Category Archives: 2025

Songs for Sunday, February 16, 2025 @ Christ Community Church

Sunday’s coming, and that’s good news!

Lord willing, we will gather together Sunday morning as a faith family and worship Him. We will lift our voices in song. We will submit our hearts to His Word preached. We will give Him our focus and praise. 

It’s good practice and preparation for when we stand around His throne and worship Him together one day.

It’s a beautiful shadow of the substance that is coming when we see our King face-to-face and pour out our hearts in grateful praise for who He is and all He has done. 

Sunday is good news for the believer because it points us back to that first resurrection Sunday when Jesus walked out of His borrowed tomb, risen just as He had promised. 

Sunday is good news because it points forward to the day (not necessarily a Sunday on the calendar) when He will return and gather His bride – His Church – to Him. 

Sunday gatherings are good news in the present because they represent His grace and mercy toward people who still have the opportunity to turn from their sin to Christ, confessing Him as their Lord and King. But there is coming a day when the opportunity to call on Him will be over. This is why the Scriptures urge us to be mindful of the time and call with urgency for people to repent and turn to Him. Look at how the prophet Isaiah put it:

“Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that He may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.” (Isaiah 55:6-7)

Similarly, Paul said,

“Working together with Him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says, ‘In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.’ Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:1-2)

God will not wait around in His “divine forbearance”, passing over “former sins” (Romans 3:25) forever. He is coming. That’s what He said at the end of Revelation, isn’t it? “And behold, I am coming soon.” (Revelation 22:7). But look at the way He said it the final time in Revelation 22:12-13:

“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

He’s coming and doing what? Could “bringing…recompense” mean what it says? Simply put: yes. 

So, the urgency of seeking the Lord while He may be found is underscored – underlined – highlighted and bolded for emphasis. Those who call upon the name of the Lord, those who confess faith in Him and submit to Him as Lord and Savior do not receive the just recompense for their sin because Jesus took that wrath and punishment on their behalf. But for those who have not, the full weight of the wrath of God awaits. It’s a startling prospect. I would definitely categorize that as not-good news.

It does not have to be though. There is grace enough for all who come to Him. 

Jesus doesn’t end His revelation with the bad news. He also offers an invitation. “Come” say the Spirit and the Bride. “Come” says those who have heard the Word of God and responded to Jesus in faith. Those who are thirsty can come and receive from Jesus the “water of life without price” (Revelation 22:17).

So, I echo that invitation to you, beloved: “Come”. Or as Philipp told Nathaniel, “Come and see” (John 1:46). Come, and meet with Jesus. Come, and lay your burdens down. Come, and call upon Him while He is near. Simply, come. 

This is not about coming to church but coming to Jesus. This is not about religion but extending an invitation for relationship. This is about the God of the universe, the King of kings and Lord of lords, extending an invitation for those who are weary and heavy laden to come to Him (Matthew 11:28). 

As I said earlier, Sunday is coming and there is an opportunity to gather and worship Jesus. Won’t you come and join us? Won’t you lift your voice with ours? There’s no time like the present.

Just know that YOU are invited. YOU are wanted. YOU are welcomed. 

Come on.

Here are our Scriptures and songs:

11Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

8And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say,

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”

9And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

11“Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”

8And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. 9And they sang a new song, saying,

“Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, 10and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”

11Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12saying with a loud voice,

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”

13And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”

14And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

Songs for Sunday, January 26, 2025 @ Christ Community Church

Sunday’s coming, and that’s good news!

Have y’all ever gotten something stuck in your mind that you just couldn’t get unstuck? Of course you have – everyone has experienced this at some point and time. For me, it is the key verse from John’s sermon last week, Romans 12:15:

Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.

It’s simple. Straightforward. Clear. As John explained to us, this verse is really only four words in the Greek, essentially “rejoice — rejoicers, weep — weepers”. We, those of us who are saved and have been adopted into God’s family and grafted into His church, are to be there for our brothers and sisters, hurting when they hurt. That’s what family does, right? It should especially be so in the family of God.

As I have pondered on that verse (really simmered or stewed like a crockpot), it has had me thinking on why it is to be this way. And essentially, I have arrived at the conclusion that it stems from us extending grace to others as Jesus has extended grace to us.

One Scripture that came to mind is from the Sermon on the Mount right after Jesus gave us what we call “The Lord’s Prayer”. Look at Matthew 6:14-15:

For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

This is not saying that we earn God’s forgiveness by forgiving others. If that were the case, we’d have no hope because humanity as a whole is not a forgiving people but rather quite selfish and self-serving. No, what Jesus is saying here is that the way we forgive is based on how we have been forgiven. If we understand that our sin put us at odds and enmity with Jesus and that He reconciled us to Himself and showed us love while we were still sinners, we will have an appreciation for that love and forgiveness that will show in how we forgive others.

This isn’t some theory on my part or some great epiphany. Jesus explained it similarly to Simon the Pharisee after the woman came in and washed Jesus’s feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, and anointed them with costly perfume. When Simon (and Jesus’s own disciples) were critical of the woman’s wastefulness with pouring out very expensive perfume on Jesus’s feet, Jesus told them that the woman’s sins “which are many” had been forgiven which was why she “loved much”, and He clarified that the one who has been “forgiven little, loves little” (Luke 7:47).

If you are saved, you know that you have been forgiven MUCH because your sin — no matter how the world might view it — is a LOT, and definitely more than our sinless Savior should’ve had to bear on the cross. We deserve the cross, not Jesus. We deserve death, not Jesus. But because of His great love and richness in grace and mercy, He forgave much, loved much, and gave much. That kind of forgiveness, love, and grace changes folks’ lives. If you are saved, you have received this from Jesus and cannot help but extend it to others.

Simon didn’t get it. He thought he had some earthly status as a Pharisee. But when you look at the other gospels, you get, as Paul Harvey would’ve said, the rest of the story. Matthew 26:6 doesn’t call Simon a Pharisee; there he is referred to as “Simon the leper”. You don’t have to read a lot of the Bible to know that folks typically kept their distance from lepers. They were considered unclean. Folks would walk on the opposite side of the road to keep from touching one. They surely wouldn’t touch one, much less go to his house for supper. Long story short, Jesus wasn’t at Simon’s house to honor him but because Jesus had compassion on those no one else did. Jesus was a friend to sinners. He ate with tax collectors. He showed compassionate care to those the world had thrown away. No one was lining up at Simon’s door because Simon was unclean, untouchable, and unmistakably ostracized from society. Yet he looked at that poor woman weeping at Jesus’s feet and had the audacity to remark how pitiful it is that Jesus would let her touch Him (when anyone passing by could’ve remarked how pitiful it was for Jesus to go in Simon the leper’s house).

Simon didn’t get it.

Do we?

That woman had received a lot of grace because she’d committed a lot of sin.

That woman had experienced greater love from God who not only forgave her sin but would go on to die on the cross her sin deserved.

That woman had reason to weep sorrowfully over her sin against a holy God but had more reason to weep out of rejoicing that her sin was wholly forgiven by God and show love to Him in return.

What about us? Do we get it?

Look at how Paul put it in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort which we ourselves are comforted by God.

God has shown us grace and comfort because He loves us. We have the opportunity to show that grace and comfort to others. And this is sorely needed in a world today that seems like the rejoicing is getting more seldom and weeping is ever increasing.

Thankfully, Sunday’s coming. There is a coming Day when Jesus will return and gather His people to Him. The last tears of sorrow will be cried and wiped away by His nail-pierced hand. Death will be abolished. The sad things of this earth will come untrue. As the old hymn says, “What a Day — glorious Day — that will be!”

Until that day, we will gather and read God’s Word, sing God’s Word, and hear God’s Word preached. That’s what we’re singing about this Sunday: telling what Jesus has done for us. And as we do so, we will have brothers and sisters who are rejoicing about this or that. Rejoice with them. Assuredly there will be those with much to weep about. Weep with them. You have been given much grace and love. Christ Community family, it’s time to extend that grace and love to others.

Won’t you gather with us?

Here are our Scriptures & songs:

  • Scripture | Titus 3:1-7 —

1Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6whom He poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that being justified by His grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

  • Scripture | Galatians 6:14 —

But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

  • Scripture | Revelation 1:17-18 —

17When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as though dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.

Songs for Sunday, January 19, 2025 @ Christ Community Church

Sunday’s coming, and I’m excited!

Every Sunday the Lord blesses us with is an opportunity to gather together and celebrate Jesus’s resurrection and anchor our heats in the hope of His return!

As we gather, we are reminded that the power of sin and death has been broken, and we rejoice in the steadfast love of the Lord, which turns mourning to dancing and sorrow into joy. This is illustrated in the passages we will read together Sunday morning.

The first passage is Psalm 30:8-12, and it beautifully captures this truth:

8To You, O LORD, I cry, and to the Lord I plead for mercy: 9“What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it tell of Your faithfulness? 10Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me! O LORD, be my helper!”

11You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, 12that my glory may sing Your praise and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever!

In Psalm 30, David cries out to the LORD in his distress, and God answers, turning his mourning into dancing and clothing him with gladness (Psalm 30:11). This is the testimony of all who belong to Christ — to all who are rescued by Him from the sting of death and brought into everlasting life! This doesn’t mean that everything is always (or ever) hunky-dory or that we will never feel the sting of death here on earth. What this means is that death has an expiration date and that, if we are His, it is only temporary!

This victorious theme continues in our second passage for Sunday morning, 1 Corinthians 15:50-58:

50I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

Throughout 1 Corinthians 15, Paul declares the certainty of Jesus’s resurrection and in 1 Corinthians 15:50-58, he calls us to steadfastness and hope in that certainty. Because Jesus has conquered death, our lives are filled with purpose. Every note we sing, every word we speak, every moment of worship is not in vain because our Savior — our GOD — is alive and not dead! It is part of God’s story of redemption because, if we are in Christ, we have been made alive in Him!

This Sunday (and honestly every Sunday at Christ Community), our hearts are fixed on Christ and excited by His resurrection. The songs we sing are about Him bearing our sin on the cross and giving life through His life when He exited His borrowed tomb. We will sing of it over and over again — as we should — because Jesus is alive and well, and we will do it all the more as we await His return!

John will open the Word and point us to Jesus.

We will lift our voices together, reading and singing, pointing each other to Jesus.

He is all we need!

Won’t you gather with us?

Everyone is invited.

Here are our Scriptures and songs:

8To You, O LORD, I cry, and to the Lord I plead for mercy: 9“What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it tell of Your faithfulness? 10Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me! O LORD, be my helper!”

11You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, 12that my glory may sing Your praise and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever!

50I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

Songs for Sunday, January 12, 2025 @ Christ Community Church

Sunday’s coming, and I’m excited!

When I say that, I’m not talking about some sort or religious obligation for attending church or anything like that. My mind is drawn to my need for Jesus and the fact that He would deign to accept one like me.

There were times in my life when thinking of Sunday was more religious than relationship, but the older I get and the more I think about all that Jesus has done (and is doing and will do), the more I think of Sunday like the imagery in Hebrews 4:14-16.

The writer of Hebrews begins this section talking about Jesus as the “great high priest”. That phrase can definitely be acquainted with religious ideas and temple life and sacrifices, but Jesus is something different.

High priests are typically “chosen from among men” and “appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God” (Hebrews 5:1). Jesus is different. He is God become man to be the sacrifice for men to be able to come to God.

High priests would typically need to “offer sacrifice” for their own sins “fust as [they do] for those of the people” (Hebrews 5:3). Jesus is different. He has no sins to sacrifice for because He “has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). He is the Lamb of God bearing our sin.

High priests worked and worked and worked on behalf of the people before God, but all of their work was just a shadow of what was to come. Jesus is different. Jesus is all substance, and no shadow, being Himself “the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 5:9-10).

Because Jesus is different, we are not limited to showing up for some religious observances over and over again, dwelling only in the suburbs of God’s grace and partaking only of shadows. Because Jesus is our high priest, He has made a way for us not just to be in relation to God but for us to be able to approach Him — to go directly to “the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16).

For those bringing their animals for the high priest to slaughter and make atonement for their sins, the idea of approaching God’s throne would be a frightening thing. Think of Isaiah’s “woe is me” talk when he had a vision of the holy, holy, holy God seated on His throne; he knew he was unclean and unworthy to look upon “the King, the LORD of hosts” (Isaiah 6:1-5)! The King of kings seated on the throne is still holy, holy, holy and we are still sinners. the King of kings seated on the throne is the divine word who discerns “the thoughts and intentions” of our hearts, laying us bare — “naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must give an account” (Hebrews 4:12-13).

Yes, Jesus is the King of kings.

Yes, Jesus is holy, holy, holy.

Yes, Jesus is Lord.

No, we are not any of those things and neither worthy nor holy. We are not God, and most of us could not stand even alongside Isaiah to state our “woe” in God’s presence. But Jesus is also our high priest! He has made atonement for our sins! He has made a way for us to come before Him (John 14:6, 2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 John 2:1-2)!

This is why the imagery of Hebrews 4:14-16 is so heavy on my mind. I have the opportunity and privilege to approach the throne of grace in my time of need. Because I have confessed Jesus as Lord and believed upon Him — but my trust in Him to save me, I have assurance to be able to approach Him without fear of death and punishment because He Himself has “bore [my] sins in His body on the tree, that [I] might die to sin and live to righteousness” (1 Peter 2:24). I don’t have to say “woe is me” because He put Himself through woes on my behalf.

Because of this, I can approach His throne with the confidence of a child waking a parent in the middle of the night for a drink of water. I can turn to Him with the assurance that I not only may approach Him for help but be confident that I will “receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

That’s good news!

But it’s not just good news for me. It is good news for all who trust in Him, all who are saved by grace through faith in Him.

So, Sunday’s coming, and we have the opportunity to gather together on the first day of the week — the Lord’s day — and remember His death, burial, and resurrection. We have the opportunity to gather with brothers and sisters who have been saved by grace through faith and approach the throne of our Lord together, confident that His grace and mercy are enough, sufficient, and eternally flowing toward those He loves.

If this doesn’t describe you, know that there is good news and grace enough for you, too. Your sin can be forgiven. You can be saved. There is grace enough and room enough and good news enough for you and all who call on His name.

You won’t find anything relgiously impressive. You won’t find impressive priests or practices. You won’t find perfect people. You will find a bunch of sinners — and hypocrites — whose only hope is Jesus. He is who will will read about. He is who we will sing about. He is who we will preach about. And that’s because He’s our only hope. He’s our King. He’s our God. He made a way for us and there is no place we’d rather be than gathered around His throne in a small picture of how we will get to be when this world passes away and He gathers His people to Himself.

Won’t you join us?

Here are our Scriptures and songs:

14Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

4We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
5For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like His. 6We know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7For one who has died has been set free from sin.

Songs for Sunday, January 5, 2025 @ Christ Community Church

Sunday’s coming — Joy to the World!

I know, I know. Christmas was last week, really last year at this point. But it is still on my mind.

As I type this, Christmas break is coming to an end for me and my family. Candice is taking down the tree and putting away Christmas decorations. But there was one song that we just couldn’t get around to or get to work during our time of Christmas songs at Christ Community: “Joy to the World (Joyful, Joyful)”.

I know that we have sung other versions of “Joy to the World” which were lifted up with much enthusiasm and joy, but this other version that we will be singing this week gets to the heart of why Isaac Watts wrote it in the first place (which is even more fitting considering our #dailyPSALMSchallenge).

Watts originally published “Joy to the World” in a collection of poems and hymns called The Psalms of David Imitated in the Language of the New Testament and Applied to the Christian State and Worship. This was a publication taking the song/prayer book of the Psalms and translating it forward in light of Jesus’s birth, life, death, and resurrection. This tells us that “Joy to the World” points back to Jesus’s first coming (Christmas) in order to point us toward His imminent return!

That, in essence, is the substance of our weekly worship gatherings. We worship on the first day of the week in remembrance of Jesus raising from the dead on the first day of the week AND in recognizing and reminding that He is coming again!

We lift our voices in song not in memorial but in honor and directly to our resurrected King!

We read and preach and listen to God’s Word not as a holy book of a bygone era but as a representation of our living and active Savior who died, rose, and is coming again — who is actively at work in the world today!

So, while Christmas is over until, Lord willing, December 2025, we can and should still sing “Joy to the World”.

Joy! The Lord is coming. Let earth — and our own hearts — prepare to receive the King.

Joy! Lift your voice in song and repeat the joy in all areas of your life.

Joy! Sin and sorrow has an expiration date. Thorns and trials do, too. As far as the curse of sin reigns, Jesus has become curse for us to end it!

Joy! No matter the state of world affairs and terror of wicked rulers, Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords — fully in control and coming to crush the Serpent’s head under His heel!

Joy!

This Sunday, we will be singing “Joy to the World” in light of Jesus’s imminent return. We will be singing to and about what He has done for us on the cross and the beautiful hope that comes from His empty, borrowed tomb. We will be singing about the hope that comes from the surpassing worth of knowing Him and being His. John will open up God’s Word and share the gospel — the good news — of Jesus to us. May God prepare our hearts to listen and sing and look forward to Jesus’s return!

Won’t you join us?

Here are our Scriptures & songs:

  • Scripture | Psalm 150 —

1Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in His mighty heavens! 2Praise Him for His mighty deeds; praise Him according to His excellent greatness!

3Praise Him with trumpet sound; praise Him with lute and harp! 4Praise Him with tambourine and dance; praise Him with strings and pipe! 5Praise Him with sounding cymbals; praise Him with loud clashing cymbals! 6Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!

  • Scripture | 1 Peter 1:3-5 —

3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.