Providence Bible Church Sermons

After Jesus was born, He was visited by wise men from the east.  Who were these folks, and what was their goal?  And who was Herod the Great and how did he react to Jesus birth?  And, ultimately, what should our reaction be to all of this?

Second run to see if this will post and work!

Was Jesus born of a literal virgin?  Can we know that for sure?  Does it even matter?  Matthew's account of Jesus' life brings us face to face with these questions, and gives us definitive answers.  

Is there significance in the family tree of Jesus?  Of course there is!  Matthew explores Jesus' roots back to Abraham.  

Don brings a message of how God is always working and has a plan that He is bringing to the ultimate goal of His glory.

What happened in the 400+ years that is not mentioned between the Old and New Testaments?  God was still working, although He was operating in active silence.  We take a quick look at the Intertestamental Period in this message.

A working knowledge of the Old Testament is necessary to know what God's plan in eternity and history.  We frame up Genesis to Malachi as best we can in an hour.  Hold on tight!

What would you say if you were God and preparing to go silent for 400-plus years?  What would you focus on?  Probably not what God is about to say in Malachi 4.  But, He knows what He is doing, so, we'll look at His Words, the last of the Old Testament.

God confronts His people for their poor perspective on what is going on around them, including their words, their failure to tithe, and their misinformation regarding Him.  Things get up close and personal as God calls for obedience and right thinking from the Israelites.

How does God respond to lazy worship?  Not well, but always for our good.

God shows up to end the Old Testament in a thunderous call to attention in the form of an oracle given to Malachi.  Chapter 1 storms in and God shows and proclaims His greatness to His people and calls their attention to their careless worship.

When sin is evident, what should be our reaction?  We finish up Nehemiah by seeing him plainly and purposefully address the blatant sins of the Israelites.

Nehemiah's goal was for God's people to worship God in Jerusalem, safe and sound.  We see in chapters 11 and 12 that vision come to fruition and how individuals, history, and details all come together to make it happen. 

How should we respond when the Word of God confronts us and calls for us to change what we're doing?  We see a covenant of life change in the Israelites in Nehemiah 10.

As the Israelites recount their sins and God's faithfulness, we see the Gospel in action in Nehemiah's time.  

What happens with the people of God are put in contact with the Word of God?  See what it looks like to ingest, enflesh, and enjoy the Word of God, as evidenced in the Israelites in Nehemiah 8.

Well, the walls are done, now what?  Now we walk with Nehemiah and his friends to find out what's next for the city of Jerusalem and those around it.  

In an age of busyness and constant noise, how do we find that single focus that is to be our great work and put our hands to doing it?  Nehemiah shows us what this looks like and how it works out in the wall project he is heading up in Jerusalem.  

How should brothers treat brothers?  What should be done if their behavior is not as it should be?  Nehemiah confronts some of his Jewish brothers who are not being so brotherly.  

Fear and discouragement will always accompany the work of God and the workers of God.  How do we overcome them?  What are we to do?  Nehemiah shows us by his example.

Names and gates and walls and who, what, when, where, why and how of Nehemiah 3.  There is work to be done.        

We have to be able to see problems and call them problems.  Nehemiah does just that as he walks the walls of Jerusalem to identify and plan to fix the problems there.    

We begin our study of Nehemiah by seeing Nehemiah's praying, confessing, and doing in full swing.  

How do we respond to sin, both individually and corporately?  We see the Jews doing both in Ezra 10.

Can you find hope when everybody else has had their miracle but you haven't?  Hope is coming for you, and He may already be there.