Union Church

Listen along as we continue through Acts.

Notes//Quotes:

Acts 21:37-22:29 

Matthew 5:9-11, 5:43-46

”Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction. So when Jesus says “Love your enemies,” he is setting forth a profound and ultimately inescapable admonition. Have we not come to such an impasse in the modern world that we must love our enemies– or else? The chain reaction of evil–hate begetting hate, wars producing wars–must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Romans 9:1-5

1 Peter 3:8-17

Listen along as we continue our series through Acts.

Notes//Quotes:

Acts 21:1-36 
The same forebodings marked Jesus’ journey—the same strong resolve on Jesus’ part, the same misgivings on the part of his disciples. In the Gospels Jesus’ predictions of his coming passion provide the ominous tone. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus’ journey is particularly marked by sayings regarding Jerusalem as the place of rejection for God’s messengers. In Jerusalem Jesus was arrested and executed. In Jerusalem Paul also was arrested and his life put in extreme jeopardy - John Polhill

Map

“The primary reality of which we have to take account in seeking for a Christian impact on public life is the Christian congregation. How is it possible that the gospel should be credible that people should come to believe that the power which has the last word in human affairs is represented by a man hanging on a cross? . . . The only answer, the only hermeneutic of the gospel, is a congregation of men and women who believe it and live by it.” Leslie Newbigin

It will be a community of praise in a world of doubt and skepticism.
It will be a community of truth in a pluralist society that overwhelms and produces relativism.
It will be a selfless community that does not live for itself but is deeply involved in the concerns of its neighborhood in a selfish world.
It will be a community prepared to live out the gospel in public life in a world that privatizes all religious claims.
It will be a community of mutual responsibility in a world of individualism.
It will be a community of hope in a world of pessimism and despair about the future.

“Are we to blame Paul for his obstinacy or admire him for his unshakeable resolve?” John Stott

1 Cor 9:19-23

 

“We can only thank God for the generosity of spirit displayed by both James and Paul. They were already agreed doctrinally (that salvation was by grace in Christ through faith) and ethically (that Christians must obey the moral law). The issue between them concerned culture, ceremony and tradition. The solution to which they came was not a compromise, in the sense of sacrificing a doctrinal or moral principle, but a concession in the area of practice.” - John Stott

The church is beautiful because the lens through which Christ regards her is his cross – the focal point of blood, righteousness, forgiveness, union, justification, regeneration, and grace. God could have chosen to make his beauty known exclusively through breathtaking landscapes, undulating oceans, and sublime sunsets. Instead, he has decided to display his radiance within the hearts of the crown of his creation, humanity. - Dustin Benge

Listen along as we continue our series through Acts.

Notes//Quotes:

Text: Acts 20:17-38 - Jack reading
Title: Apostolic Goodbyes

Slide 1:
“The ancient world considered humility a weakness. Whether you were rich or poor, what you prized instead was honour—having your merits recognized and your name praised. Boasting about your achievements was expected in the Greco-Roman world, and one never humbled themselves to others as that would sacrifice your well-earned status. Humility was something for children and slaves, not honourable men and women…All this changed in AD33 when an innocent man believed to be the Son of God submitted to the most humiliating act the Romans could concoct—crucifixion. Jesus relinquished his divine status, Christians believed, dying not for himself but for us—which left onlookers with a dilemma: either Jesus wasn’t worthy of honour, or their definition of humility had to change. The definition changed and today you and I see humility not as a weakness but as a virtue.” 
—John Dickson

Slide 2:
“But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God.” 
(2 Cor. 4:2)

Slide 3:
“Christian brotherhood is not an ideal which we must realize; it is rather a reality created by God in Christ in which we may participate. The more clearly we learn to recognize that the ground and strength and promise of all our fellowship is in Jesus Christ alone, the more serenely shall we think of our fellowship and pray and hope for it.” 
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together

Slide 4:
“We may have said to someone even this week, “Well, as long as you’ve got your health, that’s all that matters,” or “As long as you get your feet over the bed, that’s what counts,” or “As long as you’re vertical, you know, it’s a great day.” Well, of course, we know what we mean by that. But that is not all that matters. For our very frame is a dying frame. We’re crumbling even as we go. And unless we’re able to say with Paul, “To me, to live is Christ,” we cannot legitimately affirm with Paul, “and to die is gain.” The only way that death can be gain is if Christ is everything. And if Christ is everything, as Paul says it is, then he’s able to say, “The ultimate issue is not my life.” 
—Alistair Begg

Slide 5:
“God promised and, in his sacraments, he gave me a sure sign of his grace that Christ’s life overcame my death in his death, that his obedience blotted out my sin in his suffering, that his love destroyed my hell in his forsakenness. This sign and promise of my salvation will not lie to me or deceive me. It is God who has promised it, and he cannot lie either in words or in deeds.” He who thus insists and relies on the sacraments will find that his election and predestination will turn out well without his worry and effort.” 
—Martin Luther, Fourteen Consolations

 

 

Listen along as we continue our series through Acts.

Notes//Quotes:

Acts 20:1-16

2 Cor 1:3-11

Galatians 3:26-29

I see no cause why some interpreters should so sharply condemn the drowsiness of the young man, that they should say that he was punished for his sluggishness by death. - John Calvin

Romans 15:25-29 

Listen along as Anthony shares some reflections from the Proverbs.

Notes//Quotes:

Title: Where's Wisdom

Slide 1
“That excuse is implicitly rejected here. Wisdom is not some hidden treasure that has to be dug from the depths of the earth (compare Job 28) or the sole possession of the lonely sage sitting atop a mountain. To the contrary, Wisdom roams the streets looking for someone to instruct. The ways of right and wrong, as presented in this word of God, are open for all to read and follow. At the same time, this section is a true appeal from the Spirit for whoever has ears to turn and listen.” 
- Duane A. Garrett

Slide 2
Proverbs 13:20: "Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm" (ESV). 

Slide 3
Psalm 1:1-2: "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers" (ESV). 

Slide 4
Proverbs 12:26: "The righteous should choose his friends carefully, For the way of the wicked leads them astray" (NIV/NKJV).

Slide 5
Hebrews 12:1: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,” (ESV)

Slide 6
Proverbs 17:3, “The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the Lord tests hearts.” (ESV)

Slide 7
1 Corinthians 9:27: “It is my own body I fight to make it do what I want. I do this so that I won’t miss getting the prize myself after telling others about it.” (ESV)

Slide 8
Colossians 1:28-29: “Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.” 

Slide 9
Well, I'm coming to the edge of the widest canyon
My companions dear
I'm starting to question my manifest destiny
My claim to this frontier
And I'm coming to the brink of a great disaster
The end just has to be near
The Earth spins faster, whistles right past you
Whispers death in your ear
Oh, don't pretend you can't hear
Don't pretend you can’t
— Manifest, by Andrew Bird

Listen along as we continue our Advent series.

Notes//Quotes:

Luke 2:8-20 - Josh Reading

“I put on my hard hat, I grab a chisel and I imagine going into the very back corners of that cave and just digging into the work, each time I go in the cave, it’s getting bigger for the next visit.” - Courtney Dauwalter

“God never hurries. There are no deadlines against which He must work. Only to know this is to quiet our spirits and relax our nerves.” A.W. Tozer

One should not romanticize the occupation of shepherds. In general shepherds were dishonest and unclean according to the standards of the law. They represent the outcasts and sinners for whom Jesus came. Such outcasts were the first recipients of the good news - Robert Stein

 

Ps 39:7

Matthew 5:3-12

Christianity teaches the infinite worth of that which is seemingly worthless and the infinite worthlessness of that which is seemingly so valued. - Bonhoeffer

Growth equals change; change equals loss; loss equals pain; so inevitably, growth equals pain. Pain is a part of progress. Anything that grows experiences some pain. If I avoid all pain, I’m avoiding growth. - Samuel Chand

Listen along as Anthony Garcia continues our Advent series.

Jack Reading Luke 1:26-38 & Matthew 1:18-25

Slide: 1
https://pin.it/5m6BRIZrS

Slide : 2
“Embrace or reject, believe or doubt. Either we abandon ourselves to God’s path, the steps of which are only revealed as each foot is lifted in obedience, or we cling to our own path with its illusion of certainty.”    
— Miriam Dixon

Slide:3
“I see Mary at the Annunciation — her hands open, her whole body softened by consent, receiving the Word who desires to become flesh in her. The posture is not passive but brave: an active surrender, a courageous hospitality to God’s own life.
— Kaysie Strickland

Slide: 4
“A carpenter is trained to make plans and follow plans. Details matter to a woodworker. Joseph’s work reflects his life: structured and well-ordered. A person’s name and family line mean everything in this culture, and there is no greater line than that of King David. Joseph represents it well. Just as he would craft a beautiful table, Joseph is crafting a well-built life. Then a massive splinter pierces his heart.”
 —Miriam Dixon

Slide: 5
“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” —Mike Tyson

Slide: 6
For whatever reason, God chose to make man as he is—limited and suffering and subject to sorrows and death—he [God] had the honesty and the courage to take his own medicine. Whatever game he is playing with his creation, he has kept his own rules and played fair. He can exact nothing from man that he has not exacted from himself. He has himself gone through the whole of human experience, from the trivial irritations of family life and the cramping restrictions of hard work and lack of money to the worst horrors of pain and humiliation, defeat, despair, and death.
When he was a man, he played the man. He was born in poverty and died in disgrace, and thought it was worthwhile.
—Dorthy Sayers

 

 

 

Listen along as Mike Gaston continues our Advent series.

Notes//Quotes:

Matthew 2:1-12 - Faith Reading

 

Slide 1

The Big Idea

The Magi prove that God keeps His promise to bless all the nations of the earth

 

Slide 2

Who was Herod the King?

 

Slide 3

“There are lots of Herods in the New Testament—this one is the first Herod, Herod the Great, the King of the Jews. But the thing about Herod the Great, the King of the Jews, is that he wasn’t a Jew and shouldn’t have been king. He wasn’t from the tribe of Judah, or the house of David. He wasn’t actually a Jew—he was an Idumean, an Edomite, technically, one of Israel’s historical enemies.

He ruled by terror and murder. He was paranoid and at times seems legit crazy. At one point when he was literally on his death bed, he thought his own sons were trying to assassinate him. He’s literally on his death bed actually dying—so he had his own sons executed. By the last few years of his life it seems like he was completely out of his tree.”

 

Craig Hamilton

 

Slide 4

Who were the wise men?

 

Slide 5

“Then Pharaoh summoned the wise men and the sorcerers, and they, the magicians of Egypt, also did the same by their secret arts. For each man cast down his staff, and they became serpents. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs.”

Exodus 7:11-12

 

Slide 6

“Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts, and made him ruler of the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.”

Daniel 2:48

Slide 7

““The group of Magi in question came “from the East.” They might have been Zoroastrians, Medes, Persians, Arabs, or even Jews. They probably served as court advisors, making forecasts and predictions for their royal patrons based on their study of the stars, about which they were quite knowledgeable. Magi often wandered from court to court, and it was not unusual for them to cover great distances in order to attend the birth or crowning of a king, paying their respects and offering gifts. It is not surprising, therefore, that Matthew would mention them as validation of Jesus’ kingship, or that Herod would regard their arrival as a very serious matter.”

 

Craig Chester

 

Slide 8

What was the star?

 

Slide 9

“And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there.”

Revelation 21:23-25

 

Slide 10

What do the gifts mean?

 

Slide 11

The ultimate question: What’s the point?

 

Slide 12

“I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse., and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Genesis 12:3

 

Slide 13

“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”

Habakkuk 2:14

 

Slide 14

“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.

Psalm 46:10

 

Slide 15

“Matthew plainly says that, though Jesus was the Messiah, born in David’s line and certain to be Shepherd and Ruler of Israel, it was the Gentiles who came to worship him.”

D.A. Carson

 

Slide 16

“And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.”

Ephesians 2:17-19

 

Slide 17

The Big Idea

The Magi prove that God keeps His promise to bless all the nations of the earth

 

Listen along as we begin our series through Advent.

Notes//Quotes:

Luke 1:5-25 - Larry/Jorgen

Luke 1:5-25

Advent is the season that, when properly understood, does not flinch from the darkness that stalks us all in this world. Advent begins in the dark and moves toward the light—but the season should not move too quickly or too glibly, lest we fail to acknowledge the depth of the darkness. Advent bids us take a fearless inventory of the darkness: the darkness without and the darkness within. Fleming Rutledge

“This prayer will be answered but in a richer sense than Zechariah and Elizabeth ever dreamed. No doubt Zechariah and Elizabeth, as devout Israelites, also prayed for the coming of the redemption of Israel. Both these prayers were to be answered in the same event because their son would prepare the way for the Messiah” Robert Stein

“Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall.” 
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

 

“The one thing that He requires of us in response to deep waters is acceptance. This acceptance is not passivism, quietism, fatalism, or resignation. Peace and joy and faith will not be found in forgetting, and they will not be found in busyness or aloofness or the submission of defeat. They will not be found in anger at the “unfairness” of it all. St. Francis de Sales said, “Accustom yourself to unreasonableness and injustice! God sees these things far better than you do, and permits them!” Elisabeth Elliot

Listen along as Dr. Michael Goheen continues our series through Acts.

Notes//Quotes:

Acts 19:21-41 - Jack
21 Once all this had been finished, Paul decided in his spirit to go back through Macedonia and Achaea and, from there, on to Jerusalem.

“After I’ve been there,” he said, “I really must go and see Rome.”

22 He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, on ahead to Macedonia, while he himself spent a little more time in Asia.

“Great is Ephesian Artemis!”

23 Around that time there was a major disturbance because of the Way. 24 There was a silversmith named Demetrius who made silver statues of Artemis, which brought the workmen a tidy income. 25 He got them all together, along with other workers in the same business.

“Gentlemen,” he began. “You know that the reason we are doing rather well for ourselves is quite simply this business of ours. 26 And now you see, and hear, that this fellow Paul is going around not only Ephesus but pretty well the whole of Asia, persuading the masses to change their way of life, telling them that gods made with hands are not gods after all! 27 This not only threatens to bring our proper business into disrepute, but it might make people disregard the temple of the great goddess Artemis. Then she—and, after all, the whole of Asia, indeed the whole world, worships her!—she might lose her great majesty.”

28 When they heard this, they were filled with rage.

“Great is Ephesian Artemis!” they shouted. “Great is Ephesian Artemis!”

29 The whole city was filled with the uproar; everyone rushed together into the theater, dragging along with them the Macedonians Gaius and Aristarchus, two of Paul’s companions. 30 Paul wanted to go in to speak to the people, but his followers wouldn’t let him. 31 Indeed, some of the local magistrates, who were friendly towards him, sent him a message urging him not to risk going into the theater. 32 Meanwhile, some people were shouting one thing, some another. In fact, the whole assembly was thoroughly confused, and most of them had no idea why they had come there in the first place. 33 The Jews pushed Alexander forward, and some of the crowd informed him what was going on. He motioned with his hand, and was going to make a statement to the people to explain things. 34 But when they realized he was a Jew, they all shouted together, for about two hours, “Great is Ephesian Artemis!”

35 The town clerk quietened the crowd.

“Men of Ephesus,” he said, “is there anyone who doesn’t know that our city of Ephesus is the place which has the honor of being the home of Artemis the Great, and of the statue that fell from heaven? 36 Nobody can deny it! So you should be quiet, and not do anything rash. 37 You’ve brought these men here, but they haven’t stolen from the temple, or blasphemed our goddess. 38 If Demetrius and his colleagues have a charge they want to bring against anyone, the courts are open and we have magistrates. People can present their cases against one another. 39 But if you are wanting to know anything beyond that, it must be sorted out in the authorized assembly. 40 Let me remind you that we ourselves are risking legal proceedings because of this riot today, since there is no reason we could give which would enable us to present a satisfactory explanation for this uproar.”

41 With these words, he dismissed the assembly.