Renewal Church

Sunday, March 13
John 2:13-25

This Sunday we’re going to talk about the time Jesus cleansed the temple. You know, that time Jesus made a whip and angrily drove out the people who had turned the temple into a market. Easily one of the more provocative stories about Jesus. How in the world does this reveal the glory and the grace of God?

Sunday, March 6
Matthew 28:16

This Sunday, we reach Jesus’ next sign in the Gospel of John: the feeding of the 5,000 (John 6). In this story, Jesus says some strange things about himself — that he is bread, that his followers are to eat his flesh and drink his blood. What did he mean? The clue may be in the middle of the story when Jesus emphasized the one thing his would-be followers must do. They must believe in him. One thing that is clear in this story is that belief is far more than merely having the right data about God stored in our brains. Faith is not passive. It has the features of movement and action. It is nourished by engagement — by the eating of Jesus’ flesh and drinking of his blood. Or, as Jesus said another way, abiding in him. When you think of faith, what comes to your mind? How would you describe your faith?

Sunday, Feb 20
John 5:1-17

Video Clip:
"The Perfect Opportunity." The Chosen, season 2, episode 4, Loves & Fishes Production, May 2021. Angel Studios, www.angelstudios.com/thechosen

Sunday, Feb 13
John 4:43-54


Jesus’ ministry was quite paradoxical at times. He performed many signs and wonders, but was frustrated by people who followed him only to see miracles. At the end of John 4, we meet an official whose son was gravely ill. This man, in desperation, sought Jesus, requesting that he come to his house to see his son. Jesus’ response seems abrupt. “Go; your son will live.” Come to find out, his son began to recover the moment Jesus uttered those words!

What is it that John wants us to know about Jesus and his kingdom as we ponder this story?

We may find the answer as we look at this man.

Rather than continue to beg Jesus to come to his home, he believed. He trusted that Jesus had authority over life and death. To be sure, this man wanted a miracle. But his faith in Jesus’ words stands out in this story. In perhaps the most vulnerable and terrifying moment of his life, he trusted in the words of the one who is the Word made flesh.

His son was healed. But that wasn’t the only miracle that day. In faith, he surrendered to Jesus.

Sunday, Feb 6
Matthew 28:16-20

If you've spent any time at all in the church, you've no doubt heard of the "Great Commission" that Jesus gives in Matthew chapter 28. There, the resurrected Jesus meets with his disciples to give them some parting words. To show them that in his defeat of death, he is truly the one with all authority in heaven and on earth. The Nazarene peasant that they had been following for the better part of 3 years is indeed the promised Messiah. King Jesus, then commands them to continue the kingdom work that they had witnessed through him – Baptize. Teach. Obey... everything that they saw and heard him do... and continue to do that. None of what you've just read is probably new to you. Think through the past 3 years. Political Craziness. Racial tension. A Global Pandemic. Isolation. There are so many unanswered questions, there is so much hurt, pain, loss, grief – and doubt. How, in the midst of all of this, are we to carry out King Jesus' command to make disciples? We believe the answer to that question lies in Jesus final words in Matthew's gospel "And behold, I am with you always until the end of the age." Our hope is to press into what we believe is the most important, yet may be the least acknowledged command in the great commission. Beholding Jesus.

Sunday, January 30
John 2:1-11

Sunday, January 23
John 1:1-18

“Rest means putting yourself near God with God, in a time of quietness every day. You put yourself with God just as you are, empty perhaps, but hungry and thirsty for Him. You can be very near to Him in your naked sincerity; and He will do the rest. drawing out from you the longings deeper than you ever knew were there, and pouring into you trust and love.” –Michael Ramsey, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1961-1974

Sunday, Jan 2, 2022
2 Corinthians 5:17-21

Release The Past
Embrace The Present
Anticipate The Future