Sunday Sermons | Evergreen Church

For most Americans, life is busy. But life is different for the children of God. While our lives look similar to our secular counterparts, God has invited us to experience supernatural moments as He empowers us to share the good news of the gospel. But if we are not careful, we will miss it and find ourselves being lovingly corrected by our Master.

Sixty years passed from the stirring preaching of Haggai and Zechariah until the arrival of the second wave of returnees. The Temple is now built, but the people desperately need encouragement. Enter Ezra—a scribe descended from Aaron, he arrives to nurture the community in the ways and Word of God. Likewise, we must see the spiritual realities behind our circumstances.

After sixteen depressing years with no expectation that life would ever get better, God offers Judah a fresh start. The first post-exilic prophet, Haggai, calls the people to stop and consider their lives so that the future is not limited by the realities of the past. If life has stopped paying dividends for you, consider investing your life in the work of God.

The intention of the Jews to rebuild their Temple and the city of Jerusalem quickly became known and it inspired heated animosity from the surrounding peoples. Opposition to God’s people succeeded for a time, but history ultimately unfolds according to divine plan. It is faith in the certainty of God’s purpose that sustains His people in hostile times.

Ezra tells the story of the work, led by Zerubbabel, to rebuild the house of God. The project would take decades to complete, marked by both highs and lows. Only careful attention to the Word of God and the intentional practice of praise would bring them through. This survival strategy for God’s people remains unchanged even today. 

It is easy today—far too easy—to settle into a comfortable, routine Christianity, where our souls no longer thirst for God “in a dry and weary land where there is no water” (Ps. 63:1). Hearts grow dull and our vision of God is gradually blurred. What we need (and what our culture needs) is personal, church, and national spiritual renewal. Where to begin?

It is easy to waste life on small plans—to blunder through our days without direction, busy yet getting nowhere. A person without purpose makes no progress in life, even when circumstances seem favorable. They simply put in time. Jesus-followers are called to a noble life, a godly life, a life that highlights the glory of Christ.

Paul’s discussion of the final doom of the man of lawlessness leads naturally to consideration of the destiny of Christian believers (very different from that crowd of nonsensical thinkers discussed earlier). His pastoral affection for his people comes through loud and clear as he speaks intimately to this family of faith.

God never gives specific dates for Jesus’ return; but Paul, inspired by the Spirit, is allowed to offer us a panoramic glimpse of God’s victory and evil’s doom. The value of the doctrine of the Second Coming is in the guarantee that history is going somewhere, thus inspiring courage, perseverance, and hope. Believers daily devote themselves to righteousness in anticipation of that day when His glo...

Salvation brings us a hope for the future as we look forward to an eternity with Christ. What should we do until then? The hope that salvation brings us should result in a desire for daily transformation. The desire for holy living does not come from a desire to be perfect by the world's standards, but rather, a desire to be made righteous as the Holy Spirit transforms our lives to be more lik...

Pastor AJ Gonzalez brings us a word on the unfading hope upon which followers of Jesus can confidently rely. Do you know this hope? Do you know Jesus? We encourage you to consider your situation as you listen.

In his first letter to this church, Paul expressed unrestrained enthusiasm for church life in Thessalonica. A second letter follows quickly after the first one because a problem surfaces regarding daily work ethic of some in light of the coming return of Jesus. Paul begins this new letter with a reminder of his pride in them and his specific prayers offered for them regularly.

Evergreen, like every church, is a complex community involving a great variety of personalities. There are leaders and followers, those weak in faith and those strong, optimists and pessimists, the cynical and the gullible. Yet, encouraged by our common hope in the return of Jesus, Evergreen believers breathe an atmosphere of love and service together.

The rapture stirs debate among theologians about sequences and events, but Christ’s return is as certain as God Himself. Jesus will come. He will rule. He will be glorified. Knowing this should produce two things in the believer: a life lived in obedience to God and courage in the world. C.S. Lewis once remarked, “It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they hav...

Too often today, Christian faith is held as a purely intellectual pursuit.  We believe certain things and remain content to give mental assent to the idea of being a disciple without ever practicing the tangible life of a Jesus-follower.   Paul will not allow that as a viable option.  The life of Christ in us is practical, visible, and influential by action and not just word.

At a time of national emergency a wicked king had an encounter with God. The story of Ahaz, the 11th king of Judah is a cautionary tale for the people of God who are tempted to follow the conventions of the world. When his adversaries came knocking at the door, his pagan faith was tested by God. In the process, God revealed the condition of his heart, showed him who he was, and who was really at f...

In the next two chapters, Paul appeals to two related motivations for believers to live up to the high ethical standards of God’s Kingdom. The first motivation is internal—to please God. The second is external—to live in a way that earns the respect of those outside the gospel. These compelling motives strengthen our determination in the pursuit of Christlikeness.

How do you build a great church? How do you recognize one? What traits does it display?  Paul knew the answers to these questions and he often pointed to the church at Thessalonica as an example of a great church.  Not defined by size or programs, a great church demonstrates faith in ways which bring God pleasure.

Unfortunately, today’s debate over gender assignments within church life often leaves the pages of Scripture and engages the battle on the field of contemporary confusions like radical feminism and toxic masculinity. When scriptural exegesis provides clarity, however, only the commitment to biblical authority remains in question. What does God’s Word say?

Often overlooked as a mere extra character in the Christmas story, Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus, provides an impressive example of obedience for all fathers in every generation. A father’s faithful obedience is costly, but it impacts the entire world.

The most overwhelming enemy of Israel since Pharaoh has taken the field: a giant named Goliath. But the God of Israel never misses a chance to deliver his people and glorify His name. Will you choose to follow God in the light of His deliverance or be overwhelmed by the darkness?

As Paul attempts to strike a death blow to the rivalries and sectarian spirit in the Corinthian church, he uses the human body to illustrate God’s ideal for each local Body of Christ…each part fulfilling an assigned role as designed, each member operating in love and giftedness toward the rest.

The glory of Israel had departed, but God still had plans for Samuel and for His people. This episode from Old Testament history has clear application to the churches of America today: God reveals Himself to desperate people.

In the continual advance of His Kingdom, God never leaves a generation without a witness. He replaces heroes with new heroes drawn from the ranks of the ordinary. He expects people with godly ambition and single-mindedness to raise up their replacements. The awareness of the legacy we have received compels us to prepare the way for those who come after us. 

Great men generally come from great parents, especially great mothers. Before God blesses a nation, He often blesses a family. Our role as parents relates vitally to the survival of our nation and the impact of our church.