We take a look at our church's role in Christian education. It is an area that often has more questions than answers, so rather than looking at the macro, I will leave that to the "experts" while I try to share a non-experts thoughts on an important matter. ...

As we get closer each day to our new church plant, we want to use every means possible to help people be as informed and as prayerful as possible as we embark on this new mission. For many, the idea of planting churches is a new concept. Others have perhaps heard about it but never participated and have questions. Others may question the model, things like: "what do you...

This is a time of year where we celebrate new life. Trees are growing new leaves, flowers are in bloom, people are emerging after a long winter. This is also a time where we celebrate the greatest of all New Life, our new life in Christ. ...

I have done my best to take a look at the issue of "chronic pain" through first and third person lenses. I am my no means an expert on the topic. Nor do I claim to always be victorious in the struggle. These thoughts are my own. That being said, I believe they are in line with what I read in God's Inspired and Holy Word. ...

As we begin a new year at Redeemer Fellowship, the beginning of our first full year as a church, we are going to use this time to restate the foundational truths that join us together as a church. We strongly encourage each member of the body to read these posts, as they give us opportunity to reinforce what is shared from the pulpit and to take added time and care to cla...

As we begin a new year at Redeemer Fellowship, the beginning of our first full year as a church, we are going to use this time to restate the foundational truths that join us together as a church. We strongly encourage each member of the body to read these posts, as they give us opportunity to reinforce what is shared from the pulpit and to take added time and care to cla...

As we begin a new year at Redeemer Fellowship, the beginning of our first full year as a church, we are going to use this time to restate the foundational truths that join us together as a church. We strongly encourage each member of the body to read these posts, as they give us opportunity to reinforce what is shared from the pulpit and to take added time and care to cla...

As we begin a new year at Redeemer Fellowship, the beginning of our first full year as a church, we are going to use this time to restate the foundational truths that join us together as a church. We strongly encourage each member of the body to read these posts, as they give us opportunity to reinforce what is shared from the pulpit and to take added time and care to cla...

This Christmas, we finished our Advent Series by taking a Biblical Theology approach, tracing the themes of the birth narrative and the themes of "rescue" from cover to cover in the Word. Merry Christmas to all....

As we prepare to kick off our Community Groups, people have had a variety of questions. This is a copy of what we have sent to each of the community group leaders, and we wanted to put it out to the church so we are all on the same page and to do our best to answer any questions. ...

As I enter year 12 of being in pastoral ministry, I am noticing a sad reality. Many who began when I did are no longer along for the ride. It is sad and it is sobering. This series is aimed at rethinking how we view the pastoral ministry, calling and vocation. There has been much written about how a pastor is to relate to their congregation, but tragically little aimed...

We just finished our 2016 VBS, but I couldn't help but think how God used the 2015 VBS to set in motion a unique work of God on the Jersey Shore. ...

As I enter year 12 of being in pastoral ministry, I am noticing a sad reality. Many who began when I did are no longer along for the ride. It is sad and it is sobering. This series is aimed at rethinking how we view the pastoral ministry, calling and vocation. There has been much written about how a pastor is to relate to their congregation, but tragically little aimed...

As I enter year 12 of being in pastoral ministry, I am noticing a sad reality. Many who began when I did are no longer along for the ride. It is sad and it is sobering. This series is aimed at rethinking how we view the pastoral ministry, calling and vocation. There has been much written about how a pastor is to relate to their congregation, but tragically little aimed...

I just returned from a needed and fruitful vacation. Sometimes, its when we "stop doing" that God shows us things about Himself, and ourselves that we could be in danger of missing ...

During this whole marriage process, there is one verse that has stayed so close to my heart and every time I am about to get the slightest bit nervous about a major move, the Lord brings me back to this verse to center my heart where it belongs. ...

As we prepare to move into our new home I'd love to share some thoughts on what humility and the heart of God look so we can join Him in His work here on the Shore. ...

In coming together as two separate churches from two different backgrounds, and becoming one family, language matters. When we take greater care to have our language and imagery be grounded in Scripture, it is easier to make a direct connection to God's Wisdom (what James refers to as "Wisdom from above (James 3:17)" rather than leaning on the wisdom of man and "hoping" G...

This year, we did something a little bit different and we did a series called "Christmas in Genesis". Entering the series, we wondered if we would have enough to do a whole series on just the Christmas related material in Genesis. Finishing the series makes me wish we had another month because there is so much more Treasure to dig for ...

Isis, inflation, mass gun violence, political debates, economic hardship, health issues...Yikes! Has this world been left to it's own devices or is their still a sovereign God who is in control? And if He is in control, can we be sure that He is good? ...

So, last week we looked at the fact that there is not supposed to be a Senior Pastor Super-Man who stands before the body, possessing all the gifts, and being the one in charge of all things "churchy". It's an interesting sermon, because everyone loves to give a "Ra-Ra", down with the single pastor, guy who calls all the shots, mentality. But there is a flip side to this...

This weekend, Pastor Eric from Remedy is going to be speaking at a small church planting conference hosting by a sister church in our network from Oregon. This is a little bit about why we think its a good thing to go cross country to talk to people about planting churches, and what we hope to achieve from it. ...

Is Radical Christianity something that is expected of every Christian? Does God really expect that everyone who bears the name of Christ is going to go "all in for Jesus" or is there room for mediocre zeal? ...

We all struggle with faith from time to time. Romans 4 offers some thoughts on the root of the struggle and it just might be the opposite of what you think. ...

I meet them all the time. In fact, it's increasing regularly. The folks who jumped into the church with both feet, only to leave beat up, scarred and full of resentment. As a result, they cast off the necessity of the church and whether they are willing to admit it or not, they begin to have a diminished faith in God, wondering if He really knew what He was doing when He ...

After reading Hebrews 11 more times than I can recall and memorizing many of the wonderful verses about faith, I found myself taken back by one little word: "IS" ...

Sometimes its good to slow down our constant planning and looking to the future and focus for a moment on what God HAS DONE and what God IS DOING ...

This a a brief and hopefully helpful summery of how we got our bibles today, covering from the initial inspiration of the original manuscripts down through the ages of how the original languages were lost, recovered and the struggle that ensued to get us the bibles that we have today. ...

This Resurrection Sunday gives us many wonderful causes for rejoicing as a church! He is Risen. He is Risen Indeed! ...

As we go through our Easter Series thru Romans 5-6, this week we look at the beautiful reality that the Good News of Jesus Christ is greater than the frailty of our weaknesses ...

Anyone ever wonder what the deal is with Lent? It is a topic that people approach with many different thoughts. Some celebrate it yearly as part of their devotional rhythms. Some have less than fond memories of past religiosity. Is Lent something that is worth looking into, or is it one of those "tradition things" that has lost its value along the way? ...

After many years of ignoring my teeth, I have had to get some dental work done. As I have thought about all that led up to my teeth getting to where they have gotten, I was amazed at the parallels to the Christian life...

We are a church plant that is focused on planting churches. In fact, our mission is simply stated, "To make disciples and plant churches". So why is church planting so important? ...

This is a great Psalm to look at to see where our attention and focus has been. The writer encourages us to take our eyes off of the low things and set them on things above. ...

This comes from a lecture we are doing with our PLI class, a lecture on hermeneutics and bible study methods ...

This morning, we celebrate the ordinance of baptism, and in doing so, sometimes its good to get a little nostalgic. ...

If everyone wants to find authentic community, why is it often so difficult? Even people that come together around a common belief in Jesus can have a hard time knowing where or how to fit in. In this latest blog, we try to address some of this. ...

For many of my years in Christianity, I had a broken view of God's commandments to be holy. I confused "holy" with "get better", "act right", and "be good". As I begin to talk to others about the awakening that I have been having about what biblical holiness mean, it seems I am not alone. And when people begin to realize that they missed the bus on this one, they experi...

Today we lost a dear friend of the Remedy family. But in celebrating his life, it gives a picture of what church was always supposed to be about ...

"Love does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things" (1 Corinthians 15:5-7)  I have been thinking through this text a lot since the resignation of Pastor Mark Dr...

This week, the former leader of Acts 29 handed in his resignation. He was always a polarizing figure and depending on how you felt about him, there are people that are rejoicing over this fall and there are people that are really taken back and effected deeply. I wanted to share some of my feelings ...

I recently posed a question to the small group I lead- what would Jesus do with all of the sick people in our church if He were here right now? As you search the Scriptures, the answer might surprise you. ...

Today we look at a topic that has drawn many opinions. In fact, some have very strong opinions, and if you are reading this, you are welcome to a strong opinion too. We are looking at a question that a lot of people are asking: are church mergers the way of the future, or are they a sign of a weakening church in our culture? ...

Throughout the Gospels we see Jesus healing people who lived with debilitating diseases. But, there were also times where He did not. So what's the deal? How do we know whether we should push people to look for a healing or to trust that His grace is sufficient for the thorn they struggle with? ...

In our next installment in this series, we are taking the next logical step. We talked about medical marijuana yesterday, but now, what do we do with the fact that it is being legalized in our own country? It was always a pretty cut and dry issue, because Christians are to live within the confines of the laws of their land, provided that those laws are not tyrannical or ...

As we move on in our series on Christian Liberty, we want to look at another issue that people are starting to grapple with that was a non-issue 30 years ago. Medical Marijuana. There are some who just say its a drug and has no place in Christianity. Yet others see value, and actually see it as a God honoring alternative to some of the other options available if used le...

This is the first entry in a series of entries that I have been wanting to write for a while. I want to examine the liberties that we have in Christ, see what the Scriptures have to say about them, and see where we are free, and where we might be taking these freedoms too far. People rarely agree on Christian liberty, and I am starting of with more simple topics, and the...

I have been asked multiple times why I do not preach every week. I am the most experienced preacher that we have, so why not have the most experienced guy in the pulpit? Plus, the amount that I preach at Remedy is becoming less each year, so is there a plan in place? Why do we do that? ...

What are you expecting to get out of church? Do you have an expectation? When you show up, or even before you show up, is there an anticipation in your heart? In today's entry, we are going to look at the biblical topics of experience and awe in worship of our Creator and Savior. ...

If you walk into various houses of worship of different faiths, there will be a lot of things that are different, but there are some things that will be similar. There will more than likely be some sort of clergy preaching out of a holy book, telling people to do right and not do wrong and calling people to a deeper commitment in their faith and a responsibility to do rig...

How many times have you been asked if you are "Taking the Sermon with you throughout the week?" Or, "Is what you heard on Sunday still effecting you by Monday?" I am sure that it is well meaning, and depending on the content of the sermon, it is not an altogether bad question, but in this entry we look at how that question can be fueled more by condemnation than the Gosp...

This is the final blog in a 4 part series about the death of churches in our local community. In this entry we are going to look at why up and coming church plants and established churches both need each other for the good of the Gospel in a community. ...

So far as we have examined the question "Is it ever a win when churches die" we have looked at the responsibility of the liberal church that has abandoned the Gospel and the evangelical but dying church that is resistant to change and reaching emerging generations. In this entry we are going to examine our own camp and take a look at the neo-Reformed church planting movem...

Unfortunately, here in the North East, many churches with long and faithful legacies are losing the war of attrition. We want to examine, from Scripture, whether this is ever a good thing ...

This time, we are going to look a little bit more at churches within our own "camp" and try to ask the same question. ...

In the beginning of Matthew 7, Jesus gives one His most powerful images. He warns us against being the kinds of folks that go around removing little specs from someone's eye, while having a log sticking out of our own that impedes our vision and gives us a false sense of self awareness, while heightening our sense of awareness of the faults of others. ...

At the end of Jesus' longest teaching on anxiety and worry, He tells the people who have put their faith in Him that when they worry about their life that they are behaving like "the Gentiles". What does he mean by that, and what is he looking for us to glean from it? ...

Few statements have bewildered my mind like Paul's words in Philippians 4 "to be anxious about nothing". I am drawn to these words, but they are equally easy to dismiss as something out of reach. So, is this a real commandment or a Christian pep-talk? ...

In this part two of our blog series on anxiety and worry, we look at another potentially cryptic passage where we are encourage to "Cast our anxieties upon Him because He cares for you" ...

In Matthew 5, Jesus makes an amazing promise. One that should really make us pause and consider. He says that the pure in heart will be blessed. But it is the blessing that has me captivated. Jesus tells us that they will "see God"- His own words. That's a mighty big promise. One that should captivate the minds of every follower of Christ. ...

It seems as if most people I meet have the same battle cry. "I'm so busy". We all say it. And there are seasons where it is just unavoidable to be busy. Some busyness comes by choice, some of it comes from things that are thrown at us that are beyond our control. But if we are always busy, and never have seasons of rest, then it is important to ask ourselves, "Are we r...

I love my church. And I am not ashamed to admit it. And I do not just love it because I am one of the pastors called to serve there. God knows that is not enough of a reason, because I have seen pastors hate their churches. No, it goes deeper than a position in the church. I just love my church. And you know what else? I like my church too. ...

We have planted in an area where there are a lot of churches, but not a lot of Christians. And the average age of the Christians in those churches is increasing, and the loss of young people is well reported. The odd thing is, most of these churches, the ones that are still preaching the Gospel anyway, are filled with many "mature" Christians. So, you would think maturi...

There is an odd story that is told in all four Gospels about a woman that poured a very costly vile of perfume/ointment over Jesus' feet in the presence of a bunch of judgmental religious types. And Jesus was so moved that he said that wherever the Gospel was preached, what this woman had done would be preached with it. But this is rarely if ever the case. So, was Jesus...

As a relatively young man, I never had the privilege of growing up when Good Friday was a big deal in this country. As I left the house this morning to work, it looked like any other day. There were no less cars on the road, business went as usual. But just because it's lost its societal luster does not mean that we should not stop and give pause to the solemn magnitude...

This Easter my mind has been drawn more than ever to a familiar phrase in Romans 8, that we are "more than conquerors through Him who loved us". In this life, it is easy to feel defeated, let alone a conqueror. So, to hear that we are "more than conquerors" is worth looking into ...

One topic that people pay very little attention to is "Church Government". To many, it is a secondary issue, if it even gets put on that level. But, after 11 years of ministry, I am more convinced than ever than a poor understanding of church government leads to more broken churches, and more church hurt people than any other subject. Yeah, you read that right. ...

On a typical drive around town, you will probably drive by several churches. Depending on where you live and how many errands you have to run, you might pass a dozen. Do we really need more churches? ...

2000 years later and still people have a hard time fitting Jesus into any earthly category. In His day, he was viewed by some as a radical, some as a Messiah and some as a man that came to destroy or overthrow the religious system. That is what makes Matthew 5:17-20 such a critical text, because Jesus shows that He could be radical but still be orthodox ...