Chelten - a church of hope

The words we speak to each other have tremendous power to build. They also have tremendous power to destroy.  And, we lack no opportunity to do either; humans speak 20,000 words per day! In this sermon pastor Bill speaks to us about what God’s Written Word has to say about the words we say, and how the Word that became flesh provides our only true hope for change. 

Does it seem to you that your passion and zeal for life is slipping away? Is hope waning? Do you feel like you should be able to just snap out of it, but can’t? If you answered “yes,” or know someone who would, know that you are very much not alone. In this sermon pastor Jin takes an honest look at what it means to have a crushed spirit, what causes it, how it affects us and where we can find hope...

In the Bible we read about God’s anger. A number of times Jesus was moved to anger. What’s the difference between God’s anger and ours? Why does our anger seem to always end with us doing something we regret? In this sermon guest speaker, Dr. Ed Welsh, engages us in an honest conversation about understanding what anger is, where and how to see it in our lives, and how the life of Jesus and his min...

God created us with the ability to imagine a world outside of reality. Satan tapped into this ability when he tempted Adam and Eve. Rejecting God’s wisdom, they followed their own path of folly led by Satan whose initial jealousy of God led him astray. In this sermon Pastor Bill walks us through select Proverbs and other scripture passages that warn us of the dangers of jealousy, how to resist it...

God gave humanity the good gift of sexuality even before sin entered the world. Yet how is it that a gift capable of bringing us such pleasure and intimacy can also imprison us in such shame, silence, darkness and isolation? In this honest conversation on sexuality and lust, Pastor Shep walks us through 23 verses in Proverbs 5 to uncover some answers and the hope found in Christ for sexual sinners...

Dinner invitations from people with the power and influence to make a positive difference in your life are eagerly accepted with great anticipation. In this sermon, pastor Jin informs you of two actual dinner invitations you have received from two powerful ladies in high places that will change your life forever. You must choose one or the other. Which one will you choose? How will you choose? The...

If you’ve ever played hide and seek with toddlers you’ll know that they’re not very good at hiding. They can’t wait. Excitement overtakes them and they pop out of their hiding spots before you get there. For toddlers it’s more of a game of seek and seek. Lady wisdom is not very good at hide and seek either, for the same reason. And, that’s really, really good news for us. In this sermon pastor She...

In this sermon pastor Jin turns from the topic of wisdom to present three types of fools. Simple fools are open to everything, gullible, naïve, out of touch and unwilling to look beyond their conformational biases. Sluggard fools may actually be extremely busy, but they’re lazy when it comes to aim and purpose. Peacemakers diffuse tension. Not good-for-nothing and trouble making fools, they stir u...

Perhaps you’ve heard the phrase, “if money can fix it it’s not big a problem.” Do we really believe like Solomon that wisdom is more profitable than silver or gold.? In this sermon pastor Bill takes a closer look at wisdom. Wisdom is not gained by what we know, but by who we know. We receive it by means of a relationship, by knowing someone not something.

Each day we must make a multitude of decisions. Some are binary—black and white, right or wrong. But, oh, those tricky, complex, gray ones. They require wisdom from outside of ourselves. In this introductory sermon to our series on the book of Proverbs pastor Jin gives us a birds-eye view of the morality, mystery and mastery of biblical wisdom.

As inflation in the U.S. surges to a 40-year high, so does our level of worry and anxiety. Worrying is natural, but not helpful. Why do we do it? Is it possible not to? In this video pastor Shep shows how a conversation Jesus had with disciples answers these questions and uncovers the possibility of maintaining a generous life during lean times. 

#

Through generosity God gives us the privilege of participating with him in the building of his kingdom. But sometimes generosity is hard to muster and greediness gets in the way. Why? What’s hindering us from being the generous people God intends us to be? In this sermon pastor Jin walks us through some answers.

#

The phrase, “it’s more blessed to give than to receive,” is well known and often quoted. But is it true? American culture seems to be marked more by reciprocity than it is generosity. Not so in the Kingdom of God. In this sermon pastor Bill explores what it means for followers of Christ to be financially generous and what motivates them to be so. 

This sermon given by pastor Jin is the first in a series titled, “Blank Check – a generous life.” In this series our pastors explore how generous lives, flowing from God-renewed hearts, affect how we spend our money, our time and how we serve. Starting at the root, Jin turns to Luke 18 to draw out three essential truths; generosity requires a humble heart, pervades every aspect of our lives and ca...

In this Easter Sunday sermon pastor Jin explores with us answers to three very important questions people have been asking for centuries.  The word “gospel” means good news, not good advice. What exactly is this good news that Christians so cherish? Is Jesus’ resurrection real? If so, how does the reality of Jesus’ resurrection change our lives? Listen and find out.

High school sweethearts arrive to their proms in limos. Newlyweds ride to their receptions in cars superfluously decorated with wedding slogans and clanking tins cans dragging behind. Royals arrive in fancy horse-drawn carriages. Presidents arrive in motorcades of large black SUVs and the pope has his pope mobile. The King of kings and Lord of lords rode in to Jerusalem on the back of a stinky don...

Pastor Jin gave this final sermon of our Micah series during a service in which 15 people from our congregation were baptised. What better time for Jin to walk us through the gospel, the good news that through Jesus’ death and resurrection God cast our sins into the deepest sea. Who is like our God? No one! 

Who is a God Like You? | Micah 7:14-20 Two messages emerge from the book of Micah that cause us to scratch our heads and marvel, “who is a God like you?” One message has to do with what God truly hates. The other has to do with what he truly loves. In this sermon pastor Bill shows how, together, these two messages join to form the one truly best message we will ever hear.

Have you ever experienced a stage in your life when you felt like lamenting, “Darkness is my only friend?” Maybe you’re in such a space right now. How does God want us to respond in times like these? In this sermon pastor Jin walks us through Micah 7 and some Psalms of lament to uncover what biblical lament is, what it isn’t, and how intimately Jesus understands just what we’re going through. 

As a defendant, imagine how you’d feel walking into a courtroom knowing that the plaintiff is both judge and jury. This is the case for Israel in Micah 6. As plaintiff, judge and jury God presents his verdict. To be consistent with his justice God must hold us accountable for our sins without being inconsistent with his mercy. In this sermon pastor Shep unravels this seemingly irreconcilable conun...

“Lord, just show me what you want me to do.” All of us have asked God this same question many times. According to Micah 6, God has shown us. He wants us mortals to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with him. In this sermon pastor Jin explores how we can discern what this means for us by listening to God, by remembering what he has done and by worshipping him holistically.

As difficult circumstances and relationships drag on in our lives a multitude of voices clamor for our attention, offering answers and promising hope. In this sermon pastor Bill encourages us to resist giving our allegiance to worldly chatter and place our faith in the very same hope Micah promised centuries ago. We must live our promised future inside the struggles of the present. We live in the...

It’s not a question of if we will face struggles in our lives, but when. Periods of brokenness are a part of life. Working through Micah 4 and examining the life of Jacob, pastor Jin explores how God often restores us from brokenness by walking with us through it.