In the world we live in, paying someone up front for the work they promised to do is usually considered foolish. Half now, half on completion, something like that. Why? Because once they have our money, what’s the incentive to finish the job? The objection that Paul addresses is similar. Paul, all this grace up front is going to keep people from a …

Romans 6. What a great way to move from Easter back to Romans, just as Jesus died and was raised to life, so too we are dead to sin and alive to him. We look to the reading of God’s word if you join me in prayer. Living God, we ask you to help us to hear your Holy word that we may truly understand and that in understanding we may believe and believ…

Darkness of Good Friday gave way to the brightness of Easter morning. He has risen indeed. Our text before us is John 20. We’ll be starting with the first 10 verses. And as we look to the reading of God’s word, if you please join me in prayer. Blessed are you, Holy God, in Jesus Christ, your light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not ov…

That the inspiration of our thoughts may be true and all our ways truly righteous. Pour down your spirit, that we might be lifted up in your presence, that we might dwell in your righteousness and live forever bathed in your truth. We pray this through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. This morning, you can see our scripture passage is John 12:12-21. O…

Before we look at these verses 12 through 21, let’s pray together. Please pray with me. Our Father in heaven, we give you thanks for this beautiful day in which the creation is revealing your glory and power. We give you thanks for this beautiful day in which there is grace in this place for these people. We give you thanks that this is your Holy w…

We’ve obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand. We rejoiced in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoiced in our suffering. Knowing that suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the…

You’ll join me in prayer for the reading of God’s word. Blessed Lord, in your great and kind providence. All holy scriptures were written and preserved for our instruction. We ask that you would give us grace to hear them proclaim this day. That you would strengthen our souls with the fullness of their divine teaching. That you would keep us from p…

In one cohesive whole, all Christians are saved by God’s gift of Christ’s righteousness. We look to the reading of God’s word if you join me in prayer. Most gracious God, our heavenly Father, it is in you alone dwells the fullness of light and wisdom. And we ask them that by your Holy Spirit that you would continue to enlighten our minds to underst…

Forgotten. I pray this in the name and in the power of Jesus Christ. Amen. I don’t know if you know this about me, but I played college baseball. Yeah. Pretty impressive, isn’t it? Yeah. I played second base on the account of my weak arm, and I only started because the real second baseman thought he was too good to show up for practices, and he was…

Romans 3. Paul is steadily building his argument that all are unrighteous before a holy God, that we need the righteousness of Christ received by faith alone. If you look to the reading of God’s word, though, if you would please join me in prayer. We give thanks to you, a Lord of lords, for your steadfast love endures forever. You alone do great wo…

Some have referred to this part of Romans as an exposition of the Lord Jesus parable of the two lost sons. Can I have the sex, drugs, and rock and roll son of the younger brother, and then the self-righteousness, the hard-heartedness, the indifference of the older brother seen between Gentiles and Jews. We look to the reading of God’s word if you w…

Reigns with you in the unity of the Holy spirit, one God, world without end. Amen. Chapter 2, beginning in verse 1. Therefore, you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges, or in passing judgment on another, you condemn yourself because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those …

Has admitted, frankly, that abortion is murder, the extermination of the powerless by the powerful. Liberals, for the most part, have shrunk from facing the ethical consequences of their embrace of abortion, which results in the anihilation of concrete individuals that people… And not just clumps of insensate tissue. We must acknowledge that people…

Let us pray for the reading of God’s word. Father, as we come in this worship service now to this time of your word, to hear it read, to hear it preached, Lord, we need you to act. We ask that you would soften our hearts, that you would unstop our ears, that we would truly hear your word. Father, that by the power of your spirit, you would work it …

Today is Epiphany Sunday. Epiphany is that Greek word which means to show or to appear. We celebrate the light of Christ coming into the world. Typically, on Epiphany Sunday, we look either at the baptism of Jesus or global missions through the Magi. This morning, we are in Matthew 3, looking at the baptism of Jesus. As we look through the reading …

I’m a standing for a prayer and the reading of God’s word. We pray for the reading of God’s word. This is from Psalm 1:19. Let us pray. Father, we long to love your law that it would be our meditation all the day, that your commandments would make us wiser than our enemies, for they would be ever with us, that we would have more understanding than …

Zephaniah, chapter three, the prophets message of God’s anger and wrath have given way to the joy of God. We look to the reading of God’s word if you join me in prayer. Blessed are you, holy God. In Jesus Christ, your light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Blessed are you, God of light. We ask you to shine in our lives …

Zephaniah, chapter 3. The prophet moves from judgment now to hope. So you look to the reading of God’s word, if you please join me in prayer. Father, indeed, you are the source of all life, and by your word, you give light to our souls. We ask that you would open the eyes of our heart that we would know your wisdom, that we would live by your under…

Prophet Zephaniah. Chapter two and three. We continue looking at the Zephaniah as we consider preparation for advent. Zephaniah was a prophet who ministered before the fall of Jerusalem. It’s a great destruction. And this week we see again more of the bad news. Hope is around the corner, but it must come through the ruins. So we look to the reading…

Prophet Zephaniah. As we begin advent, we are going to do so by looking from the vantage point of the prophets. They point us as a people of God forward to the coming of the Messiah. And Zephaniah is a short and a compact summary of their message. We look to the reading of God’s word, if you please join me in prayer. Father of all mercies, Lord, in…

You. If you please stand for the reading of God’s word. Matthew 5, we conclude our series on the beatitude this morning, we end on a note of persecution. As we look to the reading of God’s word, if you please join me in prayer. Christ our God, we ask you to set our hearts on fire with love through your word, that in its flame we would love you with…

Let me pray for the reading of God’s word this morning. Let us pray. Thy righteousness is righteous forever, and thy law is true. Blessed God, eternal goodness, righteous and truth forever. Blessed are you, God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Grant to us that pure and Holy Spirit that our hearts may be right with your law written on them, that…

The Beatitudes, Matthew 5, fame poet, Emily Dickinson, told us that the heart wants what it wants. The problem is we are notorious for wanting the wrong things. We look to the reading of God’s word if you’ll join me in prayer. Lord, we do ask that you would instruct us to stay through your word, that you would command what you will. But first that …

Matthew 5, particularly looking at verse 7, Understanding the mercy of the Lord. As we look to the reading of God’s word, please join me and pray. God, you indeed are the source of all light. And by your word, you give light to our souls. So we ask that you pour out upon us the spirit of wisdom and understanding. That being taught by you in holy sc…

This morning, what does it mean to hunger and to thirst for righteousness? We will read the entire beatitudes once more. But before we do, if you join me in prayer for the reading of God’s word. Lord, you know that we are a dole of heart, prone to sin, prone to carelessness. We ask that you would open our eyes to the truths of your gospel, that you…

Let us pray for the reading of God’s word. This is from Psalm 19. Father, we ask that you would remember your word to us, your servants, in which you would have made us hope that it would be the comfort in our affliction and that your promise would give us life. That when we think of your rules of old, that we would take comfort, O Lord. Lord, we a…

The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, Matthew 5:1-10. Seeing the crowds, he went up to the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for…

Matthew, chapter five. We’ll be looking at the Beatitudes one by one over the next few weeks. We start, we’ll go ahead and read the entire text. And as we look to the reading of God’s word, if you please join me in prayer. O Lord, we do ask that you would shed your light on us, that being rid of the darkness of our hearts, that we may come to the t…

Matthew 5, we finished our short series looking at applying the golden rule in an age of unkindness, and we finish with the hardest challenge yet that Jesus gives to us. So we look to the reading of God’s word if you please join me in prayer. Christ our God, we do ask that you would set our hearts and fire with love through Your Word. Teach us, Fat…

Psalm 51:10-19. Today, we look at the rest of Psalm 51, David’s Psalm of repentance. As we look to the reading of God’s word, if you would join me in prayer. God, indeed, you are a helper. And by your Holy Spirit, we ask that you would open our minds that as your scriptures are read, as your word is proclaimed, that we may be led into your truth an…

Please join with me in a prayer for the reading of God’s word. Father, we desire to love your law that it would be our meditation all the day. We ask that your commandments would make us wiser than our enemies, that they would be ever with us, that you would give us more understanding than our teachers, that your testimonies would give us more inst…

Matthew 7:12, this verse is considered probably one of the best-known sayings of Jesus around the world of anything that he has said, well-known to all of us worldwide. As we look through the reading of that word, if you would please join me in prayer. Father of mercies, let us stand in awe of you this day. We ask you to help us by your Spirit to p…

I invite you to remain standing for the reading of God’s word. Psalm 51, verses 10-19, we look today at the rest of Psalm 51, which we started last week, the familiar hymn of David’s repentance. As we look to the reading of God’s word, he would join me in prayer. God, our helper, by your Holy Spirit, we ask that you to open our minds that as script…

Psalm 51:1-9, we’ll be taking the next couple of weeks to work through this psalm. It’s one of the most well-known of the Psalms of confession, one that we have sung about in many different ways. Again, very familiar, David’s Song of Confession. As we look to the reading of God’s word, though, if you would join me in prayer. Father of all mercy, yo…

As we approach the word, let us go before the Lord in prayer. Let’s pray. Father, we have heard your call to worship, and in worship, we have sung Your praise. In worship, we have confessed our sins. In worship, we have heard of your forgiveness. In that worship, we approach your word, you who opens eyes, you who unstoppable ears. Father, we pray t…

This morning we will consider wisdom and spiritual warfare. We’ll be starting with wisdom in Proverbs 8, and we’re moving to several other places in scripture. This is more topical in nature. As we look to the reading of God’s word, if you would join me in prayer. O Lord, we do ask that you would shed your light upon us, that being rid of the darkn…

Our text this morning. Psalm 25. Two weeks ago we considered how can I know what God’s will is for me? And today we’re going to consider a couple of the deeper issues or fears that concern us when we discuss finding God’s will in our lives. As we look to the reading of His Word though, if you please join me in prayer. Bless are you holy god in Jesu…

Father, as we come before your word, we ask that we would see you as we look into your word, that you would reveal yourself to us, that we would learn of your nature, learn of your love, learn of your power, understand better your plan in the world around us and in our own life. Father, as we look to your word, may we see ourselves more clearly. Ma…

We are in Proverbs chapter two. Proverbs 2. This morning we consider what it means to find God’s will, god’s direction for our lives, as we look to the reading of God’s Word. If you’d please join me in prayer. Father of all mercies in Your Word, endless glory shine forth. It is Your Word that guides our steps and gives discernment to those who seek…

Psalm 43, when we are laid low, how do we speak God to our hearts? So you look through the reading of God’s Word. Would you join me in prayer? Father, you know that we are dull of heart, prone to sin, prone to carelessness. So we ask that you would open our eyes to the truth of Your Gospel, that you would unplug our ears, that we would hear Your wo…

We’re starting with Proverbs 10 this morning as we consider our speech as food for the soul. I’ve referred to at times as a nuts and bolts sermon. It is a refresher of the things we already know. We go to the Word of the Lord, you join me in prayer. Living God, we do ask that you would help us to hear your Holy Word, that we may truly understand an…

Numbers, Chapter 35 and 36. We reached the end of our series on the Book of numbers. We’ve been taking, as it were, a 10,000 foot view over the whole book. This morning we are going to cover the issue of murder and inheritance, as well as connecting all the dots of the whole book as it relates to the person work of Jesus. So if you’re visiting, buc…

Continuing moving through the Book of numbers, where chapters 31 and 32 are almost near the end of our series. Today we are looking, as Israel sits across still from the promised land, a victory they have over the nation of Midian, followed by a change in some of the tribes desire for their inheritance. As we look to the reading of God’s Word, if y…

As we prepare to hear God’s Word, let’s go before him in prayer. This prayer is pulled out of Psalm 119. Let us pray. Father, as we come now before your word, we ask that our hearts would be such that we would rejoice at your word. We would be like one who has found a great spoil, that you would work in us and change us such that we might hate and …

John 10. Last week, Pentecost Sunday, we looked at the work of the Holy Spirit as he empowers us to bring the message of Christ as the mission of the Church. And today we continue to look then on Trinity Sunday at an aspect of that core belief in the divinity of Christ. As we look to the reading of God’s Word, if you would join me in prayer. Father…

Genesis 11, we’ll take a break from our series on numbers in honor of Pentecost. Pentecost was the Old Testament feast of weeks. 50 days after the Passover, they celebrated the in gathering of the harvest. And for Christians, it is the celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples for the in gathering of the harvest of the nations…

As we have need to encourage, to bind up, to humble. But in all these things that you would turn our eyes to you, that we would see you as the great, faithful promise keeper. And you would teach us to trust in you this day. We pray this in Jesus’ name and for his sake, Amen. To you to work our way through numbers, we’ll be looking at chapters 26 an…

Remain standing for the reading of God’s Word. The account of Balaam and his donkey is probably one of the better known stories in the Bible. And through it, we see God’s commitment to bless his people. So we look to the reading of God’s Word if you join me in prayer. Our Father, Majesty and bound, worthy of all worship, and you Christ, are the Kin…

Numbers 21. If you’re visiting with us, we are working our way through this often neglected part of Scripture, connecting biblical dots along the way. This morning we are confronted with a pair of scandals, a sign of the serpent as a means of salvation, healing, and a seeming injustice in dealing with the enemies of God. As we look to the reading G…

Numbers 20 come to the low point of the wilderness wandering. Catastury comes to all three of Israel’s great leaders, and the look for mercy never shows up. As we look to the reading of God’s Word, if you would join me in prayer. Most gracious God, our heavenly father, in you alone dwells all the fullness of light and wisdom. We ask then that by yo…