Blue Ridge Community Church (audio)

Throughout Scripture, God has asked His people to move to an unfamiliar place to reach new people for Him. Even thousands of years later, God still works in the same way. The history of BRCC shows that God has blessed us when we obey Him—often, that obedience looks like moving toward an unfamiliar place. A few years ago, we heard God again, and we decided to obey Him one more time by beginning another location in Bedford. Now, we are taking another step of faith by making a permanent home in the Bedford community. People are our mission and we are moving into their neighborhood, to meet the need where they live. Will you join us as we build Bedford?

Jesus’ last day was a picture of surrender, humility, and endurance. He resisted the temptation to put a stop to the greatest pain, humiliation, and injustice anyone could ever go through. And He did it for you. Read that again. Let’s not forget what Jesus chose to experience so we could be with Him.

Have you ever wandered into the ‘Us & Them’ categorical style of living? It is when you see others who are different from you in some way, and you draw a line. Maybe they talk differently than you, live a different lifestyle, or have chosen to raise their kids a different way. Over time the ‘thems’ in your life become a point of frustration; and if we are not careful, they can become enemies.

There are many things in life that are not fair. Sometimes we respond in a way we later regret. But how do we resist? When we are feeling hurt, angry, frustrated, and left completely out of control, how do we not act on those feelings? Especially if we are completely warranted in those feelings. Jesus has asked us to respond in a very specific way in situations just like this. What would it look like to do things His way?

Look at how Jesus leads His Kingdom. He never shades the truth. He never spins His words. His yes is always yes, and His no is always no. When we live in a way that is contrary to this, we distort the world’s perspective of who God is. How truthful are we really? Do we portray ourselves accurately to our friends, family, on our social media accounts? What do the people around you learn about who Jesus is from the way you live your life?

So many wedding ceremonies feature scriptures about marriage. Mark 10:9 says, “Therefore, let no one split apart what God has joined together.” Proverbs 18:22 shares, “He who finds a wife finds a good thing.” God’s Word has a lot to say about love and marriage, but we find it confusing as it relates to divorce. God says He hates divorce in Malachi. He calls it a concession to our hard hearts in Matthew. When we come face to face with divorce in our own lives, often our own emotions begin to make our decisions for us. But it is not about us, it’s about God.

Tough topics can clear a room or divide it. Topics like anger and lust are such hard topics because all of us deal with them on some level. It’s all about perspective, right? No, there are clear lines between right and wrong; God-drawn lines. He gives direction, and practical steps to live His way in The Upside Down Kingdom.

Jesus not only wants us to keep the letter of the law, but He wants us to understand the intent of the law—the heart of the law. The words we say, how we say them, the choices we make, all originate from our heart. How we value others will be revealed in these actions of the heart, and we will stand accountable for those actions.

What better king could there be than a king that is omnipotent, just, fair, loving, all-knowing? Who better to set boundaries and guidelines for how to live? Jesus came into the world and offered us His kingdom, His gospel—but again and again we choose our own way and our own laws. Because of our human nature, it is crucial that we get back to the basics: the gospel Jesus preached.

It’s not often words are so inspiring they stand the test of time both in meaning and impact. Time has a way of erasing details and minimizing the power in words. But Jesus’ words stood the test of time. They spread like wildfire, taking the concept of the Upside Down Kingdom into the world and turning it on its head, calling us to be salt and light.

We strive to be good. Don’t we? But good is defined based on our perspective. So many of us lift up self confidence, pride in our accomplishments, and value in being known and recognized -— none of which are necessarily bad. But, without God, can they really be good? Hear what the blessings promised in the beatitudes say about who we should strive to be.

How many times have you heard the question, “What does God have to say about it?” Better yet, how many times were you more lost than when you started after someone asked you that question. When it comes to how we choose to live each day moment to moment, do we really stop and invite God into the decision? We talked about ownership throughout the book of Nehemiah, now let’s talk about what that looks like. How does God want us to practically live out taking ownership of our life and the life of our church?

If you’ve never experienced a Baptism Celebration at Blue Ridge—or if you’ve been to three dozen—you don’t want to miss this service! Hear the stories of redemption and life change, and join us as we celebrate the transforming impact of God’s grace in the lives of others.

If you’ve never experienced a Baptism Celebration at Blue Ridge—or if you’ve been to three dozen—you don’t want to miss this service! Hear the stories of redemption and life change, and join us as we celebrate the transforming impact of God’s grace in the lives of others.

If you’ve never experienced a Baptism Celebration at Blue Ridge—or if you’ve been to three dozen—you don’t want to miss this service! Hear the stories of redemption and life change, and join us as we celebrate the transforming impact of God’s grace in the lives of others.

We have life-changing, powerful information at our fingertips in the Gospel — a life-giving, transforming truth. Most of us would stumble if we had to sum it up in few words, but why? Why is it difficult to share the most compelling story? Perhaps we never really understood the heart of it ourselves.

Beginning something new is exciting! A new hobby or adventure, or starting a new eating or exercise plan is often met with determination and enthusiasm. But if we cannot stick to it and follow it through, can we succeed? If we don’t continue in the trajectory we began with such determination, we will return to our default. How do we stay the course?

What are we living for? This may be hard for many of us to define because life looks so different for each of us. Some of our calendars are full of commitments and engagements, while some of us need it simple, but we all still live day in and day out for some purpose. Owning the future God has for us looks like asking Him to define a new way of living — a better way.

What in life do we really need? Water? Shelter? Food? Companionship? How many of us would list faith? Hope? Jesus? Some of us may have encountered Jesus around a bonfire at summer camp or sitting in a church service — there was a slight tug, a flicker of life, maybe even a short term effort on our part to make this religion life work, or not. What caused that flicker to die out? What diverted our attention, our intentions away from a Savior who laid down His life for us? What would our changed life look like?

Babe Ruth, one of the best major league baseball players of all time said, “the way a team plays as a whole determines its success.” Making the difference on a team, working hard shoulder to shoulder, and encouraging each other feels good because you are doing it together — ownership is shared. But when one person doesn’t see themselves as a part of that, or above or beneath that, it impacts the influence and strength of the team. How would that feel?