that is otherwise unavailable in life. Sadly, most of us have to relearn this lesson again and again. We enjoy sweet times of communion with the Lord only to be distracted by the siren song of our age. Hours, days, months, or even years later, we wake up like the prodigal son in the pig stye and wonder if our Heavenly Father would welcome us back home. This week, we turn to one of the most hopeful promises of Jesus: we will be satisfied! The deepest desires of our hearts, the longings of life, the hopes and dreams that we dare not even say out loud—in and through Christ we will be satisfied.

Jesus’ Beatitudes are generally comforting. We may not like admit we are poor in spirit, but when we do we can be comforted by the promise that ours is the kingdom. Everyone must mourn, so it is a great encouragement to know that we shall be comforted in the end. But I am probably safe in assuming that no one wants to be thought of as “meek” and the promise that the meek will inherit the earth just seems to be completely contrary to common sense. Especially in our current cultural climate, the prospect of anyone being meek is laughable, maybe even dangerous. This week, we turn to perhaps the most offensive of Jesus’ blessings to find ourselves where none of us probably want to be. But on the other side is a blessing as big as the world itself.