Date: 7/10/2016
Title: Doing the Impossible
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:38-48
We live in what is often described as a “dog eat dog world,” where from an early age we are taught that if we are hit to hit back harder. Jesus calls believers to something radically different. In fact, he calls us to do the impossible: to love and be a blessing to those who often hurt us.
Date: 6/26/2016
Title: Breaking Vows of Faithfulness
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:27-32
We live in a culture that has been redefined by the sexual revolution of the 1960’s. This has resulted in a society not only inundated by hyper-sexuality, but also one that permits and approves of almost anything. Jesus calls us to a higher standard that elevates marriage and God’s design for sex within it.
Date: 6/19/2016
Title: Are you a Murderer?
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:21-26
We can all agree that murder is wrong. Yet, in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus moves from the outward physical action to calling us to examine the hate and anger of the human heart. Although we may not have committed the physical act of murder, we all can struggle with murder in the heart. It is this heart attitude from which Jesus calls us away.
Date: 6/12/2016
Title: Jesus’ Mission & Message
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:17-20
His mission: Jesus says that He came to fulfill the Old Testament rather than destroy it. He not only fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament, but obeyed it perfectly where we could and can not. His message: entrance into the kingdom of heaven requires a righteousness greater than that of the Pharisees, who were “experts” at keeping the letter of the law. This righteousness can only come through Christ.
Date: 6/5/2016
Title: Saltshakers and Flashlights
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:13-16
The world around us can often seem to be decaying and dark. It is in such a world that Jesus calls believers to be the salt and light of the world in contrast to its decay and darkness.
Date: 5/29/2016
Title: The World’s Reaction
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:10-11
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus calls us to live a life that is radically different than that of the rest of the world, resulting on one reaction: persecution. It is when we are persecuted for our faith that Jesus calls us blessed.
Date: 5/22/2016
Title: A Heart in Action (Part 3)
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:9
We live in a world that often seeks to address conflict through peacekeeping; that is through avoiding conflict at all costs. Jesus calls us to be more. He calls us to be peacemakers; that is to be a person that seeks a resolution to conflict, both between God and man and among mankind itself, through a ministry of reconciliation.
Date: 5/15/2016
Title: A Heart in Action (Part 2)
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:8
One of the most difficult challenges for the believer is serving an invisible God. Despite God being invisible, Jesus promises, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God”. Here Jesus tells us how we can see the invisible God.
Date: 5/8/2016
Title: A Heart in Action (Part 1)
Speaker: Pastor George Gracie
Scripture: Matthew 5:7
A true heart response to God results in a heart in action. Jesus continues his Sermon on the Mount by declaring, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” His call for us is to reflect God’s mercy in Christ to all those we meet in an often merciless world.