The Summit STL

<p>Warnings are sometimes hard to listen to. Jesus offers a warning about ways of life that could distract us from the wonderful satisfying life that He wants for us.</p>

<p>Jesus is known for His unique interactions and this encounter He turns a powerful miracle into a personal meeting. The beauty is how Jesus knows exactly what this man needs and enters into the moment with him.</p>

<p>Mark tells a story of an unclean outsider who comes to Jesus and her interaction with Jesus displays faith and hope in the mercies of God in such a way that even Jesus is amazed!</p>

<p>Without wrestling with the question of what it looks like for us to become Redeemed Restorers, Easter Sunday becomes nothing more than a box that we check instead of a transformative experience that shapes our lives.</p>

<p>In this sermon Lead Pastor, Brian Agovino talks through Ezekiel 37 and the dry bones as we celebrate Easter and the resurrection of Jesus!</p>

<p>We tend to think about God is an either/or mind set. He is either just or loving. He is either powerful or vulnerability. When Jesus has His triumphal entry He breaks our paradigm to show that He is both a powerful King and a Humble King at the same time, and He isn't one or the other. In fact we need Him to be both/and.</p>

<p>Jesus has His first intense encounter with the Pharisees in Mark 7. He confronts their traditions and rules and flips everything on its head by saying that it is the heart that matters more than then actions.</p>

<p>A royal grudge turns a birthday party bloody. We ask ourselves, what would happen if we let go of the things we cling to most tightly?</p>

<p>The closing of Mark chapter 6 is a powerful reminder about the journey of faith. As we explore the text, we discover that faith is not a one-time event but a process of continually stepping into Christ's divine reality.</p>

<p>All four gospels tell the account of Jesus feeding the 5000. Mark uses this encounter to contrast the type of King Jesus is compared to king Herod and all other kings. Jesus reveals Himself in this miracle as the true and better Moses who will come to provide for His people.</p>

<p>As Jesus starts to gain notoriety He starts to show His disciples how the path is filled with suffering and heartache, not fame and fortune. The disciples learn this lesson as Jesus is rejected in His hometown and they are sent out to do ministy.</p>

<p>Lent is a season of the church calendar that invites followers of Jesus to prepare their hearts and minds for the resurrection. Our desires can be so strong that they can keep us from longing for Jesus. In this season of Lent we are inviting the church to pay attention to their desires so that are hearts will be stirred towards our need for Resurrection.</p>

<p>Jesus encounters a government official and a woman who has been hurting for 12 years and goes beyond both of their expectations in regard to what they thought they needed.</p>

<p>Jesus teaches how different His Kingdom is than the world. His Kingdom is slow and inevitable, but in order for us to really experience it we need to take it in, we need to let the seed grow in our lives and hearts.</p>

<p>Jesus teaches how different His Kingdom is than the world. His Kingdom is slow and inevitable, but in order for us to really experience it we need to take it in, we need to let the seed grow in our lives and hearts.</p>

<p>Parables can be so weird and hard to understand. But that was exactly the point for Jesus. He wanted us to think about life and the world differently. He wanted to reset our perspective and to do that, and He used parables to challenge His listeners. The parable of the sower challenges everyone to be people with eyes to see the Kingdom and ears to hear the voice of the King.</p>

<p>There have been many attempts to contain or control the power of the Gospel, but there has never been one that has succeeded. In Mark 3:20-35 Jesus shows us that He has come with ultimate control to bring a kingdom that makes all things new.</p>

<p>Jesus makes a powerful statement by calling 12 apostles. The Jews would not miss that Jesus was saying a revolution was beginning</p>

<p>Joy and happiness get confused and Christians can be notorious for trying to gloss over suffering and hard things. The gives a different was of living by inviting us into grief and experiencing joy at the same time. It's a brilliant and novel concept that has an impact for all of our lives.</p>

<p>Hebrews tells us that 'for the joy set before Him,' Jesus endured the cross scorning it's shame and taking our shame so that we could have the joy of His presence. This Sunday we talk about the Joy experienced in the saving work of Christ.</p>

<p>In this second message of our Advent Series, DJ Pittman takes us into John 16 and the thing that keeps many of us from experiencing the grace of joy.</p>

<p>Everything is supposed to be joyful around the holidays. But it seems like anxiety and hurry are what we mostly feel. What would it look like to be a joyous people in the midst of all circumstances and what would the practice of Joy look like?</p>

<p>Mark now takes us to the point where the religious leaders start to realize what Jesus is claiming, He is the one who can change everything. Mark invites his readers to wrestle with the truth that Jesus claims to be the only one who can truly give us rest.</p>

<p>Jesus came to bring a new chapter, life, and kingdom. However, so many of us struggle with adding Jesus to a life we are comfortable with. In Mark 2:18-22, we are challenged with the truth that, with Jesus, the new and the old do not mix.</p>

<p>How do you know if you're "in" with a Jesus? A dinner party at a tax collector's house gives us a surprising answer.</p>

<p>The Gospel demands a response, and every one of us will respond when we hear it. The question is, "How will you respond?" In this sermon, DJ Pittman looks at the different responses to Jesus' teaching in Mark 2.</p>

<p>We all have that one area of our lives that could be cleansed or washed away. Jesus takes an unusual approach to provide cleansing for one of the outcast in His society to provide us with hope.</p>

<p>Jesus starts to experience how people are more interested in his miracles than his message. At the same time Jesus talks a unique path to stay focused on what he has come to do and not give into the temptation of fame and power.</p>

<p>We live in a world that is great at dividing life into "parts." We have our family, our job, our church, etc. But what if Jesus commands more? What if He came to teach that Jesus is the final and ultimate authority of our lives, which means that He must become the ONLY part of our life? Embracing this truth must come with a radical change.</p>

<p>Jesus calls his first disciples to follow Him. They have to leave what is valuable to them to join Jesus on a greater and more valuable mission: being a part of helping people go from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light.</p>

<p>In Mark chapter 01 we learn about John the Baptist and how he is preparing the way for Jesus, who is the ultimate salvation.</p>

<p>Each Gospel writer engages on the life of Jesus in a unique way. Mark, the first gospel, tells the story of Jesus as the King and someone worthy of following with our whole lives.</p>

<p>God's calling brings with it a new identity, dignity, morals, and freedom. No matter your <br>"placement" your assignment is the same, to glorify God in all that we do.</p>

<p>Songs are written about love, movies tell the story of love, paintings express the passion of love, but at the same time so many of us struggle to feel and express love. In this sermon we conclude our series and talk about the first aspect of the fruit of the Spirit, love.</p>

<p>Do you find it easier to give in to what is urgent or what is important? In this sermon we will look at self-control and how the Holy Spirit works in the lives of believers to bring self-control.</p>

<p>It has been said that one of the least desired characteristics is gentleness. What if the problem is that we often don't look at gentleness the way God intended? In this message, DJ invites us to explore how gentleness could be one of the key measurements of how much we look like Jesus.</p>

<p>Do you find it hard to stick to a task over a long period of time? This can be a struggle for us in our Christian walk. We can follow Jesus for a long time and wonder if it matters. One aspect of the fruit of the Spirit is faithfulness: the dependability to follow-thru on what we have been called to.</p>

<p>In this sermon guest speaker, Rob Rash talks about goodness and how doing what is right in our lives as a fruit of the Spirit.</p>

<p>Our world in filled with bitterness, anger, and malice and people just want everyone to be kind. Not only is kindness an aspect of the Fruit of the Spirit, but biblical kindness is deeper and more costly than just being nice. In this sermon Lead Pastor, Brian Agovino, will unpack the idea of sacrificial kindness.</p>

<p>The world seems to be growing more irritable, more frustrated, and more impatient with each passing year. Solid dates and times keep shifting closer to, “The sooner, the better.” And yet one aspect of the fruit of the Spirit is patience. Lead Pastor, Brian Agovino engages on how we can learn to grow patience in our lives.</p>

<p>With a world that seems to be in chaos, anxiety seems to come more naturally to us than peace. In this sermon we investigate peace as as aspect of the Holy Spirit's work in our lives.</p>

<p>In week 03 of our series one of our Elders, Aaron Embry investigates the difference and the powerful joy that God longs to grow in our lives through the Holy Spirit.</p>

<p>In the book of Galatians Paul wants to help the church experience the simplicity and fullness of the Christian life and he sums it up in one simple phrase, 'Walk in the Spirit'. In this Leadp Pastor, Brian engages on the battle between the flesh and the Spirit and start on the journey to living the fullness of the Christian life that God longs for us to have.</p>

<p>This week, Lead Pastor Brian Agovino will intro our summer series on the Fruit of The Spirit by talking about the coming of the Holy Spirit that came to continue the mission that Jesus began.</p>

<p>In this Stand Alone sermon, church planter Demontrey Hamilton challenges us on what it looks like to run the race with confidence.</p>

<p>As Habakkuk looks on his world he is frustrated and disappointed and goes on an important journey with God. In this sermon we reflect on the song of faith Habakkuk sings in the midst of struggle.</p>

<p>In this message, Lead Pastor Brian will unpack how God's ferocious wrath can reveal God's compassion and love.</p>

<p>In this sermon, Lead Pastor Brian unpacks God's simple yet challenging concept of living by faith.</p>

<p>What does it look like to engage with God when we see suffering, injustice and violence in the world? This week our Lead Pastor, Brian will unpack the anatomy of a complaint to God.</p>

<p>In this message, Associate Minister, DJ Pittman, helps us see the empty tomb as more than inspirational, but transformational. Jesus fulfilled the law so that we could experience new life transformed.</p>