Acts 2 Sermons

For some moments, "Wow" is the only word we can muster. Yet we find it difficult to stop and notice the beauty of the world around us. When we practice stillness with God and cultivate our sense of wonder, we can experience the glory of God that suffuses the world and gratefully pray, "Wow!" Download the sermon notes.

We all want to be more grateful, but it's often difficult. Yet when we recognize that everything we have is a gift from God, we can't help but feel grateful. And as we develop a rhythm of thanking God, gratitude fills us with joy and changes the way we experience the world. Download the sermon notes.

“Help” is a complete sentence and perhaps the most concise and effective prayer in the world. The great preacher Charles Spurgeon said, “Whether we like it or not, asking is the rule of the Kingdom.” A new life starts with surrender when we say, “Here, God. I can’t, but you can. Help." Download the sermon notes.

It's easy to hold on to what we have in order to feel secure. But God is the source of all our gifts, and when we are generous with those gifts, God uses our generosity to change our hearts and the world. Download the sermon notes.

It's easy to fall into the belief that we can find happiness in jobs and achievements, but when we seek fulfillment in those things, we find them unfulfilling and empty. In Philippians, Paul teaches that knowing Christ is of highest value, and when we live for him, we find a fulfillment the world cannot offer. Download the sermon notes.

The things we worry about compete for mastery of our lives. When put God first, we are free from worry. When we trust God, we are free to leave the results of our obedience to our loving, merciful, glorious savior, Jesus. Download the sermon notes.

God is love, and God's love for us has been revealed perfectly in Jesus. As loved people who are created in God's image, we respond to God's love by loving others and being generous. Download the sermon notes.

Is the New Testament reliable? Rev. Brandon Blacksten explores the challenges of the New Testament's origins and consistency, and concludes that, ultimately, we can trust the New Testament account of the Good News of Jesus. Download the sermon notes.

Homosexuality is the most divisive issue facing Christianity today. Of the more than 31,000 verses in the Bible, less than 8 potentially relate to homosexuality. Dr. Mark Foster explores these passages and casts a vision for a community that is grounded in the love of God, even in the midst of differences. Download the sermon notes.

How do we understand violence and God in the Bible? Some Old Testament passages where God commands violence and genocide stand in stark contrast to Jesus' new command to “Love one another as I have loved you.” Dr. Mark Foster is joined this week by three members of Acts 2 who are exemplary Christian military officers to make sense of violence in the Bible, in our world, and how we respond. Downloa...

The Word of God is Jesus Christ, and the words of the Bible tell us about that Word. So what do we do when we don’t understand portions of the Bible? What do we do when we do understand and are appalled? Dr. Mark Foster helps us learn how to read and NOT read the Bible in Week 1 of our September Sermon Series, “Making Sense of the Bible." Download the sermon notes.

In a world of “soundbites,” “headlines,” and “memes,” it can be difficult to get to the truth of what someone is saying. In this sermon, Dr. Mark summarizes the Sermon on the Mount covering the highlights of Matthew chapters five, six, and seven to allow us to hear the sermon as a whole. Jesus is not giving us advice or another set of restrictive rules. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is teachin...

In a world filled with condemnation, the church can be a "community of prayerful love." Through offering compassion (and not condemnation!) and through prayer, we can look more and more like the community Jesus described in Matthew 7. Download the sermon notes.

We all experience worry—sometimes to the point that we can't think of anything else. But our worries can tell us what we truly treasure. Jesus teaches that when we learn to treasure what God treasures, we can let go of worry and find freedom. Download the sermon notes.

One of the primary hinderances to our ability to connect with God is the desire for the approval of others. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shares how to overcome this challenge and teaches us to live beyond the opinion of others. Download the sermon notes.

Teacher: Dr. Mark Foster Passage: Matthew 5:21-24 Download the sermon notes.

Who is really well off? What is the good life? Dr. Mark Foster explores these questions in the first installment of our new series on Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, "The Best Teaching You'll Ever Hear." Download the sermon notes.

We can go out in Jesus' protection and power because all authority on heaven and earth are his. He is Christ Pantocrator, Ruler of All. Be not afraid. We are in the wonderful and loving reign of Jesus the Christ. Download the sermon notes.

We're often tempted to take the easy way out, but when we do so, we're like workers who build on a foundation of sand. Jesus shows us a better way, and when we build on the foundation of his teaching, we build a life that can endure. Download the sermon notes.

When building something, we start with the instructions, but instructions can't tell us how to deal with every situation. By exploring one of the most well-known sets of instructions—the Ten Commandments—we discover a pattern that shows us a way of life that's based in love. Download the sermon notes.

In the book of Acts, the Antioch Church was a church that dug deep and reached out. Like them, we too can dig deep with devotion, encouragement, and discipleship, as well as reach out through the Holy Spirit, to diverse groups, in love. Teacher: Rev. John Vick Passage: Acts 11:21-26 Download the sermon notes.

When we face transitions in life, we often must leave our comfort zones to reach the destination God desires for us. Rev. Andy and Melissa Nelms share about the apostles' adaptation to new circumstances in Acts 10 and how we can adapt when God calls us off the beaten path. Download the sermon notes.

When we head into uncharted territory, we need a community around us if we are to reach our goal. When the church was born, the disciples had to learn a new way of living together, and God used their new community to transform the world. Download the sermon notes.

After he ascended into heaven, Jesus gave the disciples a task that was beyond their ability. But at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit filled them and gave them power to do things they previously could only have dreamt of. And the same Holy Spirit promises to fill, empower, and guide us today. Download the sermon notes.

At some point, we all realize that what got us here will not get us where we need to go. Jesus' disciples faced that situation when he ascended into heaven, and he gave them a mission that was beyond anything they had ever done before. Their response teaches us how we can respond when we enter uncharted territory. Download the sermon notes.