The Hill Church

Rights should be tools, not restraints.

In this sermon, we are reminded of the value of loving our brothers and sisters in the body well, and valuing others as greater than ourselves.

Paul takes time in this chapter to address the specific questions sent to him by the Corinthian church. Questions concerning topics of marriage, sex, divorce, singleness and additional challenges. 

Why should Christians glorify God? Paul's answer is we are a part of Christ's body and we have been bought at a price. This calling to glorify God means the way we live matters. As Christians who are united to Christ, we must glorify Him with our bodies by rejecting disputes, avoiding deceptions, and fleeing depravity.

The Corinthian church was established in a very challenging context, sexual immorality was normal for their culture. What was normal for the world, had made its way into the church in a terrible way. Paul now calls the church to be the church of Jesus and he reminds us church discipline is about restoration. 

How should we think of pastors, leaders, ourselves, and others? The Corinthian church has been prideful. They've had divisions driven by thinking of themselves or regarding others too highly. Paul now explains how they can course correct by thinking of himself and others properly. When we do not regard ourselves rightly, we think of ourselves pridefully. 

God has invited us to be co-laborers in building the body of Christ. What role do you play in building or tearing down the body?

Technology has afforded us the ability to learn so many skills previously hidden to most. Secret tricks and insights, instruct us on both the how and the why. In this passage Paul displays a person who is the mystery and wisdom of God. 

We live in a very divided world these days. You can almost pick any topic and people will have strong differing opinions. The one place you would expect to be leading the way, building bridges, and unifying with other believers, should be in the faith. Paul hears of the disunity in the Corinthian church and addresses it head on. 

True, transformational gratitude is not just a reaction to our circumstances, but a foundational spiritual posture that sustains us through life's crushing trials and protects us from arrogance during our seasons of abundance.

In this closing chapter, the author has now turned his attention to walking out the teachings they have built over the previous 12. Living out what we say we believe is imperative to a world that is watching. If its real, and it works, we should be a foretaste demonstration of His transformative power.

In hostile times, the preacher of Hebrews encourages his people to holdfast to Christ, the true mediator, and reflect his holy character with gratitude.

In chapter 11, the audience was reminded of a great cloud of witnesses that were imperfect but they endured in faith. The author is now calling for endurance in their own race. Jesus our Savior endured, the great cloud of witnesses endured, and we are now called to endure to the end as well. 

Faith is the present reality of future hope. To have faith in Jesus is to live obedient now in light of his life and return. In chapter 11 of Hebrews, we find a catalogue of believers whose faith in God started in their minds and compelled their hearts to action. Their faith was not “blind” but rooted in the character and work of God while trusting in the promises of God.

Gathering with the people of God is often recognized as essential for Christians. But why is it essential? Rather than letting church just be a box we check to start our week, we should be looking to see who we can uplift and encourage. When we understand why we do this it will help us see the essential nature of our local gathering.

When dealing with the challenges of life, Paul gives Christian’s the ingredients to live lives shaped by the Gospel.

We understand prayer is like oxygen for God’s people. We are dedicated to growing in our prayer life as individuals and as a church family.

Jesus' greatest commandment to His people was to love God and one another. Everything we do as Christians, hinges on our love. John makes it clear in this passage it's the defining characteristic of a Christian. In light of the advent season, we are reminded love is the very center of our faith, and our very salvation begins with God's love, which ignites a love within us. 

True, lasting joy is found not in fleeting worldly happiness or temporary relief, but eternally in the saving presence and finished work of Jesus Christ.

The prophet Isaiah reminds us that true peace comes from God, and those who trust in Him are made whole through all circumstances and long for His kingdom come.

The tabernacle was a temporary, portable sanctuary, set up for worship and sacrifices to address the sins of the people. Jesus has become the better sanctuary, offering rest for sinners and the one who satisfied the full payment for all who will believe. 

Tech updates often corrects oversights and bugs present in previous operating systems. As we look into chapter 8 of Hebrews, we will get an understanding of why the old covenant needed to be replaced by a better one. 

Join us as we continue in the book of Hebrews, as the author picks up highlighting the similarities between Abraham and the superiority of Jesus. 

Our Christian hope is a firm and secure anchor for the soul, guaranteed not by our own strength or patience, but by two unchangeable realities: God’s unbreakable promise and His solemn, self-sworn oath to bless us through Jesus Christ, our eternal Forerunner and High Priest.

The writer of has now shown the heart and purpose of this book. They have a strong frustration due to he audiences failure to progress in the things of Jesus. May we learn from their mistakes and grow in faith daily. 

The author of Hebrews is focusing on Jesus as our High Priest. This is important because Jesus as our High Priest gives us access to the throne of grace. As we look at what the role of a Priest is and why Jesus best fulfills this role, it will become apparent why we should approach the throne with boldness.

The Hebrew writer continues to show the shortcomings of the people in the wilderness who experienced God's goodness and chose to disobey him. His hope for the readers of this book is for them to actively, choose to trust God daily.

Our world is saturated with opportunities for us to get frustrated with each other and the Lord. It’s really no different than the times the writer of Hebrews was addressing. The answer is the same for us today, we should learn from the past and listen to the spirit. 

The Preacher of Hebrews wants to assure this suffering church does not abandon the great salvation and hope they have in Jesus, because no one else brings us closer to God than Him.

The author of Hebrews is continuing his argument for the superiority of Jesus. Specifically, that He as God is superior to the angels. But He also as man was made lower than the angels. On the one hand, this may seem confusing. However, it is key to this simple point: Jesus is God, but He became like you to heal you.

The book of Hebrews is believed to be addressed to a group of Jewish Christians who were entertaining the idea of returning to Old Testament Judaism. While that may be unfamiliar to us, I believe we can all think of a time where we were not sure we wanted to press on. The good news is that If you could sum up the entire book of Hebrews in a simple phrase, it might be something along the lines of ,“Jesus is superior.” He is our superior prophet, priest, and king. Even if we don’t yet fully understand all the implications of that, it is worth clinging to as we study it further. 

Our words are powerful and apart from a renewed heart in Christ, we are prone to do damage to others with our words. Thanks be God Jesus gives us better words and speaks a better word over us.

God desires for us to live in community, where every generation is connected and every person is valued. Intergenerational relationships, like a well-structured family, are essential for our growth and for the flourishing of the church

Paul’s words in 1 Thessalonians 2 remind us that the church is called to be more than a gathering place; we are God’s outpost for holistic restoration in our cities. Following the model of Christ’s ministry, we see that love for neighbor must involve the whole person, and true discipleship must engage the whole community. 

God’s favor is not the absence of suffering, but the promise of His presence and purpose within it. This sermon uses the image of an immovable tree, and a patient gardener to show how trials build our faith and produce spiritual fruit.

Housed in the center of the 3rd chapter of the book of proverbs, is this interesting detail about how God used wisdom like a building material for the construction of our world. It is from this place where the reader is told you need it to be successful in a world founded by wisdom. 

The book of Proverbs is more than a list of do’s and do not’s. Yet, it can be easy to look at it that way. Proverbs 3 lays a good ground work for making application of the entirety of the book. Applying the wisdom the book offers starts by first knowing God in all our ways. If we begin with that in mind, we may find walking in wisdom more freeing. 

In Proverbs 9, we find two dinner invitations; one leads to wisdom and life and the other folly and death. The path we chose has little to do with what we know and everything to do with who we know.

In the final chapters of Acts, we find Paul being questioned for his faith and his ministry activity. Paul has learned to find the blessing in a situation he is confronted with.

As we near the end of the book of Acts, the Apostle Paul has found himself on trial for things that he did not do. Part of the Christian life is dealing with this persecution from the world, but how do we handle it well? Paul’s answer is that he has hope in Jesus, The world may bring false charges against us, but let us be found guilty of one thing: our hope in Jesus.

Paul is now sharing his faith on trial before the Sanhedrin. We too may find ourselves standing on trial one day under the microscope for the faith we hold. We should always remember that Jesus stands with us.  

Paul demonstrates for us what it looks like to live a life fixed in on God's call for our lives. Today, many just simply drift from place to place, relationship to relationship and job to job. Let’s discover the power of a life hidden in Jesus.

In Acts 20, Paul is informing the church with insights the Holy Spirit has given him about challenges ahead. Paul teaches us to be rooted in the one that has redeemed our lives and given us new purpose. 

God desires for all His people to grow in both passion and truth. Apollos, a gifted and passionate preacher becomes an example for us all. 

Like Paul, we are called to see the world's deep-seated idolatry through God's eyes, allowing that divine perspective to provoke us into obedient action and purposeful evangelism, ultimately fulfilling His greater redemptive plan.

How does the Lord want to meet us in our shame?

The Apostle Paul continues his missionary journey and as much as the scenery changes many things stay the same. He proclaims the Gospel which leads to conversion and uproar. While this scene is similar to ones before it, we gain unique insight into the importance of the Scriptures. We see they truly are the foundation of our faith and we are called to be shaped by them even when there is resistance to them from others. 

God, by His grace and kindness determines to take His enemies and turn them to friends and family. Acts 16 is the next stop on the mission to building the family of God.

Forbidden, not permitted and restricted, are the Last words we expect to hear as we are faithfully serving the Lord. Over and over, these are the words Paul, the faithful missionary, keeps hearing as he is trying to move forward in sharing the good news of the Kingdom. 

Following Jesus in the world today requires more than just avoiding the dangers the world throws at you. Jesus invites us to get into the mess of life and help others. Timothy becomes an amazing example for the church of how to put our faith into action.