The Summit STL

<p>The relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Word of God is critical for the life of the believer. Join us as we discover how the Spirit of Truth transforms us by using God's word.</p>

<p>Psalm 1 proclaims that a happy person, a satisfied person is one who delights in the law of the Lord. Join us as we wrestle with how to adjust our tastes to delight in scripture.</p>

<p>What does it look like to live in community as the body of Christ. In this message we look at Ephesians chapter 4 where Paul talks about Unity in the body of Christ, how we find it, and how it's accomplished.</p>

<p>The Bible is the most hopeful document ever written, but we resist the hope offered because it shines a light on our weakness. Join us this week as we discover that the exposure of our weaknesses is actually the beginning of our hope.</p>

<p>We live in a culture that doesn't like authority. God wants to have authority in our lives as well, but the way He offers that is different from what we are used to. Join us as we discover why God's word deserves our trust.</p>

<p>The Bible is an ancient document that stirs lots of questions for us as readers. Even though we have questions and doubts we need to know that what we are reading is God's word for the sake of our transformation. This week we will address the reliability of God's word.</p>

<p>At the end Mark's gospel he leaves his readers with one certainty, that is beyond our comprehension - Jesus defeated death; and one uncertainty - how will his readers respond? Will they believe that Jesus truly was the Son of God.</p>

<p>Mark finally proves his point, the one he said he was going to lead us to in the first verse of his gospel, that Jesus is the Son of God. And the confession comes from one of the most unlikely characters which gives us hope that we too are invited to make the same confession. </p>

<p>Before Mark talks about the spiritual pain of the cross he talks about the physical pain. Jesus is thirsty, He is crucified between robbers, and he is mocked. All for the sake of the world.</p>

<p>It can be difficult for us to see the bigger picture at times. Mark 15 is a case where Pilate, the Jews and the Crowd missed that Jesus wasn't a political king or the king of the Jews, He reveals Himself as the king of King with an eternal Kingdom.</p>

<p>Peter was a power and staunch follower of Jesus, but it was his failure that he is most known for. This failure is a powerful warning and opportunity for all who would consider it.</p>

<p>Jesus's predictions begin to come true as once again humanity is confronted by evil in a garden. It seems like everything is about to be lost, but in truth, everything is about to be gained.</p>

<p>Jesus is the sacrificial Lamb of God who came to redeem us from the bondage of sin and establish a new covenant with us based on His grace. Through this passage we’ll seek to understand why we celebrate the Lord’s Supper (Communion) as a church. We’ll examine the depth and power of the gospel that has redeemed us, is redeeming us, and will one day redeem us.</p>

<p>Jesus is about to experience the cross and in a powerful display of humanity He goes before God with a raw and powerful prayer request. Jesus shows us that because He knows God as Abba He believes that all things are possible and He therefore prays boldly and surrendered.</p>

<p>Giving everything to Jesus can be so difficult to process. At the beginning of the Jesus's last week before the cross Mark gives us a powerful visual picture of what it looks like to give Jesus everything.</p>

<p>Over 300 verses in the New Testament talk about the return of Jesus, and yet Christians seem so confused about it. Not only are there lots of views but it seems that we rarely ever engage on the topic or consider the return of Christ. This week we tackle Jesus's exhortation to the disciples to alwasy be ready for His return.</p>

<p>Mark 13 is considered one of the most studied passages of the Bible, and it's message is one that, if received, can impact, help, and radically change everything.</p>

<p>The second most defining mark of a Christian is that they love others. The challenge of this mark is that love is vulnerable, risky, messy, observable and costly. Jesus doesn't just call us to love this way, but loves us in that extravagant way to be the foundation for His followers to be loving people.</p>

<p>It's interesting how little we talk about the idea of loving God. Jesus offers that the two greatest commandments are loving God and loving others. In this first week back join us as we kick off the year pondering what it means to love God.</p>

<p>So many people look to Jesus as someone with good ideas, or a teacher with good morals to live by. But Jesus through His death, resurrection and return doesn't offer the world something to consider, or just a belief system, He offers Himself, and that is why ultimate Hope is found in a person. Hope has a name, and His name is Jesus.</p>

<p>Hope believes that the best is yet to come! In Christian hope we experience that by not just looking to the future but by joining God in making His invisible Kingdom visible today.</p>

<p>We are good at recognizing what we don't have, but sometimes we struggle to realize what we really need. God has wired us to be a people of a type of hope that transforms us - a living hope. To realize that our story, is a hope story.</p>

<p>As we enter the Advent season, we embark on a journey of reflection centered around hope. Hope can be viewed at from all different perspectives. However, the way we choose to envision hope could prove to be the defining factor that sets our path either towards despair or towards a fuller, more abundant hope.</p>

<p>The interrogation of Jesus continues and a silly quesion leads to the real definitions of dead and alive.</p>

<p>One of Jesus's most famous line is, 'Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and give to God what is God's.' His thought has so many implications for how we live in an overly politicized world.</p>

<p>Mark 12 continues the theme that has been building of a fruitless temple and a corrupt religious system. And while the parable of the tenants issues a stark warning to the religious leaders, it is also a call to the Church of today.</p>

<p>Hope can be a difficult thing to maintain and maturing in. But the best place to grow in hope is within the Christian community where we cling to hope, consider one another, and connect. That is the key to hope being formed in us.</p>

<p>As Jesus enters the last week of His life He desires to help the world grasp what He is about to do. The forgiveness of sins and the salvation of people can only be accomplished by the one who has authority to do it. Jesus starts down the path of showing the world He has that authority.</p>

<p>Mark uses a very powerful object lesson and a powerful encounter to unveil to the world that Jesus has come to change everything.</p>

<p>Mark 11 begins the final leg of this gospel account, Holy Week. As Jesus sets His sights on Jerusalem, and what lies ahead, Mark is painting a picture of what happens when our misguided longings for a simple Jesus come in contact with the reality of King Jesus. </p>

<p>Mark ends the first half of his book with a powerful story of healing. He displays His desire to restore the sight of the physically blind because He has also come to restore the sight of the spiritually blind.</p>

<p>It seems if we were to reflect on the last century the church has been thinking about power, control and leadership in a way that is not in line with the way Jesus talks about power, control and leadership. Jesus leaves no room for ambiguity that those who call themselves His followers will be defined by a non-negotiable value - they will be servants to all</p>

<p>Salvation is wholly dependent on God's grace. Jesus teaches it is essential that we renounce any idol in our lives and cease relying on our own works to earn salvation and instead approach God solely through faith in Christ.</p>

<p>Jesus calls His followers to have childlike faith. The power of childlike faith is that a child comes with nothing and they are able to rest and accept the love of God. For adults, we usually struggle to admit our brokenness or accept God's love.</p>

<p>Mark turns the corner in his Gospel from declaring who Jesus is to what it means to follow Him. He starts by addressing the area of marriage and calling on his readers to look at marriage in a whole new light.</p>

<p>Is God in complete control or does what what we do really matter? Yes</p>

<p>Following Jesus does not mean that spirituality is one part of our lives it means that Jesus is over every aspect of our lives. When we follow Jesus we are partnering with Him and His mission of restoration. Join us as we unpack what an integrated life looks like and how worship and following Jesus looks Monday-Saturday.</p>

<p>Knowing our motives for things can be so complicated. It can be so easy to convince our hearts of things. This is why the practice of repentance so the foundation of everything in our walk with God. Do you practice repentance as a rhythm or just as something you do when you are caught? Join us as we unpack lifestyle repentance.</p>

<p>Unity is a complicated practice. There are so many things that can get in the way of unity and disrupt unity. One of Jesus's prayers before He went to the cross was for His followers to live in unity. Join us as we look practically at how we, the Summit family, can maintain unity.</p>

<p>In this sermon, we continue our journey in the Book of James and explore what true faith looks like. We will look at three arguments James presents to communicate that true faith will always produce transformation.</p>

<p>In this sermon, we continue our journey in the Book of James and explore the not-so-little sin of partiality. We will look at the case study given to us in James 2 and five applications from it.</p>

<p>In this sermon, we continue our journey in the Book of James and explore the difference between earthly wisdom and biblical wisdom. We will discuss some of the problems of wisdom and three important principles of seeking biblical wisdom.</p>

<p>In this sermon, we begin our journey in the Book of James and explore the concept of joy in the midst of suffering. We will discuss why believers are encouraged to consider suffering as a source of joy and how God's love can have a transformative effect on our lives.</p>

<p>Sometimes it is hard for us to engage with the hard words of Jesus, and Mark 9 is one of those passages. Jesus gives two very stark warnings about being a stumbling block to others and being a stumbling block to ourselves.</p>

<p>Jesus again gives His followers an unsettling prediction as they learn that His kingdom will be unlike any other.</p>

<p>Jesus comes off of the mountaintop and returns back to the reality of the world which is filled with evil and unbelief. The only display of belief in the passage is a man who things he doesn't have any faith, which is exactly what Jesus is looking for.</p>

<p>In this sermon, we dive into Mark's Transfiguration account in chapter 9. As we explore this passage, we are reminded that in Jesus, we see the glory of God coming together with the presence of God. This revelation is truly awe-inspiring, and it begs the question: what should our response be?</p>

<p>The church often neglects the significance of Pentecost when the Spirit came to empower the people of Jesus. Without the power of the Spirit the Christian life would be impossible, so join us as we discuss how the Spirit works in the life of a Christian.</p>

<p>A conversation on the road takes a surprising turn and we realize the the long expected Messiah is not what we expected.</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p>

<p>Mark concludes the first half of his book with a miracle that is also a parable about spiritual blindness. Mark has introduced Jesus as the Messiah, Savior and King and asks us the question, "Do you see clearly?"</p>