Cobblestone Church - Paris

Following Jesus requires us to submit ourelves to his rule and reign in our lives as King, no one else is more deserving of our loyalty as He has shown the greatest loyalty to us, no one is more deserving of our allegiance as he is the King who reigns! His call for repentance is an invitation into a life of discipleship as you learn how to bring all of life under his lordship. He is calling you, its time to follow the leader.

We begin our series through the Gospel of Mark with some introduction to the Gospel Genre and specifically the Gospel of Mark.  Mark wrote his Gospel to show how Jesus was and is the Servnt King who sets us free. Regardless of our past story Jesus can set us free to live a new story one that starts with Him.

From the very beginning God promised to redeem his people, that He alone would provide them with a redeemer, to restore them to a relationship with himself and with each other, to renew them and give them life and a future. As our journey through Ruth comes to a close we discover the redeemer that God provides for Ruth, the redeemer He provides for Naomi, and ultimately the redeemer He provides for us.

We all need rest, we all have been tired and worn thin by life, struggling each day to drag ourselves through to the next. Naomi herself had experienced a lot of suffering and felt overwhelmed by life.  She was also aware of Ruth and uncertain future, desiring that she would find the rest of a husband, the safety, security, and future. God's desire for each of us is not that we would crawl through life but that we would experience His life giving rest.

There are lot sof things in life that bring us joy and so they should, however these things can be precarious and leave our joy unstable and fading, we need a greater joy to undergird that joy. A greater joy which is lasting and stable regardless of life's circumstances. So as you wait for the things that bring you joy this Christmas let me introduce you to a greater joy to undergird all other joy, a joy that lasts!

Christmas has a way of bringing up all kinds of emotion and it is no different with love, in fact the emotions you feel in regards to love can be very polarizing. For some this is a great opportunity to gather with those they love whether family or friends, but for others it can be a haunting reminder of a love they have lost, a reminder of what they dont have. But God offers us a better love, his love, made manifest to us in his son Jesus. That is the greatest gift of love and one worth waiting for. - Please excuse the sound quality on this recording as we experienced some technical difficulties - 

The days leading up to Christmas are often filled with anticipation and joy and a lot of waiting. Over the next few weeks we will explore what it is that we are waiting for and how Jesus fulfills the deepest desires of our hearts.

Grief has a way of blinding us to the grace of God, when we are grieving and suffering it is difficult to recognize God's hand of love.  His hessed, that is his loyal love, is on display as Naomi and Ruth travel to Judah, on display through Ruth.  God often uses others to show his loyal loving kindness to us in our grief whether we can recognize it or not.

What do we do when the Providence of God doesn't seem to be very providential? As Naomi's family is forced out of Judah they are met with suffering and death again and again, leaving Naomi desolate in a foreign land without her husband, without her sons, and without hope.

The story of Ruth is a bright spot in a very dark time for the nation of Israel.  The story itself is an example of God's providential care for his people in the midst of their desolation. The days of Ruth were the days of the Judges, a time marked by evil and opression, a time when everyone did what was right in their own eyes.  But the story of Ruth offers a glimmer of hope, a reminder that God is working to bring his people to restoration and unity through his servant King David and ultimately our Saviour King Jesus!  God has not abandonded you, though he may seem absent he is still at work restoring you!

Anytime we pursue something we are motivated by two things, a sense that something is lacking and a desire to find it.  The same should be true of our experience of the pressence and power of the Spirit, if we sense that we are not experiencing all that the Spirit has to offer and we desire to know and understand Him more the result is our pursuit of Him.  Today we talk about we can pursue more of the Spirit in our lives.

What if I told you that those who put their faith in Jesus had a power inside of them that has the potential of changing the world?  In Fact it is the same power that raised Jesus from the grave and it dwells inside of you if you follow Jesus! Today we take a look at the power of the Holy Spirit and how it is manifested through the believer via spiritual gifts, gifts given for the good of the church and the glory of God.

There is a lot to be said about the Holy Spirit but when it comes to our faith the biggest question often is So What? This week we discover the difference that the Holy Spirit makes in the life of a follower of Jesus by His presence.

Often times we think of the Holy Spirit's purpose here on earth in an individual sense, such as, why is He here dwelling in me?  The reality however is that the Holy Spirit's coming to earth in a permanent fashion has always been a part of God's redemptive plan.  This week we discover, in a more general sense, the Purpose of the Holy Spirit here on earth.

This week we kick off our new series The Holy Spirit.  Over the next number of weeks we hope to learn more about the Holy Spirit, his work here on earth, and his pressence in the lives of those who place their faith in Jesus as Lord.  This week we will look at The Person answering the question who is the Holy Spirit?