New Hope Church Hilo Hawaii

When Jesus came He ushered in the Kingdom of God. When He returned to the Father, He gave us the assignment of continuing to build His Kingdom.

As John receives revelation about Jesus, he recognizes that He is the living One. Jesus was once dead but now, as John records, is alive and well. Jesus is the only One with the keys of death and hades.

Jesus gave His life so that we would experience the life He designed for us. True life is more than a statement, it's the hope of a possible reality. This is why Jesus gave us a new covenant, signed and sealed with His very own life. We'll be receiving communion as a reminder of how that happens for us all.

As we close out the year, we are all given the opportunity to learn and grow in Jesus. As we prayed together, learned together, and sought Jesus together, I truly believe that when we look back at 2020, we will not see it as the worst year ever, we will see it as the year we grew the most in Christ together. We reach a certain maturity as a result of life experiences and age, but in order to mature past that and grow even more, will require us choosing to do so. So let's choose to learn and grow together as we enter into 2021 so that we can shine brighter for Jesus together in the hopes that people find Him

If you have ever been on a sports team, or watch a sports team come from behind and win the game, you would've seen them finish strong. If you have ever been a part of watching someone fight through sickness or disease, you would see someone finish strong. If you have ever seen someone go through spiritual battles and come out victorious, then you would've seen someone finish strong. The bible is filled with men and women who battled through the most difficult season, yet finished strong. Jesus Himself, will show us how we too can finish strong as we close out 2020.

We will go through so many different seasons in our lifetime. Great seasons and some not so great ones. How do we make the most of every season we go through? We're going to learn that Jesus already knows what seasons we'll be going through, long before we go through them, and will be with us through it all. We'll be sharing stories of our Christmas experiences and how Jesus has been faithful through it all.

The birth of Jesus was the fulfillment of thousands of years of prophecies and at the same time caused many people to be skeptical about who He was and who He was becoming. We can learn in retrospect because of all the evidence and biblical witnesses that prove who Jesus is. Yet, many still find themselves skeptical about who Jesus is and even for those who have a relationship with Him, still find it difficult to surrender everything to Him.

The people of Israel tried to obey God and follow the Law, but they didn't succeed. Only faith in Jesus' death and resurrection can justify humanity and fulfill God's promise to create a covenant relationship with His people, the descendants of Abraham. Through Jesus, God creates a new covenant family that includes Jews and gentiles who are unified as they love and forgive each other. Even though people continue to reject Jesus, God uses their rejection to expand His family and grow the Church.

Nothing shakes the core of our being than confusion. If God is not the author of confusion, as 1 Corinthians 14:33 says, then what do we do when we are confused? We are confused in our relationships, the current pandemic, politics, and even our own beliefs sometimes. Jesus brings the kind of peace that is necessary when we are confused with all that is happening around us. For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

The book of Acts details the work of his followers and the formation of the early Church. Jesus’ followers received the Holy Spirit on Pentecost and became filled and equipped to spread the good news that would restore God’s Kingdom over the world. Through persecution, followers of Jesus were scattered, but they continued to preach, and the church at Antioch was born.

When the angels spoke to the shepherds about Jesus being born, and who He was to be, the shepherds listened and made a decision to check out if what the angels said were true. They made a lifelong memory of the moment, which changed everything in their life for the better. We too will hear from heaven and will have an opportunity to make life-changing decisions for the better.

When Jesus healed a demon possessed man, He sent the demons into a herd of pigs nearby. The pigs ran down a hill, into the water, and drowned. Those who witnessed the event reported what had happened and when the people from the city came to see Jesus, they missed the opportunity to be a part of something greater than what they were used to. We too will miss Kingdom opportunities when we don't know what to look for.

When Jesus healed a demon possessed man, He sent the demons into a herd of pigs nearby. The pigs ran down a hill, into the water, and drowned. Those who witnessed the event reported what had happened and when the people from the city came to see Jesus, they missed the opportunity to be a part of something greater than what they were used to. We too will miss Kingdom opportunities when we don't know what to look for.

Celebrating all that God has done in 2020 and looking forward to what He'll be doing in the year to come!

We can never drift too far from You. Your admonition to the Israelites was to return to You and You would return to them. They could never drift too far from You. Their return was a simple act of obeying Your ways. We all want things to turn back to normal...let's not return back to normal, let's turn back to You

A kingdom for all. The book of Luke documents how Jesus expands God's covenant and Kingdom. Jesus describes a new family of God that includes the poor, outcasts, and others to whom Jesus brings restoration and reverses their life circumstances. He offers freedom from the tyranny of evil and sin to all those who recognize him as the son of God.

Jesus has such a love for people that when He saw their hurts, He was moved with compassion and healed them. Jesus is more than a King in the Kingdom of God, He is a compassionate one.

The Gospel of Mark was written during a time when christians were being persecuted. With all that was happening around them and living under the threat of death, Mark wrote about the ""Good News"" which is Jesus Christ. As a follower of Jesus, our roads will not be easy or smooth all the time, but there is hope and encouragement as we study the way Jesus lived, and loved.