When the Shepherd is Rejected

When the Shepherd is RejectedZechariah 11:7-14June 25, 2023 Everything seemed to go poorly for Israel.  Way back in her history after Solomon died there was political maneuvering for the kingship of Israel and it led to strife, conflict, and a divided nation.  It stayed that way for centuries.  There were even battles between the northern […]

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God, Our Strength

  God, Our StrengthZechariah 10:6-12June 11, 2023 Many years ago, a despondent looking Charlie Brown lamented to his friend Lucy, “I feel inferior.”  Lucy hopefully responds, “Oh, you shouldn’t worry about that.  Lots of people feel that way.”  “What, that they’re inferior?” Charlie asks, feeling somewhat encouraged.  “No — that you’re inferior.”  In one of […]

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Sermon: Pray for God’s Glory

  Pray for God’s GloryJohn 17:1-5January 15, 2023 Relationships are hard work.  Communication is hard work.  Listening carefully, thinking rightly, talking, and talking graciously are all hard work.  There are times it seems like it might just be easier or better to be silent.  (It’s not better.)  Unfortunately, we sometimes consider the hard work of […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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God is Good

God is good.  So says Psalm 100:5.  And Psalm 73:1.  And Psalms 34:8, 100:5, 135:3, and 145:9.  And the prophets also speak of God’s goodness in Jeremiah 33:11, Lamentations 3:25, and Nahum 1:7. Jesus also affirms the goodness of God (and at the same time asserts His own deity, Mt. 19:17). To say that God […]

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Sermon: Give Thanks

Give ThanksPsalm 100November 20, 2022 We live in difficult days (has there ever been a time in the world when we couldn’t say that?).  People are trying to define the exact nature of our troubles; one theologian has observed that social observers and politicians and others have called our time, “the age of anxiety, the […]

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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 […]

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