Woodside Bible Church Farmington Hills

One of the things I’ve noticed over the last few years with all that has happened in the world is that so many people don’t like authority. Whether it’s in the workplace, the church, politics, or some other place, so many struggle with submitting to God given authority in their lives. Can you relate? We continue our series, Church: Why Bother?, where together we learn about the beautiful design God created for YOU and His church. In the book, 1 Timothy, we also see it is also the same case for some of the Ephesian believers. They also needed that reminder as we do today, to answer the question; how should we live in response to the God given authority over us?
Listen to our newest message of the series, Living Under the Yoke, and accept that Christians under authority serve a higher authority!

In part 8 of our series, Church: Why Bother?, together we learn about the beautiful design God created for YOU and His church. In the book, 1 Timothy, the apostle Paul writes about worship gatherers, qualifications for leaders, dealing with teaching doctrine, and how the church should honor their pastors. If pastors follow the instructions from Paul to Timothy, then they will be leading in a manner that is glorifying to God. If pastors are serving or ruling in a way that is glorying to God, then they are truly a gift to the church. Listen to our newest message of the series, Pastors and the Church, and see how godly pastors are a gift to the church! 

Family. That words will make each person think of something different! Some may think of large holidays parties with kids running around and people talking over each other, while others may cringe a bit thinking about loss or pain from family. Family is different for everyone, but including God! His plan for the church was to be a spiritual family. So, how do we address the challenges that come from the many types of people in a myriad of circumstances in the church? There are different ages, genders, cultures, and socio-economic conditions. How do we relate with one another in a way that brings glory to Jesus? We continue our series, Church: Why Bother?, where together we learn about the beautiful design God created for YOU and His church. In the book, 1 Timothy, the apostle Paul writes that the actions of the church could administer God’s care for His people, and influence how the unchurched community around them would respond to the gospel. Through the study of scripture, we can ask ourselves how do we relate as a family of God? Listen to our newest message of the series, The Family in the Church, and appreciate that the church relates as a family of God

The last few years have been disorienting at times for many as we have watched Christian “celebrities” and pastors announce that they were no longer Christians or become disqualified for ministry due to moral failings and sinful leadership practices. It has left many of us shocked, disheartened, and searching to understand what has led to all of this. Many may have seen them as role models, but now they have fallen off that pedestal. If their faith didn’t make it, how can mine? How do we watch our life and doctrine so it stays strong in every season? We continue our series, Church: Why Bother?, where together we learn about the beautiful design God created for YOU and His church. In the book, 1 Timothy, the apostle Paul writes this letter to help instruct Timothy on how to lead the church, knowing how disorienting spiritual abandonment can be for a church community, so he seeks to help Timothy and his congregation know how to keep the faith and not depart from it. Listen to our newest message of the series, How do we Keep The Faith?, and learn how to keep the faith, watch your life and doctrine closely.

With each generation, we grow more and more untrusting of leadership, and honestly, for good reason. How often do we see in the headlines about a CEO, political leader, or a pastor of a large church removed from leadership due to their inappropriate use of power for their own self desires? Too often. Due to the constant bombardment of poor and harmful leaders, many have grown to distrust all church leadership. But God created the church to be lead, so what is the moral standard for those who are put in positions of leadership? We continue our series, Church: Why Bother?, where together we learn about the beautiful design God created for YOU and His church. In the book of 1 Timothy, Paul is addressing the issue of qualifications for those in leadership. Scripture lays out how not just anybody can be allowed to lead in the church. There are biblical pre-requisites, primarily relating to character and a proven track record of faithfulness. Listen to our newest message of the series, Noble Calling, Noble Character, and see how the church can be cared for by qualified, faithful leaders.

In part 4 of our series, Church: Why Bother?, together we learn about the beautiful design God created for YOU and His church. In the book of 1 Timothy, Paul lays out a model of behavior for both men and women within the church. Does your life reflect Christ and the Gospel, or the culture we live in? Listen to our newest message of the series, What Should a Christian be Known For?, and understand that Christian men and women should be known for their gospel-centered behavior and reject cultural stereotypes!

In 2021, a polling organization published a report revealed that over the last 6 decades the percentage of American adults who belong to a local church dropped from 70% to 49%. It seems that an entire nation is asking a critical question about church…why bother? Many of us often wonder if going to church is really worth it. We can often fill our Sundays with errands, sports games, and kid’s activities—putting church and its people on the back burner. But what if we told you God has a beautiful design for the church that very much includes YOU? The book of 1 Timothy speaks to these truths. And if each of us submits to them, our church will function as the loving family God intends. One that beautifully represents the truth of God’s merciful plan of salvation through Jesus. Join us each week as we look at the answers to the question, Church: Why Bother? Listen to our first message of the series, What is the Church?, and learn how the church is a family that upholds the truth and spreads the gospel.

Are you ready for Christmas Day? Your Christmas meal has been planned, everything is wrapped nicely, and the house is clean. Many have been planning and preparing for this day since some point in November, or maybe even October probably. It leads to wonder, are we ready for Jesus? Today of all days, is a day for us to consider and ask if we are ready for Jesus, and more directly ready to receive King Jesus? We conclude our Christmas series, Fulfilled: His Promise Kept, Our Longing Met, where we will discover how Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promises to us. Matthew has shown from these ancient prophecies in Scripture that Jesus is bringing the Kingdom of God. Which leads us to ask, how should we respond or seek to relate to Jesus the King? Just like we seek to be ready for Christmas Day, and if Jesus truly is the King, bringing in the Kingdom of God, we should make sure we take the right posture. Listen to our last message in our series, Preparing for the King, and let’s Get Ready to Receive King Jesus!

In the last few weeks, we have looked at Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth and have seen many references to how Jesus fulfilled the prophecies recorded in the Old Testament. Here on Christmas eve, there is one more I’d like to point out! From the Old Testament to the New Testament, it may have seemed difficult to trust in the promise of God. His people were promised a king from the line of David, but had that line been maintained through all that chaos? Many people probably questioned God and doubted His ability to keep His promises. We continue our Christmas series, Fulfilled: His Promise Kept, Our Longing Met, where we will discover how Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promises to us. In these verses, we see how God kept His promise to His people and continues to do so even today! Listen to the fifth message in our series, The King is Here, and get excited that Jesus is the Promised King!

Christmas traditions are great! But how many of us have found ourselves at some point in a holiday season carrying on “the tradition,” but the reality is very different? Traditions sometimes can cause us to focus on the “joy” of Christmas while ignoring the harder or more painful parts of the season. This only makes the season harder and more challenging. We’re told, “it’s the most wonderful time of the year,” but what do we do when it doesn’t feel like it? We continue our Christmas series, Fulfilled: His Promise Kept, Our Longing Met, where we will discover how Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promises to us. While exploring scripture that is not part of the “traditional” Christmas texts, we’re going to see, it has a lot to say to us when dealing with the painful parts of the holiday season and our lives in general. Jesus’ birth doesn’t ignore the reality of pain or suffering, it highlights it. Listen to our fourth message in our series, A Blue Christmas, and embrace that in Jesus, our mourning turns to hope!