Episodes
Thursday Jun 27, 2019
S6E70: Believing God's Mercy (Victory in Faith pt. 4)
Thursday Jun 27, 2019
Thursday Jun 27, 2019
S6E70: Believing God's Mercy (Victory in Faith pt. 4)
On the heels of great victory, often there comes great depression. Why, in our human existance, do great lows follow great highs? When the celebration ends and the cheering stops, why do we feel as if life itself is over? That's what we see today in the reading from 1 Kings. Elijah had just defeated the 400 prophets of Baal, and then he runs away into the wilderness to die. Yet God strengthened him for his journey, and revealed Himself to Elijah and said lovingly, "What are you doing here?" We need to follow spiritual victory with spiritual refreshing, and God has promised that he will never leave us nor forsake us. We can take comfort in believing God's mercy for us today.
(This sermon was preached in 2016 as part of the "Victory in Faith" series based on the life of Elijah but was never released as a podcast. For more sermons in this series, see January 2017 - Believing God's Power, Believing God's Provision, and Believing God's Justice)
1 Kings 19:1-18
Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on June 19, 2016
S.D.G.
Tuesday Jun 25, 2019
S6E69: Contend for the Faith (Practical Wisdom from Jude pt. 2)
Tuesday Jun 25, 2019
Tuesday Jun 25, 2019
The greatest attacks on the church of Jesus Christ come not from outside of it, but from inside. It is not the world and its pagan, Godless ways that we as Christians must battle, but false teaching from within. And so Jude, wanting to write a letter celebrating the common salvation he shares with other Christians, instead felt the urgency to fire off a letter inciting the church to "contend for the faith." In today's message we see that what Jude's audience was contending against is not so unlike the things facing modern Christians, and we look at the difference between legalism and license, and where the true Gospel of Christ falls between them.
Jude 3-4
Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on June 23, 2019
S.D.G.
Tags:
Bible, Christ, Christianity, faith, God, gospel, Grace, Jesus, Jude, Methodist, religion, salvation, sermon, Sin
Friday Jun 21, 2019
S4E04: The Godhead, Three in One
Friday Jun 21, 2019
Friday Jun 21, 2019
The doctrine of the Trinity is confusing for even long-time Christians, and is often a stumbling block for those who do not believe. We say we worship one God, and yet we speak of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, each as God but not three Gods. We have names for the Trinity like the Godhead, and we speak of one God in three persons. So how does the doctrine of the Trinity actually reveal God in all His glory? How do the interpersonal relationships between the three persons of the Godhead really work? We will look at all of these questions and more on this Trinity Sunday. So grab your Bible, turn it to John chapter 16, and prepare your heart and mind as we look at the Godhead, three in one.
John 16:12-15
Recorded at Ebenezer on May 22, 2016 (Trinity Sunday); Originally posted on July 25, 2016
S.D.G.
Wednesday Jun 19, 2019
S6E68: Why Jude? (Part 1 of "Practical Wisdom from Jude")
Wednesday Jun 19, 2019
Wednesday Jun 19, 2019
We talk about being a Bible-believing church and that means we believe ALL the Bible is God-breathed, or inspired to be the very word of God for the church in every age. So even though the short (25-verse) letter of Jude is excluded from the Revised Common Lectionary, we are endeavoring to unpack its wisdom verse-by-verse in a Summer series titled "Practical Wisdom from Jude." Today we begin with an introduction and overview of Jude's letter and answer the questions: Who was Jude? Why do we have his letter in the Bible? and To whom was the letter written, and why? And over the course of the next several weeks we will go verse-by-verse through this letter to glean its wisdom for us today.
Jude 1-2
Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on June 16, 2019
S.D.G.
Tags:
Bible, Christ, Christianity, faith, God, gospel, Jesus, Jude, Methodist, religion, sermon
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
S4E01: Have You Told Anyone? (Seven Vows pt. 7)
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
We come to the end of our sermon series based upon the baptismal vows of the United Methodist Church, and we come also to the biggest baptism recorded in the Bible. Pentecost was a Jewish holy day and feast celebrating the harvest, but on this particular Pentecost the Holy Spirit filled the disciples and they went out into the streets of Jerusalem proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ. In our baptismal vows, we look at the five vows we make when we join the local church - to uphold it with our prayers, our presence, our gifts, our service, and our witness. And on this Pentecost Sunday we focus on our witness, and how we can tell the good news with courage and conviction, especially in today's increasingly secular society. So grab your Bible, turn it to Acts chapter 2, and prepare your heart and mind as we answer the question, have you told anyone?
Acts 2:1-21
Recorded at Hudson UMC on May 15, 2016 (Pentecost Sunday) (First aired on July 4, 2016)
S.D.G.
Monday Jun 10, 2019
S6E67: Raise Your Voice
Monday Jun 10, 2019
Monday Jun 10, 2019
On the day of Pentecost, we celebrate the birth of the Church, but what exactly does it mean? There were a number of firsts on that day. The first outpouring of the Holy Spirit, as promised by Jesus. The first Christian sermon, delivered by Peter. And the first mass-baptism, as 3,000 people joined the ranks of believers on that day. The emphasis on this day is on the giving of the Holy Spirit, and how that made the early harvest of 3,000 souls possible. And it is the Holy Spirit poured out on us today that can still make such things possible.
Acts 2:1-21
Recorded at Hudson UMC on June 9, 2019
S.D.G.
Tags:
Acts, baptism, Bible, Christ, Christianity, evangelism, faith, God, gospel, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Methodist, Pentecost, Peter, religion, salvation, sermon, Witness
Friday Jun 07, 2019
S3E46: Faith in the Scriptures (Seven Vows pt. 6)
Friday Jun 07, 2019
Friday Jun 07, 2019
On this Mother's Day we continue our sermon series based upon the vows of our Baptismal covenant. We'll look at how the faith of Paul and Silas affected so many people around them, people to whom they may not have even spoken directly about Jesus Christ. We also see the promise of Paul to the Roman Jailer, that if he believes on the Lord Jesus Christ then he will be saved - he and his entire family. Our faith certainly affects the faith of those around us, particularly our families. So we'll also take a short departure and recognize some of the women of faith in our families, to recognize how they have formed and shaped our faith. So grab your Bible, turn it to Acts chapter 16, and prepare your heart and mind as we proclaim our faith in the scriptures.
Acts 16:16-34
Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on May 8, 2016 (Originally aired June 17, 2016)
S.D.G.
Wednesday Jun 05, 2019
S6E66: Come
Wednesday Jun 05, 2019
Wednesday Jun 05, 2019
We wrap up our look at the book of Revelation with the end of chapter 22, and the end of the Christian Bible. Within the text today we see an invitation to come to the waters of life - and we also see a promise that Jesus will one day come again. And even though we have been waiting for two thousand years, we are reminded that to an eternal God, "soon" is a relative term, and is perhaps not soon enough for our liking. But we find we can trust in Jesus that the word he speaks is true.
Revelation 22:12-21
Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on June 2, 2019
S.D.G.