The Beatitudes: Blessed Are (BG)
June 23, 2024 • Tim Ainley • Matthew 5:7–12
Join us in the study of one of the most renowned sermons ever delivered. Jesus reveals a divine approach to life that contrasts sharply with worldly wisdom. His Sermon on the Mount outlines how God engages with this world and how His people should live, presenting a profoundly beautiful way of life.
Draw Near (BG)
June 12, 2022 • Tim Ainley • Hebrews 4:14—5:10
It’s not uncommon at various points in life to hear someone describe a feeling of detachment and disconnection. It can feel as if there is a large distance, a great gulf in which we are shouting across in hopes to be heard, seen, or even acknowledged. This feeling can present itself within our earthy relationships, but more often these emotions are used to describe our connection, or lack thereof, with God. What’s miraculous about the Gospel is that we are invited and called to freely run to God in the midst of it all. What waits for us is not a cranky or uninterested being, but a God who eagerly seeks to greet us with grace and mercy. Whatever state we may find ourselves in, whatever temptations, trials, or difficulties bog us down, we have a great High Priest who is able to sympathize with us in our time of need and give us what we need most.
A Promise Reminded & A Presence Confirmed (BG)
November 21, 2021 • Tim Ainley • Exodus 23:20—24:14
Like all stories, it’s important to understand the proper context to get a correct picture of what is being communicated. Without proper context, what God instructs to happen in the land of Canaan in this section of Exodus can seem extremely harsh, violent, and downright unfair. However, if we look back in redemptive history, the land of Canaan was promised to God's people all the way back in Genesis 12. It was in that passage that God told Abraham all his descendants would inherit the promised land— the land of Canaan. They would be His people; He would be their God. At this point in the history of God's people, it may appear as if God has failed to deliver. But God has not forgotten His promise, He reaffirms what He is going to do. Within this, God instills in His people that who and how we worship matter.
What Faith Produces (BG)
August 8, 2021 • Tim Ainley • James 3:13–18
Wisdom comes from God. Our lives, when lived according to His wisdom reflects His character. Jesus Christ is the perfect example of a life lived in full submission to God’s will, displaying heavenly wisdom. A mind fully submitted to God will always seek the true good of others, while a heart ruled by the self seeks the good of self, leading to disorder. If everyone seeks good according to what they themselves determine is good, our ideals inevitably conflict and we clash with one another, either literally or figuratively. James says you have a choice. Are you following wisdom from above? Or are you following that which has come from below—that anti-wisdom—earthly, unspiritual, and demonic, causing strife and conflict. Make your choice. Are you following God’s wisdom, or are you following earthly wisdom?