JLP.church Sermon Podcast

"Emmanuel" means God is with us. You might think that idea would be all through the Bible, but the word itself only appears a handful of times. Is it really that important? What does it mean that God is with us? Pastor Luke looks at Isaiah 7:10-14 in "God With Us," the first message in a new series, "Emmanuel."

The world is a mess, or at least parts of it. If you got the job of fixing it, what would you do about Nigeria, or Darfur, or the Fentanyl epidemic? What would you do about affordable housing or the debt crisis, or illiteracy? Some problems seem beyond fixing. But God promised to fix them. How? Pastor Luke looks at Jeremiah 23:1-6 in "Under New Management."

Jesus announced the nearness of the Kingdom, meaning we can be part of it now. We don't have to wait for him to return, when it comes in its fullness. But return he will, someday, and the Kingdom will be fully realized. What happens then? Pastor Luke looks at Matthew 13:47-50 in "The Last Division," the concluding message in his series, "Fabulous Stories."

Jesus said that entering the Kingdom of Heaven would be like stumbling upon a great treasure. If that's so, why don't more people do it? What prevents them? Pastor Luke preaches from Matthew 13:44-46 in "Upgrade," part 4 of his 5-part series, "Fabulous Stories."

Have you ever thought that God wasn't helping, or maybe you even thought that God was making things worse? Or maybe you just thought you could use some help but there was no sign that God would provide it. What can we do when God doesn't seem interested in helping? Pastor Luke preaches from Matthew 13:31-33 in "Ferment," part 3 of his 5-part series, "Fabulous Stories."

Jesus spoke about God's Kingdom from the beginning of his earthly ministry to its end. Something he kept saying is how God's Kingdom isn't like earthly kingdoms. But what is it LIKE? To answer that question, Jesus used parables. Pastor Luke looks at Matthew 13:1-9,18-23 in "Strewn," the first message in a new series, "Fabulous Stories."

Christians are called to be disciples who make disciples? But how are we supposed to be disciples, much less make other people into disciples? In the Old Testament, a the story of a foreign general and a prophet has some great examples, but they aren't the general or the prophet. Pastor Luke teaches from 2 Kings 5:1-16 in "A Lesser River," the concluding message in his series, "Headwaters (Bonus S...

Christians are taught to rejoice, which seems strange -- even though our innocent savior died a criminal's death. Christians have no illusions about just how messed up the world can be. So how can we rejoice in the face of that? Pastor Luke teaches from Luke 10:1-3,17-20 in "Rejoice In This," the concluding message in his series, "Captive Thoughts."

"Where was God when that terrible thing happened?" It's a common question, because terrible things keep happening to people. How can we make sense of our faith when bad things happen? Part of the answer is making sure that we're looking at the right part of the problem. Pastor Luke looks at Genesis 50:15-21 in "Innovator," part 3 of his 4-part series, "Captive Thoughts."

Wouldn't it be wonderful if change was instantaneous? We've been talking about how God renews our minds as he makes us like Christ. If we have unhelpful or intrusive thoughts, it would be great if we could simply change them and never have them again. But we can't. It takes practice. Pastor Luke preaches from 1 Timothy 4:7-16 in "Run Through," part 2 of his 4-part series, "Captive Thoughts."

Do you have an inner monologue? Does some person or idea live "rent free in your head?" The Apostle Paul teaches us to take every thought captive. How can we do that? Can we control the way we think? Pastor Luke looks at Luke 12:13-21 in "An Abundance of Barns," the first message in a new series, "Captive Thoughts."

In this installment of “Ask Me Anything,” Pastor Luke addressed four questions. This message was delivered in gathered worship on Sunday, August 31, 2025 at Jewel Lake Parish in Anchorage, Alaska. TIMESTAMPS 00:40 In the parable of the talents, what's wrong with burying your talent? 08:25 Does quantum physics' multiverse theory negate the "God of the Gaps"? 12:24 Will we be married in heaven? 20:3...

If you visited Philippi in the middle of the 1st century, everyone could tell you what was the most important thing that had happened there. But sometime in the next century or two, that changed. Since then, people would give a different answer, but nobody at the time had any idea. Pastor Luke preaches from Acts 16:9-15 in "Outside the Gate," the concluding message in his series, "Headwaters."

The truly amazing thing about John the Baptist is that Jesus came to him for baptism. But many, many other people did too. What was it that John said that caused those other people to come to him for baptism? Pastor Luke looks at Matthew 3:1-2,5-17 in "Here Comes the Kingdom," part 6 of his 7-part series, "Headwaters."

People in older generations sometimes wonder if the younger generation is capable of facing the tasks ahead of them. But they'll have to be, sooner or later. What can they do to be ready? What can the older generations do to help? Pastor Luke looks at 2 Kings 2:6-15 in "The Kids Are All Right," part 5 of his 7-part series, "Headwaters."

Everybody has problems, and Christians don't get a pass. In fact, Jesus assured us that we will have trouble. Our problems won't go away, but our faith does offer us help to get through those problems. Pastor Luke looks at Joshua 4:1-10 in "Stones From the River," part 4 of his 7-part series, "Headwaters."

We've been learning that God does help people who resist the things that oppress them. Who wouldn't want some help? But when is God going to actually Pastor Luke teaches from Joshua 3:1-6,13-17 in "A Pile of Water," part 3 of his 7-part series, "Headwaters."

The book of Exodus tells the story of a mass migration by a great multitude of people. It includes accounts of great miracles by God, culminating in the parting of the Red Sea. But it doesn't begin big. It begins with a a small-scale story of a very relatable problem. Pastor Luke looks at Exodus 1:22-2:10 in "Born at the Right Time," part 2 of his 7-part series, "Headwaters."

If you told someone the story of the Garden of Eden, you'd mention Adam and Eve and probably various other details of the account. But you might overlook the rivers — even though the story has, not just a single river, but four! Why so many? What is this story saying to us today? Pastor Luke looks at Genesis 2:8-15 in "Headwaters," the first message in a new series, "Headwaters."

In this installment of “Ask Me Anything,” Pastor Luke addressed seven questions. This message was delivered in gathered worship on Sunday, June 29, 2025 at Jewel Lake Parish in Anchorage, Alaska. TIMESTAMPS 00:20 What's going on with our yoke arrangement with Trinity Presbyterian Church? 08:45 Does owning a parsonage/manse help with leadership transitions? 10:15 How are leaders chose in our denomi...

Since the enlightenment, people have struggled with, or scoffed at, the idea of demons. But nobody has any doubt about possession. There are plenty of things that can exercise control over us. Can anything break their grip? Pastor Luke looks at Luke 8:26-39 in "You Gotta Serve Somebody."

Because fathers are so important in their childrens' lives, we want to be as good at it as possible. But societal changes and a lack of knowledge make it difficult to be sure how. Fortunately, as with so many things, there's help in the New Testament. Pastor Luke teaches from Colossians 3:12-4:1 in "Good Good Father."

When we become Christians, we become part of the body of Christ and the family of the children of God. Those names may sound better than another name: the Church. The problem with the Church is that it has people in it. And since people are all different, it's not always easy to figure out where we fit in relation to them. Pastor Luke teaches from 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 in "Microbiome," the conclu...

"What on earth am I here for?" That's a good question for anybody, but it's especially important for Christians. Some answers are 300 pages long, but one answer is a single line, and it's been around a lot longer. Pastor Luke preaches from Psalm 100 in "Serious Joy," part 3 of his 4-part series, "Down to Earth."

If Christians have been born again, who are they now? The answer is that they are children of God. And that's more than just a label. Pastor Luke preaches from Ephesians 1:3-14 in "Adopted by Grace," part 2 of his 4-part series, "Down to Earth."