Sunday Sermons

The coronation of a newly crowned king or queen puts on full display the majesty, wealth, and prestige of the new monarch. In many ways, the ceremony makes a powerful statement about what kind of ruler he or she will be. In John 12, Jesus arrives at Jerusalem for the Passover feast. Upon his arrival, the crowds greeted him seemingly ready to make him their king. Yet Jesus reveals in this moment ju...

All too often our decisions are made by the answer to this question: What will it cost? Rather than deciding in light of what we truly need or what is best for us, we take the cost into account more than anything else—not only the monetary cost but the relational and emotional cost as well. Oftentimes, even a gift cannot be received without incurring a great cost to us. Jesus, without question, is...

Few things are as painful as the death of a loved one. In John 11, we read about Jesus’ loss of his beloved friend, Lazarus. Though John has repeatedly declared that in Jesus “was life and the life was the light of men” (1:4), this was only understood in a spiritual sense. Yet, through this event, we are clearly shown that Jesus clearly holds life and death in his hands. The question we have to an...

Where does real security come from? Can we ever find it in this world given the uncertainty that we all face? Despite the various steps we take to feel secure, the reality is that these steps only reveal the depths of our insecurities. Those engaging with Jesus in John 10 are pressing him to find out if he truly is who he claims to be. While they’re primarily asking for their own benefit, Jesus re...

As we continue reading of Jesus’ interactions with the Jewish leaders, it is clear that their leadership did not match up with God’s intent for those shepherding his people. In the previous chapter, we saw them throw out the blind man who testified of Jesus’ miracle and rejected the very possibility that his testimony was true and… that Jesus is who he says he is. What kind of shepherd does the Fa...

Here we come to one of the most well-known stories about Jesus: his simple healing of a blind man followed by that simple profession of faith: I once was blind, but now I see. But if we’re not careful, we might miss the big idea. Jesus is not simply performing a simple miracle but is redefining the true nature of what it means to see. And the question we are left with to answer for ourselves is th...

For some—if not many—the thought of asking for help seems like a declaration of defeat. Further, there is a sense in which we now feel indebted to the one who gave us help. We would much rather be self-reliant and independent rather than beholden to another. Yet, when confronted with the truth—namely the truth of Jesus’ word—we are confronted with our genuine need for him. Though we think we are m...

“I am the light of the world,” Jesus proclaims in John 8:12. What significance does this have? If he is the true light, what is the right response from us? When we ponder his statement through God's bringing light into the world at creation to the promise of a coming Messiah to bring his people out of darkness, one would think they wanted the true light to come. And yet, once he arrived, many were...

Where do we turn when we’re seeking satisfaction? For many people, satisfaction seems impossible to find let alone attain for the long haul. Most would say that true satisfaction is elusive—difficult to find or achieve. However, John’s Gospel teaches something very different; not only is satisfaction not elusive… it is exclusive. And it exclusively comes from the Word that John has been directing...

We are returning the Gospel of John this week after having worked through the first six chapters in the spring. In the first section of our study, John the Evangelist forced his readers to wrestle with the question, “Who is this Jesus?” As we work through chapters 7-12, we will continue wrestling through this question, yet will also be faced to answer the question, “Why is it so hard to believe?”...

We see God’s heart for multiplication from creation to the Great Commision. We also want to see God’s heart for multiplication at every level of the life of our church, from multiplying growing disciples, to multiplying healthy leaders, and multiplying local churches. (Gen 1:28; Matt 28:18-20; Acts 11-21; 2 Tim 2:2)

We were created for community. Because God has reconciled us to one another, we want to put a priority on personal relationships, from membership, where we commit to one another as family, brothers and sisters in Christ, to group settings, where we have fellowship with one another, to one-to-one, where we can really know each other. Even as we reach out to the community around us, personal relatio...

Paul’s short letter to the Philippians addresses a church that shared in Paul’s ministry through a committed partnership in the gospel. Their commitment, though tangibly demonstrated through their support of Paul, was ultimately to Christ. They knew the joy that Christ brought. They knew the hope that he brought. They knew that regardless of their circumstances, their lives were wholly committed t...

Message from Pastor Mike Matheson on August 16, 2020

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The Psalms play a unique role within Scripture. Each psalm reflects the heart and emotions of its author as a prayer to the LORD. And the LORD has graciously given us these words by his inspiration to know how we can bare our own hearts to him. The prayers of those who have gone before us now exist within our Bibles to teach us how to pray. This summer we will explore several psalms in an effort t...

The story of the Good Samaritan is one of Jesus’ most widely known parables. While it is mainly a story about showing compassion, Jesus includes elements that uncomfortably challenged his original audience and exhorts us in similar ways. If we are to be a compassion-hearted local congregation, it would serve us well to pay close attention to the message that our Lord is teaching here… and go and l...