First Congregational of Hamilton

What does it look like to apply the wisdom of God to our changing circumstances? In this message, James offers us two basic case studies on how to apply the wisdom of the gospel to our everyday lives.”

What do we need to face trials with joy? We need wisdom. But wisdom is much more than knowing a bunch of facts and information. In this message, we continue our study of James and learn how to gain the wisdom we need to appropriately navigate the trials and complexities of life.

Trials are an inevitable part of life in a fallen world. Naturally, we ask ourselves, how do I avoid the trial, remove the trial, or get out of the trial. But what if there was a better question that we should be asking—how should I face the trial? In this message, James teaches us how to face the various trials of life and to do so with joy.

In this introductory message to the book of James, Pastor Jeremy explores the theme of servanthood and what it means to be a servant of Jesus.

Doubting various doctrines and aspects of the Christian faith is more common than Christians would care to admit. We are all prone to wander and we are all prone to doubt. Therefore, the question is not if we will doubt, but rather, when we do, how do we deal with our doubts? In this message, we learn how to wrestle with doubt and come out on top.

What is Christian faith and how do we walk by faith? As we prepare to walk (or crawl) into another year, we must prepare to walk by faith. But what does that even mean? How do we understand and grow in our faith? In this message, we explore the rationale and importance of walking by faith.

What truths can we rely on in the chaos of life? What can we turn to in order to get a sense of stability when everything seems out of control? In this message, we learn once again from the life of Joseph on how to face the unexpected difficulties of life. We'll be studying Luke 2:1-7 and being reminded of God's mysterious sovereignty and the hope that this doctrine is meant to bring to our hearts...

As we focus on the joy of the coming of Jesus, we have to wonder if Joseph felt this joy at all? Confusion at unexpected news and a call to do hard things were his reality. In the third of our four-part series, we see how Joseph models bearing the cost of following God even without the whole picture.

In the second week of our "Advent series, Christmas with Joseph," we consider the wisdom of Joseph. What do we do in the countless situations where the rules don’t apply? We need more than moral principles and character; we need wisdom. In this message, we learn why we need a God-given perspective for our lives and situations and how we can get it.

Joseph wasn’t ready for Christmas. In fact, the baby Jesus turned Joseph’s neat and tidy world totally upside down. But how did Joseph respond? This Advent we’ll begin by looking at the conduct of Jospeh and how he inspires us to do the right thing in the right way, and also how he points us to the One who did all things well.

What was the essential mission of Jesus while he was here on this earth? Our understanding of God’s mission through Jesus is meant to reshape our understanding of God’s mission through us. In this message, we conclude our series “Rethinking Christianity” by remembering our mission as the church in this world.

God calls us to obedience. But the type of obedience matters. So, how can we tell if we're thinking about obedience and practicing obedience in a healthy way? In this message, we continue our study, "Rethinking Christianity" by looking at the elder son in Jesus' parable and "Rethinking Obedience" together.

It seems like more and more people are down on the Christian church. One reason for that could be that the church has lost it's unique calling and attractivness. In this message, we consider the Father's House in the parable as a compelling picture of the church. What can we learn about the nature of the church from the welcome and joy of the Father's house?

What is grace? In this message, Pastor Chelsea explores the nature and dynamics of God's grace for us in Jesus and explains why it matters.

In the third part of our series, we'll be “Rethinking God." In this message, we study the Father’s surprising actions that give us a window into the merciful heart of God for the lost.

In the second part of our series, we’ll be “Rethinking Repentance." In this message, we discover the nature of true repentance and it’s daily relevance for our lives.

This series is a verse-by-verse study of Jesus' famous parable in Luke 15 of the Father and Two Sons. In this opening message, we begin by "Rethinking Sin." We see how Jesus breaks through our superficial definitions of sin and artfully depicts and diagnoses the root problem of sin in a way that clearly leads us to the remedies.

Prayer is hard. And if we're honest, even for seasoned Christians, prayer still raises many questions. This message explores some of those questions, and looks at how the prayer of Jesus can help us.

Followers of Jesus are not spared from the storms of life. However, we are given and taught several things that will enable us to face any storm with courage and hope in our hearts. In this sermon, we discover some key lessons that will help us to make it through the stormy seasons of life.

Christian love is a unique kind of love. The love that renews us, and in turn, renews the world around us, is the self-giving redemptive love of Christ. But how do we come to know and then walk in the love of Christ? What are the day-to-day dynamics of Christian love?

The resurrected Jesus appears to his disciples and teaches them several things about what awaits them and about what's important. This message explores the critical theme of sharing the gospel with others.

The Christian life is a life of faith. But what does this really mean and look like in the real world? This message explores the theme of faith and how to walk by faith in a world of changing circumstances, moods, and opinions.

The Parable of the Four Soils in  Mark 4:1-20  helps Jesus’ followers understand the varying reactions to Jesus, which range from explicit hostility to Jesus’ claims, enthusiastic reactions to Jesus’ exorcisms and healings to robust decisions to follow Jesus as disciples being trained by him.