Recap from last week Mike talked about the “Come and follow me” aspect of discipleship. This week I’ll continue to talk about that aspect of discipleship. Introduction The topic of this week is "Partnering with God and playing a part in His plans." This past week I’ve been reflecting on how we GET to be a part of God’s plans. We have already heard a number of examples this morning of what that has looked like in our congregation, and at Rock Nest. God has plans for individua

Right now at the Nature Centre we are shrinking our lawn so it is more of a throw rug than wall to wall carpet. To do that we are creating more garden beds and of course need deep rich soil for the new plants that will be put in this year and next. Right now our soil is rich in clay which is good for plants in small amounts but compacts really easily, so we have asked John to give us some of his soil to help increase the organic matter and add nutrients. All of this to say th

This sermon is continuing the theme of exploring what it means to follow Christ. Let’s look more closely at the passage. Jesus offers his listeners a parable of judgment about sheep and goats. He takes us to the day, when he has come into his glory on his throne and the nations shall assemble before him on his throne. Jesus takes us to the moment when justice shall be meted for both what the nations have done and what they have left undone. Now the way Jesus tells this story

Review: What is DISCIPLESHIP? God’s preferred method of: 1. TEACHING the faith to us 2. REPRODUCING the faith in us. 3. PASSING ON the faith through us. In our study of the 4 Invitations of Christ to Discipleship, we are now beginning to unpack the 3rd invitation, “Come and Follow Me.” There's a Distinction between “Come Follow Me” as physical following, and “Come Follow Me” as identification and putting into practice Jesus teachings and priorities. The IMPORTANCE of being es

From our 4 Invitations of Jesus into Discipleshipn Series Two Sundays ago, we took our first bite into the second Invitation of Christ. “Come and Be with Me.” We unpacked that from the earliest moments of creation it was God’s desire to “walk with us”, and for us to “walk with him.” Invited to come to God as children run to someone they trust and give themselves freely…to love and be loved. Last week, Sven opened up that great truth that God provides the “hot coal” through

Opening: Good morning church, Spring has arrived again in the North. Summer is just around the corner. But we have to be patient and have faith. Faith that the crops will grow, that the lakes will warm up, that the ice cream stand will be open when we have been out in the sun all day.The snow on the mountains is receding, The rivers are swelling (Hopefully, not too much more). Buds appear on trees that just weeks ago looked completely lifeless. And yet, if we’re honest, sprin

All my life I’ve been fascinated by EYES! When I was in high school I did a science fair project on the human eye. One of my career options was to pursue Ophthalmology, but I couldn’t see my way through that! I married Geralyn…you know, those beautiful blue eyes! The Bible has a lot to say about EYES! -Proverbs 4:28 “Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you.” -Psalm 27:4 “One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the hou

Recap from last week a. Mike started a new series on discipleship. b. Jesus calls us to be his disciples as: i. Followers of Jesus ii. Apprentices of Jesus iii. To become like Him Discipleship and Lordship a. What is Lordship and how does it relate to discipleship? My special interest in the topic. Share from my own story: a. Saved at 14 at a youth camp, I had an understanding and desire of Jesus now being in charge of my life. b. Faith during most of my teenage years was

John 15:5-17 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be m

To grasp what Jesus is doing in this passage we need to look back to the very first book in the Bible, to Genesis 2:7, to the moment when “ the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into His nostrils the ruach of life (the breath of life); and the man became a living being.” The moment that started it all for humankind — God breathing life into a mound of soil and the soil became flesh. It is this moment that Jesus is building upon and adding to i