Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | When Jesus says, "I am the good shepherd," He is pulling across the pages of Scripture and invoking one of the most cherished, familiar images of God as a shepherd; and He is also reaching down deep into our own hearts and tapping into what what makes this image resonates so powerfully within us. Everything that God describes himself to be as a shepherd, Jesus comes in the flesh and says, "I AM."
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Of all 7 "I Am" statements, Jesus' "I am the door" may be the most forgotten. Likewise, we are usually not mindful of the commonness, importance, and relevance that doors play in our own day-to-day lives. Into this motif, Jesus provides us a clear, stunning image of himself, why He is so relevant and important to our day-to-day lives.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The gospel of John features 7 "I Am" statements of Jesus, and in each one, Jesus claims to be God. In his statement, "I am the light of the world," Jesus connects himself to God's manifest presence, which led and guided the Israelites through the wilderness for 40 years. In the following audio, we will hear what his statement, "I am the light of the world," means for us today.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Billy Graham once said, "Mountaintops make for great views, but fruit is grown in the valley." By looking at Psalm 42-43, in particular, we can glean 3 fruits while we are in the middle of our own valley.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Ecclesiastes focuses on the the purposes of life, and everything that it entails. In chapter 4, the author gives three main purposes for community in the life of the Christian.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Psalm 119 is one the most famous chapters in the Bible on the law of God. Laws are much more than moral imperatives; they are frameworks for relating with God and others. In the following audio, hear about the 3 types of laws, 3 purposes of the law, and 3 freedoms in the law found throughout Scripture.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Ecclesiastes is a book that shakes up our neat, tidy assumptions about life. As the author communicates that a life 'under the sun'--without God and eternity--is just meaningless and vain. Only if there's a God who's involved in our life do we finally have a design, dignity, and delight in our work that the world cannot offer us.
Coalition for Christian Outreach, Jubilee Conference 2020 | In Matthew 7, Jesus reveals the common denominator between those who build their house on the rock and those who built their house on the sand: everyone has a foundation, and everyone is building upon it. The main question is not whether we have a foundation, but what our foundation is.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Joshua marks an entirely new era for the nation of Israel, and it stars with them on the cusp of walking into this new beginning in the land of Canaan. As we look at their story, we'll see 4 main things: 1) Navigating Transition 2) Finding Confidence 3) Exposing The Real Problem 4) Finding The Real Solution.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Transition is an inevitable and normal part of life, although sometimes it can be particularly difficult, regardless of the season that you're transitioning in. In Exodus 16, the Israelites find themselves in a season of transition, and within their story, we can see 3 things: 1) How God Guides, 2) How God Provides, and 3) How We Abide.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | God's covenant to his people means everything: it informs how we can know God and, therefore, interpret all of life--including our pain and suffering.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The Bible recounts that God sent a worldwide flood to judge and cleanse the world of man's wickedness and corruption. Except, in the middle of justice, there is love and promise. This type of love doesn't overlook sin or compromise justice; rather, it fulfills its own law and cleanses us.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Philemon is often overlooked, yet, it might be one of Paul's most important letters. Significantly, it is perhaps Paul's only letter that teaches not through theological argumentation, but through gospel demonstration.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | 'Unity' is a hot topic in our culture today, and it remains a timeless ideal, especially in the church. In 1 Corinthians 1, the Apostle Paul lays the blueprints for how to achieve unity, even for a church in the city of Corinth, the world's most diverse city in 1st century.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Acts 1 recounts the ascension of Jesus and then the origin of the church. Even though Jesus leaves, he 'passes the baton' to Someone else, whom Jesus describes will actually be to the advantage of the corporate church and each individual believer.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jesus' entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday - the week of his crucifixion and resurrection - stands unique from all others kings and their entries. Jesus enters with irony and reversal, coming in a way we certainly wouldn't expect, but in a way we'd absolutely need.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Matthew 13 recounts Jesus' parable of the seed and the sower. Through the parable, we'll see the grounds for perceiving, receiving, and believing the Kingdom of God into our own lives.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jesus' temptation makes Christianity unique and powerful for many reasons. It gives substance to his humanity. It provides validation to our salvation. And it also endows us with an identity in Christ, the key to power over sin.
Second Baptist Church, Houston - TX | Daniel 9 features an intercessory prayer by Daniel for the nation of Israel, outlining the three attributes of prayer. The passage displays prophetic message of the Messiah, an apocalyptic glimpse of the end times, and why all prayer falls right in the middle of your view of the Messiah's first and second coming.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Jeremiah recounts perhaps one of the most grueling seasons of suffering they'd ever have to walk through. Yet, in their suffering and confusion, God gives his people one, unfailing hope—and he offers that same hope to us as well.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Where is God in pain and suffering? But where also is God when pleasure, too, has run its course? God gives Ezekiel a powerful message of his faithfulness to his people, empowering them for any season of life.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The topic of 'revival' can evoke many different ideas and experiences. But what is revival, exactly? In 2 Chronicles 34, we see what revival truly is, what revival is not, and how we access true revival ourselves.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Isaiah 6 shows us a True King when all other kings and kingdoms fail, and how that reorients and redeems everything—to how we perceive God, view ourselves, interact with others, and therefore, navigate life as we know it.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Isaiah 36-37 recounts a battle in Israel's history where the Assyrian Empire threatened to destroy them completely. In this story, we see the nature of real faith, the ultimatum of compromise, and the only confidence that will deliver.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Hosea stands distinct from the other prophetic books because its message was not primarily a compelling word as much as it was a powerful visual. God calls Hosea to love and marry a prostitute to show Israel and the world what his love is like to his people who keep turning away from their covenant to their Lord. In this image of marriage, we see the profound, shocking, and relentless love of God on display for us.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Jonah recounts a story full of unexpected reversal, deep irony, and profound portrayals of God, sin, and grace. The book functions like a mirror, so that we can see the worst of Jonah and Nineveh in all of us--and yet, the best of God in Jesus Christ for all of us, too.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | 1 Kings 18 features the pinnacle of the prophet Elijah's life and ministry: showing that 'The LORD is God' and exposing all other gods as false and fake. Scripture illustrates that false gods cause spiritual drought and cripple you in any circumstance, whereas only the true God causes flourishing and empowers you to run freely in any circumstance.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Solomon is considered the wisest king to have ever lived. But is his wisdom inaccessible to us? In the following audio, we'll look at why 1 Kings 3 gives us a template for how to perceive wisdom, how to receive wisdom, and how God gives wisdom. (1 Kings 3)
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | While social media has many advantages, it can pose many threats as well, especially regarding one's self-worth. In light of the smart phone revolution, the insurgence of social media, and the prevalence of the digital age, deriving self-worth from social media has become endemic to our society today. Our phones might be a symptom; however, they are not the disease. As the following audio makes clear, the real issue is not one's phone, but one's throne. What...
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | 1 Samuel 24 recounts David hiding in a cave from his ruthless pursuer, King Saul. During this scene, David is tempted in two main ways: 1) to despair because of his circumstances, and 2) to take matters into his own hands so that he wouldn't despair. Where David finds strength to resist both temptations--to despair and to take control--shows us where we can find strength to resist temptations in our own circumstances as well. 1 Samuel 24 and its counterpart,...
