As a church, our hearts and prayers are with people facing the impact of Covid-19. I proposed to our elders and trustees and have received full support from our leaders to designate a tithe of our giving from the Easter week to go toward Covid-19 Relief. We will be partnering with several local initiatives and also with our hardest hit partner churches overseas. Together, we can be a community of light by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ, bringing relief, care, and hope to the hurting around the world.
Truth is, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the central hinge in human history, declaring the greatest victory over the foulest enemy by the greatest hero for the greatest cause ever. As I shared in the video, the question we are all facing is how do we live this truth in the midst of our current reality? I want to encourage you to join us online for our Good Friday service. And then visit our YouTube channel for one of our six identical Easter services as I will be sharing my thoughts on how to live with undying hope and courage in the in
Palm Sunday-Dear Theo: The Gospel According to Luke- Part 17
April 5, 2020
For the last several weeks, we’ve been following Jesus as He makes His way towards Jerusalem. This coming Sunday, Palm Sunday, we celebrate Jesus’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. The King has arrived! There’s reason to celebrate! There’s reason to hope. But as we’ll come to see, we’ll go from celebration to weeping. For Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem is leading to his betrayal, arrest, and death. Where, we might ask, is God in the tragedies? Michelle and I are expectantly looking forward to our online services, where we’ll spend time with you. We pray for God’s peace over you, and for the hope we have in Christ to further anchor your hearts in him.
Dear Theo: The Gospel According to Luke- Part 16
Raj Pillai
Join us as Pastor Rajendra continues our series through the gospel of Luke.
Why Believe In Christianity / Part 8 - Eschatology (Q&A)
April 2, 2019 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Q&A from Part 8 on Eschatology.
Dear Theo: The Gospel According to Luke- Part 15
March 22, 2020
I'm so excited for our time together this weekend online, and I'm looking forward to seeing what God does in us and through us.
This week, I'll have the privilege of being our guide through the gospel of Luke.
We're looking at Luke 17:1-10. It’s all about faith. I’m praying God gives us the courage to do what He’s calling each of us to do, as we continue to take our next right step.
Dear Theo: The Gospel According to Luke-God and Coronavirus
March 15, 2020 • Raj Pillai
The question before the church is, how are we, as disciples of Christ, to live in these times?
Why Believe In Christianity / Part 8-Eschatology (TEACHING)
April 2, 2019 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Why Believe In Christianity / Part 7-THE CHURCH (Q&A)
March 26, 2019 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Q&A from Part 7 of Why Believe in Christianity class.
Dear Theo: The Gospel According to Luke- Part 14
March 8, 2020 • Raj Pillai
Theologians almost universally agree that the parable of the shrewd manager in Luke 16 is the most difficult and complicated teaching of Jesus and one of the hardest to interpret. While there are many ways to interpret this parable, we will look at how this teaching of Jesus can shake us out of complacency, instruct us on who God is and who we are in Him, remind us how we only have a small window of opportunity to do something meaningful with our lives, and jolt us into action. Take 4 minutes and 30 seconds this week (I timed it!) and read Luke 16 and come ready to be blessed and discover and take your next right step. See you this weekend!
Revelation 20-22
June 1, 2021 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Session 13:
Revelation is God’s last Word to us in Scripture, written to clarify, not confuse. It equips us to understand how the powerful love of Jesus overcomes evil’s counterfeits from John’s day to ours. All the promises and prophecies of the Bible converge in this final unveiling of the crucified and risen Christ as Lamb and Lion. The curtain is pulled back. We see history from God’s perspective.
Dear Theo: The Gospel According to Luke- Part 13
March 1, 2020 • Roger Record
The Joy of finding lost things! I am so excited for this week’s message based on the Gospel of Luke Chapter 15. In this chapter, the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin prepare us for the parable of the prodigal son and his brother. The lostness of the younger prodigal son is no accident. It is willful. He sins his way out of the house. But this story is about more than the son who left and came back. It’s a story also about the son who stayed and never entered. It’s a story in two parts, with two different ways of living, both taking us far from the Father’s heart. But this story teaches us about the very nature of God the Father. A message that will touch many hearts again and some for the very first time. A story about a God who loves so much, He runs after His creation to bring them into relationship with Him and to bring them home. Invite a friend; this message may change the direction of their life into eternity.
Why Believe In Christianity / Part 7-THE CHURCH (TEACHING)
March 26, 2019 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
This is Part 7 of Richard's Why Believe in Christianity class. Richard talks about what the Church is, and why it is so important.
Dear Theo: The Gospel According to Luke- Part 12
February 23, 2020 • Raj Pillai
This weekend, we will attend a dinner party with Jesus at the home of a prominent Pharisee. But inviting Jesus into your home (or your life) can be risky, as the people assembled soon find out. Things start off tense, then get progressively edgy. Jesus refuses to follow social norms or even engage in polite, but superficial conversations. His words and conduct leave the people at the dinner party speechless. But, it also elicits from Jesus a fantastic vision of what the Great Banquet in the Kingdom of God looks like, and who gets to be a part of it. Take five minutes this week (I timed it!) and read Luke 14 and come ready to be blessed. We will also share an update about our All In Generosity Journey. See you this weekend!
The End of Evil
May 25, 2021 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Session 12:
Revelation is God’s last Word to us in Scripture, written to clarify, not confuse. It equips us to understand how the powerful love of Jesus overcomes evil’s counterfeits from John’s day to ours. All the promises and prophecies of the Bible converge in this final unveiling of the crucified and risen Christ as Lamb and Lion. The curtain is pulled back. We see history from God’s perspective.
This class includes a time for instruction and a Q&A session where questions can be submitted via chat during the sessions.
Message Notes: https://tinyurl.com/revelation-p12
WISDOM: A Life of Wisdom Looks Different Than you Think
August 1, 2021 • Michelle Rader
Wisdom: We all want it. We know we need it. And we are often deceived into thinking that folly is wisdom. We aren't alone. Way back at the beginning in Genesis 3, the serpent convinced our first parents that they could become wise by eating forbidden fruit, the fruit God had warned would lead to death.
In Proverbs 8, we hear the ringing words of Lady Wisdom:
To you, O People, I call out,
and my voice calls to all mankind.
You who are naive, discern wisdom
And you fools, understand discernment....
Blessed is the one who listens to me,
watching at my doors day by day,
waiting beside my doorway.
For the one who finds me has found life
and received favor from the Lord.
But the one who misses me brings harm to himself;
all who hate me, love death. (Prov. 8:4-5, 35-36)
True discernment, true wisdom, leads to life. And conversely, false wisdom is actually death in disguise.
So where do we find God's true, life-giving Wisdom? Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians that it is found in Christ crucified - the crucified Messiah is the wisdom and power of God. The serpent hid death in a false promise of life and wisdom. God displays true wisdom and life in the death of his son on the cross - it is in knowing Christ that we come to know and understand the wisdom of God - the true wisdom that leads to life and joy and peace.
A life of wisdom looks different than you think. Join us as we conclude our Wisdom series by a study of how Lady Wisdom in Proverbs 8 points us to the Wisdom of God in 1 Corinthians - Jesus, the wisdom and power of God - and what this means for our life today.
Why Believe In Christianity / Part 6- Jesus as our Lord-Q&A
March 19, 2019 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Q&A from Part 6 of Why Believe In Christianity.
WISDOM: Renewable Resources – God's Grace and Money
July 25, 2021 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
The generous are joyful. Less fearful. More grateful. It is a great truth of this counterintuitive kingdom we are a part of. Jesus said the more we give away, the more we blessings we have—that our life does not consist (despite 10,000 adds) in the abundance of things possessed, but in the depth of our relationships, especially with the God who “so loved the world that He gave…” Our goal is to be more like the God of the Cross and less like Satan, who is utterly wrapped up in himself and his own ego (see Isaiah 14:12-15). So join me as we explore the wisdom of Proverbs on the use of God’s resources in our lives and explore the truth that our resources are truly renewable and life-giving when we live as rivers, not reservoirs, for: “The generous will themselves be blessed” (Proverbs 22:9).
Why Believe In Christianity / Part 6- Jesus as our Lord TEACHING
March 19, 2019 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Pastor Richard Fredericks teaches on DRCC's Core Belief #5.
Dear Theo: The Gospel According to Luke- Part 11
February 17, 2020 • Raj Pillai
I feel a deep sense of urgency regarding this weekend’s message. Every day, we are presented with two ways to live. How we make that choice impacts the narrative arc of our life’s story. Jesus says a lot of deep and profound things in Luke chapters 12 and 13. Toward the end of His discourse, he says something that a lot of us who have grown up in church have probably heard more than once. He says, “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.” What is this narrow door? How is it different than the wide door? What’s on the other side of these doors? So much of what we do is to help each other (and others) recognize the right door to walk through. Because the stakes couldn’t be higher on which door you choose to enter through. Eternity hangs in the balance. Set aside 13 minutes this week and read Luke 12 and 13 (I timed it!) and come prayerfully as we look at one of the most powerful sayings of our Lord.
The Gospel & the Seven Last Plagues
May 18, 2021 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Session 11:
Revelation is God’s last Word to us in Scripture, written to clarify, not confuse. It equips us to understand how the powerful love of Jesus overcomes evil’s counterfeits from John’s day to ours. All the promises and prophecies of the Bible converge in this final unveiling of the crucified and risen Christ as Lamb and Lion. The curtain is pulled back. We see history from God’s perspective.
This class includes a time for instruction and a Q&A session where questions can be submitted via chat during the sessions.
Download the message notes: https://tinyurl.com/revelation-p11
Can I Trust God? Can God Trust Me?
March 26, 2017 • Richard Fredericks, Ph.D.
Lord Acton hit the nail on the head: “Power corrupts…and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Moses was right in Deuteronomy 8, when he explained why the LORD often has to hold back from blessing us the way He desires: “You may well say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this prosperity for me… then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God!” Jesus never said: “Take up your mirror and follow Me.” We have finished our gallery of ordinary heroes who became extraordinary by their obedient trust in God and answered ‘yes’ to the question: Can God be trusted? In our last message in our series on Hebrews 11 we turn to the deeper issue: Can God trust me? What person can be trusted by God with meaningful or powerful gifts in her/his life?
