Ccf Sunday Messages

This week we continue our 1st Corinthians study in chapter four and finish the chapter together. Paul has been dealing with the immaturity and pride that have caused division in the church there in Corinth.  They, like so many, have developed an over-inflated view of themselves that is totally inconsistent with the Spirit of God. They are “all that and a bag of chips”, and before transitioning to other matters in chapter five, Paul will provide a closing summary to the points he has been making for the past few chapters. This is an especially interesting passage as it shows how “real” the situation was.  Paul is frustrated by their behavior and amazed at their pride and immaturity.  Have you ever felt that way? The way people think about themselves—inflated ego, self centered, proud—can be so off-putting.  So Paul uses some cutting irony and contrast to hopefully rattle their cages and bring them back to reality! &#x

We live in a culture, not unlike the Corinthian culture, where the opinions of others mean a great deal to us—maybe too much in fact!  Between Facebook “likes” and followers on Twitter, people go crazy looking for approval.  Is there a deep insecurity in each of us? Even our ambitions for more — to have more, to be more, to climb the ladder, get the promotion, be successful — have led some to call this generation, Generation Stress.  Helicopter parents drive kids to have greater and greater achievements, adding additional pressure for kids to reach academic and athletic success.  Why? What is the motivation?  Good question. If we are going to be ambitious, then we should know how to handle success. What about failure? Acceptance? Rejection? Popularity? Unpopularity?  In 1 Corinthians chapter 4, Paul is dealing very personally with such things. The problem in Corinth was that the people were taking sides and they

As we approach the end of 1 Corinthians chapter 3, Paul brings a stern warning to church leadership: be careful about mixing in worldly wisdom with the Word of God to build or grow the church. The mixing in and value placed on wisdom from the worldly experts is really affecting the life and health off the church in Corinth. They believed in Jesus, but when it came to understanding marriage, divorce, sexuality, conflict resolution, and life after death, they turned to the opinions of people!  Supplementing the Word of God with the expert opinions and methods of the world kept them immature like babies. Using the example of a building, specifically a temple, Paul gives a picture to explain the warning those who are in church leadership. In doing this, he helps us catch a cool understanding of the church! In Corinth there was no lack of temples to Greek gods and goddesses. But what about a temple to Jesus?  Remember the early church met primarily in homes for a few hundred years!

Continuing our study in Paul's first letter to the Corinthian church, we turn our attention to 1 Corinthians 3.   You know, some chapters in the Bible are more complicated or more technically challenging than others. But some others are just plain and simple!  Well, 1 Corinthians 3 is one of the latter: right there, easy to grasp, and challenging to boot! So what is chapter three about? What would you say if you met a 30-year old who drinks from a baby bottle and sleeps in a crib and wears diapers? That would be astounding wouldn’t it!  It would be alarming and maybe troubling! You would know that something was really, really, really wrong. By age 30 this person should have long been past the baby stage. In this passage, Paul confronts the Corinthian christians about their behavior. They wanted real wisdom. They fancied themselves “mature” and felt Paul’s message was just not stimulating. But Paul turns the tables

This Sunday we return to 1 Corinthians, covering chapter 2; yes, you read that right, the whole chapter!  Remembering back to chapter one, Paul has the mission to try and unite the people in the Corinthian church.   Have you ever uttered the words or thought the thought, “What were they thinking”? Sure you have! I bet you have watched the news and thought that! If you have teenagers you have said that.  Maybe you have seen someone doing something you thought was absolutely ridiculous and stupid (by your estimation) and said that! You know what? I bet someone has said that about you, too!  But in our own minds, our decision seems completely rational. Other people just don’t understand!  If you explain your behavior, however, then they can understand. Without an explanation it seems like a mystery! Eight times in chapter 2 the word wisdom is mentioned.  You might substitute the word “opinion” or “d

After opening up our new study in 1st Corinthians last week, we move onto the second half of the first chapter. Verses 18-31 tackle the issues of wisdom and foolishness.  Paul seems worried that in all of the attraction to fancy and sophisticated logic and philosophical arguing, the cross was being squeezed into the background and was barely visible! Come and see how incredibly relevant this passage is today.  In a day when people will do and try and believe almost anything--except Jesus crucified--Paul's reasoning will resonate with us for sure. In the end, we are left with only God to applaud. Wait until you see what Jesus provides that all the philosophy and psychology books in the world cannot give you. If you think you are a pretty wise guy or gal you will want to hear this truth shared through the apostle Paul to the church in Corinth.

1 Corinthians is a letter written by the apostle Paul to the church in Corinth, a major city in ancient southern Greece.  As Pastor Steve opens this new study through the book of 1 Corinthians, he shares a little about the unique characteristics of this city — including the prominence of the temple of Aphrodite. Why did Paul write this letter in the first place?  What problems did the church face then and how do they compare to problems we have now? If you ever had the starry-eyed concept that “the early church” was so perfect and had no problems…..please think again!  The church in Corinth was a mess.  Paul writes to help straighten issues out for a church that exists in a twisted culture. Not only does Paul address problems, but also confusions and questions they had.  Because of their questions, we have some amazing truths about resurrection (ch 15), marriage (ch 7), the Lord’s Supper (ch 11), and love (c

We are excited to finally put the final touches on the Romans masterpiece!  What a great book and amazing study it has been! Like so many good preachers, Paul is struggling to close his sermon/letter. Just when it seems he has concluded, he opens up a new topic entirely!  Maybe it came to his mind, and without the “cut and paste” word processing options we have today, he has to tack it onto the end of his letter. But he wants to make sure it is included and it is really important. Having greeted 27 individuals by name in the opening sections of this final chapter the next few verses do not include names, but the catch-all phrases “those” and “such people”.  Who are they? What have they done? What is the problem? For full details you can listen in to the message, but here's the short version:  Paul had a list of 27 names of people who were to be embraced, but now he will warn them about people to be avoided.  That

In Ephesians chapter four we are urged to "walk worthy of the calling" that clearly involved humility, unity, and love in the body of Christ. This sounds like a tall order, and compared to what Christ has done for us, we all feel very unworthy and unable to fulfill this calling! In this message, one of our associate pastors, Dave Vollmer, walks us through key New Testament stories and passages that show the reality that is possible in living out a life of humility and love, serving and obeying God to be this trademark representation of a Christian--"by their love you will know them." Listen in as Pastor Dave shares some amazing biblical truths.

We are now entering the final chapter of our "Amazing Grace" study through the book of Romans!  And don’t think Romans 16 is a “throw away” chapter!  Yes its the end of the letter, but don’t give up now.  In some ways this is one of my favorite chapters!  In chapter 16, the “greeting chapter,” we are reminded that the letter Paul wrote was not to nameless and faceless people.  We are reminded that ministry builds relationships and relationships build ministry!  He mentions 27 people (including Phoebe in verse 1) by name and gives some details about his relationships with them!  With some he shared living space or prison space, with others he labored for Jesus.  Behind every name is a story about Paul’s Holy Spirit-led, gospel-spreading network! So, as we start the home stretch we see that this final chapter of Romans is about getting and being connected!  One of the biggest complaints I hear is that p

We are getting so close to the end of this fantastic letter from the amazing Apostle Paul to the church in Rome!  The contents have been about grace from beginning to end. As we enter the second half of chapter 15, we will see as the tone of the letter changes a bit.  Paul speaks to them about some “odds and ends” as he draws this letter to a close.   His argument made, Paul discusses some of his future travel plans with them.  Not everyone has a “pioneer spirit”, but Paul certainly does!  He will travel about 10,000 miles that we know of for the sake of the news about Jesus!  And he is not ready for retirement.  He wants to go to new frontiers for Jesus! Have you noticed how many new churches are cropping up in the Charlottesville area?  Every time I turn around I hear of a new church plant meeting in a different school somewhere in our region.  Now this is not wrong, but we could certainly agree that people in the Charl

We return to Romans with Pastor Steve this Sunday after a couple weeks in the Psalms with some of our staff pastors!  Maybe you remember, we have been discussing “Gray Matters”: those issues that are matters of opinion and tradition that can tend to separate and divide people.  For the Jews and Gentiles in Rome it was matters of food regulations and days of worship.  For us the list can continue to areas of clothing and entertainment, alcohol usage and even tattoos! Romans 15 brings this issue to a close as Paul helps us to understand the relationship between the “strong” and the “weak”.  For Paul, “strong” meant that there was an understanding of living life by grace and not legalistic regulations on non essential issues.  But the Jews, coming from more restrictive backgrounds, had more convictions and regulations.  Even at CC Fluvanna we have people coming from a variety of backgrounds, some more restrictive tha

Our Youth Pastor, Dave Blaha, continues our "Favorite Psalm" series giving us a teaching from Psalm 32. Listen in as Pastor Dave reveals the power of repentance, forgiveness, and a life instructed by God and His Word from Psalm 32.

Associate Pastor Warren McIvor kicks off a series of messages on the Psalms by encouraging us through the powerful message of Psalm 1. In this Psalm we are encouraged by the author to live a life of devotion to God's Word, "meditating on it day and night." Listen in as Pastor Warren guides us to consider what it looks like to truly dig in and study God's Word and build our life around it.

As we continue in Romans chapter 14, this will be our second of three messages concerning “gray matters:” those issues of opinion, preference, and conviction that are not clearly outlined in God’s Word.  If we are going to live by grace and not law, then we have to figure out some things!  Am I free, in terms of the security of my relationship with God, to watch R rated movies, get a tattoo, eat any kind of food I want, have a glass of wine or go to yoga class? Last week we learned that we cannot pressure other people to conform to our convictions!  People should not live to please us.  Jesus is their master, not me!   This week we discuss the balance of freedom and love.  I think we know instinctively that in a healthy community, freedom has limitations, right?  That is why laws exist: to protect freedoms.  I am free to own things and another person is not free to steal them from me! Yet, I think we all recognize that we live

One of the cool things we enjoy at Calvary Chapel Fluvanna is tremendous diversity — all kinds of diversity. We have age diversity, some racial diversity, economic diversity, and the one I want to discuss today is “spiritual diversity”.  What does that mean?   It means that on any given Sunday, sitting in the seats are people that are fairly new believers and those that have been believers a long time. It means we have former Catholics, Episcopalians, Mennonite, Mormons, Methodists, and Baptists; and I am sure I left some out!  Every one of these believers comes with their own convictions about how Christians should behave: what we can enjoy and what we should restrict!   Is it necessary to get dressed up in a suit and tie or can I come to church in casual clothing?  Can I watch R rated movies?  What about dancing?  What about music choices?  Is it better to homeschool or send our kids to public school?  Do dietary laws st

We continue is this very practical section of the book of Romans, as Paul shows how grace influences our relationships, even our relationship with governing authorities, from elected officials to sports referees!  Having left us with a discussion about paying people what they are owed — including our taxes — we come again to more personal relationships. Have you ever over-slept?  You know the feeling: one too many snoozes of the alarm, falling back asleep and then waking up to see that you are late!  Ok, now the stage is set.  Your imagination is engaged and you are wondering what in the world this has to do with Romans 13!  The image of oversleeping is not mine, but Paul’s!  He imagines the scene but in a spiritual context!  He encourages a dozing church to wake up and smell the coffee.  He challenges them to get dressed and get going. If that was true for them at that time, I think it is more true for us and the contempo

As we open up Romans chapter 13 we have our chance to discuss politics and religion from God's word on the same morning!  That should make for an interesting study! As followers of Jesus in the first century and the 21st century we have discussed our relationship to God and to each other.  What about our relationship to government?  How does our thinking about government need to change?  Whether you are a Jew living in ancient Rome or an African American living in Palmyra, human government has always been controversial, right? God has much to say to us about how we handle authority and the authorities in our lives. Paul speaks of it in Romans 13 and Peter mentions it in 1 Peter 2.  Paul discusses this with Timothy in 1 Tim 2 and to his other ministry intern, Titus, in Titus 3.  Even Jesus discussed his own Kingdom which was not of this world. Where does authority come from?  Is God sovereign over both good and evil rulers?  What

This section of Romans 12 is an extremely practical passage revealing God’s outline for relationships in His family and beyond. Through these verses we see what the church can be when our opinion of ourselves is lowered because our opinion of God is elevated: genuine love, family-like affection for each other, continuing in prayer, blessing those who curse us, and much more! As we study verses 9-21 we will be having a necessary and frank discussion about relationships God-style!  How are our relationships with each other transformed when God is at the center of our lives?  How is the church transformed when we think differently about each other and our priorities.  How can we invite people to a holy (different) God when the church behaves just like the world? You do not want to miss the practical and challenging teaching of Romans 12:9-21; listen in as Pastor Steve shares these important truths!

After 11 chapters of the truth about God’s grace, last time we were together in Romans we saw the opening of chapter 12 getting very practical. In those opening verses of chapter 12, Paul challenges us to present our bodies to God! This is the beginning of long lasting and true transformation. This is when we begin to see God’s will working in and through our lives. This is when the changes become internal and not just external. So, if I give my body (life) to God, what will he make me do? This is a scary thing, right? Verses 3-8 give the starting point for the first changes that happen when you stop trying to be like worldly people and start being godly! What do you think Paul hits on first? Maybe you would think that the first thing would be to tell them to go out and evangelize? Or maybe to join a local church? Or get new clothes? Listen in as Pastor Steve reveals what Paul does address as he talks about this transformation. As you might expect, these are very importan