TFRC Sermons

Matthew 6:1-4, 16-18 One of the greatest threats to the faith is pretense - pretending to be something you’re not (like a wolf in sheep’s clothing). Jesus warns against doing acts of righteousness to be seen by others. By doing these things in secret, you know you are doing them for the right reasons. It also helps protect against self-righteousness.

Matthew 5:38-48 In Old Testament Israel, you could only retaliate to the extent that someone wronged you; hence the phrase “eye for an eye”. The point was to keep the conflict from escalating. Jesus takes the idea a step further by de-escalating conflict with His teachings on non-retaliation. He takes this concept to another level when He says “love your enemies”. What would it look like to be a p...

Matthew 5:17-20 Jesus proclaims that he has not come to get rid of the law, but instead fulfill it. The law had been corrupted and many had gone away from the heart of the commandments. Jesus was saying that to live the law correctly, we need to get back to the heart behind it and avoid finding loopholes to living out our faith. He would illustrate this by highlighting murder, adultery, divorce, a...

Matthew 5:13-16 How we live is the light we shine. As the old saying goes, “Preach the Gospel at all times, when necessary use words”. Even the most mundane activities in life can be opportunities to be salt and light.

Matthew 5:1-12 Believing in Jesus means we will do what He says. If we are going to heed the teachings of Jesus, we need to see the world as Jesus sees it. In the Beatitudes, Jesus sets the parameters for who is “blessed” - how does this match up with who we see as “blessed”.

Acts 20:22-24 In his farewell address to Ephesus as he prepares to leave for Rome, Paul displays passion to do whatever God has before him. He approaches the future with a perspective of humility. He demonstrates a willingness to persevere through difficulty. And he knows, understands, and is committed to living out God’s purpose for him. As we live out our own calling, we would do well to personi...

John 15:9-17 Jesus invites us to remain in his love, and in doing so, become a part of His legacy of love. In this passage He invites us to do so by commanding us to love each other the way He loves us. We do this by laying down our lives for one another. In His love for us, Jesus chose us to bear the fruit of His love to continue his legacy.

1 Corinthians 12:20-27 We all make up the body and Christ and each of us has a part. Celebrating how each new person who is being added to our community is a blessing to us; reminding ourselves that we need others and that others need us. God has made us a part of this community of faith for a reason.

Psalm 16:1-11 In the Lord we can find safety and security. He is our refuge, portion, and source of security. As a response we should praise him, keep our eyes on him, and find him being the source of our joy. How can we live in a way that helps us provide security to others?

Acts 17:22-29 God did not create us and then leave (Deism) – God is near us and active in the world. The Greeks had many gods who were each in charge of different parts of life, but our God is interested and active in every part of our lives (even something as mundane as finding a parking spot).

Luke 10:2 Missions Director Kristy Pickett welcomes representatives from some of TFRC's mission partners to discuss the harvest God has placed before us locally, to the ends of the earth, and everywhere in between.

Ephesians 2:1-10 The claim of the resurrection is incredulous to many. It’s easy to say “That’s not possible." But what if it is possible? What if we have been set apart? What if we have been delivered? What if we have been redeemed? What if we have been restored? What if it is possible that the resurrection delivers us from death? What if it is possible that God has prepared good works just for u...

Luke 19:32-44 God made the people of Israel into a nation - yet they lost their identity of what that meant. So when Jesus came as king, they did not recognize him as the kind of king He came to be. Jesus came to restore what their identity was originally meant to be.

Matthew 9:9-13 Jesus calling Matthew to leave his life of being a tax collector, to be one his disciples, is a story of redemption. Tax collectors were despised by society for collaborating with the Roman government and having a reputation of greed, extortion, and corruption. Through Jesus’s invitation to follow him, Matthew's dignity and purpose/calling were redeemed. When Jesus was asked why he...

Luke 8:26-39 God tells the Israelites that He will set them free from the bondage of slavery to the Egyptians. Later, Jesus sets the demon possessed man free from his bondage. What is the bondage that we need Jesus to set us free from?

Matthew 4:18-22 When God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, He set them apart as His people - redirecting their purpose. When Jesus called Peter, Andrew, James and John, He was setting them apart to be His disciples. He was giving them a new purpose; a more meaningful life. God continues to bring us out of our mundane lives to sanctify us for His purposes.

Exodus 6:6-7 The Passover tradition includes drinking from four cups - representing each of the four promises the Lord made to His people in Exodus 6:6-7. These promises would eventually be mirrored and fulfilled through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

Matthew 4:1-11 Lent is the time we prepare our hearts for the resurrection of Jesus. We do so by reflecting on the life of Jesus, repenting from our sins, and self-discipline (usually through some kind of fasting). Jesus, Moses and Elijah all spent 40 days in some kind of wilderness fasting in preparation for the next step in their ministry.

Ruth 4:11-22 Ruth and Boaz take part in a story greater than our own. After the elders bless them, Ruth and Boaz have a son named Obed - the grandfather of David, Israel’s greatest king. The circumstances that led to their marriage were not by chance, but by God’s providential hand. Likewise, our relationships are not by chance. God has brought the people in our lives to us for a reason.

Ruth 3:1-13 In Chapter 3 of Ruth, Naomi comes up with a plan to make sure Ruth is taken care of through marriage with Boaz, Boaz fulfills his obligation as redeemer to Ruth, and ultimately God Looks out for both Ruth and Naomi. Similarly, we are all called to look after and care for our friends and family. Sometimes we have to be willing to accept and embrace other’s efforts to help us, and other...

Ruth 2:8-18 Having heard about Ruth's kindness to her mother-in-law, Boaz in turn shows incredible kindness to Ruth. He encourages his workers to be extra kind to her as well. Kindness is a fruit of the Spirit that is relatively easy to practice, as well as one the world most desperately needs. God’s kindness to us should spur us to be kind to both our friends and enemies.

Ruth 1:8-18 After significant tragedies hit their family, Ruth and Orpah are determined to stay with their mother in law Naomi. Naomi wants what is best for them, which is to go back to their homes in hopes of finding another husband. Orpah does, but Ruth doubles down on staying with Naomi. Ruth is willing to sacrifice her best future to remain loyal to Naomi. How loyal are we in our relationships...

1 Peter 2:4-10 TFRC's 1st Peter standing stone reminds us that Jesus is the living stone upon which the church is built, and the cornerstone of our lives and faith community. As a faith community we are part of God’s chosen people called to declare our praise and devotion to him, partnering with him to build his kingdom.

John 7:37-38, Jeremiah 2:13 In Jeremiah’s day, the people had to rely on God to provide rain water for them to survive. It was much less stressful for them to build cisterns to store water for whenever they needed it. The problem water in a cistern, though, is that it eventually goes bad. When we try to control our lives in our own power, they eventually go bad too. The challenge is to live life G...

Exodus 16:14-27 If Egypt was Pharaoh's land and Israel was the promise land, then the desert could be considered God’s land. The desert is the place you need to wholly depend upon God. It is the place where God gives you just enough to keep going.