Sermons

In Acts chapter 4 we see a group of people united by their belief in Jesus Christ. This belief led to living selfless lives that were committed to the welfare of the whole of their community. The world had never seen anything like this. And while their Christian community was astounding, their Christian community was not the goal. It was the bi-product of being committed to the mission of Jesus. 

This week we move on to Acts chapter 5. The dramatic events in chapter 5 show us that when mission is not the goal, and community, which should be a byproduct, takes center stage community gets harmed and the mission gets jeopardized. 

Brett Miller is the director of Cru at George Mason University. Brett shares with us, through God’s Word, that when we see Jesus clearly it requires a response from us. We see the response from some of the disciples and are challenged to respond to Jesus and what he has done for us. 

Names are pretty significant aren’t they? Your name represents all of who you are. When pastor Dan married his now wife Jaime he used his name in his vows, “I, Dan, take you, Jaime, to be my wife.” By doing this Dan was saying that all of who he was in that moment, all of who he would be in his 30’s, 40’s and beyond belonged to her. Our name, who we are, is a big deal.

More significant than any other name is the name of Jesus. His name represents all of who Jesus is, all he has done, and all that he will do. In Acts 3 we see what the name of Jesus meant to the Apostle Peter, a lame man and what the name of Jesus means to you and I today. 

This week a member at Harvest Fairfax, Scott Muchow shared with us a sermon about God’s holiness. What exactly is holiness? How do we picture or even begin to understand it? Many artists have tried to depict God. But, even the most masterful painting can not fully capture His holiness. Thankfully, our amazing God has given us a glimpse of his holiness through his Word. Today that glimpse is found in Isaiah 6. 

Muslims have mosques, Jews have synagogues, and Christians have churches – right? If a coworker or neighbor asked you tomorrow what you did today and followed it with “What makes a church anyway?” What would you say?

Is it 3 Moms getting together at Panera for coffee and prayer? Is it 2 families meeting in a living room for Bible study? Where 2 or 3 are gathered right? We look to the scriptures to see who we are as a church and what we do as a church.

The book of Acts begins with an astounding statement that Jesus is still at work. He is at work in your life. He is at work in the city of Fairfax. As we see Christ working we are to be witnesses to his work in us. We need to be telling others what Christ has done and what he will do in the future. This Sunday we asked ourselves some very important questions. What does it mean to be a witness? What makes a good witness? What kind of witness has Jesus called us to be? The answers are found in the Scriptures. 

Fill in the blank: “I can’t live without ______.” How you answer this question can be telling of what you truly value in life. Answering this question helps us to cherish those things that are most important to us.

Our message today comes from Acts 2, the beginning of the New Testament church. As we imagine the world without a church may we come away with wonder and gratitude for the church that Jesus Christ is building. 

Today’s message begins in Acts chapter 1. The scene opens with 120 followers of Jesus and his 11 disciples in a room.  They have just witnessed Christ’s ascension to Heaven and have appointed an apostle to replace Judas. As the disciples thought of Jesus last words to them they were also trying to figure out the role they would play from now on. As we read their account we are challenged by the scriptures to do the same. Do you realize that God has called you to playa part in his script?

We are in week two of a brand new series from the book of Acts called, “Church on a Mission.” While this series should take us to the end of this year there may not be a more important message for our church than the message found in this week’s sermon. If we can see and embrace the mission God has for his Church found in these five verses of Acts chapter one, our lives as a church and as individuals will not be the same.