Sermons

Most of us have experienced more “fear” the past two years than we likely have the past 5-10. New administration. COVID. Vaccine. Lockdowns. Tucked into the middle of Zechariah’s prophecy in Luke 1, is a statement that got Martin Rossol thinking about fear and how Jesus followers should respond: “..that we, being delivered from the hand or our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days, . . . ” Martin talked to us today about fear.

Today is the fourth Sunday of Advent 2021. Advent is all about expectations. Anticipations. And that idea was the basis for Martin Rossol’s sermon today. Who was expecting the Savior? Who was NOT expecting the Savior? And what should our response be to the Savior who came – irrespective of whether or not we had been expecting him?

St Paul’s letter to the Galatians talks much about slaves and sons? Which are we? What is a ‘slave’ and what a ‘son’? And from where does this imagery come? Eric Keel shares his thinking on this subject in his Sunday sermon.

King David is a “type” of Christ in many respects. He typifies what the final King would be like. And yet David, the man, was beset by some of the maladies with which humans are beset. Specifically, David has an inclination to anger. In today’s sermon based in 1 Samuel 25, Martin Rossol show us this negative example from David; and example which should make us guard against allowing anger to motivate our actions in the way it motivated David. But in the same event we see the wonderful way in which God used Abigail to restrain David’s anger; to help David see the error of that anger and the damage it would cause.

The first Sunday of Advent draws our attention to the coming Savior. Our own elder, Martin Rossol, continued his series about King David from 1 Samuel, and even here, in this historical setting, we see David- in his experiences and struggles -as a “type” of Jesus.

There are many ‘strategies’ for sharing our faith with those who have not yet come to Jesus. Pastor Mike addresses what may be the primary way to let others know that we are Jesus followers.

Pastor David Menzel’s text came from Luke 7. The events in this chapter point to someone who, unlike the church leaders of the day, recognized that Jesus had authority to heal, and if Jesus wanted to hear it would happen. That event is recorded for all of us to challenge us: do we really live as if we believed Jesus has authority to do good for me; for his people; for his church?

Psalm 72 is a song about a king? Pastor Robert Knuth sees three parts to this song: The Heart of the King; The Reign of the King; and The Mercy of the King. And while King Solomon is mentioned in the Psalm, Pastor Knuth suggests that the writer must have another king in mind for the reader or listener to consider.

Many of us secure our homes before turning in for the night. We check and lock doors, pull blinds, set alarms. We take precautions to protect ourselves and our house. Our preacher today, Taylor Wright, suggested that it is more important that we take care to protect our hearts from the intrusion of false gospels. False gospels- or what we understand to be what that which secures our relationship to God -can come from external agents or equally come from within.

The last few years have certainly been challenging for everyone. Where do you turn in times like these? From where do you draw strength to face the day? Pastor Mike encouraged us to see what the prophet Isaiah had to say on this subject in Isaiah Chapter 43.

In Jeremiah 11 the prophet, similar to a physician, is, being given God’s diagnosis of Judah’s “problem”; Judah’s disease. Its a lethal condition but the ‘patient’ is not listening or taking the medicine that will help the ‘patient’ be cured. Dom Marko, our preacher this Sunday, walks us through the diagnosis and then presents the cure.

Martin Rossol got a bit off the subject of “anger” but it allowed him to address how we might understand God using sinful acts of humans to accomplish his will.

Randy Meyers rounded out his 3-sermon series “Walking in the Spirit” this Sunday. He quoted some well-known and some not so well-known authors – all to get us thinking. And “thinking” is one critical aspect for which we are accountable if we are to ‘walk in the Spirit’.

Pastor Frison speaks about the freedom that believers have been gifted with as a result of Jesus sacrifice. Yet his text is Psalm 27; a Psalm of David who was not always as “free” as he would have liked to have been.

The Bible teaches that when a person comes to believe in Jesus as the solution to their “God problem” that they become a new creation. Pastor Galardi explains what that means in Sunday’s sermon.

St Paul’s letter to the Galatians was likely the genesis of the Reformation. And in Chapter 1:1-5 St Paul sets out the basic message that he hopes to communicate to the churches.