Mercy Hill

In 1985, everyone who knew Joe Simpson believed he was dead. At just 25 years old, Joe and his climbing partner, Simon Yates, became the first people to scale the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes. Tragically, on the way down, Joe fell and broke his leg. As Simon tried to help him descend, Joe fell again—this time into a massive crevasse. It seemed certain he was lost forever and Simon returned to base camp, grieving the loss of his friend.But then, three days later, Joe crawled back into camp. He had survived. Despite frostbite, exhaustion, infection, and permanent damage to his leg, Joe was alive. His story is almost too incredible to believe.We've all heard stories like this—accounts of survival or hope that seem impossible. But perhaps the most unbelievable story of all is the resurrection of Jesus.Jesus was crucified by professional Roman executioners, buried in a tomb, and three days later he rose from the dead. As unbelievable as that may sound, even more astonishing is the claim that his resurrection has the power to transform lives—even today, 2,000 years later.

As we enter the final week of our Neighbors and Nations campaign, we're turning our eyes to the nations. This Sunday, we'll focus on God's heart for the world—His deep desire to see every tribe, tongue, and people come to know the hope and love of Jesus. While we've spent time talking about our call to reach our neighbors—those God has placed in our homes, schools, workplaces, and communities—we also recognize the vast number of people across the globe who have never heard the name of Jesus. The mission doesn't stop at our borders. From the Great Commission to the vision of the Great Multitude in Revelation, God is calling each of us to play a role in His global mission.Whether you give, go, or pray, you're a vital part of the Great Pursuit—a shared commitment to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. Let's finish this final week of Neighbors and Nations with diligence and zeal, trusting that God will use our obedience to make an eternal impact. Invite someone to join you this Sunday, ask God how He wants you to respond, and let's be a people who live on mission—right where we are, and to the very ends of the earth.

Get ready for an incredible Sunday as we continue our Neighbors and Nations series! This week, Kevin Pounds will be preaching from Luke 10:25–37, bringing a powerful word about what it really means to love our neighbors—right here in Atlanta and across the country. Through the lens of the Good Samaritan, we'll be challenged to see how God sends us to live on mission in our everyday lives.

We had a great start to our Neighbors and Nations Campaign this past Sunday!We are engaged in this campaign because we believe that God is on a mission to rescue people from sin so that they can know Him. Amazingly, God invites His people to join Him in His mission. This means you have a place in God's mission in the world.Last Sunday, we heard about the incredible ways God is at work around the globe through the International Mission Board. This Sunday, we'll explore how we can join God on His mission in our everyday lives. God has a plan for all of His people, and that includes you!

We're starting our 4th Neighbors and Nations campaign! Follow along as we learn about how we can give, pray, and go to make much of Jesus from our neighbors all the way to the nations.

Last week, we were captivated by the immense scope of who Jesus is and the powerful work He is doing in reconciling all of creation to God. Jesus, the creator of all things, is also the one who will restore all things. He is bringing peace and healing to the entire cosmos, making all things right once again.However, in Colossians 1:21, Paul shifts the focus from this grand narrative to the personal work of Jesus in the lives of individuals with a simple, yet profound phrase: "and you." The reconciliation He brings is not just for the universe at large, but for each and every one of us, right here, right now.As we look at Colossians 1:21-23 this Sunday, we'll explore this beautiful and life-changing truth—Jesus' work isn't just theoretical or distant. It's for you.

Imagine walking into a museum and standing before a massive, intricate painting. At first glance, it's breathtaking—the colors, the composition, the sheer beauty of it all. But as you step closer, you start noticing details that raise questions. Why did the artist use that shade? What does that symbol mean? What's the bigger story behind this masterpiece?That's a little like reading Colossians 1:15-20. It's one of the most awe-inspiring descriptions of Jesus in all of Scripture—His supremacy, His power, His role in creation and redemption. But it also has layers that can leave us wondering, What does this really mean?

Join us for this week's sermon through the book of Colossians.

We all love a good rivalry in sports, like Georgia vs. Florida or Ali vs. Frazier or Simone Biles vs. the world. It's fun to watch top level athletes and teams square off against each other when the stakes are the highest.But, personally experiencing a rivalry in everyday life is not nearly as fun. It can be hard to confidently decide who or what wins in the competition for our attention, our allegiance, and our affection. Work vs. family; God vs. country; right vs. wrong are hard tensions to navigate.This Sunday morning, we are starting a new series, Unrivaled, a study of the book of Colossians. The Colossians were not strangers to rivalry. In fact, when Paul writes this letter to them, they are under some serious pressure to conform to particular social, cultural, and political exceptions. There is the pull to put all of their confidence in the power and promises of the Roman Empire. There is the pull to adopt a variety of mystical, cultural practices if they want to truly know God. While some of the specifics are different, the heart of this issues are similar to what we experience on a daily basis.

John Mark Comer identifies a truth that impacts us all, “For those of us who desire to follow Jesus, here is the reality we must turn and face: If we're not being intentionally formed by Jesus himself, then it's highly likely we are being unintentionally formed by someone or something else.” We are all being formed or shaped in our lives. We all participate in daily practices that shape us spiritually. Many of us are drifting along with wherever our culture is heading and mindlessly embracing the practices of materialism, hyperindividualism, and distraction. But we can intentionally follow Jesus by embracing spiritual practices that foster hope, love, faith, and contentment.

We all deal with doubts, it's a normal part of our everyday lives. We doubt our choices - was that the right decision? We doubt our future - am I heading the right direction? We also doubt God. Will he really provide for me? Is he really trustworthy? Is he actually with me? Will he keep his promises? In Psalm 23, David says he gets assurance from both looking backward and looking forward. As he looks back at his life he clearly sees God has consistently been good and merciful to him. He looks forward with assurance that the Good Shepherd will lead him all the way home.

We wake up every morning to the pull of performance. “What do I have to do today?” Our phones, our schedules, and our own hearts scream for us to get busy and prove that we deserve what we're received. Justin Earley says, “Legalism is the belief that the world hangs on what I do and that God and people love me based on how I perform.”However, Psalm 23 gives us a very different picture of God. In verse five, the good shepherd becomes a lavish host, who welcomes his guests to his table and serves them with grace and kindness.

In Psalm 23, David is not sugarcoating life with cheesy sayings that don't connect with reality. He is honest that our world can be a harsh place to live. We all have times where we “walk through the valley of the shadow of death.”Where do we turn when we find ourselves face to face with trouble? Is experiencing hardship a sign that the Lord has abandoned us? Did we end up in this valley because we left our shepherd? Psalm 23 points us to the answers to these questions and more.

In his 2019 book, The Power of Human, Adam Waytz tells a story about an immigrant who moved to the United States and began learning English informally, through conversations. Of course he quickly learned to greet with “How are you?" The received the reply “busy,” so often that at first he believed “busy” meant “good.”The story is more likely made up, but the point is powerful. We are not just a busy people living in a busy culture , but we want others to know that we're busy, too!David describes his life differently in Psalm 23:2-3. He says the LORD leads him to places of calm, peace, restoration, and rest, not frantic paced busyness. It sounds nice, but is that sort of life possible for us?

Join us for a snowy day sermon through Psalm 1

Happy New Year! The beginning of a new year symbolizes new possibilities. There isn't anything magical that happens between December 31st and January 1st, but it is a time when many of us reflect on the previous year and intentionally think about what needs to change in the new year. I think this is a good practice and we would benefit from this type of intentional reflection more often, not less. A new year reminds us that we do have a measure of control over what happens in our lives. We can make better decisions, develop healthier habits, and engage in more productive work.It's also good to be reminded in a new year that we are not in complete control over our lives. Much of what happens to us and around us is out of our hands. Our lives are a complex web that include the decisions of others, unexpected circumstances, and ever changing relationships. We need more than just our own good choices - we need a good and trustworthy guide to help us navigate the complexity of our life. We need to make good choices and we need wise leadership.In Psalm 23, David acknowledges that life is complex- full of hardship and suffering, as well as goodness and blessing. He, using the metaphor of a shepherd and his sheep, writes a poem that not only captures the heart of the human condition, but also points us to hope. We can have a good shepherd who walks with us and guides us through every season of our lives.

During the Advent season we are often reminded of what happened, of the facts. An angel appeared to Mary. Mary, a virgin, was miraculously pregnant with the promised Messiah. There was no room for them in the inn. Jesus was born in a barn and slept in a manger. Shepherds and wise men showed up. The danger, of course, is that in telling so much of what happened, we forget about why it all happened. What motivated God to send his Son, Jesus, as a baby into our world as a gift to us?John, one of Jesus's disciples, tells us why. He writes, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only son…” Christmas is reminds us that God's motivation is His love for his world.

Join us for the third week of Advent.

Join us for the second week of Advent as we're reminded of the joy we have in Christ's arrival and promise of a second coming.

This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent. Advent is formed from a Latin word meaning “coming” or “arrival.” The season of Advent serves to remind us that God makes good on his promises. The long-expected Savior did come, and since He came once, we can trust that He is coming again. This season celebrates the first advent, or coming, of Jesus, and patiently looks forward to His second. It is a time for celebration and anticipation, remembering and rejoicing, watching and waiting.Over the next four Sundays, we will gather together as a church to observe Advent. We'll do many of the same things we do every Sunday - we'll sing, we'll pray, and we'll hear from God's Word. We'll also do a few different things, like lighting candles and reading traditional Advent Scripture readings.

There is a story about C.S. Lewis attending an academic conference on religion. During the conference, several scholars were debating what, if anything, makes Christianity unique. Lewis walked in to the room, heard what they were discussing and said, “Oh, that's easy. Its grace.”I'm not sure if that story actually happened, but the story does illustrate a significant truth. Grace permeates the story of the Bible. The teaching that God would initiate a relationship with people based on his love for them and not what they might provide for him is one of the most powerful truths contained in the Bible.

Last week we defined the term “justification by faith.” Justification means to be counted righteous by God, or to be declared to be in a right relationship with God. You'd think we'd earn right standing with God by our hard work, good deeds, or religious participation. But Paul makes a completely different argument. He says that we are declared to be right with God through our faith in Jesus. Crazy, right? We're saved by faith alone.Last Sunday we also saw that justification by faith produces something - we are at peace with God. We have a settled and secure relationship with God because we have been declared to be in the right with God based on Jesus's work, not our work. No more looking over our shoulders wondering if God is against us.This Sunday we continued in Romans 5 and see another attribute of justification, a resilient hope.

Last week's joint service with Comunidad de Fe was incredible. I was personally encouraged by being able to worship alongside our Spanish speaking brothers and sisters and by Pastor Abner's message from 1 Peter.This Sunday we are back on track with our journey through the storyline of the Bible. There is tension in the church in Rome between Jewish and Gentile believers. In his letter to the Romans, Paul addresses the tension by showing that both groups have the same deep need for a savior and points to the only means to salvation, faith alone in Christ alone. As we will continue to see right doctrine (which just means teaching) practically impacts our lives and our relationships.

The 2024 presidential election is just around the corner. Political ads are at a fever pitch. We cannot turn on the tv, listen to the radio, or surf the internet without a bombardment of political propaganda. Each ad seemingly indicating that either a candidate is the savior we need or that their opponent will bring destruction to our nation. This campaign rhetoric is not new though, it seems for at least the last decade or so this is the new standard. That every four years our country faces a new existential crisis. In reality, things have not changed that much. Yes, prices may be higher, and the culture is shifting, but these are regular occurrences that happen every decade or so. If we are honest, for most, life is not that much different. Yet, we are being sold political saviors to rescue us from the coming storm. Scripture tells a different story though. The story of a broken world, one where the only true savior is Christ alone. Join us this Sunday as Pastor Mike reminds us how we can rest in our faith in Christ alone.

Join us as Pastor Brandon talks through the original church sharing the Gospel and how that should create a zeal in our hearts.

In Acts 11, disciples of Jesus who fled persecution in Jerusalem, share the good news of Jesus with people in a city called Antioch. This is groundbreaking! Now the good news of Jesus is spreading to non-Jews far outside of Jerusalem. Listen in as we see how God uses unexpected ways to further his kingdom.

The beginning of the book of Acts is a whirlwind. While a crowd of people are in town for a festival called Pentecost, the Holy Spirit begins to work and the group of disciples grows from 120 to over 3000 in a single day . What do you do when your church grows that drastically? Luke records for us exactly what the first church did in Acts 2:42-47.

Can you look back on a moment in your life that you now know changed everything? Maybe it was meeting your spouse, choosing a college, or changing jobs. The events of Acts 2 are such a moment. But this moment has implications greater than we could imagine - it was a moment had echoes in the past, in the Apostles' present, and in our time as well.

In 2024 we've been reading through the big picture story of the Bible. We've now arrived at Jesus's resurrection in Luke 24 and now we are getting to the center point of the story. Or maybe the better way to say it is: the resurrection is like a key that unlocks the entire story of the Scripture. It effects every part of the story. The resurrection helps us see what this story has actually been about the entire time.But there's more! The claim of the Scripture is that Jesus's resurrection from the dead is also the key to unlocking the meaning of our own lives. This story we've been reading actually has massive implications in our everyday lives. I'd love for you to join us this Sunday as we see how Jesus's resurrection helps us understand the Bible and, more importantly, understand our own lives.

In his account of Jesus's crucifixion, Luke includes a variety of other characters, from government officials to religious leaders to Jesus's disciples to a couple of criminals who were crucified with Jesus. Some of these characters are depicted as weak, some as cowardly, some as wicked, some as self-righteous, and some as sorrowful.But, one character stands out. A thief, who was crucified next to Jesus, seems to see clearly exactly who Jesus is, despite the circumstances, and this man asks Jesus to save him.

Have you ever felt a disconnect with another person? You know them, you've been around them, but for some reason things just don't click. For many of us our relationship with Jesus can feel the same way. We know who Jesus is, we read about Him in the Bible, and we go to church, but at times the relationship feels distant or disconnected.Over the past few weeks as we've read the New Testament accounts of His life, Jesus identifies Himself in many different ways; the True King, the Beloved Son, and the Bread of Life. In John 15, Jesus calls Himself the Vine, and He uses that metaphor to explain how He is connected to us and how He connects with us.

Have you ever had a conversation and felt like the other person kept missing the point? Conversations with someone who is continually focusing on the wrong thing can be hard, and it can be incredibly frustrating to repeat over and over: “No, you're missing the point.”In John 6, Jesus miraculously feeds a massive crowd with only five loaves of bread and two small fish. But, when the crowd tracks Jesus down the following day, it becomes clear that they completely missed the point that Jesus was trying to make. He intended the miracle to show the crowd something significant about himself, but they were focusing on the free food. Jesus is the one saying: “No, you're missing the point.”

Join us as we read through John 3, and learn about God's immense love for us.

This past Sunday we saw the arrival of the true king, Jesus. After Jesus began his public ministry with an announcement of good news, we see him do something strange; He wanders into the desert for forty days. If the kingdom of God is “at hand” (Mark 1:15), why would Jesus leave to go into the wilderness? And what happens while he's there?Join us this week as we examine Jesus response to Satan tempting him in the wilderness.

This Sunday we began the next chapter of the storyline of Scripture with the arrival of the true king, Jesus. Jesus begins his public ministry with an announcement of good news. He says, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand…” (Mark 1:15). By “at hand,” Jesus means that God's kingdom is here. It has arrived. What exactly is God's kingdom? How does it “arrive”? And how is the arrival of the kingdom good news for us?

In 1 Kings 18, Ahab, a notoriously terrible king, has lead the people of Israel into idolatry. It's not that they stopped ‘worshipping' the LORD. They still show up for sacrifices to the LORD, but they have added other gods to their worship rotation, including Baal, the Canaanite god of fertility and weather.One of God's prophets, Elijah, challenges the prophets of Baal to an epic showdown. Two sacrifices will be prepared, but not set on fire. Instead, the prophets of Baal will pray and ask Baal to answer by setting their sacrifice on fire and Elijah will pray and ask the LORD to set his sacrifice on fire. The one who answers will prove himself to be the one, true God.

The books of Proverbs is a collection of principles intended to help us live wisely in God's world. Our phones, tables, and web browsers constantly flood our brains with an abundance information. In fact, we consume more information a day than most people a few centuries ago did in a lifetime. Yet, this abundance of information has not helped us grow in wisdom. We still struggle with navigating the world, our relationships with others, and being at peace with ourselves. We need, what people for generations have needed, wisdom.

Over the past few weeks we've been introduced to David, the shepherd boy who became king over all of Israel. David is described as a man after God's own heart. He becomes the standard by which all future kings of Israel will be judged. Yet, 2 Samuel 11-12 describes a major moral failure by David. He commits adultery with Bathsheba, covers it up by having her husband moved to the front lines of battle to ensure his death, and then marries her. Wow! That's a man after God's own heart? He violated the trust of people in his care as the king and committed an egregious sin against God.While we may not have sinned in the same way that David did, all of us have felt the weight of our sin. We've seen the pain we've caused others. We've felt the separation that sin causes in our relationship with God. The question is what do we do when we massively fall short? In Psalm 51, David writes a deeply personal and brutally honest prayer of repentance. This Sunday we're turn to Psalm 51 to help us understand how we can walk in repentance regardless of what we've done.

Election season is heating up again in America. Debates are raging from news outlets to social media pages. Lines are being drawn, and protestors are already organizing. Many seem to believe, or at least act like they do, that the very fate of the world will be decided in 2024. The truth of the matter is, no matter who wins at the polls this year, they are all finite people who will create finite policies. One thing that binds every county, nation, kingdom, or people group together is the fact that none of it will last forever.There is a kingdom that transcends the bounds of this world though. One not shaken by war or the uncertainty of election season. A forever kingdom with a forever king on a forever throne.

Join us as we dive into 1 Samuel 17

In Samuel 16, God sends the prophet Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint the future king of Israel. The first candidate seems like the perfect choice to Samuel, but God has other plans. He famously tells Samuel, “…man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” Instead of what seemed to be the obvious choice, God chooses David, the smallest of all his brothers, as the future king of Israel. This week, we're going to explore how this story helps us understand the bigger story God is telling and how this story helps us navigate our daily lives.

Listen as we begin Chapter 3 of our read through the Bible.

Listen to our sermon from Easter Sunday 2024.

This week, we'll look at Exodus 34:6-8, which is God proclaiming His name to Moses. We'll see how God's name not only teaches us about God's character, but also informs and motivates the way we live on mission as a church.

This week, author and activist Jeff Lewis will be joining us to tell us about God's heart for the nations. Jeff is Director of Discipleship with Radical, and has ministered in 55 countries, working with field personnel and indigenous church leaders in the development of mobilization strategies. But his greatest passion is the mobilization of the church with particular focus on university students. The last 20 years he has been discipling, teaching and mobilizing at California Baptist University.

Our THIRD Neighbors & Nations campaign is starting this week!!! Over the next 4 weeks, we're going to hear from our local, national, and international partners about how God is at work from our community to our nation and across the world. Each week, we'll be be asking you to do 3 things: Pray, Give, and Go. Every Sunday, we'll give you ways you can pray for and serve with our missions partners. This year, we've set a goal to raise $25,000 to support our partners here in Cobb Country, across the county, and around the world. We're asking that you sacrificially give over the next four week to help meet the needs of those on the ground with local partners, NAMB, and IMB.This week, we started with a joint service with our friends at Comunidad de Fe. If you've not been with us for a joint service before, you're in for a treat. Our joint Sundays are some of my favorite Sundays of the year.

We had a special guest join us this Sunday, my pastor, Dr. Owen Bozeman. Owen was the pastor of Central Baptist Church in Warner Robins, GA for over 20 years. Central is the church that sent me and Mitchell to start Mercy Hill. As the pastor of our sending church, he has been a tremendous supporter of Mercy Hill and has played a huge role in the establishment of our church. After God rescued His people from slavery in Egypt, he gave them a set of rules that would define how they were to relate to God. These rules are known as the 10 Commandments and you can read about them in Exodus 20. This Sunday, Owen taught us about the 10 Commandments and how they help us understand how we relate to God today.

As we begin Chapter 2 of The Story of the Bible, we see that while God has been faithful to His promise to multiply Abraham's descendants, the Hebrew people are in trouble. They flourished for years in Egypt, but now we find them enslaved and suffering. What is going to happen to God's promises of blessing and a land? In Exodus 3, we find that God has a plan to rescue His people out of slavery and to bring them to a place of flourishing. The plan involves a new character, Moses, who is riddled with self-doubt, but the Lord calls him and promises to go with him. I'd love for you to listen to this Sunday's message as learned more about God's character from his interaction with Moses.

In Japanese culture there is an ancient artform known at Kintsugi, which translates into something along the lines of “join with gold”. The philosophy behind this artform is that broken things can still be used and be beautiful, and is often demonstrated in Japanese pottery where broken shards of clay will be joined back together with Gold; resulting in beautiful creations. Like Kintsugi, in scripture we see God weaving the brokenness of this world into the grand tapestry of redemptive history. As we continue our walk this year through the story of the bible, we will see this truth played out over and over again. This week we will see that the descendants of Abraham are a mess worthy of reality TV. But, God will rescue a young man named Joseph from this brokenness so that His promise to Abraham will continue to be fulfilled.

This week we are fast forwarding to the story of Abraham. God has blessed him with a son, Isaac, who is the fulfillment of God's promise to give he and Sarah a son. Not only does Isaac represents God's faithfulness, but also the future of God's promises. If God is going to create a great nation in the line of Abraham, it will be through Isaac. Then, in Genesis 22, God asks Abraham to do the unthinkable; sacrifice Isaac. How could any father agree to sacrifice his son? How can God keep his promise of blessing if Isaac is dead? How are we to make sense of what God asks of Abraham? This passage is one of the most controversial in all of Scripture.

What comes to mind when you hear the word “blessing?” For some, perhaps you immediately think of praying before meal time. For others, maybe you think of ways God has provided for you in a time of need. And still others, may think of a lists of possessions or accomplishments that lead to prosperity.In Genesis 12, we meet a new character, Abram. God initiates a relationship with Abram and promises to bless him with a great land, a great name, and a great nation. God also tells Abram why. He will bless Abram so that Abram will be a blessing to others. God has a purpose behind blessing and it is not the accumulation of things.