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God Gospel In Three Words Mitchell Leach Sunday, January 4, 2026 Audio God Mitchell Leach 00:00 / 42:52 Sermon Transcript Introduction Every generation has heroes. Every generation has people we look to who have made it. In our generation, one of those people surely has to be Tom braided, a seven-time Super Bowl winner and a shoe in for the Hall of Fame. He's one of the people that we look to that has completed everything that society has asked him to complete. It is the one that we look to to see that he should be satisfied in what he has accomplished. And yet, he said this in a 60-minute interview, "Why do I have three Super Bowl rings and still think that there's something greater out there for me? I think there has to be more than this." This is not just success talking. This is restlessness. This is not just his story. It's ours, too. Because we all have something we think will finally make us feel like we've arrived. Something we hope will prove to others that we're enough. Maybe that's our job, something in our relationship, our appearance, our parenting, and our performance. But no matter how far we climb, that feeling still lingers. It whispers behind each of our winds. It echoes through all of our failures. And so this morning, I want to ask us a question that might haunt us, a question that we don't ask out loud. And it's our big question this morning. Big Question How do you measure up? How do you measure up? That hunger to be enough, to measure up, to silence your inner critic is something that all of us feel. What would it take for you to feel like you're enough, to feel like you've made it? Is there enough money? Having enough children. If your children get into the right school or get the right sports scholarship, maybe it's not with your children, but being someone, becoming someone that people admire, getting the right promotion, marrying the right person, having the being able to retire at a certain age or to retire to a certain place. But who is the judge of these? Who is it that we're trying to please? If it was us, if we're just trying to please ourselves, then we would have been able to do that, but it isn't. Even when we hit the goal, the goal that we've set out to accomplish, we don't feel secure. We feel anxious or empty or hard. Hungry for something more. The question that we are left with is, who are you trying to measure up to? That restlessness isn't new. It's just dressed differently. This is an ancient feeling that we all have. In ancient times, in ancient world, it was a moral question. It was, what do I need to do in order to satisfy the gods? But because, of course, we're in an enlightened society, we don't talk about that anymore. We push that to the side. And yet the feeling remains. We have the consistent desire to become something. This is something in all of us. We feel this drive to become something, not to stay as we are, but to be something more. For some of us, it's to feel like we're attractive enough, for example. That might be a feeling that you have. It's something that has no end. The question of, Am I attractive enough? Well, the question would be, For who? Well, maybe to find someone to marry. But even if you find someone to marry, that feeling is still there. There is no one who can affirm you enough, no person who can give you that feeling of security, of feeling worthy. What happens is that we have invented an image of ourselves that we think we should be, and then we enslave ourselves to it. We are to become, in some sense, our own God, to measure up to that, to please it. But the problem with doing that is that we alone know how rotten we are. We alone know all of our inner thoughts that disgust us, all of the things that we're glad no one else knows about us. In trying to become our own God, we realize that we cannot atone, we cannot make right the wrongs that we've committed. There are no sacrifices, no rituals, no resumes, no amount of wins can make us feel clean. So the question is, how do you measure up? Fortunately, the Bible has answers for us. So keep your Bibles open to Habakkuk Chapter 1, as we see these two movements in Habakkuk. Outline: Habakkuk's complaint God's God's response Or what do you do when God's justice feels delayed? And then what does God actually require of us? As we look to this first one, this passage teaches us that Habakkuk asks God to execute judgment against evil. But as we'll see, in asking God to act, Habakkuk finds himself exposed. Because if God is truly just and holy, who among us can stand in his presence? Series Overview We're starting a series, a three-week series, where we're looking at the core essentials of the gospel. It's something that I'd like to do every January as we start a new year, to be grounded in what the gospel is. Over these next three weeks, we will look at this week, the Holiness of God and what he requires of us. Next week, we'll be looking at the depth of our sinfulness and our inability In week three, we'll look at the cross and how Jesus saves sinners who cannot measure up. This is an attempt for us to see the gospel clearly. This week, we're going to be looking at the Holiness of God, not just as an attribute, but as a standard. Habakkuk might feel like a weird passage to go to, and yet, as we see, it pulls no punches. It shows us that God sees is evil, and especially the evil in us. Habakkuk answers the question, what does a Holy God actually require of us? And so let's look at this first section, Habakkuk's Complaint What do you do when God's justice feels delayed. Habakkuk is prophesying before the final days of Judah's fall and capture by Babylon. This is a time in Israel's history when Israel is divided into a northern kingdom and a southern kingdom. The northern kingdom, and this is where it gets confusing, the northern kingdom in Israel is also called Israel. The Southern kingdom was the more, and I say this with an asterisk, more faithful. And yet during this time, Judah, the Southern Kingdom, was about to fall. He looks at the moral collapse of his own people. Violence, injustice, and idolatry to plague the Southern Kingdom of Judah. And Habakkuk is begging God to do something. That's why it says that this is a complaint to God. But God responds. He says, I'm doing something here. I'm sending the Chaldeans or sending the Babylonians. Habakkuk is grieving the sins that he sees in Judah. He's asking... He sees that God is telling him that he's going to raise a foreign army, one even more wicked than That's what we see in verses 15 and 17. So if you would just look at that for me. This section is confusing. As Habakkuk is complaining to God, he switches who he's talking about. At first, he addresses God, and then in 15 and 17, he's talking about the Chaldeans, the he, or the him in 15 and 17, or the Babylonians, the Chaldeans, the people who are about to conquer Judah. When he says he brings up all of them with a hook and he drags them out with his net, the he in that sentence is the Chaldeans. These people described are brutal, proud, and godless. Their economy is based on fishing, and that's why this is what the complaint is that they worship their drag net. They offer sacrifices to it. These people worship their own power, not the living God. What you really need to understand about this section is that it's part of a complaint where Habakkuk is saying, There is evil in the world that is offensive to you, God. Please do something. Habakkuk is pleading with God to act with justice. It's the same cry that we make when we look around at the world and it doesn't make sense. It doesn't measure up to what's right. Or when we look at our own lives and we know that justice is deserved. In doing this, this complaint, in doing this outcry to God, he does something remarkable. He affirms some amazing truths about God. Even if Habakkuk is confused, Habakkuk does not accuse God. He anchors himself in what he knows to be true about God's character. And that's where we turn now. Look at verse 12 with me. We're going to look at that first half of the verse. Are you not from Everlasting? O Lord my My God, my Holy One, we shall not die. This is a model of faith under trial, under fire, under tribulation. Habakkuk does not interpret God through his own set of circumstances. He's not taking his own worldview, his own lens, and imposing that on who God is. He sets out with this complaint and says, I know who you are, and I don't want to get this wrong. Habakkuk does not begin with defiance. He begins with worship. It's not a denial of suffering, but it's confessing that God is a covenant God, that he is faithful to do what he says he will do. Habakkuk is complaining, yes. But look at how he approaches God, framing his complaint in the nature of who God is, guarding himself from seeing God incorrectly. Rather than shrinking God down, to make him easier to deal with. Habakkuk does something amazing. He lets the full weight of God shape who and how he talks to God. The second part of Habakkuk1:12, he says, "O Lord, you have ordained them as judgment, and you, O Rock, have established them for reproof." This isn't just a poetic statement that Habakkuk makes. When he says, O Rock, he's declaring, You are still my foundation. You are still the thing I'm standing on. I'm confused. The world may seem like it's falling apart, but you are the thing that I will hold firm to. The other part of this verse is the name that Habakkuk uses to declare who God is. He says, O Lord, it's all capital letters in your Bible if you look at it. In verse 12, it's important this name. This is the covenant name of God. This is the I am. This comes from Exodus 3:14, where God is meeting with Moses in the burning bush, "Moses asks God, What shall we call you? And God says this. God said to Moses, I am who I am. And he said, said, Say this to the people of Israel." I am has sent me to you. This is God revealing himself to, to Moses, to humanity. This is the first time that we get God's name, and he tells us who he is. This is the name that God gives us to call him, the name Yahweh. It's the Hebrew word to be. Yahweh is not just a name. It is a revelation. It tells us about who God is, that he is self-existent, not dependent, and not derived, that God just is. That's why he says his name is I am. Not I will be, not I have been, but I always am. This is a mystery at first. It's hard to comprehend because we're dealing with the infinite part of who God is, that God never came into existence, that he will never cease to be. At first, this answer that we see in Exodus of what is your name? Kind of seems like a dodge. It doesn't seem like a genuine answer. It doesn't seem like a real name. And yet this is the name that God uses 6,000 times throughout scripture. It's revealing something about God to us. He's showing us who he is. And it's okay that he's a mystery, that this idea of God never having a start date, never having a beginning, always being there and being eternal. It's okay. Because if God were small enough for us to understand him, he wouldn't be big enough for us to worship. God is eternal. God is unchangeable. He always has been this way. He always has been, and he always will be. He was eternal before the creation of the world, and that he is not in space. He's not just out there. He's distinct from his creation. The thing I love about the name of God is it tells us that this is who God is and that this is who God will always be. It's also the covenant name or the name of his covenant faithfulness. When he tells us his name here in Exodus, he's telling us that he's near to us, that he cares for us enough, cares enough for us to keep his promise to us. The way in which scripture reveals God's name reveals who God is to us. Reveals that he is holy. The word holy is a word that we use a lot in church, but it's a hard word for us to understand. The idea of something being sacred or holy or set apart is a foreign idea in our culture. We don't have these spaces set up in our world anymore. The idea of God's Holiness can feel distant. So I want to take just a minute to define it for us. God's Holiness is all of who God is and all of what he does. God's Holiness is all of who God is and what he does. I want to say just for a second, this sermon is on The character of God, the nature of God. This is the hardest thing to do in 30 minutes, and in fact, it's impossible. We will not cover the breadth and width of God. We could be here for 30 years, let alone 30 minutes, and we won't cover it. God is infinite. That's part of who he is. And so if you're feeling part of this going, Man, I feel like he's missing part of who God is. Yes, I absolutely am. We're focusing on God's standard, the standard that is within himself, his Holiness, the standard that we can't get to. In defining God's Holiness, it's important to be precise. And this is a general definition. And if you're sitting here going, I think that we could be a little bit more precise. I want to give you this theological from the book definition, so that way you don't email me later. Okay, sounds good. Here we go. It's a little confusing, so bear with me. Holiness is his transcendent fullness, his worth, and the beautiful harmony of all his acts with that worth. Do you guys understand that? You guys track it with me? It's okay. Holiness is all who God is and what he does. Holiness is all who God is and what he does. It's all of God's attributes, all of his actions brought together, not in conflict with each other, but in perfect harmony. It's the idea That God, God's mercy, his kindness, his wisdom, his justice, his Almighty power, and his truth are all formed in his Holiness. They're all part of his Holiness. They're not distinct. It's the doctrine of the simplicity of God. It's not that God is somehow simple or a simpleton. But what it means is that we can't divide God. He's not a pie that we can cut into pieces. We can't take a piece of a piece of his justice, a piece of his kindness. God doesn't operate in sections either. He operates in all of these things together at once all the time. They're part of who he is, and they're not in conflict. God's wrath and his mercy are part of his Holiness, and they don't contradict each other. God's justice and his grace work together, not against each other. God is perfect. And all of these things are part of that perfection. That perfection means that God is good, God is righteous, and he's the one who defines what is good and bad. And that means that we don't evaluate God by our own standards. God does not conform to what we believe is just, what we believe is right. We must be the ones to conform to his justice, to his holiest, to His righteousness. And that's what we see in Habakkuk1:13. That's what Habakkuk talks about in verse 13. He says, "You who are of pure eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong, why do you idly look at traitors and remain silent when the wicked swallows up the man more righteous than he." This is where we begin to feel the weight of that righteousness. God is not just eternal. He's not just unchangeable. He is pure, so pure that he cannot even bear to look at sin. He's too holy to overlook it. This is not just bad news for Babylon. It's not just bad news for Habakkuk or bad news for For Judah, this is bad news for every human being on the face of the Earth throughout all time in history. God cannot look at evil. So what does this mean for the sins that we justify daily, for the things that we go unconfessed to the people that we're closest with, the things that we hope no one will see, the things that we hope no one will notice. This is the starting for us as we answer the question, How do I measure up? Not by looking at ourselves, but by looking at God, who is too pure to even look at evil. This passage really digs into the truth that it's important for us. It's too important for us to miss how perfect God is, how pure he is, that God will not allow sin to go unpunished. God cannot look at wrong. He hates evil and sin. It is so ugly and repulsive to him that he can't stomach to be around it. And this challenges a view of God that we have often. Often we look at God and we think about Jesus. I think we often think about this picture. I don't know if you've seen this picture. We see meek and timid and mild Jesus. He looks like he needs us to stick up for him. He looks like he's soft on sin. He looks like he would say, Don't worry, it's not a big deal. But that's not the picture of Jesus that we get in Revelation, the one who his best friend could not stand before. He falls down as if he's He said, God must hate sin. He will punish sin. He will not say it does not matter. God's love is directly tied. His love what is good is directly tied to his hatred of evil. If God is to love something good, to give mercy, it has to be tied to how much he abhors evil. The more that we love God's purity, the more that we will grieve our sin as we become more and more like him. Evil is the opposite of God, and that's what we see in this passage. God's Response And as we look to God's response, we'll ask this question, what does God actually require of us? God answers Habakkuk, but not in the way that we might think or might expect. He doesn't offer a detailed explanation to Habakkuk or an emotional reassurance. Instead, he gives a vision, a statement. He says, Habakkuk, write this down. This needs to be told to other people. Write it down on tablets because I want it to be permanent. That's what he says in Habakkuk2:2. He says, Write the vision, make it plain on tablets so that he may run who reads it. This isn't a private insight that he's giving to Habakkuk. This is public, something solid, permanent, invisible that he wants all of Israel to be able to see. Habakkuk2:3 says, "If it seems slow, wait for it. It will surely come. It will not delay." I think many of us don't like to wait. And Habakkuk is reminding us, especially when we're waiting for justice. God's saying his justice will come, but it will come on his time, but it won't be late. It will be perfect. Then we come to one of the most important sentences in the Bible, Habakkuk2:4, "Behold, his soul is puffed up It is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith." That verse, half about pride, the other half about faith, becomes the dividing line for two types of people. Those who rely on themselves, their own goodness, their own power, their own plans. That's what the Bible calls puffed up. That's what God calls puffed up. And then there are those, because they've seen that they cannot measure up, that they've seen God's standard and they realize there's no way that I satisfy that. There's no way that I measure up to that. These people live by faith. This is the second half of that that becomes the foundation for everything that Paul writes in the New Testament about salvation. In Romans 1, Galatians 3, Hebrews 10, they all look back at this moment. The righteous, the justified will not live will not live by works, will not live by the things they see in the world that they can measure up to. They will live by faith. Martin Luther would later say that "this one verse opened the gates of paradise for him. He would say, I grasped that the righteousness of God is that righteousness by which, through grace and sheer mercy of God, justifies us through faith. Thereupon, I felt myself to be reborn and to have gone through open doors into paradise." Now, here's what this means for us. The problem isn't that we haven't measured up, that we haven't become self-actualized, that we haven't reached our potential. The problem is that we can't. We cannot measure up. Not to God's standard. Biblical faith is not some vague idea in a general idea of God. It is looking outside of ourselves to someone specific who has already measured up for you. And that is the gospel. That we are saved not by measuring up, but by admitting we can't and trusting in the one who measured up in our place. Main Idea God's perfection sets a standard that no one can reach God's perfection sets a standard no one can reach. God's Holiness sets a standard that we can't reach. And yet we try, we try over and over again. No one can reach this alone. All of humanity is desperately trying to hear, well done, good and faithful servant. Well done. All of us want to be known. All of us want to be accepted. And yet we can be known and accepted by people around us. There is a longing to be accepted and known by God himself. That's why we try to exhaust ourselves in performing, trying to be good enough, smart enough, successful enough. And even when we get there, even when we cross the arbitrary finish lines in our life that we set for ourselves, we always think, What's next? We become like Tom braided with three Super Bowl rings going, I think more and more would be good. We become like Solomon, who on his 300th wife goes, You know what? I think 301 is going to be the ticket for me, right? I think that's a guy who didn't have honest friends around him. Dude, 301 is not going to be it for you. It's not just ambition. What we have is a spiritual hunger. And that hunger is older than you. It goes back to Eden. It's etched in our souls. It's part of what it means to be made in the image of God. That we long to be known and accepted. We long to measure up, to be okay in God's eyes. And this is why we preach the gospel. This is why as a pastor, I'm committed to preaching the gospel to you as offensive as it may be, as offensive as saying, all of you are sinners in here, each of us, all of us, me included. We are all sinful people in here. I'm committed to this. I will not be a pastor who preaches self-improvement, who preaches morality alone. I don't preach against morality, but I'm not going to preach just morality. Because if God is as holy as Habakkuk tells us, then any message that tells you just to be better, to try harder, either waters down who God is or tries to hide how broken we are. And here's the irony. It's only when we give up trying to earn it, only when we finally rest in God, that's when we can stop measuring ourselves, that we can try to stop measuring ourselves against other people because we've been declared righteous through Christ. Moralistic messages go one of two ways. A message that says, Try harder. If you just have a little bit more faith, you can do it. It leads us to pride or despair. It leads us to say, You know what? I am good enough. I have done that. I see those things, and, Yep, I am good. Or we look at ourselves truly, we see God's righteousness, and we see that we can't measure up. But the gospel, it meets us in the middle. It says, Yeah, you know what? You aren't good enough. There was one who is good enough for you. His name is Jesus. How do we then change the way we live right now? Because a faith like this isn't passive. It isn't one that just... It's not one that we leave in the seats as we leave here this morning. It's not vague. It's not an idea that we just agree with. It is truth that invades every fiber of our being, transforms who we are from the inside out. So what is a life that rests in God's righteousness looks like? Application Let God be God It leads us to our application. Our two points of applications. The first is this, let God be God. Our instinct, especially when life is painful or unjust, is to make God smaller, to make him more manageable, easier for us to wrap our minds around, our arms around. We want God, a God who affirms our expectations, who fits our logic, who doesn't make us feel uncomfortable. But the real God, the God that we see in Habakkuk in all of the Bible, refuses to be boxed in, refuses to be tamed, refuses to be made smaller. We like to make him safer. We like to make him a little bit less holy, a little bit less offensive, easier to follow, easier to ignore. But Habakkuk won't let us do that. God's word won't let us do that. It clings to the truth of who God is. Even while Habakkuk is wrestling with it, he grounds himself in who God is. We must stop trying to edit God and learn to worship him as he has revealed himself in God's word. Live by faith, not by perfection That leads us into our second point, live by faith, not by perfection. If you've been crushed by perfectionism, Discouraged by your inability to do enough. Tempted to fake it. Tempted to try to measure up so that way someone else would affirm you, desperate desperately trying to cling to some validation that the world can give you. This vision that God gives Habakkuk is for you. Whether you feel like a failure or you're exhausted from trying to look successful for people. This passage offers relief. The righteous don't live by effort. They don't live by image or legacy. They live by faith, not in themselves, but in a God who is intensely holy, perfectly just, and who, by sheer grace, justifies the ungodly. How do we let go? How do we let go of this feeling like we have to measure up? How do we stop playing the game that everyone else is playing in our world, trying to justify ourselves, trying to feel good enough? By what power can we be set free from this? It is only by the power of the cross, the power that promises that we will not be seen as ourselves as sinners, but we will be seen as Jesus, the Son of God. 2 Corinthians 5 says this, For our sake, he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. On the cross, Jesus took all our sin and shame. He was treated like us. He was told that he didn't measure up. He was condemned or damned to hell. He was told that he wasn't enough. The Father had to treat Jesus like us in order to treat us like Jesus. God's perfection sets a standard that no one can reach. And yet we can be okay with not measuring up. We can leave here today being okay with not hitting the benchmarks the world has for us because Jesus measured up for us. He became the measurement for us. We couldn't keep the law, so Christ became the law for us and died so that we could have new life set free from the law in him. Let's stand and pray as we prepare to sing our closing song. Would you stand and pray with me? Father God, we thank you for who you are. We praise you that you are holy, that you are just, that you are perfect, and that your standard is perfect. God, you are so big, so infinite, so righteous, that you are worthy of our worship. And we are, we rejoiced in that truth. We rejoiced in the reality that you are not small enough for us to wrap our heads or wrap our minds around that we cannot make you small for us. But help us to live in that tension, to live with that discomfort. God, let us boldly go before your throne, trusting you. God, let us move forward in this new year, knowing who you are and knowing who we are in you. It's in your name we pray. Amen. Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link

Blood on the Ground Come Thou Long Expected Mitchell Leach Sunday, December 7, 2025 Audio Blood on the Ground Mitchell Leach 00:00 / 40:57 Sermon Transcript If you'd please join me and by opening your Bibles as we hear God's word from Genesis 4. It's on page four in your Bibles. We're going to read the whole chapter 1 26. Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord. And again she bore his brother Abel. Now, Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain a worker of the ground. In the course of time, Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground. And Abel also brought of his firstborn, of his flock, and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and of his offering. But for Cain and his offering, he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, why are you angry? And why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it. Cain spoke to Abel, his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, where is Abel, your brother? He said, I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper? And the Lord said, what have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. And now you are cursed from the ground which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth. Cain said to the Lord, my punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth. And whoever finds me will kill me. Then the Lord said to him, not so. If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord put a mark on Cain lest any who found him should attack him. Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. When he built a city, he called the name of the city after the name of his son Enoch. To Enoch was born Irad. And Arad fathered Mehujael. And Mehujael fathered Methushael. And Methushael fathered Lamech. And Lamech took two wives. The name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zilhah, Adah bore Jabal. He was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. His brother's name was Jubal. He was the father of all those who play the lyre and pipe. Zillah also bore Tubal Cain. He was the forger of all instruments of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal Cain was Naamah. Lamech said to his wives Adah and Zillah, hear my voice, you wives of Lamech. Listen to what I say. I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. If Cain's revenge is sevenfold, then Lamech's is 77fold. And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called him Seth. For she said, God has appointed for me another offspring instead of Abel, for Cain killed him. To Seth also, a son was born, and he called him his name, Enosh. At that time, people began to call upon the name of the Lord. This is the word of the Lord. Genesis4 is one of the most tragic chapters in the Bible. We move from the hope of new life to the horror of the first murder, from the joy of a child being born to the grief of a son being buried. But from the beginning, the question that Adam and Eve would have had in their minds is, is this the one? Is this the child who was promised in Genesis 3? Is this the one who will crush the head of the snake? When Cain was born, the hope must have been electric. This is the firstborn, the miracle child, the one whom God helped bring forth into the world. But Genesis 4 tells us something sobering and important. Not every child of Eve is a child of promise. Not every sacrifice is acceptable. And not every worshiper worship rightly, worships rightly. Genesis 4 is not just the story of two brothers. It's the story of two ways to live, two ways to worship, and two lineages that would stem from here in Genesis 4. All throughout Scripture, as the dust settles, we see sin move from the garden into a family and into culture. And eventually it threatens everything. Sin does not just disappear after the fall, it follows into our worship. Because the first story we see after the Garden of Eden doesn't focus on work. It doesn't focus on marriage or politics. It focuses on worship. And this is why we need Christmas. Genesis 4 shows us that sin does not just break Eden. It breaks families. It breaks communities, breaks culture. And Advent is the story of God stepping into the world, that world that Cain built, a world of blood on the ground, a world where anger is in Our hearts and worship has gone wrong. It forces us to ask a question and wrestle with a question we often ignore. Does God care how we worship? Because if we. I think because most people assume that worship is simple, that if we are sincere, then that's enough. If I show up, then God will be happy. If I give something, well, God will accept it. But Genesis 4 shows us the opposite. Two brothers come to worship. Two offerings are given, yet only one is accepted. And here's the uncomfortable truth. Both men believed that they were worshiping God, and yet only one actually was. Genesis 4 shows us something that we would never guess on our own. Sincerity is not the same thing as obedience. That brings us back to our main question, our big question. Does God care how we worship? Fortunately, the Bible has answers for us. So if you would keep your Bibles open to Genesis chapter four as we see these three movements in this passage. First we'll see worship and warning, the story of Cain and Abel. And then we'll see judgment and culture, Cain's legacy and a new beginning with Seth. And worship. Even after the first murder, Cain, God appoints a way to redeem his people. And that's what we'll see in this chapter. Let's look at this first section, though, as we see worship and warning through Cain and Abel, verses one through eight. So Adam and Eve are cast out of the garden. That's where we find. And that's where he starts this, this chapter. They have two children, Cain and Abel. And it's easy for us to look at this story through our lens of understanding the end of, you know, we see the whole context of the Bible. We even know the end of this chapter. But for a moment, I want you to think about what Adam and Eve must have been thinking when these two boys were born. Remember the prophecy that came from Genesis 3, that from the seed of the. From the woman an offspring would come to crush the head of the snake. They must have been thinking, it has to be one of these two boys. Cain was the farmer and Abel was the shepherd. Cain is the likely candidate here. He's the firstborn. In fact, look at how he is talked about in verse two or in verse one and two. For Cain says, I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord. And Abel, he's only mentioned really as Cain's brother that she bore his brother Abel. Imagine that being your epitaph on your, you know, so and so's brother. You know, that's. That's all you were remembered as. But Cain seems to be the Likely candidate here. They grow up together, and clearly they're instructed on how to worship, right? They're told how to bring offering to God, that this is something that God delights in. So they bring an offering to God, and one brings something good and the other brings the best of what he had. But only one was appreciated. We'll see later, the heart posture between the two. But before we move any further, I want us to look at verse seven. Verse seven is a confusing passage, or it's a confusing verse, not just in the English, but in the Hebrew. This is a grammatically weird verse. It reads weird in English and it reads even weirder in Hebrew. So let's camp out here because I think this unlocks a lot for us. Verse 7 says this. If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it. I think at first glance, when we read this, we read the if you do well, and it sounds like God is giving Cain a second chance. If you do well, if you bring another offering, then I will accept it if you do it in the right way. But that's not what this passage is saying. So what does God mean here? He's talking to Cain and he's saying, respond from this moment and act like the firstborn. In fact, that's what to do well means. The Hebrew word for to do well actually carries the connotation of act. Acting like the firstborn, acting in integrity, acting in a way that brings honor to your family. And at the same time, this word isn't about action, but it's about character. It wasn't about physical actions. This word to do well meant. To. Have the character that is honorable, to have a heart change. God isn't rejecting Cain's vegetables. He's exposing Cain's heart. Worship without obedience is not worship God. God gives Cain a choice here, an option to rule over sin, or it will rule over him. God's saying essentially to Cain, this is the moment to change your heart. Please change your heart, and I'll be right here. But Cain has that choice. And it says, sin is crouching like a vicious animal. And this is how sin works. It starts off small and it grows. It's actually what we see in James, chapter one. This is what the brother of Jesus says about sin. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desires. Then desire, when is conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown. Brings forth death. This is how sin works. It starts off small, it starts off as a seed, and it grows if we don't stop it. Cain becomes or believes that he has become like a train on tracks, that he has no option except what's set before him. And God is saying, no, stop, turn around, come back. You can come back from this. And yet he continues on the path set before him. And he kills his only brother. He allowed Satan to plant an idea in his mind and let that mature and become full grown. And sure enough, it brought forth death. Some people have commented on this word that sin is crouching at the door, and that it really should be translated as the crouching one in reference to a demonic presence or in reference to a demon. I think that there's something interesting here with that, to read this passage in that way. And if you do not do well. Sin is the crouching one, waiting at the door. And its desire is contrary to you. God is almost coming to Cain and saying, do you remember the enemy who tempted your mom and dad? Do you remember what that did? Do you remember how that tore? Tore a rip in the fabric of the universe. Look at what he did to the world. Imagine what he will do to you. God is gently calling Cain and asking him to come back to him, asking him, where does this path lead you, Cain? This is the first time in scripture that sin is mentioned. And how we are introduced to it is that sin will take you captive by force. Sin will dominate you. Sin will take its desire. Its desire is to go contrary to you. It's not to be a contrarian. I almost think that that language is too weak. The desire of sin is to go against you. It's to work like a parasite. It's to come inside you and absolutely take you over, to eat you from the inside out. This is true for us as well. For Cain, sin is there to do us harm. Sin always wants mastery over us. Sin never stays small. You cannot pet what God calls a predator. What you refuse to kill will grow up and kill what you love. Cain's story reminds us that no human being, no child of Eve, can reverse the curse. The serpent wasn't going to be crushed by the next generation. We needed someone greater. We needed someone born of a woman. But unlike Cain, sin is something that we must rule over. We cannot play with. We cannot believe the lie of Western civilization, that as long as it's not hurting someone else, that it really doesn't matter. No, sin will destroy us. Sin destroys us. It destroys culture. It destroys our community. The serpent may have spoken to Adam and Eve in the garden's ruin, but here his voice grows stronger. Sin was born in Genesis 3. It matured here in Genesis 4. And next week we will see it grow and take over the entire world and consume it. In Genesis 6, that leads us into our second point, judgment and culture. Cain's legacy in verses 9 through 24, so God comes to Cain like he did to his parents before, gently, with a question. He comes to Cain and says, where's Cain? Or where's Abel? Where's your brother? And Cain retorts back almost, I imagine, almost cutting God off before he can get the question out. I'm not my brother's keeper. I don't know. I don't know where he is. What God had just told him in verse seven to act like the firstborn. Cain retorts back so fast, saying, I'm not in charge of him. I will not act like the firstborn. I will not act in a way that honors my family or honors you. Cain lies to God and God will have none of it. And so he rebukes him then and there and gives him a curse. Cain's curse is that the ground will not produce what it used to and that he will be a wanderer. And Cain's response, I think, is so ironic here to say to God, this curse is too great. And that's the reality of sin. The consequences of sin are always greater than what we think that they're going to be. And the promises that sin make never live up to what it says it will. This is the reality for Cain. It's the reality for us. And even so, God promises to make sure that Cain will not be killed in his. In his obstinance towards God. God still promises to take care of him. Yet in Cain's, Cain's response to God, God's anger or God's gentleness is anger. He says that he longs for God's presence, and yet he went away from the presence of the Lord so quickly. What follows in this section? In this chapter, in verses 9 through 24, we see the line of Cain. I think oftentimes we get to a section of scripture, like a genealogy here, and. And we gloss over it and we move past it, and I listen, I get the impulse to do it, right? Genealogies are not super fun to read, except they're incredibly important. And you might still be thinking, of course he's got to say that he's a pastor, right? Genealogies, right. But they are important. Especially in Genesis. Genesis. The genealogies serve to point to something. In fact, Genesis itself as a book, is a genealogy with stories listed in between them. And the point of listing this genealogy, the point of listing these people, is to show the line of the promise. Where would the Savior come from? It's to list that line, and it's also to list the line of the serpent. That's what happens here, listing the line of the seed, Cain. You look at the way that he was talked about at the beginning of this chapter. He was the Promised One. He looks like he was the one who was going to crush the head of the snake. Or at least he was going to be the one that the line of the promise would come from. Right? And now how do we end the chapter? He's furthering the curse. And now he becomes the surrogate for the line of the serpent. The first murderer produces a culture of murder. Sin is not stagnant. It grows. It multiplies. Look at the last descendant that is listed. Look at verse 23. Lamech says, Ada and Zyla, hear my voice, you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say. I've killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. If Cain's revenge is sevenfold, then Lamech's is 77fold. Lamech talks to his. His. His relative, his. His ancestor, almost, you know, making fun of him, saying, you think that Cain was hard. No, no, my heart is even harder. Look at how harsh my revenge is. Cain's descendants, they don't make it out of the book of Genesis. In fact, they don't make it out of Genesis 7. They will die in our next sermon in the Flood. Cain's descendants are notable, right? They look like they've got some things going for them, right? They are the ones who forge instruments of bronze and iron. They build culture, they contribute, they build cities. But Genesis 4 tells us that you can be gifted, you can be productive, you can be culturally impressive, but if you worship wrongly, your descendants will inherit that worship. We think as people, that we can act as individuals, and that what we do will not affect anyone around us. Time and time again, story after story, not just in scripture, but in the world we see. What we do follows us in our children and our grandchildren and those around us. If Genesis 4 ended with Cain's descendants, the story of the promise would die in the very next chapters. But God refuses to let darkness have the last word. God raises up a new beginning. And that's what we see in our last section here, a new beginning. With Seth and worship. Verses 25 and 26. Here in the middle of this tragedy, God keeps the Christmas promise alive. The line of the snake crusher does not die. With Abel, God appoints another seed, Seth. A whisper that the promise is still moving forward, still alive, still moving towards Bethlehem. Notice how this chapter started. Notice how Cain is talked about as he's being born. I really look at how Eve talks about Cain. I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord, emphasizing that she's done this. Almost a clear and evident result of the fall, the first inclination of works righteousness. I have done this. God helped, but I did this. Now look how she talks about Seth. She says, God has appointed for me another offspring instead of Abel. She comes to this realization, seeing what sin has done in her two boys. And she realizes that any gift from God, any gift that she's been given is from God. This isn't just another child, that this is the seed, that this is the offspring from which the promise will come. God promises to make right what man made wrong. The Heidelberg Catechism, question 6 reminds us of what humanity was supposed to be, is supposed to be. God created man good and in his own image so that he might truly know God, his creator, love him with all his heart and live with him in eternal life, happiness. Genesis 4 shows us how far we've fallen. But Seth's line shows us that God is still restoring people to what they were supposed to be. Worshipers. Instead of following the line of Cain, the line of achievements, the line that the world would follow. The rich, the powerful, the educated, the artistic influencers, the people who build cities. God will use the most unlikely people. God will go through the line of Seth, the third born. God will work through the seed of a woman, through someone totally unlikely, through a baby. This is to contrast everything that Cain has done. Cain's line is a story of downward descent into sin and misery. And Seth will go on to worship the Lord. This goes back to the beginning of the chapter. God is seeking true worship, something that Cain could not do, could not give God. But now sess line will. It's interesting. Enosh, his son. The name Enosh means mere man. This line will not be people who are impressive. This line will be the nobodies. It will be the shepherd boys, the ones who slay Goliath, the ones that come from nowhere. It will be kings born in a manger. But the beauty of this is that God is made perfect in our weakness that leads us into our main idea. Sin seeks to master us But God provides a new beginning marked by true worship. Sin seeks to master us, but God provides a new beginning marked by true worship. God is making a way a new beginning by giving us someone who would master sin by defeating it itself. And that would result in us worshiping God the Father. That's what Genesis 4 points us towards. That's what this whole story is about, about worship. God wants us to worship him not with external signs, but with our heart. I think we can come to church week after week doing the right thing, singing the songs, kind of playing church, but miss the heart of God. God looked at Cain's offering and he saw something. He saw something that no one else would have seen to anyone else. If Cain were sitting here right now giving his offering, no one would have batted an eye. It would have passed the eye test. And yet it was not good enough for God. Cain exposes a frightening truth that you can be in the right place doing the right rituals with the wrong heart and believe that you're worshiping and yet you're not. You can be standing in church, singing the songs, placing something in the offering, serving in ministry, all the while quietly withholding the very thing that. That God wants your heart. Cain wasn't trying to please God. He was trying to manage God. He brought an offering, but he did not bring himself. He participated outwardly, but resisted inwardly. He performed all the right rituals without surrendering the rule of his life. This is about worship. This is about your heart. That's why when God talks to Cain before he sins, he doesn't say, give me a better offering, bring me better fruit, bring me better produce. He's saying, I want your heart. True devotion means wholehearted devotion. We cannot come to God and give 15, 16 of our heart. We can't let him have a majority of our of our life. He has to be the Lord over it. He cannot be a mere consultant. We need to let him rule and reign over every aspect of our. Of our heart. One aspect of this leads us into our application that we must worship how God wants to be worshiped. This is the regulative principle in worship. This is. That's the nerdy theological word for it, but really in essence, saying that God gets to tell us how he wants to be worshiped. Yes, absolutely. We need to do the right things with the right heart. That's what this passage is showing us, that it's not merely just doing the right actions, the right rituals, and it's not merely just having a sincere heart, but doing them both together. Some churches will Say things like, as long as you're genuine God, God will be happy. I've seen churches over and over kind of water down the gospel, say, well, if your heart's in the right place, then that's, that's good enough. It sounds nice and loving. Sounds like trying to throw off legalism. It sounds like an attempt at trying to be genuine or authentic, one of those buzzwords that we like to say. But the truth is it makes worship about us. God has told us how he wants to be worshiped. I think in worship, our natural reaction, our natural response is to say, well, this is the way I want to do it. This is what connects with me. These are the songs I want to sing. This is the kind of stuff that I want to do. These are the types of worship elements that I think should be included in a worship service. These are the ways in which I'm going to worship God. Even outside of church, we say, this is how I want to do it. But have we ever asked God, how do you want to be worshiped? We become like people who plan a birthday party for someone else and yet plan things that only we want to do. I don't know if you've ever been around one of those people, but it's awful. I had a birthday party like that once. It was terrible. What happens when worship becomes about something we like rather than what God likes? Well, it becomes self serving, it becomes about the individual, it becomes about, I don't know, it takes that saying of that Christianity isn't a religion, it's a relationship. It takes that to its furthest extra extent. It becomes something that says, well, you don't really need to come to church if you want to worship God by yourself in your deer stand or at home or you know, on the golf course, wherever it is. Right. You can do that. That's fine as long as you're sincere. We have a heart shift here. God has given us things that need to be a part of our worship. Specifically, what need to be part of our worship in church. I think sometimes these are things that we overlook. And so my challenge initially, more than just knowing exactly how God wants to be worshiped, I want to challenge you to these things in a worship service that God calls us to, maybe you're not doing these things and that's the first stepping stone, is to do some of these things. God calls us and commands us in scripture to sing, to give, to pray, to read scripture, to, to sit under teaching and to serve one another. If you're not doing these Things. This is not a suggestion. This is a command from God that these are the things that we must be doing. I don't want to be mean, but if your heart right now is saying man, that seems like too much for me. I just want to say I'm so glad that Jesus didn't say that when he was hanging on the cross. I'm so glad that he didn't say man, this is too much for me. When we see what God calls us to do in light of our salvation, it is nothing. It is light. It is easy. It is an easy burden that we bear. It should be a joy. In fact, true worship is not giving God what we prefer. It is giving God what He has prescribed. And that leads us into our second point of application, mistake turn into two. This is something that has become a life principle for me. I learned this phrase when I was playing football. And yet it has spiritual relevancy. Cain didn't bring his best to God. He wasn't given a second chance either. God was trying to correct him. God was trying to tell him, cain, don't let your mistake turn into another. We all will make mistakes. It's part of our nature. We'll probably make a mistake today. But. The call for us is to recognize it, unlike what Cain did, to recognize our sin and to not take it one step further. We always have the option when we are letting in sin. Let us not turn our back to the Holy Spirit who's convicting us and calling us to repent. Don't allow sin to become full grown. This is a call to kill sin while it is still in seed form. I think sometimes we read passages like Genesis 4 and we think, well, sin isn't, you know, that bad because I would never murder. I could never do something like that. I mean, that would be so far outside what I'm capable of. And yet to see that is to minimize the sin that is inside you. Murder is anger all grown up. Adultery is lust all grown up. Stealing, embezzling is greed and envy all grown up. It's a seed form of the later thing. What is easier if you have to kill an oak tree? What is easier to kill it as an acorn or to try to chop it down when it's full grown? We have the ability to walk away from our sin when they're small, but it becomes much harder when they are ruling over us. Cain's story ends in wandering, but the story of the Gospel ends in worship. Genesis 4 shows us how deeply our sin has mastered us. But Advent shows Us how Christ has come master sin. And this is where the Christmas story becomes personal. The baby in a manger didn't come merely to inspire us. If that's all that we get away from Christmas this season, we have totally missed it. He has come to rescue us from the sin that mastered Cain and the sin that threatens to master us. In this story, we see that the ground drops drank Abel's blood. The world learned the cost really how costly sin really is. But centuries later, another son would bleed, not in a field this time, but on a hill. Not as a victim of jealousy, but as a willing sacrifice. Abel's blood marked the beginning of human ruin. Jesus blood marked the beginning of human redemption. Abel's blood cried out for justice. Jesus blood cried out to satisfy that justice. Abel's blood announced the spread of sin and death. Jesus blood announced the end of it. This is the wonder of Advent. The long promised offspring has come. The one whose heel would be bruised so the serpent's head would be crushed. Sin seeks to master us, but God provides a new beginning marked by true worship. Let us worship this morning. Let us stand and would you pray with me as we sing our closing song? Let's stand and pray. Father. God, we thank you for who you are. God, we thank you that you have given us a way to resist our sin, to run from it, to flee from it, to not let it rule over us. Father, I pray that you would convict us of our sin through your Holy Spirit, that we wouldn't feel condemnation because we know that your son was condemned for us. God, help us. Help us to stand and sing in worship longing for your second coming. God, help us to sing this next song. O come, oh come, Emmanuel. It's in your name we pray. Amen. Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy link

Prosper Blog Drawing the Line of Legalism Mitchell Leach Heading 3 Drawing the Line of Legalism Mitchell Leach You’ve probably heard the term legalism, or legalist used — not just in the church — but in culture abroad. Legalism carries a clearly negative connotation (and for good reason). Yet legalism isn’t a word found in the English Bible, but that doesn’t mean the Bible doesn’t say anything about it. Paul uses the phrase “works of the law” eight times in his writings (Romans 2:15, 3:20, 3:28, Galatians 2:16, 3:2, 3:5, 3:10). Can we trust the Council of Nicaea? Mitchell Leach Why can the church feel this way? Because men cannot create new — correct theology — men can only discover it. Men can invent new heresy, but not orthodoxy. Men and women today and in antiquity can only recognize it. And this is what the modern church should find confidence in. As noted above, the implications of this inform nearly every subsequent theological position the church has taken since. The council of Nicaea was moved by the Holy Spirit to... How is Man Made Right With God? Mitchell Leach If you look at any human relationship – any meaningful one at that – you will find injustice from either party. It is inescapable, humanity defaults toward relational injustice, not towards relational justice. We inflict harm to those we love, and those who love us. Humanity has a strange propensity to cause brokenness in relationships. We do this not just in our horizontal relationships, but in our vertical relationship with God. How is man made right with God? Can unbelievers understand and interpret the Bible? Mitchell Leach "So anyone who thinks he has understood the divine scriptures or any part of them, but cannot by his understanding buildup this double love of God and neighbor, has not yet succeeded in understanding them”(Augustine, On Christian Teaching, 1.86). St. Augustine — accurately — describes that true comprehension of the Bible comes through a combination of prayer, faith, and an attitude of submission to God's will. It is by loving God and being compelled into action, If God Is Sovereign, Why Pray? Mitchell Leach Whether or not prayer is effective (and it is effective), we are called to be followers of Christ. The question shouldn’t be “Does prayer change things?” But rather “Is Jesus God?” Because if he is in fact God, then what he says goes. Questioning God on whether his commandments make sense to us is a grievously offensive practice. In doing so we (as finite creatures) are inferring that we — somehow — have a better perspective... First Prev 1 Page 1 Next Last

Never Alone Marriage Conference Easter Service Times Sermon Series New to Prosper CRC? Is this your first time at Prosper? We’re so glad you’re here! We want to make your visit as smooth as possible. Here’s some helpful information to get you started: Learn more about Prosper Kids Programming At Prosper, we are Gospel-Centered, Family-Focused, and Kingdom-Minded. Learn more about what we believe . Have Questions? We’d love to help! Contact Us We can’t wait to worship with you this Easter! March 5 at 6:30 PM Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent, a spiritual journey leading us to Easter. Join us for a special night of worship and prayer as we prepare our hearts in anticipation for this season and the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus! We will have programming available for kids birth through 5th grade. Sermon Series Watch Sermon Series How the Gospel brings us back to everything good Why is it that no matter how hard we search, true fulfillment always feels out of reach? The brokenness of the world surrounds us, trapping us in a cycle of empty promises and endless searching. But this Easter, we’re stepping into a better story—the story of Jesus Christ. Through the Gospel of John, we’ll witness the most extraordinary reversal in history: Jesus willingly taking our place in death, rising again, and dismantling the brokenness of the world. His love and power invite us into a new life, where restoration and lasting hope are finally possible. This is the gospel. This is Easter. Join us at Prosper this season and experience the Savior who promises to make all things new. Easter Events Breakout Speakers Name Name Name Name Name Name Frequently Asked Questions What is the theme of the 2025 Marriage Conference? “Never Alone” is the theme for the Peace Church 2025 Marriage Conference. We are never alone; we walk through life with our spouse, with our church, and with our Savior. How do I register? You can register for the 2025 Marriage Conference here . What is the conference schedule? Friday 5:30 PM | Doors open 6:00 PM | Session One & Worship Night 7:30 PM | Resource Shop Opens Saturday 8:00 AM | Check In, Breakfast, and Resource Shop 9:00 AM | Welcome and Worship 9:45 AM | Session Two 10:45 AM | Breakout #1 11:30 AM | Lunch + Resource Shop Open 12:30 PM | Breakout #2 1:30 PM | Session Three 2:30 PM | Q/A Session 3:00 PM | Concluding Worship 4:00 PM | Resource Shop Closes Can I bring my children? Childcare is offered only during the Friday night session. Will meals be provided? Breakfast and lunch will be provided as well as snacks throughout the day. Who can I contact for more information? Contact Nicole Baumann for more information. What if I have a food allergy? You can select your lunch choice in your registration. We will have dairy and gluten free options available! Does this conference celebrate same-sex "marriage"? No. Click here if you'd like to learn more about our biblical views on sexuality. Will we be in the new worship center? Most likely! Will this be live-streamed? No, however we will have the Keynote recordings available for a limited time after the conference to attendees. Can I attend this if I am engaged? Yes! Vision To see the Gospel embraced and passed on for generations of Kingdom impact. Mission At Peace Church, we are Gospel-Centered, Family-Focused, and Kingdom-Minded. Sponsors Sponsors 2024 Conference Messages Maundy Thursday At 6:30 PM "Maundy" comes from the Latin word meaning "mandate. "At the Last Supper, Jesus gave His disciples a simple, yet powerful mandate: to love one another. In this special communion service, we will see how, during the Last Supper, Jesus brings about the great reversal, turning the law into love. We’ll reflect on how Christ fulfills His own commandment through His sacrificial death. We will have programming available for kids birth through 5th grade. Easter Sunday At 9:30, and 11:00 AM Easter is the great reversal—when Jesus went from death to life! The Gospel is our promise, and the Resurrection of Jesus is our guarantee that we can have not only salvation but eternal life. As we celebrate Jesus' victory over Satan, sin, and death, you are invited to join us this Easter to hear about and celebrate the Risen King, as we see how the Gospel bring us back to everything good. We will have programming available for kids birth through 5th grade. Good Friday At 5:30 PM Many would consider it horribly ironic that the day Jesus Christ was crucified is called Good Friday, but it is truly good because Christ's sacrifice makes our salvation not just possible, but secure. On Good Friday, we witness an incredible reversal: When many would see Jesus willingly dying on the cross as a surrender, it was actually an eternal victory over sin when He cries out, “It is finished.” We will have programming available for kids birth through 5th grade.

Membership Interested in becoming a member of Prosper CRC? Interested in becoming a member of Prosper CRC? Join one of our Membership Classes to learn about our theology, philosophy, and how to get involved. After completing both classes, you'll meet with a elder to finalize your membership. Click here to register for a membership class. Baptism We believe that Jesus has commanded all those who are His to be baptized with pure water "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19). This sacrament signifies our reception into the Church of God, which separates us from all other religions and dedicates us wholly to Him (Galatians 3:27). Yet, we deny that baptism is necessary for salvation (Ephesians 2:8-9; Luke 23:42-43, Romans 3:28, Romans 4:5, Galatians 2:16, Titus 3:5). We believe and confess that Jesus Christ, by His sacrificial death and the shedding of His blood, has fulfilled and abolished the old covenant practice of circumcision, instituting instead the sacrament of baptism (Colossians 2:11-12). Therefore, we believe in the baptism of infants, as it aligns with the biblical precedent of including children in the covenant community, much like the practice of circumcision under the old covenant (Genesis 17:10-12; Acts 2:38-39). Christ's redemptive work extends to the children of believers, and they, too, should receive the sign and sacrament of baptism, affirming that Jesus shed His blood for them as well (Luke 18:15-17; Acts 16:31-33). This practice underscores the continuity of God’s covenant promises, ensuring that our children are marked by the covenant from the earliest moments of their lives (Acts 16:15, 33; 1 Corinthians 7:14). We hold firmly that this sacrament, once administered, is sufficient for the entirety of one's life, symbolizing both our initiation into the faith and God's enduring grace towards us (Ephesians 4:5; Romans 6:3-4). Profession of Faith We believe that profession of faith is an essential outward expression of an inward belief in Jesus Christ. Scripture teaches that faith should not remain private but should be confessed openly, as seen in Romans 10:9-10: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Jesus also warns against being ashamed to profess faith before others (Matthew 10:33; Luke 9:26). While the Bible does not prescribe a specific method for this profession, we recognize the longstanding tradition in church history of publicly affirming one’s faith, whether as a new believer or as a child raised in the church. Because of this, we ask those who have never publicly professed their faith in a church setting to do so when becoming members. We see this as an opportunity to glorify God, encourage fellow believers, and affirm one’s commitment to Christ and His Church. We believe that profession of faith is closely connected to both church membership and baptism. We practice covenantal infant baptism, and those baptized as children later profess their faith when they have a firm understanding of the gospel. For those who were not baptized as children, profession of faith and baptism occur together. We know that some lifelong believers may feel that a formal profession is unnecessary, but we encourage it as an act of testimony, unity, and accountability within the church. Through this process, we affirm that new members are not only declaring their faith but also committing to walk with the Lord, support fellow believers, and receive the loving guidance of the church community.

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Upcoming Events Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Contact Us Go Interested in Serving? Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Interested in Serving? Go Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates.

Upcoming Events Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Contact Us Go Interested in Serving? Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Interested in Serving? Go Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates.

Upcoming Events Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Contact Us Go Interested in Serving? Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Interested in Serving? Go Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates.

Upcoming Events Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Contact Us Go Interested in Serving? Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Interested in Serving? Go Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates.

Upcoming Events Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Contact Us Go Interested in Serving? Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Interested in Serving? Go Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates.

Upcoming Events Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Contact Us Go Interested in Serving? Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates. Newsletter Sign Up Interested in Serving? Go Go Stay Connected Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and follow us on social media for the latest ministry updates.