Sunday Sermons

The story of Abraham is shaped by the incredible promises made to him by God. Take these away and chances are we wouldn’t be reading about him. Yet when we read these amazing promises from the LORD to Abram, we must realize these aren’t different promises made when things seemingly didn’t go according to plan. Instead, we need to understand that the LORD’s promises to Abram reflect his original de...

Message from Pastor Chris Amundson on December 26, 2021

Message from Pastor Mike Matheson on December 24, 2021

Message from Pastor Mike Matheson on December 19, 2021

Making a Christmas list is a time-honored tradition. Think back to the outrageous requests you made of your parents year-in and year-out—whether they were copied straight from the toy catalog or whether they came simply from your own imagination. Regardless of how lengthy the list or how costly the items were, in child-like faith, there was always an optimism of what would appear under the tree on...

Christmas brings with it a sense of wonder and magic. Seeing the faces of children light up at the various marvels of the season. The anticipation of maybe getting the long-desired present. The hope that the holidays will bring healing to a dire situation. For whatever reason, these all seem more likely to come true at Christmas. The question we must wrestle with is this: from where is our faith i...

As Christians living in a world that’s not our home, a world that ultimately rejects us, how are we to endure? How do we stand firm in our faith until the end, when Christ returns and delivers us to our ultimate salvation? Peter closes out his first letter with some important final instructions to make sure that those he’s writing to are well prepared for their final days in this world. And what w...

What characteristics do you look for in a leader? The right answer is, “it depends.” It depends on where you’re headed. All throughout 1 Peter we have been repeatedly reminded that our hope needs to be fully set on the grace that will be revealed at Christ’s return (1:13). In other words, we need leaders that will lead us toward the future glory… and we need to know how to rightly follow them. In...

Suffering is a key element in the Christian life. Peter has repeatedly made this clear throughout this letter. To share in Christ’s suffering is the life to which we are called as we keep our hope fully set on Christ, awaiting his glorious return. Peter, however, takes this a step further by calling us to rejoice now while in the midst of suffering, for it will result in joy and gladness when Chri...

Time is of the essence. Though true for all in some circumstances, this truism is always true for those who follow Christ. How we live now should reflect our future hope while contrasting our former passions. Just as Christ once suffered, those willing to endure suffering now demonstrate a genuine desire to please God. Despite the great cost, those who turn away from the passions of the flesh will...

Over the last few weeks, the Apostle Peter has shown us how to live lives of submission in the various facets of our lives. As uncomfortable as that might be for us, the reality is that how we live demonstrates where our hope is fully set. In this section, Peter affirms that righteous living will result in our blessing. Further, if we suffer for doing good, there is an even greater blessing. For,...

The call to live honorable lives despite our exile stature in the world has been applied by Peter in various ways. First, as citizens, we are to be subject to every human institution (2:13-17). Peter then applied this to servants, who are to endure even unjust suffering, for to do so gives the opportunity to display Christ to unbelievers (2:13-24). Now Peter turns to the marriage relationship. How...

Suffering, by most people’s standards, is generally avoided at all costs. The thought of leaning into hardship, especially when it comes unjustly, seems so backwards to most people. Yet, this is how Peter instructs his readers—to be subject to those with authority over us regardless of how you are treated. Such a command is hard to hear, let alone obey! However, Peter takes it a step further: to e...

From the beginning of this letter addressed to the churches spread throughout Asia Minor, Peter has been reminding the faithful of the incomparable hope that they have in Christ. That even though we are exiles in this world, we have an inheritance waiting for us and a new identity as the chosen people of God. But with all of these things being true, it produces a tension and questions over how we...

One word that has taken on new meaning in recent years is the word identity. How does one view him or herself? What are the key components that determine one’s identity? From one’s nationality to one’s profession, there are many ways we might identify ourselves, sometimes even rejecting who God has made us to be. Peter wants his readers to have a crystal clear understanding of who they are: in Chr...

On what is your hope fully set? For some, hope is just an optimistic sentiment, such as hoping for good weather tomorrow. For those who know Christ, hope is an assurance of the grace that will be revealed when Christ returns. It is on this hope that our lives are to be fully set. Peter calls on his readers to live lives that pursue holiness, fearfully conducting lives under the Father’s watchful v...

Joy can be elusive. So often it can escape as we face many hardships and difficulties. How can we keep from letting our joy evaporate, especially in light of what God has accomplished for us through Jesus Christ and his powerful resurrection? As Peter dives into the body of his letter to the exiles, he calls on us to praise God, recognizing the living hope to which we’ve been called that secures a...

So often our mailboxes get clogged and bogged with more junk mail than meaningful messages from those closest to us. In those rare moments, when an actual letter personally addressed to us arrives, it stands out and immediately gets our attention. The recipients of Peter’s letter surely felt the same way. In both the opening and closing verses of the letter, Peter communicates an important message...

Do you know what the longest chapter in the Bible is? Psalm 119. Located at nearly the dead-center of your Bible is the song that sings the greatness of God’s word as a means of grace to us as his people. Just as Psalm 119 is at the center of your Bible, God’s word needs to be at the center of our lives. When our attention is rightly focused on God and his word, our lives will experience God’s gre...

What motivates you to worship God? There are many great reasons we might give—such as, “The Bible tells me that I should,” or “Because of all the blessings in my life.” Both of these are certainly valid reasons for our worship. But what motivates David? What are the reasons he gives for why he will extol (or praise) his “God and King”? Just as those who came before him recognized, it is the charac...

Where do you turn when you are in need of refuge? David makes clear where he turns: “In the LORD I take refuge.” While we all want this to be our answer, when the hard times come, we are easily distracted—whether by friends or those closest to us. Instead of finding safety in God, we opt instead to preserve our lives by our own means. This psalm gives us a clear view of where the LORD sits and how...

“God bless you!” We often say this to someone going through a difficult time or after a sneeze, but what do we mean by it? What does God’s blessing look like? And what happens when his blessing goes out? Here we read that the LORD’s blessing is given to Israel to bring this same blessing to all the nations on the earth. In other words, God blessed Israel with the expressed purpose of displaying hi...

As we conclude Daniel, we must consider where we have traveled. After God’s judgment upon Jerusalem, many were dragged to Babylon and forced into a new culture and lifestyle. Despite everything thrown at Daniel and his Hebrew friends, the LORD remained faithful, strengthening their resolve to honor him no matter who was in power. Though Daniel faced many trials, God communicated through him that s...

“How relevant is the Bible to me?” Reading Daniel 11, one might be tempted to think that the Bible is NOT AT ALL relevant! How can we possibly find something applicable to our lives as we read about the rise and fall of kingdoms the “North” and the”South”? Despite their efforts to thwart God’s redemptive purposes for his people, these kingdoms are long gone. Yet God’s kingdom remains. No matter th...

Sometimes the most frightening thing is that which you cannot see. This is true for the child fearfully lying inside the dark bedroom or the swimmer exploring the open ocean waters. Daniel is once again given a word and vision from the LORD, though this time it comes from an angel, but one described as “a man clothed in linen…” This messenger isn’t specifically identified, yet we are told that he...