The Rock Church

Come and See by The Rock Church

“Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” — John 1:45-46

Jesus’ first disciples joined Him at the beginning of His earthly ministry. Philip invited Nathaniel to “come and see” Jesus. However, Nathanael was famously skeptical of the prophetic significance of Jesus’ hometown. But I love Philip’s response, “Come and see.” It wasn’t “Believe or else.” In other words, Philip invited Nathaniel to investigate Jesus’ claims for himself.

Now, fast forward to the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Imagine the Sunday morning after the Resurrection. In due time, Mary and Mary went to the tomb. And what did the angel say to them? 

“But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.” — Matthew 28:5-6

The angel invited Mary to investigate for herself if Jesus had risen from the dead! So again, it wasn’t  “Just take my word for it.” It was come and see for yourself! What an example of the Christian faith. True Christianity is never afraid of investigation. 

Start Investigating

While in high school and college, I had many questions about the truthfulness of Christianity.  Naturally, there were questions about to Jesus, the Bible, science, evolution, creation, and more. I spent several years researching those questions. And time and time again, I found solid answers. 

If you have questions about Jesus, the Bible, or Christianity, I certainly encourage you to investigate them. Some people are good at a “lazy skepticism.” They have questions that keep them from engaging, but they are too lazy to examine their doubts. Never let that be you! The Bible doesn’t mock doubt. Instead, it encourages personal investigation. Come and see! 

I have a directly related announcement for you. This spring, I will continue to teach God’s Grand Design class. Join us. It just might help your own investigation. Here are some schedule details and the previously covered topics.

Josh

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: Angel, answers, atheist, bible, Class, Darwin, doubt, evolution, eyes, faith, Flood, flood class, genesis, God's Grand Design, investigation, jesus, John, Josh Whitney, mary, Matthew, mock, moses, Nathanael, Nazareth, noah, Philip, Questions, Science, Searching, see, sight, skeptic, solid, Stars, the rock church, tomb, truth

You Are Free Indeed by The Rock Church

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” — 1 John 1:9

I recently had the privilege of leading a young man to Christ at our citywide “Night of Hope” event. His countenance went from sad, hopeless (and discouraged) to joyful, smiling, and thankful! The transformation happened before my very eyes. He absolutely understood (and believed) that God loved him. Also, he knew Jesus had died for all his sins. God is so good.

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Tags: 1 John, 1 peter, belief, believing, Bill, Bill Young, blood, bondage, Changes, christ, cleanse, confess, confession, depression, forgive, forgiveness, Free, freedom, gospel, Guilt, hebrews, High Priest, how to be saved, joy, just, new, Night of Hope, penance, perform, pure, purify, Romans, sadness, salvation, sanctification, shame, sins, slave, slavery, the rock church, transform, transforming, understanding

His Mercies Are New Every Morning (and Every Year) by Caleb Yetton

“But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” — Lamentations 3:21-23

It’s almost hard to believe that another year has come and gone. Every year, I seem more surprised by how quickly the calendar year moves. The new year always feels like a mixed bag of emotions. While January 1 can seem to give the appearance of a clean slate for goals, resolutions, and moving forward, it’s really no different from December 31.  

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Caleb Yetton
Tags: affliction, caleb yeton, caleb yetton, circumstances, darkness, death, emotions, goals, grief, Hope, Jeanne, Jeremiah, lamentations, lonliness, loss, love, McInroy, memories, mercy, morning, new, new year, pain, pets, praise, Resolutions, sadness, steadfast, suffering, tears, the rock church, Time, trial, Year

Don’t Put This Light Away! by The Rock Church

Christmas is indeed the most wonderful time of the year! But, the day after Christmas… not so much. Admittedly, all the excitement that went into putting up the Christmas lights is now nonexistent. The time has finally come to take them down.

But certainly, don’t let December 26th be the day you put all of the excitement of Christmas away until next year. Instead, ponder the incarnation of God in the Lord Jesus Christ. It means He has come to illuminate our lives today and forevermore.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: Bryan, Bryan D. Edwards, bryan edwards, Christmas, christmas lights, darkness, Emmanuel, faithful, God With Us, Hope, immanuel, Incarnation, jesus, John 8, light, light of the world, Loneliness, new year, present, relationship, teardown

Waiting on the Lord by Tony D'Amico

I often find myself reflecting on the idea of waiting on the Lord. Waiting can seem frustrating in our fast-paced world, where immediate results and quick fixes are highly prized. My personality is to get in and fix things as soon as possible. So, it’s not easy when I have to wait days, weeks, or months for something. I can start to get anxious very quickly.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by Tony D'Amico
Tags: Abraham, anxiety, anxious, David, deeper, doubt, faith, frustration, Galations, God's Will, impatient, Isaiah, Joseph, mature, maturity, Patience, Peace, Perseverance, Prayer, Rest, roles, serving, slow, submission, submit, suffering, surrender, teacher, the rock church, Time, timing, Tony, tony damico, trial, trust, wait, waiting, willing, work

Home by The Rock Church

With a heavy and thankful heart, I took a final, sweeping glance around the place my family and I had called home for the last eleven years. Then I locked the door and drove away. 

As I did, memories flooded through me. I thought of bringing my two youngest daughters home from the hospital as newborns. And then, there were all the Christmas, birthday, and Thanksgiving dinners with friends and family. Another was the treasure map I made to look old and “hid” in the attic where my son could find it. Along with that came the cloth bag of quarters he dug up in the backyard. So. Many. Memories. 

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Tags: billy johnson, Change, Eternal, Family, fix, growth, Heaven, Holy Spirit, Home, house, life, memories, molded, Move, moving, new, old things, pain, project, renovation, sanctification, shaped, the rock church, unfamiliar

Grief-Stained Joy by The Rock Church

Every day, I read from Milton Vincent’s book, “A Gospel Primer.” It has a 31-part section that fits nicely into my daily devotional routine. This phrase always catches me each time I read it (on the 14th of the month). He refers to a “grief-stained joy.” That idea resonates with me deeply when contemplating life. Especially today, as I write this, about ten steps away from my wife Jeanne’s hospital bed — it’s  awkwardly positioned in our bedroom. This verse specifically comes to mind as I search for solace.

“If your instructions hadn’t sustained me with joy, I would have died in my misery.” — Psalm 119:92

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: bridge, carry, comfort, darkness, dawn, death, depression, distress, gospel, Gospel Primer, grief, help, Hope, imaginary, Jeanne, joy, loss, Mac, Milton Vincent, pain, psalm, psalm 119, reality, rejoice, solace, stained, Steve McInroy, storm, suffering, the rock church, the word, trial, waiting, Woodrow Kroll

The Circle of Blessing by The Rock Church

“Make me walk along the path of your commands, for that is where my happiness is found.” — Psalm 119:35

As people, we look for happiness in a variety of places. Often, we look for happiness in our hobbies, careers, or even our family and friends. Indeed, these things can contribute to joy and happiness for all of us. I, too, find much comfort in many of them.

I love what the Psalmist prayed. Without a doubt, we find happiness in the Lord’s commands. What a wonderful truth and tremendous reminder to us all. Walking in the “path” of God’s commands means naturally living in obedience to His Word and fellowship with Him.

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: blessing, boundaries, circle, circles, command, content, contentment, Family, fellowship, friends, Gifts, gratittude, happiness, hobbies, James, joy, more, path, pathway, psalm 119, Purpose, road, safety, source, Steele Croswhite, the rock church

Stay Awake!  by The Rock Church

“Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.” — Matthew 24:42

You may have read a sad story in the news last week. A man shot at a woman, and the police then killed him (as of this writing, the details are still under investigation). But this happened a few miles from my house. Where this terrible story intersects my life (and your inbox) is that soon after the shooting, a police helicopter started circling the area and woke me up. 

Posted in A Word from the Pastor by The Rock Church
Tags: alert, awake, danger, end times, fear, helicopter, help, Josh Whitney, Matthew, Matthew 24, murder, Prayer, preparation, protection, reliance, safety, shooting, sleep, stress, stressful, the rock church, thief

Immanuel Christmas Series by The Rock Church

Christmas is a celebration of God’s greatest promise to Mankind — we are not alone. We are not left alone in our suffering, hurts, brokenness, or sin. Matthew 1:23 says, “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel — which means, God with us.” In our Christmas series this year, we’ll explore the significance of God dwelling among us.

Posted in News, Series by The Rock Church
Tags: Christmas, christmas eve, Christmas Eve Service, christmas season, christmas series, God With Us, Holiday, holiday season, holidays, immanuel, sermon, Sermon Series, topical sermons