Bent Oak Church

It's long been said that a church is not a building or program, it's people. But it's often people who hurt us and let us down. Our world is plagued by a wave of isolation and loneliness. So how should we think about the relationships church forms? What should our expectations be for one another? Is church the place to make friends and find your relational needs met?

As we continue our look at who God has called us to be, we ask the simple question, what do we do when we gather?Most of us know the formula: worship, prayer, sermon, but to what end? How should we evaluate our time together? What did God intend his churches to do when they gathered? We explore the book of Hebrews admonition to encourage one another. 

We take a look at a simple question: what is a church? We also look at how the New Testament emphasized the importance of gathering together and why it shouldn't be neglected. 

Peter must have thought no one noticed. Who had seen or heard his denials? Now that Jesus we resurrected, what difference did it make? But he still carried it with him. In ways both private and merciful, Jesus demonstrated that he did know. "You know all things," Peter acknowledged, "you know that I love you."Peter captures the human experience. Even as followers of Christ, we fall sure. We deny and love. Jesus responded with a call to follow, to set aside the self-interest and live for something better, for others.

The resurrected Jesus appeared to his disciples again. They were restless and not sure what to do. Their night of fishing hadn't produced any results. But when a man from the shore told them to cast their nets on the other side, John recognized it was Jesus. In one of the most moving post-resurrection scenes, Jesus cooked breakfast for his disciples and reminded them of the work ahead. He reminds us too.

John's resurrection account has none of the dramatic detail we want; it has people confused. An empty tomb, folded clothes, Mary weeping. But out of this confusion comes faith. John wont's us to see how the resurrection impacted those first witnesses of it. 

Having been crucified, Jesus was removed from the cross and buried. Had it been left to the Romans he might not have been buried at all, but two unlikely men step forward to honor Jesus, a secret follower and the reluctant Nicodemus. John captures the irony and allows us to consider the source of true courage and bolness. 

This week, we reach the story of Christ's crucifixion. John focuses on a particular set of details to remind us of who Jesus is and the reality of the cross. Jesus is Lord and Savior. Though many thought it was his defeat, and while others denied his rule, the cross reveals Jesus was the truth and even in death he maintained authority and control.

Pilate was not done with Jesus. After beating him and mocking him before the crowds, Pilate had a second set of questions. He explained to Jesus that he had the authority to save him or execute him. But Jesus saw more going on. Jesus recognized a higher authority. It's striking that the final conversation before Jesus's crucifixion was about submission and authority, topics in which our culture finds little value. We take a closer look at Christ's authority and the place of our submission.

Having been interrogated by the High Priest, Jesus was next handed over to Pilate, the Roman governor. Pilate alone held the power to order Jesus's execution. Their conversation was brief but exposed how different they were, and how different were their kingdoms. Jesus explains to the seemingly annoyed Pilate that his kingdom is not of this world but that he has come to bear witness to the truth. Pilate, in turn, commented, "What is truth?"