The River Church Sermons

Acts 9: Better Call Saul! Yes, that's my title; yes, I'm stoked to have an excuse to use it in a sermon; and yes, it sort-of fits. This entire series has been about God-initiated, God-sustained, and God-accomplished massive ministry adventures. We've been talking a bunch about verbs: "jumping," "pushing," "going-standing-telling." This past couple months you've heard buckets of talk about great ex...

There are feelers and there are thinkers. Which are you? I am definitely a thinker. I am in no way suggesting that one is right and the other is wrong. It's just the way in which we approach life. In Acts chapter 8, Phillip meets Simon the magician. He's a feeler. He's attracted by the signs and wonders. He wants the power of God. Phillip also meets the Ethiopian Eunuch. This man is a thinker. Phi...

When's the last time you heard a pastor say, "Get Into Trouble" at church? It's my first point this weekend. What can I say? I'm a renegade at heart. Can't help it. I'm not a deserter. I don't betray. But, I do like this portion of the definition: a person who behaves in a rebelliously unconventional manner. I've tried to hide it my whole life because I felt judged. Here's the deal. I don't like f...

One tiny act of kindness could have a far reaching impact somewhere else in the world. That's what I want to talk about this weekend. In Acts 6, the first seven verses, our early church has a problem. Growing churches usually do. Their needs are greater than their administration. Widows of some of the Jewish converts were being overlooked. Now you might say, in the big scheme of things, is that re...

The early followers of Jesus, revealed in the book of Acts, were a people on the move. Why? Because God is a God of forward momentum. He is always moving his people into the new … new relationships, new challenges, new opportunities, and new ways of stepping into new life. God is for life – in all its beautiful fullness. The River wants to be caught up in this momentum, this swiftwater journey wit...

Recording of Acts 15:17-42

If something is worth doing, if it is important to you, there will be obstacles. Nothing worth doing comes without a price. Getting up just a bit earlier to sit with God, read his word comes with a price. Taking a week night or an early morning to be with like minded Christ followers comes with a price. Sharing your faith with a neighbor comes with a price. I will never forget hearing these words...

Reading of Acts Chapter 3, 4, & 5 in preparation of Todd's sermon on Sunday.

Reading of Acts Chapter 3, 4, & 5 in preparation of Todd's sermon on Sunday.

Reading of Acts Chapter 3, 4, & 5 in preparation of Todd's sermon on Sunday.

Greetings honored reader of the River blurb! In our scriptural excursion this Sunday, we will embark on a guided tour through the picturesque narrative landscape of Acts, before refreshing in the relational day spa that is Acts 2 and 4. Along the way we will behold an often-overlooked and beautifully non-glamorous divine innovation: the miracle of the local church. Together we will seek to learn f...

Unstoppable Forward Momentum only happens when the object begins to move forward. I'm no physics expert but it doesn't take Einstein to tell us that nothing's moving forward until it gets pushed. I often don't want that push. Nope. Not going forward. Don't want it. I like where I am. I've got a good book in my hand or the newest game on my phone. Maybe a podcast queued up. Or just a nap. My favori...

Introduction to Acts 2 and a reading of the chapter in preparation for Sunday's sermon.

Introduction to Acts 2 and a reading of the chapter in preparation for Sunday's sermon.

On August 6, in the year 1651, Francois de Salignac de La Mothe-Fenelon was born in a small village in France. He would have been unknown to us if it were not his bold, tenacious, and magnetic faith in Christ which earned him the highest honor in the Louis the XIV's court. He lived out his faith in France with such dignity and eloquence that one would write, "His eloquence was winning rather than...

The Church over the ages has been through more remodels than most of your homes. We’ve experienced the high church. We've seen the new fad worship style church. We dropped Sunday school hour for adults. We’ve updated from donuts and coffee to croissants and lattes. We’ve added smoke, banners, flag wavers. We even tried painting in church. That was short lived. Why would someone paint in the corner...

This weekend, I would like to speak to you about what I learned this summer. I went into the summer pretty much toast and can honestly say I feel refreshed. From toast to refreshed. How did that happen? By the way, if I still felt like toast, I would honestly have told you that as well. I'm not sugar coating this. How do we go from 0 to 60 or 55? By acceleration? Or gradual? I felt like my friend...

If you've lived a bit, it doesn't take long to realize that life has a way of bringing unexpected challenges, or opportunities as some would say. They come in all shapes and sizes! As you look at this season, have you faced something insurmountable? Perhaps a task or situation felt bigger than you? Gideon, from Judges 6-8, is a great example of this, and what he does to face his own situation is s...

Doubting Thomas. Not a great nickname for a disciple of Jesus, but this is usually the nickname we associate with Thomas. However, there is so much more to Thomas. As I hope to show this weekend, Thomas was a radical follower of Jesus; so radical in fact, John's gospel account highlights his confession as the ultimate confession of faith amongst all the disciples. And like all radical followers of...

This summer we have received an up-close look at the people that God puts to work. I hope you have been surprised, encouraged, and intrigued at the character of our God and the nature of God's work in the world. This week we will look at Elizabeth. She only appears in the first chapter of the gospel of Luke, but she plays a hugely significant role in God's Kingdom. Therefore, do not be misled by h...

It is one thing to stand on the shore at Torrance Beach and dream of surfing big waves, or stand up paddling, or sailing off to Catalina and beyond. It is a very different experience to actually move out into deeper water where we are confronted with bigger surf, bigger wind, and bigger fish. This is the call of Jesus to Simon Peter in Luke 5. The invitation of Jesus consistently prompts us to mov...

Last year, I saw the coolest thing at one of the millions of Redondo Beach 5K's: while the masses ran in one direction, three people dressed in trout costumes were running in the opposite direction through the crowd of joggers. Ha! What a cool shenanigan! Running upstream; against the grain; defying the agreed-upon marathon mores. This weekend as we meet a few of the fascinating folks in the Apost...

We know him as St. Paul; the first followers of Jesus to meet him knew him as the paramount threat to the strange and socio-politically vulnerable movement that would eventually be described as "Christianity." You can hear them now: "Him?! He's going to be the one used by God to bring about perhaps the greatest quantum leap forward in the Jesus movement since Jesus' own resurrection?! ...it can't...

Are you able to rejoice when others succeed and you don't? How about when someone takes your place in the starting lineup, a colleague gets the promotion you've longed for or a good friend gets into the college you've dreamt about for years? How do you respond? In my senior year I distinctly remember being moved to second chair (by a sophomore) in concert band, and Tommy being moved up to drum maj...

You know that little feeling in the pit of your stomach when you know something’s right or wrong and you know what you need to do? Have you noticed that over time as you make choices you know you need to make the sensitivity in your spirit grows a little greater? And that when you get in the habit of making the choice you know you shouldn’t make, after a while the sensitivity dims? Why is that? An...