"Authority Applied: The Church" (Matthew 16:18-19; 18:18-20; 28:16-20)

It can be common to view the church like one of many other non-profit organizations trying to do good in our world. However, Scripture makes clear that the church is wholly different. It's a powerful institution given spiritual authority as an embassy of God's heavenly kingdom. This Sunday we'll consider what kind of authority the church has, and why every Christian should submit to one.

This series is based loosely on the book, Authority by Jonathan Leeman.

God's Judgment Is For All (Zephaniah 2:4-3:8)

We continue our sermon series through the book of Zephaniah. In chapter 2, we'll see that even though the Lord may use the nations surrounding Israel as instruments of his judgment, they are still accountable to him for their sin. God's justice falls universally on all people, including us.

Caring for Your Pastors (1 Timothy 5:17-25)

Pastors pour their lives out to care for the people God has entrusted to them. But whose job is it to care for the pastors? According to this Sunday's passage, it's your responsibility--the job of the congregation. Last week we saw how the church is called to care for one another. But this week, we'll see how God calls us to care for our pastors/elders--though provision and protection.

The Care of Christ for Straying Sheep (Matthew 18:10-20)

This week we're diving back into Jesus' Discourse on the Church. As he said previously, we shouldn't cause our fellow "little ones" to stumble, but what should we do when our fellow believers wander away on their own? We'll see Jesus' vision for his people caring for one another in this foundational passage for what is called church discipline.