Sunday Sermons

Suffering, by most people’s standards, is generally avoided at all costs. The thought of leaning into hardship, especially when it comes unjustly, seems so backwards to most people. Yet, this is how Peter instructs his readers—to be subject to those with authority over us regardless of how you are treated. Such a command is hard to hear, let alone obey! However, Peter takes it a step further: to e...

From the beginning of this letter addressed to the churches spread throughout Asia Minor, Peter has been reminding the faithful of the incomparable hope that they have in Christ. That even though we are exiles in this world, we have an inheritance waiting for us and a new identity as the chosen people of God. But with all of these things being true, it produces a tension and questions over how we...

One word that has taken on new meaning in recent years is the word identity. How does one view him or herself? What are the key components that determine one’s identity? From one’s nationality to one’s profession, there are many ways we might identify ourselves, sometimes even rejecting who God has made us to be. Peter wants his readers to have a crystal clear understanding of who they are: in Chr...

On what is your hope fully set? For some, hope is just an optimistic sentiment, such as hoping for good weather tomorrow. For those who know Christ, hope is an assurance of the grace that will be revealed when Christ returns. It is on this hope that our lives are to be fully set. Peter calls on his readers to live lives that pursue holiness, fearfully conducting lives under the Father’s watchful v...

Joy can be elusive. So often it can escape as we face many hardships and difficulties. How can we keep from letting our joy evaporate, especially in light of what God has accomplished for us through Jesus Christ and his powerful resurrection? As Peter dives into the body of his letter to the exiles, he calls on us to praise God, recognizing the living hope to which we’ve been called that secures a...

So often our mailboxes get clogged and bogged with more junk mail than meaningful messages from those closest to us. In those rare moments, when an actual letter personally addressed to us arrives, it stands out and immediately gets our attention. The recipients of Peter’s letter surely felt the same way. In both the opening and closing verses of the letter, Peter communicates an important message...

Do you know what the longest chapter in the Bible is? Psalm 119. Located at nearly the dead-center of your Bible is the song that sings the greatness of God’s word as a means of grace to us as his people. Just as Psalm 119 is at the center of your Bible, God’s word needs to be at the center of our lives. When our attention is rightly focused on God and his word, our lives will experience God’s gre...

What motivates you to worship God? There are many great reasons we might give—such as, “The Bible tells me that I should,” or “Because of all the blessings in my life.” Both of these are certainly valid reasons for our worship. But what motivates David? What are the reasons he gives for why he will extol (or praise) his “God and King”? Just as those who came before him recognized, it is the charac...

Where do you turn when you are in need of refuge? David makes clear where he turns: “In the LORD I take refuge.” While we all want this to be our answer, when the hard times come, we are easily distracted—whether by friends or those closest to us. Instead of finding safety in God, we opt instead to preserve our lives by our own means. This psalm gives us a clear view of where the LORD sits and how...

“God bless you!” We often say this to someone going through a difficult time or after a sneeze, but what do we mean by it? What does God’s blessing look like? And what happens when his blessing goes out? Here we read that the LORD’s blessing is given to Israel to bring this same blessing to all the nations on the earth. In other words, God blessed Israel with the expressed purpose of displaying hi...

As we conclude Daniel, we must consider where we have traveled. After God’s judgment upon Jerusalem, many were dragged to Babylon and forced into a new culture and lifestyle. Despite everything thrown at Daniel and his Hebrew friends, the LORD remained faithful, strengthening their resolve to honor him no matter who was in power. Though Daniel faced many trials, God communicated through him that s...

“How relevant is the Bible to me?” Reading Daniel 11, one might be tempted to think that the Bible is NOT AT ALL relevant! How can we possibly find something applicable to our lives as we read about the rise and fall of kingdoms the “North” and the”South”? Despite their efforts to thwart God’s redemptive purposes for his people, these kingdoms are long gone. Yet God’s kingdom remains. No matter th...

Sometimes the most frightening thing is that which you cannot see. This is true for the child fearfully lying inside the dark bedroom or the swimmer exploring the open ocean waters. Daniel is once again given a word and vision from the LORD, though this time it comes from an angel, but one described as “a man clothed in linen…” This messenger isn’t specifically identified, yet we are told that he...

“How much longer will the exile last?” This was likely a question Daniel asked himself as he read Jeremiah’s words once again. Given the two visions already shown to him, Daniel needed to make sense of God’s complete control over all things and the hardship still facing God’s people. How do you respond when confronted by God’s word? Daniel turns to the LORD in a prayer of repentance—not just for h...

Think about everything Daniel has faced. From being dragged out of his homeland at a young age to be indoctrinated in Babylonian culture to being thrown to the lions. Through many transitions of kings and empires, Daniel experienced so much hardship, all the while growing into a most trusted leader. Time and again, God proved himself faithful to Daniel, just as he would be faithful to all his exil...

On this holiday weekend, many will take time to celebrate the freedom that we have in our country having been set free from the tyranny of an unjust king. While this is certainly part of our identity as Americans, it runs counter to our identity as followers of Christ. The portrait painted in this psalm introduces us to the LORD’s king that will bring forth salvation to all God’s people and will a...

All too often, people stop reading the book of Daniel after chapter six because the book takes a dramatic turn. Gone are the stories of how the exiles remained faithful despite the great challenges posed to them by the various kings. Instead, we now read about visions, beasts, and an everlasting kingdom. Because Daniel saw fit to include these visions in his book, we can be confident that the visi...

Where does the story of Daniel and the lion’s den rank as one of the Bible’s most popular stories? This chapter of Daniel is recounted in virtually every children’s Bible, yet when we get down to the nitty-gritty, this isn’t a very kid-friendly story. Once again Daniel finds himself in the crosshairs of those who do not worship and honor the most high God of Israel. Does Daniel take the easy way o...

King Nebuchadnezzar made sure everyone in his kingdom heard that the Most High God—the God of Israel—was who was truly in control over all creation and that he could give this rule to whomever he wishes. However, not all who sat upon that throne kept the same convictions. Belshazzar, who reigned sometime after Nebuchadnezzar, turned away from the faith that his ancestor once proclaimed to all peop...

How easily we forget that each and every conversion—the transformation from life to death through faith in Christ—is truly a miracle. While we know this is true, there are those stories of conversion that seem more obviously miraculous. When we hear of someone who seemed so far from God coming to faith, we cannot help to give credit to anyone but God. For the first three chapters of Daniel we have...

The reign of Nebuchadnezzar was marked by great demonstrations of power and superiority. Further, Daniel 3 displays that it was marked by an expectation to worship and serve him as the leader of the world’s superpower. How would the Israelite exiles respond? Would they hold fast in their resolve to not defile themselves? Would they keep the LORD’s command to have no other gods, not bending their k...

What keeps you up at night? The weight of the world? The stresses of life? If so, you’re not alone. This was King Nebuchadnezzar’s situation. After a troubling dream, he needed answers, but couldn’t find them anywhere resulting in a deadly decree for all the wise men—even Daniel and his committed companions. How does their precarious situation get resolved? And does Nebuchadnezzar get the answers...

The opening verses of Daniel paint a grim picture for the people of God. Having their country besieged by the world’s ruling superpower and vessels taken from the temple, many Israelites found themselves living in a foreign land with foreign people worshiping foreign gods in a foreign culture. Their situation certainly seemed bleak. Where is God in all this, and what in the world is he doing? Ulti...

Our vision as a church is To Know Christ and To Make Christ Known. But how does this happen? What is our strategy for helping someone move from not knowing Christ to becoming someone actively engaged in making Christ known to others? This four-week series will focus the four primary stages of the disciple-making process: Engage, Explore, Establish, and Equip. Each week will focus on each step’s im...

Our vision as a church is To Know Christ and To Make Christ Known. But how does this happen? What is our strategy for helping someone move from not knowing Christ to becoming someone actively engaged in making Christ known to others? This four-week series will focus the four primary stages of the disciple-making process: Engage, Explore, Establish, and Equip. Each week will focus on each step’s im...