Journey Church :: Raleigh, Nc

God has strategically placed us here in Raleigh. If what we do in our building on the weekend does not have a direct impact on our city then we should shut it down. Let's be the church that Jesus has called us to be and let's make a difference right here in our own city.

The Timothy Initiative is an international church planting organization which was established with the purpose to train and equip pastors and church planters around the world and they are one of Journey's largest international partners.

We all want people to see us the way we wish we were, but not necessarily the way we currently are. We feel the pressure that we have to project that we have it all together and protect our image. This is the #1 reason why biblical community fails. Each of us needs a few people in our lives that know us deeply that can help spur us to life change.

When you are in an authentic Biblical community, everyone wins. You win, those that you are in community win, and as you serve together, our city wins.

The early church in the Book of Acts developed rhythms that they built into each house church that can be an effective, reproducible model for us today. Disciples of Jesus should be loving God together, making space in their lives for one another, and making space in their lives to live on mission together.

Today, unlike any time in its history, America is post-Christian. Most people in our city are never going to walk through the doors of our church or any church. We have moved into a time where we must do the hard work of a missionary in our city.

We often underestimate the power of the gospel to change a life. We see it as something necessary for us to start a relationship with Jesus but then miss the fact that the gospel is for all-of-life.

The gospel is a "barrier" all of its own. The job of the church is to remove every other potential barrier possible in order to help anyone and everyone come to faith in Jesus.

We all have good habits and bad habits. Those habits don’t develop overnight. The same was true for the early disciples. We see the result of their lives; the spreading of the gospel in extraordinary ways, but what we fail to recognize and understand is that they practiced certain habits that made all the difference.

There have been significant movements throughout history, but there isn’t a movement that stands in comparison to the movement of God. It began with Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, and continues to this day through His church as it is empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Who we are determines what we do. A salesman sells, a doctor cares for patients, a football player plays football. We can immediately determine what a person does based on who they are. So, let’s pose a question to wrestle with this week: what does a Christian do? They carry on the mission of Jesus.

What happened after Jesus died on the Cross? We know that Jesus rose again three days later, but what about his disciples? We know that after the risen Jesus appeared to them and were given a mission they would own for the for the rest of their lives. However, in order for the mission to be successful, it needed something. It needed power. It needed something that only God could provide and it was what Jesus had promised them and us; the presence of God Himself, God the Holy Spirit.

Pride is one of the ugliest things about sinful human nature. Disciples are invited to a different framework modeled by Jesus and marked by humility. This radical view calls us to completely die to self. When my identity, security, and vitality are sourced in Jesus, then I am free to gladly give myself to others.

Gentleness is best understood and displayed in the life of Jesus. This week, we observed how Jesus demonstrated a life of gentleness in what He taught, and in the way He interacted with people.

We are told God is faithful, but when things are not going our way it makes us wonder if God sees or cares about our lives. In those moments, we can choose to either blame God for a bad situation, or trust that God not only sees, but also has our best interest at heart.

Pastor Jimmy examines Isaiah 53 and the kindness God demonstrated to humanity by choosing to “crush” Jesus in order to reconcile us to Him. As you begin to implement the virtues of kindness and goodness in your life, they must flow out of the kindness God has demonstrated to you.

We must remember that God’s plans don’t always conform to our expectations. When we release our grip on the things that are beyond our control God responds by giving us strength. Patience rests in the bigger picture.

When you have no hope, you are stripped of the will to move forward. After all, if there is nothing to hope for, why should a person even try? As we learned over the weekend, hope is directly connected to the soul.

Many people are surprised to find that, once saved, they still struggle with sinful desires. Culture will tell you that self-control is a decision. Disciples of Jesus understand the motives behind self-control run much deeper than discipline alone.

In this life we have so many worries and burdens, but when we know Jesus and who we are in Him, we will have peace.