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This summer, we are headed to San Francisco, Yosemite National Park, Lake Tahoe and Wyoming.  Trust us…This is a once in a lifetime experience that you or your teenager do not want to miss.

This is shaping up to be the best weeks of the summer. We believe that students will have an absolute blast, form lasting friendships with other students and some of the coolest leaders, and in the end, walk away completely CHANGED by Jesus!

Consider yourself invited to what could be the best weeks of your summer!

// ALL THE DETAILS //

  • (Spots are limited. Claim your spot by paying a $100 deposit)
  • And if you don’t have the money, you can raise it (plus some scholarships are available).

Click the link below to view the itinerary and get ready for an amazing time!

Summer-Camp-Itinerary (CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD)

Health and Release Form (CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD)

Questions? Email us!

 

 

Opposite of Love? by Pastor Andy

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Luke 6:27-36

27“But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. 28Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you. 29If someone slaps you on one cheek, offer the other cheek also. If someone demands your coat, offer your shirt also. 30Give to anyone who asks; and when things are taken away from you, don’t try to get them back. 31Do to others as you would like them to do to you.
32“If you love only those who love you, why should you get credit for that? Even sinners love those who love them! 33And if you do good only to those who do good to you, why should you get credit? Even sinners do that much! 34And if you lend money only to those who can repay you, why should you get credit? Even sinners will lend to other sinners for a full return.
35“Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked.36You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.

What is opposite of love?

Seems like an easy question. Right? Most would say hate. Google lists hate as the main antonym of love. Hate is definitely a far cry from love.

Others might say indifference. If I love my children, then I’m not indifferent about them playing in a busy street. Indifference may be worse than hate.

What about fear?

Fear may not be the exact opposite of love, but it definitely is antithetical to love. We know perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18). We greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends (John 15:13). That kind of love leaves no room for fear.

Fear and love can’t coexist.

Sermon on the Plain

Which brings us to today’s passage. It’s mirrors many of the same thoughts in the Gospel of Matthew known as the Sermon on the Mount. In Luke, it’s called the Sermon on the Plain.

I shared about the Sermon on the Mount a couple of weeks ago. It’s not a moral code. It’s not Jesus’ list of 50 ways to live a better life. This is about the nature of God.

The Sermon on the Plain too outlines how God lives, and how we should follow.

How do we follow God when it comes to our enemies? We love.

In other words, we don’t live in fear of our enemies. We combat our fear of our enemies through love.

For many of us our enemy is the culture around us. Our battle is with culture – no matter what the culture is. We are told to fear. Fear government. Fear ISIS. Fear politics. Fear movies. Fear music. Fear public school. Fear Christian school. Fear money. Fear poverty. Fear failure. Fear success. Fear men. Fear women. Fear the church. Fear the secular. Fear the unknown. Fear the known.

I don’t care who you are, or where you are from; there is something out there to fear.

In this message, Jesus doesn’t tell us to fear. He tells us to love.

I understand. It’s not easy. It’s real to me. I have kids who live in a culture strange to me.

It’s not easy to answer questions like, “Where is the line between love and acceptance?” I don’t have easy answers, but I know the answers don’t live in fear.

Author Oswald Chambers wrote,

It is inbred in us that we have to do exceptional things for God: but we have not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things, to be holy in mean streets, among mean people, and this is not learned in five minutes.

This week practice love. Love your enemies. Love those you fear. Love our culture. It may be new to you. It won’t be learned in five minutes, but soon you’ll be exceptional at it.

Don’t fear. Love.

No Longer a Slave | Bethel

Love is a Verb by Pastor Chris

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I John 4:19-21– We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first. If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both.

Powerful verses.  John writes about love, and in this letter alone he uses the word 26 times.
It is obviously a point that he is trying to get across here.
John is writing this command to love others short and to the point.  “Blunt”, as The Message version says.

Blunt–saying or expressing something in a very direct way that may upset some people.
Saying what I mean and meaning what I say. Kind of like when I tell my kids to clean their room.  That is what I mean.  I expect it to be accomplished.  There is not room for any gray in that command.  No excuses, and not the  dreaded  “But”.
We are supposed to love those around us.  If we claim to love God, whom we cannot see, we must love those we can.  If not, where is our love for God?  Do we truly love HIm?

Words can be cheap.  If they are not followed up by action, what good does it really do?  James, in his letter, says the demons believe in God too….and shudder.
Faith. Love. Without actions, these are nothing but words that we say.

Those of you who remember the 90’s and the group DC Talk might remember a hit song they had, Luv is a verb.  One of the lines: It was black and white with no room for grey.  No if, ands, or buts.  We are to show the love of Christ to others.
The key to understanding this and other statements about love is to know that this love (the Greek word agape) is not so much a matter of emotion as it is of doing things for the benefit of another person; that is, having an unselfish concern for another and a willingness to seek the best for others.
It is shown most clearly by what it does.

We are told to love others, whether friend or foe. 

When I see this described in such a way, I think of Philippians 2:3-5–Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit but consider others better than yourselves…

Agape love is shown most clearly by what it does.  
It's a love that can only come from the source–God.  So for us to show this love to others, again, we must be plugged into the Source–we must remain and abide in the vine.

Where love for God is, love for others must be also, for where love is not shown to others, there is an absence of a love for God.

1 John 3:16-18– We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?  Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions.

As we go this week, let’s put this love into action as Pastor Dave challenged us on Sunday morning. Be aware of where God wants to use you. 

You are so cut out to do this!  God has a purpose and plan for all of us.  We CAN show the love of Christ to others!!!

Have a great day!

May 8, 2016 – The Commands Of Christ: Love One Another

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Commands of Christ Banner

John 1:35-39 NLT

35 The following day John was again standing with two of his disciples. 36 As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and declared, “Look! There is the Lamb of God!”37 When John’s two disciples heard this, they followed Jesus.

38 Jesus looked around and saw them following. “What do you want?” he asked them.

They replied, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

39 “Come and see,” he said. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon when they went with him to the place where he was staying, and they remained with him the rest of the day.

 

John 15:9 NLT
9 “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love.

 

I. Abide: Remain, stay, wait continue

A.  Abide through Quiet Time – If my words abide in you…(DEVO from the APP) I know life is busy. I know you are tired. This is one of the reasons we gather together to encourage each other to spend time with Jesus.  

 

John 15:10 NLT
10 When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.

 

Notes:

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II. Obedience is not a 4 letter word

 

A. We cannot abide if we do not obey.  If we do not obey we cannot abide.

 

John 15:11-13 NLT
11 I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! 12 This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. 13 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

 

 

He knows that we will be filled with Joy as we obey him.  

 

B. Obedience and joy go hand in hand.  

 

John 15:11-12 NLT
11 I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! 12 This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you.

 

 

Notes:

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III. I want to know what love is

John 15:10 NLT
10 When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love,

John 15:12 NLT
12 This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you.

 

  1. John 15:16 NLT

    16 You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.

John 15:16 NLT
 17 This is my command: Love each other.

 

Jesus wants us to know His love and show His love


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