Sloten Videos

In this message we re going to talk about why you re here. What is it that connects you to New Hope Church? Why have you chosen to be a part of this faith community? I ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him endless energy, boundless strength! All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe, everything from galaxies to governments, no name and no power exempt from his rule. And not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ's body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence. The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 1:16-23, MSG I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God. God can do anything, you know far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. Glory to God in the church! Glory to God in the Messiah, in Jesus! Glory down all the generations! Glory through all millennia! Oh, yes! The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 3:15-19, MSG

The Seven Deadly Relational Sins; pride, envy, gluttony, anger, lust greed and sloth. In this message we focus on the deadly and divisive sin of pride. Definition: Pride is inordinate self-centredness, self-absorption, and self-esteem. It s the self filled with self and it s most often borne out of insecurity. Unlike some of the other deadly sins, pride stands alone. While greed, lust, gluttony, sloth, envy and anger can bring people together, pride doesn t. By definition it divides, separates, it is enmity. Dr. N. Plantinga, Calvin Seminary The wicked snub GOD, their noses stuck high in the air. Their graffiti are scrawled on the walls: "Catch us if you can!" "God is dead." Psalm 10:4, MSG First pride, then the crash-- the bigger the ego, the harder the fall. Proverbs 16:18, MSG He [Jesus] told his next story to some who were complacently pleased with themselves over their moral performance and looked down their noses at the common people: "Two men went up to the Temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax man. The Pharisee posed and prayed like this: 'Oh, God, I thank you that I am not like other people robbers, crooks, adulterers, or, heaven forbid, like this tax man. I fast twice a week and tithe on all my income.' "Meanwhile the tax man, slumped in the shadows, his face in his hands, not daring to look up, said, 'God, give mercy. Forgive me, a sinner.'" Jesus commented, "This tax man, not the other, went home made right with God. If you walk around with your nose in the air, you're going to end up flat on your face, but if you're content to be simply yourself, you will become more than yourself." The Gospel of Luke 18:9-14, MSG Yet man did not fall away to the extent of losing all his being; but when he had turned toward himself his being was less real that when he adhered to him who exists in supreme degree. St. Augustine, City of God Images by Sarah Van Sloten

Today we Crash All around me are familiar faces Worn out places, worn out faces Bright and early for their daily races Going nowhere, going nowhere And their tears are filling up their glasses No expression, no expression Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow No tomorrow, no tomorrow Tears for Fears, from their song entitled, Mad World There's nobody living right, not even one, nobody who knows the score, nobody alert for God. They've all taken the wrong turn; they've all wandered down blind alleys. No one's living right; I can't find a single one. Their throats are gaping graves, their tongues slick as mud slides. Every word they speak is tinged with poison. They open their mouths and pollute the air. They race for the honor of sinner-of-the-year, litter the land with heartbreak and ruin, don't know the first thing about living with others. They never give God the time of day. The Apostle Paul in Romans 3:10-18 In the Deep (from Crash Soundtrack) by Bird York Thought you had all the answers to rest your heart upon. but something happens don't see it coming, now you can't stop yourself. now you're out there swimming in the deep. in the deep.