Sermon Series

Letting Go

March 4, 2019Sermon SeriesEMC Admin

“So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.” (John 8:36)

What stands between you and the fullness of all Jesus has in store for your life? Make no mistake: God has a plan for you – a vision and a dream for your future. But what obstacles exist between your life in the present and his better tomorrow?

For the season of Lent, we will be looking to the gospel of John for answers to these questions. The goal: To identify some of those things needing to be let go – things that have no place in the life of true discipleship, a life marked by the freedom that Christ is offering.

Are you willing to let these things go? Are you ready to experience all he has in mind for you?

Series Playlist

Letting Go

Letting Go of Pretense

00:00 / 40:39

Letting Go of Pretense

Mar 10, 2019 • 40:39

To get to know the real Jesus, you must first lay aside all your preconceived notions. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Letting Go Scripture: John 1:45-51
Letting Go of Superiority

Mar 17, 2019 • 40:10

The needs of people differ in nature and degree, but Jesus Christ is the solution to them all. You and I must embody and exhibit the unifying power of the gospel in our era of social disintegration. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Letting Go Scripture: John 4:1-30
Letting Go of the Rules

Mar 24, 2019 • 39:12

You and I must let go of the rules — not the life-giving commands of God, which reveal his character and trace the lines of holiness defining our life in him — but the rules we manufacture to maintain our power, control, comfort at the expense of others. Speaker: Sean…
Letting Go of Fear

Mar 31, 2019 • 39:31

We, on almost daily basis, find ourselves engulfed in the torrents and swells of life in a broken world, but in Jesus we find refuge and shelter from the storm. He wants to come into the midst of it all, walking on top of it all. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series:…
Letting Go of Control

Apr 7, 2019 • 34:53

We can wait on Jesus. We need not doubt his character or motives. He cares about all of your life, but he is also determined to do a greater good, one that may result in delay, leading to your temporary discomfort. But his greater good always results in the glory…
Letting Go of Misplaced Devotion

Apr 14, 2019 • 41:05

Everyone wants Jesus when they think he has come to do something for them, but who is willing to submit to him as Lord? You and I must make the same decision as the people of his day. Who will it be? Jesus, the messiah, the King of all kings…
Letting Go of Jesus

Apr 21, 2019 • 35:49

The resurrection of Jesus Christ forces us to move beyond our own small perspective of all he wants to accomplish for the sake of the world and see with the eyes of faith the grander purposes of God. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Letting Go Scripture: John 20:1-18

2019 Women’s Conference

January 25, 2019Sermon SeriesEMC Admin

Listen to the complete recordings from the 2019 EMC women’s conference, “Delighting in Him Day by Day,” with guest speaker Chelsea Wortman.

About Chelsea

Chelsea is a pastor’s wife and a mother of three sons, ages 8, 5, and 2. Born and raised in Northern Virginia, she holds a Bachelor’s degree from DeVry University in Technical Management and a Graduate Certificate from University of Virginia in Leadership in Human Resources Management. In 2017, she resigned from her successful career in Human Resources to relocate with her family to Elizabeth City where her husband, Jeff Wortman, accepted the position of Minister of Music and Worship at Elizabeth City Evangelical Methodist Church. Not long after relocating, Chelsea sensed the Lord calling her into women’s ministry leadership. A verse that Chelsea learned to live out over the past year is Psalm 37:4: “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Series Playlist

2019 Women's Conference

Delighting in a Personal Relationship with God - Session 1 of 3

00:00 / 57:11

Delighting in a Personal Relationship with God - Session 1 of 3

Jan 26, 2019 • 57:11

Speaker: Chelsea WortmanSeries: 2019 Women’s Conference
Communing in a Personal Relationship with God - Session 2 of 3

Jan 26, 2019 • 51:44

Speaker: Chelsea WortmanSeries: 2019 Women’s Conference
Maturing in a Personal Relationship with God - Session 3 of 3

Jan 26, 2019 • 39:59

Speaker: Chelsea WortmanSeries: 2019 Women’s Conference

Dreaming

January 14, 2019Sermon SeriesEMC Admin

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Ephesians 2:10)

We all look forward to something. The next season of a favorite TV show. A visit from a loved one. Christmas presents. The start (or end!) of a school year. A trip to the mountains or beach.

God created humans to be future-oriented beings whose hopes are rooted in the prospect of a better tomorrow.

God created us to dream.

No, not dream as in what your mind subconsciously thinks about while you sleep, but rather the ability to imagine a future that has not yet arrived, to exercise a Spirit-filled imagination of better days. Indeed, he wants us to see what tomorrow might be and then join him in giving it shape.

Before there was time, God had a plan for our lives. His future is meant to be discovered. He wants his dreams to become our dreams, and once they do the wonder of tomorrow will enliven every moment of today.

You and I are prisoners of time, inexorably captive to the present. Our memories keep alive the past, but our dreams give life to the future. Let’s dream God’s dreams and join him in bringing them into being.

Series Playlist

Dreaming

Created to Dream

00:00 / 42:04

Created to Dream

Jan 20, 2019 • 42:04

Before there was time, God had a plan for your life. His future is meant to be discovered. He wants his dreams to become your dreams, and once they do the wonder of tomorrow will enliven every moment of today. Speaker: Sean ScribnerSeries: DreamingScripture: Genesis 1:26-28
God's Group Project

Jan 27, 2019 • 34:02

Speaker: Aaron Meservey Series: Dreaming Scripture: Ezekiel 36
The Place I Will Show You

Feb 3, 2019 • 48:04

The destination of God’s calling is not to a “where” but to a “who.” Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dreaming Scripture: Genesis 12:1-9
Seeing Beyond Our Sight

Feb 10, 2019 • 38:36

Dreaming is how you and I can love people beyond the limits of our own lifetime; how our desires and prayers and endeavors can go further than we could ever see or travel. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dreaming Scripture: Genesis 22:1-18
A Crisis of Belief

Feb 17, 2019 • 50:55

As you prepare to take the next big step in your journey with God, will your actions align with your beliefs? This is where the rubber meets the road for faith. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dreaming Scripture: Joshua 1:1-9
His Better Ways

Feb 24, 2019 • 48:09

Those who choose to remain with Jesus must face some tough facts about his purposes and ways. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dreaming Scripture: Matthew 14:13-21
When God Says No

Mar 3, 2019 • 34:49

There is a huge difference between doing something for Jesus and doing something with Jesus. To follow him we must trust the avenues he both opens and closes. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dreaming Scripture: Acts 16:6-10

The Magnificat

November 26, 2018Sermon SeriesEMC Admin

“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!” (Luke 1:46-47)

Take a moment and stop. Close the tab opened to Amazon. Put down the Walmart gift guide. Set aside the gift inventories and shopping lists, just for a moment. Ask yourself this question: What have I turned Christmas into?

It’s a tough question to answer, isn’t it? There is no intent to induce guilt here, just a sincere invitation to reflect and evaluate the status of things. Christmas, the season for giving, is right around the corner, but judging by the commercials and billboards and advertisements, one would think it’s a season for getting. On purpose or not, we have turned Christmas into that annual time to justify spending money we don’t have, eating food we don’t need, or lining our pockets with profits.

What if instead of a season for getting we treated Christmas as a season for receiving? What if instead of a season for getting stuffed we treated Christmas as a season for being filled? What would Christmas become then?

During the four weeks of Advent, we will ask these questions in light of the example we see in Mary, the mother of Jesus. We’ll see that when Christmas is about receiving and being filled that, by necessity, it becomes for the faithful a season of responding. Mary’s response to the news of the incarnation recorded in the Gospel of Luke is a model for what all responsive Christian faith should look like.

Perhaps this year Advent will allow us to not only evaluate what we have turned Christmas into, but also consider all that God desires Christmas to turn us into.

Series Playlist

The Magnificat

Measured Incredulity

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Measured Incredulity

Dec 2, 2018 • 34:04

Doubt is not the opposite of faith. Rather, it provides an opportunity to move beyond trusting yourself in order to obediently give all of your life to God. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: The Magnificat Scripture: Luke 1:26-38
Faith From the Heart

Dec 9, 2018 • 32:56

Through Mary’s example we are encouraged to both express our faith out of duty to God’s call but also find our delight in it. Speaker: Aaron Meservey Series: The Magnificat Scripture: Luke 1:46-47
Lost in Wonder, Love, and Praise

Dec 16, 2018 • 38:02

God takes notice of the lowly and invites them to become a part of his redemptive purposes for the world. How could their response be anything other than surprise and surrender Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: The Magnificat Scripture: Luke 1:46-55
All of Me for You

Dec 23, 2018 • 42:35

Faced with the realities of her circumstances, Mary’s faith in a trustworthy God is expressed through wholehearted devotion. Speaker: Sean ScribnerSeries: The MagnificatScripture: Luke 1:46-55
The Foolishness of Christmas

Dec 30, 2018 • 41:24

Speaker: Jeff WortmanSeries: The MagnificatScripture: I Corinthians 1:20-25

Dear Church,

October 9, 2018Sermon SeriesEMC Admin

“God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the church, and he blesses all who listen to its message and obey what it says, for the time is near.” (Revelation 1:3)

The book of Revelation is as perplexing as it is intriguing. For many Christians, its complex, symbolic imagery makes it almost impossible to understand, let alone apply to their daily lives. It’s easier to treat it as simply a message for the future. Yet that was not its intended purpose. It is a book for the people of God in the present.

How will the church conduct itself in an ungodly world? This is a critical question for every church of every age. The people of God are always faced with the temptation to compromise in some form or another. The revelation given to John runs counter to the world and demands people change their perspective or face judgement. John perceives there is a real danger that the churches will conform to what are considered the “normal” values of the world-system rather than to God’s transcendent truth.

Over the next several weeks, we will see the heart of Jesus for his church exposed. Through the apostle John he exhorts believers to remain faithful in spite of present sufferings. This heavenly vision has motivated suffering Christians of all ages to hold to the glorious promises of God and not to fall away.

The path to ultimate victory is in one’s willingness to suffer for Christ. “Look, I am coming soon! Blessed are those who obey the words of prophecy written in this book.” (Revelation 22:7)

Series Playlist

Dear Church,

The Battle Cry of Victory

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The Battle Cry of Victory

Oct 14, 2018 • 36:22

The book of Revelation was not given as a chronological forecast of world events – something we can place on our calendar in order to master the future. It is an invitation to come know and submit to the God of all history. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dear Church, Scripture: Revelation…
The Two Witnesses

Oct 21, 2018 • 42:35

God’s protection and provision ensure that the church’s prophetic witness will endure despite the persecution it encounters in the world. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dear Church, Scripture: Revelation 1:1-3
The Unholy Trinity

Oct 28, 2018 • 47:18

The evil kingdoms with their political, economic, and religious institutions demand the people of God must submit or face the consequences. In the present age, Christians will be faced with the decision to stand up for the one, true God, or bow to the world-system. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dear Church,…
The Wedding Cloak

Nov 4, 2018 • 35:46

Those who persevere in their faithfulness to Christ will be rewarded at the end of time, and their reward will be nothing less than nuptial union with Christ himself. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dear Church, Scripture: Revelation 19:6-10
On Earth as it is in Heaven

Nov 11, 2018 • 40:24

The snapshot of heaven serves to show us not only that God is gloriously sovereign and deserving of submission, but that he desires to manifest his glory throughout the world through the lives of those yielded to him. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dear Church, Scripture: Revelation 4
A New Heaven and Earth

Nov 18, 2018 • 42:25

The work that God has begun will one day be completed. The power of Christ’s resurrection is at work in you, and its pattern will define all of eternity. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dear Church, Scripture: Revelation 21:1-8
The Rider on the White Horse

Nov 25, 2018 • 36:08

The one who will finish what he started in revealing God’s salvation and judgement will make known the fullness of who he is then to those who seek him now. Speaker: Sean Scribner Series: Dear Church, Scripture: Revelation 19:11-16