Saint John Community Church

Pastor Tom Grieb continues our Lenten/Easter series with a message entitled "Lay Down Your Life."

 

In Mark 8:34 , Christ says “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” In reflecting on that passage, we’ll be talking about what it means to lay down our lives for the sake of Christ and the gospel. We’ll talk about what it means to make ourselves available to Christ, leaving ourselves at his disposal, and, above all else, following him.

Pastor Tom Grieb continues our Lenten/Easter series with a message entitled "Lay Down Your Worries."

 

The disciples were caught wringing their hands upon hearing the call to feed the 5,000 who had gathered along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. It had been a long day for everyone. The disciples were content to send the multitude away to fend for themselves. Jesus, on the other hand, wanted to make sure their needs were well-tended to.

 

As the disciples wondered out loud how they would ever be able to pull off such a feat, Jesus took things into his own hands. He asked the disciples what food they had found among the crowd. “Five loaves and two fish” was all there was. As we have said often, a little in the hands of Jesus is a lot. The disciples only saw the challenges. Jesus, on the other hand, saw the possibilities. He took the meager offering and divided it among the crowd. Miraculously, everyone ate to the full, with twelve basketsful left over. All the worry and fretting the disciples did was seen for what it was, nothing more than worrying and fretting. Jesus provided and did so miraculously.

 

In our worrying and fretting we would do well to remember the One who seeks to provide. Join us as we take a close look at the Feeding of the 5,000 from Mark 6:30-44 and how we too can lay down our worry and let Christ do his thing.

Pastor Tom Grieb continues our Lenten/Easter series with a message entitled "Lay Down Your Doubt."  

 

All of us have our doubts. It’s only human. Some really struggle with doubt to the point where their doubts interrupt their relationship with God. Those folk can’t seem to get over the hurdle of truly believing. The writer of Hebrews states that “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) As we all know, with everything that conspires to drag us down it’s sometimes hard to muster the assurance and conviction necessary to be truly faithful.  

 

God stands to help us in that. Even during times of doubt, God is involved to awaken us to the reality of his love. He honors us with his presence every time we turn his way, and even when we don’t, God is at work to make his presence known.  

 

Doubt has a way of either eroding faith or catalyzing it. It’s important that we not become too comfortable with our doubts but fight through them to a deeper walk with Christ. As Jesus says in Matthew 7:7, “Seek and you shall find.”  

 

Mark 5:21-43, the account of two healing miracles, witnesses to what takes place when a strong faith meets the very power of Christ.

Pastor Ashlee continues our Lenten/Easter series with a message entitled “Lay Down Your Fear.”

 

Most of us have heard that the phrase “Fear Not” is in the Bible 365 days (appropriate for each day of the year). And the Lord sure knows that we need to hear that daily because each day is filled with possibilities that we will face unknown struggles and trials that bring fear.

 

This week, as we continue our Lenten/Easter series, we will dig into the well-known story of Jesus calming the storm in the midst of the disciples’ fear (Mark 4:35-41). We’ll ask ourselves the important question, "Are we coming to God in our fear or are we coming to God in our faith?”

Pastor Tom Grieb begins our Lenten/Easter series "Lay Down Your..."

 

Ash Wednesday begins the grand season of Lent.  For centuries, the church has set aside the forty days prior to Easter, minus the Sundays, as a time of sacrifice and penitence.  It is customary for persons to give something up during Lent.  Historically, Lent has always been a time when new converts were instructed in the faith and prepared for baptism.

 

During Lent, we talk about the basics of our faith which includes, first and foremost, the cross and its impact upon our lives.  During Lent, we also pause to consider what it means to be a disciple.

Pastor Tom Grieb concludes our Fruitfulness series.

 

Every seven years the Hebrews would celebrate what was called the Sabbath Year.  For six years they would till the land, plant it, and reap the harvest.  The seventh year they would let the land lie fallow.  Only what grew voluntarily could be gathered for food.  The Sabbath Year was a firm reminder of the rhythm of rest God desires for his creation.

 

Upon creating the heavens and earth and all that fills them, God worked six days and on the seventh he rested.  That stands as an example of what we are to do as well.  We are left to consider how that will play out in our lives bearing in mind that rest is God’s will.  God knows that without rest we will be much like the field that is never given a chance to lie fallow.  Eventually, we will simply stop bearing fruit.

Pastor Tom Grieb continues our series "Fruitfulness."

 

The practice of gleaning is centuries old. It was very much a part of law for the Hebrews. Farmers were to leave a portion of their fields unharvested so the poor might access them and have something to eat. Gleaning was a way to be generous. It was an expression of holiness and a very clear way to recognize God’s benevolence and generosity.

 

The practice of gleaning leads us to think about how we are leaving room on the margins for those in need. It leads us to consider our own generosity. Sure, that sort of thing has to do with money, but it also causes us to consider how we are offering ourselves so that others might benefit. There are all sorts of ways to do that, both near and far.

Pastor Tom Grieb continues our Fruitfulness series. The Apostle Paul must have been quite familiar with the proverb, “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” Interestingly, that proverb is not in the Bible save for when Paul quotes it in II Corinthians 9:6. Paul was well-aware of what it meant to be generous when he wrote to the Corinthian Church about taking an offering for the saints in Jerusalem. Paul knew that sowing generously was important to turning the heart toward generosity and making for an abundant harvest.

 

What Paul writes about in II Corinthians 9:6-11 clearly has to do with money. I am of the mind, though, that what he writes is more than applicable to the whole of life. Paul writes about the abundance of God’s grace which turns our hearts toward generosity in all facets of life. God’s generosity toward us in Christ is able to bless us abundantly, so that in ALL things, at ALL times, having ALL that we need, we will abound in every good work.

Pastor Tom Grieb continues our series about "Fruitfulness." Jesus was clear with his disciples about their going into all the world and making disciples. He consistently lifted this up throughout his ministry. He often used the image of a field ready for harvest. Jesus knew that what stood in the way of a bumper crop were the number of laborers willing to go into the field and bring the harvest in.

 

The notion that “the fields are white for the harvest” applies today. There are people all around us who need to hear a good word about Jesus. It comes to us to notice them. Just like the disciples, we are called to go. There are all sorts of reasons why we are hesitant about reaching out in this way. Most have to do with our fear. Nobody wants to be rejected. Rest assured, God would not call us to go if he weren’t ready to sustain us. After all, he is the one who makes the harvest possible.

 

Let’s honor him by going in his name.

 

“Don’t sweat the small stuff.” That’s a common reminder for a lot of us who have enough stress as it is in dealing with the big things of life! The small stuff will somehow work itself out, so let’s not make it harder than it already is.

But with this week’s parable about the mustard seed, we come to understand that Jesus places the importance on the small stuff! So what are we supposed to do with that?

I can’t wait to dig into this truth and what it means for us as we continue to live out our lives as fruitful disciples.