Oviedo City Church Sermons

It is the most purchased book in history. It is the most controversial book in history. It has influenced world events as no other book ever written. It claims to be the Word of God and has been known to change lives as no other book. At OCC, it is the foundation of who we are and what we do. Being biblically driven is the first strand in our DNA.

Have you ever driven down a dead-end street? Maybe Google Maps wasn’t updated or there were no signs. It’s frustrating and confusing. The book of Ecclesiastes can seem like a long list of dead ends. Pleasure, possessions, control, certainty…none of these lead to the fulfilling destination they seem to promise. Take a listen, as we come to the end of our journey in Ecclesiastes, we'll find this: "T...

We all want certainty. Certainty of our health, relationships, jobs, finances… the future. Yet no matter how hard we try to manage our lives, stuff happens and certainty escapes us. God promises something greater than certainty in this world. He gives hope. Biblical hope isn't wishy-washy or wishful thinking; it is rugged and robust. It is the ballast that stabilizes us today and anchors us in ete...

Time seems to holler at us, haunt us, pressure us and some days even mock us. No matter how much we try to control time (and our lives!), time seems to control us. This week we come to the most well-known section of Ecclesiastes. In it we’re told why we are so frustrated by time and our lack of control: God has put eternity in our hearts (Ecc. 3:11). This means we are made for much more than the p...

What would happen if each of us sought out as much pleasure as we could? If we took whatever we wanted? We don’t have to try this dangerous experiment because the writer of Ecclesiastes already did. He writes: “… whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I kept my heart from no pleasure” (Ecc. 2:10). He also reports the bleak results: “It was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind” (v....

Ecclesiastes 1:1-11 This week begins a new sermon series; Restless Heart. For the next six weeks we will be exploring Ecclesiastes, an Old Testament book of wisdom that asks some tough questions about life. First up is the question of meaning, in other words, why are we here? Do we have any real purpose in life? What is the meaning of all that we go through from birth to death? Where is God when t...

James 5:13-20 James ends his letter with a call to prayer. It is prayer in the midst of any and every life situation, joy, suffering, physical illness and more. This week we will be doing something a little different as we wrap up this wonderful series. We will learn about prayer but then we will also take time to pray. As part of our response to God's Word, our elders and prayer team will be avai...

James 5:7-12 It was a pleasure being able to welcome Dr. Steve Brown as our guest preacher! Dr. Brown is a broadcaster, seminary professor, and author, as well as the founder and president of Key Life Network. He is also a regular attender here at OCC!

James 4:13-5:6 This week's passage in James reminds us that Scripture has teeth. It's not a book of hollow platitudes and inspirational sayings. It’s the living word of God, and it fights for our hearts because God fights for our hearts. Like a skillful surgeon, James cuts deep so that nothing—not our plans, not our goals, not our finances—will take the place of God in our hearts. Take a listen as...

James 3: 13-4:12 "Who is wise and understanding among you?" That’s a challenging question---one that James invites each of us to consider for ourselves. We might find that we have wisdom from below, full of jealousy and selfish ambition, which is really no wisdom at all. Or we might uncover wisdom from above, which is pure, peace-loving, gentle, open to reason and full of mercy. Take a listen as w...

James 3:1-12 So often in our world, we are drawn to the big, the powerful, the impressive. We think those are the things that make an impact. So often we try for the big and the dramatic to make our lives better. Yet James tells us that it is often the small, overlooked things that can make the biggest difference for good or ill. Our experience tells us that we often overlook the little things to...

James 2:14-26 This week James really gets in our business, asking questions like: Is your faith dead? Is your faith domesticated? Does it pulsate with the life-changing love of Jesus? The stakes are high in this passage as we look at the truth that we are saved by faith alone—but it is a faith that is not alone.

James 1:18-2:13 There is a great deal of confusion in our world about the nature, place, and even value of religion. Some people see it as old-fashioned superstition, others as something harmful and dangerous, yet others as something to devote their lives to. So what's the deal? Are we missing something? And if so, what is it and what benefit can it have in our lives, if any? Is it possible that w...

James 1:1-18 Who knows the most about us—the good and the bad? Our families, of course! One surprising thing about the Bible is that we have a whole book from Jesus’ brother, James. Can you imagine growing up with Jesus? James had a front row seat to his life and ministry and was thoroughly convinced that Jesus was indeed ”the Lord of glory!" (2:1). In his New Testament letter, James teaches us wh...

1 Corinthians 15:1-5

John 18:33-40 Over the past few weeks, we’ve been exploring some of the major questions about Christianity in our “Asking for a Friend” series. This week, we’ll look at the question “Why is Jesus the only way?” through the lens of Pilate’s interrogation of Jesus, when he asked “What is truth?” (John 18:38). Listen in as we begin Holy Week and examine why Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life!

Matthew 23:1-13 One of the most powerful objections to Christianity is when Christians don't live according to their own standards, yet claim to be better than "those sinners" out there. Jesus called this hypocrisy and had some harsh words for the religious hypocrites of his day. How do we avoid hypocrisy while at the same time acknowledging our weaknesses?

As part of our OCC Institute Forum weekend, the message this week will be a little bit different. As we focus on the issue of God and Suffering, we will hear from our two key presenters from the forum, Dr. Sharon Dirckx and Simon Edwards. They are two highly sought-after speakers who come to us from Oxford, England. Along with Pastor Dan, they will have a time of discussion that focuses on a wide...

Acts 17:22-31 "God, are you there?" If we're honest, we've all asked this question at some point. Whether you're a committed Christian, skeptic, or atheist, it’s likely you’ve wondered if God is just a concept we've invented to cope with life. Or could it be that there really is more to this extraordinary universe we live in? This week, we'll learn that our deepest intuitions on life, love and mea...

Genesis 22:1-14 Tests. None of us like them. They can push us to our very limits. And yet a moment of testing proves to be the pinnacle of Abraham's story. He is tested by God with the unthinkable: to sacrifice his promised son, Isaac. With this test comes the foundational question that confronts all of us: Do we want the blessings of God more than we want God?

Genesis 18:6-15 | Genesis 21:1-7 Can you recall a time that something you had been waiting on for a long time was finally delivered? Maybe it was a car you had been saving for, a degree you had been working towards, or a job you had been interviewing for. The feeling when it finally happened was most likely overwhelming to say the least. That was true for Sarah and Abraham who had waited over 10 y...

Genesis 15 Have you ever experienced the gap between a promise and reality? You know, the time between when a promise is made to you and when it is actually fulfilled. We all have – and it can be trying! Whether it's at work or home, or whether it's in our relationship with God. In Genesis 15 that's exactly what Abraham encountered. And yet, it's in that gap that Abraham's trust and relationship w...

Genesis 12:1-9 God calls all of us to follow Him. Jesus made that perfectly clear when He told people to lay down their fishing nets, close up their tax offices, set aside their own plans, and become His disciples. Following Gods plan always involves laying down something of our own plans. It requires giving up something. But what God promised Abraham, and what Jesus promises you, is always far mo...

1 Peter 1:22-25 "The only thing constant is change.” When Heraclitus said that he was on to something that we all feel. The world around us and the world inside us is always shifting. It is hard to get a bearing on life when everything seems to be moving. But Heraclitus was wrong about one thing. There is one thing, one person who never changes.