Why did Jesus have to die?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

In Jesus' time, they expected the Messiah to be a warrior King. Some in our culture today have similar expectations. Jesus flips this expectation when he describes the kingdom of God.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

What do simple everyday actions of compassion have to do with the kingdom of God?Von Rev. Dr. Mike Fleischmann

Some Christians seem to feel indifferent toward the world. Others seem to feel fear, anger, or even contempt. Jesus invites us to revolutionary compassion.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Jesus talks about wealth in a revolutionary way and the key question is this: whose money is it?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

At two points in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus said that the kingdom of God belongs to children. What does he mean?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

God’s kingdom is a revolutionary treasure. It is not a set of rules to follow. It’s not a set of beliefs to hold. It is a life-changing discovery.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Many of the things Jesus says about the kingdom are in stories with a deeper meaning called parables. This week we look at the revolutionary story of God's kingdom through the parable of the sower.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Jesus taught blessings that show how upside-down his revolution is. Is it possible that this upside-down revolution could apply to our daily lives?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

It's common to make a new year's resolution -- to lose weight, make more money, spend more time with family. Our lives need more than a resolution; we need a revolution. That's what Jesus came to bring.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

God is pleased with you. Nothing about you -- who you are, who you have become, the mistakes you've made or those made against you -- nothing changes the measure of the love God has for you.

Micah foretold: the coming King has arrived in Bethlehem. Most of us know these words, as something from a foreign land and a foreign time. To these shepherds, seeing an angel is foreign, but not the message. They had been waiting in this place, for this moment, for generations.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

In the time of the Bible, a person's name was understood to be a declaration of their character and identity. Today we look at Isaiah 9 and the declaration of the names by which we would know God's Messiah.Von Rev. Dr. Mike Fleischmann

If God has a plan for history, do you believe God has a plan for you?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

What is the vision of the future you are yearning for, praying for, working for, striving for? What is your hope? This advent, we will look at promises of hope— prophecies of Jesus’ coming, prophecies of his birth, and prophecies of his eternal reign. Advent is a time when we remember that the King is Coming.…

Have you ever had to deal with someone who is mad? How can we help someone else with their anger? How can we help the world with all the anger around us?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

A central tenet of Christian faith is forgiveness. Jesus came to earth for our forgiveness. On the cross, Jesus prayed to forgive those who tortured him. He taught us to forgive. His disciples had a hard time accepting it. So, how do we forgive?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Anger is normative and healthy when appropriate but when it begins to spike unnaturally, it shows us that an adjustment needs to be made.Von Rev. Christian Hong

Anger can also be deeply destructive—to ourselves, to others, to relationships; to the Church, the country, and the kingdom of God. How do we identify unhealthy anger? Specifically, how do we identify unhealthy anger in ourselves?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

The Bible never says “don’t get mad.” Be angry, but do not sin. Be angry, but do not hold onto the anger. Be angry, but do not let the enemy have an opportunity. That sounds great…but how do we do it?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Is anger sinful? Is it evil? Are there healthy ways to express or manage anger? The Bible has a lot to say about anger and it's relevant to all our lives, especially in a culture where outrage is liked and shared.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Is it possible to extend the kind of love Jesus is talking about beyond our personal realm? Now, more than ever, our world needs people who are learning to love.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Jesus call us his friends. It’s hard to think of Jesus, Ruler of Creation, enthroned in heaven and also think of Jesus who hugs kids and calls us his friends. It's hard to hold both of those concepts in our minds at the same time.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Is Jesus offering a conditional friendship? Is friendship with Jesus, is perhaps even the love of Jesus, based on the condition of following commandments?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

What is the greatest love--the strongest, most powerful, most life-changing love--that a person can have? Romance? Self-love? Love of God? What does Jesus say?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

There is nothing wrong with desiring something God wants to give you. The problem is coveting something that is not for you. That kind of coveting focuses your attention and your will on what you do not have, instead of focusing on what you do have.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

What’s the difference between reaching out to friends for support and gossip? Because reaching out for support is healthy, and gossip is unhealthy, and a lot of people honestly don’t know the difference.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Something in us believes "what I have is not enough" -- not enough money, not enough security, not enough comfort, not enough status, not enough success. There is a fear that we do not have or will not have enough. Jesus speaks directly to this fear in the Sermon on the Mount.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Our bodies matter and what we do with our bodies matter. We are called to glorify God in our bodies.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Jesus challenges the interpretation of the 6th commandment--you shall not murder--calling us to expand our interpretation to include the spirit of the law. Jesus calls us to move beyond religiosity into right relationship with God and our neighbors.Von Dr. Charlene Friedman

Family shapes our values, perceptions, and worldview. Family shapes our emotional world, our experience of love or shame, trust or fear, confidence or guilt. But family can be messy, can’t it? How can we honor our messy families?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Special guest two-time Lee Rouson offers a message as part of our VBS Sports Camp Celebration

Sabbath is God's gift to us-- a groundwork for our relationship with God. Let's look at sabbath from God's perspective.Von Rev. Christian Hong

In the Sabbath commandment we learn that God wants to spend time with us. Sabbath is practice for eternity. What is the Sabbath for?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

omg...It is a common phrase when something is great, or terrible, or just mildly amusing. Some people say it so often they think nothing of it.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

The second commandment shows that God wants more than our obedience; God wants our hearts.

The 10 Commandments are an invitation to covenant. That’s what God and the people were doing at Sinai: confirming a covenant. God has proven God's faithfulness and invites us to be faithful.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Rules somehow feel different when they are religious, don’t they? The words “thou shalt not” just have such weight. Religious rules can induce fear, and guilt, and judgment. Why did God choose to give us rules?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Von Rev. Joseph Kang

If God allowed Jesus to experience trials and temptations, what does that mean for us?Von Dr. Charlene Friedman

AI creates new ethical questions at a time when people do not agree on basic ethics. When people do not agree on right and wrong, how can we agree on what’s right and wrong for AI?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

What is truth? That’s the question of our age. Modernism says truth is objective, factual, separate from the observer. Postmodernism says truth is subjective, relative, in the eye of the beholder. Israeli philosopher Yuval Harari claims that many truths are intersubjective: we decide together what’s true. Now we have AI to tell us what’s true. Have…

Artificial Intelligence is poised to transform society. What might this mean for our lives, and our faith? Come to consider how our ancient faith is not only relevant but essential in an AI world.Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Guest Rev. Martin Boardman reminds us that there is hope, there is renewal, and there are times of refreshing through Jesus Christ.Von Rev. Martin Boardman

What do we do when we experience heartbreak? How can we seek healing?Von Rev. Christian Hong

Have you ever had a moment in time that transformed how you see life from then on? Sharing the stories of what we have actually experienced in our faith journey is a very scriptural thing to do! Eye witness accounts are of great importance in our human story; and also, in history of God’s people.Von Dr. Jim Owen

What do we do with the weird parts of the Bible?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle

Have you ever had a moment in your life when you declared, “This is not how the story was supposed to end!”? We think life is supposed to be comfortable, but we all know that’s not how life really works. There are hurts, trauma, broken relationships, illness, and death. But that's not the end of the story.…

Can we live in a way that honors Jesus, points people to Jesus, and glorifies Jesus, instead of us? Is Jesus worth it?Von Rev. Dr. Barnabas Sprinkle