Sermon Notes

This past Sunday we continued our consideration of the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 7:1-6 is a difficult passage and is often quoted and applied out of context. From the whole counsel of God's Word, it is clear that the prohibition in verse 1 does not leave us unable to ever make a judgment or exercise discernment. In fact, many places in Scripture give us explicit instruc...

How deep the father's love for us /How vast beyond all measureThat he should give his only Son /To make a wretch his treasure These words by Stuart Townend express in song what Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount, namely that the Father in heaven loves his children and longs for us to come and find our greatest reward in him. Indeed, this is why Jesus Christ came, t...

We live in a world filled with competing voices. Modern day prophets come to us at all times and from all angles. And how we respond to them has great impact on our daily livingandour eternal destiny. Or at least, that's the argument I made in Sunday's sermon from Matthew 7:1523. As Jesus warns his disciples of Israel's false prophets, he gives us great insight into who w...

Hurricanes. Tornados. Floods. Fires. Earthquakes. In our world, not a week goes by that we are not confronted with extreme and life-threatening weather. Yet, there is a storm coming that exceeds anything that we have ever known. It is the storm of the Lord that will purify everything on the earth on the way to making all things new. On Sunday, our last sermon from Matthe...

What does the Bible say about divorce? Unfortunately, it says quite a bit. As a book that gives us everything we need for life and godliness, the Bible gives instructions about marriage and warnings about divorce. But that is not all that it says. If our minds jump too quickly, we may only remember the words of Malachi 2: God hates divorce. But we can't read that prophet...

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood,a holy nation, a people for his own possession,that you may proclaim the excellencies of himwho called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9 From Genesis to Revelation, the themes of priesthood and kingship overlap and intertwine in the history of redemption. In this new sermon series we are examining how ...

Last week we celebrated the Reformation Day (October 31) and the recovery of the gospel brought about by men and women like Martin Luther and Katherine von Bora. Both of these Reformers fled the monastic life in order to follow Christ. Yet, in departing the Roman Catholic system of priesthood, they did not abandon the priesthood of Christ nor the priesthood of believers. ...

Are you a royal priest? How do you know? What is a kingdom of priests? And how does that really apply today? Is this title for individuals? Or should it be a community identity? Many questions swirl around the biblical idea of priesthood. And on Sunday we considered Peter's words to the church: "You are a royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9). In examining his words, we learned...

I am __________. In individualistic cultures, these words are usually filled with various accomplishments, activities, or vocations. I am amusician. I am adoctor. I am a (recovering)alcoholic. However, in more communal cultures, this sentence is more likely completed with relational predicates. I am ason. I am amother. I am ahusband. Of course, studies that have employed...

The angel of the Lord. A satanic accuser in the throne room of God. A priest with dirty clothes. The promise of a coming Messiah. And a front row seat to God's plan of redemption. On Sunday we considered all of these items as they appear together in Zechariah 3. Finishing up our series on the priesthood, we saw in Sunday's sermon how our lives fit into the incredible stor...