Northwest Christian Sermons

All of us live in some sort of relationship with other people. Some are married, some are single. Most of us have some sort of family connection or work or school relationships. People we interact with on a regular basis. Sometimes those relationships are great. Often times they can be the source of our greatest struggle. The Bible speaks about relationships repeatedly and at the end of the day, God tells us good relationships are worth fighting for!

Labor Day is a weird holiday in the US. It's designed as a celebration of the American worker and most of us honor the day by doing as little work as possible. The Bible has a lot to say about work. Since the Garden of Eden, God has called us to work alongside Him and, in God's eyes, work is a good thing. So how can we honor the Lord and celebrate this holiday at the same time? Join us this week as we dig in to what the Bible says about work!

It's an exciting season of ministry in the life of our church. God has given us a bold vision to reach 1% of our community to help them discover greater life in Christ. This week, we will talk about what that is going to look like this fall and moving forward into 2020. We also have some amazing news to share with everyone that we know will pump you up. Join us as we celebrate the greater life we all have in Christ!

Sometimes the Bible calls us to do hard things. Occasionally those hard things feel impossible. As we close out our Mastermind series, we take a 30,000 foot look at what God wants us to think about. The list seems daunting but there are some really practical things we can do that will help us change our thoughts so that we can truly master the mind!

If you do something good at work or in school or in the community, sometimes you get an award. Such awards are called commendations. They are a recognition that your behavior was above and beyond those of your peers. As we continue our deep dive into Philippians 4:8, we see a call to think about things that are commendable. Why? So that we desire to be the kind of people who live in commendable ways!

Have you ever wondered why we are moved by things of beauty? You hear a beautiful song or see a stunning painting or take in the glory of a magnificent sunset and emotions can well up inside. Those feelings were put there by God to create a desire to focus on lovely things. The more we consider things that are lovely, the more we see God Himself!

Whenever someone mentions thought life, many people jump right to the topic of purity. It’s a natural jump. We know we’re supposed to have pure thoughts, but we live in a world that is anything but. Have you ever wondered WHY it’s important to think pure thoughts? There are some very practical reasons that the Bible gives, beyond just the moral reasons. To be masters of the mind we need to find ways to think about what is pure at all times.

We use the word "honor" and "honorable" a lot in our world. Judges are called "your honor". People who don't win but do a good job get "honorable mention" awards. Schools have a list called the "honor roll". The word is all around us but what does it actually mean? When the Bible tells us to think about things that are honorable, what does that look like and how do we do it? This week we continue our Mastermind series by talking about how to focus our thoughts on whatever is honorable.

We are surrounded by injustice all over the place. It’s hard not to dwell on it and think about it often. The Bible, however, challenges us to think not about injustice but to focus instead on what is just. Not because it will lead us away from things that are unjust but because the more we focus on things that are just, the more we desire to wade in and fix that which is broken in our world.

Fake news. False advertising. The “bait and switch”. Phishing and spam emails. It sure seems like there’s a shortage of truth in our world today. The Bible tells us that if we are going to renew our minds and change how we act, we need to focus in on whatever is true. Why is truth so important and how can we know what the truth really is? This week we will dive into what is true as we continue our series entitled “Mastermind”.

Renee Descartes famously said: “I think, therefore I am”. Even though Descartes was not a follower of Jesus, his statement about the power of thought is deeply biblical. Join us this week as we begin a new series called Mastermind as we explore the powerful role our thinking has in our relationship with Christ.

At some point in every relationship you must have the DTR talk...you must Define The Relationship. Before Jesus left Galilee and began working His way towards Jerusalem He had a DTR talk with the Disciples. This week Jesus wants to have a DTR with you too. To follow Him you must count the cost. Are you willing to have the "talk"?

What happens when you have a need but no idea how to provide? As we continue our series "Upside Down" we look at a moment from the life of Christ where Jesus provides for a huge crowd with a sack lunch. The question remains: does Jesus still do the same type of things today? Join us as we dig into this question together!

We all face storms in life. Sometimes they're financial. Other times relational. Sometimes the storms are emotional or personal or even religious. It's all part of the human experience. In our story today, we see a side of Jesus that should help us when the storms come. Today we will hear Jesus say "Peace - Be Still" not just to His disciples but to you and me as well.

In a very familiar passage of scripture, we read the story of the “woman of the city” who was forgiven by Jesus. She came in, wiped Jesus’ feet with her hair and literally poured out her life savings on his toes. Jesus declares her sins forgiven and the crowd is incensed, for a variety of reasons. Not the least of which was the fact that she was a “sinner”. Jesus also equates our willingness to forgive or not forgive to our love for God. A very upside down concept indeed.

We're going to talk about the dirtiest word in church. It may not be the word you're thinking of, but it is something that we all have encountered. Doubt. Can faith and doubt coexist? It doesn't feel like they can. Most of us view them as opposites. But what if they aren't quite as diametrically opposed to each other as we think? What if doubt is actually an important part, not of destroying your faith, but of growing it?

We all live life with a certain understanding of how things are supposed to go. Most of the time, this understanding or filter is a product of how we grew up and our experiences in life. Our filter is also a reflection of the influence of those around us. This week Jesus challenges us to adopt a different understanding. One based not on those around us but based, instead, on His word. It's upside down but it's the only thing that will really bring us peace.

Not only did Jesus choose the wrong sorts of people to be his followers, He also refused to follow that traditions and laws of all the “good, religious people” in His day. He flipped their understanding of righteousness upside down and challenged their traditions in a very uncomfortable way. We will talk about how Christianity is upside down from all other religious systems and how we are not made right with God through our own good deeds.

As Jesus continues His ministry, He calls some unusual guys to be part of His inner circle. These weren't the learned elite. He called some blue-collar fishermen to walk with Him and be His disciples. As we unpack this story, know that Jesus is calling out to you as well! No matter who you are, how much you know, or what your backstory is. Jesus is calling...will you listen?

The Gospel of Luke is part one in a two-part book series on the life of Christ and the explosion of the Jesus Movement around the globe (also known as the Book of Acts!). Luke’s account of Jesus’ life begins with the Christmas story and ends at the empty tomb. In and through the stories he shares, we see a glorious picture of Jesus the Messiah who came to deliver the Greatest News to us, His people…even if the people back then didn’t like it!