Turning The Gem | Les Newsom

Scripture Reference: Ephesians 1:3-14
The more overwhelming the site you’re describing, the more words you’ll throw at it to try to sum it up to those who’ll listen. Paul sits down to contemplate the blessings God’s people have in Christ and what follows is a litany of keywords about the Christian’s spiritual status in one long run-on sentence of pure joy.

Sermon Points:

  • Adoption
  • Redemption
  • Inheritance

1 Corinthians: Context, History & Intro | Foster Gullett

Adult Sunday School: 1 Corinthians: Life in Babylon–Again!
The city of Corinth was at the crossroads of the Roman Empire. Just as ideas, culture, and wealth flowed through this cosmopolitan and avant-garde city, so too did sex and debauchery. Paul’s fledgling church was floundering amid the influence of the world around them. Paul wrote about how they, and we today, as God’s people are to navigate the maze of questions that arise while living in the midst a secularizing culture.
Meets every Sunday at 9:45am in the sanctuary. Taught by Foster Gullett.

Keyword: Blessing | Les Newsom

Scripture Reference: Ephesians 1:1-3
Keywords give us the ability to be “found” online if we know what we’re searching for. In a Christian’s quest to build the church, Paul provides a host of power-packed terminology to guide his favorite church plant in Ephesus towards becoming complete in Christ by being united to his church and looking for blessing.

Sermon Points:

  • The Utility of Blessing
  • The Location of Blessing
  • The Fountain of Blessing

A People of the Book | Les Newsom

Scripture Reference: 2 Timothy 3:10-17
We live in a day where even having a talk about “truth” is incredibly confusing. We have attempted to build a society on the shifting ground of our feelings. But a community that lives by the revealed truth of God’s word simply functions differently. What would it look like to be a “people of the book?”

Sermon Points:

  • The Bible stands the test of time
  • The Bible comes with its own power
  • The Bible is a “word from the outside”

Upside Down | Les Newsom

Scripture Reference: Luke 7:18-35

When Jesus shows up in a life, he overturns all the personal identity markers that used to define his people. This means that you can find yourself in really strange places when you’re following him. How that can be is seen this Sunday in a little scene from the life of John the Baptist.

Sermon Points:

  • Surprised by Jesus
  • Founded on Grace