Wilderness Church

In John 5:1-18, Jesus heals a man who had been unable to walk for 38 years—but the miracle quickly becomes a controversy when it happens on the Sabbath. As Jesus challenges assumptions about healing, religious tradition, and rest, the story ultimately turns to the question at the heart of John’s Gospel: Who is Jesus? When Jesus calls God His Father and makes Himself equal with God, the evidence in John’s case continues to build—and each of us must decide what we believe about Him.

In John 4:43–54, Travis walks through the story of a desperate father who comes to Jesus asking Him to heal his dying son. The father has a plan for how Jesus needs to work, but Jesus responds differently than he expects—simply telling him, “Go, your son will live.” With no visible proof that anything has changed, the man believes Jesus’ word and begins the journey home. Through this story, we’re reminded that faith doesn’t always mean seeing what God is doing or understanding His plan. Sometimes faith is simply taking the next step because Jesus has spoken. We can trust the word of Jesus before we see the work of Jesus.

In John 4, Travis walks through Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well—a woman others may have easily overlooked or written off. Jesus crosses cultural, religious, and personal barriers to meet her exactly where she is, offering the “living water” that leads to eternal life. Through their conversation, we see that Jesus knows the whole story—the questions, the past, and the mess—and still moves toward people with both grace and truth. This message challenges us to stop deciding who is too far gone and remember that we never know what Jesus might do with someone’s story.

As Jesus’ ministry grows, John the Baptist’s disciples become concerned that people are leaving them to follow Jesus. But John sees it differently. Everything he has was given by God, his role was always to point people to Christ, and his joy is complete when Jesus receives the attention. In Part 5 of So That You May Believe, Travis Wright walks through John’s powerful declaration, “He must increase, but I must decrease,” and asks a challenging question: Do I want Jesus to increase if His increase requires me to decrease?

John’s example reminds us that following Jesus isn’t about believing we don’t matter—it’s about becoming increasingly convinced that Jesus matters more.

In John 3, Paul walks through Jesus’ late-night conversation with Nicodemus and reminds us why context matters when reading some of Scripture’s most familiar verses. Jesus shows Nicodemus that knowing the law and being religious isn’t enough. We must be born again by the Spirit and look to the Son who would be lifted up for our salvation. John 3:16 becomes even more powerful when we see the story surrounding it: God loved a world that was alienated from Him and sent His Son not to condemn it, but to save it. The question John continues to place before us is simple: Will you believe?

In John 2, Travis walks through two very different moments that challenge the ways we often try to fit Jesus into our own categories. At a wedding in Cana, Jesus turns water into wine, performing His first sign and revealing His glory. Then, at the temple, we see His righteous zeal as He confronts what dishonors His Father. Together, these moments remind us that we don’t need Jesus to conform to the version of Him we’ve inherited or imagined. We need our understanding of Jesus to conform to who He actually is. As John continues building his case through the words and actions of Jesus, each sign points us back to the purpose of this Gospel: so that we may believe.

In Part 2 of So That You May Believe, we continue through John 1:19–51 as John begins calling witnesses to the stand. John the Baptist points us to Jesus as “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world,” and we meet the first disciples who respond to the simple invitation to “come and see.” Along the way, we see that honest questions and doubts don’t have to drive us away from faith—they can lead us to investigate the evidence for ourselves. John’s purpose remains the same: to show us who Jesus really is so that we may believe.

In this opening message of our journey through the Gospel of John, Travis begins with an important question: Can we trust what John wrote about Jesus? Rather than asking us to believe blindly, John offers the testimony of someone who walked with Jesus, witnessed His life, death, and resurrection, and wrote so that others might believe. Travis walks through the credibility of John’s testimony before turning to the opening words of his Gospel, where we meet Jesus as the eternal Word, the Creator, the Light, and God Himself who became flesh and came to dwell among us. Throughout it all, we’re introduced to the heartbeat of John’s Gospel: “These are written so that you may believe.” John wrote what he saw so that we might believe what is true, and ultimately find life in the name of Jesus.

In this message, Johnny Russell reminds us to remember our “why” and recognize that we were created for eternity and relationship with God. Through the story of the paralyzed man in Mark 2, Johnny challenges us to consider what may be keeping us from Jesus, and whether our own lives could be keeping others from seeing Him. Just as the four men were willing to do whatever it took to bring the paralyzed man to Jesus, we are called to pray for others, live out our faith, and help bring people to Him. Jesus isn’t meant to simply be our last resort when everything else fails; He should be our first resort as we live with purpose, remember who He is, and help others know Him too.

This Sunday, we celebrated God’s faithfulness throughout an incredible summer at Wilderness Church by hearing testimonies from children, students, and adults who attended our various camps. As they shared their experiences, we were reminded how God often works through shared experiences, meaningful relationships, and time spent in His creation. From moments of laughter and challenge to deeper community and spiritual encouragement, each testimony pointed to the faithfulness of God and the ways He continues to draw His people closer to Himself and to one another.