For some, faith begins with a hard shell, a rigid set of answers and platitudes that keep them safe but eventually prevent them from growing into who they could be. The system that was initially prote...
Leader: This week may you remember that it is by grace that you’re saved, through faith. It’s not of your own doing—it’s a gift of God through the work of the Holy Spirit. May the same power that rais...
Holy God, we confess that we have been lukewarm about living our faith in Jesus each day. We put off to tomorrow what we know in our hearts you want to happen today. We go through the motions of relig...
The only opportunity you will ever have to live by faith is in the circumstances you are provided this very day: this house you live in, this family you find yourself in, this job you have been given,...
Luke 24:1–12, 2 Thessalonians 3:16, Colossians 3:15, Isaiah 25:3, John 14:27
Pastor: The Lord bless you and keep you strong in resurrection faith. The Lord make His face shine on you and graciously let Easter joy dawn within you. The Lord lift up His countenance upon you...
Psalm 51:10-12, Colossians 3:12-13, Philippians 2:3-4, 1 Peter 3:8, Romans 12:2, Galatians 5:22-23, Matthew 22:37-39
Pastor: Heavenly Father, You have commanded us to love You above all things and our neighbors as ourselves. By Your Holy Spirit, mold and shape us into the image of Your Son, for we desire to look, ...
Preaching commentary Questions for Consideration What does a prayer reveal about a person? What do you most often pray for/about and what might that reveal about you? A Beautiful and Compel...
Acts 2:29-40, 1 Peter 2:9, 1 Peter 1:3, Ephesians 1:18-19, Romans 6:4, Colossians 1:13-14
Pastor: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. People: Amen. Pastor: Alleluia! Christ is risen! People: He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Pastor: ...
Preaching Commentary a brief introduction I would like to start with a rather big question. How do we know that we are, in fact, Christians? We find some direction from Jesus on this subject in Mat...
Ephesians 3:14-21, 2 Samuel 11:1-15, Psalm 14:, Ephesians 2:19-22, John 6:1-21, Colossians 1:16, Luke 11:2, Psalm 95:6, Galatians 5:
Questions for Consideration What does a prayer reveal about a person? What do you most often pray for/about and what might that reveal about you? A Beautiful and Compelling Gospel Prayer The...
Luke 24:36b-48, Luke 24:36-48, Luke 24:1-12, Luke 24:13-15, Luke 24:36-48, Luke 24:47-48, John 20:19-29, John 14:27, Luke 24:37, Luke 24:39-43, Romans 5:12, Romans 5:17, Colossians 1:null, Luke 24:44-49, Luke 24:46-47, Luke 24:48-49, John 16:7
Preaching Commentary Context Post-Resurrection Appearances The four Gospel writers vary in which and how many of Jesus’ thirteen post-resurrection appearances they choose to record. Luke reserves ...
Romans 12:4-5, Colossians 3:14, Galatians 3:28, John 17:20-23, Ephesians 4:3-6
O God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, our only Savior, the Prince of Peace: Give us grace to take to heart the great dangers we are in by our unhappy divisions. Take away all hatred and prejudice...
Colossians 3:16, Hebrews 10:22, Ephesians 6:18, Psalm 19:14, John 4:24
Almighty God, the source of every good prayer, who pours out on all who desire it the spirit of grace and supplication; deliver us, when we draw near to you, from coldness of heart and wanderings of m...
John 1:1-14, John 1:1, Genesis 1:null, Colossians 1:null
Preaching Commentary God expressed Himself J.B. Phillips paraphrases the first line of John 1:1, “At the beginning God expressed himself ”. God’s word is more than mere speech. His word is action....
In the Middle Ages there were theologians who wrote volumes on proofs of God. Anselm (1033–1109) came up with the ontological proof of God that there exists in our minds an idea of a being than which ...
By misinterpreting the Enlightenment and the corresponding rise of empiricism as an existential threat to Christian faith, many frightened Christians sequestered themselves into rooms of certitude.
Titus 3:4-7, John 3:16, Ephesians 2:8-9, 1 Peter 3:18, Romans 5:8, Colossians 1:19-20, Philippians 2:6-8
To tell someone what you believe may be to answer the wrong question—better to say, instead, what the church believes, better to use the language the church has bequeathed to us to shape our experienc...
Living God, help us so to hear your holy Word that we may truly understand; that, understanding, we may believe and believing, we may follow in all faithfulness and obedience, seeking your honor and g...
John 1:1-14, John 1:1, Genesis 1:null, Colossians 1:null
God expressed Himself J.B. Phillips paraphrases the first line of John 1:1, “At the beginning God expressed himself ”. God’s word is more than mere speech. His word is action. When God speaks in Gen...
Matthew 5:48, 1 John 3:2-3, Galatians 5:16-17, Philippians 3:13-14, Colossians 3:1-2, Ephesians 4:22-24
The scholastics used to say: Homo non proprie humanus sed superhumanus est —which means that to be properly human, you must go beyond the merely human.
Acts 1:9-11 , Matthew 28:16-20, Ephesians 1:20-23, Colossians 1:15-20, John 14:15-18, Hebrews 9:24 , 1 Corinthians 15:24-28
Almighty God, whose blessed Son our Saviour Jesus Christ ascended far above all heavens, that he might fill all things: Mercifully give us faith to perceive that according to his promise he abides wi...