Aletheia Church, Providence RI

Chapter 8 is a turning point in the Gospel of Mark. After Peter proclaims Jesus to be the Christ, Jesus starts telling them he's going to suffer, die, and rise again. He then says that anyone who wants to be his disciple will need to take up a cross of their own. In this sermon, Pastor Justin looks at Jesus's four reasons that carrying a cross is necessary and really good news.

In Mark 5, Jesus says yes when Jairus asks him to heal his daughter. But on the way Jesus gets delayed, and Jairus's daughter dies. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks the way this passage helps us trust Jesus in the times he seems late in showing up to help us.

One of the notable things about Mark's Gospel is the small amount of Jesus's teaching included in it compared to other Gospels. In this sermon, Pastor Justin looks at one of the portions of Jesus's teaching Mark chose to include and explains why it's so important in understanding the upside-down kingdom of God.

When Jesus first confronts the religious leaders in his day, it showed just how different kingdom life is from a life characterized by religion. In this sermon, Pastor Justin explains how religion and the gospel have very different things at their core.

Mark recounts four stories from Jesus's ministry in which he shows his authority over people's problems. An unclean spirit, all different diseases, leprosy, and paralysis—none of these could stand in the way of Jesus's power. In the final story, however, Jesus explains that he's doing much more than just fixing people's problems. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks the profound way in which Jesu...

Like any good superhero movie, Jesus begins his mission by putting a team together. But he does it in a completely upside-down way. In this sermon, Pastor Justin preaches on Jesus's call to discipleship and what it means for those who say yes.

We all have our own ideas of the kind of king Jesus should be. At the beginning of Mark's account of Jesus's life, however, he deeply roots Jesus's story in the story of Israel. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks the important ways that Jesus fulfills the story of Israel, and how Israel's story is the story of us all.

Evangelism should be a regular part of life for a Christian. However, there are mixed messages that often undercut the true power of the gospel we're called to share. In this sermon, Pastor Justin explains why evangelism is so important and reveals the mixed messages that so often muddy the gospel message.

The way John ends his letter is unexpected. Although he repeats themes over and over in the letter, he chooses to end the letter by telling them to "keep themselves from idols." In this sermon, Pastor Justin explains the brilliance of John's final encouragement and the way it assures his listeners that in choosing Jesus they've made the right choice.

In the beginning of chapter five of 1 John, he says that those who are born of God "overcome the world." In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks just what John means by this famous phrase, and how it's different than we might expect.

In a world of counterfeits, how can we know who or what is deserving our trust? In this installment of the Substance series, Kevin McKenzie helps us understand how true love — God's love — gives us discernment, confidence, and security.

Every family has a family culture. The same is true of God's family. In this sermon, Jonathan Cothron explores what it looks like for Christians to carry out God's family culture of loving one another.

Those who believe in Jesus aren't just called adherents of a religious belief system. God calls them "children." In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks John's profound claim that we who believe are now children of God.

The thing that can rob you of a faith of substance is more subtle than you'd expect. Deception has been the enemy's weapon of choice since the beginning. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks John's exploration of deception — what it looks like, how we defend against it, and why it's worth the fight.

There are two wrong ways to deal with sin — to either be too harsh, or to be too lenient. In his letter, however, John doesn't downplay the darkness of sin. Rather, he shows us what Jesus has done to save us from it. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks what it means when John says that Jesus is our advocate and our propitiation.

The first words in a piece of writing are always important. In the opening of John's letter to the churches, he explains that his purpose in writing is that they would have joy. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks John's explanation for how disciples of Jesus gain access to substantive joy.

In an increasingly restless world, God's people are called to embody the solution. In this sermon, Pastor Justin explores Hebrews 4, explaining what it means to be a people who strive to enter God's rest.

The art of rest isn't an isolated practice. It deeply affects our relationships. In this sermon, Pastor Justin explains what's at stake if we don't practice rest but how rest can help us build deep relationships with God and others.

The art of rest is not about passive inactivity. It's an act of resistance. In this sermon, Pastor Justin unpacks an interaction between Jesus and the Pharisees that shows how rest resists self-justification and all its symptoms.

Rest is so much more than just a day off. It's a moment to pause and remember some very important truths. In this sermon, Pastor Justin looks at Ezekiel 20, where God explains the truths we can remember when we pause and practice rest.

Doubts about God's goodness can be academic, but the more difficult doubts to handle are those that come from a painful experience. In this sermon, Pastor Justin walks through Psalm 73 in which Asaph takes a journey through doubt to a strong belief in God's goodness.

In a world that never stops, how do we take hold of the rest Jesus promises us? In this sermon, Pastor Adam Mabry explores the part of the Bible where Sabbath rest first appears, how it's different than we expect and more important than we ever imagined.

Praise is an expected part of Christian worship, but do we understand why it's so important? In this sermon, Pastor Donny Fisher unpacks Psalm 145 and explains how important and impactful praise is in the life of a disciple of Jesus.

What do you do when you're praying not as a victim but as a victimizer? Psalm 51 was written by David at a time when he was guilty of terrible sin. In this sermon, Pastor Justin shows how God uses conviction as an invitation into real talk with him, and how what waits for us in that conversation is really good news.

We may think that anger is a "non-Christian" emotion. Not true. However, anger is powerful and needs to be handled well. In this sermon, Pastor Adam Mabry unpacks the way the writer of Psalm 137 processes anger, and explains how we too can have real talk with God about anger.