Fox Valley Church

Passage: Matthew 21:10-11 The question that stands out on Palm Sunday is Who is He? With such diversity in the crowd, it is no surprise.  As people come from all over the RE, those to know Him best would be from Galilee.  That question, Who is He?, echoes through history.  He is certainly a prophet, […]

  Passage: Romans 8:18-27  The Spirit is the first fruits of our future glory!  Suffering and glory are two strong themes to hold together as though wedded with no possibility of divorce.  First there is the suffering and glory of God’s creation; and secondly, the suffering and glory of God’s people.  It helps to know […]

Passage: Romans 8:1-17  The ministry of God’s Spirit first of all reminds us that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. The Spirit brings freedom, gives us His mind, grants us power and serves as a witness that we belong to God.  The Spirit is our Comforter and given as a gift […]

Passage: Psalm 49 The psalmist speaks to all people and takes wealth head on and sets it in the context of everyone’s future—death. Should we put our confidence in wealth for our future? Our hope and confidence cannot be in wealth for that is utter foolishness (49:13-14).   Only God provides certainty and hope as proved […]

Passage: Romans 7:14-25  The weakness of the Law is that the Law cannot be responsible for our holiness either.  We all experience the inner struggle: what I want to do I do not do.  Our deliverance comes through Jesus Christ!   

Matthew 18:21-35

Passage: Romans 7:1-13  The Law could not do what Christ did! Significantly we have been released from the Law and joined to Christ.  The Law exposes sin, provokes sin and condemns sin. The issue is sin, not the Law! 

Romans 6:1-23 Theme: With the powerful truth that we have been saved from the penalty of sin (guilt and shame of all sin removed), even the wrath of God, it raises a question, “shall we go on sinning?” (6:1, 15) The amazing reality is that Christ’s death on our behalf has also broke the POWER […]

Passage: Romans 5:12-21  Since the universal impact of sin, there is a great divide between “being in Adam” and “being in Christ.”  One brings death (judgment and condemnation) and the other brings life (reconciliation and righteousness)! With the contrast and comparison of Adam and Christ, we can better appreciate the work of God through His […]

Passage: Romans 5:1-11   A surprising move of God is that He would declare rebels right with Him based on a crucified messiah.  With layers of revelations flowing from good news, what are the benefits of justification by grace alone through faith alone, in Christ alone?  While the benefits are many, the letter focuses us on […]

Passage: John 15:1-8  Jesus lived the Word.  He quoted, taught, explained, preached, loved and obeyed the Word, but with penetrating insight. “Abiding” is not just knowing the Word or memorizing the Word, but “abiding” is allowing the Word to take root in our souls and shape us, such that we are set apart for Kingdom impact.   […]

Passage: Matthew 6:9-13  Jesus lived a life of prayer.  The connection between prayer and the power, miracles and the laser-like focus of His ministry is unmistakable.  No wonder He exhorted His followers to pray and to pray unceasingly  Prayer is absolutely essential for Kingdom Impact. Difference Makers pray because they know the power of God-centered, kingdom-centered prayer. 

Passage: Matthew 13:44-52  Jesus lived with strong kingdom focus!   Jesus compared the kingdom to a treasure that is more valuable than anything else in this world and showed the supreme importance of the kingdom perspective because of eternal destinies at stake. Difference Makers are people who maintain a kingdom focus. 

Mark 1:35-39 

Genesis 18:1-15  Christ wants to be in the center of our families, working more and more miracles, showing more and more of His power.  When Christ is at the center it means we are not.  It means that God is on the throne and we are not on the throne calling the shots.  Christ at […]

    Passage: John 2:13-17; Isaiah 9:6-7  Feast times were really important in Israel, especially Passover.  With all the challenges of travel and preparations, many things could distract people from keeping God at the Center in worship.  Many came to Jerusalem to worship and with all the energy, commerce and excitement, people exchanged the most […]

Passage: Luke 14:7-14  The Christmas season is festive, bringing lots of opportunities for social gatherings.  It is easy to become inward focused and make it about us.  But Christmas is a time for humility in which we put others first and there are many opportunities to be generous.  We honor Christ at Christmas, or better, have […]

Passage: John 12:1-8  Christmas often becomes secularized or commercialized.  How can Christ be at the center when it comes to our celebrations?  At a dinner celebration (likely a banquet), we see Jesus becomes the focus as Mary anoints him.  He makes a bold clear statement, “You do not always have me.”  Said a little differently, we won’t […]

Passage: Mark 6:31-46  The Christmas season can be a very busy, demanding and tiring time. Jesus said to the disciples who were weary from ministry demands, “come away and rest.” However, this didn’t go as planned and crowds of people followed them, to the point that the disciples grew demanding. But Jesus turned the tables and said, “no, you […]