God is love.

Not love as sentiment or vague niceness, but love made visible in Jesus.

John tells us that God’s love becomes complete in us as we love others—both those inside the church and those outside it. Which means following Jesus is not simply about believing the right things about Him, but learning to model our lives after the way He loved.

We talk about how love is evidence that the life of Christ is alive in us, why fear often keeps us from loving well, and how the perfect love of God frees us from living defensively and anxiously.

Because when we truly trust that we are loved by God, we become more free to love like Jesus.

“See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!”

In Week 5 of Love and Light, we explore how John reminds us of the assurance we have.  We are God's children. The goal or outcome of following Jesus is not paranoia, perfectionism, or constantly wondering if we are failing God. It is relationship.

We talk about family resemblance, baptism, transformation, and what it means that we are not merely followers of God but children of God.

Because children slowly begin to resemble their Father.

And because He is our Father, this is not just something to strive for. It is something to rest in. Something to celebrate.

What does John actually mean when he uses that word? Is he talking about one future figure, many antichrists already present in the world, or both? And what does any of this have to do with anointing, Jesus as “the Christ,” and our calling as followers of Jesus today?

We explore why so many people throughout history have tried to predict the return of Jesus, why fear and uncertainty make us long for certainty, and why John seems less focused on helping us identify “the future bad guy” and more focused on asking how people who are supposed to represent God can become opposed to His purposes.

Along the way we look at Saul, David, the meaning of anointing in the Old Testament, and the sobering reality that if we are not careful we can slowly begin resisting the very Christ we claim to follow.

Because eventually we all have to grapple with who we really believe Jesus is—and whether we trust Him enough to live like He is truly the Christ.

What does it actually mean to know God?

John challenges the idea that knowing God is just about information, belief, or even getting all the right answers. Instead, he says knowing God shows up in how we live—how we obey, how we love, and what shapes our desires.

We look at how obedience is not about rule-following, but about becoming a certain kind of person—someone who reflects Jesus.

We talk about how love for others is not optional, but central. And how hate is not just a feeling, but something that can quietly become a pattern in our lives. 

And we explore what John means by “the world”—the pull of our desires, what we see, and our need to define life on our own terms.

Because the same pattern that led humanity into sin is the same pattern Jesus overcame—and the same pattern we are still invited to resist.

John makes a bold claim: God is light, and there is no darkness in Him at all.

That means faith cannot stay theoretical. Fellowship with God is never separated from how we live.

This week we look at what light does—it gives life, it guides, and it reveals. We talk about why John takes sin so seriously, why pretending sin doesn’t matter is actually self-deception, and why Jesus as our advocate means we do not have to stay trapped in darkness.

Because we need not do sin, and we need not stay in sin.

A God of light expects lives filled with light. 

There are a lot of versions of Jesus people create—American Jesus, Prosperity Jesus, Soft Jesus, Rulebook Jesus, and more. But John writes to remind us that Jesus is not someone we reshape in our own image.

John says, “We have heard Him. We have seen Him. We have touched Him.”

This is not rumor, myth, or wishful thinking. This is testimony.

In this message, we look at how encountering the real Jesus transforms people, draws us into fellowship with God and one another, and leads us into deep and lasting joy.

Because following Jesus is not primarily about mastering information—it’s about encountering a person.

In this final week of The Unfinished Story, we turn to the older brother—the one who stayed, the one who did everything right… and the one who still finds himself outside. Jesus leaves the story unresolved, forcing us to ask a deeper question: not just have we come home, but will we come in?

Because the truth is, there’s more than one way to be lost. And the same grace that welcomes the rebellious also confronts the resentful.

The invitation is still open.

This week, we stepped into Luke 15—the story of the prodigal son—and found ourselves in a different kind of Easter story. One where coming home doesn’t start with getting it together, but with getting honest. One where grace interrupts our attempts to earn our way back.

And maybe most surprising of all… the story isn’t really about a reckless son—it’s about a reckless Father.

In this message, we explore how the cross doesn’t just explain forgiveness—it reveals the heart of God: running toward us with extravagant love before we can prove anything.

Wherever you are in your story, you’re invited to come home.

We look at how the younger son’s pursuit of freedom—on his own terms—actually leads him into a different kind of captivity. And if we’re honest, it’s not that unfamiliar. Sometimes we wander because we want control. Sometimes we drift because we give in to what we know isn’t good for us. Either way, what feels like freedom can slowly become something else.

Jesus tells a story where being lost isn’t the end—but it does matter how we get there, and what it takes to turn back.

Because the way home doesn’t begin with having it all figured out…
it often begins at the end of ourselves—and a faint memory of what the Father is like.

And the story isn’t finished yet.

In Luke 15, Jesus tells what might be His most famous story—but it doesn’t behave the way we expect. Before we ever get to the “prodigal son,” we’re invited into two smaller stories about things that are lost… and then found.

A sheep. A coin. Both pursued. Both valued. Both leading to joy.

But underneath it all is a deeper tension—because not everyone in the crowd hears these stories the same way. Some feel seen. Others feel challenged.

This week we begin An Unfinished Story by asking:
Who is this story for?
Where am I in it?
And what might God be trying to show me right now?

We wrapped up our You Will Be: Here, Near, Hard, Far series with guest speaker Meagan Gottcent, who helped us rethink what it means to be a witness.

Too often we imagine witnessing as having the right arguments or the perfect words. But Scripture points us toward something different — a witness shaped by love.

Drawing from 1 Corinthians 13 and the model of Jesus, the faithful witness, Meagan reminds us that our witness should be patient, kind, humble, and centered on the other person.

We also explored the Five Thresholds of faith, a framework that helps us understand the journey many people take before choosing to follow Jesus — from trust, to curiosity, to openness, to seeking, and finally to following.

Faith often grows through relationship, conversation, and time. Our role is not to rush the process, but to walk with people in love as they move toward Jesus.

In Acts 17, Paul shows us that witness doesn’t start with arguments or winning debates. It begins with understanding people, listening to their stories, and helping them see how their story connects to God’s bigger story.

Some people believe. Some people want more time. Some say no. And surprisingly, Scripture reminds us that success in witness isn’t universal agreement — it’s faithfulness and love.

This week we explore what it means to care about the “far,” why skepticism isn’t the same as rejection, and how we can participate in God’s love for the world right where we are.

Next Sunday we wrap up the series with special guest speaker Meagan Gottcent.

Saul wasn’t just different — he was dangerous. Feared. Risky. The kind of person the church avoided.

But Ananias obeyed when it would have been safer to stay home.
Barnabas advocated when it would have been easier to keep distance.

Witness takes risk.
Witness takes relationship.

The gospel reaches the “far” because someone is willing to move toward the hard.

Who might be your Paul?

In Acts 8, the gospel moves into Samaria—a place of centuries-old hostility—and then into the desert, where Philip meets an Ethiopian eunuch: powerful, devout, and very different from him.

The Spirit pushes the early church beyond comfort, beyond tribe, beyond assumptions.

What if our biggest barrier to witness isn’t fear… but contempt?
What if the Spirit is already at work in the very places we find hardest?

Language. Standards. Mercy.
They reveal more than we think.

And chances are… you’re somebody’s hard.

In Acts 9, Peter travels to nearby towns—not just to convert strangers or non-believers, but to strengthen disciples and restore community. He heals Aeneas. He raises Tabitha. He shows up.

And as he does, many come to believe.

Because witness isn’t only about what we say. It’s also about how God works in us and through us.

Witness—both our words and our deeds—moves near with willingness.

Witnessing involves proximity.
Witness involves formation.

In this first week of our new series, You Will Be: Here • Near • Hard • Far, we begin where the disciples begin—waiting, wondering, and asking the wrong questions.

What does it actually mean to be a witness?

Before we apply it, we step into the world of Acts and learn how the people who first heard that word would have understood it. In the Jewish world of the first century, a witness wasn’t an expert or a debater. A witness was someone with proximity—someone who had seen something and was willing to tell the truth about it.

Witness carried responsibility—but not control.
Credibility—but not perfection.
Calling—but not performance.

And it started right where they were: Jerusalem. Here.

This message invites us to become more aware of what God is already doing around us—and to recognize that witness begins not with going far, but with being present.

In the final week of Add to Cart, we look at rest not as a rule to follow, but as a way of life rooted in creation, shaped by liberation, and fulfilled in Christ. From Genesis to Jesus, we explore how rest helps untangle our worth from productivity, forms trust in God as our source of security, and invites us into a rhythm that leads toward contentment. This message closes the series by reframing rest as one of the most countercultural ways we practice trusting God with our time, our relationships, and our lives.

This week in Add to Cart, we talked about how money is like lemons, how it trains our hearts, and how generosity isn’t about being told what to give—but learning to trust God as our source.

Generosity doesn’t just help others.

-It protects us (think content vs. corrosive)

-It serves as a bridge (think community not isolation)

-It retrains what we value (think character and cohesion).

This message invites us to move from fear and scarcity toward freedom, trust, and faith, freeing us to be generous.

In the first message of Add to the Cart, we look at Jesus’ words in Matthew 6 and Paul’s reflections on contentment in Philippians 4. We talk about how the things we reach for can quietly become our source of stability—and why they never quite deliver.

This message invites us to notice what’s shaping us and begin learning what it means to trust God as our source of “enough.”

As we begin a new year, we're invited to respond not like Herod, but like the others in the Christmas story—people who trusted, followed, waited, and worshiped even when life didn’t go as planned. The light keeps shining.  Hold to the light - that's our story- even in the darkest moments the light is still leading us forward.

In this message, we explore what to do when life doesn’t go as planned—even when the news is good. Sometimes the promise comes with silence. Sometimes the answer doesn’t look the way we expected. But God is still at work, still faithful, and still unfolding a plan worth hoping in.

When life leaves you confused or afraid, you don’t need to have it all figured out. You can trust what you've experienced, take a step, share the good news, and rest in the truth that God still uses small, ordinary people to carry His extraordinary message.

🎧 Listen now on our website, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. And join us this Sunday, in person if you can,for the final message in Unboxing the Bible — it’s going to be a little different than you might expect.

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Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

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Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

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Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

-----------------------------------------

Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

-----------------------------------------

Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

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Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

---------------

Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

---------------

Campfire & Clouds is a summer journey through Exodus — a story of rescue, transformation, and God’s faithful presence in the wilderness.
He Rescues. He Transforms. He Stays.

Key takeaways:
– Listen like Deborah.
– Step out like Barak.
– Be brave like Jael.
– Praise like Deborah and Barak.

In this new series at Compassion Church, we’re exploring the beauty and mystery of the sacraments — baptism, communion, anointing with oil, and the body of Christ itself.

These aren’t just rituals. They’re reminders.
 Ways we experience the grace of Jesus here and now.
 Ways we care for one another and are formed into something holy — together.

📍Come be part of the journey.
 🕊 There’s room for you.
 🔗 www.compassionchurchsj.com

#SacredMoments #EverydayGrace #Sacraments 

In this new series at Compassion Church, we’re exploring the beauty and mystery of the sacraments — baptism, communion, anointing with oil, and the body of Christ itself.

These aren’t just rituals. They’re reminders.
 Ways we experience the grace of Jesus here and now.
 Ways we care for one another and are formed into something holy — together.

📍Come be part of the journey.
 🕊 There’s room for you.
 🔗 www.compassionchurchsj.com

#SacredMoments #EverydayGrace #Sacraments 

In this new series at Compassion Church, we’re exploring the beauty and mystery of the sacraments — baptism, communion, anointing with oil, and the body of Christ itself.

These aren’t just rituals. They’re reminders.
 Ways we experience the grace of Jesus here and now.
 Ways we care for one another and are formed into something holy — together.

📍Come be part of the journey.
 🕊 There’s room for you.
 🔗 www.compassionchurchsj.com

#SacredMoments #CompassionChurchSJ #EverydayGrace #Sacraments #ChurchThatCares

Jesus makes seven statements in the gospel of John that have become known as the I AM statements.  These statements are metaphors - a literary device or figure of speech that points to something else (usually an image) to try to explain what something is.  They are like mini snapshots that together show us who Jesus is.

So what exactly is Jesus trying to say when He says He is bread, light, a door, a shepherd, life itself, the path, and a grape vine? And what does any of that have to do with us today?  

Join us as we find that because of who He is … we can also say some specific “I am …” statements.  Join us as we discover that because of who Jesus is we can find comfort and purpose in a chaotic world.

Jesus makes seven statements in the gospel of John that have become known as the I AM statements.  These statements are metaphors - a literary device or figure of speech that points to something else (usually an image) to try to explain what something is.  They are like mini snapshots that together show us who Jesus is.

So what exactly is Jesus trying to say when He says He is bread, light, a door, a shepherd, life itself, the path, and a grape vine? And what does any of that have to do with us today?  

Join us as we find that because of who He is … we can also say some specific “I am …” statements.  Join us as we discover that because of who Jesus is we can find comfort and purpose in a chaotic world.

Jesus makes seven statements in the gospel of John that have become known as the I AM statements.  These statements are metaphors - a literary device or figure of speech that points to something else (usually an image) to try to explain what something is.  They are like mini snapshots that together show us who Jesus is.

So what exactly is Jesus trying to say when He says He is bread, light, a door, a shepherd, life itself, the path, and a grape vine? And what does any of that have to do with us today?  

Join us as we find that because of who He is … we can also say some specific “I am …” statements.  Join us as we discover that because of who Jesus is we can find comfort and purpose in a chaotic world.

Jesus makes seven statements in the gospel of John that have become known as the I AM statements.  These statements are metaphors - a literary device or figure of speech that points to something else (usually an image) to try to explain what something is.  They are like mini snapshots that together show us who Jesus is.

So what exactly is Jesus trying to say when He says He is bread, light, a door, a shepherd, life itself, the path, and a grape vine? And what does any of that have to do with us today?  

Join us as we find that because of who He is … we can also say some specific “I am …” statements.  Join us as we discover that because of who Jesus is we can find comfort and purpose in a chaotic world.

Jesus makes seven statements in the gospel of John that have become known as the I AM statements.  These statements are metaphors - a literary device or figure of speech that points to something else (usually an image) to try to explain what something is.  They are like mini snapshots that together show us who Jesus is.

So what exactly is Jesus trying to say when He says He is bread, light, a door, a shepherd, life itself, the path, and a grape vine? And what does any of that have to do with us today?  

Join us as we find that because of who He is … we can also say some specific “I am …” statements.  Join us as we discover that because of who Jesus is we can find comfort and purpose in a chaotic world.