Grace Bible Church Columbia, MO

“Shut out every other consideration and keep yourself before God for this one thing only—My Utmost for His Highest.”  Oswald Chambers   Off the mountain of Transfiguration and through the valley of humility - Jesus now talks about how to live for the Kingdom of God. Truly living for the Kingdom means that nothing else is nearly as important – it does not mean that we don’t do daily things – it jus...

Grace family, This coming Sunday is a very special message – I will be sharing the greatest enemy of the Faith and the most horrible adversary to the Church – PRIDE!  The title is ‘It is not about me!’ and is from Mark 9:30-41.  “It is harder to deny my proud self than my sinful self!”  In these verses Jesus gives the most critical warnings to each of us – the core and cause of all sin is pride.  ...

This week, we step into what I’m calling “The Valley of Unbelief.” Jesus has come down from the Mount of Transfiguration to a chaotic scene: perplexed disciples, a crowd looking for the next show, and a desperate father struggling with his faith. Jesus looks at this scene and makes this pronouncement: “O faithfulness generation!” This Sunday, we’ll explore what displeases Jesus—and more importantl...

Jesus takes three of his disciples (Peter, James, and John) up a mountain where he reveals his glory. Not only that, Moses and Elijah show up and then they witness a divine cloud and hear the voice of God. What an experience!  The question I’d like us to consider is: Why did these three need to witness these things? What did Jesus want them to learn? And what do we need to learn?   We’ll talk abou...

“Give up yourself, and you will find your real self.”  C.S. Lewis   After 8 chapters of miracles, parables, teachings and disappointments – Jesus makes it very simple – here is how to be a disciple.  Jesus gives a 1,2,3 step by step and follows that up with a clear ‘what for!’ to the crowd and disciples who were going with Him.  Sunday I will take us into those simple directions.  What does it mea...

This study will be an in-depth look at the Song of Moses in Exodus 15 - we will examine how Moses used the victory over Egypt at the Red Sea to be an anthem for victory in the Promised Land. Moses composed this under Inspiration in a Chiastic format - meaning the lines of the song build on each other to a climactic point the recede in matching terms reflecting the praise to Jehovah in a very Hebra...

“Truth may be mysterious, indeed even paradoxical, but never, never, never contradictory.” - R.C. Sproul This Sunday we will look at one of, if not the most pivotal moment, in the Gospel of Mark. As the disciples and Jesus are traveling - Jesus, in a highly rabbinic style, asks two simple and yet powerful questions. We will take a look at the answers to these questions, the statements made surroun...

Memory of a goldfish? The Pharisees, the Disciples, the people – all seem to have the memory of a goldfish. Sunday may seem like déjà vu – the crowds are hungry and forgot to pack a lunch – the Pharisees are angry and forgot the miracles Jesus had already done – the disciples were worried and forgot what Jesus did last time – the people were anxious and forgot why the miracles were done in the fir...

What is the unpardonable sin? Has it ever been done? Was it only possible during the life of Jesus? Is it something we can do?   During this Sunday night teaching, I will tackle these questions and more! I will do my best to explain the ‘blasphemy of the Holy Spirit’ and try to cover the range of the forgiveness we have in Christ.  This is a special topic that reaches back to Mark 3 - when Denis p...

"And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, 'He has done all things well ...” Mark 7:37a   In Mark 7:24-37, we find two very different stories. One is about a desperate mother, a Syrophoenician woman, pleading for her demon-possessed daughter. The other is about a man who couldn’t hear or speak, brought to Jesus by those who loved him. Two different people. Two different problems. And Jesus...

When we mess up - where do those thoughts come from? We might like to blame the Devil or the evil World system – but if we are honest – they come from within our heart. We not only fail to recognize the true source of our sin, we are also prone to turning to the wrong solutions for dealing with our sin. Our nature is to try and justify ourselves. Then we may do something outwardly in an attempt to...

This teaching is from one of our Young Adult Rooted Evening Services. Have you ever felt your love for God start to fade—even while still doing all the “right” things? That’s what happened to the church in Ephesus. Jesus said, “I see your hard work—but you’ve lost your first love.” Sometimes, we get so busy doing for God that we forget being with Him. This message is an invitation to reset. To rem...

Let me ask you a question – “Is it more wrong to allow what God prohibits, or to prohibit what God allows?” This is what was asked of Jesus in our text this Sunday. We leave the fields of Bethsaida and the storms of Galilee only to be confronted by the delegation from Jerusalem whose purpose was to entrap Jesus and His followers. They needed an excuse to persecute and finally prosecute Jesus. They...

"What is a miracle on earth is ordinary in Heaven!” The sermon I wish I could preach – ‘after you have seen the feeding of 5000 everything else is easy!’  That message does not exist – in fact it seemed to get worse instead of better.  Jesus sends the disciples on ahead so He can go and pray – but a storm hits!  While they may be out of sight they were never out of care.  Jesus meets them on the w...

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:33   Jesus was followed all over the Land of Israel – some for His truths – others for the spectacle and miracles.  Jesus was intent on teaching grace and faith and truth – not impressing the skeptics.  This is the only miracle recorded in all 4 Gospels (besides the Resurrection) so it m...

“It does not matter how small the sins are provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into the Nothing.”  Screwtape to Wormwood – C.S. Lewis   Everything tragic you can imagine is in this account of John the Baptist – injustice – lewdness – deceit – cowardice – vengeance – death.  Herod the Great had some not-so-great kids – their story is told with words...

We have all heard that when you fail just try, try again!  Jesus was rejected by civil authorities and religious authorities – now even scorned in His own hometown!  Jesus background is questioned – His family is unsupportive – His training and education is dismissed and He is accused of being a ‘carpenter’ – blue collar NOT scholar!  It is in this backdrop that Jesus summons and sends out the Dis...

“We long to see miracles - we just don’t want to need one ourselves!” Jesus is healing two daughters of Israel in two very different ways.  This is a complex story with a very simple pair of outcomes – both girls find healing and hope in life through Jesus.  In fact, this is the account of Jesus on the way to a healing that is interrupted by an illness that delays the first healing to become a res...

“The central miracle asserted by Christians is the Incarnation. They say that God became Man. Every other miracle prepares for this, or exhibits this, or results from this.” C.S. Lewis, Miracles   More about the Miracles of Jesus – right back in the middle of our times together – this week the casting of demons into pigs.  What a great account of Jesus dealing with several things in a single act. ...

“Faith may not extinguish the fire but it will take us through the fire!” Everyone likes ‘smooth sailing’ but reality is sometimes stormy!  For storms I advocate a ‘Storm Theology’ that is demonstrated in the Gospels by encounters like this Sunday.  What do we do when Jesus sends us ‘to the other side’?  What do we do when sudden storms rise up?  What is our cry to God?  Do we accuse Him of being...

What is our Easter Hope? Not for candy or anything shaped like an egg or from a bunny! Our hope is in life and life to come! The most famous line “He is risen – He is risen indeed!” is recorded in Luke 24:34 “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” (ESV) and reaches back in recorded history to Mary Magdalene when she addressed Emperor Tiberius in Rome with the words “Christ is risen...

This is one of the best-known parables told by Jesus—and for us, it’s especially important because Jesus explains it Himself. Even so, we still have several questions. I’ll try to answer a few, and I’ll also be transparent: even with His explanation, we still lack full understanding. Right off the bat, I’m going to rename this best-known parable to The Parable of the Soils, since there is a single...

“For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.” - Mark 3:35 This Sunday, we will have the opportunity to explore Mark 3:20-21, 31-35, where Jesus speaks about His true family. Like Jesus, many Christians face opposition in their own homes, as some family members may not understand their faith or may have undergone a process of faith deconstruction that leads to conflict...

“Unless Disciples are not also Pilgrims they are just Students!” We meet three groups this Sunday in Mark 3. First we follow the curious and the desperate – the clamor to Jesus for what they can get from Him. This is described as a mob not a community of faith following the Messiah. The second group are the ones chosen as Disciples later to be known as ‘The Twelve’ in several lists in the Gospels...