December 29, 2024
On this last Sunday of 2024, we wrap up our “Foretold” series where it all points: the same Jesus who was born in Bethlehem and raised in Nazareth stands at the banks of the Jordan River at thirty years old, baptized by John the Baptist. Why would a sinless Savior submit to a baptism of repentance? Because He loves us so much that He chose to identify with us — to be dipped in the same water, to take on a body like ours, to submit to His Father in obedience and fulfill all righteousness. And as He came up out of the water, the heavens tore open, the Spirit descended like a dove, and the Father spoke from heaven: “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
Heading into 2025, the charge of this message is two simple words: remember Him. Remember that God is bigger — He has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand and marked off the heavens with a span. He is greater than all the nations, He never grows tired or weary of forgiving us, and He supplies all the power we need: those who wait upon the Lord renew their strength; they mount up with wings like eagles. When trials come — as the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness — God is not doing you in; He wants to show you off. Your ministry is not what you do but how you react to life.
Jesus promised, “I am coming soon.” It’s later than it’s ever been, and every knee will bow — so bow in time, not sometime too late. If you’re tired of running and tired of the oldest game in the world, hide-and-seek, come out and meet Him today.
#Foretold #BigValleyGrace #RememberHim #Jesus #NewYear
December 22, 2024
What has happened in your life that, if God had told you ahead of time, you wouldn’t have believed him? That question opens this Christmas message on Matthew 1:18–25 — the story of the birth of Jesus Christ, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, and named Emmanuel, God with us. When Joseph heard the news, he considered it; when Mary heard it, she brought her question: “How can this be?” And the invitation is the same for us — consider him, and bring your questions to Jesus.
Why a virgin? The prophecy of Isaiah 7:14 is the moment where all the threads of God’s story come together in one place: God’s promise to Abram of a land, a son, and a blessing; His promise to David of a house and a throne that lasts forever; the threat that came against the promised son in 734 BC; and God’s answer — a sign as deep as Sheol and as high as heaven. Only God could bring salvation, only God could unite full deity and full humanity, and only God could bring about a true human who was without sin.
But there is also a threat that comes against your salvation today, and it is unbelief. Jesus said, “Unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins” — and the good news is that whoever believes in him has eternal life, is saved through him, and is not condemned. This message ends with an invitation: today is the day to believe God’s promise to you. Do you believe Jesus?
#BigValleyGrace #Christmas #Emmanuel #Believe #GodWithUs
December 15, 2024
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). Written around 734 BC, faithfully copied by scribes for centuries — and confirmed by the Great Isaiah Scroll found among the Dead Sea Scrolls — this prophecy points unambiguously to Jesus Christ.
This message from our series “Foretold” unpacks Isaiah’s promise in three parts: the promise — given first to Israel and now to everyone who believes, of a child who had to come as one of us to be the propitiation for our sins; the person — the Son of Mary, Son of Joseph, Son of Man, Son of David, and Son of God, whose four titles reveal that the Messiah would be God himself; and the purpose — an eternal kingdom of justice, righteousness, and peace, established on the throne of David, fulfilled when the angel Gabriel told Mary, “The Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
The zeal of the Lord of hosts has done this. The King has come — He is here today. Do you know Him?
#Foretold #BigValleyGrace #Christmas #Isaiah9 #PrinceOfPeace
December 8, 2024
Can you find Jesus in the Old Testament? That’s the question behind our new Christmas series, “Foretold” — and this week we begin with one of the most remarkable prophecies in all of Scripture: Micah 5:2, written some seven centuries before the first Christmas: “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.”
Pastor Joel walks through the phrase-by-phrase meaning of Micah’s promise to a terrified nation under Assyrian siege: a King from the “House of Bread” — eternal, from ancient days, who will stand and shepherd His flock in the strength of the Lord. Then, connecting Micah’s prophecy to Luke 2 — Caesar’s census, the journey to Bethlehem, the manger — we see how God foretold the exact birthplace of the Messiah, and how Jesus Himself, on the road to Emmaus, “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets… interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.”
This Christmas season, people will ask what you’re celebrating. This message equips you to open your Bible — to Micah 5 and Luke 2 — and show why we believe the Hebrew Scriptures truly foretold Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the person of Christmas.
#Foretold #BigValleyGrace #Christmas #Micah5 #JesusIsTheReason