On that first Easter morning, the world was forever changed. The tomb was empty, and Jesus had risen—not as a vision or a memory, but in real, resurrected life. Yet even as the disciples stood face to face with this reality, their vision was still clouded by fear, doubt, and human understanding.
But the resurrection is not just an event to be acknowledged; it is the very foundation of our faith. It is God’s great victory over sin and death, the moment that redefines all of history. And it invites us to see everything—our lives, our world, even ourselves—through a new lens.
Today, we step into ‘unfiltered vision’—not our own, but the vision of Jesus. Through his eyes, we see a creation that has been redeemed, a people restored, and a future that is bursting with resurrection hope. This is Easter. This is the good news. Christ is risen!"
Part 4 of our Holy Week series: "Unfiltered"
Part 3 of our Holy Week series: "Unfiltered"
At LifeWay, we began our celebration of Holy Week on Palm Sunday as we recounted the events of Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem riding on a donkey. Tonight we remember the jubilant shouts of the crowd, "Hosanna in the highest, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosanna!" But we remember also that within the next 24 hours those same crowds would be shouting, "Crucify him! Crucify Him!"
For this is the night when Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God would give himself into the hands of his betrayer. This is the night where Christ served his disciples one final meal before his arrest and trial. This is the night When Jesus evoked the memory of all God's promises to his chosen people and offered himself as a sacrifice to establish a new promise, a promise to heal, restore, and and strengthen those who would call upon his name. Tonight is the night we remember, with unfiltered memory, all that God has done for us.
Part 2 of our Holy Week series: "Unfiltered"
Power and authority. They are both often talked about together but are they really the same thing? It seems that the world today often confuses these two things.
Think of it this way; power can be taken for oneself. The bully on the school playground has the power to coerce lunch money from others because of their threatening physical presence, they have the power or ability to elicit the fear response from others, but they do not have the authority to do that. In fact, if a teacher or the principal ever caught on to what was happening they would have the authority to do something about it and impose some consequences. That authority has been given to them by the School board and the parents of the school by virtue of the employment and enrolment agreements that have been willingly entered into by all parties concerned. When Jesus came into Jerusalem on that first Palm Sunday, the people wanted him to use his power and authority to overthrow the Roman regime and establish a new earthly kingdom of Israel. To impose his will and rule upon everyone in the land. But Jesus authority had another purpose. He had the authority to lay down his life and to pick it up again - that was the authority he had come to exercise and that's what we'll talk more about today as we explore Unfiltered Authority.
Part 1 of our Holy Week series: "Unfiltered"
Have you ever been a devoted fan or collector of something? Postage stamps or coins perhaps?
Maybe you have followed the career of a particular famous sportsperson, pop star or actor and have collected all sorts of memorabilia that honours and celebrates their achievements. Whatever the object of devotion, when people are devoted to something or someone, you can usually tell how devoted they are by how invested they are in it.
However, our whole hearted love and devotion towards Jesus comes more naturally when we recognise his wholehearted devotion to us. Jesus was so invested in redeeming us from sin and death that he invested everything, even his life, so that we could be his. It's that wholehearted devotion that sparks our devotion in response and that's what we're going to talk about this week.
Final week of our Lent series: "Wholehearted"
In the worlds of professional wrestling or mixed martial arts, 'submission' is the response you hope to elicit from your opponent. When they 'submit' they give up the fight and recognise that they have been beaten by a superior fighter.
We might not recognise the daily battle we have with God about control over our own lives, but you can rest assured it's there. Each day we acknowledge him as Lord and then spend an awfully large amount of time and energy, trying to find ways that we can justify wrestling control back from God and doing things our own way. Unlike a Pro Wrestler or an MMA fighter, God does not beat us into submission. However, he does invite us to trust him and to give up the fight; to let him take his rightful place at the controls of our lives and our hearts. Wholehearted submission to the will of God releases us from the constant struggle of having to prove to ourselves, to others, or to God that we have things under control, and that, for most of us is a greater freedom that we might ever have imagined.
#5 in our Lent series: "Wholehearted"
"Conviction"...it's a funny word in the English language. To have a conviction can mean to have a strongly held belief or opinion, but it can also mean to have a criminal record.
In both cases, our convictions define and identify us. I can be a convicted criminal, but just as easily I can be a convicted and dedicated activist for any cause you might like to name.
People had convictions about Jesus too. Some wanted to convict him as a criminal, a rebel, and a heretic. Others were convinced that his claims to be the Messiah were true. So this week we ask the question, 'What are your convictions about Jesus and how are they shaping you? What “Jesus” are you ready to be identified with?’ So join us as we explore the idea of wholehearted conviction.
#4 in our Lent series: "Wholehearted"
In Mathematics, things that are a dead certainty are said to have a probability of 1, while things that have no chance of happening have a probability of 0.
But what is there in life that is actually completely certain? What event, what outcome can you ever really guarantee one hundred percent? Much of our time and energy is often spent on trying to 'bend the odds' in our favour. We make decisions based on what might move the likelihood of certain positive circumstances towards one and what might move the needle on the scale for unpleasant events closer to zero. If instead of playing the odds, trying to create some certainty and assurances for yourself, you wholeheartedly pursued the one thing that is certain in this life, the love and provision of your Heavenly Father - what would change? That's what we'll look at this week as we explore Wholehearted Assurance.
#3 in our Lent series: "Wholehearted"
Have you ever apologised to someone only to be given the response, "Well how are you going to make it up to me?"
Our natural response to injustice is to seek compensation in one form or another. We expect the person who has wronged us to 'do something' to fix the problem or the hurt that they have caused. This is the fundamental principle on which our justice system is built. People are either forced to repay the cost of the damage they have caused or, when no sufficient financial cost can be determined, to be removed from society until something approximating a 'fair' time of imprisonment has been completed. However, reconciliation is not the same as justice. Reconciliation really begins when we practice forgiveness which, at it's heart, is setting aside our claim to seek justice and instead handing justice and judgement over to God and resting in the assurance of His forgiveness.
#2 in our Lent series: "Wholehearted"