Relate Church

They Became All Things to All People – Under Christ’s Law of Love | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 8/11/2024

When someone comes to Christ it’s about a relationship of love.  An individual relationship. 
Which means that some things you do may not be offensive to God for you to do them, but they would be for me.
The principle here is so important to how we live our daily lives as believers. 
You live under Christ’s law of LOVE.

They Had Disagreements, They Lightened the Load | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 8/04/2024

God has called us to live lives of love. And when you live a life of love, you never have to worry about the law. This is the life of the New Covenant.

They Shook the Dust off their Feet, They Tore their Clothes | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 7/28/2024

Have you ever heard the saying, “Shake the Dust off your feet?” It comes from Jesus. In three of the 4 Gospels, Matthew 10:14, Luke 9:5, and Mark 6:11, it is recorded that Jesus told the disciples that if anyone rejected them and wouldn’t listen to them, to shake the dust off their feet when they leave that house or town.
Jesus gave us freedom to walk away from people who reject Him, knowing they did their part.
God knows that you can only say so much, that you can only do so much, and so long as you have done your part, you can walk away knowing you did your part and are free to let them go.

They Prophesied, they saw Angels and God’s Judgment | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 7/21/2024

The interaction of the heavenly realms in the New Churches was very real. Although it wasn’t an everyday occurrence, it is something the believers experienced on God-willing occasions.
I wonder how many times you have been protected by an angel and don’t even know it. 
I wonder how different your life would be had it not been for God’s army watching out for you.
I have to wonder how many times your life was over, but God….

They Shared Jesus | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 7/14/2024

God’s plan was to save the world. It was always His plan. And most likely this is the part of God’s plan that most caused the Jews to reject the Messiah. God gave hints throughout the Old Testament that this was His plan.
The priests and religious leaders and scholars wanted only Israel to be God's. They wanted to be the special and chosen. They didn’t want the entire world to be joined to God.
And the idea that God would allow others to join Him was appalling.
God’s plan from the very beginning was to save the world. And that’s what He did through Jesus.

They Got in a Groove | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 7/7/2024

You know what it is to get into a groove? When you know what you are doing, why you are doing it, and have the resources and freedom to do it. When you are immersed in a way of doing something and it is working very well, performing successfully.
“Things calmed down,” after Paul quit hunting them down and persecuting them. They were able to get in a groove of living their lives in a way that was good and productive.
And here are some key things that tell us how they were in the groove:
They had deep reverence, fear for God.
The Holy Spirit was with them.
The Holy Spirit strengthened them.
The results were that they prospered wonderfully.

They Repented, They Forgave | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 6/30/2024

God gave Saul direction, a path to take. The first sign that you have truly repented is that you will be willing to walk that path.
When you have wronged someone, there is always a path for you to take to make it right. For some wrongs it will take years to walk that path. For more minor wrongs, it can be as simple as flipping a light switch.
And know this: just because you walk that path of repentance doesn’t mean that you will always have an opportunity to be back in their life. But it does mean that you will be able to be right with God.

They Scattered and Teleported | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 6/23/24

One of God’s tools to spread His invitation to the world has been to cause, or allow something bad to happen that makes His people scatter.
God will, at times, allow tragedy in your life. But if you will trust Him long enough, He will bring good from it.
God knows that sometimes the only way we get up and go is if our comfort has got up and went.
Often, God’s plan gets set in motion with pain. You can’t just look at your life and see the pain. Look back and see that your pain was God trying to set His plan in motion.

They were Spiritual Fathers | Pastor John Eaton | 6/16/24

God wants us to be fathers. God wants good people to make more good people. I don’t mean to diminish being an earthly father at all. But I want to challenge you today to take a step into another kind of fatherhood. This kind of fatherhood can’t happen accidentally. It can’t happen without intention. God wants us to be Spiritual Fathers.
The most important men in the Bible weren’t human fathers, they were Spiritual Fathers. 

They Loved and were Liked | Pastor John Eaton | The Acts of the Apostles | 6/9/24

One of the most important parts of Christianity is “the meeting together.” 
Being with fellow believers, growing, learning, supporting, loving one another, worshipping together, validating God’s presence in each other’s lives, all of it has always been highly important in the Kingdom of God.
The early church was full of commitment and love towards one another. They met together all the time. They prayed together. They worshiped together.