Our Goal Is Love

How's your list? Not your Christmas list. I'm talking about the list many of us keep all year.Maybe it's written down, or maybe it's just memorized. It's the list of times someone hurt you.If you keep one, you're actually in good company. Peter had a list too.Peter brought that list to Jesus in Matthew 18, asking what seemed like a reasonable question: How many times do I have to forgive? Perhaps he was thinking about James and John positioning themselves for power. Or maybe it was Matthew, the former tax collector, who had offended him. Whoever it was, the offenses were adding up.Jesus' answer must have shocked him.This Sunday, we're starting a new series called "Regifting." Over the next three weeks, we'll explore the gifts God has given us that we're called to regive to others. We're beginning with the hardest gift to regive: forgiveness.With Christmas gatherings just weeks away, some of us are already dreading certain encounters. Names on our list. Hurts we've carried. Offenses we can't seem to forget.Join us as we discover why keeping score only hurts us, and how the forgiveness we've received is meant to be regifted to others—even when they don't deserve it.

This week we’re stepping out of our Hebrews series to celebrate what God has done in 2025 at CBC and prepare for His will in 2026. I want to encourage everyone not to miss this moment. It’s our chance to look back with gratitude, look around with clarity, and look ahead with anticipation.We’ll turn to the book of Joshua, where God commanded His people to set up a memorial—a visible reminder of what He had done for them, what He was doing among them, and what He would continue to do in the generations to come. That same pattern shapes how we view our church family today.This message will lead us into our annual business meeting on Sunday, December 14, where we will remember God’s faithfulness over the last year and look forward to the mission He has set before us in 2026.

Message from Cary Borkert on November 16, 2025

This past Sunday, we reached the turning point in Hebrews. From here through chapter 10, the author shows how Jesus fulfills everything religion claims to accomplish. When you boil it down, every belief system—true or false—tries to solve the same problem: how can fallen humanity be reconciled to a holy God? To address this problem, people have always sought four things: a priest to mediate, a temple to meet in, a covenant to define the terms, and sacrifices to atone for sin.As we move deeper into this next section of Hebrews, the author will reveal how Jesus is the true priest (Chapter 7), who ministered in the real Temple (Chapter 8), serving under the most gracious covenant any god has ever offered (Chapter 9), and making the only sacrifice that matters (Chapter 10).This week, we’ll look at Hebrews 7 and discover how an ancient, mysterious figure from Genesis named Melchizedek reveals God’s plan for a better priesthood—one that points us straight to Jesus. Long before Aaron ever wore a robe or offered a sacrifice, God was already preparing a priest who would never need replacing, one who would need to make a single sacrifice for all time.Join us Sunday as we see why the priesthood of Melchizedek succeeded where all other faiths failed.

Some warnings in Scripture are hard to read. Hebrews 6:4–6 is one of them. Last week, we wrestled with that difficult passage and saw two possibilities: that it describes those who were offered salvation but faked it—or those who received it but then abused it. Either way, the warning is real and sobering. But that’s not where the passage ends. In verses 7–8, the writer paints a picture of two fields. Both receive the same rain, yet one yields fruit and the other only thorns. Why does one field thrive while the other is burned? The answer isn’t in the rainfall—it’s in the response. The way we receive and respond to God’s grace reveals whether our faith is alive or just an imitation. Then, in verses 9–12, the tone shifts. The author turns from warning to encouragement, confident that his readers are the fruitful kind—that their lives already show the “things that accompany salvation.” He believes that genuine faith not only starts well but grows strong through perseverance, love, and patient endurance. This Sunday, we’ll explore why the author believed the warning didn’t apply to them—and how we can find that same assurance today. Because the goal isn’t just avoiding judgment; it’s producing a harvest that shows God’s grace is real to us!

Most people think maturity just happens with time. You get older, wiser, and better at following Jesus. But Scripture paints a different picture. In Hebrews 5 and 6, the author warns that some people hear the gospel again and again—and never change. Their faith grows stale. Their hearts grow dull. And eventually, they reach a point where “it’s impossible to renew them again.” Throughout church history, countless preachers and theologians have wrestled with what this passage actually means. This Sunday we will weigh into this scriptural warning to see what’s really at stake, and how these consequences can be avoided. The same passage also holds out a promise—that we can live as those who have inherited the promises of God. The question is: will we? Join us this Sunday as we explore what real spiritual maturity looks like—and why the gospel must not only save us, but change us

This Sunday we’re hitting pause on our Hebrews study to tackle a question that touches every home: What’s the most important factor in marriage? Is it compatibility? Feelings of love? Good communication? Shared values? Or is it something else entirely? We all have ideas about what makes a marriage work—but Scripture often surprises us with what it emphasizes most. Join us as we look at God’s design for marriage and discover what truly holds a relationship together when everything else is tested.

Have you ever noticed that even when you finally get a day off, it doesn’t always feel like rest? You can turn off your phone, finish your to-do list, even escape to the mountains—and still find your soul running laps. We can stop doing and still not start resting. That’s because real rest isn’t found in a hammock, a vacation, or even a perfectly balanced schedule. It’s found in a Person. Hebrews 4 shows us that God offers a kind of rest that isn’t about inactivity—it’s about security. It’s the kind of rest that comes when the work is done, the fight is over, and the verdict is already “accepted.” It’s the rest Jesus entered when He sat down—because His work was finished. So here’s the question this week: if God’s rest is still available, why do so few enter it? Join us Sunday as we discover how to stop striving and start resting—not in our efforts, but in the finished work of Christ.

The author of Psalm 110 tells us that God would “put all things under” the feet of the Messiah. Jesus was clearly the one who was promised but let me ask, does it look like all things are under his feet now?The author of Hebrews addressed the same question nearly 2000 years ago.If Jesus is really in charge, why does life still hurt so much? Why does the world look so far from “all things under his feet”?The writer of Hebrews wrestled with the same question. He admitted what we all see: the world doesn’t look like it’s under Christ’s rule. But he also pointed us to something else we can see—Jesus himself. Not only crowned in glory, but first crowned with suffering.This Sunday, we’ll discover how seeing Jesus in his suffering changes how we face our own. And we’ll see why the author calls us, in the middle of life’s hardships, to “consider Jesus.Come join us as we lift our eyes above the brokenness around us and fix them on the One who went through suffering for us—and is now leading us through

Prophets, preachers, and teachers in the Bible leaned on one phrase more than any other: “Thus says the Lord!” It was their way of saying, “Don’t blame me—I’m only passing along what God has said.” Even the angels, as mighty as they were, spoke only as servants delivering someone else’s words. But there was one person who never used this phrase. Instead, He said, “Truly! Truly! I say to you.” Jesus wasn’t simply another messenger. He is the Lord. He didn’t come to carry God’s message—He came as God’s message. Many people throughout history are remembered for their powerful words. Jesus’ teachings remain the most relevant words ever spoken. But He offers us more than wisdom to live by—He offers Himself. We can know His sayings and still miss Him, but to know Him is to have life. In fact, to really know his message is to know him! This Sunday, as we begin a new series through the Book of Hebrews, we’ll see why that changes everything. Be sure to pick up your ESV copy of the Book of Hebrews, which includes space for notes on things you learn as we study this incredible book together.