Christ Community Chapel - Hudson Campus

Joe Coffey | This week, Pastor Joe kicks off a new series called “Agents of Change,” focusing on the nature of prayer and its ability to impact our lives. While the power of prayer can be hard to measure, the Bible makes it clear that prayer is an important part of our relationship with God. Hear some common mistakes people make about prayer, the importance of pairing prayer with action and how CCC is tapping into both with a group called Transform Summit to make a difference in our region.

Tom Randall | In Philemon 1:7, we hear Paul say to his friend Philemon, “Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people.” As missionary and chaplain Tom Randall explains today through a series of personal stories, whether it’s showing kindness to a non-believer or being encouraged by a close friend, refreshment is a powerful part of the Christian journey that we shouldn’t overlook.

Joe Coffey | In Mark 10:23, we hear Jesus say, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” It is a verse that can make us uncomfortable, as most of us have more than we need yet don’t like parting with our riches. While money can be a powerful barrier to walking with God, it can also be a powerful tool for creating joy and showing obedience to the Lord. This week, we hear the story of two rich men in the Bible who encountered Jesus and responded quite differently with their money… What can we learn about a right relationship with money from these two examples?

Joe Coffey | This week, we look at the story of Thomas, the disciple of Jesus infamous for his doubt. While he may have been among the first Christians to express doubt in Jesus, he was far from the last. There is a type of healthy doubt that helps to refine and mature our faith, especially for those who have been raised in Christianity. However, doubt can also come in the form of a crisis of faith: the result of a misalignment of life choices and beliefs or a disappointment in God. These crises may not be experienced by everyone, but they can be truly challenging to endure. The good news is that as much as sin can push us further into doubt, obedience to God can draw us deeper into faith—much like Thomas experienced the gap of disappointment, felt Jesus’ scars and was brought back to abide in Jesus’ love.

Sam Allberry | In John 4, we read the story of Jesus’ encounter with an outcast woman drawing water from a well. It would have been a scandalous story during those days, as men were not supposed to speak to women they didn’t know—especially not with Samaritans, whom the Jews looked down upon. Yet we see no hesitation in Jesus, who sees beyond the cultural barriers to perceive a person with a deep need to be known and loved… Just like all of us. This week, guest speaker Sam Allberry from Ravi Zacharias International Ministries explains how, like the Samaritan woman, we don’t truly know ourselves until we meet Jesus, and we can’t quench our thirst to be truly loved without him, “the living water.” It may seem like we can’t be fully known and fully loved at the same time, but with Jesus, it’s possible.

Joe Coffey | If the story of Jesus’ death on the cross is true, it means God knows you and loves you completely, which can change who you are. This Easter, Pastor Joe explains that in dying on the cross for our sins, Jesus offers us something for our heart, something for our head and something to change our lives. We can rest assured that we were most loved while we were at our worst, that the resurrection truly happened and that the good news of salvation is the catalyst needed to change the world.

Joe Coffey | “Home” has an important meaning to most of us. We’ve heard quotes like “home is where the heart is,” “there’s no place like home” and so on all the time in our culture… And for good reason: home, after all, should be a safe place where we feel that we belong, and it’s somewhere we often long to be. Physical homes aren’t the only ones that matter though. We also have an eternal spiritual home in heaven because Jesus was willing to give up his position in a place where he belonged to make a way home for us through his death on the cross. Everything he gave up, we gained, and now we can look forward to sharing in his inheritance in the future.

Joe Coffey | In many ways, Jesus’ death on the cross gave us freedom. We became free from the law of sin and death, allowing us to flourish as we recognize we are justified through Jesus and nothing else. This week, Pastor Joe explains that, thanks to the cross, the structure is now in place for you to be you… But in the eyes of God, your worth doesn’t depend on your identity – it was all determined by what happened on the cross.

Jimmy Kozy | The concept of suffering is central to the Christian faith. Our most important symbol, the cross, is a symbol of suffering, shame and death, after all. While this may not sound too encouraging on the surface, when you understand who Jesus was and what he did for us, “suffering” ends up sounding less like a dirty word and more like an amazing gift. Today we hear how Jesus’ suffering in the past impacts our suffering today and what it ultimately means for suffering (or the lack thereof) in the future.

Todd Iannetta | The concept of suffering is central to the Christian faith. Our most important symbol, the cross, is a symbol of suffering, shame, and death, after all. While this may not sound too encouraging on the surface, when you understand who Jesus was and what he did for us, “suffering” ends up sounding less like a dirty word and more like an amazing gift. Today we hear how Jesus’ suffering in the past impacts our suffering today and what it ultimately means for suffering (or the lack thereof) in the future.

Joe Coffey | Every human soul is afflicted with two deadly diseases: guilt and shame. As sinful people, we can’t break free of the cycle of guilt and shame on our own… But while trespasses can’t be healed, they can be paid for. By suffering on the cross for us, Jesus experienced shame and punishment on our behalf, becoming the eternal sacrifice that bought our forgiveness. Now it’s up to us to relish that forgiveness and willingly forgive those around us.

Joe Coffey | In 3 John 1:4, the disciple John says that there is no greater joy than to hear his children are walking in the truth… We agree. When the next generation is raised up in the ways of the Lord, it’s good for them, it’s good for us and it’s good for the world. Join us this week as we celebrate our children’s ministry and take the opportunity to give to some children-focused ministries: the Coalition of Children in Need Association (COCINA) in Haiti, Action for Empowerment (AOET) in Uganda, and CCC’s own foster care and adoption ministry.

Joe Coffey | Jesus lit the fuse of a movement that upended the ancient world and continues to rock our world to this day. The process that transformed his followers who in turn transformed the world is the same process today: it takes place on the inside of a person and expresses itself on the outside. Join us as we take a look at those steps of inward transformation and the use of baptism as an expression of that change.

Mike Holwerda | We all have a natural desire to belong, and when we choose to follow Jesus and become a Christian, we find that we suddenly belong to the worldwide family of his followers known as “the church.” As members of the church, we are told in I Corinthians 12:12-26 that we are part of a global “body of Christ” and that we all have important roles to play in that body. We may all be different and it may be difficult to always feel as though we belong, but if we know that we are one, trust that we are one and act as though we are one, we can begin to work with the rest of the body of Christ to be transformed and transform the world.

Caleb Eernisse | We all have a natural desire to belong, and when we choose to follow Jesus and become a Christian, we find that we suddenly belong to the worldwide family of his followers known as “the church.” As members of the church, we are told in I Corinthians 12:12-26 that we are part of a global “body of Christ” and that we all have important roles to play in that body. We may all be different and it may be difficult to always feel as though we belong, but if we know that we are one, trust that we are one and act as though we are one, we can begin to work with the rest of the body of Christ to be transformed and transform the world.

Todd Iannetta | The first step toward being transformed and achieving great things through Christ is believing. It may sound basic, but it can often feel like taking a huge jump. We may know that there is great joy and freedom through faith in God, but it doesn’t make taking that jump easy. Choosing to trust in God requires admitting we are broken without him, stuck in our sin and needing a savior. We may feel too unworthy, too vulnerable to judgment or that we’re giving up too much by believing in the saving power of Christ. But when we do take that “leap of faith” – when we join that body of other broken believers in the arms of God for all eternity – we realize it was well worth it.

Joe Coffey | This January, we’re focusing as a church on three bold claims of Christianity: you can know God, God can change you and God can use you to change the world. This week, we investigate the third claim, recognizing that Christianity has changed the world so deeply that it’s almost impossible to imagine a world that was never impacted by Jesus and his followers. This drastic ability to influence dates back to Jesus’ disciples – a group of ordinary, uneducated men who quickly transformed the known world by living as Jesus taught them. And that ability still resides with Christians today who can tap into a different identity (Jesus), a different purpose (serving others), and a different power (love and fearlessness through the Holy Spirit) to positively impact the world together.

Joe Coffey | As we focus this year on knowing God, being changed by him and then being used to change the world, one of the first things we must realize is that we need to change. On the surface, that isn’t exactly hard… Many of us made New Year’s resolutions not long ago precisely because we want to change. We need to realize, however, that we don’t only need to change our eating and exercise habits, but our very spiritual identities. This week, Pastor Joe explains what that looks like—how we need to change and how Jesus allows it to happen. Because as Christians, it’s not about trying to change the thousand things that are wrong with us… It’s about making one change in our lives by deciding to follow and trust in Jesus as our savior.

Joe Coffey | In Ephesians 2:1-10, we read that we were dead in our trespasses and sins, but because of God’s great love and grace, we have been saved. Because we are naturally spiritually dead, we have little desire to put God at the center of our lives. While we could act like the moon—a cold, dead rock that still reflects the brilliant light of the sun to illuminate the world—we choose not to do so. We could put God at the center of our lives and choose to orbit him, reflecting his grace and radiance to the world, but we want to be the sun, not the moon in our lives. We want God to orbit around us.

Joe Coffey | Each January, we set a theme for the year as a church, focusing either on “breathing out” to forward God’s kingdom in the world, or “breathing in” to grow closer to God. This year, we’ll be doing the latter, as we all take the challenge to be transformed in 2018. The message of the Gospel is one of transformation, telling us we can know God personally, change radically and be used by God to change the world as a result. As Pastor Joe explains today, in 2018, we will focus on how we have been (and will be) transformed not by our own doing, but by the grace and guidance of God.