Northgate Christian Community

Jon Hasselbeck

Joel Ruddy Joel Ruddy introduced his message entitled "Work and Worship" by reading Genesis 2:7-8: "The Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man He had formed." The importance of this verse is that God doesn't give us gifts to hoard for ourselves; He gives us gifts to take to other places, just like he did with Adam in Genesis. The original word for "work" in Hebrews (Avodah) is to work and worship God while doing the same thing. As we work, we can worship God and we can serve God as we work. God has uniquely designed us for work. His intent for us in work is to serve Him. It's easy to feel God's delight in a worship setting, but it's often difficult for us to see that in a corporate workplace. Joel mentioned that we have something inside of us that is completely unique to ourselves. God equips us to handle the issues that we face, even as it takes others to partner with us. Joel concluded his message by explaining that there are two main things in our work that our holding us back: the fear of man, and the desire for worldly possessions. The reality is that we spend more time with our coworkers than most anyone else in our lives. These relationships all matter and God has uniquely designed us for relationships, including those in the workplace.

Jon Hasselbeck

Larry & Ayana Moore Larry started his message by revealing how he came to follow Christ. He started off as a person of the streets using and selling drugs. Later on, he was transformed by the power of Christ into a new creation. Along his walk he has viewed himself through many different lenses, such as being a pastor. The main point of his message was that we must view ourselves as children of God first. Out of that, our sonship flows to the rest of who we are and what we do. He brought our attention to Matthew 16:24. Jesus says, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross." In his old ways if someone crossed him Larry would have showed him who they were messing with. As he is continues to be transformed by Christ, he denies himself that right, and shows them Christ. He shows them love instead of beating them up. Ayana, closes the message with three points. 1) We are all called to conform to image of Christ. 2) Disciples have discipline – it is a choice to deny yourself and it takes work. 3) It's all worth it.

Jon Hasselbeck Through life, we may experience moments of pain and hurt – moments that will make us feel like a reed that has been bruised. However, God does not waste any of our hurt. He uses it to reveal His divine light and transform us to what He has already made us. On Sunday, Pastor Jon used a model of a light-bulb to illustrate how God uses broken reeds to be the light. The filament of the first successful incandescent light-bulbs were made of bamboo (broken reed). However, running electricity through bamboo quickly burns it up. By covering bamboo with carbon and creating a vacuum, the filament can burn for long-periods of time. In much the same way, God takes the broken life that we have and covers us with his "carbon", changes the atmosphere around us, and turns us into lights when we plug into God's power. Peter's life is a prime example of this. Throughout the Gospel, we see accounts of mistakes Peter has made interlaced with flashes of brilliance. However, despite his mistakes, God still calls him to pastor His church. Likewise, God will use our failures to shape us and bring us from glory to glory.

Chris Parker

Tom McGreevy When Adam and Eve ate of the tree of knowledge they discovered that they were naked. This lead them to cover themselves and hide. God responded by calling their names (Gen 3). It is the human tendency to hide the things we aren't proud of. The question to ask is, "should we hide"? Tom offered his honest observations of religion and the culture it creates. Often when we think of what it means to be a Christian we think of our behaviors. If you look, act and behave a certain way, then you are in. Often we put on a smile and that tell others that everything is wonderful to try an live this out. Sadly, this is not always true, yet we regularly hide under a facade of positivity. Faking it with people, especially those of casual acquaintance, is understandable and maybe even appropriate at times. However, Tom believes we need people in our lives to let the real you out. What's worse is when we take this hiding mentality to our relationship with God. In the story of Job, it is when Job finally gets honest that God offers His own thoughts on the issues at hand (Job 38). In his own story Tom shared how it would be easy to pretend his family's story was easy. "We just worked hard, looked good, and we made it". That is not the real story. The real story involves pain, laughter, heartache, time, mistakes, bad choices, good choices, and everything in between. Tom concluded by charging all of us to get honest with God.

Jon Hasselbeck Jon shared this week about the trials that we face in life, and God's faithfulness in the midst of it. He shared a story about his dad when he was serving in the navy during World War II. He was sailing on a battleship that was making its way to the Pacific Ocean from the Atlantic through the Panama Canal to join in the Battle of Okinawa. They were stopped when a typhoon hit that nearly capsized the battleship, tearing it apart in the process. Fortunately, the ship and its crew survived, but they had to sail for Pearl Harbor to make repairs. The Battle of Okinawa was one of the bloodiest naval battles in World War II. Many ships were sunk and their crew lost. It's more than likely that Jon's father, only eighteen at the time, would not have survived the battle and never had Jon. Jon encouraged us to, "thank God for the typhoons in our lives." He then went on to share how God used Abraham and Moses's mistakes and trials to shape them into the leaders destined to birth and free Israel. Both didn't want to do what God was calling them to, but God kept them going. Abraham didn't want to go all the way to the promised land alone, so he brought his family. God kept him going. Moses didn't want to go back to the Egypt after he had fled but God kept him going. The power to keep going didn't come from Abraham and Moses. In the same way the power to keep going doesn't come from us. So, when typhoons hit and your world is rocked and you try everything and fail, sing to the Spirit within you and rely on God's strength.

Pastor Alberto Lanzlot God's love is unrelenting – this is an absolute. Pastor Alberto shared his testimony about being raised in the Bronx, participating in drug trafficking and addiction, and serving time in prison. Ultimately, it was not the criminal system, programs, or rituals that saved him, but the unrelenting love of God. His wife was pivotal to his transformation from a prison inmate to a follower of Jesus Christ. Through her, he was shown the undeserved overwhelming love of God – a God who would consider him part of his "chosen people" despite all of his transgressions. But how do we respond to God's unrelenting love? Pastor Alberto uses Ephesians 5:1-2 as the framework for his response: "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." (Ephesians 5:1-2, ESV)

Pastor Jon elaborated on Chris Parker's message last week by explaining that serving is a key part of what it means to follow Jesus. He introduced the story of Stephen; a young man who had a heart geared for service and who continually blessed others in his congregation. Stephen intently waited on God's word, even in the face of extreme opposition. Pastor Jon explained that Stephen used what little he had (a willingness to serve and being available to serve). God blessed him with His Spirit and used him to preach a message that was recorded in Acts 7. A characteristic trait of church plants is for pastors to be the primary cleaners, carpenters, ministers, worship leaders, and resource for their congregations. However, as churches grow, Pastor Jon concluded that they should discover gifts that other people have so everyone can enjoy the gift of service. He also explained that in even the most difficult of situations, God has the power not only to pull us through, but to also use our stories as a testimony for others who are struggling through similar circumstances. At the conclusion of the message, Matthew 14:15-16 was shared: "That evening the disciples came to him and said, "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves." But Jesus said, "That isn't necessary, you feed them." This call to action from Jesus in the story where Jesus fed the five thousand is a picture of what it means to ask the question: what's in your hand?