Holy Week Services

Great Big Egg Hunt & Pancake Breakfast
Join us THIS Saturday, April 4th at 9:00 am for our pancake breakfast! Then at 11:00 am we'll send the kids on the GREAT BIG EGG HUNT!

Palm Sunday
Join us THIS Sunday, April 5th at 10:30 am for a celebration of Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem and His steps toward the cross and the empty tomb! There MAY even be an actual donkey involved...ooooo...come find out!

Maundy Thursday Sedar Meal & Footwashing Service
Join us on Thursday, April 9th at 6:30 pm for a traditional Sedar Meal. Raegan Towne will share a portrayal of the woman who washed Jesus' feet with her tears and then we will follow the example of Jesus by participating in a time of footwashing. We hope you will join us as we set our sights on the cross and begin our final journey toward Easter Sunday!

Good Friday Service
Join us Friday, April 10th at 7:00 pm for an opportunity to prepare your hearts for Easter by experiencing the weight of the cross. You will have an opportunity to walk the path of all the "Voices of Lent" that we've heard and find yourself directed toward the resurrected Lord!

Easter Sunday Celebration
Join us as we hear from the final and most powerful voice of this season of Lent: The voice of the risen and victorious Jesus! Join us at 10:30 am as we celebrate the new life we have through Christ Jesus our Lord! Invite your neighbors, family, co-workers, strangers, enemies, EVERYONE!

This is such an important time for the Church of Jesus Christ! A time to remember and celebrate all that our God was willing to do so that WE could be reconciled to Him! Join us!

In His Grip,

Pastor John

Voices of Lent: The Rich Young Ruler

Thanks so much to Craig Stephens for sharing his encounter with God on a loooooong ride home! Thanks also to Johnny Sayer for a moving portrayal of the Rich Young Ruler! It was a great day to be together at Mooresville Church of God! I hope you're all planning to be with us over the next two weeks as we turn our eyes toward Easter! This coming Sunday (Palm Sunday!) we will hear a testimony from Terry True and experience Abby Crump's portrayal of the servant girl who confronted Peter on the night Jesus was arrested! Then we move into Holy Week with our Maundy Thursday Sedar meal and footwashing service, our Good Friday observance and our Easter Celebration! Don't forget that this Saturday, April 4th is our Great Big Egg Hunt and Pancake Breakfast! It should be a lot of fun!

Luke 18:16-30
In Luke's account of the encounter between this rich young ruler and Jesus it begins with Jesus speaking to the crowd (likely including this young ruler) and telling them, "I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it". Immediately after Jesus teaches this to the crowd the young ruler approaches Jesus and says, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Now I don't want to be disrespectful to this wealthy young man, but my first thought here is...DUH!!! I mean, Jesus just said, "if you want to receive and enter the kingdom of God you must become like a little child", and in the next breath this young man says "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Well, either he didn't hear Jesus (which is possible) or he DIDN'T WANT to hear Him (which is likely).

This young ruler had a lot to lose (from his own perspective), but from God's perspective he had EVERYTHING to gain by following Jesus. So Jesus plays along for a bit and says, in essence, "follow all the commandments contained in the Jewish Law". The young ruler replies that he has flawlessly done this for many years! Then Jesus, in essence, asks him to follow the "Great Commandment" - to love God and love his neighbor - by asking him to sell all that he has, give it to the poor and come follow Him. Because this rich young ruler had so much worldly possessions to lose, he goes away saddened, dejected and spiritually lost.

Jesus essentially asks the rich young ruler to become like a little child when he says, "sell all that you have, give it to the poor and come follow me". We know this because what do little children inherently have? Money? No. Knowledge? No. They really don't have much to offer anyone do they? About the only things they can truly offer those in power over them is the ability to love them, the reality of needing them, and the hope of learning from them as they grow. And isn't this what Jesus was hoping for from this wealthy young man? Jesus wanted him to love God and love others. Jesus wanted him to need only what God could provide (salvation!) And Jesus wanted him to come, follow and learn from Him.

So as we ask the question, "What must WE do to inherit eternal life?" We can focus on these thoughts as we decide whether to respond to Jesus or not:

1) Become like a little child: Need Him, Love Him, Cry out to Him when you need Him
2) Depend only on God: Whatever God provides for you, go with that! You don't need more! The rich young ruler depended more on his own wealth, ability and comfort.
3) Obey God and receive what you need: Within the gospel of Jesus Christ we "get to give". That's how it works. When you obey, God provides, and you give, share, serve.
4) Learn Generosity: "For God so love the world he GAVE..." God wants us to grow in our generosity. The rich young ruler didn't want to learn that lesson.
5) Follow Jesus and Learn from Him: Jesus says to us - "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

What must we do to inherit eternal life? Jesus call to us is to become like a little child, to essentially have nothing except what we depend on Him to provide. This is a very freeing, liberating and spiritually potent act! "Come", Jesus said, "follow me".

In His Grip,

Pastor John

Voices of Lent: Nicodemus

Many thanks to Edie Guyder for sharing her personal testimony of her experience of the light and grace of Jesus! Thanks also go to Bruce Marine for his powerful portrayal of Nicodemus! And as always, thanks to our worship team for leading us to the throne of grace!

The Gospel of John records the only written account we have of a conversation that took place between Jesus and a Pharisee named Nicodemus. It took place at night time when Nicodemus sought out the rabbi from Galilee. With curiosity, Nicodemus approaches Jesus and starts to investigate who Jesus really is. His quest for the truth takes the conversation through many turns. We can begin to understand the heart of Jesus by paying careful attention to the different aspects of this amazing dialog.

Some People are outright Looking for a reason to Believe in Jesus.
Nicodemus approached Jesus with genuine curiosity and had an openness to the truth. Nicodemus wasn’t your average Pharisee. He was willing to seek Jesus out and interview him in private where he would be willing to form an accurate opinion of who Jesus was for himself. This stood in sharp contrast to the stereotypical Pharisee who is commonly seen in the gospels trying to publically humiliate and discredit Jesus in the midst of a theological debate. Nicodemus had genuine respect for Jesus and even calls him Rabbi. He starts the conversation by making the statement, “We know you are of God…” With this statement Nicodemus admits he already has a reason to believe Jesus is of God. We need to be looking for ways we can share the truth of who Jesus is with those who are open to hearing about him.

Everyone needs to be born again.
Nicodemus asks Jesus to explain and he delves into an explanation of what it means to be born again. Jesus’ answer seems to reference the Ezekiel passage found in chapter 36 where God states that he will “sprinkle water” and cleanse his people. In this same passage God states he will give his people a new spirit and place his Spirit within them, a reference to Pentecost. Jesus then compares the Spirit of God to the wind and states that no one can control it. This teaching on being born again (of water and Spirit) help us understand that all need to be born again (even Israel) and only the Spirit of God can do it. We cannot manipulate the Spirit and make things happen on our own.

Jesus shares the truth of God’s love.
After Nicodemus seems to be confused about the being born again, and the wind teaching, Jesus lays it all out as he explains the entire message of reconciliation. He states that God provides the needed salvation for Israel and the world and tells Nicodemus, “For God so loved the world…” probably the most quoted Bible verse in history. So the options are salvation or condemnation. This all depends on our belief in Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the Light of the World
and unless we step into that light, we will certainly die. The problem is stepping into the light means that our evil deeds, imperfections and flaws are visible. This causes some to hate the light and for this reason they never enter it. The greatest thing about stepping into God’s light is that things are seen plainly and God gets the credit for the miracles that have taken place in us. Once we step into the light, we have that light living within us. God calls us to take that light into all the world and share it with everyone. Won’t you join us as we share the light of Christ with our neighbors during this Easter season?

Voices of Lent: Simon Peter

Thanks so much to the worship team, to Matt Richardson for a powerful testimony, to Gary Schrougham for a moving portrayal of Simon Peter, and to all of the creative people whose talents and efforts bless us each week! Mooresville Church of God is blessed with some talented people!

Have you ever felt your passion for something slowly fading away? Maybe it was your work, maybe in your marriage, maybe in your life of faith. It's subtle and slow, but one day you wake up and realize that you simply don't have the passion you once did. And you wonder, "What can I do to rekindle the passion?" Simon Peter set an example for us as he encountered Jesus in a powerful way!

The disciples had just watched and participated as Jesus taught 5,000 people and fed all of them with a little boy's sack lunch. They must have been amazed, excited, energized as they picked up baskets of left overs from the food Jesus provided the people. But then Jesus provides them with a needed life lesson as he sends them across the Sea of Galilee in a boat...He teaches them that while the mountain top times are great, life's storms are bound to come, and when they do, Jesus will invite us to risk faith in the midst of the storm and trust Him! Peter learned this lesson as he jumped out of that boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. But during the stormy difficult times, our passion to follow Jesus can fade, and we begin to sink. It's at those times that we MUST remember our passion, reclaim it, and live in passionate dependence on Jesus! Here's what Peter did...

1. He Recognized Jesus Voice
When a sheep strays away from the flock the shepherd will find it, break it's leg, reset it and put a splint on it, and then carry the sheep with him so that the sheep can learn to hear and recognize the shepherd's voice. Peter had experienced some very high and low times with Jesus already and he knew His voice. So when Jesus said to Peter, "Come...", Peter didn't hesitate to reclaim his passion and jump out of that boat!

2. He Responded Despite Fear
When the stormy, painful and difficult times of life are upon us we find ourselves fearful of what will happen, why it's happening, will we survive it, many, many fears! One step to reclaiming our passion to know and follow Jesus is to respond to His voice despite that fear! And even when we respond we fearfully wonder, "What will it cost me to know and follow Jesus?" My time? Energy? Relationships? Money? The answer is often, "yes" to all of the above. It WILL cost us something to passionately follow Him. But...we may just walk on water in the process!

3. He Risked Faith
Peter risked failure by jumping out of that boat! He risked his very life to jump into the sea during a terrible storm! However, there were 11 other disciples sitting in that boat that risked nothing...nothing! And THEY did not walk on the water! Author John Ortberg called the other 11 disciples "boat potatoes", and you just know that for the rest of his life when Peter saw the other disciples he was saying, "3 Baby! I took 3 steps on that water! How many steps did you guys take? I'll tell you how many...ZERO!" Peter risked faith in Jesus, and he accomplished something that was above and beyond his wildest dreams!

4. He Learned Through Failure
While it could be argued that Peter did not fail at all (he walked on water!!), in truth, in his effort to walk out to Jesus, he did ultimately fail. His passion faded when he saw the storm and he began to sink. So the question becomes, "Did he learn and grow from his failure?" And the answer is yes! He learned that Jesus can be trusted to save even at the stormiest times! He learned that he WAS capable of walking on water when he passionately followed Jesus call! He learned that Jesus wanted him to recklessly respond to the command to "come" and to leave the rest to Jesus. And many other life and faith lessons.

5. He Trusted Jesus
He put his faith, his life, his reputation, his trust in Jesus and he jumped out of that boat! He did it! He didn't talk about trusting Jesus...he actually trusted Him! And in Matthew 14:33 we see the result of Peter's trust...it says that all the other disciples bowed down and worshipped Jesus and declared that He was, in fact, the Son of God! Peter's trust led others to worship and glorify Jesus!

Commit today to pursuing the passion to know and follow Jesus! Commit to responding to Jesus' voice no matter the cost. Commit to abandoning yourself to the faith, trust and love for Jesus that would cause us to get out of our boat and live a life of passionate, exciting and fulfilling faith! We say to Jesus, "Lord if it's you, tell me to come to you on the water." And Jesus calls to us, "Come!" Don't wait, jump out of that boat, and when you do, you just might walk on the water!

In His Grip,

Pastor John

Voices of Lent: The Woman at the Well

Thanks so much to Maggie Fisher for her moving portrayal of the "Woman at the Well"! Thanks also to Mike True for his work on preparing the set and to Vanessa for being the creative force behind all of it! A huge thanks to Andy & Mike Marine for their work on the video and graphics that will accompany this series of messages! All of these elements help contribute to a powerful opportunity for all of us to experience God in a meaningful way! Pray for Pastor Jeremy as he prepares to preach this coming Sunday on our next "voice": Simon Peter! You won't want to miss one week of this series!

What Satisfies You? John 4:1-42
This is the question that Jesus essentially is asking the woman he meets at Jacob's well in Samaria. He said to her, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water." He quickly finds out that she thought a few other things would satisfy her:

• A Husband (Human Relationships) - She had been married 5 times and was now working toward number 6.
  
• Water from a Well (Material Things) - She thought something she could see, taste or touch would satisfy her. But she kept coming back to the well and was never permanently satisfied.
• Equal Treatment (Status, Position, Power) - She had 3 strikes against her: She was a woman, looked upon as second class citizens in that culture; a Samaritan woman, looked upon as unworthy and unclean by the Jews; an immoral Samaritan woman, looked upon as an outcast in her own community. She just wanted to be treated better!

Jesus sets a powerful example for us in how we should approach people who are far from God. As he approached the woman at the well he...

• ...Connected with her in a personal and relational way. Basically, he showed her that he really did care about what was happening in her life.
• ...Confronted with grace & truth the sin in her life. He didn't avoid the truth, but he spoke to her in a spirit of grace and love.
• ...Clarified some misconceptions she had about God. She wanted to know where she should worship (anywhere as long as it's in spirit and truth!) and when the Messiah would come (Jesus said, "I who speak to you am he").
• Commissioned her to go and tell others about Him! And she didn't wait until she was a seasoned believer who knew it all! She went right away, told her own story, and people came to Jesus in bunches!

Jesus said in Matthew 5:6, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be satisfied". As we hunger and thirst (like the woman at the well) for things that only God can provide we will come to Him, get our needs met and then be sent out in power to draw others to Him! This is the only way for us to be truly satisfied!

And then, when our days on earth are over, we will hear these words in Revelation 7:16-17, "Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." Now THAT is truly satisfying!

In His Grip,

Pastor John

Voices of Lent Begins this Sunday!

This week we begin our journey toward Easter and the celebration of new life that comes with Jesus' resurrection and victory over death! We hope you are planning to invite your friends, neighbors, family and co-workers to join us during this important and potentially life-changing season!

We will be looking into the lives and hearing the voices of a number of people who either encountered Jesus or contributed to the story leading to His eventual crucifixion and resurrection. Each Sunday there will be a monologue drama that will accompany the message. Here is the series of messages we will be bringing throughout the season of Lent:

March 8 - The Woman at the Well
March 15 - Simon Peter (Pastor Jeremy preaching)
March 22 - Nicodemus
March 29 - The Rich Young Ruler
April 5 - The Servant Girl who Identified Peter
April 12 - Jesus

We hope to pack the sanctuary on Easter Sunday! Let's commit now to getting people here who may need a powerful encounter with the risen, victorious Jesus!

In His Grip,

Pastor John

Doing the Math: Living the Reconciliation Equation

Grace + Truth over Time = Reconciliation

Throughout God's Word we find the Reconciliation Equation lived out right before our eyes. In the relationship of the prodigal son, his older brother and their father...in the encounter of Jesus with the woman who washed his feet with her tears...in the exchange between Jesus and the woman caught in adultery...in the conversations Jesus has with his disciples as they slowly learn how to balance grace and truth themselves...again and again, we see Jesus perfectly balancing grace & truth! In reality Jesus IS Grace & Truth! John 1:14 says, "Jesus came from the Father full of grace and truth". He is the author of Truth and the source of Grace!

Ephesians 2:14-16 describes Jesus living out reconciliation as it says, "For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross by which he put to death their hostility."

Throughout the Old Testament we see humanity trying to keep the Law (the Truth) of God. And when they can't keep it they sacrifice...sacrifice...sacrifice...and they keep sacrificing each time they fail to live up to the Truth of God. And just when humanity is ready to throw up their hands and say, "WE CAN'T DO IT! WE CAN'T LIVE UNDER THIS BURDEN OF TRUTH!" God senses that they are finally ready to receive His...........GRACE! And he sent His one and only Son, Jesus, to add Grace to God's Truth! And for the first time in history...reconciliation was possible! We could actually be reconciled to God...because of Jesus!

So as we try to live out reconciliation in our lives, here are some steps to help us accomplish our goal:

1. Recognize the problem: We can't reconcile what we don't see and understand.
2. Repent and live differently: This means actually changing the way we live!
3. Reach for forgiveness: Whether it's from God or from others...you've got to ask for it.
4. Receive forgiveness as a gift: This means accepting it and living like your forgiven!
5. Reflect grace & truth to others: When we've received it, we will want to share it!
6. Reveal a reconciled and redeemed life: Tell the story of reconciliation with your own life!

The Reconciliation Equation is not easy to live...but it is possible to live! In fact it's our mission...our mandate...our God-given role to play...Ambassadors of Reconciliation!

In His Grip,

Pastor John