FBC Platte City

Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the Lord had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy. 2 Kings 5:1 Most of us are drawn to stories where the unlikely and the unexpected takes place. Whether it’s the unlikely love story, the unexpected act of cou...

God said, ‘I have found David a man after my own heart. He will do all I ask of him.’ Acts 13:22  I want to be all in, going hard after God with all my heart. I really do!  As David’s life unfolded, I think he would admit—like Paul, ‘I don’t understand what I do! I want to do good, but I can’t carry it out. I keep on doing what I don’t want to do.’ (Romans 7:15-20)    What made...

The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the LORD, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer.  Ruth 4:14     We're in the book of Ruth and looking at the character of God through the lens of one family during one of the darkest times in Israelite history.  Consider this: God has called us, his hand is at work in our lives, and (most importantly) God, through...

Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served, or the gods, in whose land you are living.  But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."  Joshua 24:15  One of the most haunting verses in scripture comes at the end of the book of Judges. It says ‘In those days there was no king, so everyone did what was right in their own eyes...

‘Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9     Joshua is one of my favorite players in the story! He’s strong, reliable. He always comes through. He’s one of the good guys. And he’s faithful—to Moses, and to God. And then, when the time comes, Joshua steps up.  I...

‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is ONE! Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.’  Deuteronomy 6:4-5    This is the 'SHEMA.' It’s the cornerstone of faith in the Old Testament. Twice-daily prayer for Israel to re-center their hearts, heads, and hands on the presence of God in their hearts and lives.   What if we cou...

These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us” -1 Corinthians 10:11   We're in the book of Numbers. Of all the books in the Bible, this one had to be given the worst title. What is interesting though, is that the most common Hebrew title for this book is, “In the Wilderness.” That sounds much more intriguing because there are a lot of good stories that we...

These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us”  -1 Corinthians 10:11   We're in the book of Numbers. Of all the books in the Bible, this one had to be given the worst title. What is interesting though, is that the most common Hebrew title for this book is, “In the Wilderness.” That sounds much more intriguing because there are a lot of good stories th...

“This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work—whether native-born or a foreigner residing among you— because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you.  -Leviticus 16:29-30    The book of Leviticus, where many a good reading plan comes to an end. Let’s be honest, the book of Leviticus c...

And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished. -Exodus 34:6-7 As we continue our journey through the Bible, we find the people of Is...

"I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians." -Exodus 6:7 What comes to mind when you think of the exodus story – the Israelites deliverance from slavery found in Exodus 1-15? Moses, the reluctant leader? The cruelty of Pharoah? The devastating plagues? Charlt...

‘You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good—to accomplish what is now being done.’  Genesis 50:20 The Joseph Story, Genesis 37-50. We know more about Joseph than almost anyone else in the bible. We know about his dysfunctional childhood. Sibling hostility and rivalry. We know the truth behind the accusations and imprisonment. We know the heart behind his leadership choices. And we...

For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him."  2 Chronicles 16:9 You made it through week 1, congratulations! The first couple dozen chapters of Genesis are big and sweeping. Creation. Paradise—lost. Sons and daughters who thrill—and disappoint. The world starts so small, just two people. But even as it gets BIG—lots of peopl...

‘Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.’ Romans 12:2 (New Living Translation NLT)   New year, New plan.  You know the old line about doing the same things over again and expecting different results—crazy! That describes my spiritual life for far too long. You?  Time for something different—radically different.   Join us in a one-year plan to read...

"In the past, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son." Hebrews 1:1-2 I believe with all my heart that God keeps speaking into my life. He keeps showing up in various ways at different times. The trouble is I usually don’t realize it’s Him until the moment is past. Sometimes not even then. When I read...

"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." Luke 10:41-42   Advent is a churchy Christmas word. It’s two steps removed from a plain meaning for you and me.   Advent speaks of arrival— a coming into place, into focus. When Jesus talked about it...

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned. Isaiah 9:2 Everything stops for Christmas. Even things that don’t stop wish they could (think First Responders, Health Care Workers, etc.). Memories (whether awesome or awful), hopes (some reasonable, some not). But what happens when ‘hopes’ become ‘dreads’? Last year’s c...

This message concludes our series on “Belonging” – where over the last four weeks we’ve explored what it means to belong to the body of Christ and what it looks like to belong to our church. As we began the series we started with the grace of God, which is the underserved favor and love that we receive from God. And as we approach Thanksgiving, it is fitting that we end our series by talking about...

Paul greeted them and reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. When they heard this, they praised God. Acts 21:19-20 In the book of Acts, Jesus says that we are to be His “witnesses” – meaning believers are to make the invisible kingdom of God visible to our communities and around the world (Acts 1:8). And while this may seem like a daunting task, we begin to s...

They devoted themselves… Everyone was filled with awe… They were all together…’   Acts 2:42-44   Sometimes church is the loneliest place of all. It shouldn’t be that way. It was never meant to be that way. In fact, it goes against everything Christianity is about.  Jesus came to be ‘God with us.’ Being in relationship with Him makes us uniquely qualified to ‘be with’ each other...

‘Now, Lord, consider their threats, enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.  Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus." After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.’ Acts 4:29-31 The Early Church in t...

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.  All the believers were together and had everything in common. ‘ Acts 2:42-44 We’re beginning a new sermon series this week called Belonging. It takes the book of Acts as a backdrop...