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There is no doubt that the early church formed a special community – one of great unity, gratitude, and generosity. In this week's message we discover the second of two key characteristics that Luke lays out for his readers in the book of Acts. A characteristic that just might be the key to us experiencing all that God has for us in His Church.

Certain moments in the life of Jesus and his disciples make us wish we could go back in time – to stand among them or even be a participant. For many, Acts 2 is one of those moments. While we can't call Marty McFly to transport us back, we can dive into the descriptions and ask, "What made this community and moment so unique." By so doing, we can discover the essential elements for experiencing that kind of community and movement of God today. Join us for this week's message where we discover the first half of the "secret sauce" of Acts 2 kind of community.

We had a special opportunity this past Sunday. Our special guest John DelHousaye led us through what the New Testament church referred to as a Love Feast - the manner in which they met for worship and fellowship alongside sharing a table and meal together. In this episode, John shares about the nature of these gatherings and what we can glean from them.

We all recognize the value of a deep and abiding faith, but we can miss the path to possessing such a faith. What did figures David and Paul or the early church consider essential for the formation of deep faith? Join us this week as we discover one of those vital ingredients.

Resurrection life is at the heart of not only the Easter season, but the Gospel itself. It is hope for this life and for the life to come. Join us this week as we meditate on the hope of the Gospel found in some the promises of the God's Word. Note: The middle of this podcast includes six times of silence for reflection on a passage. If you wish to extend these times of reflection, simply pause the podcast and continue when you are ready.

In our busy Western culture, we can zoom past milestone moments in the faith - like Christmas and Easter - as if they were simple events to be celebrated and moved on from. But these milestone moments are actually invitations to you and me. Invitations to linger and ponder, to wonder and ask, "What is God inviting us into in this season?" Join us this week as we enter the world of the early church and discover the invitation before us.

Jesus talked about the "Kingdom" over twice as much as any other topic. If Jesus thought it was important to talk about maybe we should too. The word Kingdom is defined as: Any place where a King or Queen is the sole ruler. Join us this week as guest speaker Lucas Cooper takes us from Genesis 1, where God establishes His role as King, to the Fall and Man's choice not to recognize God as their King, through Jesus' role as the one who restored God's Kingdom. As followers of Christ we are to live out God's Kingdom to this broken world until He returns to establish His Kingdom for eternity.

This week we are covering the final chapter of our book, We Would See Jesus. Join us as Troy shares from John 15, the passage our authors refer to in summarizing the previous 8 chapters. In John 15:5 Jesus says : "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit." Jesus is the "one true vine," He is our one true source for life. We are a branch and the only way we can experience life as God intended is to "remain," "abide," or "stay" connected to the one true source of life, Jesus. Then and only then will our lives produce the fruit God desires to produce though us.

"What is the purpose of life?" To know, to love, and to walk with God. If this is our purpose then anything else we seek after is a distraction. We have seen Jesus as all we Need, as the Truth, as the Door, and as the Way. But to what end? Join us this week as Troy shares how our authors bring us full circle back to why God created us... to know, to love, and to walk with Him. There isn't anything or anyone other than Him. He is our End!

In chapter 5 we saw that Jesus is the DOOR that leads us through the wall or barrier the bible calls sin. Chapter 7 now applies to the Christian life after we enter the door. It was by grace we entered the door and now we are focusing on how to continue in that grace on our faith journey that the Prophet Isaiah refers to as the Way of Holiness. (Isaiah 35:8-9)