Sunday Morning Preview - December 30, 2018

In 1 Peter 4-5 the apostle is writing to young believers who are struggling as they face harsh persecution. Along with a call for humility, submission, and sober-mindedness Peter cautions them that their “adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour”.

Most of us might prefer to file this admonition under “superstitions from a bygone age” - the unfortunate reality we soon discover, however, is that the world, the flesh, and [yes] the devil, repeatedly and too often successfully conspire to frustrate our every advancement in faith.

Please join me this Sunday morning for insight on this topic from Ezra chapter 4 in a message entitled “Enemy Strategies”. 

Pastor Dan C.

Christmas Eve Reminder 2018

Merry Christmas All,

Just a quick note to remind everyone about our Christmas Eve Service.

We will share Communion, sing some Carols, feed on the Word and enjoy some Seasonal Goodies and sweet fellowship.

 Service will begin at 5:30pm - 230 Provencher Blvd. 

Sunday Morning Preview - December 23, 2018

This Sunday is the last one before the big event. The great celebration of the newborn King is at hand. The One who is our hope fulfilled, the One whose punishment buys our peace, the King whose joy is our strength; we mark the advent … His coming… soon.

During this season we try to put ourselves into the shoes of those on the other side, before  Christianity, before the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord. The idea is to keep what God did, this event of bursting into humanity to rescue us, to keep that from becoming something less, something routine, something boring, something to be … endured? May it never be.

Please join me this Sunday morning for “Glory to the New Born King”.

Pastor Dan C.

Sunday Morning Preview - December 16, 2018

Please join us at DCC this Sunday morning for what is sure to be a wonderful time in fellowship and in the Word of God.

The morning gets underway at 9:45 with pre-service prayer and then coffee time.

The service begins at 10:30 with our usual time of worship and fellowship, and then Pastor Dan van de Laar will be continuing his current sermon series entitled; A Study Through the Epistle of Hebrews.

If you’ve missed any of the earlier messages in the series they are available on our website at www.dakotacommunitychurch.com

Hope to see you all there! 

- Pastor Dan 

Sunday Morning Preview - December 8, 2018

Over the past decade or so this coming Sunday morning has become a favorite for many of us at DCC; I am speaking of course of our annual  Children’s Christmas Pageant and Pot-Luck Breakfast.

The day will begin with pre-service prayer at 9:30 followed by breakfast, coffee, eggnog, and fellowship until the service gets underway. 

(Please have contributions there by 10)

While we are sharing breakfast the children will be practicing for the concert, which we will enjoy along with a time of worship and Christmas carols, and the morning will conclude with a message from the Word of God which I have entitled, as you may have guessed, "Jesus, Light of the World".

Pastor Dan C.

Sunday Morning Preview - December 2, 2018

Please join us at DCC this Sunday morning for what is sure to be a wonderful time in fellowship and in the Word of God.

The morning gets underway at 9:45 with pre-service prayer and then coffee time.

The service begins at 10:30 with our usual time of worship and fellowship, and then Pastor Dan van de Laar will be continuing his current sermon series entitled; A Study Through the Epistle of Hebrews.

If you’ve missed any of the earlier messages in the series they are available on our website at www.dakotacommunitychurch.com

Hope to see you all there! 

- Pastor Dan 

Sunday Morning Preview - November 4, 2018

This Sunday morning we return to the Gospel of Matthew for a study of the life and message of John the Baptist.

From his miraculous birth to his to his shocking execution John the Baptist looms large on the biblical landscape because his mission from God is to proclaim the arrival of the Christ. 

John lives in the wilderness, he dresses and eats unconventionally, he harshly rebukes sin and he is fearless in the face of religious/political persecution, more important than any of that though, he makes THE history-altering declaration, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

I hope everyone will be able to join me. 

Pastor Dan C.

Sunday Morning Preview - October 28, 2018

Please join us at DCC this Sunday morning for what is sure to be a wonderful time in fellowship and in the Word of God.

The morning gets underway at 9:45 with pre-service prayer and then coffee time.

The service begins at 10:30 with our usual time of worship and fellowship, and then Pastor Dan van de Laar will be continuing his current sermon series entitled; A Study Through the Epistle of Hebrews. 

After the sermon please hang around for Pizza and Board Games!

If you’ve missed any of the earlier messages in the series they are available on our website at www.dakotacommunitychurch.com

Hope to see you all there! 

- Pastor Dan 

Sunday Morning Preview - October 21, 2018

Please join us at DCC this Sunday morning for what is sure to be a wonderful time in fellowship and in the Word of God.

The morning gets underway at 9:45 with pre-service prayer and then coffee time.

The service begins at 10:30 with our usual time of worship and fellowship, and then Pastor Dan van de Laar will be continuing his current sermon series entitled; A Study Through the Epistle of Hebrews.

If you’ve missed any of the earlier messages in the series they are available on our website at www.dakotacommunitychurch.com

Hope to see you all there! 

- Pastor Dan 

Sunday Morning Preview - October 14, 2018

The holiday-shortened week and several time-consuming meetings have left me feeling inadequately prepared to launch into the next section of our Gospel of Matthew Series. In addition to that, as I was reviewing last weeks sermon I realized that I would very much like to add some further exposition of Galatians 6:1-3.

I hope everyone will be able to join me this Sunday for Communion and a message I have entitled, “If Anyone is Caught”.

Pastor Dan C.

Sunday Morning Preview - October 7, 2018

The air is cool and crisp, the leaves have turned, the days are becoming noticeably shorter, and shelves everywhere are full of tomatoes, pumpkins, and jars of pickled everything! The summer of 2018 is behind us, and the wonder of fall in Manitoba explodes at every turn in all it’s (snowy?) panoramic glory... our thoughts can’t help but turn once again to the faithfulness of our God.

For believers thanksgiving is an every day occurrence, not merely a once a year event; nevertheless the Holiday is a special time of reflection with family and friends in the Body of Christ.

Please join me this Sunday morning to rejoice together with grateful hearts.

Pastor Dan C.

P.S. Don’t forget your thanksgiving toques, mittens and snow shovels! (*Sigh*)

Sunday Morning Preview - September 30, 2018

“There's no such thing as bad publicity” is a phrase often associated with P.T. Barnum, the 19th century American showman and circus owner. To say that the idea expressed has gained a foothold in modern society would be an understatement of colossal proportion. 

For many in the age of monetized social media the chance to “go viral” far outweighs any antiquated sense of morally appropriate conduct or fear of scandal. Some of my younger readers may be surprised to learn that for most of human history there has existed a concept known as “infamy”, a kind of fame which was not to be desired, and a corresponding emotional state known as “shame”  that the vast majority of people felt was the correct way to feel after the exposure of shameful behaviour. Of course on a fallen planet every family has always had its fair share of notorious skeletons in the proverbial closet; until recently it was thought best to leave them there.

The idea of putting ones best foot forward, or of saving face, leads to one of the surprising revelations contained in the genealogy of Christ. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit Matthew does not show Jesus this courtesy. 

Please join me this Sunday morning at DCC as I ask the question: Why not?

Pastor Dan C.

Sunday Morning Preview - September 23, 2018

It was a warm August evening in 1983 when a nervous 19 year old version of myself left the safe confines of the balcony at Rock Church to stand before a visiting preacher and a crowd of some 800 witnesses to be officially welcomed into the family of God. After a brief time of prayer I was escorted into a side room for more prayer and a discussion concerning what it meant to be a Christian and how my life had just been forever changed. A kind man named Bill Hanson shared many things about relationship with God and the power of the Holy Spirit, but what stood out to me the most was an encouragement to read the Bible, to pray, and to faithfully attend a local church. By the grace of God that encouragement has been my anchor and my joy ever since.

Things got off to a bit of a rocky start however, when against Bill’s advice to begin in John, I decided to start on page one of my KJV Gideon Bible in the "Gospel According to Saint Matthew". 

… Aminadab? Naasson? Salathiel? And so, so much begatting. 

I was no authority on best selling literature but I knew that this was no way to bait a perspective reader. My journey in the scriptures nearly crashed and burned on day one.

I hope you will join me this Sunday morning as we mine the genealogy of Jesus Christ for the rich truth once hidden from my novice eyes. 

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - September 16, 2018

I hope you will all be able to join me this Sunday morning for the introduction to our series on the Gospel of Matthew.

One of the first things we notice in doing a little biblical background research is that Matthew refers to himself, the former tax collector called by Christ to be one of the twelve, as Matthew, while Mark refers to this tax collector as Levi, son of Alphaeus. There is a very simple explanation for this particular apparent contradiction, however that is not always the case. We all know someone who rejects biblical inerrancy based on what they see as a multitude of contradictions in the scriptures. 

What is a believer to do with these arguments? 

Do we go with the position that seems to be the most biblically prevalent? 

Do we take the position that we “feel” is best or go with the one most consistent with our current worldview? 

If Paul and Jesus disagree, which one is authoritative, given that Jesus did not record His own words?

We’ll clear up this soupy nonsense, hear from four early church fathers, and begin the exciting journey into what some have called “the most important single document of the Christian faith”. 

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - August 19, 2018

Solus Christus, or Christ Alone, is the biblical teaching that salvation is found in Jesus Christ alone. Apart from Him there is no salvation. All other saviours are pretenders, all contrary teachings are false and every other path leads to eternal damnation in hell. No one else can or does save. Christians know that Jesus’s substitutionary death on the cross is wholly sufficient for our justification and reconciliation to God the Father. 

This is extremely offensive to our pluralistic ears and I want to assure you that I mean it exactly as it sounds.

The plan is to approach the subject from two angles:

1.) Christ’s identity is absolutely exclusive - He alone is able to save us because of who He is (Aug. 19)

2.) Christ’s work is entirely sufficient - Nothing more needs to be done to secure our salvation (Aug. 26)

I hope to see you all Sunday morning.

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - July 29, 2018

I hope you will be able to join me this Sunday for Part 2 of “Sola Gratia”.

In Part 1 we established from scripture that we cannot save ourselves and therefore God’s grace is everything for the Christian. By grace alone, God chose us, by grace alone, Christ died for us, and by grace alone, God causes us to be born again from the state of spiritual death. 

Now I want to turn our attention to two problems that arise in the thinking of some people where justification by an action of God’s grace alone is concerned:

1.) Why must God break into the world to justify the ungodly by grace? What’s the big problem? What is so terribly wrong? 

2.) If God is the lone agent in justification, why doesn’t He save everyone?

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - July 22, 2018

It is with a great deal of excitement (and a little sadness) that I announce the departure of Pastor Joel and Hannah from the ministry team at DCC. 

Winnipeg Evangelical Free Church (On Lagimodiere) has offered Joel the position of Senior Pastor of their inner-city church plant, Grace Point Church and Joel has accepted and announced his resignation from Lighthouse Mission. Previous commitments mean that this Sunday will be Joel and Hannah’s last at Dakota so please come out to help us celebrate, say thank-you, and commission them with joy and prayer.

Also this Sunday I will continue our Summer Series on the Five Solas with week one of Sola Gratia - “Salvation by Grace Alone” 

We are rescued from God’s wrath by His grace alone, not by any work we do. God’s blessing in Christ is the sole efficient cause of salvation. This grace is the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit who brings us to Christ, releasing us from bondage to sin and raising us from spiritual death to spiritual life.

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - July 1, 2018

I hope everyone will be able to join me this Canada Day long weekend for the launch of our 2018 Summer Sermon Series entitled, “The Five Solas of the Reformation”.

We live in a day when the authority of Scripture is openly challenged, the necessity of grace and faith for salvation are ridiculed, Christ’s exclusive claim as the only way to the Father is mocked, and the Glory of God is profaned in favour of cultural acceptance and the approval of man.

The temptation to view the central ideas underpinning the Protestant Reformation as relics from a bygone era, best relegated to the scrap heap of history and forgotten, could not be more off base. Now more than ever the Church needs to be equipped to stand against secular onslaughts from without and deceiving wolves from within. This year our Summer Series is designed to do just that. I hope you will join me.

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - June 17, 2018

Please join us at DCC this Sunday morning for what is sure to be a wonderful time in fellowship and in the Word of God.

The morning gets under way at 9:45 with pre-service prayer and then coffee time.

The service begins at 10:30 with our usual time of worship and fellowship, and then Pastor Dan Van De Laar will be continuing his current sermon series entitled; A Study Through the Epistle of Hebrews.

If you’ve missed any of the earlier messages in the series they are available on our website at www.dakotacommunitychurch.com

Hope to see you all there! 

- Pastor Dan 

Sunday Morning Preview - June 10, 2018

Please join me this Sunday morning at DCC as we conclude our time in the Book of Malachi with Part Two of “The Day of the Lord”.

Having looked at a tremendous amount of scripture relating the many warnings and promises concerning the day of the Lord, there are many directions we could follow in our study of the topic from this point. One thing emerges in my mind as an overwhelming fact, —  when the Bible covers a topic this extensively, we are not left the option to ignore it or to write it off as the purview of a few intellectual scholars and some wing-nut fanatics.

The authors of the New Testament seem to be united in the idea that believers are to possess a faith-sustained holiness on the day of Christ — the day of His return, when the dead in Christ will be raised.

This Sunday we will examine what exactly it means to be “blameless at the coming of our Lord”.

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - June 3, 2018

Over the last few weeks and months as I pored over the scriptures in preparation for this Sunday’s sermon, an amazing thing happened. Going back and forth, back and forth, to and fro, to and fro in my Bible (also drawing on a few key websites); suddenly the numbers all began to sync up in an almost magical way. Finally after more than two millennia the long hidden “day and hour” had emerged. 

Join me this Sunday morning as I announce the time and date of the great and terrible day! Also remember to bring your best (largest $$ sum) seed offering to help get this exciting news published around the world in every language… just kidding. Can you imagine?

Unfortunately the topic of this week’s passage has become associated, in the minds of many, with this kind of nonsensical hucksterism. Our goal this week will be to cut through all the silliness and get to the vitally important warnings and precious promises that will reach their ultimate fulfilment on The Day of the LORD.

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - May 20, 2018

This fallen world can be a scary place. 

Natural disasters, wild animals, debilitating diseases, and sin-bent people all present endless, horrible possibilities. Our worst fears might spring upon us at any given moment causing  pain and suffering beyond all ability to endure. 

Those who want to avoid a life of cowering in paralysed isolation learn not to spend too much time thinking about it.

Enter the Bible with its approximately 120 admonitions to “fear not”.

Really? And what about the oft-repeated command to fear God? Isn’t that a contradiction?

Please join me this Sunday for more on this in, “The Fear of God - Part 2”.

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - May 13, 2018

Please join me at DCC this Sunday morning for what is sure to be a wonderful time in fellowship and in the Word of God.

The morning begins at 9:30 with pre-service prayer and then coffee time.

The service will begin at 10:30 during which we will enjoy our usual time of worship, fellowship, and finally, Joel Cormie will be continuing his sermon series with week twelve in the book of Colossians. 

If you missed any of the earlier messages in the series they are available on our website at www.dakotacommunitychurch.com

Hope to see you all there! 

- Pastor Dan 

Sunday Morning Preview - May 6, 2018

Please join us at DCC this Sunday morning for what is sure to be a wonderful time in fellowship and in the Word of God.

The morning gets under way at 9:45 with pre-service prayer and then coffee time.

The service begins at 10:30 with our usual time of worship and fellowship, we will share Communion, and then Pastor Dan Van De Laar will be continuing his current sermon series entitled; A Study Through the Epistle of Hebrews. 

If you’ve missed any of the earlier messages in the series they are available on our website at www.dakotacommunitychurch.com

Hope to see you all there! 

- Pastor Dan 

Sunday Morning Preview - April 22, 2018

Please join me this Sunday morning as we continue our journey through the Book of Malachi with the conclusion of my sermon entitled Land of Delight.

In Part One we asked and answered a couple of very important questions regaurding this well known passage:

• Does the teaching on tithing in Malachi 3:9-10 apply to us today?
• Is the Christian who does not tithe cursed with a curse?
• Why doesn’t Paul use the command to tithe to enforce his efforts to raise money in the NT?

A correct understanding of scripture does not allow us to place Christians under a command to tithe, especially not a command that carries with it any kind of curse for failing to comply. How then can the church survive in a time when there is no end to consumer options and opportunity?

Pastor Dan

Sunday Morning Preview - April 8, 2018

We all knew this day was coming. From that first fateful moment last October when I announced my intention to preach a series on the Book of Malachi … 

we resisted it, tried to ignore it, but  all along … 

WE KNEW! 

Malachi 3:9-10 has been relentlessly approaching, consuming our thoughts, denying us sweet sleep; looming on the horizon like a dark storm cloud ready to rain down death and destruction.

Well, okay, maybe I’ve been obsessing about it a little more than most of you have. 

Here is the million dollar question I intend to answer as we walk through this next passage:

Does the teaching on tithing in Malachi 3:9-10 apply to Christians?

I hope you will join me!

Pastor Dan