Joel Gilbert

During the Communist era, under the dictatorship of Enver Hoxha, the country of Albania lived in fear of foreign invasions, which led to isolation and became known as the North Korea of Europe. Under the communist regime, Albania faced severe religious persecution. In 1967, Albania was the world's first…

Over the centuries, there have been countless stories of people who have died for their faith in Jesus Christ. Books like… Foxe’s Book of Martyrs written in the 16th century, The New Encyclopedia of Christian Martyrs , which chronicles the lives of some martyrs from the OT to today, The Insanity of Obedience…

If you have your copy of God’s Word, open to Acts 6 , you’ll find that on p. 870 in the pew Bibles. Last week, we found the early church facing a challenge from within as Ananias and Sapphira tried to lie to the Holy Spirit and conflict from the outside as the apostles were arrested, released by an angel,…

Pastoral Prayer Good morning Yahweh, we come before you in awe of you. Your name truly is majestic and glorious. You are like no other. We come to marvel at you, at the works of your hands. We see the evidence of your creative power in all of creation, from the vastness and grandeur of the universe to…

Introduction William Shakespeare’s famous tragedy, Romeo and Juliet shows the love between two people from rival families - the Montegues and Capulets. In the second scene of the second act, Romeo is in the garden outside of Juliet’s window. Frustrated by the name of this lover that she is forbidden…

Sermon Title: “What I Do Have I Give To You” (Show Slide 1) Sermon Text: Acts 3:1-26 Introduction Good morning, church! It’s always a pleasure and privilege to share with you from God’s Word. I want to start our time together by asking a question? Have you ever seen or had an interaction with someone…

Mark Dever testimony Grew up as an agnostic intellectual Alcoholic father - 3x divorced and remarried mom - un-religious - turned off by a deforming and debilitating fatal illness seen in her aunt - in spite of her aunt’s devout faith Mark - doubted that truths about God could be known - but stated that…

Beginning in Advent of 2024, we embarked on a study of the gospel of Luke. This was essentially Luke’s perspective on the life and ministry of Jesus. Over the course of a year and a half, we learned about the events surrounding Jesus’ miraculous birth. We got a brief glimpse into his adolescent years.…

In any relationship, there are adjustments that are made. new school year and teachers - learning new expectations and how they work New friends - adapting to their idiosyncrasies and means of humor Visiting dignitaries or executives Marriage - learning to live with someone else, creating new patterns.…

The USA is frequently called a “post-Christian” nation. While we may have been founded on Judeo-Christian ethics, so much of our culture and society operates without a conscious, ethical knowledge of biblical values or of God Himself. While the founding fathers seemed to establish a nation in which we…

Psalms 13:1-6 : TOPIC: How Long, O LORD? To O My LORD Theme: Getting through life's toughest moments with God Introduction How do we respond during very difficult times or situations? Can we learn from our past experiences or others' experiences about how to deal with tough moments? Is it possible to…

Words have a way of staying with us. Whether it’s words that we’ve said or words that we’ve heard. Words are a daily part of our lives. It’s through words that we often give and receive information. It’s through words that we find a way to express ourselves. It’s often through words that we articulate…

Armal explained Psalm 10 quite well last week, giving us multiple characteristics of wicked men. Today we are going to see what some people do when they rely on their own resources and what the Lord tells them from His Word to do in times of stress. Psalm 11 is a Psalm of prayer and refuge. It illustrates…

Sermon Title: Trusting the God Who Sees (Show Slide 1) Sermon Text: Psalm 10:1-18 Good morning church family and guests! It’s a great privilege to open the word of God with you today. I'd like to begin with a question: Have you ever looked at the current state of the world and asked yourself, "Where…

Every song has a story some come through pain Others come through joy Some through love Some are intriguing observations Others from peculiarities As listeners of modern songs, we may only be able to guess or make assumptions about inspiration to a song. Occasionally the composers provide some insight…

A few years ago, in the months following the COVID pandemic, a pastor friend of mind noted that he feels like he’s in a brain fog. Prior to getting COVID, he used to be able to spend a couple of hours each morning reading old, difficult texts. He noted that after getting COVID, he lacks the ability to…

Sermon Title: Trusting the Righteous Judge (Show Slide 1) Sermon Text: Psalm 7 Happy 4th of July weekend everyone! I hope everyone enjoyed the 250th year Birthday of the USA with family and friends. I want to start today by telling an illustration story called “The Echo in the Valley” (Chatgpt) The Echo…

Forms of persecution: religious ethnic general harassment We can face it at different times and in different ways from different sources. It can be so frustrating to be persecuted because often it’s without reason. Today as we continue our study in the book of psalms, we turn to Psalm 5 , a psalm that…

“Sticks and stones can break my bones - but words will never hurt me.” How many of you have said this? Maybe some of us have been the recipient of this rebuff. This playground mantra has been a defense mechanism for so many - maybe even some of us. But if we’re honest, I think we know that names, lies,…

Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve been considering the first two psalms. In many ways, those two chapters provide a helpful foundation for the rest of the psalter. Psalm 1 provides a wise perspective for an individual. Psalm 2 expands the scope by helping us see that God is sovereign over all and…

Have you noticed that rebellion against authority has been on the rise in recent years? We see it in the news, violent street protests, court rooms, schools and even in our homes. I saw a video recently that went viral across social media. Parenting expert Jo Frost from the “Supernanny” show, made a…

Over the next couple of months, we’ll begin a pattern of walking through the Psalms in the summer - hence the name “Summer Psalter.” Between now and Labor Day, we’ll examine one Psalm each week (we should finish around Psalm 16 this year). Next year, Lord willing, we’ll pick up where we will leave off.…

One of the things that has surprised me in our study of the book of Luke is the number of times that the kingdom of God is referenced - over 30 times. Over the course of the last 67 sermons, we have discussed various aspects of the Kingdom of God - what it is, who it entails, how to enter, what Kingdom…

Pastoral Prayer Good morning Lord, Today, we join the psalmist as we worship you for your omnipresence… Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I lift up the wings of the dawn,…