When the New Testament speaks of our salvation, it does so in the past tense. It speaks of believers as chosen, washed, justified and sanctified. At the moment of salvation, you were given to the Lordship of Christ. Yes, there is a process of growth, and you will continue to move forward and advance.

Jim Elliot once said, “It takes the whole of your life to give the whole of your life to Christ.” I love that quote, and it is true. But at the same time, it is inconceivable to Paul and the New Testament writers that a person could come to faith in Christ as Savior without Christ also becoming Lord at that very same moment. You can never be a justified believer without also being a sanctified believer. This is what Paul has been rejoicing in through Romans 6. Now, as we begin to walk through the latter verses of the chapter, Paul digs even deeper into the means and motivation of the sanctifying work of Christ in our hearts. These are passages that we must know and understand.

I pray that you will join us this weekend for worship. We will celebrate and rejoice with believers as they publicly confess Christ in baptism. We will pray for one another and fellowship. Most importantly, we will gather round the Word of God and sing praises to God that we might be changed more and more into the likeness of His glory.

— Pastor Chad McDonald

Up to this point in Romans, we have received no real commands from Paul. He has not given us something to do. He has told us what Christ has done and who we are in Him. This is the pattern of Paul. He starts with doctrine and then moves to daily living, because Paul knows that behavior always follows our beliefs. This week, we will be introduced to our first real commands from Paul as we move from justification to sanctification. We began this work last week. It is not easy to understand, but it is critical to a victorious walk with Christ. It is worthy of our work and effort to know this chapter and to study it deeply. I pray that you read ahead. Prepare your heart now for worship this weekend. Let us gather with expectant and excited hearts as we gather around His Word with His people and sing His praises.

“I was glad when they said to me, let us go into the house of the Lord.” Psalm 122.1

— Pastor Chad McDonald

Up to this point in Romans, we have received no real commands from Paul. He has not given us something to do. He has told us what Christ has done and who we are in Him. This is the pattern of Paul. He starts with doctrine and then moves to daily living, because Paul knows that behavior always follows our beliefs. This week, we will be introduced to our first real commands from Paul as we move from justification to sanctification. We began this work last week. It is not easy to understand, but it is critical to a victorious walk with Christ. It is worthy of our work and effort to know this chapter and to study it deeply. I pray that you read ahead. Prepare your heart now for worship this weekend. Let us gather with expectant and excited hearts as we gather around His Word with His people and sing His praises.

“I was glad when they said to me, let us go into the house of the Lord.” Psalm 122.1

— Pastor Chad McDonald

Where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more! This is a glorious statement and a wonderful reality of the gospel. For many living in Paul’s day, however, it was an incredibly dangerous statement. For them, it was a license to sin. If grace abounds more when I sin more, why not keep on sinning? To answer this question, Paul reminds us of what has really occurred in our hearts when we placed our faith in Christ. In fact, he responds by asking the question, “Do you not know what occurred to you when you trusted Christ?” The answer to this question is foundational to the Christian life. What occurs when we trust in Christ, and what difference does it make in our lives? I pray you will join us this weekend as we continue our study through Romans and address these critical questions that are essential to Christian life.

Where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more! This is a glorious statement and a wonderful reality of the gospel. For many living in Paul’s day, however, it was an incredibly dangerous statement. For them, it was a license to sin. If grace abounds more when I sin more, why not keep on sinning? To answer this question, Paul reminds us of what has really occurred in our hearts when we placed our faith in Christ. In fact, he responds by asking the question, “Do you not know what occurred to you when you trusted Christ?” The answer to this question is foundational to the Christian life. What occurs when we trust in Christ, and what difference does it make in our lives? I pray you will join us this weekend as we continue our study through Romans and address these critical questions that are essential to Christian life.

If you have read ahead in Romans 5 to the verses we will study this week, you probably noticed that there is a significant difference between verses 12-21 and verses 1-11. A few years back, the deacon body set out to memorize Romans 5. The first eleven verses were no problem. The last nine were incredibly difficult, not just to memorize, but also to understand. I even had the thought this week that I should have assigned these verses to Pastor Ryan, and then we could have just marched into Romans 6 this weekend. But, while these verses may be difficult to understand, their value cannot be understated. These verses are foundational to Christian thinking and Christian living. They help us to understand how God saves sinners and how what one man did on a cross has brought justification, life and salvation to a multitude of people. Understanding these verses will bring you into a greater appreciation of the magnitude of the salvation that is ours through faith in Christ.

If you have read ahead in Romans 5 to the verses we will study this week, you probably noticed that there is a significant difference between verses 12-21 and verses 1-11. A few years back, the deacon body set out to memorize Romans 5. The first eleven verses were no problem. The last nine were incredibly difficult, not just to memorize, but also to understand. I even had the thought this week that I should have assigned these verses to Pastor Ryan, and then we could have just marched into Romans 6 this weekend. But, while these verses may be difficult to understand, their value cannot be understated. These verses are foundational to Christian thinking and Christian living. They help us to understand how God saves sinners and how what one man did on a cross has brought justification, life and salvation to a multitude of people. Understanding these verses will bring you into a greater appreciation of the magnitude of the salvation that is ours through faith in Christ.

Pastor Ryan McDaniel | Psalm 146

Pastor Ryan McDaniel | Psalm 146

In our “big event” culture, Christmas is always the biggest annual event of all. We plan for it, prepare for it and celebrate it for over a month, and it doesn’t even matter if we are believers or not. When it comes to Christmas, we all want the same thing. We want Christmas to be perfect. We have this hope that everyone will get along. We want perfect decorations, we want to give (and get) the perfect gifts, and we even want perfect desserts. After all, it’s Christmas, and isn’t Christmas supposed to be perfect? The reality is, in this imperfect world, Christmas will never be, and has never been, perfect. This week, we will take a look back at that first Christmas which was anything but perfect for Mary and for Joseph. You see, the only thing perfect about Christmas then, and Christmas now, is that perfect baby who was in the manger. God gave the world the perfect gift for an absolutely imperfect world.