Reformed & Expository Preaching

ntroduction If we're honest, the ascension is something that we might want God to rethink. In our human understanding, we would love to have a visible priest on earth. Imagine if Christ stayed on earth like the disciples wanted? Imagine if we could walk through a set of giant doors, stand before him, and hear him answer our requests face-to-face. We might even think that waiting a month for an app...

Introduction If there's one passage that makes American Christians squirm a little, it's this one. "Held everything in common"? "No needy person among them?” Sell the house, sell the land, drop it at the apostles' feet? Our first instinct is to wonder if private property itself is the problem. It certainly appears to be the case, considering that Ananias and Sapphira drop dead after deceiving the...

Introduction The Heidelberg Catechism spends some time reminding us that Christ really did suffer.  His suffering is not some sort of unnecessary drama. It testifies to our sin, and it atones for our sin.  His suffering makes satisfaction for our sin. But suffering and death alone aren't the whole story. If Christ were merely dead and "bounced back" the way a sacrificial animal might ret...

When Peter and John were commanded to stop preaching Christ, the early church did not pray for safety or comfort. No, they prayed for boldness. Acts 4 reminds us that God's sovereign purposes cannot be frustrated by human opposition and that the church's calling remains unchanged: to proclaim the Gospel faithfully. In a culture filled with distraction, division, and pressure to dilute biblical tru...

Why do Christians suffer, and where is God in our pain? Hebrews 2:9-18 teaches that Jesus Christ entered our suffering as our merciful High Priest. Through His death and resurrection, He defeated death, satisfied God's justice, and secured redemption for His people. Discover how Christ's suffering brings comfort, hope, and assurance in every trial.

Introduction: The Great Reversal The book of Acts shows us that God has a sense of humor.  There are parts when you laugh, and then you weep at the same time. Here we find Peter and John.  These are blue-collar fishermen with no formal rabbinic training.  They are not trained in rhetoric or any fancy talk.  They are called to stand before the rulers, or Israel’s ruling council....

Introduction We refer to the prayer Christ taught us to pray as the Lord’s prayer. We should call it the Disciples' Prayer. Our catechism reminds us that prayer is the "chief part of our gratefulness" to God. Yet prayer remains one of the most difficult and probably misunderstood aspects of the Christian life. Dennis John says, “prayer is neither a guilt-laden duty to a distant deity nor a casual...

We welcome Rev. Chuck Tedrick to our pulpit this morning. He is the Dean of Students and Director of Alumni Relations at Westminster Seminary in California. Introduction Christ tells a parable about one of the world's worst prayers, immediately followed by one of the world's most beautiful prayers. The warning is that some trusted in themselves, believing they were righteous, and treated others wi...

Introduction The Christian gospel confronts us with a truth that requires profound humility. We have to come to grips with the reality that we are heinous sinners. We need to own that we are so estranged from God that only Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection will bring us near. This is not some dramatic event for the sake of drama. I hope that as we consider what Christ suffered, why He su...

Introduction Throughout church history, God's people have struggled with a persistent temptation: looking to the visible means of grace rather than the invisible power behind those means. We can think that the effectiveness of the gospel depends upon the piety of the minister. Certainly, a minister needs to have a piety that rests in the Lord. The minister needs to believe the gospel message. Howe...

Introduction How do we know that God will keep his promises? It's a question we don't often ask out loud, but we might ask silently to ourselves. We may experience a setback in life, and we wonder if God is really looking out for us. Psalm 132 permits us to bring that question directly to God. Psalm 132 gives us God’s answer. The Promise God Made Long before Christ’s entrance into history, God nar...

At the Beautiful Gate, a man crippled from birth asks Peter and John for alms, believing money is his greatest need. Yet the apostles offer something far greater: the healing power of Jesus Christ and the life-giving message of the gospel. Through this miracle, God demonstrates that humanity’s deepest problem is not physical weakness or financial hardship, but the spiritual brokenness caused by si...

Introduction People bring criticism against the Reformed people’s love for doctrine. People claim that if you go to a Reformed church, you will see that we are people concerned with the head, not the heart. That our catechisms and confessions are cold documents. These are documents fueling intellectual exercises that keep doctrine tidy but leave the soul unmoved. That we know about God without act...

Introduction There is a question that lurks underneath in the book of Acts. What happens when Christ is gone? Does he still work on His people, or are we abandoned in this world by a frustrated redeemer? Luke’s Gospel lays out the ministry of Christ on this earth. Acts lays out the ministry of Christ after his ascension into heaven. The Spirit has been given to the church, but how do we know that...

Introduction Was the cross a plan B? We might dismiss this question, but it is an important question. On the surface, the ministry of Jesus looks like a series of setbacks. The reality is that Christ is rejected by the religious establishment that He has come to establish. Christ is not only rejected, but handed over to Rome in a Kangaroo court. He is then sentenced to death by the demands of his...

Introduction Wouldn't it be something if Christ kept an earthly office. It would be great if we could knock on the door, make an appointment, and bring him our questions face to face. We instinctively want something tangible. And yet the Christian faith calls us to do something that seems unwise: put all our eggs in one basket and trust in a savior that we cannot see. We are called to trust in Chr...

Introduction Christ promised his disciples power from on high. This power? The Holy Spirit would come upon them and empower them to carry the gospel from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. But how do we know this promise is real? How do we know that Christ is truly with us until the end of the age? How do we know that Christ is my Christ? The answer begins at Pentecost, where heaven broke open up...

Introduction We like to think we have life figured out. Follow the right steps, make the right moves, and God will bless you. I am doing well, so I am dialed. I have life figured out. Struggle and suffer, and you must have done something wrong. The problem is that the book of Job refuses to let us off that easily. Job is blameless, upright, and God-fearing. Clearly, he is dialed, but everything is...

Introduction It would be so nice to open a door to a throne room and say there is Christ, our king, sitting on a throne. We might think that Christ’s ascension appears as a disappointing event. It seems that Christ has left his church. Why does Christ leave us in this world? We need to see that the Ascension is not a withdrawal of Christ's presence but rather a transformative moment that establish...

Introduction There is a danger of throwing around "the providence of God" carelessly. Job reminds us that the providence of God and suffering can be complicated. Job captures what many of us feel in seasons of suffering. We feel confusion, frustration, and even the impulse to argue with God. Our problem is that we forget that when we suffer, God is giving us what we want. We have to remember that...

The book of Acts is not the story of a church left behind. We should see it as the story of a church sent. The ascended Christ remains present with His people, advancing His mission through the power of the Holy Spirit. We have the power from on high.

Introduction Redemption has a purpose beyond just our personal salvation. Yes, that is part of it, but there is more. The Heidelberg Catechism makes clear that we are redeemed by a specific God who personally reveals himself. He is one God and three persons. He is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each of these persons shows their connection to creation and our redemption. His goal is not just to save...

Introduction Christians often take the resurrection of Christ for granted. We do not do this because we necessarily doubt Christ, but because we have heard the story so many times that we fall into a trap where we think we already know this stuff. So, we are tempted to tune out. The problem is we can have such a superficial understanding that we miss the scope and necessity of Christ’s resurrectio...

Introduction The term "Good Friday" is a strange name for this day. There's nothing on the surface that looks good about it. Our Savior is mocked, beaten, and handed over to die by the very people he came to save. His closest friends are gone. The crowds have turned. And the ones putting him to death are convinced they're doing Rome a favor. In the midst of the miscarriage of justice, a Roman cent...

In the final chapter of Devoted to God, we are called to consider the ultimate goal of the Christian life: full conformity to Jesus Christ. Sanctification is the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit, transforming believers to reflect Christ’s image. We do this both inwardly in heart (thinking in Christ like wisdom) and outwardly in life. This transformation is a lifelong process. While we grow in holin...