What is success? As a new church year begins with the first Sunday of Advent, the words of Jesus from Mark 13:24-37 call us to examine our life and our goals from the perspective of eternity. Are you living for success that will pass away, or are you living for glory that is eternal?
Thanksgiving Eve Worship: Thank You Notes (November 22nd, 2017)
The Gospel story from Luke 17:11-19 highlights one out of ten lepers who was healed by Jesus’ grace and mercy. The difference with that one man was that he returned to give thanks to Jesus, who healed him. Pastor Paige uses the image of thank you notes to discuss the difference between being thankful for something, and being thankful to our God for that thing. God is the one who gives us everything we need. The sermon also gave listeners a chance to voice their own prayers of thankfulness to God for the blessings they have received, and for the mercy and love that is ours through the cross of Christ.
Foundations 500: Prayer (November 19th, 2017)
In Matthew 6:5-15, Jesus tells us that God already knows everything we need before we even ask. What, then, is prayer for? Maybe it’s not for changing God, or even for changing our circumstances. Maybe it’s mainly for changing us. The Christian life is one long journey of conversion, and prayer is an essential part of it.
Foundations 500: Law & Gospel (November 12th, 2017)
One of Martin Luther’s greatest Reformation insights was that in the Bible, God speaks with two voices: the Law and the Gospel. In the Law, God tells us what we are to do; in the Gospel, he gives us grace and new life. Law exposes our flaws; Gospel heals them. Law makes demands; Gospel gives promises. Discover how you can listen for these “two voices” through this sermon based on 1Timothy 1:3-9 and Matthew 5:17-20.
Foundations 500: The Cross (November 5th, 2017)
On All Saints’ Sunday, we thank God for the saints who have gone before us into glory and we also reflect on our own calling to be saints. Today’s sermon, on 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 and Matthew 16:21-28, echoes Martin Luther’s desire to put the Cross at the center of Christian faith and life with the conviction that “the Cross is where saints are made."