First Prez Honolulu Sermon Podcast

In today's message, First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan explores what it truly means to be a covenant partner joining Jesus on His mission. It's the start of a new sermon series called "Journey to Jerusalem." We pick it up in Luke 9 and 10. We follow Christ as He resolutely sets His face toward Jerusalem, beginning a journey defined by urgency and sacrifice. Pastor Chris draws ins...

Today's message from First Prez Associate Pastor Tim Shaw continues our "Who Do You Say I Am" series, focusing on the Gospel of Luke. Today, we learn about different ways God's Kingdom affects the world. We also see the church as a diverse, worldwide community where true greatness is found in humility and service to others. Download the series booklet here First Prez website

In this Father’s Day sermon, First Prez Associate Pastor Tim Shaw examines the tension between fear and faith by recounting four miraculous stories from the Gospel of Luke. He highlights how Jesus demonstrated divine authority by calming a violent storm, liberating a possessed man, healing a chronically ill woman, and raising a young girl from the dead. He illustrates how we often retreat to safet...

In this sermon, First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan emphasizes the necessity and importance of spiritual hearing God. He illustrates that loving God is defined by paying attention to Him and receiving His grace. Spiritual growth is determined by how our hearts receive and cling to God's word. Today's message ultimately challenges us to see every person as a beloved child of God. Download th...

We start a new sermon series today called "Who Do You Say I Am?" First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan explores the nature of faith and emotional responsiveness. By examining the healing of the centurion's servant and the raising of the widow's son, we find that Jesus operates with both supreme authority and deep compassion. We also see that the religious leaders remained unmoved by...

In this sermon, First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan continues the Upside-Down Kingdom sermon series. We're in Luke 6:12-49. Jesus’s teachings are more than a checklist of rules to follow. They're a window into a new reality powered by divine grace and internal transformation. Pastor Chris also talks about the nature of Jesus's first disciples. He gathered a diverse group of very ordinar...

This sermon from First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan examines the transformative power and joyful nature of Jesus as depicted in the Gospel of Luke. Pastor Chris highlights the contrast between Jesus’s inclusive, grace-filled community and the rigid, judgmental legalism of the Pharisees. By performing miracles and socializing with societal outcasts, Jesus demonstrates an "arms open" postu...

Today's sermon explores the dual nature of Jesus. He's both extraordinarily powerful and intimately close. First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan draws from multiple healing stories in the Gospel of Luke. He highlights how Jesus demonstrates authority over spiritual, physical, and natural realms by casting out demons, curing fevers, and commanding a miraculous catch of fish. Beyond his raw pow...

This sermon explores the commencement of Jesus’s ministry through the lens of the Gospel of Luke, highlighting his triumph over temptation in the wilderness. First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan emphasizes that Jesus rejected shortcuts, popularity, and spectacle, choosing instead a mission defined by service and sacrifice. Central to the message is the "upside-down kingdom," where divine p...

It's Youth Sunday. And we begin a new Sermon series called "The Upside Down Kingdom." Today's message centers on Luke 3:23–38 and the genealogy of Jesus. The passage reveals how God works through generations. How faith is passed from one life to another. The sermon highlights biblical examples like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Boaz, and David, showing how each shaped the next generatio...

In week three of The Way with Jesus , Lay Pastor Rosella Shishido reflects on Luke 3:21–22 and the baptism of Jesus. She explores why Jesus chose baptism, what baptism signifies for believers, and how it reveals God’s declaration of Jesus as His beloved Son. Rosella then shifts to the heart of the message: our identity in Christ. Through Scripture, practical examples, and personal stories, she rem...

In this message, First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan explores John the Baptist’s call to repentance and the surprising truth that God often does His deepest work in our “wilderness” seasons. Rather than a place of exile, the wilderness becomes the very ground where we prepare the way for the Lord. Through vivid imagery—including the damaged road to the Koʻolau campus—Pastor Chris invites us to exam...

It's the beginning of a new sermon series called "On the Way with Jesus." The series is a study in the Gospel of Luke. First Prez Director of Ohana Ministry, Karen Makishima, takes us into the story of 12-year-old Jesus. Left behind in Jerusalem, found three days later in the temple, completely at home in his Father's house. Karen asks the challenging question: do you know who yo...

Happy Easter! Today's message starts with a deeply personal, ongoing testimony from FPC Covenant Partner and Commissioned Lay Pastor candidate Carolyn Grossnickel. You'll also hear from FPC Senior Pastor Chris Pan in his first Easter sermon. He touches on four aspects of the Easter story: Looking, grammar, nonsense, and wondering. First Prez website

We enter the final week of Lent, Holy Week. It's Palm Sunday. When Jesus made his entrance into Jerusalem. Today's message from First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan takes a lesson from the crowd that lavishes Jesus on this day, only to turn on Him just a few days later. It's a sermon about unmet expectations and how we react. Today's message also draws on the wisdom and practices of...

We continue with our Lenten series, The Way of the Desert. Today, FPC Elder Leona Larkin focuses on humility. She teaches us what humility is, how Jesus humbled himself, nd what we need to do to practice humility. We also learn about St. Anthony, the originator of the monastic lifestyle. Download the series booklet here First Prez website

Rain, wind, flooding, power outages, downed trees, potholes, missed work, and property damage. They're all a part of a raging storm. This week, that's what Hawaii has been through. For some, these types of days knock us down and bring us to our core, and hopefully to our knees in prayer. These times are also an opportunity to ask of ourselves if we have a "Jenga life." That's...

The Way of the Desert sermon series continues. It's our Lenten series as we anticipate Easter. Today's message, like many of God's principles, runs counter to our cultural beliefs and practices. We value money, wealth, material things, and lots of it. There's nothing inherently wrong with the things of this world. But our focus, attention, and idolatry of these things can interfere...

You have to admit, sometimes you want to shut out the noise and busyness of the day. Knowing how helps us stay connected to Jesus. In this message from Senior Pastor Chris Pan, you'll hear about the value of quiet time. Pastor Chris will also give us practical tips for creating a quieter life for ourselves. This is a continuation of the sermon series called "The Way of the Desert." D...

It's still a new year with (relatively) new Senior Pastor Chris Pan. And today we begin a new sermon series for the season of Lent. Pastor Chris challenges us to make more out of our fast. It's not just giving up something for a season. It's more about stripping away our old selves and getting closer to Jesus. Today's sermon series comes with a new booklet. Download the series book...

It's been just over two years since we first met Pastor Tim Fearer. He was charged with guiding First Prez through the season of finding a new senior pastor after Dan Chun retired from FPC. Tim's work and guidance culminated in Chris Pan being chosen as the new Senior Pastor, or as Chris likes to say, "Under Shepherd." Now that Chris's tenure is in full swing, it's time f...

With this sermon, we've reached the end of our "Walk This Way" series in the book of Ephesians. Just because a person isn't mentioned much in the Bible doesn't mean we can't gain any wisdom from that person. Such is the case with Tychicus. As we'll find out, he was a trusted, loyal, and faithful ministry colleague of Paul. Download the series booklet here First Prez w...

The battle out there is real. Slings, arrows, and bullets in all forms. Lying, cheating, slander, and more. Maybe you're a victim. Maybe you know someone who is. How do we defend and protect ourselves in this spiritual battle? The FPC "Walk This Way" sermon series points you in the right direction. And today, First Prez Director of Prayer Ministry Gary Toh examines Ephesians 6:10-17....

First Prez Senior Pastor Chris Pan continues our "Walk This Way" sermon series as we do our best to imitate God and become more like Jesus. We're in the book of Ephesians 6:5-9. The verse starts with an address to slaves. But the overall idea is humility. Download the series booklet here First Prez website

Our new sermon series, "Walk This Way," continues. Put another way, it's a series on how to live with Jesus in our lives. One of the constants in life is relationships. First Prez Assistant Pastor Jenny Sung tells us we have relationships all around, with others, ourselves, and the world we live in. Download the series booklet here. First Prez website