Summit Drive Church

“The Lord is my shepherd” is one of the most recognizable statements in the whole Bible. But what would it mean for us to know the Lord as my Shepherd? We’ll see how the metaphor of God as our Shepherd provides an important picture of his protection, provision, and presence with us. We’ll see how Jesus’ fill-full the hope for a Good Shepherd, who will guide God’s people with true love and care.

We hear this beautiful promise in Jeremiah 23: The Lord promises to send a King who would do what is just and right; who would be named “The Lord is Our Righteousness.” In Jesus, we meet this King, the one who reveals that “righteousness,” is, at its heart, all about “right-relatedness.” We’ll see how he ultimately becomes “our righteousness” as Paul will say it, who changes our hearts, and sends us as agents of God’s healing in the world.

We are often fixated on questions of our health - our physical health, for sure. But also, our emotional health, relational health, even spiritual health. But where does our health come from? This week, as we continue our series looking at the various ways God is ‘named’ in the Bible, we will see how God names himself “Yahweh Rapha” the God who heals. What does it mean to know God as our healer? We’ll look together at this story in Exodus 15 and see how it connects with our stories.

This week in our series on the Names of God, we are looking at "Abba, Father." We see God’s heart has always been to be a loving father to his children in a relationship marked by love and compassion. We will look at how God, as a good Father: Sees us completely, soothes us in our distress, provides a place of safety, and gives us lasting security.

This week, we look at the name, "Yahweh Yireh," which is found in the troubling story of Abraham's Test in Genesis 22. We look at how Abraham's actions point us to a greater sacrifice, and the implications of the title, "Yireh," a Hebrew word that can mean both "God will provide" and "God will be seen."

Being “seen” is a basic, God-given human need. We all need to know that we matter in someone’s eyes. In Genesis 16, and the story of Hagar, we discover that God is the one who notices and cares for the outsider—the ones excluded or pushed out. And this is perfectly seen in Jesus, who has come to “seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10). And those who are found, are now called to “see” others.

This week, we look at a mysterious and ancient name for God: El Shaddai. We look at how this name's mysterious ancient roots help to connect us to a God who binds us to a rich, ancient history and who gathers up the outsider.

As we explore 'The Name,' how God defines Himself, we will learn the meaning of His primary title, "Elohim" or "God", and the only name He gives Himself, "Yahweh."

The concluding section of Paul’s letter to the Philippians –4:10-23– has been called the most difficult to understand in the letter, and has certainly been misused, even abused, with regularity. But the message, when understood, holds the keys to true contentment. Paul does a careful dance around the cultural conventions of “giving and receiving” in the Greco-Roman world to preserve the purity and beauty of the three-way relationship he has with the church and Jesus. We need to employ this same pattern today.

This week, on "Youth Sunday," we explore the significance of the "team" aspect of gospel ministry and explore how we know we're "winning" as we seek to stand firm in the Lord together.