From the Pulpit

In the Psalms we find a reflection of life in a fallen world—years stippled with uncontainable joy and unspeakable sorrow, seasons of holistic prosperity and times of total poverty. In this collection of inspired poetry we hear the ancient but relatable cries of God’s people as they too sought to obey the Lord faithfully, avoid sin desperately, live life wisely, endure the world victoriously, and...

This sermon is to show the importance of evangelism and Jesus shows us 5 things he left us in order to do that task, that mission. 1. He left us an unfinished mission - we can see this in the world around us, that we are not doing our job the way we should be. 2. He left us an unchallenged message - Acts 1:3 3. He left us the power to accomplish the Mission and share the message - the Holy Spirit...

There are many reasons to love the Psalms. They are beautiful , expressing eternal truth in elegant language. They are rich , offering more and more treasure the deeper one mines. And, perhaps most basically, they are emotional , showcasing that what we feel in this life the psalmists felt in theirs—lament and grief, fear and vulnerability, thanksgiving and anticipation, celebration and praise, wo...

Sometimes it’s hard to say “thank you.” Perhaps it’s because we’re embarrassed to admit our dependance and neediness. Maybe we simply get distracted and forget to express the appropriate appreciation. It could be that we don’t say “thank you” because we fail to understand the effort that was involved in the care we received. Maybe we assume that saying it too much dampens the authenticity of our t...

Our world is not at peace. Over one hundred wars are currently being fought around the globe with thousands of casualties in dozens of countries. There is tension within our own country around immigration and taxation, ideology and poverty, politics and economics. Many homes are battlefields characterized by abuse, neglect, betrayal, debt, selfishness, and neediness. And then there are personal fi...

The Gospel writer, Luke, concludes his account of the discovery of Jesus’s empty tomb with these words: “Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings only; and he went away to his home, marvelling at what had happened” (24:12). This disciple was amazed, befuddled, and overwhelmed. His head was doubtlessly spinning with questions about what had just happened...

This morning we have walked with the Lord Jesus up to Calvary’s mount. Beginning with the prophets who predicted the coming of one who would endure agony in the place of those who actually deserve it, we then followed this Suffering Servant into the Upper Room where his inevitable death was commemorated in a meal, one which we then shared in remembrance of his sacrifice. We then followed Jesus fro...

The Bible exhorts us to strive for peace, so far it depends on us (Romans 12,18). Sometimes we find ourselves in a situation where we offended, hurt or willfully sinned against someone else, where we need to apologize. Both apologies and forgiveness start in the hart, where a change of heart is needed for the offender, and the heart of the offended needs to be moved (that is what compassion is). Y...

Psalm 119 is a celebration of God’s word, its nature and purpose, its power and perfection, its necessity, sufficiency, reliability, and veracity. The Hebrew word for law, torah , is used thirty-six times in the Psalms, twenty-five of which are found in this particular Psalm. Add to that the many synonyms the author employs—God’s word, ways , testimonies , precepts , statutes , commandments , and...

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a theologian who grew up during WWI. His older brother was killed in battle and his mother was irreparably shocked by the loss. Fear and morbidity filled their home. To cope with those years, Dietrich, along with his twin sister, Sabine, would put themselves to sleep each night thinking about heaven, repeating into the darkness a single word: eternity . They wanted to make...

Every good and effective government must provide both laws to govern its citizenry and courts to represent its citizenry. If laws are absent, unarticulated, or unenforced, there is anarchy. If courts are corrupt, powerless, or inaccessible, there is tyranny. God’s government promises both infallible regulation and unending representation for the good of its people. Foreshadowing this reality in th...

Worship is a central tenet, activity, posture, and goal for all believers. As one author has suggested, “Christian worship is the response of God’s redeemed people to his self-revelation that exalts God’s glory in Christ in our minds, affections, and wills, in the power of the Holy Spirit.”  However we define and articulate this important concept, one thing must be clear: ultimately, worship is no...

It’s hard to grow, improve, or mature without first being honest about the  need  for growth, the  room  for improvement, and the areas of  im maturity.  Being realistic is important for those who want to progress and, as a church family, that is exactly what we desire. We want to become a congregation that is used by God to lead more and more people from darkness into light. We want to be a peopl...

The psalms are songs about life, sacred songs, but commentaries on life. The ups and downs, the good and the bad, the joys and sorrows. They afford so much wisdom about life as it was meant to be lived. They tug at our hearts, they challenge our ways, and they teach us good and godly things. Many of them were written by David, the king of Israel, as is Psalm 34. In it, he speaks of several godly h...

After the predictably horrible reign of Saul, God hand-picked David to succeed him as king of Israel (1 Samuel 13:14). And David loved God, worshipped God, served God, and represented God. By all earthly measurements, David was a  great  man. But, as 2 Samuel 11:1–12:12 demonstrates, even the greatest of people still sin, sometimes dramatically. No one—no matter how mature they are  in  the Lord,...

Weddings can be beautiful and meaningful events. Friends and family are gathered, happiness and love are expressed, promises and prayers are offered. Even on the surface, these events are celebratory and significant. But the beauty and meaning of a wedding runs far deeper than many people understand. From a biblical perspective, a wedding (and the marriage that ultimately follows the wedding) is h...

The Scottish novelist, Robert Louis Stevenson, once said, “The person who has stopped being thankful has fallen asleep in life.” In other words, even in the darkest moments of life there is always something for which people can be grateful and to not recognize that is to be knowingly or ignorantly unconscious.  Now, if that’s true in general, how much more for God’s people in particular? Are we no...

“He loves me, he loves me not. She loves me, she loves me not.” It’s a familiar and simple game. By alternating those statements while plucking pedals from a flower one-by-one, an individual seeks to discover whether their affection for someone  is , or  will be , reciprocated. Ultimately, it’s an exercise in hopefulness and powerlessness.  Following the Lord through the ups and downs of life can...

Bad things happen to good people, even to  God’s  people. Belonging to Jesus Christ does not inoculate us from sadness, loneliness, and stress. Following the Lord does not ward off financial insecurity, relational hostility, emotional misery, and physical injury. The gift of eternal life in the ever after does not guarantee a long life in the here and now. Many of us know  biblically —and all of u...

This morning I want to go back in time together, before Christ on the cross and before Messiah in the manger, to a time of desperation, a time when the  future  for God’s people looked bleak and the  hearts  of God’s people seemed black. 

Christmas may be “the most wonderful time of the year” but it’s also one of the most expensive times of the year.  One report  estimates that an average household will spend almost $2500 this season on festive food, decorations, and gifts. But even beyond the  financial  cost, Christmas also can carry a  relational  cost with family tensions and social divisions being exacerbated. There can be an ...

There are many words we could use to describe Jesus’s birth: miraculous, humble, anticipated, needed, epic, joyful, and merciful. But one word we cannot use is secretive. The coming of Jesus was not classified, hidden, or undisclosed. It was unmistakable, being both  predicted before  it happened and  announced after  it happened. And, ultimately, that leaves all people without excuse. The revelat...

Hope is a wonderful thing. Hope is faith directed towards the future. It is confidence in what is to come. For Christians, our future is a glorious thing. This is the key teaching in the book of Revelation and it is the key in Paul’s epistles to the Thessalonians as well. Seven of the eight chapters in these two books highlight the coming of the Lord. All through these two letters, the Holy Spirit...

From the beginning, God’s desire was to reign over his creation through a mediator. To that end, the King of the universe placed representative images of himself  in  his creation to  fill  his creation and  rule  his creation (Gen 1:26–28). But,  also from the beginning, Satan’s desire was to usurp God and set himself up as sovereign. He deceived God’s first kingdom mediators, prompting them to ...

At long last, the Apostle John is shown the culmination of God’s future wrath  against  and destruction  of  all sin. To this point it had been revealed that Jesus Christ—the Lamb who was slain and is, thus, worthy (5:6, 12)—will one day initiate, oversee, and enact righteous judgement upon the whole world. Natural disasters and unnatural disturbances, fear and famine, death, darkness, and demonis...