This week we're studying Galatians 1:10-12. In these verses, Paul shows us the power of the gospel to free us from the approval of man, and then begins to explain where he received the gospel he proclaimed. Knowing that it comes directly from Jesus gives us assurance and confidence that what we have believed is the true gospel. 

In Galatians 1:6-9, we begin to see the heart of the problem Paul is addressing. The Galatian believers are putting down and setting aside the work of Christ to pick up their own. Rather than resting in the righteousness they receive from Jesus and allowing that to fuel their works, they are attempting to add to Jesus' work and earn righteousness and acceptance before God by their works. Paul knows this has devastating consequences, and he acts quickly to address it.

We begin our study of the book of Galatians. Galatians is a powerful and concise letter that passionately defends the truth of the gospel: that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Paul defends the gospel, proclaims the gospel, and shows us how important the gospel is to ongoing Christian growth and life together. The gospel is not simply the way into the Kingdom of God, but also the way of living in the Kingdom of God. This week, we'll look at Galatians 1:1-5. 

As we begin, we will be asking our church to read through the entire book several times. Each month, we will also encourage everyone to memorize a verse from Galatians. This month, we're encouraging everyone to memorize Galatians 1:8: "But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed."

This week, we conclude our "What We Value" series by examining biblical worship. In the Bible, we see that God's character, nature, greatness, and grace fuel a variety of responses, attitudes, and actions. Some examples include singing for joy and bowing in reverence (Psalm 95), faithful obedience (Genesis 22:5), humility and confession (Isaiah 6), and silent listening (Psalm 62:1). All of these attitudes and actions overflow from reflecting upon the greatness and grace of God (Ps 95:3-5 and 7, Col 3:16-17).

We're in week 4 of our What We Value series, and this week we're looking at Gospel-Driven Missions. In Abraham, we see that God's blessings were always meant to overflow to the world. In Jonah, we see a reluctant prophet who lost sight of God's extraordinary grace and therefore kept God's blessings and grace to himself. Thankfully, in Jesus, we receive the True and Better Jonah, who came to seek and save the lost. Remembering and rehearsing his grace ought to lead us to pray, "Bless us...so that the world may know and sing for joy (Psalm 67). 

This week, we're exploring intentional discipleship. Jesus commanded us to proclaim the gospel to not-yet disciples and teach and train already-disciples. Paul says he aimed to proclaim Christ...and present others mature in Christ. Discipleship happens in a variety of ways and contexts, but not without faithfulness to Jesus' command and intentionality with those around us. 

This week, as we continue exploring “What We Value” at Mars Hill Church, our focus is on gospel community. We're not just talking about community groups, but how we were created, the gift of our new kingdom family, the unifying power of the gospel, and the ethos, culture, and attitude we should have toward this family.

This Sunday, we launched our summer series, exploring five principles and practices that we value at Mars Hill. Every church has theological imperatives that it holds tightly (ours are outlined in our statement of faith). Additionally, every church also has theological distinctives that shape how it practices its beliefs and identity. We've traditionally referred to these as our three pillars, which serve as umbrella categories for all that we do. 

Over the next five weeks, we'll examine Biblical Teaching, Gospel Community, Intentional Discipleship, and two other values that are sometimes overlooked: Gospel-Driven Missions and Biblical Worship. We last studied these as a church in 2018, so this series will be a helpful refresher and encouraging study for new and old. 

This week, we're examining Biblical Teaching and our need to center and submit everything we do to the ultimate authority of God's word. 

This week, we come to the conclusion of our study of Ecclesiastes with a look at Ecclesiastes 12:9-14. In these verses, Solomon emphasizes the meticulous care he took in crafting his words, saying that his words are the words of truth given to confront, challenge, and encourage us in an uncertain world. He closes by summarizing his chief purpose in writing: that we lift our eyes over the sun to God and walk faithfully before him.

In Ecclesiastes 11:7-12:8, the Professor urges us to make the most of the life and gifts God has given, encouraging us to remember God and rejoice in his blessings, whether young or old, all the days of our lives.