In this talk, we focus on a slightly more emotionally risky aspect of devotion. The part where we share not just what we have, but who we are. It’s the intimacy reflected in a meal in a home, a conversation around a dinner table, a showing of our cards with the courage to be seen. A devotion to friendship.
Friendship can look different in different seasons of life, but some challenges get in the way no matter who or where we are. We will explore a few of these together, and look to the bible for examples of friendship we can look up to. The good news: wherever you are on your friendship journey, you can become a better friend because you have access to the source of love.
By Tavia Grubbs
In this talk, we discover what true devotion to those in need looks like through the example of the early church. God's heart for those in need is undeniable. Just as Jesus saw His own face in "the least of these" (Matthew 25), we're called to see Christ in those in need around us. We are invited to move from awareness to action, starting where we are with what we have.
By Noah Sanford
Whilst the text doesn’t explicitly state that the first Christians ‘devoted’ themselves to signs and wonders, it’s clear that the miraculous was an ongoing part of their early Christian experience. This is more than enough of a challenge to us, because for most Christians, the regular experience of the miraculous is not their reality. And yet, the Christian faith is a miraculous faith from start to finish. And Jesus’ clear instruction to us who follow him is to do the things He did, and even greater ones too! So, we would do well to learn to pray for, seek out, and expect Jesus to do miraculous things.
But not for their own sake. Miracles are always signs, not ends in themselves. They signal to Jesus as God the Messiah, the one whom all humanity longs for and seeks. And, they signal that His kingdom has come. As Christians, we’re all called to be part of this signaling work - to preach the good news, heal the sick, and cast out demons. It is what makes our faith so exciting and life-giving!
By Ed Flint
Continuing with Acts 2’s vision of the early church as a radical, Spirit-filled community — not simply a weekly meeting or a religion of “right belief,” but a living preview of God’s kingdom on earth - this week we examine prayer.
The early believers were devoted to prayer, learning to pray from Jesus Himself, who showed them prayer is rooted in love, not effort, and meant to reorient us daily to God’s presence. Through practices like silence, honesty, and communal prayer, we resist the hurry of life, deepen our trust in God’s kindness, and grow as a family on mission together.
By Hannah Flint
From the beginning, the first Christians celebrated the Lord’s Supper together. The spiritual significance of the meal is past, present and future.
When we take communion we are acknowledging the once and for all work of Jesus’ death in history; we experience his Spirit feeding us, grafting us to him, as well as to one another in the present; and we are reassured of Jesus’ return and the hopeful expectation of heaven. Communion is as integral to our faith now as it was then, and the more we devote ourselves to it, the more we open ourselves to the transformative work of the Spirit.
By Ed Flint
This week, we’re in part two of our new series, Devoted—a short walk through a few, but very important, verses in Acts 2 about what the very first Christians gave themselves to.
Fellowship. It’s a word that might seem pretty blandly church-ish, but Luke has something far richer in mind: koinonia, the shared life that flows from belonging to the Triune God. We explore how this fellowship is different to, and more than, other kinds of community, how it’s shaped by Christ’s self-giving love, and how it calls us to a deeper kind of commitment to one another here and now. It’s a lofty vision, but a heavenly invitation all the same!
By Hannah Flint
Kicking off our ‘Devoted’ series from Acts, we consider what it means to be devoted to the apostles' teaching.
At Pentecost, 3000 were cut to the heart by the message of the gospel. But their faith did not remain solely in the realm of the emotional. They did not disdain their intellect, but devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching.
We do the same - neither prioritizing our emotions nor our minds. Anti-intellectualism is in fact incompatible with the fullness of the Spirit, for the simple fact that the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. So, we seek out Godly, intelligent teaching and we submit to being teachable.
But we don’t allow devotion to the apostle’s teaching to be an end in itself. Rather it is the means by which the Spirit flows through us to bring the Kingdom of God to our world.
By Ed Flint
It’s a regular rhythm for us at bread to share stories of how Jesus is meeting us in real time in our lives.
Today we’ll hear from five people in our community as they testify to the ways the voice of God is meeting them in each of their unique journeys.
Throughout this short exploration of the book of Jonah, we have been confronted with the radical – and uncomfortable - nature of God as being full of compassion. If we are on the receiving end, it is quite lovely! But when we are charged to proclaim that mercy to others – at least some of whom we would prefer not be given the opportunity to hear it lest they repent! – it is a different story.
In a world in which we are weaponized against one another, Jonah calls us, in spite of himself, to learn compassion from God – and especially towards those we think, perhaps accurately, least deserving of it. If we are going to be at all useful in partnering with God to save the world, it is a lesson needing to be learned.
By Bill Dogterom
As we dive into Jonah chapter 3, we find a reluctant prophet carrying a very short message to his enemies in Nineveh.
In this talk, we explore a few questions together: What does it mean for us that the whole capital city of such a brutal empire responded so spectacularly to God’s invitation (even to include the animals!)? What’s with all the mourning clothes and ashes? And what does “repentance” even mean, for our context? What is the Spirit of God inviting us to, and how can we join him?
By Nelly D'Alessandro
Everybody loves a redemption arc, and it's tempting to try to give one to Jonah by the end of Chapter 2. But has Jonah really had a change of heart, or just a change of mind?
After a series of chaotic events, the action in our story hits a complete halt. 3 days and 3 nights of silence. Darkness. Leaving Jonah alone with his thoughts, and with his God. Not only has Jonah run physically from where God called him to be, he has traveled spiritually to the depths of Sheol.
In this talk, we explore Jonah's prayer inside the belly of the fish, and what it shows us about Jonah's heart. Jonah might not be ready to love his enemies, but he is ready to recognize how his path was leading him to death and God' faithfulness through it. He is finally ready to obey, albeit through clenched teeth.
By Tavia Grubbs
In this series introduction to Jonah, we explore how to approach such a small but formidable prophetic book, along with the historical context of the story.
The story of Jonah asks us to take seriously the outrageously scandalous grace of God and the ways (with Jonah) we may find ourselves running from His presence. All throughout chapter 1, we find Jonah doing exactly the opposite of what we’d expect; and, as we follow along, let us consider our own instincts in responding to the painful invitations from God toward our individual “Ninevahs.”
By Nelly D'Alessandro
The final commandment is like a lens through which to view, and the key to living out, all the others. Murder, idolatry, stealing, failing to rest; these all proceed from covetousness. This is because coveting is a matter not of outward behavior, but of the heart. And when our heart is misaligned, everything else in our life will be too.
Desire is an essential part of what it is to be human, but we’re rarely in control of what it goes after. With the exception of our fundamental material needs like food and shelter, we’re lead by our desire not primarily for things, but for identity. We desire what other people desire. And when those desires are not met, the result is often anger or violence. The only one who can satisfy our inbuilt desire is God himself, and in Jesus we have the only worthy model for our desire. He is who we’re called to imitate. And when we set our hearts on him, all covetousness for what others desire, and which will never satisfy, is robbed of all its destructive power.
By Ed Flint