Courageous Conversations
Courageous Conversations: Love Comes First
July 24, 2022 • Pastor Tammy Long • Luke 19:1–7, Mark 2:13–17
"The title for this message in the Courageous Conversations Sermon Series is, “Love Comes First.” The Courageous Conversations Sermon Series will continue over the next year. God calls us to love people, including LGBTQ+; love does not mean agreement, but it does mean acceptance. God wants us to feel empathy, compassion, grace, and mercy. God directs us to open our hearts to love with abandon like Jesus. We may not agree with one’s choices before God, but God’s grace applies to us all. Broken relationships cause hurt and withdrawal from the people of God where there should be acceptance, belonging, and community; this often leads to a turning away from the faith. The Big C Church (worldwide body of Christ) is at a crossroads, and to many, it is imploding and splitting over the issue of human sexuality. Let us look to Jesus, as the Living Word, in action. How did Jesus respond to those regarded as sinners? The grace and truth in love trumps all..."
Courageous Conversations - Racial Reconciliation
July 10, 2022 • Tracy Perrlliat • Acts 16:16–40
We are continuing our sermon series, “Courageous Conversations.” We are discussing topics that are sometimes uncomfortable to talk about, but they are topics that the Church must be able to address and respond to. The Word of God is the standard by which we respond. The way we act and the way we treat people must represent Christ whom we serve. Have you ever had an experience that shifted the trajectory of your life? It could be the birth of a baby, a marriage, a new job, or something more difficult like loss of a loved one, a divorce, or the loss of a job. In 2020, our nation had one of those defining moments. The deaths of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and George Floyd forced America to pull back the cover on the stain deeply embedded in the fabric of our nation for a long time. That stain is racism and racial inequality. The events of 2020 continue today with undeniable evidence of police brutality, abuse of power by those in authority, and unjust racially motivated murders, legal systems, and court decisions. Evidence points to a racial divide within the Church. Christians today need the spiritual practice of seeking a loving, liberating, and life-giving relationships with God and with one another. In this message, we look at a biblical response to racial inequality and need for reconciliation. We strive to heal and transform injustice and brokenness in ourselves, our communities, our institutions, and our society. We seek to understand how important reconciliation is to our Savior because reconciliation with God and reconciliation with one another are inseparable in God’s saving work. God’s program of reconciliation includes horizontal reconciling of Jew and Gentile, circumcised and uncircumcised, Caucasian people and people of color...
By the Book
July 3, 2022 • Pastor Tammy Long • 2 Timothy 3:16, Psalm 19:7–11
We are starting a new sermon series called “Courageous Conversations.” We will be looking at some current event topics and issues. This will be a recurring theme from time to time. Courageous for this sermon series means the following: We need courage -to create safe spaces to be honest with one another, – to be quiet to truly hear another perspective, -to say “I don’t know” and hold the uncomfortable tensions of unanswered questions with humility in prayer, – to look at God’s Word with fresh eyes and listen for God’s voice, because even though we sincerely think we are right, we are human and may sincerely have it wrong, so we need humility. We need courage to have conversations that may result in agreeing to disagree, while committing to still love one another with grace, empathy, and compassion. It takes courage to have honest conversations where we may have opposite viewpoints. It can be very hard to still love without judgement or criticism and buck against all we may be feeling and judging. We need the courage to remember that we are all human and deeply loved by a gracious and compassionate God who loves us all just the same. This Courageous Conversations series is not about the opinions of talk show hosts or sharing our own opinions. As followers of Jesus, we must all begin from the same starting place and foundation. We start with THE BOOK we believe; we start with the Bible. As we begin this series looking at some hot topics from the foundation of God’s Word, our first courageous conversation is about God’s Word itself.