Why “Hillside Church?”

A lot of people have asked us why we like the name “Hillside Church.”  A great question with a fun answer…

 

When Jesus gave the sermon that ended up being possibly the most important and revolutionary teaching in history called “The Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew Chapters 5-7, He went up on the hillside and taught His disciples and the crowd.  Because Jesus had already been healing and teaching He was getting a reputation.  Due to what people were already hearing about him, the crowd that was following were not only His disciples, there were:

People who were sick who heard that Jesus was a healer.

People who had been dismissed by religious teachers in the past.

People who, because of their past, were told they would never find favor with God.

People who had big moral, religious and philosophical questions.

People who were skeptical of Jesus.

People who were dying to prove Him wrong.

Perhaps the words “sermon on the mount” sound too serene, and perhaps because some of these teachings have been repeated in ways in which we forget their original context, we fail too often to remember that these words of Jesus were a revolution that gave hope to people who had been told that God would never have interest in them.  This ragamuffin group on this hillside were hearing for the first time that God loved and wanted to bless them as much as those religious people, who Jesus pointed out, weren’t so perfect anyway.  They were told that even though the religious elite were judgmental, that they were called to love even their enemies!  They were told that even though they had imperfections that they were allowed to have a conversation with God through prayer.  They were told that though they were poor on earth, they might have riches in heaven.

This teaching was groundbreaking, revolutionary, it was bold and stood in the face of authority.  These were the same teachings that made people so angry at Him that they would eventually kill Him. 

When Jesus gave these teachings, it was a gift, and the people sitting on the Hillside that day were surprised by the gift and surprised by God. 

I am very confident that was have much in common with those people who sat on that hillside that day.  Some of us need the healing, physically, emotionally, mentally, in our lives, relationships, marriages, families.  Some of us have been convinced that because of something in our background, we are not good enough to have anything to do with God.  Some of us have some pretty big questions that keep us from believing that these teachings can be real, questions about the state of the world or the truth of scripture or the existence of God.  Some of us have been made to feel like second class citizens because of our race, gender, sexuality, disability, or religious past. 

I truly believe that if we put ourselves on that Hillside, God will surprise us too. 

That’s why we will be Hillside Church.  So that we can experience the Surprise; and so that Every Person in Marysville/Lake Stevens will experience that surprise  communicated to them through our Actions and not just words.