Watts in the Word

Evangelism is a difficult proposition for many, due to a confluence of relational and experiential factors, but a common struggle for Christians is motivation. What should motivate our evangelism, and how do we bring ourselves into alignment with God’s motivations? Click Here to Listen. (This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on … Continue reading Emotional Evangelism

One way to think about Christian growth is through the lens of spirituality. To grow is to become “more spiritual” but what exactly does it mean to be spiritual? How can someone deepen their spirituality? Click Here to Listen (Preaching on Christian growth. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on May 26, 2024. … Continue reading Deeper Spirituality

Breathing is an essential part of life, but one that we can get better at. Athletes training for endurance learn to breathe deeper, and their bodies learn to process the oxygen more efficiently. Two spiritual disciplines serve as breathing for the Christian – Bible reading and prayer. How can we learn to breathe deeper, and … Continue reading Breathing Deeper

We conclude our study of the promises of God by considering what might be the most-repeated promise of the New Testament: the promise of eternal life. Why is this promises repeated so often, and why is it so important? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. This sermon was preached at the … Continue reading The Promise of Eternal Life

The promise of Jesus’s return was literally the first thing God told humanity after Jesus ascended. Why is this promise so important, and what makes it so hard to keep this promise in mind? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on … Continue reading The Promise of Return

We have probably all heard the expression “no pain, no gain.” This is not just a term for athletes and weightlifters, but simply expresses an important concept for Spiritual growth. What kind of pain is necessary for Christian growth, and what does that mean for how we think about the suffering of life? Click Here … Continue reading Deeper into Pain

Confession is a vital part of Christian growth, but it can be easy to emphasize confession to God at the expense of the importance of confessing to other Christians. How can we grow in the discipline of confession, and what does it do for us? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on Christian growth. This sermon was … Continue reading Deeper Honesty

Justification is one of those big religious-sounding words that we don’t use very often outside of a church setting, but it is one of the most vital components of Christian growth. What does it mean to be justified, and how does it contribute to our continual growing? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on Christian growth. This sermon … Continue reading Deeper into Justification

Rest is a prominent theme throughout the Bible, from the seventh day of creation to some of Jesus final promises in Revelation. Why is rest so important, and what does God’s promise of it entail? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on … Continue reading The Promise of Rest

God’s love for us never changes; it fundamentally cannot change, because God’s love is so baked into who He is as a Being. Our appreciation of and experience of God’s love is the only thing that can change as we grow as Christians. How can we move deeper into the love of God? Click Here to Listen. … Continue reading Deeper Love

We all need comfort at times. One of the most basic promises of God, found in some of the most famous passages in the Bible, is to comfort us. How does He promise to do so, and what should that look like in our lives? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. … Continue reading The Promise of Comfort

When did you become united with Christ? Unity, as a subject of Christian growth, exemplifies the idea that growth is about become more of what we already are in Christ. How can we deepen our unity with him? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on Christian growth. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on April 7, … Continue reading Deeper Unity

The resurrection of Jesus is the most important event in history; what makes it so important? What does the resurrection provide for the world and the Christian? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the resurrection. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on March 31, 2024.)

What is a “deacon” in the church? To answer this, we survey the use of the word throughout the New Testament, and consider a few examples of early church life. Click Here to Listen. (Preparing for the church appointing new deacons. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on March 24, 2024.)

Almost everyone has felt the urge to question God at some point: why did this bad thing happen, why is that horrible person doing well, why can’t I do this thing? What kind of answers does God promise us? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. This sermon was preached at the … Continue reading The Promise of Answers

It might seem odd to talk about despair and grief in a study of Christian growth, but growth requires a catalyst, a motivator. For the Christian, when we lose or ignore the despair caused by our sin, we lose one of the engines of growth. Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on Christian growth. This sermon … Continue reading Deeper into Despair

God’s promise of wisdom is perhaps the simplest, most explicitly stated promise in the New Testament. What does this promise entail, and how can we take hold of it? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on March 10, 2024.)

Christian growth never happens independently from Christ. Why is that, and what attributes, qualities, and works of Jesus directly and indirectly contribute to our growth? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on Christian growth. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ on March 10, 2024. The outline for this series was adapted from the book … Continue reading Deeper in Jesus

The promise of God’s presence, like many of God’s promises, is a vow to return us to some perfect or beautiful state that we lost or broke. How does God’s presence manifest throughout the Bible, and what does He promise to the modern Christian? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. This … Continue reading The Promise of His Presence

How do Christians grow? It is a question that can elicit despair, confusion, arrogance, or cynicism, depending on how we think our spiritual walk is progressing (or not progressing). Why is growth so important, and how should we even define growth? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on growth. This sermon was preached at the Dewey … Continue reading Deeper: A Study of Christian Growth

Many of the promises of God can been seen as promises to return or restore creation to what God originally intended to be. How does this concept inform our understanding of God’s promise of peace, and how should we expect that promise to be fulfilled in our lives? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the … Continue reading The Promise of Peace

Jesus makes a few appearances in the Bible after the ascension at the beginning of Acts. The first of these is on the road to Damascus. What can we learn from this encounter with Jesus? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the life of Jesus. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of Christ … Continue reading Encountering Jesus on the Road

One of the primary manifestations of God’s promise of grace is the promise of Holy Spirit. As we trace this promise through the Bible, we will see just how foundational the promise of the Spirit is. Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church of … Continue reading The Promise of the Spirit

The gospels do not spend a lot of ink covering the time between Jesus’s resurrection and ascension, which makes their choice of stories in that timeframe especially interesting. What can we learn from this selection of encounters with the disciples? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the life of Jesus. This sermon was preached at … Continue reading Encountering Jesus After Death

It is not an understatement to say that the entire Bible narrative tells the story of God making and fulfilling the promise of grace. Why is this promise so important, and what does it mean for us? Click Here to Listen. (Preaching on the promises of God. This sermon was preached at the Dewey Church … Continue reading The Promise of Grace