Newport First Christian Church Messages First Christian Church of Newport

After serving as pastor for almost 15 years, this is the Derek Helt's farewell message.

... Except When He Does
Do you believe that God has a plan for your life — a detailed plan for your "ideal" life — that you need to search and do your best to follow? If so, then this message is for you.

In general, we value people who obey the rules. In fact, our society is livable largely because we respect the rules of a polite society. However, sometimes rules can get in the way of doing the right thing. Matthew 12:1-8 relate one such instance and Jesus' response.

Many, maybe even most, followers of Jesus "sell" the Gospel message as being primarily about going to heaven and/or avoiding hell. Certainly our eternal destiny is a part of the equation, but when Jesus spoke to lost people, he used a different tack. He did not tell sinful people, "Join with me or you'll burn in hell." No, he said "Join me, follow me, live life with me, and you'll be free and your life will have meaning.

Are you ready for Christmas? Most people aren't. In fact, many people come away from Christmas feeling anything but closer to God, even though they have just "celebrated" the coming of Jesus. Here are three words that might help your Christmas experience.

If you think the story of "the woman caught in adultery" in John 8 is about sexual sin, you're missing the point. It's not. It's about forgiveness; it's about coming back from something you thought there was no coming back from. It's about grace.