Refuge Church

1 Peter 4:1-11: Serve One Another

Welcome to this sermon on the spiritual disciplines. It talks about how God is the center of the universe, not us, and that frees us to serve one another.

Psalm 95: Gathering for Public Worship (Missional Disciplines)

Welcome to the 2nd sermon in our series on the missional disciplines. (2 of 5)

The mission of Refuge is to “build our identity in Christ for the sake of the world.” One of the major ways we do that is to “practice” being like Jesus: following him, trusting him, becoming more of who we really are by practicing Gospel truths. This is not an effort to change who we are, it’s actually an effort to become MORE of who we now are, in Christ. What we do individually in growing our relationship with Jesus, what we do with fellow followers of Jesus in growing our relationship as the Church, and what we do as the Church in proclaiming and demonstrating this new Kingdom are all important. 

For the rest of August, we are going to look at 5 practices of mission or spiritual disciplines of mission. God has gifted each of us in different ways to see and be passionate about these areas, and when we work together in harmony, we carry out the mission of the church while gloriously and freely giving of our selves and leaving the results to the work of the Holy Spirit! 

The 5 practices we will be looking at are:

• Engaging in Public Faith
• Gathering for Public Worship
• Ministries of Compassion, Mercy, and Justice
• Integrating Work and Faith
• Hospitality

Each of these practices are incredibly important in the life of the New Testament Church, and we want to learn how to practice each of these better, together, as we continue to build our identity in Christ for the sake of the world!

Matthew 6:16-24: Where is Your Treasure?

Welcome to this sermon on spiritual disciplines that discusses stewardship and our attitude towards what we treasure.

Colossians 3:12-17: What To Put On (The People of God)

Welcome to the 11th sermon in our series on the book of Colossians. (11 of 14)

Colossians is a wonderful letter written to a newer church in the city of Colossae. There are a number of different backgrounds that are represented in this young gathering of followers of Jesus that Paul is encouraging and equipping toward faithfulness! There are differing opinions on whether this was Paul's instruction to a very young and new church or if Paul was writing to them after a few years when their former ways of life had started to creep in. Either way, what Paul writes to this church is SO helpful and encouraging for any church to remember what Christ has delivered us from and what He is delivering us toward!

Colossians 1:24-2:5: The Mystery (The People of God)

Welcome to the 6th sermon in our series on the book of Colossians. (6 of 14)

Colossians is a wonderful letter written to a newer church in the city of Colossae. There are a number of different backgrounds that are represented in this young gathering of followers of Jesus that Paul is encouraging and equipping toward faithfulness! There are differing opinions on whether this was Paul's instruction to a very young and new church or if Paul was writing to them after a few years when their former ways of life had started to creep in. Either way, what Paul writes to this church is SO helpful and encouraging for any church to remember what Christ has delivered us from and what He is delivering us toward!

Reflecting on the Incarnation

Welcome to this liturgical service in which we focus on songs and scriptures that remind us of the importance of the incarnation of Christ.

Matthew 13:24-30: When to Weed (Eyes to See)

Welcome to the 4th sermon in our sermon series about the parables of Jesus. (4 of 15)

Over the summer we are going to take a deep dive into the Parables of Jesus. Jesus’ parables, while they are certainly filled with moral guidance and helpful insight, they are also about some things that are quite a bit more than that. They will reveal a new authority, a new “sheriff in town,” so to speak. When we examine these short stories of Jesus in their context, we’ll start to see that they don’t just make everything easier to understand, they are actually telling the climax of the story. It’s the same story that Paul is proclaiming, and it’s the same story that upends all that we’ve known. We will hear whispered and then shouted... “The Kingdom is coming, and the King is here.” This changes everything!

Psalm 122: Worshiping Along the Path (Songs of Ascent)

Welcome to the 4th sermon in our series on the Psalms of Ascent (4 of 16).

“The essential thing ‘in heaven and earth’ is...that there should be long obedience in the same direction; there thereby results, and has always resulted in the long run, something which has made life worth living.”  - Friedrich Nietzsche

We are going to spend this summer in the “Songs of Ascent” (Psalms 120-134). Through these songs, we are going to remember and walk along the Way that leads to salvation. We will remember, walk together, and sing of the greatness of our God. He will guide us; He will commune with us; He will refine us; He will call us to repentance and trust...and we will follow...the long path of obedience. 

“Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way...”

Wisdom in Stewardship (Navigating the Gray)

Welcome to the 14th sermon in our series on Proverbs. (14 of 18)

The book of Proverbs is a collection of sayings on living with wisdom. It is a guide to how we should do things, how the world works.  These sermons are a series of ‘classes’ on how to apply Biblical wisdom to everyday areas of our lives. “Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice” (Proverbs 1:20). Come and hear what she has to say!

Mark 8:1-21: Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand (Meeting Jesus)

Welcome to the 27th sermon in our series on the book of Mark. (27 of 60)

There are many people, not just Christians, who would put Jesus at the top of a list of most influential people in the world. If you were to also make a list of people who have claimed to be God, Jesus would be the only person on both lists. Everyone else who has claimed to be God has been dismissed by history as false. We are going to spend this sermon series looking at how Jesus was presented in the gospel of Mark. Mark is very to the point. He leaves very little doubt as to who Jesus is. Mark presents Jesus as King and then leaves us to deal with that truth.