Chapel in the Hills

For those who are broken, repentant, and submitted to the Lordship of Christ, Jesus calls His followers to desire righteousness above all else. We, therefore, are not to pursue happiness for happiness sake, but are called to pursue righteousness, which results in our happiness and satisfaction.

Those who recognize their spiritual bankruptcy and mourn over their sin in repentance are called to meekness. Meekness is best defined as power under divine control. We are called to be broken in by God's Word and live lives of total submission to God's will.

Only those who have first recognized their spiritual bankruptcy will then be able to mourn over their sin. It is not enough to recognize our sin with a cold heart, rather, we must recognize our sin and then have broken hearts before the Lord that only He can comfort.

The first beatitude lays the groundwork for the following beatitudes, as one must recognize their spiritual bankruptcy before receiving Christ's riches. Humility is the mark of true believers and is required for those seeking to receive the Kingdom of Heaven.

The greatest preacher to ever preach and the greatest sermon ever preached comprise three chapters of Matthew. As Jesus begins His Magnum Opus, He establishes Himself as a preacher that carries His own authority. May we ever sit at the feet of Jesus.

The Disciples asked Jesus how to pray, and He gave them the Lord's Prayer. In Romans, though, Paul explains the role of the Holy Spirit in prayer, Who helps us know what to pray.

How can we be reconciled to God? It is only through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It was through Him being made sin that we could become the righteousness of God.

Jesus went throughout all of Galilee when He began His public ministry and focused on teaching, preaching, and healing. All three of these aspects are crucial to His ministry and His identity as the Christ and as the Son of God.

Jesus calls His disciples by name, gives them a clear mission, and demands complete surrender to His will. In His calling of the 12 disciples, Jesus clarifies that a new mission and priority are disrupting their lives. When we come to Christ, do we recognize all that is required of those seeking to follow Jesus' path?

Jesus is the Light that has dawned in the dark kingdom of Satan. Many hate the Light because the Light exposes their deeds as evil. When Jesus' light dawns in our hearts, the only proper response is to repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

When Jesus is led into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil, His followers learn how to resist the devil by following Christ's example. The key to every temptation is that Jesus wields the Word of God. As followers of Christ, we must also learn how to wield the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.

How ought believers to walk in such a hostile world? The answer can be found in Jesus' baptism, where He came to John to be baptized so that he would be identified with sinners. Moreover, at His coronation, Jesus was anointed by the Holy Spirit and proclaimed the Son of God by the Father. Thus, the entire Trinity is active in Jesus' baptism.

When the Pharisees and Sadducees come to evaluate John the Baptist's ministry, they come in their pride rather than in humility. We live in a pride obsessed culture, and God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. In order to come to Jesus, therefore, we must come in humility and not in the pride of our accomplishments.

John the Baptist bursts onto the scene in preparation for the coming Messiah. Not only does he come preaching, but he comes with the same message the coming Messiah will also bring, which is, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" Repentance, therefore, is at the heart of the Gospel proclamation.

From before the birth of Jesus, Satan has tried to prevent Jesus' birth. Once Mary gave birth to Jesus, Satan worked through Herod to destroy the child, Jesus. Those who become followers of Jesus will be hated by Satan and the world he currently rules.

The four possible responses to Jesus are found in this section and are the prototype for all humanity. Herod, the people of Jerusalem, the religious elite, and the Magi all demonstrate these possible responses. May we all respond like the Magi and worship our King!

When Joseph discovered that his betrothed, Mary, was pregnant, he was placed in a difficult position. Would he divorce Mary, or was there any other way forward? We can learn a lot from Joseph's process and follow his example of humble obedience to the Lord.

The New Testament begins with a genealogy showing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. The genealogy also demonstrates that Jesus is the Savior of the World, as Matthew includes four gentile women who are providentially included into Jesus' family tree.

To walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, Paul explains that you must know His will, be strengthened by His power, and be delivered by His Son.

Why does holiness matter to God and His people? God is holy and therefore requires His people to be separate from the nations and to live worthy of His calling.

The two on the road to Emmaus missed Jesus because He had been crucified on Friday, but they also missed who Jesus really was. As the two walk debating about the events that took place concerning Jesus of Nazareth, the resurrected Jesus confronts their disbelief with the Word of God.

The two criminals that hung beside Jesus represent two different responses that all humanity has with regard to Jesus' crucifixion. Will you deny His divine kingship or will you reject Him?

When the world continues to get darker and our values are being flipped upside down, what hope can the Christian hold on to? As Paul reminds Titus, the hope of the Christian is the return of Jesus Christ. It is the blessed hope of His return that purifies the believer and reminds that this world is not our home.

Jonah's anger towards the Lord's mercy hits a fever pitch when he says he has every right to be angry. The root issue for Jonah, and the Jews, is that they had come to believe they deserved God's grace and mercy. The lesson God seeks to teach Jonah, though, is that He is free to give mercy to whomever He wishes.

In a surprising response to God's mercy towards Nineveh, Jonah directs his anger towards God. He reveals his original reason for fleeing to Tarshish, which is based upon his dislike of God's character. In this sermon, we will learn to importance of loving who God is and trusting what God does.