Science Ridge Mennonite Church

Today we look at the person of Jesus. Jesus reveals God to us more completely than any other prophet or writer can, and that has implications for how we understand the Bible and the teachings from Jesus.     Join us as we explore the implications!

This week Eric again brings us the message, this time from John 3. This is a well know part of scripture and Eric did a great job going deeper with it for us!    Enjoy this lesson on another important part of Jesus' ministry.

The next couple of Sundays we'll be learning about some of Jesus' well known teachings. This Sunday we have guest preacher Eric Sipes with us to talk about the "easy yoke" and "light burden" of Jesus from Matthew 11. 

Sometimes it's hard to get along with people who don't see the world like we do. Today our world has split and polarized along lines of beliefs and opinions and worldviews, and it is easy to belittle the "other side." But Jesus gives us a challenging teaching that mandates we do something different.  Listen in to see how Jesus teaches that our actions towards others should mirror God's actions towards us.    Be Our Guest Sunday is April 12. Sign up to visit our church on our website: https://www.scienceridgechurch.org/plan-your-visit  

How do you get people to like you? Jesus wrestled with some similar challenges.  What kind of Messiah will Jesus be? How will Jesus gain a following? That is one of the questions we ask as we explore the beginning of Jesus' ministry.  (Stay tuned to the end and I share a 2nd idea about the symbolism of Jesus' temptations.) You are also welcome to join us for the Be Our Guest Sunday, April 12, 10am.   https://www.scienceridgechurch.org/plan-your-visit

Why does a sinless Jesus request to have a baptism of repentance?  That is what we will explore in this massage as we begin to explore the ministry and message of Jesus.    If you are curious about church or are wondering about the best Sunday to check us out, mark your calendar for April 12. We have a special "Be Our Guest" Sunday at 10am, followed by a free meal. We'd love to have you join us! https://www.scienceridgechurch.org/plan-your-visit  

The promised Messiah has come! But who is this child? Today we look at Luke 2:11. The angels can't contain their excitement and they rush to find someone to tell about this wonderful thing that has happened. Jesus is Savior, Messiah, and Lord, According to the angels. 

The Bible is missing 400 years! There is a large gap between the Old Testament and the New Testament. How did the Romans get there? What impact did Alexander the Great have? Today we explore what is happening to the people of Israel between the return from Exile and the birth of Jesus. 

The people of Israel have gone into Exile. They experienced the consequences of being the "People of God" who were not actually representing God to the world. Now they have been in Exile for 70 years. How has this experienced changed them? How can God transform our experiences of being lost and cut off from what we are familiar with? Tune in to find out!

How were the people of Israel conquered? Why did God allow it to happen? And could the same thing be repeated in our time? Today we have a bit of a history lesson. We'll look at some of the events leading to the downfall of both the Northern and Southern Kingdom and see what warnings and promises God gives the people. 

How long did the plagues in Egypt last?  How many people knew about John the Baptist? What if the whole US was pacifist and we were invaded? Is there predestination?   These questions and more for our "Ask the Pastor" Sunday!

Today we talk about an event in Israel that had a major impact that we rarely talk about.  1 Kings 12 tells the story of how the nation of Israel becomes split into 2 Kingdoms, Judah (sometimes called the southern Kingdom) and Israel (also called Samaria or the Northern Kingdom). And it all has to do with a King who decided to take the advice that made him feel good, rather than advice that would heal past wounds... Learn more about us!  ScienceRidgeChurch.org

As kings become a part of Israel's history there arises the role of "prophet." Their role is to help keep the king accountable to God and call for repentance and and turning back to God when necessary. Today we attempt to summarize (at least in part) the primary message of the prophets by looking at Micah 6:6-8. 

How long have you kept a promise? Today we learn a bit about King David and a promise that God made to David that was finally fulfilled 1000 years later.   

As humans, we want a leader. We want someone to turn to when trouble is brewing. The people of God were originally called to live with God as their king, and God would call up people to lead when needed. But between corrupt human leaders and the uncertainties that come with not having a central leader the people began to demand a king "like the other nations."   Our ability to trust God sometimes isn't much different..

Why did God lead the people of Israel to "the promised land?" What's so special about this place? And what do we do with some of the stories of God seeming to authorize violence on the people that were already living there? Today we'll explore those questions.

The people have left Egypt. They have made a Covenant with God at Mt Sinai. Now God will use the time in the wilderness to continue to form this people. They have a lot of baggage from Egypt to unlearn along the way.  Often we find ourselves in times of wandering, or "wilderness-like" experiences. As scary as they can be, God can use those times to shape us and mature us for the next stage of life.  

In the Bible, the events of Mt Sinai take place in a jumble of laws and instructions. It can be easy to miss this important event in the life of God's people. Here God forms a Covenant with the people, gives them some boundaries and instructions, and lays out an identity for the people to be a "nation of priests" in God's plan to restore humanity back to God.  We often think of rules as restrictive. But rules can also form us as people and inform the habits and values that we take on. Within God's expectations for us there is room to find life and purpose. 

The people of Israel have found themselves enslaved and Egypt is afraid they might start an armed rebellion. How do they escape? Through God's awesome power! When we are stuck in life our temptation is to get out with our own power. What if God has a better way to release you?

Sometimes we fin ourselves in situations that are hard to get out of. We are bound, stuck in a rut. Maybe even directly attacked or oppressed by someone taking away our freedoms.    This week we look at how this chosen people of God end up enslaved in Egypt. And we are reminded that we too can be rescued from the things that bind us.    www.scienceridgechurch.org

God has chosen the family of Abraham to work through. Much of Genesis follows this family and we quickly see that they are imperfect. They make mistakes, but God stays loyal to them.  Today we look at one of those stories, the story of Judah and Tamar. This story is a great example of needing to know the cultural background of the Bible to better understand the values that it is teaching.  www.scienceridgechurch.org

We continue to look at the grand story of the Bible. Last time we looked at that problem of sin. Humans are full of pride and violence. Today we see God promise a solution to the sin problem. God will walk with a family so they can eventually be the source of blessing to the world. www.scienceridgechurch.org 

Every good story has a problem or challenge to over come. The Bible is no different! Today we look at Genesis 3-11 and 4 stories that define the "sin problem." This problem is what God seeks to solve over the rest of the Bible.  

Today we begin a new sermon series. We are going to be looking at the overarching story of the Bible. How do we make sense of these various stories, letters, historical accounts, poems, genealogies, etc.? We start our exploration by looking at creation and a couple of key things to note in the story of creation that will help us better understand who we are and how we fit into God's larger work across human history. 

This Sunday was a bit different! Instead of a sermon, I answered some questions that people had submitted. Some were related to past sermons, others were questions people had during their own Bible reading and devotional time. It went well and I look forward to doing it again. Questions can be emailed or messaged to our church on Facebook! www.scienceridgechurch.org  [email protected] https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093999330065 

What if... Worry and anxiety can weigh us down. Often we are afraid that we won't be prepared or cared for if something happens. What if we run out of money? What if I can't get this thing I need to thrive or be happy or feel safe?  Today we see what Jesus teaches when it comes to worry and concern for our future. I really enjoyed this message, and I hope you will too! 

For part 2 of this section where Jesus talks about money and possessions we look at this riddle Jesus gives us. Jesus talks about having good eyes or healthy eye, and bad eyes or evil eyes. What does that means?!? Jesus also gives this well known statement, "you cannot love both God and money."   Tune in to learn how to see the world in a healthier way. 

In the book of Matthew Jesus tells us not to store up treasures on earth, because these treasures can't be trusted. Instead, store up heavenly treasures. What does that mean? What are heavenly treasures and how do we store them up? That's what we will explore in today's teaching!

Does God lead us into situations where we face temptation? What is Jesus talking about here? Join us as we conclude our look at the Lord's Prayer. "Do not lead us into a time of trials, but deliver us from the evil one."

It can be hard to forgive people! It is easy to nurse a grudge or resentment. But Jesus invites us to forgive others, and even says that we will not experience the full forgiveness of God unless we forgive others.  But what does it mean to forgive? Does it mean people get off the hook for their actions? Not necessarily. Tune in this week to learn what it means to forgive someone. 

This week we begin the 2nd half of the Lord's prayer, found in Matthew chapter 6. "Give us today our daily bread." What does Jesus mean? Are we supposed to get literal bread from God every day?  Tune in as we learn about trusting God and growing in gratitude for everything we have.    https://www.scienceridgechurch.org/

Today we look at the first half of the Lord's prayer. In the first half we are invited to call God Father, we declare that we want God's name to be known as Holy, and we want God's rule to take place here on Earth as it is in Heaven. Join us as we explore this special prayer given to us by Jesus.

Today we being looking at the Lord's Prayer. This special prayer has been cherished by Christians since the earliest days of the church. It is found at the very center of the Sermon on the Mount. Today we begin this section by looking at the prayer from above. How did it function in the life of the early church? What can we learn from it today?

This week we are happy to have Lauren Steinhauer bring our message. Lauren is a young person with a heart for God and seeing others grow in their faith. She leads us into the beginning of Advent by reminding us of the light we carry with us into the world.    Mt 5:13-16

Today we look broadly at Matthew chapter 6. Here Jesus talks about 3 ways of practicing devotion to God that were common in his time; giving, prayer, and fasting. We have similar practices today that help us connect with God. Listen in to learn about ways we can honor God in today's world, and hear Jesus' warning about miss-using practices for our own gain.    Matthew 6:1-18

Today we start a new section of the Sermon on the Mount. In the next few sections Jesus talks about our religious life, and really focuses on why we do the things we do. The word, "hypocrite" is used to describe certain people here. It turns out that the type of "hypocrite" that Jesus warns us about might be different than the way we are used to using that word.  Tune in today to see what Jesus has to say about the motivations behind our actions.  Mt 6:1 and following 

In Matthew 5:48 Jesus says "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." Is is possible to be a perfect Christian? What does that mean? Today we look at this verse in the context of the rest of Matthew 5 and the lessons we have been learning for the last few weeks.

After Jesus talks about "turning the other cheek" and "going the extra mile" Jesus gives a teaching about loving our enemies. This sounds great in theory, but it can be much harder to practice in real life.    We can also fall into the temptation of loving our "enemies" who are far away and impersonal, but fail to be kind or loving to the difficult people right in front of us.  Today we'll talk about what Jesus means when he teaches us to "love our enemies" and how we can make that happen in our every day lives.    Matthew 5:43-48

This week we look at one of the scriptures that has been formative for our faith tradition. It has also been very misunderstood! Today we'll learn what Jesus means when he says "turn the other cheek" and "go the extra mile."  Mt 5:38-42

This week we look at Jesus' teaching about oaths. He invites us to be people that keep our word. That is often easier said than done. Let's listen to what Jesus has to say about being people of integrity. 

Welcome! This week we look at a teaching from Jesus about divorce. This is not meant to be the singular teaching about divorce from the Bible, but we will hear Jesus speak into a specific debate that was happening in his day. Let's listen to some of Jesus' thoughts on divorce from Matthew 5:31-32. 

This week we look at Mt 5:27-30. Here Jesus teaches that if we objectify others, if we lust after them, then we have controlled them in our heart and mind. In this way we have de-valued them, made them objects for our own use rather than people with value and dignity. 

This week we look at another teaching from Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. Mt 5:21-26 Jesus teaches that not only is murder bad, but anger, and even contempt for others is wrong in the eyes of God.  If murder is killing people (saying that the world would be better without them alive) then Jesus says that contempt is saying the same thing about others in our hearts.  I put together some questions for reflection based on this teaching. You can find them here: https://www.scienceridgechurch.org/post/anger-contempt-and-the-value-of-a-human

In Matthew 5:17-20 Jesus says that he has not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it. Then he calls us to a greater righteousness. What does this all mean?   Today we explore what is going on behind these verses as we continue learning about the type of community that Jesus is inviting us into.   

This week our friend Eric fills in for Jacob!  Continuing our teaching on Matthew 5, Eric explores what it means to be the Salt and Light. Eric also brought his guitar along and leads our worship this week.   Matthew 5:13-16

This week we continue our study of the Beatitudes. Who has the "good life?"  The next 6 categories look at the standards Jesus puts for people who want to follow him and the cost of following Jesus.    Matthew 5:1-12

Today we begin looking at the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus begins the teaching by saying "blessed are..." but the words that Jesus spoke might mean something slightly different than our English speaking ears assume. Lets look at the beginning of the Beatitudes and the people Jesus says are "well off."

This week we look at the central message of Jesus as he starts his ministry. The Bible says that Jesus announced the Kingdom of Heaven. What does that mean for us? Join us as we explore this topic!   Questions for Reflection: https://www.scienceridgechurch.org/post/questions-for-personal-reflection-matthew-4-12-23

Today we begin looking at the Gospel of Matthew, starting with the first 17 verses. What may look like a boring list of names actually has some important information for us! Join us as we explore the Gospel of Matthew.

Ps 121 is full of beautiful images of God's protection and care, as well as a challenging question about where we put our trust. But there is more that lurks below the surface! This Psalm has hidden gems in that can be found when we explore the culture and language that it was originally written in. Join us as we explore Psalm 121.