08 | Why We Gather

08 | Why We Gather

Who we are and are becoming is directly related to where we’re finding our sense of identity, belonging, and purpose. Our hearts and minds are being formed every moment of everyday. Throughout the week there is a steady stream of devices, creeds, and ideologies vying for our attention. This input is simply subtle & sly. It can also be openly ornate & overpriced. Whatever it is, it is obvious that we live in a world competing for the narrative. Our hearts can become confused, our people disseminated thinly, and our mission dulled. That’s the reason we gather week after week. We need to be reminded of our identity, our belonging and our purpose. We need to engage with our God and with His people to fuel our everyday mission. 

February 20, 2022 - Gabe Shippam

07 | Certainty & Assurance

07 | Certainty & Assurance

The great gift of the gospel is assurance - we can know where we stand with God and we can rest in his affectionate gaze. God is for us, with us, and will sustain us to the end, because of Jesus Christ. So what hinders us from living with great joy and confidence and security? On one hand, we've got critics - in our own heads, in the people around us, and in the enemy of our souls - and we shrink back from fully enjoying God's love. On the other hand, we experience hardship in the world - pressures of life, persecution, and suffering - and we measure God's love based on these difficulties. The gospel calls us beyond all that, proclaiming the sufficiency of Jesus to silence our enemies and the sacrifice of Jesus to conquer our uncertainties. Come Holy Spirit!

February 13, 2022 - Steve Hart

06 | Hope & Help

06 | Hope & Help

Life in the Spirit is the unique privilege of the adopted child of God, and God’s ultimate goal for us as his children is glorification: to be conformed to the image of his Son. God has nothing less in mind for you than a full restoration of who he created you to be and what he created you to do. When Paul says we will be “glorified” with Christ, he is looking all the way back to Genesis 1-2, reminding us of God’s original intent in creation, and promising us a full restoration of all that has been lost, for us and for the creation. But none of that means we avoid the harsh realities of this broken world and the suffering here. In fact, our future glorification actually increases the suffering here, as we are now called to forsake the kingdom of self and the ways of the world in order to live for the kingdom of God. Thankfully, in the midst of our suffering, the Spirit is with us, sharpening our hope, helping us in our weakness, and carrying us through to glory!

February 6, 2022 - Steve Hart

05 | Adoption & Inheritance

05 | Adoption and Inheritance

The declaration of "No Condemnation for those in Christ Jesus" opens up the possibility of a new way of being human: A life no longer driven by self-will (which always leads to personal, communal, and spiritual death) but led by the Spirit (which always leads to life and peace). The new way of the Spirit calls us to put to death the old ways of being as they continue to reside in us and our community, and to offer ourselves together as living sacrifices, learning to do life under the leadership of the Spirit of God in us and among us. At the heart of all this is the experience of knowing God as our "Abba, Father" and knowing ourselves as his adopted children and future heirs. Christians have the unique privilege of knowing where we stand with God (no condemnation!) and experiencing his loving presence now (the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry Abba! Father!). That's the heart of Christian Life -- not just knowing about God and the fact of no condemnation, but knowing him and being known by him, and having a real sense of his love for us by the Spirit.

January 30, 2022 - Steve Hart

04 | Life & Peace

04 | Life & Peace

You. Are. His.  In Romans 11, Paul keeps coming back to these declarative statements because our great need is to remember what Christ has done and why He has done it.  We must remind ourselves and be reminded of who we are:  “The gospel broke through because it isn’t just about the fact that we are all fallen-that part is easy for me to swallow… it's about the fact that we are perfectly loved.  And that is the part I have a hard time believing on a minute-by-minute basis.”  

January 23, 2022 - Scott Cooley

03 | Freedom and Fulfillment

03 | Freedom and Fulfillment

What if the story of scripture is that there's a better way than resolutions or "trying harder"? In Christ, we are free from the condemnation of the law, and fulfill its righteous requirements by the Spirit, and there is therefore now NO CONDEMNATION for those in Christ Jesus. No more wondering where I stand with God or if I have done enough. No more slinking into his presence, hoping he hasn’t noticed my recent performance. No more shame-driven hiding or fear-based groveling — you can come in like a perfect Son or Daughter adored by the Father!

January 16, 2022 - Steve Hart

02 | Romans 8 Overview

02 | Romans 8 Overview

Paul’s whole point in Romans 8 — this whole chapter, & in some ways all the chapters leading up to this — is summarized in one word: Assurance. We can have this kind of certainty and live with complete assurance: God is with me! God is for me! Not based on my feelings or my circumstances but based on CHRIST. All that he has done is ours in him. And by the Spirit — who meets us with presence, power, comfort, care, help — we have every reason for confidence!

January 9, 2022 - Steve Hart

01 | When We Gather

01 | When We Gather

Sunday mornings are a unique time for the broader Soma Spokane Family to gather together. We do this to engage with God and each other to fuel our lives for the missionary work of gospel proclamation in our regular rhythms. This week we dive into the specific liturgical moments that occur week after week on Sundays. The hope is to give a framework and highlight each of these moments so that we can engage more easily and at a greater depth. The 11 steps of our liturgy are: Gather, Community, Call to Worship, Confession, Assurance, Prayer, Word, Communion, Thanksgiving, Benediction, and Scatter.

January 2, 2022 - Jamie Archer