406 Theology

Humanity has always had the proclivity to pursue and protect our own kingdom rather than live for God's Kingdom. This story illustrates whose kingdom will last and which King protects His people. The Kingdom of God gives life and last forever, man's kingdom will end in death and destruction. Choose wisely. 

Act 10 contains the story of Peter interacting with a Roman Centurion named Cornelius. This story shows us that the Holy Spirit is available to all those who fear and call on the name of Jesus as their Lord. 

The Apostle Paul had his life changed on the road to Damascus. The Holy Spirit revealed to him the living Jesus Christ, and at that moment Paul served a new Lord. This is Paul's testimony. 

This chapter of Acts tells of the ministry of Phillip to those surrounding Jerusalem, even those in North Africa. The Spirit is described as guiding the process by which Phillip preaches and proclaimes the risen Christ and teaches through the Bible. 

Stephen is recorded as the first martyr for the Christian faith in Acts. But Luke's inclusion of this story has much more to do with the temple of God expanding to all the nations as was promised in the Old Testament. The Temple would no longer be the physical brick and morter building but the people of God upheld by the Word of God and the Spirit's indwelling.

The church was faced real challenges in their early day as they would throughout her history. Acts 6 shows us how God's Spirit carefully helped navigate a potential rift in the church through providing what we would know as the church office of "deacon". Deacon's were to serve the physical needs of the community as the apostles continued on with the Word ministry to the church. 

Peter and John clearly confront the Sanhedrin's misconception of Jesus and what God has done through Him. The leadership of Israel is now transfered to those who recognize the King as Jesus. This King leaves His Spirit to encourage and streangthen His Church, including you and me. 

Peter explains the healing of a lame man at the entrance of the Temple to a crowd who is in near disbelief. How can a lame man walk from faith in Jesus as the Christ? Moments like this, and the preaching that accompanied these miracles, was how the gospel spread throughout Jerusalem. 

This is a Monday Morning After segement of the sermon that was supposed to be recorded on Sunday. Acts contians the story of the continual ministry of Jesus through the Spirit. Acts 1 serves as the bridge between the gospel account of Luke and Luke's recording of the growth of the Church. 

Jesus finally appears to the disciples at the end of the day of His resurrection. The women who entered the tomb had already found it vacant, and the disciples on the road to Emmaus had already encountered the Lord. They raced back to the other apostles and disciples and had reported what had happened. Now, Luke records that Jesus himself appears in all their midst. He then leads the greatest Bibl...

Luke records the first physical sighting of the resurrrected Jesus as being on the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus. We know from other gospels that Jesus had appeard to Mary as she was leaving the tomb, (gospel of John), but Luke records the interaction between to disciples and Jesus as He explains the mystery of his death and resurrection from the Old Testament. This interpretation of the O.T. is v...

All gospel writers include the bodily death and resurrection of Jesus. Yet, all the gospel writers include certain details and timelines in order to communicate their purpose. Luke, for the first time in His gospel, does not include Jesus in this text but rather His disciples coming to the point of needing faith in order to follow. That is the question Luke poses to us, will we have faith given wh...

Jesus had previously told a parable of a noble man who went away and came back to his home to find some faithful servants and at least one unfaithful servant. Luke uses Jesus return to Jerusalem as a tangible illustration of this parable. In a sense the  trip from the Mt. of Olives to Jerusalem shows us the noble King returning to find His servants either worshipping Him, or disgruntled. What kind...

This parable is taught right after Jesus encounters a blind man on the road to Jericho as well as interacting with a repentent sinner Zacchaeus. The parable describes faithful servants of Jesus even when he's not around. This parable gives us a picture of how the Kingdom of God grows through our efforts, even beyond our expectations. 

The Kingdom of God has been inagurated with the arrival, life, death and resurrection of Jesus. But it is not yet complete until he comes again to establish his eternal Kingdom. So how are we to live in the meantime. Jesus gives us some principles to. live by in the between. Luke gives us a glance into this conversation between the disciples and Jesus in which we are told how we should live. 

Luke 15 records Jesus teaching three parables to two very different kinds of people. The first would be considered classic sinners, those who follow self fullfillment through hedonism and accumulation of wealth. The other were the religious types, who questioned why Jesus would meet with the previous types. Jesus then tells them how they are both far from the Father's house, but are both invited c...

What should disciples of Jesus be concerned with? What should dominate our hearts anxieties? Jesus has a clear yet profound answer, "Kingdom of God". What is the use of being concerned about the materialism of our day when it cannot actually satisfy you? The Kingdom of God will provide for what our hearts actually want and need. This teaching is taken from Luke chapter 12. 

In becoming a diciple, one who follows Jesus, there needs to be reorientation in our hearts. This change comes in finding joy in what really matters in the midst of experiencing the joys and pain of every day life. In chapter 10 of Luke's gospel Jesus sends out this disciples, seventy two of them, and reframes their experience of joy and sucess in ministry around what really matters. Disciples nee...

The disciples were commissioned to go and spread the good news and do acts of mercy, but were they ready? This passage shows us that Jesus calls us to a continual obedience, a learning the way of discipleship, not as a means of salvation, but as a growing into maturity. 

In this sermon we see Luke showing us examples of those pursuing the Kingdom of God by faith in Jesus Christ. The examples come from the most unexpected sources, a Roman Centurion, and a sinful woman. Faithfulness for Jesus consists of a humble confidence in His authority over the world and our sin. He has the authority to grant forgivenss and bring to life those who are physically and spiritually...

In Luke 6 we Jesus preparing his apostles, along with other disciples, to live in the Kingdom of God. The ethical code, values, and culture of His Kingdom will be drastically different from any other kingdoms this world has. What can we learn to apply to our own lives today from what Jesus has to say? This sermon was preached at First Prestbyerian Church in Whitefish, MT. 

This sermon is from Luke 4 & 5 which tells of the authority Jesus had and still has. Luke gives us a few stories which put together a picture of the extent of Jesus' authority. 

This sermon explores Luke's telling of the beginning of Jesus' ministry in Galilee. While Jesus had already had a strong presence in and around Capernaum, Luke uses this story in the home town of Jesus to epitomize the crowds reaction. Some were amazed, others wanted to kill him. What does this story tell us about the ministry of Jesus, and what does that mean for us today? 

This is a sermon which was preached at First Presbyterian Church in Whitefish. Luke gives us a picture of the ministry of John the Baptist as he tells us what repentance and forgiveness of sins looks like in Christianity. It is through repentance, turning from our sins, and trusting in the person of Jesus that we find forgiveness and payment for sin. This sermon tells us why this is such good news...