Salem First Friends Church

In a scene near the end of chapter 13 in the gospel of Luke, Jesus calls Herod a "fox" who wants to kill... and then refers to himself as a "hen" who wants to gather God's people. What can we learn from these contrasting labels? 

What does Jesus mean when he talks about entering the "narrow door" while telling a parable in response to a question regarding how many people will be "saved?"

We're back in our Open Invitation series, a verse-by-verse, scene-by-scene tour through the gospel of Luke. This scene in Luke's gospel reveals Jesus teaching, and then offering an unexpected healing, in the midst of Sabbath worship.

We're back in our Open Invitation series, a verse-by-verse, scene-by-scene tour through the gospel of Luke. In this message, we see Jesus using a parable to talk about fruitfulness in our lives. 

We're back in our Open Invitation series, a verse-by-verse, scene-by-scene tour through the gospel of Luke. We pick up at the beginning of chapter 13 with Jesus calling into question some assumptions about "worse sinners" among us. 

As we look toward Holy Week, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday, we are taking a couple Sundays to focus on the "foolishness" of the Cross of Jesus. What does Paul mean by this in 1 Corinthians 1? How does the Cross of Jesus simultaneously lift some people up while lowering others down in humility? Why, or how, should be "boast" in the Cross?

As we look toward Holy Week, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday, we are taking a couple Sundays to focus on the "foolishness" of the Cross of Jesus. What does Paul mean by this in 1 Corinthians 1? Is the wisdom of the world, or the "foolish" wisdom of the Cross winning in our lives?

Join us as we approach another sermon in the All God's Creatures series. Let's unpack the scene where Peter is encouraged by Jesus to push out into deeper waters, and then experiences overwhelming abundance as a result. 

We're wrapping up our series on the Ten Commandments! We hope the Getting a Fresh Start series has been valuable and meaningful for you! In this "bonus episode" we're looking at the rest of the verses in Exodus 20 that immediately follow the commandments. One of the features of this section is our choice to live with a "safe" distance from God, or to walk deeper into the mystery of knowing Him. 

In this episode, we explore the final commandment of the ten: coveting. What does it mean to covet something or someone? How do we handle the desires we've been designed with? 

Our series on the Ten Commandments, Getting a Fresh Start, moves on!

Our series on the Ten Commandments, Getting a Fresh Start, moves on!

Our series on the Ten Commandments, Getting a Fresh Start, moves on!

Our series on the Ten Commandments, Getting a Fresh Start, moves on!

We now move along in our Getting a Fresh Start series on the Ten Commandments and arrive at the command involving parents. What does it look like to honor your mother and father? 

Up next in our Getting a Fresh Start series on the Ten Commandments, we investigate what might be the most overlooked and ignored commandment: the command to observe a Sabbath rest. 

Next in the Getting a Fresh Start series, we focus on the command about taking the name of the Lord "in vain." What does that mean? How do we avoid doing so? 

Next in the Getting a Fresh Start series, we move on to the command about not making images or idols. We'll also cover what it means that God is "jealous" and what generational cursing/blessing looks like. 

Our new sermon series, Getting a Fresh Start, continues! This series will take a fresh look at a well-known part of the Bible: the Ten Commandments. This episode hits the first of the commands in Exodus 20: "Have no other gods before me." Are there competing gods within our midst?

We're kicking off a new sermon series with the New Year! We'll be spending the next several weeks taking a fresh look at a well-known part of the Bible: the Ten Commandments. This episode is sort of an introduction to get us thinking about what we already know—or think we know—about this famous passage. 

How highly do we value our comfort? Has comfort become an idol? Are we willing to get uncomfortable in order to grow in our faith? 

Our Advent series, Prepare the Way for the Lord, finishes up with this final episode. Like John the Baptist, we are all witnesses to the true Light that has come into the world.

Our Advent series, Prepare the Way for the Lord, continues with this third episode. We're following the themes found in a book by the same name from author Adam Hamilton. Now, we turn our eyes to the heart of John's message: repentance. What does it mean to "repent?" What does repentance look like? 

Our Advent series, Prepare the Way for the Lord, continues with this episode. We're following the themes found in a book by the same name from author Adam Hamilton. This second episode opens our eyes to the "mysterious ways" through which God chose to work in the birth story of John the Baptist... and how God often still chooses those kinds of ways in our lives today. 

It's time for Advent! Our Advent series this year is called Prepare the Way for the Lord and it will follow the themes found in a book by the same name from author Adam Hamilton. This first episode looks at the prayers of Zechariah and Elizabeth—the parents of John the Baptist.