Sermon: Because of God’s Mercy…Serve God’s People

Because of God’s Mercy…Serve God’s People Romans 12:6-8 September 27, 2020 When James was seven years old, he was hit by a bread delivery truck. He survived, but he suffered an injury to the frontal lobe of his brain and a chunk of his skull was missing — an indentation that was evident for the […]

Sermon: Because of God’s Mercy…Be Transformed (Pt. 2)

Because of God’s Mercy…Be Humble Romans 12:3-5 September 20, 2020 Henry Augustus Rowland was a professor of physics at Johns Hopkins University in the second half of the 19th century. On one occasion he was called as a witness in a court case and his qualifications were given as “the highest known authority in this […]

Sermon: Because of God’s Mercy…Be Transformed (Pt. 2)

Because of God’s Mercy…Be Transformed, Part 2 Romans 12:2 September 13, 2020 We need to change. We have to change. We have been called to change. Change is necessary for the one who is in Christ Jesus. And we can change because of the gospel that has saved us. Just listen to a few passages […]

Sermon: Because of God’s Mercy…Be Transformed

Because of God’s Mercy…Be Transformed Romans 12:2 September 6, 2020 If you know me, you already know this is true for me; if you don’t know me, this is just a little self-disclosure: I don’t like change. I like regular. I thrive under routine. Sameness is my friend. And that means that Raye Jeanne and […]

Sermon: Because of God’s Mercy

Because of God’s Mercy… Romans 12:1 August 30, 2020 A few weeks ago, Americans received an unexpected COVID-gift from the United States government. And the topic quickly became, “what are you going to do with your money?” Some paid bills. Some paid down debt. Some made purchases for which they had been saving. Some gave […]

Sermon: Transforming Truths of the Gospel

Transforming Truths of the Gospel Romans 1-11 August 23, 2020 “The world is broken.” That is what Raye Jeanne said to me Wednesday evening as we sat on our porch and recounted our day and the people we had interacted with and the world circumstances we’d observed. I’m not talking about COVID, though that is […]

Sermon: In Praise of God, Pt 2

In Praise of God, Pt. 2 Romans 11:36 August 2, 2020 In an article entitled, “How Big is God?” David Coppedge, a scientist with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory writes that a manned flight to Pluto going at the maximum speed of Apollo astronauts, would take 17 years before it could park in a hangar at […]

Sermon: In Praise of God

In Praise of God Romans 11:33-36 July 26, 2020 John Wesley Powell was a government explorer who led a boat expedition through the Grand Canyon in 1869. He wrote a description of his impressions of that trip entitled, “The Most Sublime Spectacle on Earth” in his book, Canyons of the Colorado (1895): The Grand Canyon […]

Sermon: God’s People? Saved! (Pt 2)

God’s People? Saved! (Pt 2) Romans 11:28-32 July 19, 2020 I like a good “who dunnit?” Sunday evenings, our family has enjoyed many hours of watching Masterpiece Mystery — Foyle’s War, Sherlock, Inspector Lewis, Miss Marple, Poirot, and Endeavour among them. I have read quite a few Agatha Christie mysteries, and other similar fare. In […]

Promises, Promises

We are used to people breaking promises. We assume politicians — Presidents, Senators, Representatives, State legislators, city councilmen and more — will break their promises. We know that some marriage vows being given in earnest this year will be broken in years to come. Promises to children for vacations and days away (“Six Flags!” and […]

Sermon: God’s People? Saved! (Pt 1)

God’s People? Saved! (Pt 1) Romans 11:25-27 July 12, 2020 How have you spent your COVID? It’s not the only thing we have done, but we spent at least four days attacking trees and shrubs in our yard — trimming, cutting down, and then digging out roots. By my count, I have dug out 10-12 […]

Sermon: Israel, God’s Promises, and Unexpected Favor

Israel, God’s Promises, and Unexpected Favor Romans 11:17-24 July 5, 2020 In Romans, Paul is establishing his credibility as an apostle and as a missionary. He wants the Roman church to be his sending church on his journey to Spain, and he is giving them his understanding of the gospel — man’s sin and lostness […]

Sermon: Food, Shelter, Pandemics, and Fear

Food, Shelter, Pandemics, and Fear Matthew 6:25-34 March 15, 2020 We know that as believers we should not be afraid. But when the World Health Organization classifies the Coronavirus as a pandemic and virtually every major sports league suspends its games, including championship series, universities move to online only classes, school districts extend spring breaks, […]

Sermon: What Happened???

What Happened??? Romans 11:7-10 March 8, 2020 I suppose that the most asked question in the universe is “why?” Because 2-4 year-olds ask that question so many times, no other question gets asked more often. But perhaps the next most-often asked question is, “what happened?” As in, “I just received this month’s credit card bill. […]

Sermon: What God Has Not Done (and Cannot Do)

What God Has Not Done (and Cannot Do) Romans 11:1-6 March 1, 2020 Rejection is hard. No one wants to be rejected and most people don’t like telling people, “No.” Sometimes saying, “no” is unavoidable, though. For instance, editors regularly have to tell authors “no” to book or article ideas. Here is how Brian Doyle, […]