Luke 2:8-14 

In Luke’s gospel we see that the birth of Jesus triggered an explosion of joy within everyone who encountered him. They could not help but share what they had seen and experienced. This is still true for all those today who encounter the life changing Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

In this week’s Advent message we looked at the Biblical theme of peace. The Scriptures portray Jesus as the arrival of peace and Jesus himself promised, “In me you will have peace.” Those who keep their eyes on Jesus will be kept in perfect peace.

This Sunday we kicked off our Advent series by looking at the theme of hope and 1 Peter 1:3-9. The message of Christmas is truly Good News, not because it’s an escape from reality, but because through it Jesus changes our reality. In Jesus we can find our true hope. 

One of the foundational questions the writers of the New Testament addressed was, “How should followers of Jesus relate to the society they live in?” In Ephesians 5:1-14 we see the themes of separation, distinction, and influence. When these three themes are combined with the command to, “be imitators of God, as beloved children, and walk in love” they produce a compelling, joy filled life.

This past Sunday, Justin shared from John 4 about the Woman at the Well, unpacking the four major barriers that Jesus broke down in order to reach her. In this passage, we learn that Good News of the Gospel is not partial, but that The Gospel Is For Everyone. 

This Sunday we looked at Ephesians 5:15-17 and Albie talked about Kairos moments and were challenged to live like we know what time it is. As we head into a new season as a church we need to come together as a community in prayer. Join us in a season of special prayer over the next 40 days. You can find the prayer guide videos here.

In this episode Albie looks at Ephesians 5:1-2 and what it means for us to be “imitators of God.” As followers of Jesus understand the beauty of being adopted into God’s family, and meditate on the love God has shown them through the cross, they are motivated to reflect God’s character and love to others. In Jesus the impossible is continually being made possible. 

In this episode Albie looks at Ephesians 4:25-32. In this section Paul instructs the church on what it looks like to follow Jesus. We are invited into a beautiful way of life by laying aside our former patterns and ways in order to embrace the beauty, truth, and goodness offered to us through the Gospel. Let us live in a way that causes people to say, “those people are with the Jesus party.”

In this Episode Albie looks at Ephesians 4:25-32 and talked about an “AHA” moment he had about the need for reproducible methods of evangelism and discipleship at Elm City Church. This need is driven by the urgency of our task and the centrality of our mission. Followers of Jesus are also called to go deep and become more like Jesus in our way of life. This is only possible through learning to overcome the three enemies of the soul (the world, the flesh, and the devil) that are actively working against this aim. All of our growth, effort, and resistance however flows from the good news of the Gospel - that God in Christ Jesus has first forgiven us.

In this episode, Albie looks at Ephesians 4:17-24 and talks about the value of formation when it comes to how we actively and passively grow. A theme in Paul's letter is his desire for the believers to "grow up" and stop living as they once did.