What does a dream about a ladder have to do with Christmas? This week, as we conclude our Advent series, we come to the famous account of Jacob's Ladder. What often gets overlooked is Jacob's isolation and despondency. He is literally using a stone for a pillow. He's lied to his father, betrayed his brother, and is alone in the middle of nowhere. He's likely questioning whether 'the blessing' (and especially the way he went about getting it) was worth it at all. There's no prayer. No repentance. No pleading for God's help. And yet... God shows up. God comes to him. God pursues him. God's character is on display - the same character that would lead to the Incarnation. Let's talk about the joy of Christmas foreshadowed in "the Ladder" (Gen.28:10-22).

The Advent season is in full swing. Join us as we celebrate the Incarnation. This worship service will be a combination of classic Christmas hymns and traditional readings interspersed with brief meditations. Also, the children’s ministry has special music for us.

Call to worship: Genesis 1:1-4,26-27

First Reading: Genesis 3:1-15

Second Reading: Isaiah 9:2,6-7; Luke 1:26-38, 46-55

Third Reading: Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 2:1-7

Fourth Reading: Luke 2:8-20

Benediction: Romans 15:13

As we continue our Advent series on the Stump of Jesse, we come to the binding of Isaac. This account is appropriately upsetting for anyone who asks the question: what can God rightly ask of me? The underlying issue is a question of trust. Do I think he's the kind of being who would take advantage of me for his own whims? And with what he asks of Abraham, the answer appears to be terrifying. What could be more seemingly opposite of Christmas than asking for a child to be sacrificed? Wait. Herod. Right. But if God can ask horrific things like this, how could Christmas be 'good will toward men'? Let's talk about God's provision and 'the Ram' (Gen.22:1-14).

This Sunday we begin an Advent series. Advent is a time to look back to the coming of Christ in the Incarnation, and to look forward to when he will come again. We will spend this month looking at passages that foreshadowed the coming of Christ. This week we come to Noah and the Ark. Someone says: "for Christmas? That's a bit... dark." The traditional topic of the first week of Advent is judgment, which is jarring for modern ears. But Christ came to heal all that is broken - which requires identifying the problem. So what does Noah have to do with Christmas? Let's talk about "the Ark" (Gen.6-7).

Kobe Bean Bryant famously said, “Job’s not finished.” Whether in sports, work, and even in our faith, there can be a tendency to settle or take it easy, thinking we have done all that is needed to be done. But as we journey in our faith, in the “already, but not yet,” we are called to press on and seek to be more like Christ. Join us this Sunday as we conclude our two-part series in Philippians 3 and hear what it means to press on towards the prize that is in Jesus Christ.

This Sunday we begin a two-week mini-series in Philippians 3. As we approach Thanksgiving, it is worth pondering why so often our lives can feel joyless and thankless. As CS Lewis wrote, “the unmistakable mark of Hell is the unsmiling concentration on the self.” Clearly, our self-focus is stealing our joy. But why does that keep happening, even among Christians? And how do we fight for lasting joy in our lives? Let’s talk about “The Thief of Thanks” (Php.3:1-11).

We finally come to the end of our series in 1 John. He ends by simply saying, Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. John is not just throwing out one more command, like a parent saying "buckle up; don't speed!" as you walk out the door. No, he is summing up the entire goal of his letter. Grace has an agenda: that we be both happy and holy. Let's talk about "Keep Yourselves From Idols" (1 John 5:13-21).

We are nearing the end of our series on the letter of 1 John, and he returns to his main concern. John wrote this letter because he perceived a serious threat from the emerging ideas of Gnosticism, which were beginning to seep into the Church. While that may sound incredibly distant from us, there are significant parallels to today. They were twisting the historical truth of Jesus' life to match the prevailing ideas of the surrounding culture. For example, spiritual truth was seen as an inward experience (rather than an historical reality), and they separated mind from body (much like some pitting psychology against biology today). Yet John's ire wasn't merely a counter-cultural tendency. His concern was what we lose about Jesus when we twist our faith to match current prevailing ideas. And that equally applies today. But note well - this letter is written to the Church about a problem within the Church, not a shot at those outside it. Let's talk about why it is essential that we hear "God's Testimony" over any other (1 John 5:6-12).

Why does following the rules so often feel burdensome, especially when it comes to God's rules? This week in our series in 1 John, he is addressing precisely that problem. John insists God's commands are not burdensome, but the fact that they feel that way is exposing something in us that makes them feel enslaving. Only to the degree that problem is addressed will we increasingly experience joy in obedience. How do we get there from here? Let's talk about God's commands as "Not Burdensome?" (1 John 5:1-5)

"God is love" -- seemingly one of the most agreed-upon ideas about God in Western society. However, what people tend to mean by that phrase might better be stated "Love is God." In other words, 'whatever ideas someone has about love... God must be like that.' Ironically, the idea that "God is love" primarily comes from Scripture, especially 1 John 4, which states that exact phrase. However, John is not appealing to his audience's pre-existing ideas about love (to make up a god who matches them). Instead, he explicitly intends to say the opposite: God defines love by who He is. Not only is that potentially offensive in our society, it would equally have been a challenge to his original hearers. So how could it have been good news for them? When our mistaken notions of 'love' get shattered -- especially through suffering -- we rarely embrace it. We certainly don't see it as a joy. So why did they? Let's talk about the joy of who "Love" is (1 John 4:7-21).