The Gospel Means Rest
Good morning, Immanuel. The gospel is a great welcome from Jesus to the weary.
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
Every time—every single time—I read this verse or hear the first line of Immanuel's call to worship, "to all who are weary and need rest," it lands on me like rain on parched soil. Something I have learned about this offer from Jesus is that we never outgrow it. We never graduate from it.
The gospel means rest. The gospel is a great welcome from Jesus to the weary. It is news of our peace with God, not on the basis of our performance or good works, but on the basis of God's great love for sinners through the finished work of Jesus and the endless power of the Holy Spirit.
What is His finished work? His perfect, sinless life, his sacrificial death as our substitute, and his resurrection, when He defeated the grave. I’ll close with words from a friend’s email signature, which landed on me yesterday like rain on parched soil: “The Gospel is rest, the Gospel means Jesus carries the burden of your life, the Gospel means you will never have to prove yourself again."
This Sunday at Immanuel
Sunday Morning 🎉
WORSHIP - Join us at 9 or 10:45 am for worship as Pastor TJ continues our series, “The Good News in Three Dimensions.”
PODCAST - Keep up with the latest Immanuel resources on the Immanuel Podcast.
Seminars
9 am: Studying the Bible Together, led by Tom Cox in the Church Office
No Russell Moore seminar this week. We’ll be back next week!
9 am: Student Seminar led by Vince Greenwald in the gymnasium (grades 5-12)
On the Horizon
DISCOVER RECEPTION - New or newish to Immanuel? Formerly known as the Discover Luncheon, the new Discover Reception is an opportunity to connect at 10:45 am in the cafe for an overview of Immanuel and a time for Q&A. Our next Discover Reception is November 12th. RSVP here.
CHURCH-WIDE TENTH GENERATION GATHERING - Our Tenth Generation campaign is still underway (learn more here). We invite you to come out on Wednesday, November 8th at 6:30 pm to Immanuel for a church-wide Tenth Generation Gathering, where we will share important updates on our campaign thus far. We look forward to seeing you there!
YOUNG PROFESSIONALS FELLOWSHIP - Every third Thursday, Immanuel hosts our monthly Young Professionals Fellowship from 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm. Our next event is coming up on November 16. Invite a co-worker, or come and meet a friend!
Engage…
Park Avenue Elementary Gift Card Drive - One of the ways we welcome all kinds of people into our orbit is through our generosity and hospitality. Please join us again this year to provide the means for families to have a Thanksgiving meal by donating, preferably, a $25 KROGER gift card (or a cash donation to be used to buy them). We will collect these cards on November 5, 12, and 19 at the connect desk in the lobby. This will enable us to serve those needing extra help this season to provide for their family in a special way. We appreciate this so much! Please direct any questions to carolineegreenwald@gmail.com.
Thank you Pastor Vince, thank you Lord 🙏🏼