As Jesus addresses the church in Ephesus, he is speaking to a congregation that is lost. They do the right things, but with a heart that is empty. They've lost their first love. But what does that mean? How does it look when we do the same?

Churches do a lot of things. We keep busy schedules and activities on the books. But what are the key habits and values that define a healthy church? How do its members participate? This week, we look at the four essential habits of a healthy church. After the sermon, we took the Congregation Health Assessment that measures how well we are each maintaining these habits.

As Paul brings his beautiful letter to the Ephesians to a close, he leaves them with a crucial reminder that the road ahead will be challenging. Using battle terminology, he describes how they must remain prepared and vigilant against the enemy who opposes them.

As Paul moves into the final section of his letter, he stresses the importance of having rightly ordered relationships, the foundation of which is mutual submission toward one another. After unpacking how this looks in the context of marriage, he moves on to parenting and worker relationships.

So far in his letter to the Ephesians, Paul has provided a beautiful and comprehensive reminder of the gospel, a plea for unity in the church, and a challenge to personal holiness. Now, he turns his focus to how the gospel informs the most basic and intimate relationships in a believer’s life, starting with marriage.

As Paul continues to build on what it means to live as a follower of Christ, he draws a contrast between the lives the Ephesian Christians once lived and who they are called to be now. In doing so, he specifically challenges them to live as light in the Spirit. But what does that mean, and how can we discern God’s will for our lives?

As Paul continues to lay out the practical implications of following Christ, he calls on the Ephesians to imitate him with love and purity.

As we celebrate Easter, we focus on the living hope that sustains us in the midst of suffering and points us to an unfading, incorruptible inheritance awaiting us in eternity.

As we celebrate Easter, we gather first to remember the fateful night that Jesus was crucified on our behalf.

After a long and determined journey, Jesus is finally arriving in Jerusalem. While they celebrate his entrance into the city, hardly anyone understands the true significance of the moment or the dramatic turn of events that will unfold over the coming days.