Berea Update for July 3, 2026
Happy 4th of July! Here we are—the big 250. This weekend, our neighborhoods will be illuminated by fireworks, backyards will smell like barbecue, and we will celebrate the birth of a nation that has provided us with immense blessings, protection, and liberty. Last week, we started talking about this paradox of dual citizenship—how we can be profoundly grateful for our country while maintaining our true home address in heaven. This week, as the celebrations hit their peak, I want us to get incredibly practical about boundaries. How do we follow Jesus' famous instruction to "render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's" (Mark 12:17)?
Think about the context of that moment in Mark. The religious elites were trying to trap Jesus. They handed Him a Roman denarius—a coin stamped with the face of Tiberius Caesar and inscribed with a blasphemous title calling Caesar the son of a god. They asked, "Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" If Jesus said yes, the Jewish crowds would view Him as a traitor to God's people. If He said no, the Roman authorities would arrest Him for treason. Jesus looks at the coin and asks, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" They reply, "Caesar's." Then comes the brilliant, sharp boundary line: "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."
Charles Spurgeon, whom we’ve looked at frequently in our recent studies, once noted that human nature loves to swing into extremes. We either want to give Caesar everything—allowing the state or the culture to dictate our morals, our beliefs, and our loyalties—or we want to give Caesar absolutely nothing, refusing to engage with or bless the world around us. But Jesus draws a clear circle around what belongs to the state and what belongs exclusively to the Creator. The coin bears Caesar’s image, so give him his coins. Pay your taxes. Respect the laws. Be a conscientious citizen. But here is the profound implication underneath Jesus’ words: What bears God’s image? You do. You are stamped with the Imago Dei—the image of the living God. Caesar can have your tax money, he can have your civic participation, and he can have your law-abiding respect. But Caesar does not get your soul. He doesn't get your conscience. He doesn't get your ultimate devotion, and he doesn't get to redefine what is true, what is good, and what is beautiful.
As we celebrate the freedoms of our country this week, let’s be entirely transparent: the cultural currents around us are constantly trying to push past that boundary. The world wants your complete, uncritical allegiance. It demands that you bow to its shifting moral consensus, that you find your ultimate identity in political factions, and that you look to human systems for ultimate rescue. When Christian fathers, mothers, and believers allow the culture to step across that boundary line, our homes lose their spiritual compass. Going back to our core question in our series in Mark, "Who Do You Say That I Am?"—our lives must show that Jesus is the undisputed Lord. If the state or the culture says one thing, but the Word of God says another, our alignment is already locked in. We obey God rather than men.
So this 4th of July, let’s celebrate big. Let’s thank God for 250 years of religious liberty that allow us to gather as Berea Bible Church without fear. But as we watch the fireworks burst and fade against the night sky, let’s remember that the kingdoms of this world are temporary spectacles. The Kingdom of our God is an everlasting domain. Enjoy the family, enjoy the freedoms, and let's keep our eyes fixed on the King of Kings.
You are loved! Keep pressing on!
Upcoming Events
1. This Sunday, with it being 4th of July weekend, we'll step out of the series in Mark for a stand alone message from Galatians 5 called "Our Freedom in Christ." We'll be partaking in the Lord's Supper together as a church family, and we also have a few special moments planned to recognize America's 250th birthday. Please come join us as we worship the Lord this Sunday!
2. We had a great turnout for our first Summer Prayer Night, but we would love to have more come! Please plan to join us throughout the remainder of the summer for Summer Prayer Nights, where we'll be seeking the Lord for our church, families, community, and nation. We'll be meeting on the following dates at 6:00 PM in the Family Life Center. The next one is this upcoming Wednesday, July 8! We'll do a variety of types of prayer, both corporate and individual:
July 8 (Wednesday)
July 19 (Sunday)
July 29 (Wednesday)
August 9 (Sunday)
August 19 (Wednesday)
3. Mark your calendars Youth Group! Here are your upcoming events for the month of July:
- July 15: Meet at the Church from 6:30-8:00 PM
-July 22: Meet at Wes and Michele Stephens' house from 6:30-8:00 PM
4. There will be an outdoor work day on Saturday, July 18 from 9:00-11:00 AM, weather permitting! We'll be doing some clean up around the building, including adding some mulch to the flower beds.
5. Berea Mom's Group! You will be meeting this upcoming Tuesday, July 7 from 10:00 AM- 1:00 PM here at the church! This is a change from the normal Thursday meeting days. If you are a mom of a toddler or baby, you are invited for this time of fellowship together, and also a time for your kiddos to play together!
6. Several have expressed interest in joining Berea officially in membership. To officially join Berea, we require that each person participate in a Membership Class, which will meet sometime in July—a day and time has not been set yet. If you are interested in officially joining the church, please send me an email to get added to the list. I’ll be reaching out to everyone who has expressed interest to try to set a day and time that might work for everyone.
7. Please continue to be in prayer for the Norman family. LJ continues to be in Nationwide Children's Hospital, and will be having another surgical procedure done today. Bethany is staying in Columbus with him, but James is now home, back to work, and caring for their other children. We would love to bless their family with meals during this time. Please click the link to sign up:
Norman Family Meal Train
Ways You Can Pray This Week
1. Please pray for our nation--our leaders, our servicemen and servicewomen, and all of those who sacrifice on a daily basis for our freedoms and liberties.
***Please know that there are many individuals who need prayer this week due to health concerns and other events going on in their lives. Out of sensitivity to each individual's situation, these requests may not appear in this weekly blog. We have a "Prayer Team" at the church who receives more detailed information, and commits to praying for individuals in our church family.
This Week's Devotions
Day 1: The Image on the Soul
Mark 12:16–17 (ESV) — "And they brought one. And he said to them, 'Whose likeness and inscription is this?' They said to him, 'Caesar's.' Jesus said to them, 'Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.'"
Jesus' answer to the religious leaders is more than a clever political dodge; it is a profound definition of human identity. A Roman coin was minted by the emperor, bore his face, and technically belonged to his treasury. Therefore, returning it via taxes was simply returning what was already his. But human beings are minted by God. We carry His structural design, His breath, and His likeness inside our souls. The state can demand our currency and our external civic cooperation, but it has no right to ownership over our hearts, our worship, or our moral compass. Those are reserved exclusively for the King who created us.
Reflection Question: Are there areas of your thoughts, time, or values where you are accidentally giving "to Caesar" what belongs strictly to God?
Day 2: The Line in the Sand
Acts 5:29 (ESV) — "But Peter and the apostles answered, 'We must obey God rather than men.'"
The early apostles were told by the highest legal and religious authorities of their day to completely stop preaching the Gospel. It wasn't a suggestion; it was an official injunction. Peter, who had previously written extensively about honoring rulers, didn't hesitate. When human laws or cultural mandates directly contradict the clear commands of Scripture, the boundary line is reached. Our default setting as Christians is respectful compliance with society, but our ultimate loyalty is anchored to a higher throne. We do not rebel out of anger or arrogance, but out of a quiet, unshakeable obedience to Jesus.
Reflection Question: How do you prepare your heart and mind now to stand firm on biblical truth when cultural or structural pressures demand that you compromise?
Day 3: Strangers in a Promised Land
Hebrews 11:13 (ESV) — "These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth."
The heroes of faith listed in Hebrews 11—Abraham, Isaac, Jacob—lived in the physical lands God had promised them, yet they lived in tents like foreigners. They realized that no physical territory, no earthly nation, and no temporary city could ever fully satisfy the deep ache in their souls for true home. As we celebrate the milestones of our country, we have to guard against settling down too deeply into the comforts of this world. We are spiritual travelers. If we find ourselves feeling completely comfortable, entirely satisfied, and perfectly at peace with the current cultural climate, we may have forgotten that we are still on the road.
Reflection Question: Does the way you spend your emotional energy, finances, and time reflect someone who is anchored permanently here, or someone who is traveling toward an eternal city?
Day 4: Prayers for the Peace of the Land
Ezra 6:10 (ESV) — "...that they may offer pleasing sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons."
Even during the reconstruction of Jerusalem under pagan Persian rule, God's leaders directed the people to pray sincerely for the health and stability of the foreign rulers. Christian civic duty is not passive or cynical. We don't root for our nation’s downfall or economic collapse just to say, "I told you so" to a secular world. We pray for prosperity, we pray for justice, and we pray for wisdom for our leaders. We want our nation to thrive because a stable, peaceful society provides the optimal greenhouse for families to grow, churches to gather, and the Gospel to spread to the ends of the earth.
Reflection Question: When you pray for our nation this week, are your prayers driven by political frustration or by a genuine desire for God's peace and grace to flood our land?
Day 5: The True Source of Liberty
Galatians 5:1 (ESV) — "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery."
This week, we celebrate political and civic liberty—freedoms that are precious and worth defending. But the New Testament reminds us of an even greater liberty: freedom from the power of sin, the weight of guilt, and the fear of death. A person can live in the freest democratic republic on earth and still be completely enslaved to their passions, their pride, and their brokenness. Conversely, a Christian can be physically imprisoned for their faith and be radically, beautifully free inside. Our ultimate independence day happened 2,000 years ago on an execution hill outside Jerusalem.
Reflection Question: As you celebrate national freedom this week, take a moment to evaluate your heart. Are there areas of secret sin or worldly anxiety where you are allowing yourself to be placed back into a "yoke of slavery"?
Day 6: The Great Cloud of Witnesses
Hebrews 12:1–2 (ESV) — "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith..."
When we look back at 250 years of national history, we see a long line of historical figures who shaped our earthly realities. But as Christians, we trace our lineage back through a much older, global family tree. We belong to a "cloud of witnesses" that spans every tribe, tongue, language, and century—martyrs, theologians, ordinary mothers, and faithful fathers who kept the faith under Roman emperors, medieval kings, and modern regimes. They ran their race, and now it’s our turn. We look to historical heroes for inspiration, but we keep our eyes locked exclusively on Jesus as our ultimate blueprint.
Reflection Question: How does realizing that you belong to a massive, global, multi-generational family of believers change the way you view your current cultural struggles?
Day 7: The Final Gathering of Nations
Revelation 7:9 (ESV) — "After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands..."
Human history is fragmented by borders, nationalism, wars, and geopolitical rivalries. Empires rise, claim dominance, and fade away. But the final chapter of human reality shows a beautiful, diverse, unified family gathering around the throne of the Savior. The unique beauty of every culture and nation will not be erased; it will be redeemed and brought into perfect harmony under the lordship of Jesus. Our primary identity is not defined by our ethnicity, our political affiliation, or our earthly geography. We are the redeemed people of God, and our story ends in a city where the light never fades and the King reigns forever.
Reflection Question: How can you actively model this future heavenly unity in your conversations, relationships, and church community right now?
Kids (and Kids at Heart) Korner
Have a great weekend! See you Sunday!
Mark