Reach Church - Everett

The Kingdom of God is here and is still coming. God says that his Kingdom comes through the Holy Spirit living in us and empowering us to live out our identities as those who have seen, heard, experienced, and now proclaim. A life intentionally lived for the Kingdom gives others glimpses of his Kingdom and his glory. It's reassurance that God still has a plan. It's an indicator that his Kingdom is still here.

Helmet of Salvation is more than just identification, and the Sword of the Spirit more than just a weapon. These two pieces are two parts of a whole. The only way this armor works is by us realizing that every armor piece we put on is also put on by someone else in our faith. We are all on the same team; we do not stand alone.

Faith is complete trust and confidence in something or someone that has proven faithful time and time again. That is why when you stand behind “the shield of faith,” you are literally standing behind the power of Jesus, our faithful God. Whatever battle you’re up against, if you’re a follower of Jesus, your protection AND ability to charge forward are possible through him.

You’re in a battle. Jesus has won the war, but we’re still dealing with the residual effects of sin and Satan’s work. At the end of the day, God wants you to stand. You can run with other pieces of armor on, claiming God has your back, but if you’re not rooted in the Gospel - the truth of Jesus Christ alone - you’re easy prey. So, how do we put on these shoes and stand firm in this spiritual battle?

We live in a battleground not a playground. We have been enlisted into a spiritual war. So, how do we maintain victory in our daily lives?

We base our entire lives around what we believe to be true. We need a truth at the center of our lives that can stand against the scrutiny of the enemy's lies - we need the truth of the Gospel.

This week, we began a new sermon series: “The Armor of God,” looking at some of the offensive and defensive tools God has given us to overcome the challenges we face as we follow Jesus. Christian life can be hard to live out because you are in a battle. As you fight, it's imperative to know that your battle is not against flesh and blood - it's not against other people. Ultimately, the good news is, Christ has won the war.

It's #SERMONTHROWBACK Sunday! // Back in 2020, our church studied the Gospel of John. The entire book is incredible, but there's no doubt that chapter 15 left a mark on us.As we kick-off a new year, we thought it would be beneficial to revisit one of our favorite sermons from "The Abiding Life" series. To build on where we've been and even grow further, we need to remain in his love.

Christmas is a reminder of God's incredible love that was made abundantly clear to us through Jesus. Listen as Pastor Sean explores Luke 2:1-20 and reminds us of the hope we have in the Gospel at Christmastime. *Note: There were audio issues with this week's recording, so we apologize in advance for the poor quality.

This Sunday, we closed our series "Light + Life." We looked at three things the author of 1 John is passionate about, and learned that we, as believers, should be just as passionate about them as John was.

God saw humanity stumbling around in the dark, trying to figure out life on our own, and yet offered his Son as the light who would lead us home. He promises that those who walk with him, who follow him, who allow him to illuminate their path and their purpose - that those people will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.

Most of us are consumed with the thought that we aren't enough and don't have enough. Even knowing Jesus paid it all for us, we can't see our worth. Instead of living with a scarcity mindset, Jesus, in his human appearance, modeled an abundant life of self-emptying love. The only way Jesus promised that we'll find life is by giving it.

This week, Pastor Sean preaches from John 6 - the feeding of the 5000. This miracle reveals that Jesus not only has the key to abundance, but he IS the abundant leader we should follow.

This week, we concluded our series on the Book of Daniel. The first half of the book documents a man named Daniel and his friends - stories of faithfulness to God in the midst of a culture that stands in direct opposition to him. The second half of the book is filled with visions and prophecies about the future - both things coming during and just after Daniel’s lifetime, as well as prophecies that are yet to come to pass in our lifetimes.

This week, we dive into Daniel 9 where we learn several lessons on how to approach God in prayer.

Your current circumstances don't have the final say. Society's current voices don't have the final say. God has the final say. Learn how Daniel was reminded of this lesson through another wild and crazy vision!

You may not hold the future in your own hands, but God does. The future according to Daniel's vision in Daniel 7 tells us that all the oppression, sin, and temptation to abandon ship on your faith will one day come to an end when Jesus returns to make all things new. His judgement will be swift and complete for those who have stood in opposition to God, but his mercy will be experienced richly by those who have trusted him over every other alternative.

There is a real and present temptation in the church at this moment in history to live for ourselves and disregard the things God says are true and valuable. Will you stay faithful even when you're tempted not to? Do you believe God can deliver you from the evils of this fallen world?

In a godless society, our call as Christians is not to waver in what we believe, but to stay true to our convictions and to stay faithful to God. Unfortunately, not everyone has done this successfully. Not only have we seen people we have been in community with walk away from the church or even their faith, we’ve sadly also seen an uptick in the stories of pastors and ministry leaders who have fallen from their positions of leadership, for various reasons. Rather than getting bitter, how can we learn to do it better?

Daniel’s prophetic visions offer hope that God will bring all nations under his rule. Daniel’s visions are packed with apocalyptic imagery, offering hope to Israelites living in exile under Babylonian rule. Daniel remains faithful to the God of Israel, while maintaining influence in the surrounding culture of Babylon. His visions offer guidance for faithfulness and hope of a future where evil hearts and rulers will one day come under the authority of the one true God. Daniel’s visions also introduce us to the "Son of Man," a Messiah figure who will come to restore Israel to their God and bring about a new Jerusalem. Throughout the Gospel accounts, Jesus uses this title to refer to himself, activating the prophetic hyperlinks of the Hebrew Scriptures and pointing to his identity as the long awaited Jewish Messiah. What does it look like to be faithful in the midst of exile? The book of Daniel offers a surprising and relevant answer. This incredible work of apocalyptic literature offers a glimpse of God’s pl