City on a Hill ABQ

Righteousness, Peace, and Joy

This sermon on Romans 14:13–18 centers on the tension between Christian freedom and love for one another within the body of Christ. Paul teaches that the Kingdom of God is not ultimately about external matters such as eating and drinking, but about righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. The sermon explores how words like love, righteousness, peace, and joy become distorted when they are separated from Christ as their foundation, and how believers often elevate personal preferences and cultural convictions to the level of spiritual law. Through Paul’s warning against placing stumbling blocks in the path of others, the message calls Christians to examine how they use their freedoms and convictions within the church community. The sermon culminates in a call to build one’s life on Christ as the true foundation, recognizing that Christian freedom is not merely a personal right, but a privilege meant to be exercised in love for the people Christ died to save.

Differing Convictions

Pastor Ryan Williams addresses the challenge of maintaining unity in the local church amid differing personal convictions, noting that many people leave churches over unmet preferences rather than theological disagreements or missional moves. Drawing from the Roman church's mix of Jewish and Gentile believers—where some still observed Old Testament dietary laws while others embraced the freedom of the New Covenant—Paul instructs stronger believers not to despise the "weak" who abstain from certain foods, and the weak not to judge those who partake, since God has welcomed both. Williams emphasizes that the church must be a judgment-free place where weaker brothers and sisters in faith are welcomed and allowed to grow without quarreling over opinions on non-essential matters of conscience (distinct from clear sin or orthodoxy). Ultimately, unity is possible because the church is built not on preferences or personal convictions but on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ, who sustains and upholds every believer equally at the foot of the cross, calling us to treat others as God treats us rather than passing judgment on fellow servants of the Lord.

Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday Service with praise and baptisms.

Humility, Grace, and Gifts