Here we examine what it really means to "Hunger and Thirsty for Righteousness" by breaking down what each word means and what that means for our Christian walk. Are we really hungry for the presence of God or are we hungry for what God can do for us, or for a religious experience, or does it only happen during tragedies and struggles? If we are ever going to thrive living out "Second Mile" Christianity we must develop a spiritual appetite for the presence of God in every area of our lives. The problem is we are not spiritually hungry because we are too filled by the "food of the world" or we have never really understood how "hungry and thirsty" our souls are for the presence of God. Join us as we break down and examine this very important character trait and "Beatitude" from Matthew 5:6. 

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When you think of the most powerful people on earth, meekness is not one of the character attributes we would usually use to describe them. Yet when Jesus is listing character traits that a Christ Follower will need to live and operate in the second mile, one of the most important is meekness. Not only is it the practical application when we seek to live the first two traits he has mentioned - it is what empowers us to strive to follow in his footsteps and be obedient to His Word. This message defines and explains what Biblical meekness is and why it is so important. It also gives us some practical examples of what meekness looks like lived out in our everyday lives. From Matthew 5:5. 

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At the start of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus follows up his call for those who want to follow him to be "poor in spirit" to promise for those who mourn that they will be comforted. It is easy to read this as meaning "mourn" in a sense of our emotional response to facing death, sickness or tragedy, and there are plenty of those promises in the New Testament, but that is not what he is talking about here. In verse 4 of Chapter 5, he is talking about a different type of mourning. A type of mourning that is the emotional response to the intellectual reality of verse 3 - a mourning over sin. All sin and its consequences - the sin in our world, our nation, in the lives of those we love and most importantly in our own lives. We can never expect to live in the second mile if we are not heartbroken over the things that break God's heart. Listen to discover what that might look like in our everyday lives and learn the promise that comes to those who are broken hearted over sin. From Matthew 5:4

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When we realize how difficult it is for us to follow Jesus by living in the second mile, we come to understand it is only through the help and power of the Holy Spirit that we might accomplish it. It is easy to live in the first mile in our own strength, understanding, talents and ability - but for "second mile people" it requires a total dependence on the Holy Spirit. Even that can be difficult, so Jesus begins the Sermon on the Mount by giving us some heart attitudes / character traits that allow us to be open to the Holy Spirit's guidance and leadership and gives us motivation for the second mile. In this message we break down the first of those traits which is foundational for second mile living. 

From Matthew 5:1-3

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As we start this new sermon series, we will be exploring what Jesus meant in Matthew 5:41 when he encourages his followers to "go the second mile" and what that might look lived out in our everyday lives. We explore the context and history related to the passage as well as examining how it fits into the overall theme of the Sermon on the Mount. This new series will be looking at the Beatitudes and the role they play in helping us to develop a heart, passion and vision that will allow us to make the second mile our home. From Matthew 5:38-42.

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We close out our sermon series on those who had encounters with Jesus with probably the most relatable character in our entire series. He is the only one who was already a Christian and had probably known Jesus and followed him in his early ministry, but our encounter takes place much later while he is living in Damascus and Jesus comes to him while he is praying. Jesus ask Annanias to complete what seemed like a simple task; go find a man and pray for him and tell him that God has and important job for him. Something that most of us have done before in praying and encouraging others - but the man Annanias is called to visit was the Christian killing Pharisee named Saul. Join us to discover what happened and how this simple encounter challenges all of us. From Luke 9:10-19. 

The final sermon in the series "The Had Been with Jesus". 

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In this encounter with Jesus, we look outside of the Gospels for the first time to the book of Acts as we meet Saul the Pharisee. Introduced to us at the murder/stoning of Stephen, one of the first deacons in the new Jerusalem church, by the Pharisees and religious leaders. We discover that when it comes to opposing, persecuting and pursuing the new Christian converts, Saul is unmatched. With the assassination of Charlie Kirk, we have seen a very overt, open and obvious (and sometime demonic) hatred of Christians in America and what they stand for - Saul the Pharisee would give any of those a run for their money when it comes to being evil. So, how did he turn from this open hatred and persecution of Christians to become the Apostle Paul, that we love and respect today? It was a simple encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus and in that encounter, we might discover an answer for the American church in how we should respond to what is happening all around us. From Acts 7 and Acts 9  

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In this encounter with Jesus, we look at the dinner party thrown by Simon the Pharisee that was crashed by an unnamed "sinful woman" with an alabaster jar full of perfume. While it is actually two encounters, both reveal something about worship that many "seasoned" Christians lose sight of our take for granted. As we discuss this encounter, we will look at both our personal and corporate worship experience and ask the question whether it actually reflects our own encounters with God. A look at how and why we sing as an act of Worship as well as our posture and behavior in corporate worship. We also challenge the church on the dangers of a spirit of entitlement that can affect us all over time and how to overcome it. From Luke 7:36-50. 

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In this message Pastor Rusty starts by offering some thoughts and reflections on the murder of Charlie Kirk and is aftereffects. He also ties in this assassination and several other troubling current events to the Encounter that Jesus had with the man born blind and the question of "Why". Why does God allow this kind of evil to run free? Why would God allow such evil to happen to good people? Jesus reveals in our study that "why" is the wrong question. Listen in to discover the right question and how it affects every one of us as we face difficulties and struggles. We also examine the various groups response to the healing of the blind man and how that relates to how each one of us responds when we see God working. From John 9

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Any time a Christians mentions the dangers and consequences of living a sinful lifestyle, it doesn't take long to hear someone proclaim Matthew 7:1, "Judge not least you be judged" or John 8:7 "You without sin cast the first stone." They try to use these versus to silent their critics or anyone who doesn't celebrate their life choices. In this message we examine John 8 and Jesus' encounter with the women caught in adultery and answer those who try and use this passage to justify their sins. We also examine the danger of Christians standing on truth without the balance of grace to reach a dying and lost culture. In this story, we have the perfect example to follow if we hope to open the eyes of a blinded and lost generation. From John 8

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