Verve City Church: Weekly Messages Verve City Church

Was the United States founded as a "Christian nation?" Can any nation be a "Christian nation?" Is the concept of a "Christian nation" any more realistic than a "Christian bicycle" or a "Christian breath mint?" Exploring the teachings of Jesus and the history of "Christian" imperialism, we'll discuss the incompatibility of the way of Jesus and the way of Empire.

Series Overview:  Verve City Church won't tell you who to vote for. We won't tell you which policies to support or which politicians to be outraged at. But we need to have an entirely necessary and honest conversation about politics. For some, politics has become their religion. Others have lost relationships with friends and family members over a difference in political opinion. This is a great series to invite someone to sit with you. Let’s explore together: How can followers of Jesus thoughtfully maintain their Christian witness in a fractured political environment?

"I can't." "I should." "Nobody likes me." "I'm such an idiot." "I'm a dumpster fire." For many of us, the negative talk in our lives is focused less on other people and more on ourselves. While it's healthy to understand our strengths and weaknesses, constantly disparaging ourselves can become a self-fulfilling indictment and a confidence killer. How can we be humble without being humiliated? How can we think of ourselves less without thinking less of ourselves?
Series overview: Remember the time that person said that thing to you and that was twelve years ago and you occasionally think about it and it still makes you feel bad? That's the power of words. What we say to one another, what we say about one another, and what we say to ourselves have the power to build, destroy, or overly inflate our egos.

The way we see and experience others reveals less about them than it does about us. And when we “call it like we see it,” what we say is a reflection of our soul. We can laugh at ridiculous one-star reviews, but don’t we all fall into the trap of spreading negative gossip sometimes? How can adjusting our mindset change the words we say and restore a sense of calm and peace in the midst of our chaotic lives?

Series overview: Remember the time that person said that thing to you and that was twelve years ago and you occasionally think about it and it still makes you feel bad? That's the power of words. What we say to one another, what we say about one another, and what we say to ourselves have the power to build, destroy, or overly inflate our egos.

Our words hold surprising power to shape our identity, our environment, and our friends. We get to decide whether to wield that power well or to wield it haphazardly. The words we choose, the tone we use, and even our body language can intentionally or inadvertently build up or tear down. So, how do we become people who are filled with words of grace, truth, and gratitude in a world that's so often cynical and despairing?

Series overview: Remember the time that person said that thing to you and that was twelve years ago and you occasionally think about it and it still makes you feel bad? That's the power of words. What we say to one another, what we say about one another, and what we say to ourselves have the power to build, destroy, or overly inflate our egos.

Celebrated at Easter, Jesus’ resurrection is a central event for Christianity… which means Jesus’ death is also at the center of our faith. But why did Jesus have to die? And what does the answer reveal about God?

Jesus was compassionate toward the outcasts of society and brutal toward highly respected religious leaders. He disrupted their religious festivals, called them snakes, and warned their followers to avoid modeling their lives after them. Why does Jesus seem outraged by the most revered of religious leaders rather than the greatest of sinners?

Series overview: When we think of Jesus, we often think of his kindness, gentleness, and tenderness. We think of his graciousness toward sinners, his generosity toward the poor, and his healing of the sick. So what do we do about the stories of Jesus that come crashing into all our Jesus stereotypes – stories where He seems wild, angry, unfair, or even brutal? Could this savage side of Jesus cause us to love him even more?