04/05/2020 | Pastor Jeff reads from the famous passage of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, also known as Palm Sunday, beginning the Holy Week of Easter. He points out how the crowds cheered praises when Jesus rode in (Matthew 21:9), yet days later, crowds shouted, "Crucify him!" (Matthew 27:21-22). Pastor Jeff talks about the difference between a casual faith and a committed faith, and shows that a Committed Faith:

1) Is Not Self-Centered, It Is Christ-Centered

2) Is Relationship-Driven

3) Does Not Waver in Personal Trials or Crises.

He closes by asking the question: "Do you have a casual or a committed faith?", and extends the invitation for anyone to pray a prayer of salvation and to accept Jesus as the Lord of their life.

03/29/2020 | Pastor Jeff talks about the importance of continually praising God, especially in times of uncertainty. Reading from Hebrews 13:15 which tells us to "continually offer a sacrifice of praise," Pastor Jeff shows us that: 1) Praise keeps our FOCUS on God, 2) Praise increases our UNDERSTANDING of who God is, and 3) Praise helps build your CONFIDENCE in God.

03/22/2020 | Pastor Jeff brings us the truth of God's Word in the midst of uncertainty, and emphasizes that "every crisis is a call to seek God." This was the first Sunday of our church not being able to physically gather due to the COVID-19 crisis and the government recommendations which prohibited public gatherings. Pastor Jeff answered the question, "As Christians, what should we personally do about the current crisis?":

1. Exercise Caution & Care (Numbers 14)

2. Seek the Lord (2 Chronicles 7:13-14)

3. Trust the Lord (Isaiah 26:3-4)

Pastor Jeff then prayed the same prayer that Paul prayed over the Christians in the Roman church who were facing persecution: "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." (Romans 15:13 NIV).

03/22/2020 | The pastoral staff sit down and discuss the sudden change to American life due to the COVID-19 Crisis. At the time of this recording, the state of New Jersey had recommended all public gatherings to refrain from meeting, and our church followed these recommendations. As a result, our church decided to stream a Sunday service, and the staff discussed this change of events as the opening part of the service.

03/15/2020 | This Sunday, Pastor Dave Greco came and preached in honor of Pastor Jeff's 25th Anniversary of being at our church! We're so glad we were able to celebrate him on this special occasion. From Matthew 9:37-38, Dave shared an inspiring message called, "Anyone," and talked about how God can: 1) Reach Anyone, 2) Use Anyone, and 3) Send Anyone. 

This is a shorter version of his message from first service. For the longer version, check out the Facebook Live video of second service from the same date: https://www.facebook.com/freeholdag/videos/1303101706557677/

Pastor Matt, Pastor Jamal & Pastor Todd discuss Pastor Jamal's sermon on Waiting Well. We talk about the tension of continually bringing something to God without complaining about it, the importance of being faithful where you are, and unpack the idea of Christian Hope, and how conversations in Christian circles can change in a positive way.

03/08/2020 | Pastor Jamal shares that with services like Amazon Prime in our fast-paced culture, waiting isn't something that many of us enjoy. However, we shouldn't take our "Prime attitude" into the Throne Room of God; we can't expect God to operate like Amazon Prime, moving at whatever pace we want him to move. Pastor Jamal looks at scripture and talks about what it looks like to Wait Well. We must: 

1. Wait Prayerfully (Daniel 10)

2. Wait Faithfully (1 Samuel 17:15)

3. Wait Hopefully (1 Peter 1:3, John 10:18)

No matter what you're waiting on in your season of life right now, you can Wait Well knowing that Christ is with you!

03/01/2020 | For our Sunday Evening Service, the Pastoral Staff sit down and have a live panel discussion on the Baptism in the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues. This topic that can be difficult to talk about sometimes because of differing beliefs or past experiences, so our goal is to take the pressure off by simply having a conversation about it. 

We start by defining terms, establishing a theology of the Holy Spirit, and then examining the scriptures that talk about Spirit Baptism and speaking in tongues. Throughout the discussion we answer previously submitted questions. Towards the end, each pastor talks about their personal experience, as well as some advice for anyone seeking this in their own walk with God. 

Scriptures for further reading: 

03/01/2020 | Pastor Jeff talks about the ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives by going over six symbols that the Bible uses to describe the person and work of the Holy Spirit. Starting with Leviticus 6:8-13, Pastor Jeff explains that in scripture the Holy Spirit comes as:

1. Rain = refreshing (Joel 2:23-24; Acts 2:17)

2. Rivers = overflowing for counsel & encouragement (John 7:37-39)

3. Wind = powerful guidance (John 3:8, Acts 2:2, Acts 2:6)

4. Oil = reveals truth (2 Corinthians 1:21-22; 1 John 2:20)

5. Fire = purifies (Acts 2:3; Isaiah 4:4)

6. A Dove = brings peace (Matthew 3:16)

02/23/2020 | Pastor Jeff finishes our Anonymous series with Week 4: Behind Every Name Is a Story (Part 2). He continues to go through the significance of each name from Romans 16, why they were important to Paul, and how God sees each of us where we are at. And even though Paul knew each of their names, he encouraged them to know each other's names ("Greet each other" v. 16). Paul's words admonish us to not only serve in God's church, but also to know each other's names, and see each other with the same value that God does.