On the Virtue of Losing Jesus

On the Virtue of Losing Jesus

A Sermon Based on Luke 2:41-52

Everyone wants to know what Jesus was like when he was growing up. Did he joke? Did he skin his knee? What were his first words? This is such a fervent desire that people who aren’t Christians have even created stories about him that have landed in the official teachings of other religions. This account from Luke is precious to Christians because it is the one place where the Bible characterizes Jesus as a child. What can we learn from this story about the time Mary lost Jesus?

What the World Needs Now: Jesus' Return

What the World Needs Now: Jesus’ Return

A Sermon Based on Isaiah 11:1-10

This Sunday in Advent is our mountain peak just before Christmas. It’s the high point as we await the Christ child at Christmas. In keeping with that, this sermon looks at Isaiah's prophecy that is a direct prophecy of Jesus. It explores the threat of Jesus, the wisdom of Jesus, and the reign of Jesus. As it does so, it places the prophecy in our contemporary setting of 2020, asking listeners to make applications to their lives in time for the New Year.

What the World Needs Now: Faith

What the World Needs Now: Faith

A Sermon Based on Isaiah 7:1-14

This sermon seeks to take the great Immanuel prophecy of Isaiah 7 and place it into the manger of its context. It looks at the context of uncertainty, fear, and unbelief into which it was spoken. It shows that, finally, Isaiah 7 is a diagnostic of what it means to have faith. It, therefore, looks at the way that faith holds to the Word, fears God, and believes the evidence God provides that he is trustworthy and credible.

What the World Needs Now: God's Preachers

What the World Needs Now: God’s Preachers

A Sermon Based on Isaiah 40:1-11

The Lord doesn’t here speak to his people. He speaks about them, but not to them. He speaks to his preachers. What is the significance of that for God’s people? How are they to view their preachers, what they say, and what they bring? This sermon explores Isaiah’s teaching that he gives to and about God’s preachers. They are one of the ways God prepares his people for his Son.

What the World Needs Now: Prayer

All We Have is a Prayer

A Sermon Based on Isaiah 63:16b, 17; 64:1-8

What does the world really need? It needs nothing but the full-on advent of God himself. This sermon explores how Christians are reduced to praying only for that. It, therefore, interacts with modern optimism, which is not sure that the end of this world is really necessary. It also looks at the way that Isaiah spiritually and prayerfully prepares Christian hearts for the final advent of the Lord. He does this magnificently, taking on our self-righteously and pointing us to Christ who is our only true righteousness.

When Soldiers Come Home

When Soldiers Come Home

(A Sermon Based on Isaiah 9:1-7)

There is so much about this Scripture that makes the hearts of Christians warm. So much. But there is one part of this Scripture that is neglected that is truly the key to the whole prophecy: the burning boots. Listen in to this Christmas sermon about what God wants you to put in your Christmas hearth.