Reality Santa Barbara (audio)

Chris Lazo / Ephesians 3:10, 13

Chris Lazo / Ephesians 3:9-11,13

Gerald Torres / Ephesians 3:6-8

Chris Lazo / Ephesians 3:3-7,13

Chris Lazo / Ephesians 3:1-2

The church is a living community where Christ dwells by his spirit for his mission.

God embraces the unlovely so that we can embrace those unlovely to us.

Gerald Torres / Ephesians 2:19

Gerald Torres / Ephesians 2:11-18

Chris Lazo / Ephesians 2:10

Chris Lazo / Ephesians 2:7-9

To find life you must embrace a love stronger than death.

Given the disenchantment and discouragement that many have experienced from the church, why should we remain so committed to the church? Isn’t it enough just to say that we love and follow Jesus? In this sermon, Pastor Al Abdulla examines Ephesians 1:22-23, and discusses how we should view Jesus’ Church.

Chris Lazo / Ephesians 1:19-20

Through Christ, God is able and willing to resurrect every part of our broken and dead world and lives. Pastor Britt speaks about that here in his sermon from Easter 2012.

The Holy Spirit provides power for God’s people. One of the keys to experiencing the power of the person of the Holy Spirit is to acknowledge our general weakness and need when it comes to right living. Some of the areas where we quickly realize we are in need are in facing the power and temptation of sin, and in doubt and despair. God has made great provision to address these in the life of the believer through the Holy Spirit. But, do we really want it? Pastor Britt explains here.

God has made tremendous power available for the Christian’s life. The Word of God is one of the ultimate ways in which we appropriate and experience this. In fact, it is impossible to live the Christian life without the regular experience of the transformative, saving, delivering, sustaining power of God’s Word. Listen and discover the resurrection power available for you in and through Scripture for every facet of living.

The Christian life is meant to be one of power—God’s power for us, the same power that resurrected Christ from the grave! Therefore, the Christian’s life should be radical and radically different. How do we appropriate and experience this power and how does it affect our lives? The answer is in the blood of Christ, the Word of God, the Holy Spirit and prayer. Pastor Britt explains as he teaches through Ephesians 1:19-20.

Despair and brokenness are everywhere and humanity needs hope to survive. But what is hope? Surely it can’t be the limp, uncertain optimism portrayed when people say, “I hope things get better someday.” No, there is more—so much more. Those who have faith in Christ have a confident hope because they are God’s special possession.

Light and darkness are universally understood metaphors for good and evil and the concepts are very much in play in Scripture and our lives. Jesus has rescued us from darkness and brought us into God’s marvelous light. And yet, we still struggle with the power and lure of darkness everyday. What can we do to walk in the light and daily overcome the darkness?