We Remember

Each month we come to the table of communion — the table of remembrance. You may have taken those elements hundreds of times, so that the practice may now seem ordinary and perfunctory. It is not. It is a time to remember some of the most powerful truths God has revealed to us. We gather […]

Christ’s Death and Joy

In a recent sermon I mentioned that I think about death regularly — daily. I think about my age and the reality that I am in the last third/quarter of life (at most). I think about my death because of the recent invitation that the Social Security Administration sent me to begin drawing funds from […]

Consider Death

Consider death. Think about, contemplate, and ponder on the reality of death. That’s Solomon’s counsel: It is better to go to a house of mourningThan to go to a house of feasting,Because that is the end of every man,And the living takes it to heart.…The mind of the wise is in the house of mourning,While […]

Repentance and its Fruits

Repentance and Its FruitsLuke 3:1-14October 6, 2024 What is the beginning of the spiritual life? Martin Luther said in the first of his 95 theses of discussion against the Roman Catholic Church, “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, said ‘Repent,’ He called for the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.” Repentance […]

The Enduring Word

The Enduring Word1 Peter 1:22–2:3September 29, 2024 This morning we have heard the rest of the story about the translation of the Feni Bible. We are aware of multiple other missions events in our church (Lebanon, Joyners, etc.). Why do churches invest tens of thousands of dollars to send missionaries to people they don’t […]

Why Christ Wept

Imagine a young man who is in love with a young lady. He has been saving and planning and one evening he pulls a box out of his pocket and asks the young woman to spend the rest of her life with him and exposes a gleaming ring in that box. And she bursts […]

The Messiah’s Return

The Messiah’s ReturnZechariah 14:1-5September 10, 2023 In February 1942, the American war against the Japanese in the Philippines was not going well. It was going so poorly that by March 12, 1942, President Roosevelt ordered General Douglas MacArthur, who was stationed in the Philippines, to leave and relocate his command in Australia. MacArthur briefly considered […]

The Father’s Pleasure in Bruising the Son

Being finite, created beings, we understand that some biblical and theological realities are beyond our comprehension. While God has revealed them to us as true, we cannot grasp the full meaning behind the words. Such is the case with the crucifixion of the Son of God by the Father of God. How can the Father […]

The Messiah’s Redeeming Work, Pt. 2

The Messiah’s Redeeming Work, Pt. 2Zechariah 13:7-9September 3, 2023 In his book, Rejoicing in Christ, Michael Reeves writes, “On the cross we are given not only the sweet salvation of God but the counterintuitive revelation of God. On the cross we see how humble, how self-giving, how perfectly generous and compassionate the living God is. […]

The answer for our need

In his book, A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose, Eckhart Tolle wrote, What humanity needs…is a transformation of consciousness. This consciousness “can flow into what you do and spread into this world” through “three modalities in which you can align your life with the creative power of the universe”—acceptance, enjoyment, and enthusiasm. [quoted […]

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 Slain, Exalted Lamb

The Slain, Exalted LambRevelation 5April 17, 2022 We are Christians. We are followers of Jesus Christ. No day on our calendar of worship demonstrates our dependence on Christ more than Easter morning. On this day we affirm we need Him and we will worship Him above all other things and people. But on this […]

“It Must Happen This Way”

“It Must Happen This Way:”The Arrest of Christ and the Sovereign Purpose of GodMatthew 26:47-56April 15, 2022 (Good Friday) Facts reflect the reality of a condition. They are true. They can be believed. But interpretations of facts are variable, inconsistent, at times inaccurate, and invariably not to be trusted. One husband was complaining to […]

A Good Friday Message

The Triumphant Submission of Christ Mark 14:35-36 April 2, 2021 Of all the things that we don’t like to do and all the things we don’t like to think about, the thing most people most recoil from is death. When I had been a pastor just a few months, Martin’s Funeral Home called me and […]

Sermon: Fellowship and the Cross

Fellowship and the Cross 1 John 1:1-4 November 29, 2020 Many years ago (while in seminary) I was an evangelism trainer on a team of people from our church who went out weekly to share the gospel. One of the people on my team was a good friend from seminary. As we were headed back […]