Category Archives: Gospel

“Service of Darkness” Good Friday March 29th

Posted on by
Reply

1401872_76470167

Using candles, we will retell the events of Jesus’ birth, life, and earthly ministry leading up to his final moments on the cross. As people come to join Jesus and His ministry, more and more candles will be lit.  And then, as people turn and walk away, all the candles will be extinguished. Concluding with His final words on the cross, the service will end, the “Jesus” candle will be put out, and the service will end in darkness and silence.

Come join us at 7:00 PM to remember the life and death of our Savior. It’s a story that will forever change your celebration of Easter.

Childcare will be provided downstairs for ages birth-5 years old.

Advent Calendar December 24-30

Posted on by
Reply

advent graphic 2012 -- banner-size

Our King of Glory has come! Honor and remember him this week as we step beyond Advent into present, daily acknowledgement of his reign!

  • Dec. 24 - Write to God expressing what about him you find most glorious. Read Isaiah 40.
  • Dec. 25 - Read Isaiah 43:1-7. What does it mean to you that you have been created to display God’s glory?

The King has arrived! Live under his reign this week:

  • Dec. 26 - How will you be defined by the promises of the God who remembers, instead of present struggle? Read Psalm 98; Luke 1:72
  • Dec. 27 - Justice rests in the hands of our King. How can you look on injustice with hope? Read Psalm 72; Matthew 2:11.
  • Dec. 28 - Immanuel has come and remains by his Spirit. Ask him to speak to you and lead you today. Read Psalm 46; Matthew 1:23.
  • Dec. 29 - God’s glory is openly displayed in Christ! How are you beholding it? Reflecting it? Read Psalm 24; Luke 2:9, 14.
  • Dec. 30 -  Our King of Faithfulness, Righteousness, Closeness and Glory reigns! Rest today in expectation! Read Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14.

REALITY as ONE

Posted on by
Reply

One Lord . . . One Faith . . . One Baptism . . . One Family

On Sunday August 26th instead of our normal 3 Sunday gatherings, we will join together as one giant REALITY family. Everyone will meet at the Port Plaza at 10 AM for worship, a special message for our united church family, and the actual baptism itself.

Immediately following, we will celebrate it all with a delicious barbecue and a host of family activities. Feel free to invite your friends.

Parking is available in a reserved lot for our event near 915 Washington St.
Bring a blanket or folding chairs.

For lunch, REALITY is providing all the burgers, hot dogs & drinks. Please bring the rest according to your last name:
A-I Salads
J-P Side dishes
Q-Z Desserts

Serve Thurston

Posted on by
Reply

In keeping with the call to saturate our community with the hope of the gospel, Reality has partnered with other churches through Serve Thurston in a season of service focused on the Thurston County region.

Serve Thurston‘s vision was inspired by the Portland area churches’ passion to lovingly serve their community as one united body. At Reality, we hope our time spent serving the community in a unified body of believers will foster and develop deep, meaningful connections for continued service.

Check out Serve Thurston’s website for more information.

Here is a list of opportunities Reality has committed to. If you’re wondering how you can get involved, either contact Reality at admin@realityolympia.com, or the specific contact information for each of the events.

Pet Parade
The annual summer Pet Parade begins over at Capitol Lake and winds through the streets of downtown before ending at Sylvester Park. Since this even runs right in front of Reality Church, we will be offering free food, drinks, and restrooms for those lining up to watch the parade. We hope to add to the fun and connect with more families who are celebrating together.

Date: Saturday, August 18th
Time: 8am-12 noon (parade begins at 10am)
Location: Reality Church
620 Franklin St SE
Olympia, WA 98501
Organizer: Paul Jones
paul@realityolympia.com (360) 584-8028

Back to School BBQ-Roosevelt Elementary School
For the second year, we are providing a free barbecue for the 400-500 students, parents, and siblings the day before school when they drop of their school supplies.  Our volunteer teams provide all the set up, clean up, food prep, food service, games, and activities to bless the school and get the school year off on there right foot. This year there will be a School Supply Drive incorporated in the event; a list of needed supplies will be provided as we approach the date.
Date: Tuesday, September 4th
Time: 3-7pm
Location: Roosevelt Elementary School
1417 San Francisco St NE
Olympia, WA 98506
Organizer: Callie Jones
paulandcallie@yahoo.com (360) 907-6373

Downtown Clean Up
Every year, the week before Artswalk, the Olympia Downtown Association mobilizes volunteers to sweep, clean, and pick up all of the downtown core. We will be bring volunteers to assist in the clean up process and work with other Olympians.
Date: Saturday, September 29th
Time: 8:30am-12 noon
Location: Check in at Olympia Press Buidings
115 State Ave NE Olympia, WA 98501
Organizer: Vida
odaevent@tss.net (360) 357-8948 www.downtownolympia.com/about/cleanup

Feed the Hungry
Every week, a team of peole from First Baptist Church serves a hot cooked meal to 300-400 people in downtown Olympia in addition to providing some other basic life essentials. We send a team of people every 1st and 5th Sunday.
Date: Every Sunday
Time: 3:30-6:00pm (actual meal time is 4:00-5:30pm)
Location: First Baptist Church of Olympia (in Fellowship Hall)
904 Washington St. SE
Olympia, WA 98501
(360) 357-3881
Organizer: Donna Dittmer
feedthehungry@realityolympia.com or (360) 584-8028

Family Support Shelter
This is the only shelter in the City of Olympia for homeless families to be able to stay together overnight. Shelter hosts welcome the families (who are pre-screened) into the space and provide assistance to the guests until morning. Hosts sleep in the host room after the families have gone to bed.
Date: Ongoing
Time: 7pm-7am Night Shift
Location: First Christian Church
701 Franklin St SE
Olympia, WA 98501
Organizer: Reality Volunteers: Sharon Wang
(360) 584-8028

A Response to Westboro

Posted on by
Reply

The following quote is a joint statement from several Thurston County pastors in response to the upcoming arrival of Westboro “Baptist Church” to our area this week. I’m saddened that we as pastors even have to make declarations like this, but I am thrilled with the unity that has developed among our local church community that allows us to speak with a common voice.

June 4, 2012

We the undersigned pastors from Thurston County are saddened to learn of the intentions of a group from Westboro “Baptist Church” to visit Olympia this month. People from Westboro, representing themselves as Christians, have carried out a misguided mission all across the nation picketing public venues and disrupting the funerals of servicemen with messages such as “God hates fags,” “thank God for IEDs,” and other equally deplorable statements. We the undersigned regret that Westboro has selected Olympia as its next target. Wherever the Westboro group goes, confusion and hurt seem to follow. Our desire as followers of Jesus Christ is to bring clarity and healing.

The fact is that the people of Westboro are wrong in their characterization of God. They do not reflect the heart and mind of Christ as revealed in the Bible; nor are they an accurate reflection of how the Bible describes a follower of Christ. While the Westboro group claims to have a Biblical basis for their rhetoric, their message is clearly adverse to many passages from the Bible like the following:

John 3:16–17: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

1 Tim. 2:3–6: “God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men…”

2 Peter 3:9: “He [God] is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

The message of the Westboro church is a distorted view of the Scripture. Jesus instructs His followers to “love our neighbors” and even to “love our enemies”. He goes so far as to say that it would be our love that would demonstrate that we are His disciples. (John 13:34-35) Thus, we reaffirm the clear calling given us by God to be a part of His loving and redemptive plan for the world. Jesus did not come to condemn the world (John 3:17), nor did He send His followers to condemn the world. We call on all Christians to follow the example of Jesus who demonstrated both grace and truth in everything He did, and to respond to the commissioning of God to love and serve all the people of our community.

We recognize that the church has not always used her voice in the appropriate way in times like these. It is partly because of this that we choose not to be silent in this instance. To all who may be hurt as the result of the unbiblical words and actions of these few from Westboro; we extend a hand of mercy to you. We are sorry if you have been subjected to this hurtful rhetoric. They do not speak for us. We want you to know that God loves you so much that He came to die for you. We are here if you want to learn more about this God — the true God of the Bible.

Peacefully,

Signed… (Updated list of names can be found on the Living Water website)

 

QUOTE: A Meal with Jesus

Posted on by
Reply

“The food we consume, the table around which we sit, and the companions gathered with us have as their end our communion with one another and with God.  The Israelites were redeemed to eat with God on the mountain, and we’re redeemed for the great messianic banquet that we anticipate when we eat together as a Chrstian community.  We proclaim Christ in mission so that others might hear the invitation to join the feast.

Creation, redemption, and mission all exist so that this meal can take place” (138).

This book is a great, short read I thoroughly recommend to anyone looking to redefine their understanding of how our daily rhythms are meant to be shaped by the Gospel.  In fact, if the previous sentence makes no sense to you, I still thoroughly recommend it as an early step to helping you understand the Gospel as something that’s so much better than get-out-of-hell-free or your best life now.

Jesus’ good news is all encompassing, and until we wrestle with it in its fullness, across all 168 hours we’re given every week our Jesus is not big enough.  I hope this book helps you wrestle in just such a way.

A Meal with Jesus by Tim Chester

Posted on by
Reply

From A Meal with Jesus by Tim Chester:

Think about the people you know. Think about yourself.

  1. How do they define salvation? How will they know they’ve arrived? “I’ll be happy, fulfilled, accepted if…”
  2. What must they do to be saved? What law or rules must they follow? “To achieve this I’ve got to…”
  3. How do they view people who don’t measure up to this law? “People who don’t fit in are…”
  4. What happens when they don’t measure up? “When I don’t achieve, then…”

…Every version of salvation involves a principle, a rule, a law. If your idea of salvation is to have friends accept you, they your first commandment will be: ‘Thou shalt not be uncool.’ And uncool people must be avoided at all costs. If your idea of savlation is a beautiful home, then your prophet will be Martha Stewart. Your rule will be antique pine, tiled floors, and distressed paint. Or maybe clean lines, white walls, and no clutter. Your first commandment will be: ‘Thou shalt not be untidy.’” (28)
A Meal with Jesus by Tim Chester

Gospel and ‘Personal Credibility’

Posted on by
1

I don’t know about you, but every time I read through the list of counterfeit sources of righteousness we talked about yesterday I end up seeing myself.  I’ve placed my credibility in my job, family, theology, intellect, schedule, etc. before and I’m sure I’ll do it again.

While it can be helpful to point out the places we mistakenly look to validation, the next steps is for us to figure out how to speak the Gospel to our brokenness.  What do you say to the person who places their worth in their legalistic performance or intellectual prowess or financial insight or, or, or?

What we’re really talking about here is the issue of Gospel fluency. We’re seeking to answer the question: How does the Gospel address every area of our sin and brokenness? As we learn to answer this question we become a more Gospel fluent people able to interpret and apply the work of Jesus regardless of the situation.  This is a good thing for us as individuals and this is a good thing for our city.  BUT this is something we need to grow in together.

So, as learners and disciples, let’s try to tackle this together.  Any brave souls want to put some thoughts out to try and apply the Gospel to one of these issues (here’s the list again)?

  1. JOB RIGHTEOUSNESS: I’m a hard worker, so God will reward me.
  2. FAMILY RIGHTEOUSNESS: Becuase I “do things right” as a parent, I’m more godly than parents who can’t control their kids.
  3. THEOLOGICAL RIGHTEOUSNESS: I have good theology.  God prefers me over those who have bad theology.
  4. INTELLECTUAL RIGHTEOUSNESS: I am a better read, more articulate, and more culturally savvy than others, which obviously makes me superior
  5. SCHEDULE RIGHTEOUSNESS: I am self-disciplined and rigorous in my time management, which makes me more mature than others.
  6. FLEXIBILITY RIGHTEOUSNESS: In a world that’s busy, I’m flexible and relaxed.  I always make time for others.  Shame on those who don’t!
  7. MERCY RIGHTEOUSNESS: I care about the poor and disadvantaged the way everyone else should.
  8. LEGALISTIC RIGHTEOUSNESS: I don’t drink, smoke, or chew, or date girls who do.  Too many Christians just aren’t concerned about holiness these days.
  9. FINANCIAL RIGHTEOUSNESS: I manage money wisely and stay out of debt.  I’m not like those materialistic Christians who can’t control their spending.
  10. POLITICAL RIGHTEOUSNESS: If you really love God, you’ll vote for my condidate.
  11. TOLERANCE RIGHTEOUSNESS: I am open-minded and caritable toward those who don’t agree with me.  In fact, I’m a lot like Jesus that way!

Have you seen this righteousness?

Posted on by
Reply

Bob Thune and Will Walker have put out a great study called The Gospel-Centered Life that I just had to share with you.

While the books lays out bunches of stellar tools and ideas, lesson two was especially poignant for me today.  In the section they ask, “What do you count on to give you a sense of ‘personal credibility’ (validity, acceptance, good standing)?”  Following the question, they offer some examples of counterfeit sources of justification we often look to besides Jesus:

JOB RIGHTEOUSNESS: I’m a hard worker, so God will reward me.

FAMILY RIGHTEOUSNESS: Because I “do things right” as a parent, I’m more godly than parents who can’t control their kids.

THEOLOGICAL RIGHTEOUSNESS: I have good theology.  God prefers me over those who have bad theology.

INTELLECTUAL RIGHTEOUSNESS: I am a better read, more articulate, and more culturally savvy than others, which obviously makes me superior

SCHEDULE RIGHTEOUSNESS: I am self-disciplined and rigorous in my time management, which makes me more mature than others.

FLEXIBILITY RIGHTEOUSNESS: In a world that’s busy, I’m flexible and relaxed.  I always make time for others.  Shame on those who don’t!

MERCY RIGHTEOUSNESS: I care about the poor and disadvantaged the way everyone else should.

LEGALISTIC RIGHTEOUSNESS: I don’t drink, smoke, or chew, or date girls who do.  Too many Christians just aren’t concerned about holiness these days.

FINANCIAL RIGHTEOUSNESS: I manage money wisely and stay out of debt.  I’m not like those materialistic Christians who can’t control their spending.

POLITICAL RIGHTEOUSNESS: If you really love God, you’ll vote for my candidate.

TOLERANCE RIGHTEOUSNESS: I am open-minded and charitable toward those who don’t agree with me.  In fact, I’m a lot like Jesus that way!

Sure the list isn’t exhaustive, but man how I’ve taken refuge in these righteousnesses apart from Christ!

This small group study is available from New Growth Press in both the participant’s guide and a leader guide.  Check it out!

Moving beyond fear – The Gathered and Scattered Church

Posted on by
Reply

“You must not…”  We’ve all heard it.  You must not crack your knuckles.  You must not talk that way.  You must not eat that food.  You must not, you must not, you must not… Whether you’re an expectant mom or a new homebuyer everyone has their own set of “you-must’s” (or must-not’s) that you simply must do.

The funny thing is most times even the you-musts that help us hardly end up sticking, right?  Sure we may try them for a day or two, but musts offer thin motivation at best.

In the church you-must’s commonly have virtues and sins attached to them.  ”You must not lust!  You must not covet!  You must not be prideful!”  The question I keep returning to is: Why?  Why must I? Or, why must I not?

Will it cost me God’s approval?  Will my acceptance before the Father be called in to question?  Will Jesus love me less?  No.  Will it cost me my salvation?  Do you believe in Jesus?  Do you rest in the sufficiency of his work to secure your position before the Father?  Then no, you don’t need to do anything.

“So,” I’ve heard people object, “where is the incentive to not sin?  If we tell people they can sin and still be loved and accepted they’ll lose control completely!”  But this is exactly where the Gospel applies.

All sin, according to the Bible is a perversion of God’s original intent.  In other words, sin is what takes place when we try to meet our innermost longings with things that are not able to satisfy them.  All of us desire love, belonging, control, purpose, etc.  And all of us find love, belonging, control, etc. in various places–some broken, some not.

The Good News Jesus proclaimed in his life and made available through his death is that we no longer need to give ourselves to pursuing things that will not satisfy us.  We no longer need to abuse ourselves or others to be loved–God loves us unconditionally.  We no longer need to wear masks to belong–God accepts us and is transforming us from the inside out.  We no longer need to manipulate to control–we can trust that God is in control.

So, if we’re no longer needing to live destructively to fulfill our desires apart from God, what does it look like to live with the fulfillment of our desires already provided for?  More to come…