Arbor Church

Is the point of our life to be happy? Maybe there’s something more than just that. How do we discover our specific purpose in life? A good place to start is by listening to this podcast.

Even though Jesus foretold his own resurrection, it caught everyone off guard: nobody expected no body. Jesus chose to reveal the best news in the history of the world to … a woman who couldn’t even legally testify in court? Today we visit the old story through new eyes: hers.

On Sunday we will celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, but this Good Friday, we must first walk with Him through the final days before His death on a cross.

There are few people in Scripture who were put through a more difficult trial than Job, from whom was taken almost everything that can be taken. Job’s story, full of suffering that seems senseless, reminds us of Who is in control, and helps unravel the age-old mystery: how do we reconcile a loving God with a world full of pain?

Guest speaker Mike Howerton continues the series with a reminder that God is with us in our tests… and that He will bring us through them, just as He did for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendego in the fiery furnace.

If you’ve ever failed a test, you’ll relate to this message about The Rich Young Ruler and his encounter with Jesus. Tests reveal the contents of our heart, and in this case, there was more love for wealth than for Jesus. Listen and imagine what your response might’ve been.

Our new sermon series looks at people in the Bible who were tested, starting with Jesus himself – a man who endured a trial directly from the enemy himself. What can we learn from how Jesus handled his trials, and from the shapes and patterns they took in His life?

Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter.) – John 1:42. But Simon’s name change wasn’t so simple; like ours, his story is messy, full of ups and downs and slips back to his old identity, ready to defend Jesus to the death one day and denying him the next. Scott outlines the four basic phases he went through (and we go through) as Jesus defines who we are. Where are you?

In Saul’s story, we see a name change become a LIFE change. This story speaks so much hope to those of us who feel we’re too far gone for God to love us or have a purpose for. If He could do it for Saul, He can do it for us.

Just like Jacob, we struggle to surrender our future and identity to God. In this message, Pastor Garrett shares how to rest, not wrestle, in who God says we are.