Sermon: Life Against the Flesh

Life in the Spirit, Life Against the Flesh Romans 8:12-13 September 30, 2018 One of the hardest parts of the spiritual life is dealing with the daily reality that we are in a fight. Spiritual maturity does not come easily. Sin rarely waves the white flag of surrender. The flesh often proposes a truce with […]

Christ came for sin

In Romans 8:3, Paul identifies the reason for Christ’s advent — He came “for sin” (ESV). That is, He came for the purpose of addressing the problem of sin. He came for sin because sin was (and is) the great problem of mankind. We tend to think we have bigger problems than sin. We have […]

Sermon: The Believer and Sin (Pt 3)

The Believer and Sin (Pt. 3) Romans 7:14-25 August 5, 2018 As I have told my wife (though she already knew), I am impatient. I want things done quickly. I want a 24-hour virus to go away in six hours. I want one-day dry cleaning done in four hours and one-hour dry-cleaning in 15 minutes. […]

It’s a fight

In his book Comrades, Stephen Ambrose writes this about warfare: Combat requires all the nerves, all the physical attributes, every bit of the training. It is only in combat, nowhere else, where time is measured in other ways than by clocks or calendars. Only in combat does the soldier realize that he is in the […]

“I’m no good”

Too many times I have made the statement, “I’m no good,” or “I’m no good at…” And too many times I have heard others make similar statements. Very often, these (and other) self-deprecating comments are actually solicitations of affirmation or a veiled desire for compliments (“Oh, Terry, you’re really good at…” or “You’re not like […]

Sermon: The Believer and Sin (Pt 2)

The Believer and Sin (Pt. 2) Romans 7:14-25 July 29, 2018 In August, 2011, Danya and Troy Donovan closed up their home of 13 years in Littleton, CO and traveled to Indiana to seek work. They winterized their home, anticipating they would be gone through the winter, and planned to return in the spring. In […]

Be a hater

Having teens and now twenty-something daughters has helped me keep up with contemporary slang terms (kind of). One of the phrases that I learned from them a few years ago was, “don’t be a hater.” As I understand the phrase, it means something like, “don’t be jealous of me because of what I am/have,” or […]

Sermon: The Believer and Sin (Pt 1)

The Believer and Sin (Pt. 1) Romans 7:14-25 July 22, 2018 For years, the bumper sticker and slogan, “Visualize World Peace” has been both affirmed and mocked. And while people want peace, war is a reality of the world in which we live. I think I mentioned a few weeks ago that historians have compiled […]

Sermon: The Worshipper’s Hope

The Worshipper’s Hope Psalm 121 May 27, 2018 The older I get, the more I realize I am prone to forgetfulness. I don’t usually lose my keys or glasses, but I often forget things like appointments (which is why I am thankful for my Google calendar), tasks that I need to do, what I need […]

Sermon: What Good is the Law? (Pt 3)

What Good is the Law? (Pt. 3) Selected Scriptures May 13 2018 While government was established by God to protect the innocent and to punish evildoers (Rom. 13), when you hear of some laws that are still on the books of some governments, you wonder who is protecting the government from itself. For instance: In […]

Sermon: What Good is the Law? (Pt 2)

What Good is the Law? (Pt. 2) Romans 7:9-13 May 6 2018 A news report in Oregon a few years ago said that a middle school in Oregon had a unique problem: A number of girls were beginning to use lipstick and would put it on in the bathroom. That was fine, but after they […]

Sermon: What Good is the Law? (Pt 1)

What Good is the Law? (Pt. 1) Romans 7:7-8 April 29, 2018 I’m not sure why, but the main Christmas gift I received in sixth grade remains the least-used, most under-appreciated Christmas gift I’ve ever received. It was an erector set by Meccano. Given how much I like to tinker and do maintenance and repair […]

Sermon: Dead to the Law (Pt 2)

Dead to the Law (Pt 2) Romans 7:5-6 April 22, 2018 A decade ago, A. J. Jacobs wrote a book in which he pondered the question, “is it possible to follow all of the commands of the Bible, particularly the Old Testament” (which was of interest to him because of his Jewish heritage)? And is […]

Sermon: Dead to the Law (Pt 1)

Dead to the Law (Pt. 1) Romans 7:1-4 April 15, 2018 We have a love-hate relationship with the law. When a criminal is caught and then brought to justice, we are grateful. When someone recklessly speeds past us and then we see him stopped by the side of the road with a police car behind […]

Sermon: Slavery, Wages, and Grace

Slavery, Wages, and Grace Romans 6:20-23 March 25, 2018 It started as a brief experiment on November 8, 2016. It was only going to last a few days. But those few days have now turned into a nearly 1-1/2 year event that Erik Hagerman calls his personal “blockade.” Upset over the results of the presidential […]