Russellville United Methodist Temple Sermons

Guest Speaker Demara Goodrich

We rightly connect worship with a sense of the presence of the Holy Spirit, whether he is felt in the mind, the heart, the soul, or otherwise. However, we can mistake our own feelings for his presence, thus learning to crave the possible feeling of God instead of truly desiring him above all things. Instead, we must learn to not be ruled by our feelings and emotions, but rather invite God to rule...

While it should bring us joy to be in the presence of the Lord, our lives often present us with baggage that causes us to wonder where God is or why he would allow our pain. Although we may tend to suppress our negative feelings about God or life because church culture often tells us to be happy no matter what, scripture gives us license to bring all of our feelings before God—positive or negative...

Worship can often become a self-serving effort that loses its meaning when we forget its purpose. Our affection for God should transform us to act justly in a world of injustice, rather than be silent or add to the injustice.

Our churches often gather around what we call a “service,” but who is the object of our service? Answering this question can be confusing, but in doing so, we can determine the greatest object of our worship.

Scripture is one of our greatest guides and has instilled worship through diverse expressions for millennia. What makes it so powerful, and how can we understand how to use it as a flame that lights our way, rather than a flame that burns us down?

Jesus described a world in which worship would not be defined by a person's location or ethnicity. Rather, worship should be a reality born from the genuineness of our hearts for who God really is. When we focus on these deepest aspects of worship, we become empowered to draw others into the same kind of worship.

The journey of our lives is guided by faith. The objects of our greatest faith define who or what we worship. What we worship, we follow, and the path we follow determines our destination. In this introduction to a new teaching series, we'll begin to explore what it means to be guided by a world whose affections are for itself, and to be guided by the God whose affections for us run deeper tha...

The greatest freedom comes in knowing that nothing in this world binds us, not even life itself. We are not slaves to this life, this world or the corruption within it. This frees us to lay down our lives, knowing the life we live in the Spirit is pure, unending, and cannot be taken away.

One of the greatest obstacles to living free in Christ is our pride. While we should never affirm the wrong people do to us or others, we often fall into the trap of unforgiveness. Rather than give into the force of our pride, how can we choose humility and forgiveness in light of the cross of Christ?

One of our greatest privileges in our time and place in the world is the freedom to say basically anything we want. However, scripture teaches us that the misuse of this privilege can cause incredible harm. How can we discern where the line is drawn between speech that harms and speech that blesses, and how can we learn to control our speech for the good of others and the glory of God?

Guest Speaker (For Freedom) | April 19, 2026

Jesus had a destiny to save humankind through his death and resurrection, a destiny he freely accepted. As his followers, we often struggle with the concept of destiny because it causes tension with our desire to live in freedom, a calling scripture clearly gives us. How can we learn to live in this dual reality wherein two seemingly contrary things can be true at once?

Freedom in Christ is ultimately centered on the resurrection of Christ. His gift to us is not only that we experience eternal life after death but that we live fully empowered over sin, death, pain, and judgment as long as we live.

Although many humans enacted the death of Jesus, it was only because he freely laid his life down that human will was able to momentarily triumph. In what ways are we willing to lay down our lives for the sake of others?

The release of Judas led to the death of Jesus. Because Judas was set free to betray Jesus, we have been set free to live to glorify Jesus. In the end, he became enslaved by his own guilt and took his own life, while Jesus freely gave his life.

During the time of Christ, worship of God had become incredibly distorted from what it once was. Whereas they had become slaves to burdensome systems, Jesus came to set them free, but he would do so by challenging their present ways of worship. How can we listen to the reprimand of Christ and choose the kind of worship that sets us free rather than the kind that holds us back from our true purpose...

Part of understanding the gift of our freedom in Christ is our lives before Christ often try to pull us back into them. Whether it is sin that draws us back or simply the comfort of the things we've outgrow, we are not meant to return to anything that enslaves us.

Discerning between freedom in Christ and worldly privilege often has to do with the impact of our actions on others. Today, we will examine how even actions that seem trivial to us can be damaging to others, and how we can consider the needs of others ahead of our own.

When we refuse to embrace reality, we remain slaves to the narratives we tell ourselves. Thankfully, Jesus is the ultimate truth-teller, and when we put our faith in him, we are free to embrace the totality of life.

Christ frees us in a spiritual sense, but the gospel he gave us was not only to free us from sin but from all oppression. In this message, we will explore what Jesus meant when he gave good news to the poor and freedom for the captive. Better, we will learn how we can use our freedom to impact others in meaningful ways.

Freedom is a central part of what it means to be a Christian. However, it is easy for us to confused worldly freedom for spiritual freedom. In this opening to the series, we will examine the ways Jesus has set us free, and in the coming weeks, we’ll discern how this is different from worldly freedom.

Fire from Ashes: Find Power in Death to Rise Again

Embracing an evolution into a people who more clearly resembles Christ begins with his presence with us and in us. While we can change our behaviors ourselves, only Christ can change our hearts to truly become what he meant us to be.

Evolving into a church that is inclusive and affirming of all people, regardless of our differences, means that we invite them into our holiest moments, including the communion table. Going beyond external inclusion and affirmation, inviting others to the table of the Lord means that we draw near to others as Jesus drew near to us. As the Spirit opens our hearts as the heart of God is open, we beg...