Third Church Sermons

What do we learn about this person Jesus in this phrase from the creed this week? Simply put, he suffered. That word suffered does not just describe the end of his life, but the whole of his life. From start to finish, Jesus was a man who was “familiar with suffering,” familiar with our world and our reality. We’ll explore this together this weekend.

This week, we’ll be looking at the Virgin Birth and how it is not just some random miracle. It is the foundation of our belief that Jesus is both fully God and fully human, fully divine and fully enmeshed in the pains and sufferings of this world.

At the very center of the Christian faith is not a set of ideas or a religious theory of reality or even a way of life. At the very center of our faith is a Person. We will be looking at how our belief in Jesus as Lord is a radical one, and one that gives us both comfort and challenge.

This week, we’ll unpack the wonderful biblical theology in the phrase “maker of heaven and earth” and what it says about creation and its implications for our lives.

This week we come to the first significant phrase in the creed, “I believe in God the Father Almighty.” It immediately names a specific God: the God who is the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, and a God who is “almighty.” These few words tell us so much about the God we worship, and we’ll explore that together this week.

We begin a new series this week looking at Apostles’ Creed and the core foundational components of our faith, as laid out through this ancient expression of our beliefs.

We close out our Renew series this week by looking at Hebrews 10:19-26. This inspiring passage calls God’s people to re-commit themselves to the most basic elements of their Christian calling: to hold fast to Jesus, to meet with and care for one another, and to extend the love of Christ to the world.

This week, we’ll look at 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, where Paul casts a vision of the Christian life as one of joyful, sacrificial generosity. Taking this call seriously will shape us into people of radical giving, thinking differently about what we give, how we give, when we give, and why we give.

In the second week of our Renew series, we’ll look at a new kind of image of the church. In this case, the church as a “greenhouse” or a “school,” a place in which people “grow up” into maturity,

This Sunday, we’ll unpack the rich metaphor of the church as the house of God, and talk about how we are seeking to press into this vision of the household in the coming years.

This week, we’re being led by our students in worship. Together, we’ll look at how God has called us to be godly, and he has given us all that we need in order to strive for it. 3-part sermon by Charles Ellison, Will Steadman, and Trina Jeffer.

We’re starting a new series this week on renewal and what it means for our community. We’ll look at Colossians 1 and how this work of renewal is truly an enormous call that God invites us into, and it is a privilege to be a part of.

This Sunday, we conclude our series with the story of Jesus’ baptism from Matthew 3:13-17. This account is documented in all four gospels for good reason— it stands as one of the most important stories in the Gospels, clarifying the identity of this man Jesus. Together, we’ll explore what this identity is and what it means for us today.

This week, we’ll look to John who points to Jesus’ role in discerning truth and falsehood, true believer and hypocrite, and light and dark. The one for whom John has been waiting and preparing will come as the Righteous Judge.

It is the first week of Christmastide, and this week we look to how people reacted the first time Jesus came to earth. Specifically, we’ll look at Herod and the Magi, and their different responses to this newborn king.

In the final week of Advent, we look to the opening chapter of Matthew and imagine what it was like for the ancient people of Israel to wait for the promised Messiah. Sermon by Corey Widmer.

For our Christmas Eve message, we look to the first of chapter of Matthew and celebrate the good news that Jesus has indeed come to be with us. What our souls have waited for has happened in humble Bethlehem. Immanuel, God with us.

It’s the third week of Advent and we are looking at a parable for near the end of Jesus’ ministry: the Parable of the Ten Virgins. In this parable, Jesus compares the expected but delayed arrival of a bridegroom to his own return at the end of the age. He will come, but not when we expect, so we must always be prepared. Sermon by Nan Clarke.

This second Sunday of Advent, we continue our theme of waiting for the Messiah King with a study of two more of Jesus’ “kingdom” parables from Matthew 13. Jesus shows us again here that is a master teacher using simple, brief stories— in this passage, seed and leaven— to convey deep truths about the way the kingdom of God works. Sermon by Ed Satterfield.

We begin our Advent and Christmas series this week with a look at one of the “waiting stories” that Jesus tells in the book of Matthew. This story, from Matthew 13, actually focuses more on waiting for the second coming of Christ, and his kingdom to be fully inaugurated into this world, and tells us much about our current condition. Sermon by Corey Widmer. Sermon Sources: - Matthew, A Commentary,...

In the last week of our Entrusted series, Richard Haney shares with us about our call to be stewards of this gospel. Together, we’ll look at how we are called to believe the gospel, live it, treasure it, guard its essential truth, hand it down to the next generation and pass it on to those who have not heard.

We believe that God has entrusted each of us, his children, with gifts— be it time, talent, abilities, opportunities, or treasures— and asks us to be faithful in using them to build his Kingdom as we await his final return. This week, Corey Widmer will explore the parable of the talents in Matthew 25, and what it says to us about stewarding well what the master has entrusted to us. Sermon Sources:...

Corey Widmer interviews Amy Sherman, author of the book Kingdom Calling, about the origination of the concept "vocational stewardship," what it means for us in our every day labors, and how to incorporate spiritual disciplines into our work.

One of the (many) ways we are entrusted to the ongoing work of subduing and ruling creation is through our vocations. This week, Corey Widmer will help us explore what Genesis 1 and 2 have to say about the design of our vocations, the goodness of our work, and the goals of our labor. Sermon Sources: - Practicing the King’s Economy, by Rhodes and Holt - Every Good Endeavor, by Timothy Keller - Cult...

This week, we continue to explore stewardship as a comprehensive identity statement that describes what it means to be human. But we also acknowledge that the Bible gives lots of attention in particular to financial stewardship, so join us this week as Corey Widmer looks at what it means to steward our finances and wealth. Sermon Sources: - Practicing the King’s Economy, by Michael Rhodes and Bobb...