Woodside Bible Church Farmington Hills

This week in our message series, The Last Words of Jesus, Pastor Abe Philip leads us through John 19:26–27 and Matthew 12:46–50. Even in His final moments on the cross, Jesus was not only accomplishing salvation. He was also forming a new community. As Jesus looks at His mother and His beloved disciple, He creates a new kind of family, one that is not defined merely by blood, but united through faith in Him. These moments reveal something profound about the Christian life: following Jesus means being brought into a new spiritual family. The church is meant to be a place where we care for one another, bear each other’s burdens, and live out our faith together. The Christian life was never meant to be lived alone.

We continue our message series, The Last Words of Jesus, as Pastor Michael Wellman walks us through Luke 23:35–43 and Jesus’ powerful promise from the cross: “Today you will be with me in paradise.” As Jesus suffers on the cross, those around Him respond in very different ways. Some mock and demand signs, others dismiss His power entirely, while one desperate sinner turns to Him in humble faith. In this passage, we’re confronted with a question: What attitude do we have toward Jesus’ suffering? Jesus suffered to save sinners. Salvation is not earned by the righteous, but received by sinners who trust in Him.

We begin our new message series, The Last Words of Jesus, as Pastor Joel Tomkinson leads us in reflecting on this powerful moment of Christ on the cross. What might be seen as mere “dying words” instead reveals the heart of Christ and what it means for us to live as people shaped by that same forgiveness. Luke 23, Jesus speaks His first words from the cross: “Father, forgive them.” Instead of anger or revenge, He responds to His enemies with mercy. These words reveal why forgiveness is at the center of the Gospel.

In this final message from our Missio Dei series, we’re given a glimpse of the end of God’s story. Listen as Pastor Chris Brooks shares with hope and confidence about what is ours in Jesus. God’s mission results in a redeemed people, purpose, and place!

Acts 2 reminds us that Jesus didn’t leave us without a purpose. The church is sent out to continue God’s mission! Pastor Jacob Ley explains how we continue Jesus’ ministry by making disciples of all nations and bear witness through the power of the Holy Spirit. 

In Luke 4, Jesus begins His public ministry by announcing that God’s promised salvation has arrived and is available to everyone. In this message, Pastor Jacob Ley explores how Jesus fulfills God’s promise of salvation, reveals the extent of God's grace, and exposes human pride.

In this message from Missio Dei — Part 5, we turn to Isaiah 42:1–9 to continue see how God accomplishes his mission in the world. Faced with the impossible task of bringing justice and hope to all nations, God does not rely on power, coercion, or human strength. Instead, he sends his chosen Servant.

This sermon traces three defining qualities of the Servant. He is chosen and anointed by God, fully authorized to carry out God’s mission. He brings justice with compassion, refusing domination or self-promotion while tenderly caring for the weak and persevering until justice is established. And he provides light to all peoples, fulfilling God’s covenant purposes by opening blind eyes, freeing captives, and bringing hope to the nations.

Ultimately, this passage points clearly to Jesus Christ as the Servant who fulfills God’s mission. Through his humble life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection, Jesus secures justice, brings lasting hope, and reveals God’s glory to the ends of the earth. 

How are we formed for mission? In Exodus 19, we see God redeem His people, call them to a covenant relationship with Him, and set them apart for His purposes. Listen as Rev. Brandon Cleaver unpacks how God's grace forms His people to be a missional community.

In this message from Genesis 12:1–3, Pastor Jacob unpacks one of the most foundational texts in the entire Bible and a turning point in God’s mission to the world. God’s call of Abraham reveals that blessing is never an end in itself but is always tied to God’s purpose of restoring the nations.

Using the story of Abraham, we look at what it truly means to be blessed by God. God forms a people for His purpose, blesses His people by grace, and sends His people as conduits of blessing to the nations. From creation to Babel and now to Abraham, Scripture shows that God has never abandoned the world but is committed to renewing it through His chosen people.

This message challenges the tendency to view God’s blessings as private benefits and instead calls us to see them as a sacred trust. What if the question is not “Who receives the blessing?” but “Who understands what the blessing is for?” As followers of Christ, we are invited to see ourselves as participants in God’s ongoing mission, blessed so that others might experience His grace, restoration, and life

In this message from our Missio Dei series, we explore the story of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11:1–9 and uncover how human pride consistently leads to mission drift. As humanity seeks to make a name for itself, consolidate power, and secure its own future apart from God, the Lord intervenes not out of spite, but mercy.

Through this passage, we see that God disrupts our false self-sufficiency, hinders our collective prideful power, and ultimately overcomes our resistance in order to advance His mission of filling the earth with His glory. The story of Babel reminds us that while human ingenuity and unity can accomplish much, they become destructive when divorced from humility and submission to God’s rule.

This sermon invites us to examine where pride may be shaping our identity, security, and purpose, and calls us to repentance, humility, and renewed participation in God’s redemptive mission through Jesus Christ.