We are a church that exists to Know Christ and to make Him Known both in our city but also to the ends of the earth.
Our preaching series on the book of Colossians has been such a wonderful encouragement. We've looked at how Christ is the center of it all, the King of Kings who has supremacy in and over everything. Toward the end of the book, we've looked at Christian living in the family and in our relationships. To end it all, we'll be looking at what it means to finish strong and live the “sent life” for the King.
Our preaching series on the book of Colossians has been such a wonderful encouragement. We've looked at how Christ is the center of it all, the King of Kings who has supremacy in and over everything. Toward the end of the book we've looked at Christian living in the family and in our relationships.To end it all, we'll be looking at what it means to finish strong and live the “sent life” for the King.
Usually, at the end of Paul's letters, there are “greetings” to Paul's friends, which most of us probably skim over or ignore. But yet within these greetings there are some wonderful challenges and insights - and this week's greetings fit very well into Father's Day!
Usually, at the end of Paul's letters, there are “greetings” to Paul's friends, which most of us probably skim over or ignore. But yet within these greetings there are some wonderful challenges and insights - and this week's greetings fit very well into Father's Day!
We're nearing the end of the book of Colossians! This week, we looking at Paul's heart for evangelism and his understanding of prayer. He also mentions the “mystery of Christ”. What does that mean?
We're nearing the end of the book of Colossians! This week, we looking at Paul's heart for evangelism and his understanding of prayer. He also mentions the “mystery of Christ”. What does that mean?
“Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.”Well, now we're hitting some controversial scriptures! Was Paul condoning slavery? Do these exhortations still hold relevance for us today? What principle can we glean from this?
“Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.”Well, now we're hitting some controversial scriptures! Was Paul condoning slavery? Do these exhortations still hold relevance for us today? What principle can we glean from this?
“Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands…”“Husbands, love your wives…”“Children, obey your parents…”These are instructions that speak right to the heart of our homes. How are we to live these out - and live them out well?
“Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands…”“Husbands, love your wives…”“Children, obey your parents…”These are instructions that speak right to the heart of our homes. How are we to live these out - and live them out well?
As we look at the present season, one of the things God has been highlighting to the elders is the story of the ten spies in Exodus 13. Two spies wanted to advance in God's promises, while ten wanted to shrink back. The outcome for each was vastly different.How do we cultivate a “two-spy” attitude and heart? A conquering attitude? We cannot have any other attitude for the present season, or we, like the ten, will perish!
JOHNSON CITY - Steve Barr (NCMI; One Life Church, Houston) unpacks the New Testament model of church and the role of elders.
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…”How is it that Paul could speak of the message of Christ as something that can dwell in you? Or how could the writer of Hebrews say that the Word is ‘living and active'? (Hebrews 4:12.) Surely he is talking about more than words on a page! What exactly is he getting at?
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…” How is it that Paul could speak of the message of Christ as something that can dwell in you? Or how could the writer of Hebrews say that the Word is ‘living and active'? (Hebrews 4:12.) Surely he is talking about more than words on a page! What exactly is he getting at?
Putting on the new self and being clothed with Christ means putting off the spirit of religion!
“Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved…” How wonderful is this news! To be dearly loved by the Lord of all creation; the King of Kings; the God of the universe!After having covered sinful deeds, that lead to death, in the previous few verses, Paul now turns his attention to positive deeds that bring life.But there is still an enemy hidden in all of this: the spirit of religion. It's time to address it!
LAKE TRAVIS - How do we ‘put on the new self' and what does this even mean?
“Put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.”
Celebrating the resurrection of our King!
Celebrating the resurrection of our King!
LAKE TRAVIS - PALM SUNDAY / PASSION SUNDAY - They expected a king and a political leader when Jesus arrived in Jerusalem. What did they get instead?
JOHNSON CITY - PALM SUNDAY / PASSION SUNDAY: They expected a King and political leader when Jesus arrived in Jerusalem. But what did they get instead?
LAKE TRAVIS - This Sunday service at Hope Rock Church (Lake Travis) emphasizes freedom in Christ, urging us to focus on God's grace, not self-righteousness, and set our hearts on things above!
JOHNSON CITY - "Since then, since you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above…” (Colossians 3:1)The gospel is about seeing things as they really are. However, we've got to set our minds and hearts on the things above.
There is an ongoing challenge of false teachings within the church. Believers need to remain vigilant and grounded in true doctrine.- Counterfeit Christianity can only be discerned by understanding authentic Christianity and the gospel message.- Counterfeit gospels may seem close to the truth but must be rejected.- Counterfeit Christianity is linked to sinister spirits and not just differences of opinion.(This recording also includes a testimony from Stacy Flores on the Hope Rock Ladies Conference).
There is a lot of philosophy and ideology in the world. Much of it is very convincing and sounds extremely reasonable. Until you dig under the surface and discover it can lead to dangerous, even terrible places.What can we build our lives on that will truly lead to freedom from our sinful inclinations?
Key takeaways:1. The concept of a translocal church and obedience to God's calling.2. Discussion on Colossians 2:16-19 and addressing Gnosticism.3. The church's role as salt and light in the world.4. Warning against legalism and self-righteousness.5. The importance of contextualizing the gospel for different cultures.6. Emphasis on Christ-centered living and missional success.7. Cooperation with God as a privilege and responsibility.8. Confidence and courage in the gospel's power to change the world.9. The responsibility of discipleship and multiplying God's work in others.
Being Christ-Centered takes commitment. It's so easy to fall into legalism, or fall into glorifying experiences and making these the central focus of our Christian lives. Both of these may look like religion but are empty without Christ.Paul, in Colossians 2:16-19, deals with both legalism and a fascination with the mystical, showing that Christianity is lived in true power and redemption when Christ is the Head.
This Sunday we took a small step back in our study of Colossians, and instead of focusing just on the supremacy of Christ we will dive into what it means for Christ to be preeminent—not in some things, but in all things.So buckle up, because we're going to smash some idols!
Christ is to be preeminent in every aspect of our lives (Colossians 1:15), including our TIME, our TREASURES, and our TALENTS.
Here are just a few highlights about this wonderful portion of scripture, covered in this sermon:The deity and authority of JesusThe change the Spirit does in us and how He makes us ALIVEThe meaning of our baptismThe distinction between Law and Gospel - what the Law even meansSpiritual warfare (the ‘disarming of rulers and authorities')
Here are just a few highlights about this wonderful portion of scripture, covered in this sermon:The deity and authority of JesusThe change the Spirit does in us and how He makes us ALIVEThe meaning of our baptismThe distinction between Law and Gospel - what the Law even meansSpiritual warfare (the ‘disarming of rulers and authorities')
LAKE TRAVIS - The world is full of philosophy that looks good, moral, and looks wonderful on the outside, but inside it is full of deceit and emptiness. Many times whole churches can be swallowed up by these philosophies. How can we discern when something is disguised as an angel of light, but is in fact a philosophy of Satan and the “elemental spirits” of the world?
JOHNSON CITY - The world is full of philosophy that looks good, moral, and looks wonderful on the outside, but inside it is full of deceit and emptiness. Many times whole churches can be swallowed up by these philosophies. How can we discern when something is disguised as an angel of light, but is in fact a philosophy of Satan and the “elemental spirits” of the world?
LAKE TRAVIS - “Christ… in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:3)How deep and wonderful are these verses we're exploring in the book of Colossians!How the Lord wants to mature us, knit us together in love, unpack the mysteries of Christ, and unite us to the One in whom is all wisdom and knowledge!Also includes testimonies from our recent mission trip to the island of Roatan.
JOHNSON CITY - “Christ… in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:3)How deep and wonderful are these verses we're exploring in the book of ColossiansHow the Lord wants to mature us, knit us together in love, unpack the mysteries of Christ and unite us to the One in whom is all wisdom and knowledge!Join us as we continue to explore Christ, the hope of glory!Also includes a report-back from our recent mission trip to the island of Roatan.
LAKE TRAVIS - “Now I rejoice in my sufferings… Christ in you, the hope of glory.”This week we covered Colossians 1:24-27. These two statements above bookend this set of verses, showing us that God's intention is to flip suffering on its head.
JOHNSON CITY - "Now I rejoice in my sufferings… Christ in you, the hope of glory.”This week we cover Colossians 1:24-27. These two statements above bookend this set of verses, showing us that God's intention is to flip suffering on its head.How does he do that? Let's find out!
LAKE TRAVIS - This week we're covering Colossians 1:21-23.“And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.”These verses consist of some of the “controversial” scriptures that scholars have debated over for centuries, as it has something to say with whether or not we can lose our salvation.Or does it?
JOHNSON CITY - The good news only ever gets better!
LAKE TRAVIS - We're back in the book of Colossians this week at both campuses, moving into the central theme of the book - the supremacy of Christ. This is who we live for. This is our King. This is the One who died for us, saved us, was raised and is now preparing an inheritance in His eternal Kingdom for each one of us. This is the King of Kings who reigns over all.
JOHNSON CITY - We're back in the book of Colossians this week at both campuses, moving into the central theme of the book - the supremacy of Christ. This is who we live for. This is our King. This is the One who died for us, saved us, was raised and is now preparing an inheritance in His eternal Kingdom for each one of us. This is the King of Kings who reigns over all.
Today, we covered Hope Rock's vision for the year. It's very exciting as we look forward to 2025! Too often, the Church tends to get into a habit of focusing on the Church. But God called us to be Kingdom-focused, not church-focused, with Christ at the center. A church-focused church is only interested in what it is doing as a church (usually an organization comprising pastors and staff) and often whether it is doing it better than another church. A Kingdom-focused church, by contrast, is interested in God's mission and whether we are all fulfilling what God calls us to in the world, with Christ as our head. This change in thinking fundamentally changes what is important.
JOHNSON CITY - "And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
LAKE TRAVIS - God has really, truly, and absolutely without any reservation rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
JOHNSON CITY - Marco shares the vision the eldership team believe God is leading Hope Rock Church into for 2025.
The book of Colossians is amazing—and we're just getting started! Here we cover Colossians 1:5-8 and right from the get-go, Paul and Timothy unpack how our hope is found in the truth of the gospel, and how this gospel is cross-cultural and transcends those cultures to point to the King of Kings, Jesus. Also, within this passage we see the Trinity being revealed. It's wonderful to go through God's Word line by line and have our faith in Jesus lifted!
JOHNSON CITY - From the get-go, the book of Colossians centers us on Christ and reveals to us the glorious grace of the gospel.
LAKE TRAVIS - We kick off our series on the book of Colossians and the Supremacy of Christ, covering Colossians 1:1-5.
LAKE TRAVIS - Celebrating the birth of Jesus!
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