Sanctus Church Audio Sermons

How often do you spend time in the quiet alone with God? Solitude and silence were at the heart of Jesus' life and ministry. He often withdrew to the "lonely place" before engaging with the crowds and challenges that lay before him. If we treat Jesus as our model, learning how to minimize the noise and increase our attentiveness to God may be the secret to thriving within the chaos of our modern a...

Confession is an integral part of our walk with Jesus. It's through the practice of confession that we move out of our hiddenness and into God's inexhaustible grace and mercy. Simply put, confession leads to true freedom—so how do we do it?

“To pray is to accept that we are, and always will be, wholly dependent on God for everything.” —Timothy Keller How do we talk to God? The disciples asked Jesus this very question; He answered by giving them the Lord’s Prayer. Using this ancient prayer as our framework, join us as we learn how to converse with the Father today.

To become like Jesus, we must spend time with Jesus. We do this through spiritual practices. If spiritual gifts are a guaranteed place of power, spiritual practices are a guaranteed place of transformation. They lead us into the presence of God after we’ve encountered him through Jesus so that he may transform us from the inside out.

"Many of us have at times walked the Emmaus road, wondering where God is...when all along He walks beside us." — Randy Alcorn Jesus is risen. He is alive. He defeated death, rescuing us from the consequences of our sin, forging a way for the lost to be found. The resurrection of Jesus is the point at which the history of the world turns. No longer are we destined to travel alone. Jesus meets us on...

The idea of death haunts most of humanity. And understandably so—if we imagine a future without Jesus. Jesus' death defeated the reign of darkness. The finality of death was replaced with a semi-colon. For believers, we are freed from the suffocating weight of death's empty threats of loneliness and isolation. Jesus has found us. His death has made a way for the lost to come home. As we mourn and...

Crisis exposes us. When our normal routines are disrupted, we realize the limitations of money, sex, and power. At some point, we are forced to confront the jarring truth that we are fragile, flawed, and unable to save ourselves—that we need something, or someone, greater than what the world has to offer. Jesus is that someone. He calls us home, not because of who we are or what we have done, but...

“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Jesus made some shocking claims; statements that only make sense if we accept his identity as God in the flesh. As a teacher, Jesus used parables to reveal truths about God’s character and humanity’s condition. He told stories—like the one about the Good Samaritan—that forced his audience to ponder deeply personal questions: Who am I in the s...

How do we lead a life marked by faith and hope in a world plagued with fear and uncertainty? Now, more than ever, we need to rest and ground our daily rhythms in our Living Hope: Jesus.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.” — John 14:1. In the face of trouble, Jesus comforts his followers by asking us to trust him with all things—including our beliefs about heaven. According to Jesus, understanding the nature and promise of heaven leads to radical hope. When we correct our misconceptions about “going to heaven”, we discover a more powerful...

The doctrine of hell is one of the most difficult aspects of Christian faith for many people—so why should we talk about it? The famed theologian J. I. Packer gives us three reasons: 1. The idea of hell is being debated and debunked frivolously in modern culture; 2. There is no such thing as the “Good News” without the other side; and 3. Jesus talked about it—a lot.

“So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” – Matthew 24:44. Jesus made several things clear through his teachings: judgment is real, we will all give an account, and he is the judge. Your view about how the world will end directly affects how you live on earth today. God’s judgment satisfies our need for justice in the world—but we must be...

God extends mercy to the merciless, leaving Jonah in a heart storm. How can God be perfectly just and perfectly loving at once?  God is a complex character who makes sense only through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Moses wasn’t allowed to see it. Jonah wasn’t able to discern it. Thankfully, we don’t stand where they stood.  The book of Jonah forces us to contemplate our personal destiny. How will we...

"Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” Jonah preaches wrath—but God responds with mercy. Above all else, the book of Jonah is about reconciliation. It demonstrates the fact that God’s wrath and mercy are held in tension—and that the road to revival, while available to all, requires genuine repentance. If there are innumerable steps between us and God, he will take all but one. The choic...

God keeps his promises. Despite Jonah’s rebellion, God rescues his prodigal prophet from the jaws of death. Jonah cries to the Lord for help, and God answers him.  Nothing can separate us from God’s love and mercy; he is not limited by our shortcomings. In fact, we see yet again that God uses imperfect people to achieve his perfect plans.

Love your enemies. Jonah receives a mission from God that leaves him struggling with a question our world continues to wrestle with today: how God can be both merciful and just? Obedience will require sacrifice. For Jonah, the cost seems too high. He refuses and runs—but God’s mercy prevails.

Beliefs are powerful. They influence our behaviour, set our expectations, and define what we think is possible.  So what do we believe about marriage? Or more importantly, what does God have to say about the matter? The Scriptures paint a picture of marriage infused with meaning and power. God invites us to be filled with the Spirit so that our marriages lead us and the world into a deeper knowled...

The Founders of The Marriage Course join Pastor Jon for a conversation about their mission to save marriages. The Marriage Course is a series of seven sessions, designed to help couples invest in their relationship and build a strong marriage. Visit www.themarriagecourses.ca for more information.

Marriage matters. Since the very beginning, God has intended for it to serve as the blueprint for male-female relationships. It holds a special place in the human story—so why does it seem to be so difficult and confusing? Many voices have weighed in on the topic—some good, others bad. The Scriptures have a way of cutting through the noise. Using the story of Hosea as a touchstone, we focus in on...

Twice a year at Sanctus Church, we stop to recap where we've been and where we're going. It's a chance for us to celebrate what God has done among us, building faith to move forward.

Welcome to the eleventh and final week in our series on the book of Galatians. To conclude this incredible journey, we turn our attention to Paul's highly practical conclusion. Paul demonstrates his wisdom by translating knowledge into action; he preemptively answers the most likely question in the minds of his audience at this point: Now what? Paul crafts a series of verses to explain not only wh...

Welcome to Week Ten in our series on Galatians. There is a war inside each of us between the Spirit and our sinful nature. The Spirit wants us to be more like Christ and our flesh wants us back into slavery. According to Paul, to win this battle we must choose, every day, to be led by the Spirit. The way of the flesh (world) is a trap: living your own way looks like freedom, but it’s a lie. It’s a...

Welcome to Week Nine in our series out of the book of Galatians. Paul opens Chapter 5 by driving home the central thesis of his letter to the Galatians: Freedom is at the core of the Gospel. We tend to insert ourselves into the grace equation. Our western culture emphasizes personal performance and achievement, so it's natural for us to let this mode of thinking distort the nature of the Gospel. P...

Welcome to Week Eight in our series out of the book of Galatians. Are we truly trusting in God’s promise or are we more committed to our performance? In these verses, Paul uses the story of Issac and Ishmael to further illustrate his point. Both Isaac and Ishmael are sons of Abraham, but with two completely different destinies. One is a slave and one is free, one is born out of normal, natural eve...

Welcome to Week Seven in our series out of the book of Galatians. As we enter into Chapter 4 the story gets more personal, deeper and closer to the heart. You don’t need to prove yourself to God, He loves you. The Holy Spirit cries out on our behalf “Abba, Father”, leading us time and again to that one place, one declaration, one grounding and life changing point. Thank you God!