This Sunday, Pastor Rich will preach from Psalm 116. This is a song of thanksgiving for deliverance and a beautiful example of how our personal witness naturally leads to public praise. This sermon will help serve as a powerful reminder of how, even in the toughest of seasons, we can find the strength to give God all the glory.

Redemption Hill is a family that graciously welcomes people into loving community. At its core, the gospel is a celebration that welcomes all people into the family of God through Jesus Christ. Redemption Hill is a family that is generous, thoughtful, and warm, welcoming people into community and celebrating God’s grace together.

Though not of this world, God's people are to be missionaries into it. The purpose of teaching, equipping, and training people is that they would then go out and reach deeply into the surrounding culture and their own spheres of influence, desperate to share the love of Jesus with everyone who crosses their paths.

In this sermon, Pastor Rich will help the church see how all of life is a witness to the gospel, and the good work that the church does will open the way for us to tell people the good news. This sermon will cast a renewed vision for our calling at Redemption Hill to Reach DC and Reflect DC.

This Sunday Pastor Cedrick Brown, the founding pastor of Commitment Community Church in Lindenwold, NJ, will be preaching for us. He also serves as Co-Superintendent of EFCA East, our district in the EFCA. Cedrick was born and raised in Compton, CA. He played football, including as a pro on the Philadelphia Eagles. He has been married to Lisa for over 30 years and they have three adult children. Discipleship is more than mere information transfer; it is walking with Jesus. Luke 9:23-27 tells us that it is taking up our cross daily to follow Christ. Pastor Cedrick will teach from this passage on the costliness of discipleship – what it means to have a cross to bear as we follow Jesus. He will also preach the impact of following Jesus as a community rather than on our own, showing that we are not made to pursue Jesus in isolation.

This Sunday brings our next guest preaching, Pastor Andrew Elder. Andrew serves as Pastor of Village Church South Belfast, which was planted out of Village Church East Belfast. Redemption Hill has been a partner in the work in Belfast for more than a decade, from the very beginning of our church and theirs. Pastor Andrew has a tender heart for people and passion to reach the lost. 

His sermon out of Matthew 28:16-20 will focus on the value and impact of multiplication of ministry. Beginning with Community Groups, it will address the fears and pain points of multiplying, but also the impact and vision to make it happen. It will also explore the importance of church multiplication, highlighting our long-term investment into church planting in resources, coaching, training, and help.

This Sunday we welcome the first of guest preachers this summer. Dr. Alejandro (Alex) Mandes is the Executive Director of the All People Initiative for our denomination, the EFCA. Alex has been instrumental in starting GATEWAY Theological Institute, which creates pathways to Credentialing through theological education for those who cannot go to a traditional seminary. This was originally started for immigrant pastors, and has expanded greatly. He also has been instrumental in supporting Immigrant Hope, a ministry of the EFCA that works with undocumented immigrants to help with legal and other support. 

Alex created a two-part sermon series covering the major themes of his book, Embracing the New Samaria. His first sermon will explain that God's purpose in all-time includes embracing those different than ourselves.

This Sunday, Pastor Rich will show the importance of keeping the gospel of Jesus Christ at the center of our worship in our church and in our lives. Using Hebrews 10:19-25, he will cast a vision for the importance of the church gathering together each week and the shaping effect it has on our lives and on our souls.

This Sunday I will introduce the series, preaching on the theme of Roots & Fruit that can be traced as a thread through the entire biblical storyline. I will also introduce the preachers we can look forward to hearing this summer. I will start with 1 Corinthians 3:5-9 and we will touch down in a number of passages along the way.

It’s bittersweet for me to say that this is my last Sunday with our church before I head out on a sabbatical. I have been overwhelmed by the kindness of our church in pursuing this opportunity and the grant that we received to make it possible. It is a great opportunity for me and my whole family to be refreshed and to make memories to last a lifetime as we get extra time together. After the past few years, the timing could not be better. I hope to return in August rested, with renewed energy and vision for the days ahead. We will be with our Redemption Hill Church family in spirit throughout, and by the time August rolls around, I’m sure we will be eager to get back with you all. - Pastor Bill

This will be our third week in the story about Lazarus. In the first, we saw Jesus interact with Martha, and claim to be the resurrection and the life. In the second, we saw Jesus interact with Mary, and Jesus wept. This week we will see the power of life conquer the grave, as Lazarus is raised from the dead. As Lazarus emerged from the tomb, Jesus called the others there, “Unbind him, and let him go.” From this point in John’s Gospel, the story takes a direct line to the cross.

Last week we introduced the story of Lazarus’ death. Jesus met Martha along the road and asked her if she believed it when He said, “I am the resurrection and the life.” This week we are going to zero in on one key verse, the shortest verse in your Bible – Jesus wept. What a profound statement! This shows something of Jesus’ humanity, anger, sorrow, compassion, and care for His friend Lazarus and the others who mourned his death. We are going to explore the reasons that Jesus wept, what He was weeping over, and what it means for us as we encounter our own suffering.