Trails Church Sermons

This Sunday we will consider the blessedness of forgiveness. In Psalm 32 we read how David was convicted by his sin, he confessed it to the Lord, and was completely forgiven. Trails, this is the gospel preached to us, written over 1000 years before the cross. Remember that repentance and faith does not only describe the beginning of the Christian life but characterizes the whole of the Christian l...

This Sunday we are in Psalm 31, a lament that majors on the theme of trust in the Lord. Even in his deepest distress, David remains confident in the faithful love of God that will deliver him. How can we do the same? What does it look like to remain confident in God even when our pain does not have an end in sight? As you read Psalm 31, prepare for our gathering by praying through these words. Con...

It is rather providential that on this Father’s Day we find ourselves in a passage that deals with the theme of God’s discipline of his children. In Psalm 30, David praises God for how he delivered him, not from enemies, but from discipline for his own sin. In this David gives thanks for how God has restored him through several redemptive reversals. God’s corrective discipline is not something we...

Have you ever faced a time of what you might consider ‘God-ordained suffering’? What do we do in those situations? Do we avoid it at all costs? Have you ever had to watch a fellow believer enter a time like that? What do we do in that instance? Do we act to save them from the pain ahead? And, have you ever asked yourself ‘what is God’s role in suffering?’ Didn’t He die on the cross so we wouldn’t...

This week we read Paul’s farewell speech to the elders of the Ephesian Church. It is a tearful goodbye as Paul’s pastoral heart is made evident. His primary concern is for the church to remain healthy in his absence. What this will require is for pastors to follow Paul’s example and to heed is words of exhortation. They must be have the character and obey the call to shepherd the flock of God fait...

This week Paul begins the long voyage back to Jerusalem to conclude his third missionary journey. We also read about an averted tragedy, that Paul was used by God to resurrect a young lad named Eutychus. He fell asleep and then fell from a window in the middle of church! Despite being an easy opportunity for jokes, this story is not about the importance of staying awake during a long sermon. In Ac...

Acts chronicles the relentless expansion of the good news of Jesus. In the second part of Acts 19 we jump ahead a few years to the conclusion of Paul's time in Ephesus, and from this we are given a glimpse into the effects of the gospel on a society. From the empty tomb in Jerusalem, to this wild amphitheater riot in Ephesus, the power of the gospel to blow away the empty systems of evil is su...

In Acts 19 Paul arrives in the city of Ephesus where he experiences one of his most fruitful and extraordinary seasons of ministry. However, we also find two rather peculiar stories: twelves so-called disciples who have never heard of the Holy Spirit and seven Jewish exorcists who use the name of Jesus. Say what? The book of Acts is full of exciting and triumphant stories, but these two take both...

You ever meet a couple who just makes you want to follow Jesus more? Not because they’re flashy. Not because they’re famous. But because there’s just something deeply steady, wise, and faithful about them. In Acts 18, we meet a couple like that: Aquila and Priscilla. Ordinary Christians who quietly gave themselves to the long work of strengthening others with the Word of God — and God used their f...

Have you ever shared your faith and you thought it went well … only to find out later that it wasn’t received well? You got pulled aside by your boss, reprimanded, or maybe got a text that a said it wasn’t appreciated? Heartbreaking. Then, the next time you feel like you should share the gospel, you remember that last time … and think, “Maybe I don’t want to get into that again?” You’re not alone....

You and I aren’t neutral towards God … We are either worshipping Him or rebelling against Him.  That’s the honest truth that Paul preaches to those in Athens in Acts 17:16–34.  Athens, as we know, was as the intellectual capital of the world… thinkers, philosophers, culture-shapers everywhere.  And when Paul arrived into this city, he: 1) studies the culture. 2) understands the people. 3) And then...

Ever had one of those moments where something finally clicks… and now you can’t unsee it? That’s exactly what happens in our text this weekend, Acts 17:1-15. As the gospel moves from city to city, a pattern begins to emerge. What once felt random suddenly has structure. And once you see it… you can’t unsee it. This Sunday, we’re going to see how Jesus actually builds His church: - the gospel is pr...

Three people.  Nothing in common.  One gospel that changes everything. That is what we will see as we dive back into Acts 16 this week and see how the church in Philippi was planted—not through strategy or similarity, but through the power of the gospel. And as we do, we meet three very different people 1) a businesswoman 2) a demon possessed slave girl 3) a Roman jailer.  From the outside perspec...

On Easter Sunday, we celebrate the glorious reality that God has acted to save sinners—which we will see through baptisms as well as in our study of Acts 16: 6-15. As the gospel moves into new territory, we’re reminded: 1) God providentially opens doors so the gospel is proclaimed. 2) God graciously opens hearts so the gospel is received. If you’re already a Christian, this is a truth you already...

Division is everywhere. Between friends. Between cultures. Even within the church. And if we’re honest… we’ve all felt it. Today, we’re stepping into a moment where even faithful, Spirit-filled leaders—Paul and Barnabas—find themselves in a sharp disagreement. At the same time, we’ll see another divide: confusion over the gospel itself—Are we saved by grace alone, or by grace plus something else?...

This Sunday we come to a watershed moment in the life of the early church—the Jerusalem Council. The issue on the table is not small. It’s not secondary. The very truth of the gospel is at stake. Are we saved by our works? Or are we saved by grace alone? Though the debate in Acts 15 centers on Jews and Gentiles, the heart of the issue is one we still wrestle with today. And in this passage, the ap...

What if the hardest moments in the Christian life are actually where Jesus is most clearly at work? This week in Acts 14, Paul heals a crippled man… the crowd tries to worship him as a god… and then the same crowd stones him and leaves him for dead.  Opposition. Confusion. Suffering. And yet the mission keeps moving forward. Why? Because the story of Acts isn’t about fearless missionaries — it’s a...

The best news in the Bible isn’t that God has a wonderful plan for your life. It’s that God has made a way to forgive your sins. That’s what we are diving into this weekend as we continue our journey through Acts 13 and come to Paul’s first recorded sermon. And his message is simple but world-changing: The entire story of the Bible has been pointing to Jesus. Through His life, death, and resurrect...

This Sunday, we step into one of the most intense chapters in the book of Acts. James is executed. Peter is imprisoned. Herod exalts himself like a god. And yet — Jesus is not threatened. He is reigning. Acts 12 smells like the battlefield. But what we discover is this: when you stand against Jesus, you lose — and when you belong to Jesus, you triumph, even through suffering. This chapter reminds...

This Sunday, we step into one of the most intense chapters in the book of Acts. James is executed. Peter is imprisoned. Herod exalts himself like a god. And yet — Jesus is not threatened. He is reigning. Acts 12 smells like the battlefield. But what we discover is this: when you stand against Jesus, you lose — and when you belong to Jesus, you triumph, even through suffering. This chapter reminds...

That name started in Antioch. Not in a cathedral. Not in comfort. Not in cultural power. But in the middle of persecution, scattering, bold preaching, deep discipleship, and radical generosity. This Sunday we’re in Acts 11:19–30. The gospel keeps moving. The church keeps growing. And for the first time, disciples are called Christians — people who belong to Christ. So here’s the question: If someo...

Acts 10:1–11:18 This week’s text isn’t a side story. It’s a history-shifting moment. Like… one of the most important turns in the whole Bible. The question behind it all: What did it actually take for us to be accepted by God? Because we all have an answer to that — even if we’ve never said it out loud. Acts 10 blows it up. God doesn’t just save a few “religious types.” He throws the door wide ope...

This week we’re in Acts 9 and yes — it includes a woman named Dorcas 😌 but this passage is way deeper than a funny name. We’re watching Jesus do the impossible: a paralyzed man walks 🦵 a dead woman lives again ❤️‍🔥 But here’s the twist: the point isn’t “wow, miracles.” The point is WOW, JESUS. These stories are signposts. They show us that the risen Christ is still full of compassion, still pow...

Acts 9:19b-31 Last week, we saw how Saul met Jesus and heard from Jesus how Saul would be His chosen instrument to: 1) preach about Jesus to his fellow Jews, to Kings, and to the Gentiles. 2) to suffer on account of the name of Jesus. This week we’ll see how Saul’s life begins to demonstrate these words from Jesus as he begins preaching about Jesus in the same places where he once plotted the deat...

This Sunday, we are in Acts 9:1–19, one of the most gripping passages in the book of Acts—the story of how Jesus stops Saul in his tracks and turns a persecutor into a disciple. But as we’ll see, this isn’t a story about a man finding his way to God through effort, morality, or religious sincerity. As we see, Saul wasn’t searching for Jesus at all. Rather, it’s a story about Jesus—about His sovere...