Reach Church - Everett

This week, we begin a new series “You Have Heard…”, looking at 6 instances where Jesus uses the phrase: “You have heard it said…but I tell you…”Jesus frequently challenges his audience’s understanding of Scripture when he says this. It doesn’t mean he is contradicting Scripture, it’s that he’s bringing clarity to what the people have misunderstood about it. Secondly, his audience often limited Old Testament commandments to external actions, not inward righteousness. Jesus reveals the true intention of the law - God does not look just on the outside of the man, but at the heart. In Matthew 5, Jesus uses this phrase “You have heard it said” for the first time, and he begins by addressing the topic of murder. The question becomes, “Can I be considered a good person if I’m not a murderer?”

Last week, we celebrated Easter and the reminder that Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead — he is ALIVE and engaged with us today on this earth in our day-to-day lives. And what a great reminder that is! In response to that beautiful reminder, we are invited to draw near to Jesus and allow him to be the center of our lives, however far we may be from that. We are invited to rest, to let Him carry our burdens, to do things His way. He promises rest to all who come to him.

He is risen! And that means whatever you think about who God is, what he cares about, or what he can do in your life - it’s even better than you can imagine. It means that every step you take towards Jesus is a step worth taking, because we’re talking about a God who is absolutely worthy to sit upon his heavenly throne, yet stooped down into the dirt and engaged humanity in a personal way. It means that the Good News that Jesus is alive is VERY, VERY good news.

In these days we’re living, God is calling Christians worldwide to be faithful. Not just to be casual or comfortable, but to be faithful, wherever and however that plays out in our unique context. As the people Jesus calls “a city on a hill,” we’re called to follow in his footsteps and obey his commands.

In Matthew 5, we catch a glimpse of Jesus speaking into the foundation he is laying during his sermon on the mount. Before he gets too far, he takes a moment to specify that what he’s sharing is not new, in fact - it’s quite old. It’s foundational to the relationship between God and humanity. He pauses to reassure them that he’s not just spewing off from the top of his mind, but he’s actually speaking directly to the truths that God had given them long ago, and in fact, he was the one that would ultimately embody everything they were aiming and hoping for.

This week, we begin a new sermon series, “City On A Hill,” where we’ll learn more about what it means to live on mission as the body of Christ, partnering with Jesus to build his Kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven. In this sermon, we look at why Jesus called his followers the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world" and what that means for us today.

As followers of Jesus, God has adopted us into his family and brought us together as his children. This experience is similar to getting married — we all must learn how to bend and change to maintain unity in this family. As God’s children, we all have the same inheritance and share the same mission. We’re meant to be a united family.

Jesus knew a thing or two about hatred. He was spit on, beaten, whipped, called names, lied about, brutalized, and murdered. If Jesus himself - the most loving, compassionate, inspiring, generous person to ever walk the earth - knew this kind of rejection, so will we.

We, by nature, don’t want someone ruling our lives, but the only way to have peace in this world is by having peace with God. As we reconcile ourselves to God, we must also reconcile with those around us.

Rescue:Freedom International is on a mission to end sex trafficking once and for all. They work tirelessly to fight exploitation across the globe and attack this injustice from every angle. By partnering with organizations and individuals alike, RFI free dozens of lives each month, help thousands of survivors thrive in freedom, and protect vulnerable people from exploitation. This week, we were honored to hear from Rescue:Freedom CEO, Jeremy Vallerand for "Freedom Sunday" - a day where we heard the story of Rescue:Freedom, discovered unique ways we can support their mission, and learned about Jesus' heart of freedom for all of us.

This week, we unpack what Jesus meant when he said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God" (Matthew 5:8).

Mercy is a central component to God’s nature. Because God is a merciful God, it means your failure doesn’t get the final word! Because we've received God's mercy, He invites us to extend that mercy to others. The whole point of the Christian life is that the character of Jesus will be reproduced in our lives.

There’s something that happens to us when we turn our lives over to Jesus. We begin to realize that the things we craved before Christ could never ultimately satisfy. We begin to see just how fueled our hearts have been by cravings that lead us nowhere (the need for approval, experiencing pleasure, achieving promotion, the allure of a pain-free, comfortable life). The counter-cultural reality for Christians is not that our blessing is found in chasing satisfaction, it’s found in our pursuit of God who is our ultimate satisfaction!

We’re not called to be the most powerful, the most wealthy, the most influential in the world’s eyes - we’re called to be humble. To Jesus, humility doesn’t look like being on top or being the best. It doesn’t look like boasting in your strength, or bringing attention to yourself - that’s not where blessing lies. At the end of the day, Jesus is clear that the way of humility is the way to victory in our relationships, in our workplaces, and ultimately, in the Kingdom.

The radical, moral vision of the upside-down kingdom of God is that rather than celebrating sin, or simply living apathetically towards it, we would mourn it. When we get real about where things are at, and particularly, where we’re personally at, that’s where God shows up and ushers in comfort that we won’t find anywhere else.

There is blessing in realizing you're broken. That's not just some self-help affirmation. This is the way of Jesus.

This week, we began a new series, “Counter Culture” looking at perhaps the most famous words recorded from the mouth of Jesus Christ known as “The Sermon on the Mount” recorded in Matthew’s Gospel, chapters 5-7. Before both spectator and disciple, Jesus sat down to teach what participation in God’s Kingdom actually looks like. The Sermon on the Mount is not just some moral code that can be applied across cultures regardless of religious affiliation. If you want to follow Jesus, what you need to realize is that he’s not interested in you following some legalistic system of morality, rather, recognizing and responding to your need for new life that can only be found in him.

Many of us have things in our rearview mirror, from this last year or even beyond, that have weighed us down. Your past, though part of your story, doesn’t have to define your present nor your future. As we kick off 2022, let’s consider what God might be calling us to leave behind and explore what to go after instead.

We're nearing the end of 2021, can you believe it? The new year is always a great time to evaluate the rhythms of our lives and set some goals for the year ahead. Today's devotional is designed to help you make plans (as you might normally do) with God as the focal point. Join Pastor Sean for 10 or so minutes as he shares his heart and resources you with some questions to build from. Have a great "week off" and we'll see you next Sunday, January 2nd!

The treasure of Christmas isn’t found under the tree or in a tradition, rather in the reality of what happened in a small middle-eastern town to an unassuming family 2,000 years ago.