Pleasant Valley Church Sermons

Pastor Jesse digs into Matthew 13 - the Parable of the Sower.  When Jesus chooses to talk about the kingdom, so often he uses everyday, ordinary language.  What can this choice teach us about the nature of God's kingdom?  What does this parable show us about the condition of our own hearts?

As we enter into the new year, Pastor Darren reflects on a God who came down to be with us.

Pastor Darren speaks on the Wisemen, and we wrap up our series on waiting by looking forward to Jesus' return.

Pastor Darren gives a devotional on Christmas Day.  All Advent we have been speaking about what it means to wait.  On this day, we recognize that the wait is over!  Jesus has come.  Jesus is here.  Jesus will return.  Amen!

Pastor Jesse speaks on Mary.  Pregnancy is an entirely different kind of waiting, one which has many parallels to our lives as Christians today.  Experiencing new growth, and change, and inner activity as the presence of God lives inside of us.  Mary's story - and Luke's personal insights into her journey, shed valuable light on [...]

Pastor Darren speaks of John the Baptist, one who prepared the way for Jesus, who built anticipation.  It's not unlike the held breath at the countdown to a tree lighting.  We stand together in the dark waiting for the light that is to come.  And - like John - we can also celebrate that the [...]

Pastor Jesse continues our Advent Series on Waiting by taking a look at Isaiah's prophecy in Chapter 9 of his Old Testament book.  Isaiah - incredibly - waited for something that would not happen during his lifetime, in fact it wouldn't happen for dozens of generations after his death.  And yet, in the midst of [...]

Christmas can become about the flash and dazzle, the hustle and bustle, the hot chocolate and candy canes.  But when that is stripped away, how do we reconcile the evil, the pain, and the brokenness in our world with the hope of the Christmas story?  How can we think about both of those things honestly.  [...]

When the night is holding on to me, God is holding on.  Pastor Darren explores the Psalms to answer the question - what does it mean that God is faithful?  What impact does our understanding of God's faithfulness have on our own efforts to be 'good enough'.  How can we trust that God is there [...]

Pastor Darren concludes our series on the Community Covenant by celebrating the diversity of church - the many ways we can participate in and engage with the body of Christ, as well as the many gifts we bring to the table!

Pastor Jesse walks through the second half of our Community Covenant.  "Your Commitment to the Church".  We take a stop in Galatians 5 to explore what it means to live a life transformed by Christ, set free from the law, but called to a higher standard, and then work our way through the 4 points [...]

On Parent/Child dedication Sunday, Pastor Darren continues our series on our Community Covenant.  He focuses in on the first half of the covenant, which speaks about what you receive from the church when you are a part of our community.  The key word here is opportunity!  When the church is functioning as it should, you [...]

Pastor Jesse begins a 4 part series on our Community Covenant. Pleasant Valley adopted this unique model of membership around 15 years ago, and the document we sign as a community is an effort to capture the 'beating heart' of our church. This first session takes a look at a biblical understanding of church, and [...]

Pastor Jesse follows up on Darren's 'Whatever' message with an eye towards the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. What does it mean to be truly thankful in a world that revolves around self? How do we overcome our natural, human tendency towards negativity? The story of the 10 lepers from Luke 17 offers some biblical principles for [...]

The dictionary says the word ‘whatever’ means “without limitations”. this word is used 2x in close succession in Colossians 3. Pastor Darren challenges us to believe that in using this word Paul opens the door to 2 crucial life attitudes for every serious Jesus follower!

As part of our refugee kit building Sunday, Pastor Mike shares a short devotional, challenging us to view the global refugee crisis through the lens of the gospel.

Shadows are typically only vague, distorted, colorless, images of the REAL THING. Shadows are actually just reminders of the fact that there is a REAL THING worth taking note of. Pastor Darren shows us how Paul uses this 'Shadow/Real Thing' comparison in Colossians 2 to help us distinguish between these vague, distorted images (human rules, [...]

Pastor Jesse gives a devotional at the annual church picnic in Stephenfield Provincial Park. Surrounded by nature, he explores the power of creation to draw us towards our Creator God, looks at what separates humankind from the rest of the universe and asks the question: if nature's purpose is to draw us towards God...what is [...]

In Colossians 1 Paul speaks very passionately about his personal commitment to expend energy for the church! Pastor Darren helps us to see that Paul is willing to pour out his life for the church because he truly believes that the church is 'THE BODY OF JESUS CHRIST' and that the church is the steward [...]

How are you investing that which has been entrusted to you? Pastor Darren uses the parable in Matthew 25:14-30 to challenge us to view all the resources (time, energy, abilities, gifts, possessions, money) at our disposal as 'things that have been ENTRUSTED to us for the purpose of INVESTING in the Kingdom of Heaven here [...]

Following a strong challenge to CONTEND FOR THE FAITH in the face of opposition (Jude 3-19), Jude encourages his readers to also think about BUILDING THEIR FAITH in the good times and trusting that the love of God and the faithfulness of Jesus will keep us strong until the end!  Pastor Darren encourages us to [...]

The 21st century North American Christian world is well supplied with good solid inspirational devotional material.  The short New Testament letter written by Jude was also originally intended to be a simple inspirational letter celebrating the joy of salvation with his readers. As Jude begins to write he feels called to change direction and challenge [...]

Pastor Jesse speaks on 3rd John. Balance can be tough sometimes. The church John writes to in Ephesus was struggling with how to keep out bad theology while still staying open to other believers. Pastor Jesse explores the the letter recipient, Gaius, a church leader, Diotrephes, and a travelling missionary, Demetrius, to see how we [...]

Pastor Jesse speaks examines the book of 2nd John and discovers how both truth and love are central to the Christian life.

Pastor Jesse speaks on the book of Philemon. Small in word count but huge in its implications for how we live out our faith, this sermon explores what Paul’s letter teaches us about forgiveness, justice, and love in the Kingdom.