WMBC - Sermons

We now begin a new section of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6, where Jesus focuses on our relationship to our Father in Heaven. This Sunday we are going to look at the first of three examples he will be teaching his disciples: giving, prayer, fasting. In each case, Jesus is going to stress the importance of a secret spiritual life that no one else knows about but our Father in Heaven. Join us...

Everyone worships. All of us devote ourselves to something or someone, someone will get best of us, become the object of our time, money, and devotion. This Sunday we reflect on the incredible influence worship has on our lives, as we reflect on the story of the wise men’s encounter with King Herod.  

Growing up, my mom always told me to never ask someone if they’re pregnant, so hopefully I’m not coming off as rude by asking if your church is pregnant. This week we’ll be looking at the parents of Jesus; a man named Joseph who is asked to raise a child that is not his, and Mary, a teenager who is asked to be the vessel that brings God’s Kingdom into the world. Both Joseph and Mary provide an exa...

Through the testimony of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Zechariah, and John the Baptist himself, God makes it clear that this rugged wilderness preacher is the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. But how did John prepare the way of the Lord and make His paths straight? His nickname, “John the Baptist” gives us a clue! Join us this Sunday as we continue in our advent series and hear a powerful testimony...

When you look your family tree and read through the names, it might be a little boring if it just remains a name on the page; but dig a little deeper and you discover that every name has a unique story, a story that eventually leads to and connects with your own story. This Sunday we explore the genealogy of Jesus, and God’s relentless quest to prepare the way for your salvation story!

“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”  - this is Jesus’ word to the average person, facing everyday circumstances and relationship hardships. You’ve got to be kidding right? It takes a God sized imagination to say this, and it takes Jesus sized boldness to live like this, and it takes Holy Spirit sized courage to follow this command of Jesus. Are you up for it?

Growing up, I often heard adults say “The time should fit the crime.” Our idea of a just world is one in which those who hurt or wrong us get what they deserve. Jesus however tells us do not resist an evil person and do not seek revenge. Join us this Sunday as we unpack Matthew 5:38-42, and learn what it means to nonresistantly love those who hurt us, and in turn invite others to be transformed by...

Simply let your “yes” be “yes” and your “no” be “no” – Jesus.  That all sounds quite simple, doesn’t it? But don’t confuse simple with easy; studies reveal that the average person speaks 1-2 lies a day, with 60% of us unable to get through a 10 minute conversation without lying. In the age of fake news, false promises, and there absolutely being no absolutes – how does the Good News of the Kingdom...

Heads up parents! This week’s message will be focusing on sexual desire – good and bad. If your kids or pre-teens are in the service for the message, they will hear Jesus’s teaching on serious sexual topics.  Our society is obsessed with sexuality and lust. How often is sexual conquest the driving force behind the advertisements we see? How many of the songs you’ll listen this week are simply odes...

The things that we often assume Jesus to be saying are, sometimes, not at all what He is actually saying. The meaning can be quite different than what we assume it to be – quite different than what we’ve often been taught that it means. And a big reason for this is the culture and context into which it was originally spoken.  The original hearers would have understood what Jesus was saying by do n...

We live in a culture that in many ways celebrates anger – it is the performative emotion in the pursuit of social justice and societal change; we often use it as a virtue signal of our zeal for holiness. This Sunday, Jesus will teach us another way, why anger is so dangerous, and the high calling to live without anger. For Jesus, the Kingdom was not simply a nice idea, but a very real place – life...

“Matthew 5:17-20 is the most significant passage in the entire Bible on how to read the Bible, because Jesus tells us here how to read the Bible.” – Scott McKnight This Sunday we dive into a key set of verses that will set us up for the rest of the sermon on the mount. In many ways, this is his thesis statement, the bottom line that ties everything together. Jesus-followers should be Bible-readers...

In Matthew 5, Jesus gives his followers two identity statements. You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. Not only do these statements create a powerful image in our heads, they're also loaded with biblical meaning and provide a clear picture of how Christ followers relate to the world around them. Join us on Sunday as we learn what it means to be salt and light to the world...

What does peace look like? What does it take to get there? Depending on who you are, your answers to this questions will change. The way to peace according to Jesus stands out from many others, and it promises His followers a difficult life. This week, we finish off the beatitudes and navigate the narrow way.

“The eyes that normally looked down in shame suddenly gazed at Jesus with hope and joy. Females, sick people, the second class half-Jews, the person whose life had been broken by bad choices—all heard the good news.  “Who me? Is he talking about me? I am welcome in the Kingdom of heaven? It is here, now?!” This was very good news.”  James Bryon Smith, The Good and Beautiful Life.  Join us as we co...

What do you think of when you think of the good life? Whatever the words or pictures that popped into your head, it’s probably not what Jesus describes in the beatitudes. His words shocked His listeners, forcing them to pay attention to something they didn’t expect to hear. Hopefully, they will do the same for us.

If you had to summarize the whole of Jesus’ message in a single sentence – what would you say? It’s a worthwhile question to consider, because how we answer it affects how we think about and relate to Jesus, and what we believe he’s up to in the world, and what we should be doing! Join us as we launch our new teaching series “Kingdom Come” and explore what is means to share the Good News!