Harbor Rock Tabernacle

In His last teaching before He was crucified, Jesus called His disciples--and all believers--to "abide" in Him. This concept of staying near with contentment and anticipation is at the heart of living for Christ. We can visualize it through the concept of a tea bag: Do we dip back and forth into His presence and Word and prayer, or do we continually immerse ourselves and let Him transform us? Jesus said that the proof will be in the tangible spiritual fruit that we bear, and in how full our joy is in Him...all to bring Him glory.  Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSYVs8HJtnM

The enemy regularly tempts even mature believers to be "familiar" with our salvation and become complacent about continued maturation. But Colossians 2 calls us to "walk in Christ Jesus", living in total alignment with Him. Paul describes 4 ways to do this: Being deeply rooted--like a palm tree whose roots go straight down, by being built up in Christ--like a skyscraper with it's foundation in the bedrock, being established and proven in our faith, and overflowing with gratitude.   Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsEiFkF5Oy0

God loves words--they are how He reveals His character, communicates truth, make promises and guides us. As we seek the Lord and draw closer to Him, often He will give us a specific word designed to refine us, or indicate a fresh work that He is doing. As 2023 begins, it is important we aren't worried and bothered by many things, like Martha was in Luke 10, but that our main priority is to hear and follow the Lord's direction. Jesus says we will be blessed when our focus is solely on Him, and He will bring us contentment and fulfillment in whatever we do.  Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bu5y2xBRK5Y

After experience the life-changing news and wealth of emotions from Jesus' birth, the key figures had to process what it meant for their lives going forward. Not only were they amazed at the fact that God had come to save us, they were also amazed by the way in which He came here. The humility of Jesus' incarnation--including the time, place, setting and situation--should change the way we think about the Lord, and about ourselves. As we are in awe of Him and love Him, it humbles us and stirs us to be more like Jesus.  Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iB78DUjC9M

The last part of the angels' message that night in Bethlehem was that peace was now offered to anyone on earth, because of Jesus' birth. But so often, we find peace to be elusive in our lives. Much of the reason is that we are looking in the wrong places...because peace is supernatural. It only comes from the Lord--which is why Jesus came here. When we live by faith and according to His will, peace is not only possible, it can be our expectation.  Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrJ4BoUD8hQ

So many people don't experience genuine hope--which is not just a desire for something to happen, but according to the Bible, a confident expectation in the Lord to work. The genealogical line from Abraham to Jesus is a metaphor for how even good people use by God still were inadequate and failed. But the Lord is gracious, and when Jesus came, God proved His love and mercy to all people by offering salvation and a new life. He loves and values us, and when our trust is fixed on Him, will fill us with inexpressible hope.  Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8e9DFopZva0

There is a visceral sense of diminished passion & contentment in our culture. Any sense of joy seems muted, which may be due to lack of trust created by the obscuring and alteration of truth. That's why the message of the angel to the shepherds about Jesus is so powerful--because God is openly declaring the truth about His mercy and plan for mankind, to an unlikely of common people. This "Good News of great joy" brings exceeding gladness and calm delight that is only found in a right relationship with the Lord through Jesus. As we trust Him and live for Him, He continuously restores our joy and gives us an abundant life.  Video of this message is also available:  youtube.com/watch?v=DQs4VNJ8CsQ

The core needs of all people are love, joy, hope and peace, but the prevailing characteristics of the world are hatred, depression, hopelessness and division. This has many people living in abject fear. Believers can be tempted to live in fear, especially in times of uncertainty--something that Joseph & Mary and Zecharias and the shepherds all faced. The Lord specifically told each of them, "do not be afraid"...and that was more than just a trite comfort. It is the reality of trusting the One Whose love casts out all fear, rather than focusing on what we don't know and can't control, which produces confidence, freedom and joy.  Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY-ZIfKPYGo

All throughout the Bible, the number 12 signifies God's power and authority, His future work that will be completed, and our called to remember His faithfulness and serve Him with sanctified hearts. On this 12th anniversary of our church, we look at Biblical people from whom 12 was significant, who had to make a decision about living for the Lord. They decided to stand up for the Lord, draw near to His presence, trust more deeply when in uncertainty, and step up when He needed them to serve. As the Lord leads us into fresh paths, our calling is to faithful, consistent and serve with integrity.  Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN9KZ93m7xU

We can become inconsistent or negligent in praising the Lord, whether life is good or difficult. But it is a key component of having our minds renewed, especially when we are in difficulty. The accounts of Job, David, and Paul and Silas reveal that praise corrects fatalistic misperceptions and conclusions by reminding us of the power, authority and faithfulness of the Lord. When our focus transfers from us to Him, our perspective about everything radically changes, and we find strength in His mercy and sufficiency.  Video of this message is also available:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4N1c9QCuhpk