Scripture: Romans 12:9-13 Key Takeaways: “Beloved Brethren, we are philosophers not in word but in deeds; we exhibit our wisdom not by our dress, but by truth; we know virtues by their practice rather than through boasting of them; we do not speak great things, but we live them.” Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, 256. + Genuine Love Genuine Discerning Affectionate Psalm 16:2-3 (ESV) Honoring + Zealous Service + Patient Joy + Generous Hospitality...
Jul 08, 2024•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 12:3-8 Key Takeaways: New Identity New Assignment 1 Corinthians 12:4-7 (ESV) 1 Corinthians 12:11 (ESV) New Power Ephesians 3:7-8 (ESV) Ephesians 2:19-22 (ESV)...
Jun 30, 2024•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 12:2 Key Takeaways: Resist the Formation of the World Galatians 1:3-5 (ESV) Romans 8:5-8 (ESV) “We can present our bodies to the Lord as genuinely holy and acceptable sacrifices only if we “do not conform to this world” but “are transformed by the renewing of the mind. - Douglas Moo Renew your Mind by the Gospel Titus 3:5-7 (ESV) “MY DEAR WORMWOOD, I note with grave displeasure that your patient has become a Christian. Do not indulge the hope that you will escape the usual pena...
Jun 23, 2024•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 12:1 Key Takeaways: “The Christian and the Materialist hold different beliefs about the universe. They can’t both be right. The one who is wrong will act in a way which simply doesn’t fit the real universe. Consequently, with the best will in the world, he will be helping his fellow creatures to their destruction.” - C.S. Lewis Romans 12:1 ( NIV) Romans 1:24-25 (ESV) Romans 12:1 (NIV) Offer Your Body to God 1 Peter 2:5 (ESV) Philippians 4:18 (ESV) Display the Worth & Beauty of ...
Jun 17, 2024•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast This sermon explores Romans 11:25-32, emphasizing that theology should lead us to doxology (praise) and devotion (godliness). It underscores the wonder and worth of God, the wisdom and ways of God, and the wealth and works of God, acknowledging that while God can be truly known, He cannot be fully comprehended. Scripture: Romans 11:25-32 Key Takeaways: “ As I often tell my students, theology is for doxology and devotion — that is, the praise of God and the practice of godliness...Theology is at ...
Jun 11, 2024•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 11:25-32 Key Takeaways: God has a heart for the Jewish people and so should we. Salvation is of God so be humble. 1 Corinthians 1:28–31 God lets us fall into and feel our sin so we might marvel at His mercy....
Jun 02, 2024•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 11:11-24 Key Takeaways: Main Idea: "God has always wanted a people to reveal his glory to and display his glory through. Three Parts of God's Plan Genesis 12:2–3 Ephesians 3:6 Ephesians 3:9 “The restoration of Israel is an easier process than the call of the gentiles” - John Stott Two Ways to Respond Romans 10:3-4 One Hope for us All Isaiah 49:6 Revelation 7:9 “One cannot help but wonder what the remarkable result would be if this mass of lay people could be spiritually release...
May 28, 2024•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 10:13-11:11 Key Takeaways: Even when it looks like unbelief is winning the day, God is at work saving a people for himself . 1 Peter 3:18 “At the turn of the 20th century, Africa was home to less than 10 million Christians, fewer than any other region except Oceania. By 2000, the Christian population in Africa had exploded to more than 383 million. In 2020, more Christians lived in Africa than any other region of the world. By 2050, with a Christian population of more than 1.28...
May 19, 2024•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 10:5–17 Key Takeaways: A Person is saved solely by faith in the crucified and risen Lord Jesus, apart from works. Apart from personal, conscious, saving faith in Jesus people will experience eternal judgment. Romans 2:5 Ezekiel 18:23 Ezekiel 33:11 John 3:16–17 Universalism Mark 9:42–48 Matthew 25:46 Revelation 20:14–15 “Hell is a dreadful reality. To speak of it lightly proves we do not grasp its horror. I know of no one who has overstated the terrors of hell. We can scarcely s...
May 13, 2024•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 9:30-10:4 Key Takeaways: God did not promise salvation to every ethnic Israelite, but only to those he sovereignly chose to be recipients of his saving love ( Romans 9:6-29 ). Israel did not respond to Jesus in faith ( Romans 9:30-10:21 ). John 5:39-40 John 6:35-45 Because the Gospel is so shocking, many people are offended by it and stumble over it. Philippians 3:4-9 Because the Gospel is so shocking, it takes a work of God to believe it. 2 Corinthians 4:4-6 To make intercessi...
May 05, 2024•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 9:14–29 Key Takeaways: Exodus 4:21 Exodus 7:3–4 Exodus 7:13 God’s ultimate aim in all that he does is the manifestation of and magnification of his glory. Romans 11:33–36 Romans 16:27 Philippians 4:20 1 Timothy 1:17 Isaiah 42:8 In Election, God Displays his perfections in the manifestation of his Mercy (9:15). Exodus 33:18–19 “The stunning thing for Paul is not that God rejected Ishmael and Esau but that he chose Isaac and Jacob, for they did not deserve to be included in his m...
Apr 29, 2024•53 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 9:1-16 Key Takeaways: 1. God did not promise salvation to every ethnic Israelite, but only to those he chose to be recipients of his saving love ( Romans 9:6-29 ). 2. Generally speaking, Israel did not respond to Jesus in faith ( Romans 9:30-10:21 ). 3. God faithfulness to Israel is seen in that there is a believing remnant ( Romans 11:1-10 ). 4. God’s faithfulness to his promise to Israel will one day be seen in greater measure when God saves Israel in great numbers ( Romans 1...
Apr 21, 2024•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 9:1-13 Key Takeaways: Romans 9:6 Romans 3:20-25 Romans 5:1-5 Romans 8:1 Romans 8:28-39 Does Israel’s spiritual condition mean that God doesn’t keep his promises or that God can’t accomplish his purposes? Romans 11:33-36 Not every physical descendent of Israel truly belongs to Israel. Romans 11:1...
Apr 14, 2024•45 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Luke 6:46-49 Key Takeaways: Matthew 28:18-19 Ephesians 1:20-23 “Our commitment to Jesus can stand on no other foundation than a recognition that he is the one who knows the truth about our lives and our universe…Could we seriously imagine that Jesus could be Lord if he were not smart? If he were divine, would he be dumb? Or uninformed? Once you stop to think about it, how could he be what we take him to be in all other respects and not be the best-informed and most intelligent person ...
Apr 08, 2024•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Luke 24:1-12 Key Takeaways: 1 Corinthians 15:3–9 1 Corinthians 15:14 1 Corinthians 15:30–3 2 Jesus did rise from the dead and Christianity is true, and you must honestly face it. OR Jesus did not rise from the dead and Christianity is false, and you can completely forget it. Jesus did not die. ( “Swoon Theory”) The disciples were deceived. The disciples were deceivers. You won’t find Jesus among the dead. You won’t find life away from Jesus . 1 Corinthians 15:32...
Apr 02, 2024•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Isaiah 55:19 Key Takeaways: The greatest things we need are found in a relationship with God. “What causes us to be fickle is the realization that our present pleasures are false, while failing to realize that absent pleasures are also vain.” Blaise Pascal. The Greatest things we need are completely free. John 6:35 John 7:37–39 Anything that would lead you away from God, or rise above him, is an enemy to your joy. “...in the past couple of years, I have noticed a happiness pattern tha...
Mar 25, 2024•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Genesis 3:1-15 Key Takeaways: James 1:13–15 Hide from God Jonah 1:3–5 Psalm 139:7–12 Cover Up Make Excuses and Shift Blame Genesis 3:21 Luke 19:10 Face Ourselves Face God Luke 15:20 Receive Grace Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, Weak and wounded, sick and sore Jesus ready stands to save you, Full of pity, love and pow'r. I will arise and go to Jesus, He will embrace me in His arms In the arms of my dear Savior, Oh, there are ten thousand charms. – Joseph Hart (1759)....
Mar 18, 2024•34 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 8:31-39 Key Takeaways: God is for us and is greater than anyone or anything against us. Romans 8:1 2 Kings 6:15–17 God will give us every small thing we need, because he has already given us the Greatest thing we need “Who delivered up Jesus to die? Not Judas, for money; not Pilate, for fear; not the Jews, for envy; —but the Father, for love!’ Octavius Winslow Romans 8:32 God will always accept us in Jesus no matter what accusations are brought against us. Isaiah 61:10 Revelati...
Mar 10, 2024•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 8:28-30 Key Takeaways: The bad things will all be turned to good. Romans 8:18 John 11:33-35 John 11:38-39 The good things can never be taken away from you. John 6:44 Jeremiah 32:38-41 Ephesians 1:4-6 “What matters supremely, therefore, is not, in the last analysis, the fact that I know God, but the larger fact which underlies it—the fact that he knows me.. I know him because he first knew me, and continues to know me. This is momentous knowledge. There is unspeakable comfort—th...
Mar 03, 2024•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: John 16:20-28 Key Takeaways: Prayer is a Privilege secured for us by Jesus. Hebrews 10:19–22 “God is radically committed to my life of prayer. He shed the blood of His Son so that I might be cleansed and rendered fit to stand before Him in love. He also permitted the brutal rending of His Son so that I might now have a way to enter into the Holy Place through the torn flesh of Jesus. ‘Draw near,’ he says… How can I not feel the infinite sincerity of these invitations, especially when ...
Feb 25, 2024•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Summary: Scripture: Romans 8:26-27 Key Takeaways: Romans 8:1 Romans 8:2–4 John 14:15–17 + Presence Isaiah 41:10 Isaiah 43:1–5 Psalm 23:4 Psalm 34:18 + Prayer 2 Corinthians 12:7–10...
Feb 19, 2024•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast Scripture: Romans 8:18-25 Key Takeaways: + Cry Out Genesis 3:17-19 +Look Forward 1 Peter 1:4 The firstfruits of an incoming harvest were, literally, the first batch—and they were a foretaste of what was to come. Currently, the spirit is making us internally alive (v 10); giving us gradual, internal freedom from the effects of sin and death, making us slowly more like Christ (v 29). But this is only the firstfruits—just a taste of the complete, total freedom from the effects of sin and death in o...
Feb 12, 2024•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this sermon, Minister of Care, Scott Berry, focused on our identity as adopted children of God. He highlighted our identity as conquerors empowered by the Holy Spirit and heirs through adoption, emphasizing the significance of engaging with the Word of God and walking in step with the Spirit. Key Takeaways: + We are killers - We fight by the Holy Spirit - Word of God - Walking with the Spirit + We are adopted + We are heirs...
Feb 05, 2024•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast Text: Romans 8:5-11 As we continue in Romans, Pastor JR Vassar examines the profound contrast between living according to the flesh and living in the Spirit. Key Takeaways John 3:6 Galatians 5:19–21 Galatians 5:16–17 • Focus on Jesus • Devote time to the Word and Prayer Romans 12:12...
Jan 28, 2024•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast Text: Romans 8:1-4 Notes: + In Jesus you have all the acceptance you will ever need. - John 12:42-43 - 1 Corinthians 4:3-4 "To please God… to be a real ingredient in the divine happiness… to be loved by God, not merely pitied, but delighted in as an artist delights in his work or a father in a son- it seems impossible, a weight or burden of glory which our thoughts can hardly sustain. But so it is." — C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory. “We all automatically gravitate toward the assumption that we ...
Jan 22, 2024•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast Text: Romans 8:1-2 In Pastor JR Vassar's sermon on Romans 8:1-2, he emphasizes humanity's vital need for reconciliation with God, exploring universal guilt and the transformative power of faith in Christ. The book of Romans acts as a catalyst for reshaping lives and evoking profound spiritual responses. + Why are we studying Romans? + The greatest need we have is to be put in the right with God. + We want to experience the new life we have in Christ. + We are concerned about the condition of thi...
Jan 14, 2024•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast Notes: Text: Acts 2:41-47 “Beethoven has the real goods, the stuff from Heaven, the power to make you feel at the finish: something is right in the world. There I something that checks throughout, that follows its own law consistently: something we can trust, that will never let us down.” – Leonard Bernsetin, Composer +Spirit-Empowered Community is a place where people grow +Spirit-Empowered Community is a place to invite “The kingdom is to be in the midst of your enemies. And he who will not su...
Jan 08, 2024•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast Notes: Text: Hebrews 1:1-3 +The baby in the manger is God’s message to us. +The baby in the manger is God’s savior for us. +The baby in the manger is God’s king over us....
Jan 02, 2024•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Notes: Text: 2 Corinthians 5:14-21 +A follower of Jesus is no longer a prisoner to death. +A follower of Jesus is a new creation. +A follower of Jesus is sent. “Plainly, if Paul’s conclusion is to be drawn, the ‘for’ must reach deeper than this mere suggestion of our advantage: if we all died, in that Christ died for us, there must be a sense in which that death of his is ours; He must be identified with us in it: there, on the cross, while we stand and gaze at Him, He is not simply a person doi...
Jan 02, 2024•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Notes: Text: Exodus 25:1-9 “The central miracle asserted by Christians is the incarnation. They say that God became man.” – C. S. Lewis + Image of Tabernacle in the Encampment of Israel +The Tabernacle was a Place of Glory +Image of Book Immanuel +The Tabernacle was a place of Grace +Image of Ark of the Covenant +Jesus is the Truer and Better Tabernacle + In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. – John 1:1 ESV +Jesus is the Place of God’s Glory +Jesus is th...
Dec 18, 2023•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast