Sermon: A Heart for the Word

A Heart for the WordPsalm 119:161-168January 8, 2023 This morning, at the beginning of the new year, we want to remind ourselves about the importance of the Bible. What do you know about the Bible? There are 66 books in the Bible (39 in the OT, 27 in the NT). There are 1189 chapters […]

Sermon: The Fulfillment

The FulfillmentTitus 3:7December 25, 2022 Almost a generation ago, Rabbi Lawrence Hoffman wrote an article entitled, “Being a Jew at Christmas Time,” in which he wrote, “There is nothing wrong with sleigh bells, Bing Crosby, and Christmas pudding, but I should hope Christians would want more than just that, and as Christmas becomes more […]

Sermon: The Appearance

The AppearanceTitus 3:4-6December 18, 2022 NASA’s Apollo Missions program successfully sent 24 astronauts to the moon and 12 of those actually walked on the moon. The last Apollo mission was sent up in 1975; since then, there have been numerous Space Shuttle flights as well as flights to the international space station. But no one […]

Consider Christ

Everyone has a Christmas dream. In another generation it was sugar plums. Today it might be an iPhone 14. Or an Xbox. Or a new pickup truck. Or a book (or a loaded Kindle). Or maybe a family trip. Or a family meal where all the children and their families gather together. Or a stocking […]

I am Christ’s

As followers of Christ, we do not always reckon well the provision of Christ for us. In this brief meditation, Philip Dodderidge helps us consciously meditate on our position in Christ and some of the infinite blessings that flow from the cross: I am yours!Your mercy is mine to pardon me.Your blood is mine to […]

Sermon: The Promise

The PromiseTitus 1:2-3December 11, 2022 In 1974 George Roy Hill was awarded the Oscar for Best Director for The Sting, a film that starred Paul Newman and Robert Redford. Later that year, Hill received this letter from a 17-year-old aspiring actor: Dear Mr. Hill, Seeing that I am very close, dear, good, and long-lasting friends […]

He is the King

Kevin Duckett is a metal detecting hobbyist, who went hunting with his tools in a field a dozen miles north of his home in Northamptonshire (UK) a few years ago. When he spotted a gold glint, his first thought was that he had stumbled on an aluminum foil treasure. He was wrong. He found a […]

Sermon: God’s Plan for a Universal Ruler

God’s Plan for a Universal RulerZechariah 6:9-15December 4, 2022 In June 1945, three-year-old Dennis Helms received a letter from his father Richard, who happened to be stationed in Europe, who was working with the OSS in Germany and was writing on V-E Day: Dear Dennis, The man who might have written on this card once […]

Sermon: God’s Judgment on Sin

God’s Judgment on SinZechariah 5:1-11November 13, 2022 We live in a sinful world. We are well aware of the sinfulness of the world: There is a kind who is pure in his own eyes, Yet is not washed from his filthiness. (Prov. 30:12) For the wicked boasts of his heart’s desire, And the greedy man […]

The Heart of Christ for Sinners

Half a dozen years ago, I read Thomas Goodwin’s work, The Heart of Christ. Daily I found refreshment and encouragement from that 350-year-old work. Since the book is our Book of the Month in November, I pulled it off my shelf and have refreshed my soul by rereading sections of it again. Here is one […]

Sermon: Excel Still More in Ministry Labors

Excel Still More: Ministry Labors1 Corinthians 15:48October 30, 2022 Tomorrow is an important day. You know it well. October 31. No, it’s not important because of the opportunity to accumulate large quantities of chocolate in a short time. It’s important because it is Reformation Day. It is the day that we remember Martin Luther nailing […]

Sermon: God’s Plans for Righteousness

God’s Plans for RighteousnessZechariah 3:1 -10October 23, 2022 I’ve told the story before, but because it fits so well with this passage, because Reformation Day is next Monday, and because I like the story, let me remind you of Martin Luther’s conversion story (in his words): I greatly longed to understand Paul’s Epistle to […]

Sermon: God’s Plans for the Future

God’s Plans for the FutureZechariah 1:18 – 2:13October 16, 2022 Jeanne Calment was born in 1875 in Arles, France. When she was 13, she met Vincent Van Gogh when he came to her hometown to paint (she didn’t like him). She stopped riding her bicycle in 1975 — at the age of 100. The New […]

Sermon: The God of Comfort

The God of Comfort for a Day of TroubleZechariah 1:7-17October 2, 2022 One writer has said, “Life is full of disappointments. The biggest catastrophes (wars and tsunamis) and the smallest inconveniences (lower back pain and unfulfilled desires) infuse unrest into our lives. Trials snatch peace from us.” [Menikoff, Character Matters.] Meg was the mother of […]

Zechariah’s Messiah

One commentator calls the book of Zechariah “the most Messianic, the most truly apocalyptic and eschatological, of all the writings of the OT.” The New Testament evidently also recognizes it as being heavily Messianic because there are 41 quotations or allusions from the book of Zechariah in the New Testament. And Zechariah 9-14 is the […]