Wake Church Weekend Messages

In this message from Summer In The Psalms, Psalm 46 declares that God is our refuge, our strength, and our very present help in trouble. Life, temptation, fear, and spiritual opposition can come from every direction, but there is always somewhere to run. That refuge is not found in personal effort, success, security, or self-reliance. It is found in Jesus. God's presence gives His people the confidence to say, “Therefore we will not fear.” Fear may come when the earth gives way, plans fall apart, jobs are lost, or diagnoses arrive, but those moments become opportunities to remember who our refuge is. The God who created the universe is present, His purposes cannot be stopped, and His strength is available when ours is gone. Jesus is not only our refuge in this life, but also our refuge in the life to come. His sacrifice secured redemption once and for all, and His finished work—not our own merit—is the reason we can stand before God. The invitation of Psalm 46 is simple: come and see what the Lord has done, and run to Him as your refuge, strength, and present help. 

In this message from Summer In The Psalms, Psalm 13 gives permission to come before God with complete honesty. David does not hide his pain, frustration, fear, or questions. He brings them directly to the Lord, showing that faith is not a performance and that God does not require polished language or artificial praise. Hardship can create deep questions about God's goodness, presence, and faithfulness. Instead of ignoring those questions or pretending everything is fine, Psalm 13 presents a healthier path: bring the pain to God, be honest about it, make the request, and continue seeking Him. God will not heal what remains hidden, but He meets His people in the places they are willing to bring into the light. The movement of Psalm 13 goes from “How long?” to renewed trust in God's steadfast love. Honest wrestling does not have to destroy faith; it can deepen and strengthen it. The hardest moments of life can become the places where God does His deepest work, producing a faith that is genuine, tested, and rooted in Jesus. 

In this message from Summer In The Psalms, Psalm 81 confronts the gap between wanting God's help and allowing God to rule our lives. Israel celebrated His miracles and provision, yet repeatedly turned toward other loves. Their deepest problem was not a lack of information, but a heart that desired other things more than the God who had rescued them. The same tension continues today. Our desires are constantly being shaped by social media, advertising, politics, work, entertainment, and the people around us. Even good gifts, success, family, health, security, and comfort, can become disordered loves when they are placed above God. Reordering our loves does not mean caring less about those gifts; it means loving God more so that everything else can be loved in its proper place. Psalm 81 closes with the promise of the finest wheat and honey from the rock, a picture of the satisfaction found in God alone. Jesus remained faithful in the wilderness, carried our stubbornness and idolatry to the cross, rose again, and now gives His Spirit to reshape our desires. Even in the hardest places, the sweetness of the gospel remains: nothing can separate us from Him.

In this message from Summer In The Psalms, Psalm 131 reveals where true soul satisfaction is found. While the world continually promises fulfillment through achievement, possessions, success, comfort, and control, every finish line eventually moves. More options and more convenience have not produced more peace. David describes a heart free from pride, eyes free from arrogance, and a life no longer consumed with things beyond its calling. This is not complacency, but humble contentment: faithfully moving toward what God has called us to while remaining satisfied in Him today. Even the waiting room is not wasted, because God is always working while His people wait.Like a weaned child resting securely with a parent, the soul can become quiet in the presence of God—known, loved, protected, and held even when circumstances remain unsettled. Lasting soul satisfaction is found by placing our hope in the Lord now and forever.

In this message from Summer In The Psalms, Psalm 20 is preached as a battle prayer for the day of trouble. The psalm contrasts trust in visible power — chariots and horses — with trust in the name of the Lord. The deeper question running through the sermon is simple and searching: what or who have you been quietly trusting to save you? The message names the modern “chariots” people lean on every day: money, success, image, relationships, security, control, status, and comfort. These things may be gifts, but they cannot bear the weight of the soul. When they become more than tools, they become false saviors. Psalm 20 is then read through the lens of Jesus as the true King who entered the day of trouble, walked toward the cross, rose from the grave, and now gives His people the only name that saves. The call of the sermon is to stop trusting in what cannot hold you and to stand firm in the name of the Lord. 

In this message from our Relationships in a Broken World series, Pastor Kai teaches on pride and the way it quietly destroys our lives and relationships. Pride is the appetizer before destruction. It exalts self, blinds us to our sin, keeps us from confession, isolates us from biblical community, and resists the correction and freedom God wants to bring. The antidote to pride is found in the words of Jesus: “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” To be poor in spirit is to recognize our spiritual poverty apart from Christ, to mourn over our sin, and to come to God with humility, desperation, and surrender. The gospel does not call us to clean ourselves up before coming to Jesus. It calls us to come broken, needy, and honest, trusting Christ to do what we cannot do for ourselves. This message also points to the cross and communion as the place where pride dies. When we remember what Christ has done for us, we are reminded that life is not about us. It is about Him. The cross humbles us, comforts us, and compels us to serve, forgive, reconcile, and live with our eyes fixed on Jesus.

In this message from our Relationships in a Broken World series, Pastor Efrain teaches on the value of honor and respect. In a culture that rewards criticism, comparison, gossip, and disrespect, the kingdom of God calls believers to something radically different: to honor one another above themselves. Honor is choosing to treat another person as valuable, worthy of respect, and created in the image of God, regardless of what they can do for you. Through the story of Joseph, this message shows that honor is not based on performance, usefulness, or whether someone deserves it. Joseph honored his father by making room for him, honored him publicly, and even honored the brothers who betrayed him by choosing redemption over revenge. His life demonstrates that honor makes room for people, celebrates people, and trusts God with justice. Pastor Efrain also offers practical ways to live this out: encourage people, listen well, refuse gossip, serve others, forgive, and be present. Where honor exists, relationships flourish. Where honor is absent, relationships slowly die. 

In this message from our Relationships in a Broken World series, Pastor Josh teaches from Philippians 2 on the remedy for fractured relationships. In a culture marked by loneliness, distraction, self-protection, and radical individualism, relationships do not usually explode all at once, they erode slowly over time. The deeper question is not just how to fix a relationship, but who we are becoming in the process. This message identifies several forces quietly damaging our relationships: we stop showing up, we stop opening up, we stop understanding, we stop celebrating, and we put ourselves at the center. But Philippians 2 points us back to Christ, who moved toward us with humility, empathy, vulnerability, and sacrificial love. His example is not just inspiration, it is the pattern for how believers are called to live with one another. Pastor Josh calls the church to shared grace, Christlike humility, and relational healing by putting Christ back at the center. Isolation is healed by Christlike presence, self-protection by Christlike vulnerability, empathy collapse by Christlike incarnation, honor erosion by Christlike humility, and radical individualism by Christlike sacrifice. 

In this message from our Relationships in a Broken World series, Pastor Josh teaches on the art of forgiveness through the lens of Matthew 18. In a world that normalizes avoidance, retaliation, and bitterness, Jesus calls His people to something radically different: to release others from their debt because Christ has first released ours. This message shows that unforgiveness does not protect the heart — it imprisons it. Forgiveness is not erasing the memory, waiting for an apology, pretending the pain did not happen, or instantly restoring trust. It is the decision to release someone from the debt they owe you because of the grace that has already been extended to you in Christ. Pastor Josh also walks through practical biblical steps toward forgiveness and reconciliation: examine your heart humbly, identify the debt honestly, extend grace, speak wisely, pursue peace, and trust God with justice. Forgiveness is frequent, courageous, and from the heart. 

In this message from our Fundamentals series, Pastor Josh teaches on participation: the call for believers to move beyond passive observation and actively live out their faith in Christ. The Christian life is not meant to be watched from a distance. It is meant to be lived with genuine love, fervent faith, deep community, forgiveness, hospitality, and prayer. Through Romans 12, this message contrasts the marks of a true Christian with the patterns of the surrounding culture. While culture often celebrates retaliation, self-protection, and conditional love, followers of Jesus are called to bless those who persecute them, overcome evil with good, and pursue a life shaped by Christ. Pastor Josh highlights three practical anchors from Romans 12:12: rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and be constant in prayer. Participation means abiding in Christ daily, pursuing the family of God intentionally, and prioritizing prayer so that our lives are formed by the presence of God rather than the pull of culture.

In this message from our Fundamentals series, Pastor Wade teaches on glorification: the final stage of salvation when God raises believers to new life, makes them fully like Jesus, brings them into perfect fellowship with Him, and frees them forever from sin, suffering, and death. Glorification speaks to our bodies, our character, and our destination. One day, our lowly bodies will be transformed like Christ's glorious body. One day, the battle with sin and temptation will end, and we will be made fully like Jesus. And one day, we will dwell in the presence of God in the new heavens and new earth, where death, mourning, crying, and pain are no more. Because our future is glory, we can live with hope in the present. Glorification gives believers strength to grieve, suffer, fight temptation, and live sacrificially with their eyes fixed on Jesus. 

In this message from our Fundamentals series, Pastor Josh teaches on multiplication and the call of every believer to go and make disciples. In a culture shaped by consumer Christianity, it is easy to treat church like a service to attend rather than a mission to join. But Jesus did not give the church a great "option", He gave us the Great Commission. Pastor Josh explains the difference between our primary and secondary calling. Our primary calling is the same for every believer: to follow Jesus and make disciples. Our secondary calling is the unique expression of that mission through our gifts, vocation, and context. When those get flipped, we drift into passivity, spiritual stagnation, and a faith that revolves around being served instead of being sent. This message is a call to recover ordinary obedience, align our ambition with the heart of God, and step into the places God has already assigned us, our neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, and everyday relationships, with courage and compassion. 

Vivification is the Holy Spirit awakening the believer into increasing participation in the resurrection life of Jesus.

In this message from our Fundamentals series, Pastor Kai teaches on mortification: the daily, Spirit-empowered putting to death of sin in the life of the believer. Romans 8 reminds us that those who belong to Christ are no longer condemned, no longer ruled by sin, and no longer indebted to the flesh. Instead, we are called to set our minds on the things of the Spirit and walk in the freedom Christ has purchased for us. Mortification is not legalism, self-hatred, or behavior management. It is the ongoing work of killing sin by the power of the Holy Spirit. As we name sin honestly, confess it quickly, starve it, fight it with the Word and prayer, look to Christ, and walk with other believers, God forms us into the likeness of Jesus.

In this message from our Fundamentals series, Pastor Josh teaches on sanctification: the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit that progressively forms believers into the likeness of Christ and frees us from the power of sin.While justification frees us from the penalty and guilt of sin, sanctification is how God continues transforming us over time. It is slow, intentional, and often painful, but always shaped by grace. We do not grow by striving to earn God's love, but by abiding in Christ, surrendering daily, confessing sin honestly, and remembering who we are in Him.Sanctification is not behavior management. It is Spirit-led formation flowing from justification.

In this message from our Fundamentals series, Pastor Josh teaches on the doctrine of justification: the good news that though every person stands guilty under God's law, Jesus fulfilled the law on our behalf, bore the punishment for our sin, and gives His righteousness to all who believe.Justification is not something we earn through performance, striving, or religious effort. It is received by faith in Christ. Because of Jesus, believers are acquitted, adopted into God's family, transformed by grace, and assured of their future hope.The verdict over every believer in Christ is clear: not guilty.

Fundamentals: The Basics of Formation

Today we discuss money and generosity within the church, aiming to correct common misconceptions around giving, the prosperity gospel, and the pursuit of wealth. It emphasizes that true generosity is about the heart and not about fulfilling cultural or materialistic desires, highlighting Jesus' teachings on financial stewardship and the dangers of greed.

The church is not just a physical location but a community of people called to live in fellowship. We must focus on the importance of gathering together, especially around tables, to share meals, build relationships, and express the true nature of the church through love, devotion, and intentional community, ultimately reflecting the love of Christ to the world.

Many Christians today are approaching church with the wrong mindset, treating it as an institution to attend or a subscription to fulfill personal preferences rather than understanding that they are the church, called to be active participants in God's mission. We need to challenge believers to wake up to our purpose of making disciples and following Jesus daily, rather than becoming complacent, spiritually isolated, or passive in our faith.

Today we dive into Chapter 4 of the story of Jonah, emphasizing how his selfishness and anger toward God's mercy for the people of Nineveh reveal the dangers of prioritizing personal comfort and desires over God's will. We are challenged to reflect on our own hearts, urged to surrender our anger and comfort, embrace God's mission of grace, and extend mercy to others, even to those who have wronged us.