Relationships: Lessons from the Song of Songs – June 4, 2023

Song of Songs 2:1-7

Pastor David Cay

Romance is a huge part of our culture. We are inundated with it since childhood, just think about Disney movies and the “happy ever after” narrative. But as we all have seen and experienced, it doesn’t always happen that way. Many times, we see the exact opposite! We see heartbreak and pain.

Just because people fall in love doesn’t mean they will have a great romance. So, my question today is: What makes a great romance?

Our passage today gives us two principles for a great romance:

  1. Loyalty
  2. Intensity.

These two principles are important to any situation. So, if you’re young, we can prepare for it. If you’re in a dating relationship, you can cultivate it. If you’re married, you can maintain it or try to repair it.

The Book of Nehemiah – May 21, 2023

Nehemiah 13:6-12

Pastor David Cay

We are all a part of groups. Many of us have groups at work. At church we have groups (youth, tech), and many of us spend a lot of time with friends and family, so we have groups of people that are close to us. But not all groups are healthy.

You probably know how it feels like to experience a bad group. People fight, people are stressed, and they fail to live up to their responsibilities. But the Bible gives us wisdom to help our groups succeed. And if we follow that wisdom, we’ll all be better off.

So, my question today is: How can we help a group succeed? We’ll see today that there are two gifts that we can give to our groups: the gift of stability, and the gift of correction.

The Book of Nehemiah – April 23, 2023

Nehemiah 1:1-11

Pastor David Cay

My question today is What is the most we can do with our life? A life that makes a great difference doesn’t just come automatically. Many Christians just want to live a life of comfort and self preservation. But the Bible gives us examples of people like us who made a serious difference in their world.

So, our new series is called Difference Makers. We’ll be following the adventures of a guy named Nehemiah. At the start of the story, Nehemiah is in a position of comfort and privilege he could have taken the easy road and live a comfortable life.

But he sets out to do something about a problem that is close to his heart.

Easter Message – April 9, 2023

Matthew 28:1-10

Pastor David Cay

Some would probably think resurrection is fictional and mere fantasy but what if it’s not? What if the resurrection that Christians have been celebrating for 2000 years is real history- that Jesus did indeed rise from the dead. What would that mean for us?

So, my big question today is: What difference does the resurrection make? We’ll see our answer in today’s Bible passage. Let’s read from Matthew 28:1-10, the story of two women who went to visit Jesus’ grave.

Ephesians: What’s the Plan? – March 26, 2023

Ephesians: 5:21-6:4

Pastor David Cay

For some, family is a source of great joy, and for others, it’s a source of great grief. Some of us are no longer close to our biological family, but most of us have people close to us who act like family, and we need to make the most out of those relationships.

So, my big question today is: How do we achieve a great family life? Our passage today gives us guidance on how to achieve this.

Ephesians: What’s the Plan? – March 19, 2023

Ephesians 4:17-28

Pastor David Cay

I think one of the biggest reasons why I was so bad at chemistry was because I didn’t care enough. I didn’t see the point. To this day I don’t know why we had to balance chemical equations and study the periodic table. It had no bearing on my day-to-day life. I think that’s normal for students- maybe we just wanted to pass. We didn’t ask why we must learn so many details.

I mention this because we do this with the Bible too. The Bible is like the “text book” and it’s hard to understand. It has weird stories and weird sayings and some Christians just aren’t convinced enough that it’s worth the work and effort to understand it. Stats are showing an increase in biblical illiteracy in the West. Sure, most Christians believe the Bible is God’s word. But it’s becoming less and less normal to study it and know it in detail. And I think it’s affecting us more than we think.

So, my big question today is: Why must we know our Bible really well? Our passage today shows us it’s worth the effort to understand. I want to show you today that:

1. The Bible saves us from a futile mind

2. The Bible leads us to a fertile mind

Ephesians: What’s the Plan? – February 26, 2023

Ephesians 2:11-22

Pastor David Cay

We are all different and we all come with our own baggage. But if we can overcome our differences and unite in a deep way, we can do amazing things for God and make great friends along the way.

But there are two kinds of sin that prevent us from experiencing that deep unity and friendship. The first kind of sin is religious sin. The kinds of sins demonstrated by the Pharisees in the Bible. The Pharisees were the religious snobs in the Bible- they were condescending and thought they were better than everyone. They represent the kind of religion that everyone loves to hate.

Then, there is unreligious sin, demonstrated by the pagans of that day. These were people that didn’t follow God and they rejected his ways. Some pagans would do awful things, like abusing other human beings and destroying families.

Most of us can identify at least a bit with both the Pharisees and the pagans. But the good news is that Jesus can transform us into something new and better.

So, my big question today is: How does God transform our relationships. I want to make the case today that:

1. Jesus fixes our inner Pharisee

2. Jesus fixes our inner pagan

Ephesians: What’s the Plan? – February 12, 2023

Ephesians 2:8-10

Pastor David Cay

We have a God that saves people- the Bible tells us that God wants to save everyone, not just from accidents, but he wants to save everyone from sin and death so that we can live with him forever.

And as Christians, we believe we’ve been saved, but some of us may not understand WHY he saved us. And it’s important to understand why, so we can appreciate what he’s done, and so we can work with his good plan for us.

So, my big question today is, why did God save us? Our passage teaches us that God saves us because of his grace. My main points today are:

1. We are saved BY grace.

2. We are saved FOR grace.

By that I mean, we are saved because he is good to us, and he wants us to share his goodness to others.

Psalms: Poetry To Shape The Imagination – February 5, 2023

Psalm 51

Pastor David Cay

Sometimes people mess up- they can make mistakes that haunt them for the rest of their lives. Some people feel such shame that it weighs on them every day. And perhaps you can relate on some level because everyone has messed up in some way before- everyone has made some serious mistakes.

But the Bible gives us hope. No matter what we’ve done, we find a God that still loves us and wants to restore us. The Bible also gives the necessary tools that can help us find freedom in times of regret.

So, my big question today is: How can we recover when we have failed morally?

Our Bible passage tells us, we need remorse, and restoration.

Our passage is based on the famous story of David and Bathsheba.