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 […]

Sermon: The Life of Repentance

The Life of RepentanceZechariah 1:1-6September 25, 2022 Last week we talked about the significance of the book of Zechariah. The book was important to Israel because of its role in calling the nation to complete the rebuilding of the temple after returning from its 70 year exile in Babylon. But it was also important […]

Sermon: God Remembers

God RemembersZechariah — an OverviewSeptember 18, 2022 Several years ago, when the girls were in high school, I attended a conference in Washington D.C. Raye Jeanne and I thought it would be a great opportunity for a family trip, especially since we are a little bit nerdy and like things like historical sites and museums. […]

Our Good Shepherd

When Jesus identified Himself as the Good Shepherd (Jn. 10:11), He was not teaching the disciples a new truth. He had previously — several times — identified Himself as the Shepherd of His people. Consider: Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd (Matt. […]

Sermon: The Good Shepherd

Jesus Christ — the Good ShepherdJohn 10:1-21September 11, 2022 A few years ago I was running some errands one afternoon when I noticed that one tire was almost completely flat. I slowly made my way to a tire store. There was a long line and wait (with mild irritation). Finally, I spoke to an employee: […]

Sermon: Life in Seasons of Lament

Life in Seasons of LamentPsalm 119:153-160August 28, 2022 When we are in crisis, we don’t always think rightly or well. The disciples were no different. On one occasion, Jesus took the disciples on a boat trip across the Sea of Galilee — a body of water with which many of them were very familiar. Seemingly […]

Alone, but not alone

A few decades ago, a medical doctor wrote about some of the implications of being alone that he had observed: “Medical statistics on the loss of human companionship, the lack of love and human loneliness quickly reveal that the expression ‘broken heart’ is not just poetic image for loneliness and despair. It is an overwhelming […]

Why love others?

In the New Testament, God tells us how to care for others in the church body. Frequently we find those instructions in conjunction with the word “brothers” — as in, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your […]

Sermon: Love Still More

Love Still More1 John 4:7-11August 14, 2022 The number/letter combination A113 is seemingly everywhere in animated movies. It’s Andy’s mom’s license plate number in Toy Story; It’s a door number in Monsters University; It’s the courtroom number in Up; It’s the camera model number in Finding Nemo; It’s on a rat’s ear tag in Ratatouille; […]

How God comforts His people

I’ve been told that I’m not always the best patient when I am sick. It seems that I whine a little much about my illness, perhaps even venturing into the category of complaint and discontentment. I do acknowledge that I have a propensity for not being patient with any sickness — I just want it […]

Sermon: Comfort Still More

Comfort Still More2 Corinthians 1:1-7August 7, 2022 Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor and theologian in Germany in the 1930s and 40s. He not only was opposed to the doctrine of Naziism, but was one of only a few pastors to publicly oppose Hitler and his regime. His vocalism against Hitler propelled him into leadership of […]

Sermon: Fixing Our Eyes on Jesus

Fixing Our Eyes on JesusHebrews 12:1-3July 31, 2022 In 1948, Dutch physicist Hessel de Vries began doing some research on the two daughters of a colorblind father and discovered that their eyes perceived colors differently from both their father and others with normal color perception. Our eyes perceive color through the cones in our eyes; […]