Grace Maricopa

Most Christians are familiar with the story of Adam and Eve, but many are unaware that the Qur'an contains a similar account in Surah 7. At first glance the stories seem nearly identical: God creates Adam, places him in a garden, forbids a particular tree, and Satan tempts humanity into disobedience. But the details beneath those similarities establish incompatible foundations that fundamentally separate Christianity and Islam.

In the Christian account, Adam and Eve are found in relationship with God in the Garden. The Serpent tempted Eve, who ate of the forbidden tree, and then Eve gave the forbidden fruit to Adam, who ate it as well. At that moment, their eyes were opened, they knew they were naked, and they created clothes of fig leaves to hide their nakedness.

What happens next is important. The Bible records that Adam and Eve heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden; however, this time instead of walking towards God and communing with Him, Adam and Eve walked away from God and hid from Him among the trees of the garden. Adam and Eve chose to move away from God and separate themselves from Him. God calls to Adam and confronts him about his attempt to hide from His presence. Adam responded that he was afraid—he knew he was naked, so he hid from God.

The Fall of Man

In theology, this is what we describe as the Fall of Man. Adam was created and commanded by God to care for all of creation, including Eve. Instead, Adam chose to disobey God, sin against God, and separate from God. And for the first time in the Bible, fear entered the heart of humanity through the doorway of Adam’s own sin and rebellion.

In the Qur’anic account, Adam and his wife are also tempted to eat of the forbidden fruit. And the Qur’an records in Surah 7:22 that their actions brought about “their fall” and as a result they also created clothes of leaves from the garden to hide their nakedness. However, in the Qur’anic account, there is no record of Adam and his wife communing with God. There is no record of relationship broken. In the Qur’an the relationship between Allah and humanity is transactional, not relational. The Qur’an emphasizes disobedience and submission, not the broken relationship. Allah commands and humanity must submit in response and comply. No relationship. No love. No personality. No heart.

However, an important theological point that can be easily overlooked is the consequence of the Fall of Man. Biblically, the Fall of Man explains the human condition. Why do we sin? Why do we experience guilt, shame, suffering, and death? Why do we need a Savior? Genesis 3 provides the answer. Adam, acting as the representative (federal) head of humanity, rebelled against God. Just as a king’s decision affects his kingdom, Adam’s rebellion affected all those he represented. Through his sin, corruption entered the world and spread to all his descendants. As the Apostle Paul writes, "…through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.” (Romans 5:12).

Because of Adam's sin, humanity is not merely guilty of committing sinful acts. We are sinners by nature. We do not become sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. This is why every society, every culture, and every age of history displays the same brokenness. The problem is not simply that human beings make bad choices. The problem is that our hearts are fallen.

Islam has a different account with a different theological result.

The Different Foundation of Islam

In the Qur'anic account, Adam repents, God forgives him, and the story serves primarily as a lesson in obedience and repentance. While Islam acknowledges that people sin, it rejects the Christian doctrine that humanity inherits Adam's fallen condition.

This distinction is far more important than it may first appear. If human beings are born morally neutral without a sinful nature, then their greatest need is guidance. If human beings are born spiritually fallen (sinful by nature), then their greatest need is redemption.

That difference explains the different foundations of Christianity and Islam and how each arrives at very different conclusions about salvation. Christianity teaches that mankind cannot save itself because the problem lies deep within the human heart. No amount of religious effort, moral improvement, or good works can remove our sinful nature. We need God to intervene on our behalf with the miracle of regeneration that gives us a new heart and a new nature.

The Bible consistently presents this reality. David confessed, "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me." (Psalm 51:5). Paul wrote that we are "…dead in your transgressions and sins" (Ephesians 2:1). Jesus Himself taught that sinful actions flow from a sinful heart (Mark 7:21-23). The message of Scripture is clear: humanity's problem is deeper than behavior. Sin is a condition that affects every human heart.

What Now?

This understanding of the Fall of Man forms the foundation of the gospel. Before we can appreciate God's forgiveness, we must understand why forgiveness is necessary. Before we can rejoice in salvation, we must recognize our need to be saved. Genesis 3 is not merely the story of Adam and Eve; it is the story of humanity.

As believers, understanding this difference can help us have thoughtful and compassionate conversations with our Muslim neighbors. While both Christianity and Islam speak of sin, they do not begin with the same diagnosis of the human condition. And whenever two worldviews disagree about the nature of the problem, they will inevitably disagree about the nature of the solution.

In future articles, we will continue exploring these foundational differences, including God's justice and mercy, the necessity of atonement, and the identity of Jesus Christ. For now, it is enough to remember that the gospel begins in a garden. The Fall explains why the world is broken, why our hearts are restless, and why every person needs the saving grace of God through Jesus Christ.

Post tenebras lux,

Pastor Dan | Psalm 46

One of the easiest misunderstandings about missions is believing that gospel ministry only happens somewhere else. We often think of missionaries crossing oceans, serving in remote villages, or sharing Christ in places we may never visit. While that is certainly true, the reality is even more encouraging.

Every time we give at Grace Maricopa, we are participating in gospel ministry that begins right here in our city and extends to the ends of the earth. Through the Southern Baptist Convention's Cooperative Program, thousands of churches work together to accomplish far more than any single church could do alone.

The Gospel In Maricopa

When our church gathers for worship, reaches our neighbors, disciples believers, serves families, and proclaims Christ throughout Maricopa, we are already participating in God's mission.

But our Cooperative Program giving also connects us to a much larger network of churches across Arizona. That means Grace Maricopa is not simply serving our city alone. We are partnering with hundreds of other Southern Baptist churches throughout the state who share the same desire: to see every person hear the good news of Jesus Christ.

What may feel like a small contribution from one congregation becomes a powerful force for gospel ministry when combined with the gifts of thousands of believers.

The Gospel In Arizona

Arizona remains one of the fastest-growing mission fields in the nation. New communities continue to emerge throughout the state, creating opportunities for churches to be planted and strengthened. Southern Baptists in Arizona are actively working to establish churches in urban centers, suburbs, college communities, small towns, and among diverse language and ethnic groups.

One example comes from Phoenix, where a church planter named Anthony Cox shared how Cooperative Program giving helped make his family's ministry possible. Through Southern Baptist partnerships, training at Gateway Seminary, and support from church planting missionaries, his family was sent to plant a church in downtown Phoenix among people who might otherwise never have been reached. Reflecting on that partnership, he wrote, "We can do what we do because every dollar comes from a Baptist."

Stories like this are repeated across Arizona as churches cooperate to start new congregations, train future pastors, and engage communities with the gospel.

The Gospel Across America

Our giving also supports the North American Mission Board (NAMB), which helps plant churches and mobilize evangelism throughout the United States and Canada.

In addition, Southern Baptists are often among the first to respond when disaster strikes. Through Southern Baptist Disaster Relief and Send Relief, volunteers provide meals, clear debris, rebuild homes, and share the hope of Christ with people experiencing some of the darkest moments of their lives.

Following Hurricane Helene, more than 13,000 Southern Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers from 33 states served affected communities, preparing over 1.2 million meals, helping thousands of families, and sharing the gospel in countless conversations. Nearly 300 professions of faith were reported during that response.

That is what Cooperative Program giving accomplishes. Churches working together meet physical needs while proclaiming the eternal hope found only in Jesus Christ.

The Gospel Among The Nations

Perhaps the most remarkable impact of our giving takes place beyond America's borders.

Through the International Mission Board (IMB), Southern Baptists support missionaries serving in 155 countries around the world. Many labor among people groups that have little or no access to the gospel. These missionaries share Christ, disciple new believers, train local leaders, and help establish churches in some of the hardest places on earth.

In the last five years alone, IMB missionaries and ministry partners have reported more than 4.5 million gospel conversations and over 785,000 professions of faith.

Many of those opportunities are made possible because Southern Baptist churches choose cooperation over competition. Rather than each church trying to send and support missionaries independently, we pool our resources so that thousands of missionaries can remain focused on ministry instead of fundraising.

Our Part In The Mission

It is easy to underestimate the significance of a weekly offering.

A gift placed in the offering box at Grace Maricopa helps support local ministry in Maricopa. It helps strengthen churches across Arizona. It helps plant churches throughout North America. It helps train pastors and missionaries. It helps disaster relief volunteers respond to crises. It helps send missionaries to places where the name of Jesus is scarcely known.

The Cooperative Program reminds us of a powerful truth: we can do more together than we can ever do alone.

From Maricopa to Arizona, from Arizona to America, and from America to the nations, God is using faithful churches working together to advance the gospel. And by God's grace, Grace Maricopa is part of that story.

If you want to learn more about how you can participate—locally, nationally, or globally—contact Pastor Dan.

What is worship?

This question is not so small as it may seem. The word worship itself tends to denote a person paying due reverence and obeisance to one of higher status than they, but what is it when we speak of Biblical worship? Believe it or not, worship is not merely singing (though it certainly includes it!). Worship is a manner of existing.

The best place to make this argument is in Romans 12. The first two verses set up the theme, and the rest of the chapter (and a few after it too) explain what that ought to look like.

"Therefore I exhort you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice—living, holy, and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. [2] And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may approve what the will of God is, that which is good and pleasing and perfect." (Rom.12:1-2)

A few observations; the therefore here links this entire exhortation to the first eleven chapters of Romans that detail in glorious execution the wonders of God's saving grace in Christ. Because of that, therefore...
Our sacrifice is to be living and our own bodies; the only logical conclusion that leads to is a life of obedience which is exactly what verse two picks up, that our living, embodied worship is a life of transformation into the image of Christ as we gaze upon Him (2Cor.3:18), not looking like the rest of the world, to which we once belonged.
And what is the result? Approving the will of God, meaning you submit to and agree with it, and His will is what is good, what is pleasing, and what is perfect. Paul then describes what corporate worship should look like (12:3-8), a Christian's interactions with others (12:9-21), submission to authorities (13:1-7), fulfilling the law of love (13:8-10), purifying oneself for the day of Christ's return (13:11-14), living in a church community of different people (14:1-15:7). All these are expressions of worship!

As we go forward in our lives, let us not grow weary of our priviledge and responsibility. Romasn 1-11 show the infathomable depths of God's love for a loveless and evil people; Romans 12-15 show us how we ought to love Him in return. So worship in Spirit and in Truth this month, and come with hearts prepared to render a sacrifice of praise to God every Sunday, as is good and expected of every believer who has been loved by God.

The worship team plays an integral role every Sunday morning, lifting burdens off our preaching pastors so that they may focus entirely on the Word of God.

We certainly want to thank our AV and worship team for all their hard work!
If you would like to serve in a ministry, both the AV and worship team are always looking for more help! Get involved and let us worship the Lord together, in spirit and in truth.

Listen Along With Grace Maricopa

To listen to the music we play here at Grace Maricopa, follow our playlists on Spotify:

Monthly Worship Playlist This playlist includes all the songs we plan to sing in the upcoming month. Listening ahead helps prepare your heart, deepen familiarity, and allow the truths we sing to settle into your mind before we gather.
Grace Maricopa Rotation Playlist This playlist contains the full library of songs we regularly sing in worship. It’s perfect for personal devotion, prayer time, or simply filling your home, car, or workplace with Christ‑centered music. (available on YouTube as well!)

Our hope is that these playlists become a tool for spiritual formation—helping you meditate on Scripture‑rich lyrics, strengthening your confidence in singing, and filling your week with reminders of God’s goodness.

Give them a listen, share them with your family, and let’s continue to lift joyful voices to our gracious and kind Father.

If you need help accessing the playlists, please contact Pastor Zachary .

Take Our Worship With You

Grace Maricopa Spotify Playlist QR Code

Point your phone's camera at the QR code to open our Spotify playlists.

In November, we are going to be learning that JESUS IS THE WAY. Jesus came to open the eyes of the blind and lead people to repentance and restoration. Jesus was welcomed by many with shouts of joy, but He knew His time on earth was coming to an end. Jesus reminded His disciples that His blood must be poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

The Big Picture question we are asking is WHAT IS JUSTIFICATION? The Answer that we will learn is that JUSTIFICATION IS WHEN GOD DECLARES THAT WE ARE FORGIVEN OF SIN AND ARE MADE RIGHTEOUS.

Our Key Passage Memory Verse for November is 2 Corinthians 5:21 - "He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

Looking forward to our lessons this month from the Gospels:

November 1st - Jesus Healed a Blind Man (John 9)
November 8th - Jesus and Zacchaeus (Luke 19)
November 15th - Jesus' Triumphal Entry (Matthew 21, Mark 11, Luke 19, John 12)
November 22nd - Jesus Taught About the End of the Age (Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21)
November 29th - FAMILY-INTEGRATED WORSHIP (childcare for Babies - PreK only)

What is Family-Integrated Worship?

Children at Grace Maricopa learn important Bible lessons in Children's Church, but it is important for children to observe and participate with their families in worship and the hearing of the preaching of God's Word. We set aside the last Sunday of the month for our older children to sit with their families in the sanctuary. They will also be able to observe the Lord's Supper if they have confessed Jesus as their Savior and Lord. For those who have not, it is a wonderful opportunity for them to ask questions. There will still be childcare available for the younger children (babies through preschool), but you are always welcome to involve them in the worship service as well.

If you are interesting in participating in Grace Kids, contact Christie for more details.