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Scripture: Luke 24:13-35

“We had hoped that he was the one…” (Luke 24:21)

These are some of the most poignant words in all of scripture.  They were spoken by two ex-disciples.  It was Easter afternoon, and they were heading back to their former lives.  They’d heard from the women about angels, they’d heard from the men about an empty tomb.  But none of that mattered to their broken hearts.  It turned out, Jesus wasn’t who they’d hoped he was.

Then, along came a stranger.  A curious stranger who didn’t seem to know anything about Jesus.  The ex-disciples had nothing better to do, so they filled him in on everything that had happened.  Not just what they knew, but also how they felt–their sadness and shame and disappointment.

And then a second miracle happens: they listen to the stranger.  They thought they were the experts, but all of a sudden, he’s teaching them, showing them how Moses and the prophets foretold things would happen in exactly this way.  They are so fascinated by the stranger, so engaged by the conversation, that they invite him to join them for dinner.

And then the third miracle happens.

As they sit at table, the stranger takes bread, gives thanks, breaks it and gives it to them and their eyes are opened, and they recognized him.  The stranger isn’t a stranger after all.  The stranger is Jesus, the one they thought they knew so well. 

I can’t tell you how much I am looking forward to being with you all again! I am incredibly grateful for the time you gave me to step away and work on my book, but I have missed being with you so much.  I follow Jesus better when I walk with you. 

We are living the truth of the Emmaus story at the Grove. Those who once were strangers have become treasured friends.  There are vital truths about Jesus that we can never discover for ourselves, we can only receive them from one another.  Now, as then, Jesus reveals himself to us in our friendships with those who once were unknown to us.  No matter how mature we are, we will never outgrow our need for one another.   

Peace,

Pastor Kate

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Scripture: John 11:1-74Dr.

Dear Church,

During this season of Eastertide, we are celebrating the reality of a risen Jesus and how this Jesus still encounters us today. That can be a wonderful thing, but it’s also uncontrollable and often uncomfortable. As James Baldwin wrote, “The Lord never seems to get there when you want him, but when he arrives he’s always right on time.” This Sunday we’ll be exploring the story of Lazarus in John 11 and how Jesus encountered each character not when or how they wanted, but in fitting and transformative ways. How might the Lord be meeting us in similar ways? How is God calling you into a whole new resurrection life? I hope you can join us as we listen to the Spirit together.

Grace and peace-
Wes Vander Lugt

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Scripture: Genesis 1:26-31, 2:4-9, 2:15

This Sunday we will be blessed with the words of guest preacher Cedric Lundy.  A native of Ann Arbor, MI, Cedric Lundy moved to Charlotte NC in the summer of 2004 after earning his Bachelor’s Degree in Youth Ministry and Biblical Studies from Spring Arbor University. Husband to wife Emma since 2007 they are parents to daughter Isla. Cedric spent thirteen years in local church pastoral ministry predominantly as a Middle School Student Ministry Pastor, but also as a Campus Pastor and Pastor of Justice & Teams. Cedric’s burden in ministry and influence expanded beyond just youth. He regularly facilitated seminars for parents, preaches at local churches, and co-hosts a podcast.

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Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-16 (NIV)

Dear Church,

Have you ever wondered how you were going to get through something?  Has anything in your life seemed so painful or overwhelming that you can’t begin to see a positive outcome or any outcome at all?  Without knowing your problem let me offer you an answer.  We will get through it together.  We you may ask, we who?  We, the body of Christ.  We, your brothers and sisters who are charged to bear one another’s burdens.  We who will celebrate the wins you experience and mourn the losses that come your way.   This is what comes with being in community with one another, we are never alone.  This Sunday we will read from the epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Ephesians and explore how we are equipped to support one another as a community.     

Peace,

Nicole Thompson

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Scripture: Luke 10:38-42

This week the Grove was pulsing with life, tiny feet kicking the back of pews, little hands struggling to squeeze out exactly the right amount of glue, big people taking deep breaths trying to remain present to the joy and promise bursting forth out of the chaos.  The day after Easter, you created an oasis of welcome and creativity and wonder and hope and lively peace for children and their families. 

Because the truth is–there is no day after Easter.  When Christ rose from the grave, he renewed creation–as it was in the beginning, as it ever shall be, the good news of resurrection is that it is that way now, with Christ.  The kingdom of God is in the midst of us–and signs of new life, the Kingdom of God, are all around us.   They may not always be visible or impressive to those who are not seeking the Kingdom, but for those whose minds have been renewed in Christ, there is more than enough to celebrate.

Peace,

Pastor Kate

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Scripture: Matthew 28:1-10

Dear Church,

It is not only good, but also necessary that we celebrate the resurrection on Sunday. The rocks would cry out if we didn’t.  But don’t come for the celebration–come to receive what we are celebrating.  Because if Easter doesn’t change everything, it really doesn’t matter at all.

All the color, all the sound and surprises, all the excitement, all the hallelujahs–they’re only the signs.  They’re only the celebration.  It’s the revelation of the empty tomb that changes everything, the entire cosmos, even & especially us. It’s not the celebration itself that matters, it’s what we’re celebrating.

It didn’t just happen to Jesus.  Paul says, ‘if anyone is in Christ–new creation!’

Come and see. 

Come and see what we’re made of now. 

Come and see what we’re made for now. 

Come and see. 

But don’t come for the show. 

Come for

Real.

New.

Life.

Peace,

Pastor Kate

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Scripture: Luke 19:28-42

Dear Church,

This Sunday is my favorite Sunday of the year.   (I know, I know, I say this a lot, but I always mean it.). It’s the first day of Holy Week.  Traditionally, churches will center their worship on the story of Jesus entering into Jerusalem for his final confrontation with the sacred, secular and spiritual powers & principalities of his day.   We call it Palm Sunday.

We shouldn’t.

The story of Jesus entering into Jerusalem is included in all four gospels, but only John mentions the palms.  And John is clear about who introduces them, ‘they took palm branches and went out to meet him.’  Jesus carefully orchestrated his entrance into the city.  But the palms weren’t his idea, they were the people’s choice.  We spend so much time focusing on the symbol that the crowd chose for Jesus, but we overlook the symbol that Jesus chose for himself: the donkey.  All four gospels carefully describe how Jesus sent his disciples to find a donkey and how he rode it into the city.  Jesus is showing us something about himself, but we keep looking away.

The palms represent our ideas of a savior, who we expect and desire Jesus to be.  The donkey is Jesus’ revelation to us of who he actually is–and who he is calling us to be.  If you don’t understand why Jesus rode a donkey, you don’t understand Jesus.  If the donkey isn’t one of the things you love about Jesus–then you may be loving and worshipping a Jesus-shaped idol.

You can’t get to the cross without the donkey.  I hope you’ll join us as we recommit ourselves to the astonishing, unexpected, life-giving way of our donkey-riding Savior.  

Peace,
Pastor Kate

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Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:17-19 and Matthew 27:27-54

Dear Church,

I used to love those Era detergent commercials.  Do you remember them?  You’d see grass, mud and blood stains on a t-shirt.  Then they’d write the name ‘Era’ on the stains with the clear detergent.  Then they’d spray it with water, and you’d see the word appear like magic.  Every part of the stain covered by the detergent would be washed clean.

But would the stains covered in bargain detergent be so transformed? Nay–not so.  Only the superior cleaning power of Era (and later Era Plus) could handle the really tough stains.  It’s possible I watched too much TV as a child.

Sometimes we act like the cross is bargain brand detergent, only capable of cleaning what isn’t really dirty, only powerful enough to fix what isn’t that broken.  We live like the goodness of God is powerful enough to transform the lives of already-pretty-good people in not-so-bad situations.  But when lives are truly twisted and crushed, when evil is palpable and all consuming, we despair.

Friends–the cross is not bad news.  It’s not medicine we have to choke down to get to the goodness of resurrection.  For us, the cross is power.  A power the world has never known–a merciful power, a beautiful power, a good power.  A power strong enough to transform the most brutal and broken.  A power that gives us hope.
 
Together, by God’s grace, we will learn to see the hope of the cross.

Peace,
Pastor Kate

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Scripture: Colossians 2:13-15

Dear Church,

There is so much beauty this time of year.  

As the world transitions from winter to spring we see beautiful new life everywhere in the natural world. And the beauty our common life as the church is especially visible in this season–the goodness of new friends joining the church, special worship services for Holy Week and the joy of sharing what we have with our neighbors–whether that’s fresh vegetables at the Bulb, treasures at the yard give or healthy meals and joyful activities during our spring break vacation bible school.  

As good as all of this is, as pleasing as it is in our eyes, there is another beautiful thing at the center of our life together and its beauty is harder to see.  I’m talking, of course, about the cross.

Let’s be honest, we see the cross as many things–essential, powerful, necessary, revelatory.  But it’s hard to see the cross as beautiful.  The blooms of dogwood trees and azalea bushes are beautiful; the Carolina blue sky is beautiful, friends sharing faith and food and abundance is beautiful, strangers becoming neighbors becoming family is beautiful, a group of children laughing and playing and making art together is beautiful.  But the son of God who was born among to heal and work miracles and welcome everyone into God’s love, seeing him nailed to a cross, suffering and dying–how is that beautiful?

The cross reveals ancient and forgotten beauty, a beauty deeper than appearance, a beauty that is, the beauty that is source of all goodness and grace, a beauty that never fades away.  On the cross we learn to believe in the beauty we cannot see and to see a beauty that cannot be believed.  

Peace,
Pastor Kate

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Scripture: Genesis 15:7-21, Romans 5:6-11

Dear Church,

The first question that the cross inspires in us is why?  Why did this happen?  What was the point?

If you’ve ever asked that question, someone has probably tried to answer by saying that it had to happen–so that the penalty for sin could be paid, so that the wrath of God could be satisfied, so that God’s righteousness would no longer be offended by the sinfulness of humanity.  These are all different ways of describing what theologians call ‘penal substitutionary atonement.’ It’s the idea that God couldn’t show mercy to humans until someone suffered the consequences of all our evil actions, because mercy without punishment would be the same as condoning sin, which is something God’s righteousness simply won’t allow God to do.  So Jesus took the punishment we earned and deserved and now we can be forgiven by God.

Substitutionary atonement isn’t the only way to understand the cross, but it is the simplest and most popular.   But it bears a suspicious resemblance to the way our secular justice system works, so it’s faithful to wonder–is this how God responds to sin and evil or how we do?  Does the cross shows us redemption is accomplished by penal substitutionary atonement?  Or is that what we’ve learned to look for?

Today, we’re taking a deep biblical dive all the way back the Genesis 15 and God’s original salvation covenant with our father Abraham.  This story is teaching me new ways to look at the cross.

Peace,

Pastor Kate

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