QSBC Students

Wednesday night we talked about what it looks like to faithfully chase after Jesus and away from the passion's of our old lives. As God's children we have been given an identity which calls us to a sober and holy obedience! What a joy it is to be set apart and made holy by the righteousness of God!

This week, we continue in our series through 1 Peter as we look at 1 Peter 1:3-12! Our discussion centers on the living hope that can only be found when Jesus Christ resides in us. This living hope is unlike the things of this world that fade and perish. It is a secure, eternal promise found in Jesus. This living hope is joy-filled—not only in the good times, but also in the trials that each of us will face. Finally, this living hope is eternal. The salvation we experience today was foretold long ago in Scripture, fulfilled through Jesus, and will remain true for eternity. Are you experiencing this living hope today?

We have jumped into a new series through 1 Peter where Scripture teaches us how in Christ, there is an abundance of grace and peace. We can experience unmerited grace and complete freedom because God saves us. The Word shows us that we can experience grace and peace because the Holy Spirit sanctifies and Jesus steers us into a life of flourishing! God calls us to be obedient and set apart and through that, we live in the grace and peace that allows for us to flourish! How are you experiencing the grace and peace in Christ?

God says you are worth it // John 3:16 God says you can be saved // John 3:17 What do you say to God? // John 3:18-21

Dylan preaches on how Jesus is not a national Jesus, which is often viewed as either the mascot of America or that we cannot love America because we are only supposed to love Jesus. Jesus and the Gospel are for all nations, including our nation. Therefore, we must submit to the call of the great commission, make disciples of "our nation," and make disciples of all nations. We must live out an active faith of evangelism, not a passive faith of deferring the responsibility to missionaries.

Barrett Jones preaches that our Jesus is not a boring Jesus; he is a Jesus that is alive and brings about excitement! Following the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, the word is going around that He has risen from the grave and is alive. The Jews then were overwhelmed with excitement and we get to have the same excitement today! Because Jesus is alive, everything changes. Our salvation and the transformative work through the Scriptures is only possible because Jesus is alive and this brings about the greatest excitement and joy!

Pastor Connor encourages our students by preaching intentionally through his life verse: 2 Corinthians 5:21. This Gospel-centered message emphasizes that God is for you, God trades with you: your sin for his righteousness, and that God creates a new you. Through the Gospel, God saw Jesus as a sinner, accepted him as a sacrifice, and now sees us as sinless. Our lives will never be the same because of the goodness, kindness, amazing grace, and mercy of our God. He loves you with the greatest sacrificial love so that you can have a relationship with him. Go therefore and tell others of the Good News that has transformed your life!

Jesus is the only way to salvation! He is the truth, the way, and the light. Dylan preaches that salvation is found is personally responding to Jesus as Savior and Lord. The Gospel is exclusive and inclusive because it is only through Jesus and for all people who repent and believe. You may have grown up in the church with Jesus-loving parents or are a really good and kind person, but this does not transfer for our salvation. It is a response that you personally must make to turn away from your sin and turn toward Jesus! Praise the Lord that salvation is a gift for us through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross because of His great love for us.

Our Next Gen Pastor, Nate Crawford, teaches us that Jesus is not distant in your pain and suffering, rather he is a God that is near, close, and at work. Walking through the passage of Mary and Martha with the death of Lazarus, Nate teaches us three key truths of the person of Jesus amidst suffering and hurt: when life gets hard, Jesus gets close; when your heart is heavy, take it to Jesus; and when your problem is big, Jesus is bigger. Praise God for Jesus who gets up and comes near to us in our brokenness!

Continuing on with our "Not my Jesus" sermon series, Dylan emphasizes that the Biblical Jesus is not the accepting and agreeable Jesus some may want him to be. Rather, Jesus is the perfect judge. Throughout these passages, Dylan teaches that Jesus is a judge that rules with compassion, standards, and authority. Jesus does not affirm our sin, but he holds us to a standard and calls us up and out of our sin, which is truly loving. He is a holy God that will judge righteously according to our sin, and yet, he steps into our brokenness to take the punishment for our sin so that we can experience his great mercy and grace.

Our student mission trips have returned back from serving in Denver Colorado, Santa Cruz California, and Northallerton England and on this episode, leaders and students shared about how they saw God move in each of those places while they served. The students shared testimonies of encouraging gospel conversations, growth, evangelism, and their own boldness in sharing the good news with those that need to hear it. We are so thankful for our church partnerships, the faithfulness and service of these students, and the sovereign and gracious work of God. Please continue praying for the Living Stone Church, Santa Cruz Baptist Church, and New Life Baptist Church!

Kicking off our new series, "Not My Jesus," Dylan preaches on how Jesus' authority is our biggest blessing. Jesus is not a God that we can mold into whoever we want and need him to be; rather, Jesus is the authoritative God who molds and transforms us into looking more like Him for His glory and goodness. Jesus has authority as Creator, Savior, and Lord following the passages of Colossians 1:15-20, Ephesians 2:1-10, and Matthew 28:18-20, respectfully. We have to understand and know who the true Jesus is, not who we want him to be!

Our final Q&A with Dylan and Brittany over dating relationships brought some really good discussion! Some of the questions and topics addressed included why should we date if dating isn't originally in the Bible, does reading your Bible with your significant other cross spiritual boundaries, and how should you respectfully break up with someone. Other great questions asked included how to keep Christ at the center of your relationship, can you have a best friend of the opposite sex and not date them, and how to discern whether your relationship is leading you toward Christ or away. We are all so thankful for Dylan and Brittany's wisdom!

In the final week through our Boundaries and Blessings series, Dylan emphasizes how waiting is the path to flourishing. We specifically see how waiting honors God's Design for marriage, waiting protects you spiritually, emotionally, and physically, as well as how waiting respects one another! Therefore, that begs the question, how do we wait well? Dylan emphasizes that we run hard after Jesus, individually! Our relationships are ultimately about Jesus, so are you honoring Jesus in your relationship? The blessing is found in the boundary of waiting!

In this weeks Gravity Recap and Celebration, Dylan leads us through more application tools when it comes to following Jesus. We must Behold Jesus by beholding his Word, his availability, and his people. Followers of Jesus must also die to themselves and their daily desires and schedules. Lastly, we must go tell people because we are the church now! How are you growing as a follower of Jesus?

On this week's Q&A episode, Brittany and Dylan jump into some deeper and more honest conversations around dating. They discuss dating with the purpose of marriage, not just for fun, as well as how to be faithful in singleness when there is so much social pressure to date. Brittany and Dylan share wisdom on the topics of helping a friend in a toxic relationship, moving on from an ex in a God-honoring way, and ways to be respectful and consider to the significant other in a relationship. Lastly, they also touch on the hot-button question of physical boundaries and how far is too far or where the line starts and is crossed. It's a great conversation, come listen!

In this sermon, we learn from the example of David that selfishness is never in line with God's design. Our selfishness draws us away from accountability, but wisdom draws us to God's Word and His people. When we are selfish, we act on our desires and do not think of others, but when we have wisdom, we have discernment in situations and we think of how others are affected. Like the example of David, our selfishness leads us to live in the fruit of our sin, but having wisdom leads us to own and address our sin.

After teaching, Dylan and his wife, Brittany, answer some of your dating questions! In this session, they speak into not idolizing your relationship, what it looks like to glorify God in your relationship, and if waiting for a relationship is worth it. We hear them share moments from their dating relationship as well as the wisdom they have from advising other couples. They even get to cover questions such as should you missionary date or if you have already crossed boundaries, what do you do now. Come join us next week to hear more and have your questions answered!

Our Dating Series, Boundaries and Blessings began with an encouragement and challenge to be in an all out pursuit of Jesus! Dylan shows us that your life is about seeking Jesus, not dating and therefore, the way that you live your life should be informed by Jesus, not the world. When you are running hard after the heart of God, you will find true and complete satisfaction! We cannot idolize or prioritize relationships because God has called us to be a people that worship and are only satisfied in Him. The blessings we experience, even in relationships, are found in the boundaries of God's design and commandments.

This week's episode, Barrett powerfully encourages and challenges his listeners to be on mission to reach the lost! From the passage in Luke 10, we see that the Lord appoints and sends His believers! There is a large harvest around us, in our schools, communities, teams, and work places, and yet, the laborers are few. Through this message, Barrett shares that we have all power in Jesus to share the Gospel, we need to be faithful to plant seeds and allow God to water and grow them, and we need to ask God to burden our hearts for the lost, so that we feel the weight and importance to share the Good News!

We kick off the new year with a new series: Clarity! This episode strongly emphasizes how God's love is bigger than your sin and all you need to do is repent of your sin and turn away from your old life to the new life of redemption through Jesus. Dylan walks us through the story of the Prodigal son in Luke 15 with an emphasis on how pursuing your own way leads to death, repentance leads to life, and bitterness (like the oldest brother) robs God of His glory. What do you need to repent and turn completely away from this year?

This is our last week in the study of Philippians and man, has it been good to learn about Paul and how we should live a life that matters! To close it out, Dylan teaches us that a life that matters is strengthened by God, steeped in partnership with other believers, and supplied by Jesus! Jesus is the only way, the only truth, and the only light! We have one final question for you: How are you Living a Life that Matters?

As we walk through a very well-known passage in Scripture, Dylan leads us through how God's Word the common experience of anxiety. From Scripture, we learn that rejoicing needs to be a daily habit and that anxiety is real and in it, we must seek God, not the things of the world. Dylan emphasizes how peace only comes from God, not what we try to fix or numb. When processing anxiety and in general, Paul commands us to take control of our thoughts by thinking on the things that are true and honorable! How are you going to fight anxious thoughts with the power of the Spirit?

This week, Barrett Jones, a previous student, fills in as we wrap up chapter 3 of Philippians. As a believer, life is not going to be easy and yet, God encourages us to press on. Barrett explains that we must press on because Jesus made us His own, He gave us a call, and we get Jesus in the end! How are you pressing on when life is challenging and you feel discouraged?

Dylan brought the Word as he emphasized how we express our faith in Jesus! We express and live out our faith through worship, pursuit of God, and knowing Him and His Word. Jesus surpasses all worth and value in comparison to everything in the world! Praise God we can rest in the Truth that our life is fully dependent upon Jesus and His death and resurrection.

As we wrap up chapter 2 of Philippians, we are challenged to live a life of action. Paul, a follower of Jesus, intentionally multiples other followers of Jesus by building them up and sending them out. The text also teaches us that a life of action genuinely cares about those we are reaching and humbling sacrifices so that others may know and experience Jesus. Dylan wraps this up with one significant question: what is your relationship with Jesus costing you?

We had a special midweek where Pastor Connor answered some of your questions! Pastor Connor shares his testimony and encouragement for students. He addresses some pressing topics and questions revolving around Halloween, money, secular music, friendships, and ChatGPT. Theologically, He also answers questions concerning the validity of God's Word, Jesus' Second Coming, pride, demons, and God allowing bad things to happen. We are thankful for Pastor's wisdom and teaching!

Dylan leads us through this passage emphasizing how we should work out our faith, making it evident that we follow God out of delight. We should work out our faith with a holy fear to honor God, with a holy grip to shine, and with a holy outpouring to find joy. We must live out the gift of salvation that God has gracious given to us. We must cling to God's Word and exude a faithful obedience in following Him.

This is such a powerful passage of God's Word because if Jesus is real to you, there are ways that you must be living your life. Dylan shows us that we must be unified and of one spirit, humble and others-seeking, obedient to Jesus, and worshipping God in everything we do. Every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord, will you be doing it with delight for eternal life or with fear for eternal punishment of death. How are you going to respond in light of this message?

We are called to live our life in a manner worthy of the Gospel, and yet, our lives tend not to back up what we say and believe. So, this presents us with the question, how do we live a life worthy of the Gospel? Philippians 1:27-30 directs us to living our lives with a Godly reputation while standing firm in the Spirit. It also teaches us to live our life with a captivated mind and a God-given confidence. Does your life back up what you say and believe?

In this sermon, Dylan emphasizes the importance of laying down our life so that Christ lives through us. It is evident that living for Christ is communal, costly, and changing. When people look at your life, what do you think they notice, your personality and achievements or Christ in you?

As we walk through these verses, we are challenged to share the Gospel as unified brothers and sisters in Christ, with a collective and joyful motive. We must not share the Gospel out of envy or rivalry or even for our own glory and recognition. What is your motive to sharing the Gospel and how can you celebrate, and not compete for, the Gospel being shared in your schools and communities?

Following the example and power of Paul's Testimony, Dylan encourages the listeners to know that your testimony is also personal, purposeful, and powerful! Despite any circumstance you are in, God is using it to write a beautiful story according to His will for His glory. Are you taking the testimony of God's work in your life and sharing with others to make the Gospel known?

As we dive deeper into chapter 1 of Philippians, Dylan emphasizes the importance of encouragement within community by leading us through three prayers. We pray that you would have a God-sourced passion and partnership with one another, that you would know that God is working in your midst, and that your love for Jesus would overflow. What are some things you are going to begin praying for in light of this passage and sermon?

We kick off a new series through the book of Philippians with a focus on living a life that matters. Dylan walks us through verses one and two where Paul introduces himself and then we jump into understanding the person and life of Paul from Acts 26. Dylan challenges us with three questions: Are you wrong? Is Jesus your Lord? How are you going to respond?

This week, Barrett Jones brings the Word from 1 John about how God simply desires our desire. God wants our hearts above all else! He breaks down verses 15-17 of chapter 2 with an emphasis on how God desires our love and our submission. Are you living in submission to God's will and not your fleshly desires? Do you love the things of this world over God? Barrett challenges us to continue to allow God's Word and the Gospel to realign our desires back to God and to refine us more into the image of Christ.

Brock flies solo in his sermon tonight in our series "By Students for Students". He hits on this command that we have been given to love. 1 John 2:7-11

Dylan and Mitchell share the stage as they walk us through the beginning of chapter 2 in 1 John. Mitchell begins by teaching us how Jesus is the source of eternal life and Dylan emphasizes how today, Jesus is the path to life now! How is your life consistent with the Word of God? Is Jesus the source of your life or are you still searching for other things and people to fulfill you?

As we continuing walking through 1 John, our preaching crew emphasizes what it looks like to walk in the light. Brock, Bryce, and Barrett teach on how walking in the light reflects consistency, humility, and confession. They challenge the audience to live for the Lord in every aspect of your life, to avoid justifying your sin, and aggressively fight sin through confession.

We kick off our new series, "For Students, by the Students" where our preaching crew leads us through 1 John 1. Barrett, Mitchell, and Brock lead us through the first four incredible and dense verses of chapter 1 and help us learn how when we experience God, our lives should have evidence of proclamation, fellowship, and joy. Please forgive our technical issues with the sound and clarity of this sermon, yet the content is amazing!

Nate leads us through chapter 63 and 64 of Isaiah with a challenge to have an expectant heart posture to see God move. To have an expectant posture, we must recognize God's power, cry out for Him to move, confess our sin, and trust in the mighty Word of God. How are you living with an expectant posture toward the work of God?

Jump on this week for a HUGE announcement and encouragement/challenge on how you view parenting. We hope this will be a conversation and prayer starter for you!

Following Thomas's last sermon, which commissioned believers to pursue others, this week, he teaches us how believers should pursue others. The text teaches us that we must prioritize God's Will above all else, pursue every opportunity God gives us, and completely rely on the work of God to move in others' hearts.

Thomas begins a two part series through John 4 where he emphasizes how Jesus pursues others with grace and love. We should follow the example of Jesus by pursuing others even when they are rejected by others, when they may not understand God's teaching, when they are living in sin, and when they are worshipping falsely. Who are you going to pursue for the sake of the Gospel?

Dylan wraps up our Daniel series by teaching how standing strong for God has an impact on those around us, through the examples of Daniel and his friends on the kings. Not only is our stand personal and cumulative, but it also testifies to God's power and peace! How do you specifically see God using your "stand" as a part of His sovereign, good plan?

This week, Dylan follows the example of Daniel and teaches us to be faithful in our work, devoted in our worship to God, and delivered through the power of God. Through being faithful, devoted and delivered, we can deeply impact the people around us for the Kingdom of God just as Daniel did to the King.

Dylan teaches through the well known Biblical story of the King Nebuchadnezzar and the fiery furnace with an emphasis on how the world demands our worship and yet, the world cannot overthrow the purposes of God. This passage leaves us to ask ourselves what or whom has our worship and how we need to stand strong with God-sized devotion to Him and Him alone.

We kick off a new series in the book of Daniel where we look to the examples of Daniel and his friends as they stand firm on God's commandments. Dylan walks us through how God knows the pressure to compromise and yet, He provides us with conviction and wisdom to walk in.

Thomas continues the theme of Rewire from Gravity, but specifies it to our identity. From 1 Peter 2, he emphasizes that our identity is found in being children of God and is revealed through our actions.

This Midweek, Dylan leads us through three beautiful examples of having a patient perspective in life. He challenges us with the words of James to trust like a farmer, speak like the prophets, and persevere like Job.