MAY 11, 2025

Lies about Love: Love is Always a Warm Feeling

Philippians 2:5-8. If you watch romantic comedies, you see a few things that jump out very quickly. When you love someone or something: You always feel butterflies; Love means you’re always happy with/around that person; Loving someone is always easy; Love means you’re never mad at the other person. Most of us are probably well aware that the stereotypes we see in these movies aren’t true. Perhaps we always knew that, perhaps time and experience have taught us some of these things. Love is often much messier, much more demanding, much harder than that. Love is taking care of people, even when you’re mad at them. Love is providing for people, even when you don’t think they deserve it. Love is disciplining or correcting someone, even when you know they will get angry at you, because you know it is best for them. Love is giving the benefit of the doubt, even when someone’s words or actions make you want to think or believe the worst about someone. As we start our new series this week, let's explore the lie about love, that love is always a warm feeling.

MAY 04, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: The Lord Reigns

Psalm 93. The theme of this psalm is that God reigns. God is King. God is in control. He created the universe and all that is in it and it's all his. This psalm also mentions the mighty power of the waves and floods of the sea. That's a poetic way of describing the troubles of life and wickedness in the world that seem so mighty. But the psalmist says, God is mightier than the troubles and wickedness of this world and we can trust in him and every word he has spoken. We also see how this psalm finds fulfillment in Jesus who is God's provision for our salvation from the troubles and wickedness in this life.

APR 27, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: The Lord is Our Stronghold

Psalm 37. Psalm 37 is a wisdom psalm written by David. But this time, it’s not a prayer or a song, like we usually see. In this psalm, David takes on the role of a teacher writing to students to give instructions on how to respond to the success of the wicked. David tells us not to fret over the apparent success of evildoers, but to trust in the Lord and do good. In the end, God's children will receive their reward of the eternal promised land and be with God forever.

APR 20, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: Jesus our Savior

Psalm 22. David spoke these words about himself and his desperate situation, and didn’t know that one day the Messiah would use these same words while on the cruel cross and cry out to God as he suffered for us, and that they would describe more details about the crucifixion. But, as we'll see, there is a clear shift from a prayer for help to a praise for help as David is answered and rescued by God, and it also describes God hearing Jesus' cry from the cross and answering him in the resurrection!

APR 13, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: Search Me, O God

Psalm 139. This psalm by David expresses great praise to God and great desire to follow God's ways. David says he knows God knows him, he knows God is with him, he knows God made him, and we see that God matters to David and he only wants to walk in God's ways.

APR 06, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: Unless the Lord Builds the House

Psalm 127. This psalm tells us that unless we depend on God's guidance and blessings and align our plans with his purposes, all our efforts are empty and pointless. We also learn some things about how to build a God-centered family.

MAR 30, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: Sit at My Right Hand

Psalm 110. David was looking ahead to the day when the Christ, who was his son as a descendent, but also the Son of God, would take his place on the throne as king of God’s people. He was more than a human king. He was divinity. So, David called him “Lord”. Because Jesus sits at God’s right hand in heaven, it means he has accomplished salvation for all who put their faith in him.

MAR 23, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: God is My Strength and My Portion Forever

Psalm 73. In this psalm, we find Asaph who is one of God’s priests in Israel, in a low spot in his faith as he looks over at the other side, at the unrighteous, and begins to think their grass looks greener, and he almost walks away from his faith. Have you ever been there? Have you ever been through a time when life just has you fed up and beat down? You’ve devoted yourself to God, but it seems like you take one step forward and two steps back, and you’ve begun to wonder if living for God is even worth it. But, Asaph thought about where his path would end and where their path would end. And that’s what he needed to remember.

MAR 16, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: Create in Me a Clean Heart, O God

Psalm 51. King David was in a terrible mess. He had done some awful things. Psalm 51 is the prayer David prayed to God after he had come face to face with the darkness and ugliness of his sin. To some degree, all of us can relate to David because we’ve all sinned and have seen its effects in our own life and in the lives of others. We’ve seen the destruction and ugliness of sin, and we’ve longed for God’s grace and mercy to make us clean. And all that David prayed and longed for, God’s grace and mercy, his forgiveness and love, find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ.

MAR 09, 2025

A Psalm in My Soul: The Way of the Righteous and the Wicked

Psalm 1. Psalm 1 is a gateway into the whole book. It sets the stage for everything else by telling us that anyone who genuinely wants to live for God must embrace his word. It shows us that God’s way is best and leads to eternal life. You can’t walk down two roads at the same time. This opening psalm gives us a choice to make about our lives that determines everything else about our lives.

MAR 02, 2025

Cheerful Giving

2 Corinthians 9:6-15. In verse 7, Paul tells us something that God loves. He loves a cheerful giver. Paul teaches that Christians are to give generously from the heart knowing that our giving is an act of worship to God for the indescribable gift of Jesus and salvation.

FEB 23, 2025

Jesus and His Church: The Need for the Church

2 Corinthians 5:10-21. We don’t always really need the things we think we do. More often they’re wants. Let's think about something that every person in the whole world needs. They may not realize it, and they may not even want it right now, but they need it. And that’s the Lord’s church.

FEB 16, 2025

Jesus and His Church: The Hope of the Church

1 Peter 1:3-5. The hope of the church is salvation in heaven. It’s not a hope like we hope ice cream goes on sale, or we hope we make it to the gas station before we run out of gas. It’s a certain and sure confidence, because when we are born again in Christ, we have salvation in him as long as we hold on to our hope.

FEB 09, 2025

Jesus and His Church: The Fellowship of the Church

1 John 1:6-7. If you choose to walk in the light and to follow God’s ways, then you continue to have fellowship with God and with one another. You can’t go two directions. You choose every day to walk in the light of God or in the darkness of sin. Additionally, when you choose to stay in the light, to practice God’s truth, then you have the benefit of fellowship with the church and the benefit of continual cleansing from your sins.

FEB 02, 2025

Jesus and His Church: The Organization of the Church

Ephesians 4:11-16. If you’ve ever been on a team, had a job, or been in a family, you understand the concept of organization. You understand that there are different roles with different responsibilities within any organization. The Lord’s church is no different. We like to think about the church as a family, and it certainly is. God is our Heavenly Father and has adopted us as his children, but there is a God-given organization to the church. Talking about the organization of the church matters because souls matter. We want people to be added to the Lord’s church, to mature spiritually, and help more people come to know Christ.