Rose City Baptist Church

“Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen. (Jude 24-25) He who is able to keep you from stumbling. He who is able to present you blameless before the presence of his g...

“This begins a new series on Doctrine. And for me, the thing that got me most excited about my faith, the thing that changed my whole understanding of the bible: from a long drawn out collection of little stories and ideas, into a single, solid, tight-knit story, was the doctrine of God’s sovereignty…Funny thing, I had read the bible many, many times, and through loving parents grew up in his word...

Imagine a nativity scene with baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, the wisemen, and the typical cow, oxen, sheep, camel, and dragon? That is the image we are introduced to in the book of Revelation. Tune in as Pastor Josh teaches us about the cosmic intrusion that was the incarnation of the Holy God: “…the point is that all the greatest powers are mustered against the infant Christ. Behind...

“Having looked at Hannah’s Song in 1 Samuel recently, I was excited to have an opportunity to preach again on Mary’s song here, in the Magnificat, as it plays an important role in  introducing all the themes of salvation…That Mary’s song echoes those songs of old is significant for the way it so clearly extends the activity of God celebrated by Mary, far back into the past, making clear Luke’s bel...

“The contents of the gospel must never be assumed The Gospel is merely Good News - the same word ‘gospel ‘ - of great joy that will be for all the people.”

“God, for his part, graciously condescends to the people’s desire. But tells Samuel to warn them of what a human king will do. ‘The way of kings’ is characterized by the key words take and best. ‘The way of kings’, by nature, is parasitic rather than giving. And kings are never satisfied with the worst. Various aspects of ‘the way of kings’ would soon be implemented by Saul, Israel’s first king. B...

“Do I have trust in some talisman, trapping of religion, but not a person?” Tune in to hear Pastor Josh preach through a long, but necessarily connected, narrative concluding Eli’s story, and further our understanding of God’s desire for relationship, not just a religious rigour.

“The rush and violence of crucifixion, the blazing reality of their master’s death, the shock of it all was too much to bear and no one remembered, let alone trusted, his words of hope. Mark chapters 8, 9, and 10 tell us that on at least three separate occasions Jesus foretold not only his death but also his resurrection. And everything, everything else he ever spoke to them had come through… so w...

“The Sunday School version of this, which always has to have a moral of the story and an application, will tell us that we should be like Samuel: Listen for God’s voice and answer. Speak, Lord, I’m listening. But that is not at all the message of this passage. We are meant to see God’s faithfulness to his covenant people despite the rampant sin and rebellion taking place at that spiritually benigh...

“It is impossible to fear man and fear God. But fear of man doesn’t always mean fear that they will hurt or harm us, but it is also fear of losing their regard. John 12:43 speaks of those who denied Christ because ‘they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God .’ In an era of passive parenting, where people seek to become their children’s friend rather than an au...

“Although passive and dim-sighted, Eli blesses Hannah, although probably just to get her to leave. She, however, takes the word of the high priest as a promise from God. Where in her distress she had begun a fast, upon receiving the blessing she eats and her sadness left her.  Such is her trust that the Lord of Hosts can and will accomplish his will, she is at peace even before her situation chang...

“Scripture teaches it very clearly: you are a bad judge of what is right. You need a King! No matter who you are, there comes a point when Scripture will gut you — cut you to the core of your flesh. Whether it is what it has to say about your sexuality, or your attitude about money, or your desire for a family.  Whatever it is, in many different ways the Word of God will direct you in the exact op...

“Christian, know this today: it was not nails that kept him there, but love. And he resolved alongside of the Father, before creation, that he would die in place of those called by the Father into faith…”

“The followers of Christ are never promised a life of ease, or one without suffering, or even without martyrdom, but we are promised that he will hold us fast; that no plan against us shall ultimately succeed, and that he will vindicate us against every false word and accusation…”

“Peace and assurance come from a personal knowledge of the God who rules the times and the seasons. Church: if we have an inordinate desire to know how everything is going to fit together in what the bible is not clear about, then we need to come back to a knowledge of our personal Saviour. Because it is trust in Him that will give us the peace and hope and joy of the Christian life. Not that its...

“May we all join with Paul his prayer in Colossians 1:29: ‘For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.’… And so church: May we each be equipped to walk in such a way that we would be considered worthy of the kingdom of God. May we each desire to experience the presence of the Lord and the glory of his might. May we be strengthened for steadfastness with the...

“Jesus was brought before the greatest legal system the world had known. Between the Greeks and then the Romans, judicial propriety and order of law and the elevation of courts and trials and legal process - all of it - had reached a zenith in Jesus day. Church we are to see that the Jewish Sanhedrin was a kangaroo court; totally unjust, and corrupt; they had already decided to kill Jesus before t...

“Silence is power….Jesus stood before the leaders of his race, and owed them nothing, he held their destiny, they did not hold his, and he would not answer to their deceit. The high priest was running out of ideas, so in Matthew’s version of these events, he tells us that his last ditch effort was to invoke the name of the Lord. And Jesus finally speaks, not because this wicked man cornered him in...

“That God calls here is in the present tense, stressing that God does not merely call Christians once and then leave them on their own. Instead He continues to call the followers of Christ to salvation. But it is important to note that the life of faith is not a striving for more. Rather, it is living more fully in what has already been given, knowing that even efforts to live more appropriately a...

“There is no biblical evidence at all for the cessation of prophecy. A fact that has not gone unnoticed by modern biblical scholars. Instead of a biblical basis, many today base their beliefs about modern prophesy on the problematic history of prophesy — its abuse — and arrive at a sort of practical cessationism. Let me remind you, and remind myself this morning, that we are to believe what the Bi...

“Now, let me begin by giving praise to God, that his expressed will, the moral requirements to which he calls his people, is as wonderful as rejoicing, thanksgiving, and intimate communication, trusting in the goodness of God towards us in both plan and action. These are commands which reflect the amazing position of grace in which God has placed us through the finished work of Christ Jesus. It is...

“Finally, Gethsemane proves, it proves — that Christ crucified is the only way to God. Christian, it does not get any clearer than this: When Jesus prayed: ‘Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.’ (Mark 14:36) Jesus asked The One, of whom all things are possible, if there was any other way to unite sinners back to God other t...

“If God himself sets the example for our behavior, it is also God’s mercy towards us that motivates and empowers our reciprocation. In the cross of Christ, God carried out the greatest act of mercy towards the undeserving, and at the same time executed severe and uncompromising justice upon the sins of humanity. Now you might ask: How can I reciprocate the mercy of God? Which is a good question, s...

1 God is our refuge and strength,     a very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth give way,     though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam,     though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,     the holy habitation of the Most High. 5 God is in the mids...

“…Paul lays the responsibility for the whole community on the community itself. Each member, and not the leaders alone, must be aware of his or her responsibility for others and seek to help them. At no stage can the ordinary member lean back and say or think, ‘This is the task of the leaders alone.’ Paul knows nothing of an inert mass, the congregation, on which the ministry operates…In short, Pa...