Open Seats, Deep Roots | Celebrating 18 Years with Dr. Conway and Jada Edwards
One Community Church • Sep 20, 2026 • 46 min
Take this message with you through a journey of Scripture, reflection, and prayer.
Summary
Themes
Pastor's Points
Key Points
- 1.Believers are called to be deep Christians who apply God's Word daily rather than passive spiritual consumers seeking pleasing messages.
- 2.Collecting biblical knowledge without putting it into practice is like storing cans of paint in a garage while leaving the walls bare and unchanged.
- 3.Seedless watermelons are engineered purely for immediate pleasure rather than reproduction, illustrating how believers fail when they seek self-satisfaction instead of reproducing Christlike disciples.
- 4.Tax collectors and sinners were drawn to Jesus because He engaged them as valuable individuals without defining them by their wrong behaviors.
- 5.The church must avoid turning inward and making ministry solely about existing members, keeping celebration centered on lost people being found.
- 6.God's ultimate agenda is not payback or condemnation, but actively seeking out and restoring broken souls into relationship with Him.
- 7.Following Jesus requires believers to reflect His character in everyday interactions rather than sacrificing their testimony just to win an argument.
Sermon Moments
“The Bible never says you need a deep word. Here's what the Bible does say: that you need deep Christians who will apply the word that they hear.”
“What good does it do you when you have a whole bunch of paint in your garage and all you do is get paint can after paint can after paint can, but nothing goes on the wall?”
“They created seedless watermelon only for pleasure, not reproduction. That is the problem with the church today when we only want a word that feels good without reproducing disciples.”
“Be careful that you don't call too many people 'those people' and not think other people are calling you 'those people.' We are all God's people.”
“When you see one person's story, all you're really seeing is a slice of their life. You're not seeing the whole picture.”
“God's agenda is not payback. God's agenda is bring back. God's agenda is win back. God's agenda is get them home.”
“You made politics more than their eternity. That's unwise. Your job is to be so winsome that they want to follow the same Jesus you follow.”
This Week
Remember This
True spiritual maturity is demonstrated when believers apply God's Word to their daily lives and look at lost people with the same love, value, and desire for restoration that the Father has.
A Challenge for You
"Every day you should get up and say, 'God, will you help me see people like you see people? God, will you let me celebrate the lost like you celebrate the lost? God, will you help me value the lost?'"These are personal sermon notes shared to help you remember the message — not a replacement for Scripture, your church, or your pastors.
Read each passage, or hear where it was taught.
Continue this series
More Than Sunday
Sermon
137:57The Monday Test: How Do You Know Sunday Was Real?
Zairreus Patterson · One Community Church
Oct 11, 2026
Read notes
Bible study
37:19First things first: Morning Prayer
Dr. Conway Edwards · One Community Church
Oct 8, 2026
Read notes
Sermon
37:14Drip Check
Dr. Conway Edwards · One Community Church
Oct 4, 2026
Read notes
Sermon
36:32Shallow-End Syndrome
Dr. Conway Edwards · One Community Church
Sep 27, 2026
Read notes
Part 2 · Current
45:39Open Seats, Deep Roots | Celebrating 18 Years with Dr. Conway and Jada Edwards
Dr. Conway Edwards · One Community Church
Sep 20, 2026
Read notes
Sermon
49:03Why We Ghost the Church: When Distance Becomes Disease
Dr. Conway Edwards · One Community Church
Sep 13, 2026
Read notes
Sermon
49:25Most Christians Don't Live What They Believe
Dr. Conway Edwards · One Community Church
Sep 6, 2026
Read notes
