Sermons From My Heart

You have probably heard the phrase “What’s in a name?” from time to time. Names mean different things to different people. In John 1:29-42, we hear some of the names given to Jesus and given by Jesus. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sermons-from-my-heart--2423678/support .

During the time when Jesus lived on the earth, leprosy was wide-spread. It was a dreaded disease. The word “leper” can refer to a person suffering from any of several different skin diseases. When someone had leprosy, they were covered with sores all over their bodies. Unlike chicken pox, these sores did not go away. When someone had leprosy, their situation was hopeless because there was no cure....

Today we read about Jesus’ baptism, which was the start of his ministry on earth. Since baptism represents the washing away of sins, and Jesus was sinless, why did he need to be baptized? It was because his baptism fulfilled God’s saving activity as foretold in the Old Testament and culminating in his death on the cross. In other words, Jesus came to bring salvation to everyone. Jesus was willing...

The triad of faith, hope and love is found throughout the writings of the early church. The hope that grounds the faith and love of the redeemed carries a certain expectation; it is rooted in the promises of the faithful God, thus the truth of the gospel changes lives and offers the certainty of heaven. The heart of the Gospel is the transcendent grace of God. Become a supporter of this podcast: h...

The Feast of the Epiphany is the day when we remember the visit of the three wise men, but we also remember that Jesus came into the world for everyone-Jews and Gentiles, rich and poor, upper class people and lower-class people, humble shepherds and wise men and so on. It is also a happy time or a sad time depending on how you look at it. It marks the end of the 12 Days of Christmas and the end of...

Well, Christmas is almost over for another year. For most of us the holidays are over, and our lives get back to normal. Children will be going back to school, people will be going back to work, family and friends will be going home (if they haven’t gone home already), and we will be settling back into our normal routines. There is one more part of Christmas to come, and that’s why I said that Chr...

Good morning boys and girls! Did you have a good Christmas? Did you get lots of gifts? Did any of you go on a trip over Christmas? How did you get there? Did you have to get directions? How did you get them? Did you ask someone? Did you go online and get directions? Did your parents use a GPS system or a map? A long time ago there were some people who went on a journey. Can anyone guess who they w...

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God”. This is John’s version of the nativity story. It doesn’t begin with shepherds and angels and a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger. John’s nativity story takes us back to the beginning of creation and time, and it echoes the creation story in Genesis. In John’s Gospel, the very God who created the heavens and the earth and who...

The passage we heard from Ephesians expresses a new understanding that Paul has talked about in his other letters but never fully developed. The abolishment of the barrier between Jews and Gentiles is the key to understanding God’s plan for the universe. His plan was and is to unify the entire universe in Christ Jesus. That is God’s gift to us, and we should be grateful for what He has done for us...

How do we know that Jesus is the only way to God? That’s a question many people are asking these days. They say that Jesus was a good man, a religious figure or a revolutionary, but the only way to God? It’s not surprising that people have this idea, especially when you consider our modern society. There is a turning away from God, and that is represented by a decline in church attendance. We also...

Once the hoopla and confusion of Christmas fades and the wonder of Christ’s birth fades, Christians consider the harder questions that arise from the Incarnation-questions such as “Why did God have to come to us in this way?” and “Was it necessary for Christ to suffer during His life and especially in His death?” The short answer is that Jesus came not only to show God’s love and presence with us,...

God’s plan of salvation was opposed from the start. With the birth of Jesus, salvation emerges within us and within our problem-filled society. Salvation wrestles with our enemies. Jesus becomes Emmanuel-God with us-so he can lift us, especially when we battle the forces of evil. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sermons-from-my-heart--2423678/support .

A birth is a great adventure. it doesn’t matter if it’s the Messiah’s birth, our birth, or the birth of one of our children. Birth is a great mystery, and God is the giver of that life. At Christmas time, we celebrate the mystery of the greatest birth of all-the birth of Jesus. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sermons-from-my-heart--2423678/support .

Today we begin the transition from Advent to Christmas. We are led to the stable. Our hopes, dreams and longing for a Saviour are the same hopes, dreams and longings people had on that first Christmas 2,000 years ago. The birth of the Messiah pointed to the promise of the Kingdom. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sermons-from-my-heart--2423678/support .

Are you starting to get excited for Christmas? Are you getting excited over all of the Christmas decorations? At this time of year, we see lots of colourful ribbons, candles, stars, wreaths such as our Advent wreath, Christmas trees, Christmas lights and angels. When you see angel decorations, what is the first thing you think of? Most of the time the first thing we think of is the angels announci...

Have you ever been in a situation where people did not live up to the hopes and expectations you had for them? If so, you can probably understand why John the Baptist was confused in the reading we heard from Matthew 11:2-11. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sermons-from-my-heart--2423678/support .

Hello boys and girls! Are you starting to get excited for the coming of Christmas? Are you starting to get ready for the holidays? How about your moms and dads? Are they starting to get things ready for Christmas? There’s always a lot of things to do to get ready for Christmas. There’s housecleaning, presents to buy, gifts to wrap, concerts and parties to go to, preparing for company. Are you help...

The prophet Isaiah reminds us of the good old days when David ruled a united Israel, when life was simple in the Garden of Eden, and when God’s people fled Egypt to find a permanent home. Isaiah tells us that no matter how good the good times were even better times will happen when Christ returns. In this season of Advent, we remember both Christ’s birth in the stable in Bethlehem over 2,000 years...

The central theme of the reading from Matthew 24:36-44 is promise. Jesus promises that when he returns he will gather his people. We don’t need to be afraid of the Great Tribulation or the Battle of Armageddon. Jesus will be with us. He will protect us. No one knows when He will return to set up His kingdom. Periodically someone will claim to have discovered a secret that indicates the date of Chr...

The end is here! We’ve reached the end of another church year. This coming Sunday is Reign of Christ Sunday, when we celebrate the mystery of Christ’s kingly power. Reign of Christ Sunday is a fairly new religious observance. It was started by Pope Pius XI in 1925. According to the papal encyclical that introduced the Reign of Christ Sunday, Christ the King rules over the church and the whole worl...

When the disciples saw Herod’s temple, they saw its external beauty, but they failed to see what really behind it-spiritual bankruptcy, hypocrisy, oppression, rejection of Christ and the Gospel, and Christ’s impending death at the hands of the religious authorities. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sermons-from-my-heart--2423678/support .

Every house has a firm foundation. Without it, the house would quickly fall down. Similarly, our faith has a firm foundation-Jesus Christ. That foundation can never be shaken. The word “Shaken” is sometimes used to describe what happens to a home’s foundations in an earthquake. It can also describe what happens to weak faith when trouble comes. Believers in Thessalonica were alarmed because they m...

Good morning boys and girls! How many of you like riddles? I liked them when I was your age, and I still like them because they make you think. Jesus also liked riddles. He liked it when people told him riddles, and he also used riddles called parables. He used these riddles to teach the people about God. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sermons-from-my-heart--2...

It’s not hard to tell that the church year is coming to an end. In fact, in a little more than three weeks, the season of Advent will start. The issues that have been placed before us in the last couple of weeks are about what comes next. Today, we focus on the resurrection. The emphasis of Luke 20:27-38 is not about how and when our age will end. It is about what our futures will be after this ag...

Have you ever wondered about what life will be like in heaven after we die? If so, you’ll be interested in what Jesus has to say about the subject in the passage from Luke 20:27-38. The Sadducees’ question about the resurrection was a ridiculous one because the Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection. Their question was designed to draw Jesus into an argument based on Old Testament law. Deut...