Line Upon Line

In the final teaching of a series on Jesus' seven "I am" statements, Pastor Miles examines John 15, where Jesus declares "I am the true vine." The message answers five questions about fruitfulness: what God desires, how He accomplishes it through pruning, why He does it for His glory, our role of abiding in Christ, and the resulting fullness of joy.

Teaching through John 14:1, Jason (the high school pastor) walks through Jesus' "I am the way, the truth, and the life" discourse, showing that we follow a Person rather than a destination and that authentic belief leads us to step out and do what God has called us to do. He weaves in the doctrine of the Trinity, the promise of the Holy Spirit, and the call to find peace by knowing Jesus and actin...

Teaching through John 11, Pastor Miles examines the seventh sign of Jesus—the raising of Lazarus—and its corresponding "I am" statement, "I am the resurrection and the life." He shows how Jesus' deliberate delay reveals that God prioritizes His glory and uses difficult circumstances to test, stretch, and strengthen faith, ultimately pointing every person to the question, "Do you believe this?"

This opening message of the "I Am" series introduces the Gospel of John as the inspired, eyewitness testimony of the last living apostle, written to reveal the true nature of Jesus as the Christ and Son of God—fully God and fully man. It then examines the first of Jesus's seven "I am" statements, "I am the bread of life," showing that Jesus came down from heaven to give life to a dying world and t...

Working through Titus 2:11–14, Pastor Miles teaches that salvation comes by grace alone, that this grace is available to all people, and that grace itself trains us to deny ungodliness, live righteously, fix our hope on Christ's return, and become God's purified, set-apart, good-works-loving people.

Teaching from Titus 2:15–3:8 on how Christians should live as recipients of God's grace, especially in a culture marked by political anger and conflict with governing authorities. Pastor Miles argues that believers must speak hard biblical truths boldly while submitting to authority, pursuing peace and humility, and letting the gospel's grace inspire good works that draw others to Christ.

Drawing from Titus 3:8-15, Pastor Miles teaches that God's grace saves us not by good works but for good works, calling believers to carefully maintain them. He explains that maintaining good works means pursuing what is profitable for ourselves and others, avoiding useless controversies, rejecting divisive people, and letting our fruitfulness meet the urgent needs of others.

Drawing on the repeated emphasis on good works in Titus 2-3, Pastor Miles teaches that God's grace saves us apart from works but for works, and that believers should be careful to maintain good works that are profitable to themselves and others while avoiding foolish, divisive, and unprofitable disputes. He closes by urging the church to let its fruitfulness meet the urgent needs of others and to...

Drawing on Titus 2:15–3:8, Pastor Miles teaches how followers of Jesus should respond to governing authorities and a culture in conflict—holding firmly to the inspired Scriptures while imitating Christ in submission, peaceableness, and humility, all flowing from the transforming grace of God.

Working from Titus 2:11–15, this teaching shows that salvation is by grace alone, that grace extends to all people, and that this same saving grace instructs believers to deny ungodliness, live righteously, fix their hope on Christ's return, and become God's purified, peculiar, and passionate people zealous for good works.

Teaching from Titus 2:1, Pastor Miles argues that humanity is fallen and in need of transformation, and that sound doctrine—energized by the grace of God—is what actually produces sound conduct in believers of every age and station. He shows that the changed life of a Christian substantiates the gospel before a watching world.

Paul commands the rich—which includes nearly all of us—not to be haughty or trust in uncertain riches, but to trust the Living God who richly gives us all things to enjoy, and to be rich in good works so as to lay hold on eternal life. Using the rich young ruler and the mirror of God's Word, Pastor Miles confronts concealed pride, misplaced trust, and the false prosperity gospel.

Opening a new study in Titus, Pastor Miles introduces Paul's letter to his silent partner Titus, set against the chaotic backdrop of Nero's Rome, and draws out the call to faithfulness, godliness, and gospel proclamation in a crooked culture.

Drawing from 1 Timothy 6:11-16, Pastor Miles teaches that the man and woman of God are called to flee the carnal traits of the old nature (pride, envy, strife, greed) and pursue the new nature in Christ (righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness). This putting-off and putting-on, empowered by God's indwelling Spirit, is the "good fight of faith" by which Christians lay hold of th...

Drawing from 1 Timothy 6 and its parallel in Ephesians 6, Pastor Miles teaches that how we work matters to God because our work represents Him, calling Christians to labor with honesty, integrity, and sincerity for God's glory rather than for selfish gain. He warns that pursuing riches as the goal leads to ruin, while godliness with contentment is the truly great gain.

Working through 1 Timothy 6:1 alongside its parallel in Ephesians 6, Pastor Miles teaches a godly work ethic: how and for whom we work matters to God, because our labor represents Him. He warns that pursuing riches as our motivation leads to ruin, while godliness with contentment is the truest and greatest gain.

Drawing from 1 Timothy 5:17-25, Pastor Miles examines the universal human drive toward purity and shows that, although Scripture commands us to be holy, no one is naturally pure and we therefore need God's supernatural power. He ties Paul's seemingly odd instructions about elders, wine, and hidden sin to the truth that personal religious standards do not equal righteousness—only the Spirit's fruit...

Drawing from 1 Timothy 5:17-25, Pastor Miles explores humanity's universal drive toward purity and morality, arguing that since we cannot make ourselves righteous by our own efforts or external standards, we need God's supernatural power; he ties this to Paul's instructions on appointing, disciplining, and honoring church elders, showing that private impurity will eventually surface and that the t...

Continuing through 1 Timothy 5, Pastor Miles teaches that off-course churches always lack qualified elders and sound doctrine, and that the remedy is to qualify elders by biblical requirements, appoint them, support them with "double honor," discipline them when they sin, and never appoint them hastily.

A Resurrection Sunday teaching from John 20 examining how Mary, John, and Peter each "saw" the empty tomb differently, tracing a progression from casual observation to attentive investigation to believing understanding. Pastor Miles argues that the empty tomb requires a response and that the most logical decision, given the evidence and eyewitness testimony, is faith in the risen Christ.

A call to remember Christ's saving purpose, to trust the power of God in the gospel, and to overcome fear of evangelism by learning to answer skeptics' questions with questions that reach the heart. Pastor Miles equips believers to share their faith in their everyday mission fields with gentleness, respect, and confidence.

Pastor Miles addresses the most common question he receives—"What is God's will for my life?"—and answers it from Philippians 2 through its four movements: exhortation, example, exercise, and exhibition. He argues that God leads us into His will primarily by transforming our desires as we delight in Him, follow Christ's sacrificial example, and live for the joy and interests of others.

Drawing from Philippians 2:1-16, Pastor Miles tackles the most commonly asked pastoral question—"What is God's will for my life?"—and shows that God leads us into His will not by audible voices or coin flips, but by transforming our desires as we delight in Him and follow the sacrificial example of Christ.

Through the contrasting stories of Naomi and Hannah, this teaching argues that our perspective and mindset—not our circumstances—determine how we walk through suffering, and that real peace is found only by pouring our hearts out to God rather than blaming Him. God works purposes in our trials we cannot see, ultimately weaving Naomi's and Hannah's lives together into the line of David and the comi...

Drawing on the early church's practice of Koinonia in Acts 2 and Paul's instructions to Timothy in 1 Timothy 5, this teaching examines how the church is to honor and provide for widows who are genuinely in need, while also calling believers to care for their own families first. It establishes biblical principles for wisely discerning genuine need and honoring godly witness.