Gateway Community Church Sermons Gateway Community Church

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” (Colossians 3:23-24 NIV)

Work. Rest. Repeat. This pattern is remarkably common in our time. God established it in Creation, when He rested on the seventh day after creating all things. Our knowledge of this biblical pattern for God's image-bearers to work and rest paves the way for us to answer a very important question: How can Christians today practice Sabbath?

Jesus' memorable words about laying up treasures in heaven presents us with choices about how to view our lives and possessions—to be oriented to the here and now (earthly), or to eternity (heavenly). A kingdom vision sets us on a right footing, toward the heart of the right Master.

A common myth in our time is the idea that work is a "necessary evil" to endure and try to escape from. However, the creation narrative in Genesis 1 points us in a different direction. How should our thinking change about the work we do? What is God's design for us, His people, in relation to work and our lives of service to Him?

In Luke 6:39-42, Jesus uses two very short parables to teach His disciples that they must follow Him face to face. How does the example of one blind person leading another blind person go together with the command to remove the plank from one's own eye rather than pointing at the speck in another's? What does this mean for His people today?

Jesus said, "I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:5 NIV). What does it mean to remain in Christ and to bear much fruit? How does this calling apply to our lives today, as we seek to be attentive to Jesus' presence in our lives?