RAIN OR SHINE OUR CANDLELIGHT SERVICE IS TOMORROW AT 5PM

Our traditional, candlelight Christmas Eve Service is just a day away! We’re eager to gather together in the beautiful Ebell Courtyard to celebrate the birth of Jesus. The forecasted rain is supposed to clear up for tomorrow evening. But if it rains, we’ll move our service indoors to the Ebell Ballroom. Either way, we’ll share in the joy of Jesus together.

THERE’S STILL TIME TO INVITE YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS, AND NEIGHBORS

If you still have family, friends, or neighbors you’d like to invite, send or share the digital invite on social media by downloading this flyer.

If you or any friends or family you’ve invited have questions about masks, meeting indoors, or health & safety protocols feel free to contact a pastor here.

DECEMBER 20 - DECEMBER 26

Every Tuesday we publish a blog post to lay out in one place what’s going in the life of the church for the upcoming week. See below for a snapshot of what’s on the calendar this week:

DECEMBER FALLOW MONTH REMINDER

• It’s our annual Fallow Month- Small groups, Men’s & Women’s meetings are cancelled. We do this so you can press into natural and more intimate opportunities to relate to your church family and neighbors. The holiday season is notoriously one of the busiest times of the year. We want to help you to take advantage of the few free moments you have to spend unhurried, unscheduled time with one another and with family for the grand purpose of allowing your heart to be re-fertilized by the work of Christ.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 24: CANDLELIGHT CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE

• 5:00 pm - Meeting Room: Courtyard

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 26: SUNDAY GATHERING AT THE EBELL CLUB

• 10:00 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom

A FANTASTIC EXPRESSION OF OUR DENOMINATIONAL PARTNERSHIP

We have the joy of being partners with around 100 other Sovereign Grace Churches around the world. The benefits of this partnership are largely unseen day to day: doctrinal accountability, the availability of an adjudication process for difficult church conflicts, support and training for pastoral teams and many others. However, there are other benefits, like the Sovereign Grace Journal, which every member gets to enjoy on the regular. Don’t let these ones pass you by.

A PUBLICATION OF ORIGINAL THEOLOGICAL, PRACTICAL, AND DEVOTIONAL ARTICLES

This journal is filled with articles written by Sovereign Grace pastors on timely issues and eternally important subjects. This article is published to fill your heart with the Truth of God’s Word and to further saturate your life with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Download or buy it and take some time over the next few weeks to read and digest this valuable publication.

You can download the entire PDF. Or purchase a hard copy off Amazon. Or simply read it article by article here.

THE BIRTH OF JESUS IS A ROYAL SUMMONS

You may not sense a driving need in your life for a king, but you and everyone around you wants a certain kind of kingdom. You want the world you live in to look a particular way. You think others ought to act a particular way. You want a kingdom. But there is no kingdom without a king. Jesus was born to rule as king over the only kingdom that will last forever. His birth, then, is a summons. Will you receive His summons by repentance and faith or will you reject His summons and live outside His kingdom? Learn more in last week’s 4th Advent message.

LISTEN TO THE SERMON HERE

EMMANUEL (GLORY IN THE HIGHEST) BY SOVEREIGN GRACE MUSIC

Take a few minutes to listen to this Christ-exalting song and read through the lyrics in advance of this Sunday’s service.

OUR CANDLELIGHT SERVICE IS NEXT FRIDAY AT 5PM

We are excited to announce our annual Candlelight Christmas Eve Service at the Ebell Club! It’s our joy to celebrate the birth of Jesus, who came into this world in order to be God with us and save us from our sins. We’ll celebrate his birth by singing well-loved songs, reading the story of his birth from Scripture, and hearing the good news of his birth proclaimed in English and Spanish! We’re eager to gather together in the Ebell Courtyard for this traditional, outdoor, candlelight Christmas Eve Service.

INVITE YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS, AND NEIGHBORS

This service is an excellent opportunity for us to reach out to our friends, family, and neighbors - many of whom may not know the deep and all-satisfying joy that Jesus came to bring. Members of Cross of Grace, help us to extend the invitation in these ways:

1. Download this flyer to invite your friends, family, and neighbors or post on social media to spread the word about our Christmas Eve Service.

2. We’ll have printed flyers this Sunday for you. Grab a few and pass them out.

May all that attend hear the good news of the gospel and receive the joy of Jesus!

DECEMBER 13 - DECEMBER 19

Every Tuesday we publish a blog post to lay out in one place what’s going in the life of the church for the upcoming week. See below for a snapshot of what’s on the calendar this week:

DECEMBER FALLOW MONTH REMINDER

• It’s our annual Fallow Month- Small groups, Men’s & Women’s meetings are cancelled. We do this so you can press into natural and more intimate opportunities to relate to your church family and neighbors. The holiday season is notoriously one of the busiest times of the year. We want to help you to take advantage of the few free moments you have to spend unhurried, unscheduled time with one another and with family for the grand purpose of allowing your heart to be re-fertilized by the work of Christ.

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 18: NEIGHBORHOOD CANVAS

• 10:00 am - Ebell Club Parking lot

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 19: SUNDAY GATHERING AT THE EBELL CLUB

• 10:00 am - Meeting Room: Ballroom

COME TO THE EBELL PARKING LOT AT 10AM SATURDAY

This Saturday we will walk the neighborhood of French Park, praying for and with our neighbors, inviting them to Christmas Eve Service, all with the expectation that we would behold God's mercy toward our city. Kids are welcome. This is a chance for us to “go into our city” so that we might have the opportunity to “speak to our city”. If the thought of inviting strangers to church is scary or uncomfortable, you can even just drop church invitations on doorsteps to start. But the important thing is that you start. So come and join us Saturday and see the details below.

Date: 12/18/21

Time: 10am-12pm

Location: Park in the Ebell Parking Lot

JESUS WAS BORN TO STAND ONCE AND SIT FOREVER

Few among us live our daily lives thinking, “I need a priest.” Such a thought conjures images of men in black robes and sacrificial altars. But a priest’s role and function is fundamentally that of a mediator. You and I objectively and desperately need a mediator. We need someone to arbitrate the divine dilemma between us and God. We need someone to solve the problem of sin we can’t solve. We need someone who doesn’t have to first atone for their sin and then the sins of others. We need someone who can offer a perfect sacrifice and not have to stand daily at their service. On the first Christmas morning, Jesus was born to perfectly satisfy that need. Listen to last Sunday’s third Advent message from Hebrews 10:1-18 to hear more.

LISTEN TO THE SERMON HERE

JOIN US THIS SATURDAY AT 6PM AT THE HOULTON HOME

We’re having a Cast of Christmas Party and you’re invited! Join us for an evening of fun and fellowship as we celebrate the birth of Christ by enjoying a meal and some friendly competition! Come dressed to impress as your favorite Christmas character (pop-culture, traditional, biblical*, or whatever you interpret as a Christmas character) and compete to win the highly-coveted, “Costume of Christmas” Award!

Here are some more details about our activities for the evening:

1. Costume Contest - Compete to win the “Costume of Christmas” Award in the following 4 categories: 1. Kids, 2. Best Overall, 3. Most Creative, 4. Most Obscure/Least Recognizable. Can’t wait to see this Cast of Christmas assemble!

2. White Elephant Gift Exchange - We’ll have 2 gift exchanges, one for the kids and one for adults. Please bring a pre-wrapped & unlabelled gift to enter into the exchange. For the kids, just grab something from around the house. For adults, there’s a $5 spending limit, but we encourage you to find something fun around the house if you can.

3. Potluck - This party is brought to you, by you! We’re calling upon you to help us have plenty of tasty Christmas treats to eat and drink. Bonus points will be assigned if your costume pairs with your dish! To sign up for the potluck, click here.

Contact us if you have any questions.

*Please be sure to keep any portrayal of biblical characters reverent and respectful!