The Word of God, both the preaching and hearing of it, must be central in our worship if we want to truly enjoy God's presence. In the example of Josiah in 2 Chronicles 34 we see what it looks like for the Word of God to be central in our worship as the church.

In John 4 Jesus explains that true worship must be in spirit and truth, and in this message we dig into what those each mean, and why they are so important.

Because each church family is to be God's temple, God's dwelling place, our purpose in gathering is to meet God together. This sermon shows where that's taught in Scripture, and gives practical ways we can pursue this amazing purpose.

In 2 Corinthians 3:12 - 4:6 Paul describes how the New Covenant is superior to the Old Covenant, and answers three crucial questions: (1) if the New Covenant is superior, why do some not believe? (2) If Satan blinds people, why do some end up seeing? (3) What does this mean for how we do ministry?

This message summarizes Colossians' main point, which is that Christ's infinite worth motivates us not to drift from him, but instead to walk in him. It also unpacks the last 12 verses of Colossians to show some ways that Christ's infinite worth transforms us.

How do we live faithfully toward outsiders as believers? Paul calls believers in Colossians 4:5-6 to live and speak faithfully toward outsiders with wisdom

Paul calls us to be make prayer a regular part of our lives, to pray against temptations we face, to pray with thankfulness to God for all he has done, and to pray for the advance of the gospel.

In this passage Paul helps believing bondservants and their believing masters know how God wants them to relate to each other.

In these two verses the Apostle Paul calls on children and parents to fulfill their familial roles as those who have been renewed in the image of their Creator through faith in Christ. Through the power of Christ and his Spirit both parents and children can please the Lord and bring glory to him by obedience, discipline, and love!…

As we see in Colossians 3:18-19 and Ephesians 5:22-33, God calls husbands and wives to different roles in marriage, because these roles will give the world a beautiful picture of Christ's love for the church.

In this passage Paul tells us what we can do individually and together to grow in love, and provides four powerful reasons that the Holy Spirit will use to empower us to obey.

In this passage Paul gives his readers challenging commands regarding sins like sexual purity, covetousness, and anger. But he also gives us reasons that God will use to help us obey these commands -- reasons which all connect to the fact that Christ is our only source of true life.

Paul urges his readers to seek our life in Christ by beholding him as supreme over all, and gives four powerful reasons to motivate us to persevere in this.

This sermon examines Colossians 2:16-23, challenging believers to focus on Christ as the substance of their faith, rather than getting sidetracked by religious rituals, worldly pressures, or human-made rules that cannot stop the indulgence of the flesh.

Here Paul urges these believers to keep receiving all they need from Jesus Christ, and not to be taken captive by anything else, because of six powerful truths about our Savior.

In this passage Paul gives four reasons from his own life for why we should not let anything draw us away from Christ -- because his joy in suffering shows the reality of Christ, because Christ dwells in believing Jews and Gentiles with the hope of glory, because in Christ we will receive encouragement, a community of loving believers, full assuran…

In this passage Paul counters the false teachers who tried to draw believers away from Christ, by giving seven reasons why we should keep our hearts glued to Christ.

In this passage we see that Paul was devoted to prayer for other believers, and that the focus of his prayer was on believers' spiritual growth.

Baptism is a powerful picture of how, when we trust Christ, we are united to Christ in his death and resurrection. In this sermon we explore what it means to die and rise with Christ, why this is so important, and how baptism pictures this wonderful transformation.gful.

As Paul describes his thankfulness for the church at Colossae, he teaches us that God uses our future hope to strengthen our faith in Christ and our love for each other.

Looking at Hebrews 1:1-4 to discover the supremacy of Christ above all things

As Paul concludes his letter to the church of Rome, he warns them of the danger of false teachers, equips them to resist false teaching, and encourages their hearts in the Lord.

In these 16 verses Paul commends and greets over 30 people, and shows us five essential characteristics of Christ-centered community.

As Paul explains to the believers in Rome why he has not yet visited them, we can see six aspects of his life that God would want us to imitate.

In this passage Paul gives five descriptions of God's will for the church at Rome, which are also God's will for every church, including Grace Church Abu Dhabi.

Paul wants the Church at Rome to build one another up and welcome one another for God’s glory and praise following the example of Christ, who came to serve and die for God’s glory.

Paul calls on believers to walk in love by not causing their brothers and sisters to stumble. Eating and drinking against one's conscience is sin and may lead to spiritual ruin before God. So, believers are called to walk carefully in love so as not to offend one another and tempt one to go against their conscience.…

A call for believers to embrace one another in love, setting aside judgments on non-essential differences.

As Christians we are obligated to love those around us. This kind of love does not fly int the face of God’s commands but instead upholds them, flowing from a love for God and His love for us. Likewise, knowing the time that we are in awaiting the return of Christ spurs us on to cast off darkness and live the Christian life.…

The Christian life should be marked by genuine love. This affects how we respond and interact with people inside the church community and outside. The gospel calls us to something that is radical and countercultural.

A look at Paul's call in Romans 12:1-2 to present ourselves as living sacrifices and embrace worship as a way of life, relying on the transformative power of God's Word and Spirit.

There is no greater gift Jesus can give us than a greater revelation of his glory. And in response to Lazarus' sickness, that's what he does for Martha, Mary, his disciples -- and Lazarus. And we get to read about it, and experience it, today.

Paul wraps up Romans 9-11 by showing how God's displays his breath-taking mercy in four stages of the history of salvation, concluding with a passionate celebration of God's mercy.

Paul knows that Israel's ongoing unbelief could make us think God has or will completely reject them, but Paul explains why that's not the case, and what God's amazing final plan is for Israel -- while also giving us a sobering message about the reality of God's hardening.

Romans 10:14-21 teaches that the Gospel should be proclaimed, heard, and believed yet sadly many have rejected the message.

In Romans 10 Paul helps us see that the goal of the Old Testament Law was to bring people to the faith that would give them the Messiah's gift of perfect righteousness, and what kind of faith brings us that gift today.

To show God's glory, and strengthen our faith in God's promises, Paul describes what God promises regarding the salvation of both Gentiles and Jews, and explains why -- at the present time -- so few Jews are embracing their Messiah.

In this passage Paul answers two more objections to his preaching, and then shows us what is God's ultimate, cosmic purpose in his plan of salvation -- which is profoundly encouraging.

In this passage Paul uses the way God chose Jacob to be the father of Israel to teach us four truths about how God chooses us for salvation.

Paul uses the story of the births of Isaac and Ishmael to explain that the way we become saved children of promise is by God supernaturally creating faith in our hearts.

Before Paul explains how the promises of Romans 1-8 transform our lives, he has to explain why Israel's unbelief does not raise doubts about the truth of God's promises. That's what's going on in Romans 9-11. And that's where he starts in 9:1-6.

Pastor Steve brings our Prayer Week to a close with a message from Psalm 119:17-24, in which we see the psalmist's devotion to prayer and meditation on God's Word, and learn why these are so crucial.

What does it mean to pray with faith? To answer this question, and strengthen our prayer as we head into prayer week, we look at how Paul prayed about his thorn in the flesh, how Jesus describes prayer in Mark 11:23-24, and what Paul says about the spiritual gift of faith in 1 Cor 13:1-2.

The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. (Num. 6:24-26).

The story of the wise men gives us eight reasons to trust Christ, which will result in him being the very center of our lives.

The book of Isaiah show a familiar pattern, Israel and Ahaz live against God's good laws, God calls them to repent, they don't, and God allows their sin to be punished. Despite this repeated pattern beginning with Adam, God has always had a plan, and his plan is to save his children through the bruising of his Son.…

To be gripped by the wonder of Christ's birth, it's important to understand who Christ was before he was born.

We all know that Jesus calls us to be fishers of men, but for some reason we miss the amazing promise he makes to us about this.

In this passage God calls us to not settle for shallow, trivial fellowship, but to understand and pursue the life-changing fellowship God has for us.

This sermon exploreis the urgency of serving others based on 1 Peter 4:7-11, emphasizing the importance of love as the driving force behind selfless service and highlighting the transformative power of God's grace in fulfilling our highest calling—to bring glory to the One who is worthy of all praise, honor, and adoration.…