Hosanna Christian Fellowship

God's never gonna give you up!Jacob is finally free from Laban and turns his sights towards his home in the land of promise. But then he remembers the terms on which he left his home 20 years earlier when his brother Esau wanted to kill Jacob. When Jacob hears that his brother is coming to meet him with 400 men, will Jacob trust the Lord to be his defense, or will he return to his old ways and rely on his cunning to survive?This week we read through Genesis 32 and Jacob wrestling with God. We'll learn from Jacob's example on how to reconcile our broken relationships and study his encounter with God that would leave him with a limp and a new name. And we'll see how the God who didn't give up on Jacob won't give up on us!

Twenty years after running to the house of Laban to save his life, Jacob has had enough. Through dealing with the deceit of his Uncle Laban and the drama in his own family, Jacob has finally come to a place where he sees God's sovereign hand on his life and can trust God to lead and protect him. But how will Laban react when his daughters have fled and his household idols are stolen? This week we read through Genesis 31 where Jacob separated himself from the house of Laban. We'll see Jacob and his family leave by stealth, only to be pursued by Laban, and read what happened during the last encounter between Jacob and Laban. We'll learn how this story is like our call to leave the world behind when we follow Christ and the importance of trusting God fully with every part of our lives.

What do you want Me to do for you?That's the question Jesus asked the blind man who called out to Him in Mark 10. And it's a question He asks those who call out to Him today. This week we hear a special message from Pastor Ron Love who takes us back to the fundamentals of the Christian life. As Pastor Ron shares about the work of the Lord in his own life, he'll encourage us to come before the Lord ourselves and echo the words of the psalmist: Search me, God, and know my heart...lead me in the everlasting way!

Where do you turn when life is a mess?While Jacob's new family was growing rapidly in the midst of jealousy and drama, Jacob continued to labor for years for his uncle Laban. But while Laban's business flourished by the hand of Jacob, Jacob saw no increase for himself to care for his growing family. How can Jacob hope to get a fair deal from the master manipulator, Laban?This week we finish reading through Genesis 30 and see the Lord bless Jacob even while Jacob is treated unfairly by his uncle. We learn how God still works His will even through our own choices and ask ourselves, if God can work good in Jacob's messy life, what can He in our lives if we surrender our mess to Him?

Let the Baby Battle BeginJacob found more than safety from his brother in the house of his uncle Laban. He also found a bride. Jacob entered into an agreement to marry Laban's daughter, Rachel, but Laban manipulated events so that Jacob ended up with both Rachel and her sister Leah as brides. Now as Jacob continues to labor for his uncle, the sister brides will compete for Jacob's love and favor through childbearing.This week we read through Genesis 29-30 and see Jacob's new family grow in record speeds. We'll compare and contrast the two ways that Rachel and Leah deal with the circumstance they find themselves in and see how their actions and reactions demonstrate the truth of the words in the New Testament: God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.

Does God really work everything for good for those who love Him?Jacob fled for his life after stealing his brother's birthright and blessing. Then in the midst of the wilderness, he had an encounter with God who promised to be with Jacob and bring him back into the land of promise. But when he finally reaches his mother's family in Haran, and Jacob the deceiver meets his match in his manipulative uncle, what will these events mean in light of God's promise?This week we begin reading Genesis 29 and see the beginning of Jacob's life in the house of his uncle Laban. We'll learn what happened when Jacob entered into an agreement to marry Rachel, Laban's daughter, and how Laban manipulated events to his own benefit. We'll see how even in the midst of Jacob reaping the consequences of his actions, God is still working all things together for Jacob's good, and how God still works that way in our lives today.

Whoever thinks he stands must be careful not to fall.That's Paul's warning in 1 Corinthians 10:12. When Isaac remained faithful to God's commands, to stay in the land of promise and trust God to provide in the midst of famine, God blessed Isaac providing water and crops to Isaac and his household. But as time went on and Isaac grew old, the small seeds of favoritism he showed between his sons began to divide his household in ways he couldn't have imagined. This week we begin reading Genesis 27 and see the state of Isaac's household as he approached the end of his life. We'll study how Isaac attempting to bless Esau instead of Jacob was an act of rebellion to God's will and how Rebecca and Jacob's scheming to steal the blessing instead of trusting God to work was an equal act of rebellion. But most importantly we'll learn how even when God's people are faithless, God remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

Whoever thinks he stands must be careful not to fall.That's Paul's warning in 1 Corinthians 10:12. When Isaac remained faithful to God's commands, to stay in the land of promise and trust God to provide in the midst of famine, God blessed Isaac providing water and crops to Isaac and his household. But as time went on and Isaac grew old, the small seeds of favoritism he showed between his sons began to divide his household in ways he couldn't have imagined. This week we begin reading Genesis 27 and see the state of Isaac's household as he approached the end of his life. We'll study how Isaac attempting to bless Esau instead of Jacob was an act of rebellion to God's will and how Rebecca and Jacob's scheming to steal the blessing instead of trusting God to work was an equal act of rebellion. But most importantly we'll learn how even when God's people are faithless, God remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

In the beginning God created life!Not just living plants and animals, but a very unique and special creation called human beings. Man and Woman were fashioned in the very likeness of God Himself and thus they carry an incredibly high value to Him. The death of the unborn, who themselves can't yet speak on their own behalf, is a direct attack against that which carries the highest value bearing the image of the Creator. Why is abortion such a reprehensible evil and why should God's people, His church, take an intentional stand against it?This week we hear a special message from Steven Paez of The White Rose Resistance. Together we'll walk through the Scriptures to see what God has to say about the value of all human life and what God calls His people to do when they find themselves living in a culture that celebrates death.

God is with you. Do you believe it?Isaac, the son of promise, is living in the land of promise with his wife Rebekah, who God led to him by divine providence, and his two sons born to them by divine intervention. But when another famine plagues the land of Canaan, will Isaac repeat the failures or the faith of his father Abraham?This week we begin reading through Genesis 26 and watch how Isaac learns to depend on God for all his needs. We'll see Isaac follow in the footsteps of his father, Abraham, both in his failures and his faith, and see how God's blessings on Isaac's life are inseparable from God's presence in Isaac's life. And we'll see how the same God who was with Isaac is with us today who are called by the name of Christ and ask ourselves how our own walks of faith would be different if we really believed that God is present with us.

Who exactly are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob?Abraham is known today as the father of faith for many believers around the world. And Jacob, who was renamed Israel, became the namesake of the nation of Israel throughout time until today. But who was Isaac, and what can we learn from the son of the promise given to Abraham millennia ago? This week we finish reading through Genesis 25 and learn about the miraculous birth of Jacob and Esau. We'll see how Isaac is a good example of a spiritual leader in his household and we'll study the origin of the struggle between Jacob and Esau that would last through the generations in the nations that would descend from them. And lastly we'll look at how God chooses to extend grace to mankind, a grace that we cannot earn, only receive.

Abraham was how old when he died?!One hundred years after God promised Abraham a land for him and his descendants, the only part of that land Abraham owned was the cave and field where he and Sarah were buried. But as Abraham walked with God year by year, his trust in God deepened until his life would become a testimony to the faithfulness of God to those who trust in Him. This week we begin reading through Genesis 25 and see the result of faith in the twilight years of Abraham's life. We'll read two recorded genealogies that speak of the fulfilment of God's promise to make Abraham the father of many nations; we'll see how Abraham became an example of faith throughout all generations, and we'll ask ourselves what kind of legacy we are leaving behind in the choices we make today.

How can I tell God is working in my life?Abraham lived and long a full life, having his faith tested and proved steadfast. After burying his wife, Sarah, and seeing his journey on earth coming to an end, Abraham looks to the future of his beloved son, Isaac, and sends his servant to find a good and faithful wife for Isaac.This week we continue our study through Genesis with chapter 24. We'll look at how Abraham's servant practiced the same faith as Abraham and how that faith allowed him to see the hand of God guiding his way as he faithfully served his master. And then we'll look at our own journey's of faith to see how God works in our own life, not often through grand miracles, but through the ordinary, everyday events of our lives.

What is Pentecost?In Acts 2, the disciples of Jesus were gathered together praying during Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon them, and today we celebrate Pentecost as the day the church was born. But have you ever wondered what the significance of Pentecost was to the Jewish disciples before that day? Join us this week as Henry Monreal from Chosen People Ministries shares a message on Pentecost and it's significance in the Old Testament

What do fathers teach their children about God?Whether we realize it our not, the way fathers treat their children will mold the way their children go on to perceive God. So what should we do to teach our children about God? In Luke 15, Jesus told three parables ending with the well-known parable of the prodigal son. Join us this week as we study this parable, focusing on the character of the merciful father. We'll see how this father demonstrates important characteristics of our Heavenly Father and challenge ourselves to follow in God's footsteps to teach our children about our merciful God.

Faith Conquers Death!Do you believe it? Since the fall of man, death has been a relentless presence to life on earth. The greatest men of faith were not immune from grief and death. For over 60 years, Abraham and Sarah lived through life together as they followed after God through the ups and downs of life. Until the day that death came to separate them.This week we read through Genesis 23 and see the record of the death of Abraham's wife, Sarah. We'll look at how Abraham grieved for the loss his wife and study how even the act of burying Sarah in the promised land was a declaration of faith in the certainty that God would give the land to Abraham's descendants through Isaac. And then we'll ask ourselves if we are keeping our focus on this present world that is passing away or the eternal hope of heaven where Christ is.

Which is more important: obedience or sacrifice?Abraham's journey of faith had persevered over many decades through many spiritual highs and spiritual failures when God's promise of a son was fulfilled in the birth of Isaac. But after years of peace living in the blessing of God's fulfilled promise, God had one more test for Abraham to prove the quality of Abraham's faith.This week we begin reading Genesis 22 and study the greatest spiritual milestone in the life of Abraham. We'll see God test Abraham's faith by calling him to sacrifice Isaac and we'll study how this test of faith for Abraham became a picture of the redeeming work of Christ Jesus for the salvation of the world!

When will God finish the work that He started?Twenty-five years after God first called Abraham and Abraham set out on his journey of faith, God's promise that Abraham would have a son by Sarah his wife is finally fulfilled! Unfortunately, the miraculous birth of Isaac doesn't mean that Abraham and his family go on to live happily ever after. But does the continuing conflicts in Abraham's household mean God has stopped working in Abraham's life?This week we continue our journey through Genesis with chapter 21 and the birth of Isaac, the son of promise. We'll see God continue to work in Abraham's life through the blessings and the conflicts to produce a faith in Abraham more precious than gold. And we'll see how Abraham's story parallels the work of sanctification that God works in our own lives today.

If I'm supposed to be dead to sin, why do I keep sinning?Abraham, a great man of faith who left his home at God's command and saved his nephew from invading armies. The man whom God counted righteous simply for believing that God would do the things He promised. After God visited Abraham and shared a meal with him and promised him a son by Sarah his wife, Abraham finds himself wandering again from the land of promise and falling into old habits of deception. This week we continue our study through Genesis in chapter 20. We'll see how even a great man of faith like Abraham can easily fall back into old habits of sin, and how God's promises remain true despite Abraham's sin. We'll look at practical steps we can take--not to become sinless but to sin less, and see that even when we are faithless, God remains faithful.

Happy Mother's Day!The role of a mother is already a difficult calling without our modern society's attack on motherhood and the family structure. But the Bible says there is an immense blessing in raising children and walking with your children before the Lord. In our study this week, John Stephens offers encouragement to mothers with Biblical steps to take to raise their children in the truth of God.

God's will be done; or my will be done?Our modern American society places a high value on freedom, independence, and self-determination. And many churches in the US love verses like: "He who the Son sets free is free indeed" (John 8:36). But if Christ came to set us free, why did the apostles who wrote the New Testament call themselves slaves of Christ?This week we take a break from our study through Genesis to hear a special Bible study from Pastor Rik on what it means to be a bondservant of Christ in a modern world that values self above all else.

If prayer is so simple, why is it so hard?Prayer is a fundamental part of the life of a believer. It's the main way we stay connected to God, our Father and Redeemer. But for something so simple, does it ever feel like effective prayer is so hard to figure out?This week we take a break from our study through Genesis to hear a message from Pastor Ron about this vital part of the Christian life: Prayer. Together we'll answer the question "What is Prayer" as we look through the Bible to learn from the examples of prayer recorded in its pages.

He is Risen! In this episode, we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ together as the body of Christ.

He is Risen! In this episode, we celebrate the resurrection on our Lord and Savior while watching the sunrise.

Happy Good Friday and welcome to Hosanna- your church! In this episode, we praise God for the sacrifice He made for us on the cross as we enter into Easter weekend.

Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!Throughout Jesus's ministry on earth, He repeatedly told people to keep His identity a secret after healings or other miracles. Until that day when He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, fulfilling prophecy and declaring Himself Israel's coming King--even if He wasn't the King they were expecting. This week we take a break from our study through Genesis to celebrate Palm Sunday and study the Biblical account of what we know today as the Triumphal Entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. We'll compare and contrast how our Heavenly King is different from every other king who has ruled on earth and examine our own hearts to see how freely we worship our King.

What kind of legacy are you leaving behind?The Lord judged the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah for their wickedness, but in His grace He spared Lot and his family by taking them out of the city. After years of compromised living in a wicked society, what kind of life will Lot and his daughters go on to live?This week we finish Genesis 19 and see what kind of legacy Lot will leave behind him. We'll read about the culmination of the choices Lot made over his life and see how his compromises would go on to have a lasting impact on his life and his daughters. And we'll discuss how Lot's story becomes a cautionary tale for us of the dangers of living by sight and not by faith.

Won't the judge of the whole earth do what is just?After the Lord visited Abraham and shared a meal, He told Abraham the purpose of His visit: to investigate the great cry from the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to see if the time for judgment against the cities had come. With concern for his nephew, Lot, Abraham intercedes for the cities, asking God whether He would judge the righteous with the wicked. The Lord's answer made it clear that He would not. But what about when the "righteous" aren't so righteous?This week we read from Genesis 19 and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. We'll examined what had become of Lot since he last parted ways with Abraham and look at what happens in the lives of believers when we live too close to sin and allow compromise into our lives. The Lord will save those who trust in Him, but we hinder our testimony and risk great heartache when we live lives of compromise with the world.

I prayed for someone else one time--isn't that enough?When the Lord Himself passed by Abraham's tent in Hebron, Abraham rejoiced to play host to three heavenly visitors, who shared a meal and an encouraging promise with Abraham and Sarah. As the meal ended and the visitors rose to leave, the Lord would go on to share with Abraham the reason He passed by that day: to investigate the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah and see whether it was time to judge these cities for their wickedness.This week we finish reading through Genesis 18 and see Abraham's response to the Lord's intentions to judge the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. We'll learn why it was important for Abraham to know about the justice of God and see how Abraham intercedes on behalf of his nephew Lot who was living in the midst of a wicked city. And through it all we'll challenge ourselves to draw closer to God in order to intercede on behalf of our own loved ones today.

Is the impossible possible?When God visited Abraham and shared a meal with him and talked to Abraham face to face as a friend, God spoke His promise again that Sarah would bear a son to be Abraham's heir. As Sarah eavesdropped on the conversation, she laughed in unbelief, for surely it is impossible for a barren woman of 90 years to give birth to a son!This week we continue reading Genesis 18 and ask ourselves the same question the Lord posed to Sarah in response to her unbelief: Is anything impossible for the Lord? When God makes us a promise, do we respond in faith or in unbelief?

What if you heard Jesus was coming to visit?Would you spend time cleaning up or preparing a big meal? Would you rush out to meet Him? Well, when the newly-renamed Abraham received a special visit from the Lord, he went above and beyond to share a meal with God and became a great example of what it means to be the friend of God. This week we return to our study in Genesis with a message from Genesis 18. We'll see how Abraham responds when he receives three heavenly messengers and dig into what it means to be a friend of God. We'll look at some of the common things that can hinder our close relationship with God and what it means to us today that Jesus calls us friends.

Do what in remembrance of Jesus?When Jesus met with his disciples to partake of the Passover meal the night before He would be crucified, He instituted a new ordinance for His future church to observe with the command to "Do this in remembrance of Me." But what does it mean to remember Jesus when we come to the Lord's table for communion?This week for our communion service, Pastor Ron Love shares a message on remembrance. We'll look together at what it meant in the Old Testament for the nation of Israel to remember the works of the Lord and what it meant for the New Testament church to remember what Jesus had done, and by extension how we should remember our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Spot the difference: Bishop, Pastor, and ShepherdTrick question. There is no difference. Yet over the years, these titles that are often used interchangeably in the New Testament have come to mean different things in our modern culture. So what does that mean for our local churches today?This week we take a break from our study through Genesis to study what the New Testament teaches us about leadership roles and responsibilities in the local church. We'll define what the Bible means when it uses words like bishop, pastor, elder, deacon, and servant; and we'll see what the responsibilities are of those who serve in the church and what our responsibility is to those who serve us in the church.

What's in a name? A nose by any other name can still smell.While Shakespeare can poetically question the significance of names, when God comes along and changes someone's name, it's something to pay attention to. For the man born Abram, life had been a long journey of highs and lows, successes and failures. But constant through all of that was God's faithfulness. Thirteen years after the birth of Abram's son, Ishmael, God appears to Abram again to confirm His promise, and to change Abram's name.This week we study through Genesis 17 and dig deep into the meaning of four important names in this chapter. We'll look at the significance of God calling Himself "God Almighty;" we'll compare and contrast Abram and Sarai's new names that God gives them; and we'll look at the meaning of Abraham's promised son, Isaac, as God continues to bring about the promised Messiah.

God may hold the whole world in His hands... but does He see me?Abram and Sarai took it upon themselves to fulfill God's promises according to their own wisdom apart from God. The unforeseen results left their household in turmoil as Hagar, pregnant with Abram's son, held Sarai in contempt and Sarai did everything she could to put Hagar back in her place. Until Hagar reaches a breaking point and runs away with no plan on what to do next.This week we finish reading through Genesis 16 and see the Lord Himself meet Hagar in the midst of her struggles. We'll briefly look at the way slavery is discussed in the Bible and look at the implications of what it means that Sarai mistreated Hagar. But more importantly we'll see the God who shows up in the midst of our trails, whether those trials were caused by others or by ourselves, and offers us the thing we really need: Himself.

What do we do when we're waiting... and waiting... and waiting... and waiting... and waiting...Since God first called Abram from his homeland and into a relationship with Him, Abram has learned many practical lessons on what it means to walk by faith. He's learned to rely on God's wisdom and not his own; he's learned how to be generous with what God provides and how to live by self-sacrifice rather than self-preservation. And in the middle of his doubts, Abram met God and found he could believe God's promises to be true despite his worries. But what happens when God's timing on the fulfillment of those promises doesn't line up with what Abram thinks that timing should be?This week we begin studying in Genesis 16 and see Abram's wife, Sarai, suggest a way that they might see a fulfillment of the promises apart from the God who made those promises. We'll learn what happens when Abram and Sarai follow their surrounding culture rather than trust in God. And we'll see how it is one thing to believe that God is able to fulfill His promises, and harder to trust God for when he will fulfill His promises.

Abram believed God!And God credited righteousness to Abram! In Abram's faith journey to this point, he's had many highs and lows, but when God promised Abram a son and descendants more numerous than the stars in the sky, Abram's simple belief in that promise was rewarded mightily by God. But is is possible that mixed in with that belief are more questions?This week we finish studying Genesis 15 and the instatement of the Abrahamic Covenant. We'll see if Abram's continued questions of God indicate a remaining doubt in his mind and learn what it means that Abram fell asleep while God made the covenant with him. And then we'll look forward through history to see how this covenant corresponds to the New Covenant given by Jesus Himself to His church.

Abram was blessed by God--of course his life was easy.Since God first called Abram to step out in faith and go to a foreign land God would show him, Abram's journey of faith has seen many highs and lows as he has learned to trust God and not lean on his own understanding. But after a great spiritual victory leaves Abram with a few more questions than he has answers, God makes Abram a promise that will test whether Abram will listen to his doubts or his God.This week we begin studying in Genesis 15 and see how the connection between faith and righteousness isn't merely a New Testament reality, but is how God has related to mankind from the beginning. We'll see how Abram was called righteous because of his faith in God's promises and ask ourselves what we are trusting in for our salvation.

Why is that in the Bible?It's a question we can often find ourselves asking while studying the Scriptures. Like when Abram successfully rescues his nephew Lot and other captives from the kings of the east, and after the victory a king named Melchizedek greets Abram on his way home and blesses him. This detail in the story seems unimportant, if it weren't for the fact that this King Melchizedek is mentioned two more times in the Bible: first in Psalms and then in the New Testament. This week we pause our study of Abram in Genesis and dig a little deeper to see who this King Melchizedek is and why his story is important enough to be referenced again in the first century writings of the New Testament. We'll see how the priesthood of this king compares to the system of the priests and Levites of the Old Testament law and how this king priest's blessing of Abram corresponds to the New Testament ministry of Jesus Christ.

Welcome to Hosanna- your church! This morning, we celebrate Christmas together and learn about the greatest gift the world has been given.

A tale of two kings.When Abram's nephew became a prisoner of war by the kings of the east, Abram wasted no time in launching a rescue operation to save Lot. And by God's providence, Abram was successful, not only saving Lot but also saving all the captives and stolen goods from the conquered cities. In light of this great victory from God Most High, how will the kings of the land respond?This week we continue our study through Genesis 14 and the fallout from Abram's covert rescue mission. We'll see a righteous king who gives glory to God and blesses Abram and a worldly king who remains self-serving and ungrateful. And we'll challenge our own beliefs to see whether we have a mindset that will take credit ourselves or give glory to God.

Know the Truth, Live the Truth, Share the TruthThat's our mission statement here at Hosanna Christian Fellowship but what does that mean? This week join us in a message for the New Year. As a church, we'll look back on 2024 and thank God for the work that He has done while looking forward to the new year and prepare for the work that God will do. And we'll survey through the Scriptures learn what it means to know the truth, live the truth, and share the truth in light of the fact that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life.

Unto us a Child is born...so what?Every year at Christmastime churches around the world recount the events surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ. The manger and the star and shepherds and magi. But of all the births throughout history, what's so special about the birth of Jesus Christ that we still remember it year after year millennia later?Join us this week for a study through the Scriptures about the birth of our Savior. We'll survey the Scriptures to learn the important context surrounding the birth of Christ spiritually, culturally, and politically, and see what three things God gave us in the birth of Jesus Christ that first Christmas day.

When was Abraham a general?Abram in Egypt was a man of no faith, depending on his own wisdom to keep himself safe. Back in the promised land, Abram was a man of great faith, building altars to the Lord and offering Lot his choice of the land. But when Lot's choice to live by sight and not by faith leads to his captivity by the kings of the east, Abram's trust in God for his own safety will be put to the test. This week we begin studying Genesis 14 and the time Abram led a rescue mission to save Lot. We'll learn the circumstances of Lot's capture and see the kind of trust Abram had that would lead him to risk his life to save his family. And we'll examine our own faith to see how much we are willing to put on the line to do the right thing.

What do trials prepare us for?Famine in the promised land became a trial God used to test Abram's faith, and Abram found he had room to grow. But when the famine passed and Abram was back in Canaan again, everything looked great until trouble arose between Abram's household and the household of his nephew, Lot. Another trial to test what Abram has learned in his journey of faith. This week we begin studying in Genesis 13 and see how Abram's failures in Egypt resulted in deeper faith in God. We'll learn how trials often prepare us for the next trial and we'll catch a glimpse into the faith of Abram's nephew, Lot, as he chooses to make decisions according to his own sight. But more importantly, we'll see Abram's heart grow from one of selfishness to generosity and deeper trust in God and ask ourselves which kind of heart we want to have.

We know we can be thankful for God, but why? Why is He worthy of thanks and praise? In this episode, four of Hosanna's leaders teach short messages on why we can be filled with thanks and praise God. Afterwards, we will take communion together and thank God for the sacrifice of His one and only Son Jesus Christ.

Where do you turn when life doesn't go as expected?Abram heard the voice of the Lord call him to leave his home in Ur and go to a land that God would show him. And in faith Abram followed the call of God to live as a stranger in the land of Canaan. But the road of faith is seldom a straight and easy path. What will this man of faith do when famine strikes the land that God promised to give to his descendants? This week we finish reading through Genesis 12 and see how Abram goes down to Egypt along with the other Canaanites fleeing the famine. We'll study how Abram responds to his worries and fears of the Egyptian people and how we can ruin our witness to a lost world when we rely on our own understanding rather than seeking guidance from the Lord.

What does it mean to have a faith like Abraham?Today Abraham is known as the great patriarch of faith to both Jews and Christians around the world. Aside from Moses, the New Testament mentions Abraham more than any other Old Testament person and the decisions Abraham made during his life are still impacting the world today. But how did the man named Abram at birth who grew up in pagan Ur become the father of many nations and a champion of faith?This week we begin studying through Genesis 12 and look at the call of Abram. We'll look at what kind of culture Abram lived in when God first spoke to him and how his small steps of obedience would lead to him becoming a great example of faith to those who seek after God today.

Eras change, God doesn't.The book of Genesis records the history of humanity from God first creating mankind to God forming a nation for Himself in the children of Israel. As mankind rebelled against God, from Cain down to the tower of Babel, inciting God's judgement, God always preserved the remnant of those who would walk with Him by faith in order to bring about His promise to Adam and Eve that He would save the world through Jesus Christ. This week we finish reading Genesis 11 and the end of what is called the primeval era of Bible history. We'll study through one last genealogy of this era, comparing it to those listed before it, and see how it connects to the patriarchal era through the introduction of one of the greatest Bible heroes of faith. And as we see Abraham begin his journey of faith, we'll see how we still relate to God by faith today.

When have people ever been unified?After the flood, the families of Noah's three sons grew as God's blessing to be fruitful and multiply came to pass. As the population expanded, all people were united in their ancestry, in their language, and in their sin nature inherited from Adam and Eve. This sin nature led to human hearts in rebellion to God, each seeking its own way apart from God, and to mankind undertaking to build a great tower as a testament to a heart seeking its own glory in defiance of God almighty. This week we begin studying in Genesis 11 and the record of the Tower of Babel. We'll study the significance of man's undertaking to build the tower and why God confused the languages of all the people. And we'll see how the philosophy of Babylon is still alive in the world today, and ask ourselves if our own hearts lean toward Babylon or toward God.