As we continue our series on the Beatitudes, Jordan preached on Christ’s blessing over those who are persecuted. As we look back on church history and consider the global persecution of our brothers and sisters in other countries, we see countless examples of this. But in our modern, American context, we see a perhaps more subtle version of persecutions. Jesus confirms in this passage that we will experience persecution and if we do not, we must ask ourselves, why? Jesus also invites us to respond through rejoicing and gladness. Persecution develops in the Christian, a deep spiritual formation into the image of Jesus and the joy of being faithfully united with Him.

“But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in Heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and unjust alike.”

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This Sunday, Westin and Jensen taught us how to make peace in our relationships (Matthew 5:9). God’s idea of peace is not the absence of conflict, but the enjoyment of all things good. Because of this, we must recognize that tension is inevitable, and it is how we handle that tension that will determine the depth of our relationships. Some may keep peace, other force peace, but God desires us to make peace. When we make peace, not only will we experience healthy relationships and blessing in our lives; but we will also experience blessing in eternity, for our unity is how the world will come to know Jesus.

“Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.”

-Hebrews 12:14 (NIV)-

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This Sunday, Pastor Jordan preached about how to cultivate a pure heart (Matthew 5:8). Purity of heart is the radical reorientation of our entire lives to focus solely on God’s will and His goodness. Purity means leveraging our desires for His kingdom’s purpose and allowing God’s will on earth to be the single driving force of every decision that we make. Purity is not restrictive and condemning but is instead a person to love—a good God on a relentless pursuit for the people He loves.

“…The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Ethos is a life-giving community committed to keeping Jesus at its Center. We are on a mission to love all people in Jesus' name so that we may all Know God, Find Freedom, Discover Purpose, & Make a Difference.

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This week, Brian Johnson taught on the fifth of the nine Beatitudes: “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5:7 NIV). Mercy is “a loving response prompted by the misery or helplessness of another; generous in doing deeds of deliverance to those in need.” We are quick to call out and even cancel those who offend us. We have become great judges of others’ sin (but great lawyers of our own). This is not how God desires for us to live. He has shown us never-ending mercy by forgiving all of our sins, and He has called us to extend that same mercy to others. We are called to show mercy to those who make mistakes, to those who let us down, to those far from God, and to ourselves. Let’s stand before God having loved too much rather than having judged too harshly. Never forget: The forgiven forgive!

Ethos is a life-giving community committed to keeping Jesus at its Center. We are on a mission to love all people in Jesus' name so that we may all Know God, Find Freedom, Discover Purpose, & Make a Difference.

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The kingdom of God comes to those who hunger and thirst for Biblical righteousness, which embodies both the private and the public, both righteousness in you and justice pursued by you. This vision of righteousness brings about the healing and renewal we so desperately need. We see examples of this righteousness in Amos 2:7, where Amos speaks out against sexual immorality AND oppression, and in James 1:26-27, where James calls for disciples to look after orphans and widows in distress AND to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. As followers of Jesus in this moment in history, we are constantly tempted to satiate our appetites at the cultural table rather than develop a single all-consuming starvation for the righteousness of God. However, God promises that those who truly hunger and thirst will be filled, wanting nothing more.

“Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.”

Ethos is a life-giving community committed to keeping Jesus at its Center. We are on a mission to love all people in Jesus' name so that we may all Know God, Find Freedom, Discover Purpose, & Make a Difference.

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“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5 NIV). In this beatitude, Jesus presents us with a paradox, that we are most powerful when we are meek. This idea is challenging because we tend to think of meekness as weakness. But meekness is not the absence of strength; it is strength under control. It is not laziness or cowardice; it is surrender to God. There is no one on earth stronger or more powerful than someone who is surrendered to the power of the Holy Spirit. When we walk in meekness, we live with an uncommon security, a higher perspective, and supernatural power. We do not have anything to prove. The pettiness and drama of the world does not get under our skin. We do not get offended. We live with the peace and strength of someone whose life is controlled by God Almighty. Never forget: more meekness, more power.

“We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up.”

-Hebrews 12:3-4 (NLT)-

Ethos is a life-giving community committed to keeping Jesus at its Center. We are on a mission to love all people in Jesus' name so that we may all Know God, Find Freedom, Discover Purpose, & Make a Difference.

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This week, Pastor Jordan taught on the second of the nine Beatitudes: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4 NIV). While it does not make logical sense that those who are experiencing deep sadness would also be ‘blessed’; there is blessing to be found in difficult times, because we can experience the provision, purpose, and presence of God. Psalm 34:18 (NIV) tells us that God is close to the brokenhearted. If we walk through mourning with a real understanding of who God is and how He is continuing to move in our lives, we can have deep comfort and peace in the midst of our pain.

“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance

to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.”

-James 1:2-4 (NLT)-

Ethos is a life-giving community committed to keeping Jesus at its Center. We are on a mission to love all people in Jesus' name so that we may all Know God, Find Freedom, Discover Purpose, & Make a Difference.

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The concept of poverty of spirit allows us to continue building a strong foundation in our faith. In our everyday lives, we often allow material abundance to feed into our pride, obstructing our acknowledgment of our spiritual bankruptcy. The inevitable self-righteous path we follow shifts the focus away from God's grace and we begin to believe we have single-handedly earned all our wealth. This narrative makes every aspect of our lives about us instead of about God. Jesus said that our pride will exclude us from the kingdom of God, and we must come with empty hands in order to open up the doors to everything the kingdom has to offer.

“Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble, but he keeps his distance from the proud.”

-Psalm 138:6-

Ethos is a life-giving community committed to keeping Jesus at its Center. We are on a mission to love all people in Jesus' name so that we may all Know God, Find Freedom, Discover Purpose, & Make a Difference.

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People often look at happy images of marriages on social media and say, “I want that,” but they don’t really know what “that” is. The real secret to a great marriage goes far deeper than just a hashtag.

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

-Matthew 6:21 (NIV)-

Ethos is a life-giving community committed to keeping Jesus at its Center. We are on a mission to love all people in Jesus' name so that we may all Know God, Find Freedom, Discover Purpose, & Make a Difference.

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Jordan dives into what the Scriptures have to say about singleness. Often there is an assumption that you will grow in love with someone, marry, and have children. When that assumption is delayed, you may become discouraged or at worst identify as incompetent or unlovable. We see that there is a purpose to singleness. The goal of this teaching is to reveal God’s plan for both the gift and calling of singleness as well as the anticipation and preparation of marriage. Pastor Jordan reminds us not to miss the benefits of the season we are in because we are pining away for the benefits of another season. “God has ordained a season of singleness not for us to fill it with distractions or career ambitions, but to pursue an undistracted devotion to Him.”

“Each of you should continue to live in whatever situation the Lord has placed you,

and remain as you were when God first called you…”

-1 Corinthians 7:17 (NLT)

Ethos is a life-giving community committed to keeping Jesus at its Center. We are on a mission to love all people in Jesus' name so that we may all Know God, Find Freedom, Discover Purpose, & Make a Difference.

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