Connecting Point – August 5, 2026

This past Sunday we kicked off our BELIEVE sermon series with a message from John 1 about three guys named John, Andrew and Philip. John was John the Baptist, who was related to Jesus because his mother Elizabeth was a cousin to Mary, the mother of Jesus. John the Baptist was an unusual man who lived in the wilderness, preached to big crowds of people and urged those who listened to him to repent of their sins, and then be baptized by immersion to indicate they were turning their lives over to God. He was also to declare to the people of his day that Jesus was “the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world” (John 1:29-36).

Andrew was a follower of John, but after meeting Jesus, he started following Jesus. And he came to believe that Jesus was the long awaited Messiah of the Jews. And having come to that realization he brought his brother Simon to meet Jesus (John 1:40-42). Simon would go on to become Peter, the leader of Jesus’ disciples. And following Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, he became the first leader of the Christian Church.

Philip was from the same hometown as Andrew and Simon. He became a follower of Jesus, and then invited his friend Nathaniel to come and meet Jesus. When Nathaniel met Jesus, Jesus was able to tell him what he had been doing earlier that day. As a result, Nathaniel became a follower of Jesus (John 1:43-49). And both Philip and Nathaniel (also called Bartholomew) became members of Jesus’ group of disciples.

While John the Baptist was certainly a unique individual, we don’t know of anything particularly unique about Andrew and Philip. They were just ordinary men who were willing to become Jesus followers, and then invite others to come and meet the Lord. And when the people they invited to meet Jesus actually met Him, they became great leaders in God’s Kingdom. Which is a reminder to us the Lord can use ordinary men and women like you and I to reach other people who will become great leaders in God’s Kingdom - if we’re simply willing to invite our friends and family members to come with us to Worship Services at Celebration so they can encounter the life-changing presence and power of Jesus Christ.

So, who are you bringing with you to FRIEND SUNDAY at Celebration? We learned this past Sunday that everyone we know needs some kind of help from Jesus. Some people need Consolation - because they’re struggling with some kind of loss in their lives. Some people need Emancipation - because they’re in bondage to addictions, hurts or negative emotions in their lives. Some people need Illumination - because they need direction and clarity in their lives. Some people need Liberation - because they are overwhelmed by the struggles and troubles of life. And lots of people need Salvation - they need to have their sins forgiven and need a real relationship with the Lord. The good news is that Jesus said that He came to help all of those kinds of people. He said in Luke 4:18: - “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed.” Everyone needs help in some way from the Lord Jesus.

On FRIEND SUNDAY we will have special emphasis in all of our ministries and worship services. And we will continue our BELIEVE series with a message titled, Believe Jesus Can Change Your Life. If you know of some people who need to experience the healing, freeing, transforming power of Jesus in their life, call or text them and ask them to come with you this Sunday. Here is a message you can use to invite them to come with you.

So, let me ask you again, who are you bringing with you to Celebration on FRIEND SUNDAY? God has called you to be “John”, “Andrew” or “Philip” in someone’s life.

By the way, we have some other special Sunday’s coming up in August. Those special Sunday’s include:

• Healing Service Sunday (August 23) - on that day we will teach about the Lord’s ability to heal people in our day, and then we will pray in a special way for people who are struggling with illnesses and injuries. Bring your friends who need to experience physical, emotional and mental healing with you.
• Communion Sunday (August 30) - on that day we will commemorate what the Lord has done for us through a special Communion time.

Don’t miss out on what God is doing this month at Celebration Church!

We love and appreciate you at Celebration. If you want to Learn more about Celebration’s ministries, share a Prayer Request with us, or Give to support God’s work, you can do so by going to www.celebrationchurch.org. Lives are being changed, marriages and families are being restored, and people are experiencing the transforming power of Jesus here through the ministry of Celebration Church.

Gratefully yours, Pastor Dennis Watson
Lead Pastor, Celebration Church
dennisw@celebrationchurch.org
dennis.watson.96